for this year's World Indoor Track & Field Championships in Istanbul.

Now we'll see what the 25-year-old mother of two can do outdoors.

, runs for Oregon Track Club Elite/Portland. But Sara is unsponsored -- unless you count the low-key deal she has with the Nike-based Bowerman Athletic Club.

"It kind of goes back to me being in this weird, post-collegiate place," said Sara Vaughn, who ran in college for Colorado and made the 800-meter semifinals at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.

"I'm not old, but I'm a little bit older. I didn't have a shoe deal -- I couldn't get a shoe contract after I got pregnant with our second kid. Adidas dropped me. The Bowerman Athletic Club were the only people to offer anything, and it was like shoes and $500."

It's not a terrible situation. She likes her coach, Chris Cook, and sometimes trains with the OTC/Portland's elite women. But it isn't easy.

The Vaughns left their support system in Colorado for Beaverton when Brent joined OTC/Portland last June, which means

for both

Kiki, 5, and Calia, 21 months.

It didn't prevent her from making her first world championships team. In Turkey, she finished

in 4 minutes 17.46 seconds.

"I underestimated how difficult the race was going to be," Vaughn said. "There were a lot of elbows and no rhythm. It was pretty difficult to hold your own pace. I wasn't anticipating it being that rough. But I learned a lot. I'm glad I went."

Now it's onto outdoor racing. Vaughn has the Olympic B standard for the 1,500, and is focusing on the Olympic Trials in June at Hayward Field. She is trying to piece together a racing schedule.

"I'm proud to have the B standard and I did make the World Indoor team, but that doesn't get you very far," she said. "I'm not considered one of the top 1,500-meter runners in this country. There are so many good people who've run sub-4, and others who've medaled in the World Championships."

Ken Goe: 503-221-8040;