A night out at the Savoy

The Prologue:

With so many good running options last weekend — the Gorilla run, the West Rock Challenge, and the Savoy Mountain 22 miler — I had trouble deciding where to run. A few weeks earlier, I had pretty much sold Catamount and Diana on the idea of heading to the Berkshires for some pre-race camping and Savoy. But my motivation flagged on the heels of a stressful week, so as race-day approached, I had to borrow some of their enthusiasm to forge onward. Read more

What you don’t know will get results

I have now confirmed my long-held theory that the secret to trail-running success is not consistent mileage or strength training or nutrition or mental fortitude, but selecting a sufficiently obscure, small, and unknown event, ideally one where you are likely to be the only person in your age group. It also helps if you don’t tell all your speedy running buddies that you plan to go. (Ever heard of the Haddam April Fool’s 10.5 Mile Race? the Greenville TN 30K? the Colchester Land Trust 5 miler? I promise… this strategy works, though it seems to be a bit easier for women to pull off). Read more

Baby wipes and rebellious legs

When I signed up for the Northern Nipmuck 16 mile trail race, I imagined that it would be a gentle, beautiful cruiser. Iggy’s bulletin board comments (“much easier, not that rocky or mountainous”) resounded in my brain. Somehow, I failed to register Forrest’s description of it as a “much longer Bash.” The beautiful part was certainly accurate! Read more

A Beautiful Day in Colchester

On the drive up to the Colchester Half Marathon this weekend, I realized that I hadn’t run a road race in exactly a year–since last year’s Colchester.   In some respects, it is about as close to being a trail run as a non-trail run can be.  Lots of wildlife (mostly bovine) and several sections on narrow, muddy dirt roads–snow-covered this year–keep you entertained. Read more

Twilight Trail Run

I couldn’t resist returning to the Twilight Trail Run (7.4 miles) near Groton on 5/29, since it was my first-ever trail race last year. (And, admittedly, I was tempted by the raffle, which—last year—boasted a kayak as a grand prize and so many donated awards that almost everyone patient enough to brave the cold rain was rewarded). I hoped to beat last year’s time and maybe win more than a Mystic-area car wash coupon book this time around! Read more