Hello and Happy trails! The spring was frequently wet and cloudy in the North East, but since the start of June the trail running has been phenomenal, the forests green, and the rivers and streams flowing beautifully- It is a good time to be a trail runner in New Hampshire!
This blog will be heavy on words and short on pictures- Be sure to check my strava (link on the side) and instagram (@BrandoRuns) for more frequent updates on my personal running adventures-
After a strong showing at the June 10th TNF Massachusetts race, the remainder of June and July were spent having fun running with friends, working on setting up races, and starting as the NE sales rep for Salming Running North America- All the while I was prepping to run really hard at the Ragged 75 stage race and 50k, a race that is near and dear to my heart-
The highlight of July was pacing Marek Telus to a sub 20 hr finish at his first VT100- He gave everything he had and just squeeked under that 20hr goal- We even paced the man himself, Hal Koerner at about mile 90- It was amazing to witness and a Joy to be a part of- I have know paced the "who's who" of athletes at VT 100 and VT 50 and Marek was no different- Bravo!
The plan was to get stronger and stronger throughout the summer, then run a few key workouts and vert weeks before the Ragged 50k, now the New England champs- training went about as well as it could and I was primed for the battle- So were a few others! Long story short, the race went about how you would think on paper- Patrick started fast and held on for the win, He's a seriously fast dude; Brian, after 2 hard, but unchallenged days, still had enough energy in the tank to hold off us challengers for 2nd; Iain used his "old man" strength and British toughness to hang with Andrew midway, bridge to Brian and then gut out a 3rd place. Andrew held strong after Iain surged and wouldn't let me reel him in over Raged, despite my best efforts. I had to settle for 5th. My race was relatively uneventful, sans the last climb up Ragged, whether, it was actually it or not, I lost it thinking I was seeing Moosilauke. The mountain where Chads journey ended, and yet his works, his events and his spirits were rolling, strong and true- What better way to end an adventure on the old SRK. My good buddy Eric cruised in just under 6 hours for a solid finish, especially given his lack of training. Jacqui and Rob were an incredible team to help crew us AMPers, we all would have slowed without their help!!
Despite a little pity party from miles 12-20, I ran pretty well overall and have a few small changes to make for my next long race. Steady improvement over time has been my M.O., and although I went into 2 more competitive races with high expectations this summer, I really ran well, despite my disappointment in the outcomes. Some days others are just faster than you, but if you don't run your own race, you risk finishing well off your potential.
The next few races I have on the horizon are really exciting and fun, from half marathon all the way to a 50m fkt attempt. Just ordered this shoe, which should help keep the quads a little more fresh in the waning miles of the longer races on tap.
Other than that, I think my mental game can use a bit of a boost- I have greatly enjoyed running, racing and training with some awesome people this year, but I havn't quite found that "eye of the tiger" competitive drive or the mindfullness to dig deep in certain situations...that being said, this weekends race has already sparked a fire in my belly.
Remaining race schedule:
Sept 3rd Wapack fall race 18m NH
Sept 16th Mettallak adventure race- short course w Danny Ouellette NH
Sept 24rd Kismet Cliff Beast of the East half marathon NH
Oct 15th Stowe Marathon VT
Nov 4th Sunapee-to-Monadnock fkt attempt NH
Thank You for the support Salming Running North America, Team AMP active, Darn Tough socks, Julbo eyewear and of course, Jac, who makes all this possible-
Happy trails!!
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