2014 US Snowshoe Championship

A late blog post about a long weekend of Snowshoe Racing in Vermont.

Mike Galoob recapped the weekend pretty well on his blog and since I did all the same things, you can read his story and I will fill in my thoughts here!

The drive up went by super quick, talking about possible races to put on in RI and RD "war stories".  We went directly to the race site and I was immediately much happier about the course.  After reading and hearing stories of the course from 2 weeks prior, I was not looking forward to running/slogging my way through over an hour on snowshoes.  My least favorite snowshoe race ever was the last time I ran nationals, in 2010, outside of Syracuse, NY.  The course was so torn up that it was a miserable experience!

Fast forward to race day...a beautiful day in VT, blue skies and minimal wind.  The place was hopping, it was a great atmosphere for the race.  We got in a solid warm-up and before you knew it, it was time to get on the line.  I decided to go against all the rules and used a new pair of snowshoes with a pair of shoes I have never worn with snowshoes for this race, the national championship.  I have been racing in the other shoes for 5 years, so why not change it up on the most important race of the year?  All was well and they stayed on my feet throughout the race...whew....

For me it was a tale of two races...UP and DOWN.  I struggled on the ups and ran strong on the downs.  I started to get passed by a boat load of people around 3k into the race on the climb up to the summit, but when Ben Nephew started going by me, I decided to hang on.  This is where my race finally changed for the better, after struggling for about 2k, 2k that felt like 5!  I knew I could hold onto Ben atleast to the top and knew that the course would start coming down from there.  When we hit the top and had a big groomed downhill section, I took advantage and went by Ben.  Now we still had about 5k to go, but it was race time!  Ben and I passed a few people in the single track sections (I FULL RESULTS

used a passing lane once) and Ben then flew by me and one other guy right after the last climb on the course at around 7k.  From there I tried to keep him in sight on the single-track before popping out onto some wide downhill groomed section.  I was able to bridge the gap that Ben put on me on the single-track and went by again, at this point we could now see that we were gaining on some other runners, one of which was Todd Callahan whom passed me on the climb earlier in the race.  I promptly caught and passed Todd and the three of us were now in a race to the finish.  Anytime the course flattened or had a slight uphill the two of them caught up to me, but I was lucky enough to have another downhill in which I went by them again.  With around 300 meters left before taking a left onto the switchback single-track heading down to the finish the three of us were neck and neck.  I put on one last surge to get ahead right before the single-track and was able to hold them off on the last flat/down/up/down section that made up the last 1/4 mile of the course.  It felt good to cross that finish line.  I thought my race went OK, but wished I was able to climb a bit better than I did.  I finished 22nd in the US Championship (27th overall) and 2nd in the 30-34 age group.  See

Day 2...
4x2.5k relay.  I was pretty excited about the relay.  I thought the team we put together of Steve Dowsett, Mike Galoob and myself could do pretty well.  I knew we would be competing against the Central Mass Strider guys, but didn't know how many other teams would be there, or if any of them would be any good.

Day 2

We woke up that morning to a dusting of snow, it was a bit windier than the day before and the sun had disappeared.  We made our way over to Prospect Mountain and we found a good amount of cars already there.  I guess some people would be running the relay after all!

Long story short.  Mike was going to run two legs.  He wanted to only have one leg in between his legs so I thought him going 2nd and last would be best.  I figured nobody would outkick Mike, even on tired legs.  I then figured I would go first, I thought that would be better for me, since I would be able to key off people.

This worked out pretty well.  The gun went off, two guys got out quick and I stayed right on CMS's Kevin Tilton up the first hill then made a move by him and the 2nd place guy before the first single-track section.  We made our way through that and made a 180 degree turn onto a slight downhill groomed section, this is where I moved into first and opened it up. 
I pushed hard on this section knowing the other parts of the course were slow single-track, that is where Kevin would have the advantage.  Well, my plan worked, I was able to hold onto a 10+ second lead going into the second leg.  From that point we kept opening it up.  I ran around the course giving splits and cheering on Steve and Mike.  In the end we beat the team that won the team title the day before in the National Championship and CMS finished in third out of 24 teams.  It was pretty exciting! 

Now just because the relay was over and we were the champions, didn't mean the racing was over, one thing remained...the 80 meter uphill challenge.  We lined up drag racing style and charged up the hill two at a time.  This race ended up being all about getting a good line and staying on your feet.  I got a good line, but did not stay on my feet!  I think I finished in just under 20 second, well outside the top-3 which would receive VT Maple Syrup for their effort.  It was a great way to end a weekend of beating ourselves up on the snow.

After waiting around for a bit and picking up our medals, it was time to head south.  We stopped at the Gardner Ale House on the way home and then proceeded to RI.  For me, that ended a short 3 event snowshoe season.  Now we wait for the snow to melt and get ready for the Brr-lingame 10 Mile Trail Race on March 22nd, the 4th race in the South County 4th Season Trail Race Series.

You can check out Scott Mason's Photo's of the event HERE and there are links to photos and stories on the race website.

Upcoming Races
3/22 - Brr-lingame 10 Mile Trail Race
4/5 - Big River 1/2 Marathon Trail Race
5/11 - The Quahog Mile (RD)

Belleville Pond Death March 10k

Snow...it is getting old.



The lot

Snow was the story at the 3rd race in the South County 4th Season Trail Race Series, the Belleville Pond 10k Trail Race.  The day before the race, Scott Mason and myself headed down to Ryan Park to get an idea of what the conditions would be like for the race on Sunday.  50 feet into our run and it was plenty obvious, they were not going to be good.  I ran a little bit on the rail trail and also checked out the Root Run Trail and a couple other key places before heading out of there...well...before TRYING to head out.  That was after spending 30 mins getting Scott's car out of its rut in the un-plowed parking lot.  I spent the rest of Saturday brewing a milk stout and having a few beers with my buddy Mark, then heading out to Doherty's in Warwick to fill the tank for the race in the morning.

Come Sunday morning, I was one of the first in the lot, after Scott and two other cars (one being RD Mike Galoob's)  Scott was hiking around in his snowshoes trying to pack down some unbroken snow and Mike was out marking the course, also in snowshoes.

After a while more runners were arriving and Patrick Quinn and I headed out for a 2 miler warm-up...on the roads, I didn't want to see anymore of the snow covered trail than I needed too!  After some last minute preparations, we were on the line ready to roll.

Jonny Hammett took out the pace with Chris Garvin in 2nd and I fell into third place.  I was happy with my position and happy with the slowish early pace (after we settled in)...the only thing I was not happy with was how hot I was!  I generally don't over-dress and only had a long sleeve under my short sleeve top, but after about 2 miles, I just HAD to get that shirt off.  We were running in a line of about 8 guys and I started undressing.  I took my short sleeve off, shoved it into my pants, then took off my long sleeve.  As I was about to put my short sleeve back on, Garvin made a move around Jonny.  It ended up not being a big move, but I panicked a little bit and jumped by Jonny too, that got the heart racing a little bit.  Garvin started pushing the pace a little bit from that point on, I felt like I had to push too hard to not let a gap grow and tried to get back on him with every downhill, but coming out of the Route 4 trail section, he had a gap that was just enough that I couldn't latch back on.

Course recon on Saturday

We entered the single track trails that lead back to the rail trail and I worked hard, but I felt with every step I was losing a little ground.  Coming back onto the straight rail trail, I could see Chris and started pushing...getting the pace back under 7 mins, but the trail was soft and for every 5 good steps you got, there were a few shitty ones.  It was getting a bit frustrating!  I was happy to get on the Root Run Trail and up and over the bridge...up until I had to go around that stupid baseball field.  It reminded me of Snowshoe Nationals in 2010, just a whole lot of mashed potato snow.  After getting through that mess, the race was finally over.  It took approximately 10 mins longer than last year, but better than the hour that I thought it might take, the trails were in better shape than they were in the day before for sure.

After the race Patrick and I headed out for what ended up being almost 50 mins of a cool down, crossing the frozen Belleville Pond to ensure it wasn't any longer than that.  We missed the awards, but I picked up a bottle of BBC Golden Spike before leaving.  Check out the FULL RESULTS and PHOTOS by Scott Mason.

After the race Turtles headed over to the Oak Hill Tavern to enjoy some beer and food.  Definitely another successful race in the series.  Since the 4th race in the 5 race series isn't until March 22nd, I expect this snow will be melted and we will be happily be running on dirt!

Before that though, I WILL be running on more snow...but in snowshoes.  This weekend is my favorite snowshoe race, the Kingman Farm Moonlight Snowshoe Race.  That will be followed by the National Snowshoe Championship on March 1st.  Hopefully the lower leg soreness that this race and the WTAC guys caused will be gone by then!

Catching up with some 2014 races...

Well, 2013 is behind us and 2014 has already gotten underway!

I started the year off with a jaunt from Hopkinton to Boston and felt it was a great way to start the year off. 

The first race in the South County 4th Season Trail Race Series was only 3 days later, but I wasn't too worried about running the marathon distance that close to race day, heck, I ran 25 miles with Ben Nephew the day before the opener last year!

The Old Mountain 5k Trail Race was on 1/4/14 and was the start to a bunch of races I have been looking forward to.  This years race was a whole different ball game from last years.  Last years race was basically a fast 5k through twisty trails where you just had to hold on for dear life!  This year we saw below zero temps on race morning with 6 or so inches of snow covering the course.

I figured the race would turn into a tactical affair and that is the kind of race I like, especially when the guys I am racing against are faster.  The race went out a tad slower then last year and instead of entering the single track in an all out sprint, I settled on Chris Garvin's shoulder with Ryan Woolley on mine and we set-off to grind through the snow. 

The problem with this scenario is that there is practically no place to pass, as the course is pretty much all single track and the snow made it even more difficult, because other then the tracks put down by some park foot traffic and RD Mike Galoob it would be all fresh powder.  So the second we entered the woods I starting thinking to myself, where and when should I make a move?

Finally before 2 miles I remembered a downhill/uphill section that I had run on my warm-up and thought that would be the best place to go.  So as we hit the down (which was much shorter than I had hoped) I jumped through some snow and bushes on Chris's right and made a hard move with hopes that I would get a gap.  I hammered the uphill around the corner as well as I could and just kept pushing, hoping that I would "disappear" with all the twists and turns and that Chris and Ryan would just let me go.

In the end I held on to my gap and crossed the line about 5 mins slower than the year before, but 2 places higher and 20 seconds in front of second place.  I was pretty shocked that I pulled it off and was happy to get the win.  The WTAC guys were out in force though and TNT had no chance of winning the team title, as they took the next 6 spots behind me.

I won a Samuel Adams variety pack for my effort.  Turtles went to Fat Belly's in Wakefield for the post race beer and food.  Full Results HERE!

One week later we were at it again at the Resolution Trail and Beach 5k in Narragansett.  This is probably my least favorite race in the series...running on a beach can at times just be a pain in the ass.  But this year, the beach was firm and the trails were wet and soggy, so it made for a bit more fun.  Plus the waves were crashing nicely and it was 40 degrees out, so it was a nice day to be on the Rhode Island coast.  This race does not favor my strengths as it is a pretty fast trail race and I am, well, just not that fast at the shorter stuff!  Ryan Woolley took it out pretty hard and I was in third or fourth for a while until I started moving up.  Ryan almost went of course because of a sign that had been blown upright, I yelled at him to set him straight (this is the second WTAC runner in as many months that I had to point in the right direction :) !!)

This lessened the gap between Ryan and myself, but the legs just didn't want to go.  I held on to a respectable 2nd place and more importantly held on to the overall series lead.  Mike Galoob screwed me out of a 17:59 and gave me 18:00 for my time...haha.  I guess I should have kicked harder!  Check out the full results HERE

I won some more beer for my finish, this time some BBC bombers.

TNT headed over to the Mews Tavern with 14 people in tow to enjoy lunch and beer.

The next race in the series is on 2/9/14.  This is good, as it gives me more time to get in shape! 

Before the next trail race, I had some snowshoe racing to take care of in Center Sandwich, NH for the Sidehiller Snowshoe Race.  This was my first time back on the snowshoes since February of last year.  The week before the race the date got changed from Saturday to Sunday, so I had planned to get in 13 miles on Saturday before the race since I wouldn't be getting a long run in on Sunday.  I planned a loop that accidentally turned into just under 16.  Whoops!  All was good though, Scott Mason and I left for Center Sandwich at 6:40am and arrived in just under 3 hours to a windy, cold, white little town, in the middle of nowhere New Hampshire.  I did just under 2 miles for my warm up alone and got the snowshoes on and did a few strides out on the course.  It was a cool 6 degrees with a wind chill of around -14 at the start of the race, but once you get going in a snowshoe race you would never know.

There was a pretty fast field in attendance and I feared the race would go out wicked fast like it did last year (6:16 through the mile)  That was not to be.  The field went out slow around the first turn and up and down the first hill before it started to string out a bit while weaving though some barn like structures before hitting some more groomed trails.   Around a 1/2 mile I was in 7th place right on Ben Nephews heels.  It felt good to be right behind Ben, with Jim Pawlicki right in front of him.  We entered some softer snow that ended up being some single track and about 300 meters later I decided to go by Ben and Jim and move my way behind Steve Dowsett in the 5th position.  1st through 3rd were not too far ahead of Steve, so I stuck right on him through some deeper sugary snow though the mile and moved by shortly after that.  I was now pretty close to Kevin Tilton who was in third and this is where the race took a quick right, then a left down hill, then a U-Turn, back up the hill then a right into oncoming traffic only to then take another right down the same hill.  We would then have a short down hill then back onto some groomed trails, around a field and through the start/finish area...we then had to do it all again.

Heading into lap 2, I was within a couple seconds of Kevin.  Jim Johnson in second and Brandon Newbould in first were starting to get away from us a bit, but Jim was still in sight as we went though the barns again and then turned into a still wind.  It was cool to see Kevin and Jim in front of me running though some crazy snow that was blowing every where. The course had a slightly different look to it the second time around.  With over 100 runner in the field that very narrow tracks we went through before were wider and the snow was softer.  It was hard to make up any ground while slipping and sliding around.  Right before the 3 mile mark there was a slight downhill on firm snow and I made a small move to bridge the gap and got myself a little

closer to Kevin again, but once we got back to the soft stuff, he regained the gap he had.  At that point I became pretty complacent.  I tried to keep the legs moving down and up and back down the short little hill.  Scott was still there and got me going a little bit to give one more attempt to chase Kevin down, but the gap was just too much and Kevin and I seemed to be going at pretty much the same speed.

In the end I ran what seemed to be pretty even splits and was super happy to finish 4th in a strong field.  This is the only snow shoe race that I have done every year since I started snowshoeing back in 2009 (other than 2012 when it was cancelled)  I am pretty sure the course has been different every year, but it is always one of my favorite races.  Full Results Here

I hit the road with a big group for just under 4 miles for a cool down, which ended up pretty much being all up hill on the way out and downhill on the way back...on snow covered roads.

We all squeezed in to Mocha Rizing Coffee Shop for some chili, chips and some sort of baked good, then it was off to Milly's Tavern in Manchester for some well deserved beer and some more food with Scott and Warren Angell (whom also ran the race)

Scott and I made one last stop on the way home at The Beer Store in Nashua to pick up some "not seen in Rhode Island" beers.  We rolled into Scott's driveway around 12 hours after we left...that's a snowshoe race!

Now I turn my attention back to the 4th Season Trail Series before I start building up some base mileage for the Vermont 100 Miler in July.  Other races on the schedule will include the Kingman Farm Moonlight Snowshoe Race (snow allowing), Snowshoe Nationals,  New Bedford 1/2 Marathon and maybe some random long trail races to get ready for VT.

Pre-Blizzard Post

Snow is coming...and lots of it.  Looks like we should be getting 10-20++ inches of snow here in Warwick.  Should be a blast...or not.

Stuff that has happened since my last post...I ran the Sidehiller Snowshoe Race and the Belleville Pond 10k Trail Race, you can see DJ Principe's Race Summary at the TNT page.  Both races went pretty well, although I was zapped of energy at the trail race after running Sidehiller the day before.

Sidehiller Start - Joe Viger Photo

I also went up to Canada and ran on the Sulphur Springs course, as I am scheduled to run that race in May...although, I am just not into doing that race right now, so it is pending at best.  I may choose another race closer to home.

This weekend is the Brrr-lingmae 10 Mile Trail Race...which will end up being a crazy run through some deep snow.  I have no urge on running right now...so I hope this race will bring me out of this funk, although it is going to take a lot more then a race to do that.  I was able to get out and get 8 miles in last night without being too blah about it, so that is a step in the right direction!

After this race, we have a longish run planned on the North South Trail and then?  The final race in the South County 4th Season Trail Race Series conflicts with another race that I wanted to do, so I will have to see how that all plays out.

I am hoping to get in a descent run today before the storm is in full force, but running alone right now will be a tall order...

I have been working on the RI 6 Hour plans and also the Run with the Beavers Trail Race plans, so news on those races should come out soon.

Year in Review

Another year in running has passed, most of the races and adventures that we conquered earlier in the year seem so distant, it is as though they never happened.  Here is a re-cap of some of the events I was lucky enough to be a part of this year.


1/1/11 - I started the year off defending my title at the Hangover Classic in Bristol, RI, winning in 27:57. The previous 2 years this race had bad snow luck, the course was covered in inches of snow and ice.  This made for slow and dangerous conditions, so it was nice to get on some dry roads this year.

1/2/11 - This date was supposed to mark the first snowshoe race for the TNT Snowshoe Team, however, Hollis, NH did not have enough snow, so the race turned into the Beaver Brook Snowy Slushy Trail Race.  With a small field of 17, I was able to take my second victory in two days, I think that was my last win of the year!

1/15/11 - Feel Good Farm Snowshoe Race... this is one of my favorite snowshoe races.  Feel Good Farm is an interesting place, as is the owner.  This ended up being the first snowshoe race for TNT in 2011, and for some unlucky soles, it was their first snowshoe race ever.  FGF is a tough place to strap on the shoes for the first time.  We had 10 Turtles toe the line at FGF and I finished 7th in a field of 67.  Unfortunately, this race has been taken off the Granite State SSS schedule.

1/22/11 - Whitaker Woods Snowshoe Race was one of our longer snowshoe race trips, heading up to North Conway, NH. This was a first time event put on by Kevin Tilton.  He had a great course set-up and we had another good TNT showing, with 12 runners toeing the line.  The highlights of this trip were popsicle sticks and a trip to Moat Mountain.

1/29/11 - A group of 7 made their way up to Center Sandwich, NH (Home of the largest dining room set in the Northeast).  The Sidehiller 4 Miler was the next race on the Granite State Snowshoe Series calendar, and also a northeast qualifier for the USSSA Nationals, which meant there would be a strong field.  I had a pretty good race and it came down to my first ever snowshoe sprint battle in the last 1/4 mile with Charlie Thierrault and Danny Ferreira, both of acidotic RACING.  In the end I beat Danny, but Charlie out leaned me at the line...it made for a fun finish.

2/5/11 - Another snowshoe race, this time in Exeter, NH for the Exeter Snowshoe Hullabaloo.  This might have been my worst race of the year, up until this point at least!  The path was super narrow and I kept clipping my shoes and went down multiple times.  The course was pretty cool otherwise...but this just wasn't my day.

2/6/11 - I was talked into running the Super 5k in Narragansett, RI so we could field a men's team and win the team prize.  It was a beautiful day down in Narraganset albeit a little windy.  With the afternoon start, I was still able to get in a long run in the morning and then attempt to run a 5k off of a race the day earlier and a long run a few hours earlier.  I was happy to come away with a 4th place finish in 17:00 and more importantly, the team victory!

2/19/11 - Snowshoe double-header...Since the Beaver Brook Snowshoe Race from 1/2/11 was postponed we ended up with a double-header on 2/19/11.  The TNT SST made the trip to Hollis, NH in the morning for the BBSSR, which by the way WAS my worse race of the year, then we headed to Milly's Tavern in Manchester, NH for some food and beer before heading to Madbury, NH for the Kingman Farm Moonlight Snowshoe Race.  The night race is by far the most fun of the year, and after running like hell in the morning I came back to run a good race, but ended up finishing 5th instead of 3rd after following Geoff Cunningham off course.

2/26/11 - The next to last snowshoe race was held at Northfield Mountain.  This was to be the first NEF Snowshoe Championship, it was a tough race with lots of climbing and it made me tired.

3/13/11 - 2 weeks after running up Northfield Mountain on snowshoes we headed way up north to the FINAL! snowshoe race of the season, The Granite State Snowshoe Championships.  This race starts across the street from Mountain Washington.  It was a nice mix of groomed trails and long climbs.  The race went well for me, finishing in 5th place behind 4 acidotic guys.  We finished out the year sipping on some beer provided by Redhook and acidotic RACING.

3/20/11 - The New Bedford Half Marathon, finally a race where I could show that I was in shape, getting ready for the marathon doesn't usually result in great 3-4 mile snowshoe races.  This race went pretty well, and I ran faster than I had expected.  I tied my PR according to the official results, and on the watch I beat it by a second.  I ran with teammate Matin Tighe late int he race, but couldn't reel him back in, in the final half mile, and he got me by 2 seconds.

4/10/11 - Doyles Emerald Necklace 5 Miler, It was a great after party, I don't think I raced?  Jackie ran a 5 mile PR though!

5/1/11 - The Cox Sports Marathon was the main goal of the spring.  This was actually the first time I had ever run a marathon in Rhode Island, so that was something to check off my list.  The race went pretty well, I feel I ran as well as I could with the training I had in the legs.  I finished with my second fastest marathon in 2:42:37

5/21/11 and 5/28/11 - We through in two USATF Mountain Series races before getting down to training for the Transrockies Race.  Northfield Mountain Race on 5/21/11 and Wachusett Mountain Race on 5/28/11.  The Wachusett Race went much better then the Northfield Race, but both were a blast.

7/17/11 - North South Trail Long Run.  Jackie, Karen and myself ran 35 miles of RIs NS Trail.  It was a great run in 90+ degree heat!

Jackie and Karen on the NST

8/7/11 - Because we are in the Brooks ID program, Jackie and I were lucky enough to get a free entry into the 1st Annual Rock n Roll 1/2 Marathon in Providence, We had no intentions to race this 1/2, but took it as a good opportunity to get in a long run.  I ran 17 miles before the race, while Jackie did slightly less.  We then ran in the race together, starting out EZ and passing all the runners that went out too fast.  You can read about it HERE.

8/21 - 8/26 - Transrockies Run...the epic run of the year.  I highly recommend anyone that enjoys running in the woods to try this adventure.  You can read about it here!

Stage 2 Transrockies

9/18/11 - Our Turtle teammate Karen Benway was planning on racing the Pisgah 50k.  This worked out well because Jackie and I had 30 miles on the schedule.  So we decided to make the trek up to the race and it made for a nice easy way to get in 30+ miles, while practicing fueling for the upcoming JFK 50 Miler.  Other than a wrong turn late in the run for me, it was a great day.

10/5/11 - 6:45 pm TNT vs NRA Showdown.  This was probably the most proud I have been of the Tuesday Night Turtles as a team.  When there is a race on the line, and the other team is trash talking that they would beat us to death, the Turtles came out of the woodlands :)  We might not have the fastest folks around, but we had the most team pride on this night, and with that we took home the big W...it was a great night!

11/13/11 - RI 6 Hour.  This was the third running of the RI 6 Hour, not bad for a race I thought up in the shower one morning.  The 2011 event went well, other than those damn cops.

Sunrise @ Warwick City Park

11/19/11 - The JFK 50 Miler was a great trip.  I was happy with my new 50 mile PR and super happy to see the TNT Women's Team of Jackie Jackman, Karen Benway and Issy Nielson, come away with the team victory and also breaking the Women's Team Record that was set back in 2002 by over 2 hours!!  JFK Race Report

2011 JFK Course Record setting women's team!

So those were the major explorations of the year, there was also running the Fat Belly to Fat Belly the afternoon after running Northfield Mountain and the Grog and Dog Jog on Columbus Day Weekend.  Not to mention the Run for Hope a few weeks ago, but I had enough recapping!  On to 2012, which I already started with a not so good race at the Hangover Classic, ending my three year winning streak.  But I followed that up with a great 2 hour long run today in the Arcadia Management area with Karen Benway and Zak Kudlak, so things are already looking up!  Good Luck to everyone with their 2012 adventures!