NETT Takes Five of Top Seven Spots at Walpole 5 for the Fourth

A gaggle of Mini Ponies took to the woods of Walpole today at the Walpole 5 for the Fourth, a XC hosted by the new club, the Walpole Rebel Runners, in Chris Smith's hometown to raise money for Walpole's Fourth of July Celebration. The NETT results were impressive on all levels.

Here's Mary's report of the day:

"The Walpole Trail Race (5 for the 4th) was a nice event.  It was on the trails behind the Walpole HS (Chris Smith's old stomping ground).  It was a small low key trail race (perfect for NETT).  The trails weren't very technical, 1/2 of the race was on a gravel fire road, so it was a very runnable event.

In total, there were 6 mini ponies at the race but only 5 mini pony runners.  Dave did not race, since he's recovering from a 'small cold'.  Dave ended up unintentionally volunteering at the turn around point (an out and back that they didn't have a volunteer at).

Chris Smith battled with a high schooler (or so I'm told) and won the race.  He was followed by Big Ben (3rd overall), then Marshall (not sure of his place - but I assume he would've won his age group), followed by Me (2nd woman) and then Amanda (3rd woman).

At the start of the race Amanda said she was going to just "jog" the run and was worried that she shouldn't have worn her NETT shirt as she'd embarrass our group  - obviously she came in 3rd and was no where near an embarrassment :)

Big Ben entertained (as usual) providing random tidbits of knowledge - ask him about the difference between a Rotary vs a Round-a-bout."

Marshall added his take on the day as well:

"Mary graciously let me overtake her about a half mile from the finish because
she knew that my spirits can always use a boost. I certainly appreciate the 10
miles that she was forced to run Saturday making it possible for me to run with
her today.Toughest part of the day was having Amanda doing an IT band recovery 2 mile jog
and then lighting it up for the 3rd mile and almost catching Mary and me at the
finish.

And ya gotta watch those warm down runs.... someone put a brand new root in the
trail and I hit the ground with every part of the front of my body which was
probably lucky since I seem to have escaped unscathed."

It was a fun day with some of the core NETTers.

NETT Sets a Good Mood on Moody Street

Two NETT members rocked the streets of Waltham at the Moody Street 5k this weekend, winning their divisions.  Slava took 5th overall (out of 1,089 runners) in a time of 17:54, good for first in his division. Patrick was 10th overall and also first in his division with a time of 18:54.

Congrats!

NETT continues its assault on age-groups at Pipestave

It's still early in the trail racing season, but it's looking good already for NETT as they came away with age group awards at the recent Pipestave Trail Race. Here's Bob's report:

Chris Smith and I won our respective age groups this evening in the Pipestave 5K trail race, the first in the North Shore Trail Series (the first race is the only one on a week night). No confirmation if Chris  drank beet juice before the race too ...

Check out the age group results here

Nice work boys! Setting the bar pretty high!

Back to Business: NETT hits the roads and trails

Well it's been an odd/difficult/emotional -- pick your adjective -- period to be a runner, a Bostonian, a human lately. But  NETT is doing its part to make sure the terrorists don't win. And that means running -- a lot.

First off, big congrats to NETT's Boston marathoners Marshall and Amanda. At first, in the wake of all that happened, congratulating finishers in the marathon just seemed insensitive to those that were injured or died that day. But Martin, Krystal, and Lu  were all there to support runners and ignoring the great performances that day seems...counter..to the great spirit that drew these folks to the finish line. So here we go:

Marshall ran his usual strong race finishing 16th in his age group, in 3:17. Just amazing. Amanda laid down a PR time of 3:24 after putting in a very very solid training period and racing very smart. Mark my words--this is just the beginning for this Ponyette.

Since the fateful day NETT has been busy in more ways than one. We ran a memorial run along the marathon course from Natick into the finish line area to visit the memorial. There are some pictures of our visit here on the NETT Facebook page.

More recently, this past weekend, NETT hit the trails in a big way. Big congrats go out to Bob Segal who won his age group in not one, but TWO trail races this weekend! Here's Bob's report:


"You may recall, that I accidentally double-booked myself this weekend with the TARC half-marathon Sat. in Jericho Woods, Weston and the Foxtrot 10-miler at Blue Hills Sunday (which I registered for without remembering I had the TARC race that same weekend). So I decided to race the half marathon hard as I could to better my time from last year and maybe place in the top 3 in my age group. I improved my time by 10 minutes and came in first! See the results here. 

On Sunday I decided to go easy and see how I felt. Lots of rocks and hills (I can see how you fell and broke your ribs there) but by mile 5, I still felt pretty good so I picked up the pace to see what I could do. I finished first again!" See the results here. Lovin' this new age group so far ... must be the beet juice I continue to drink before every race."

Nice work Bob. Meanwhile on Saturday, Crazy Dave and Chris hit the trails in the Blue Hills for the Blue HIlls Brewery's South Shore Trail Race. It was ultra-low key (self-timed, no official results) but important number to remember was two-that's how many beer tickets each runner got! (Chris was second overall, Crazy fourth, by the way).

And Sunday it was really back to the normal with a brunch run at Frank + Tina's the most NETT of all NETT activities.

We'll never forget those that were directly and indirectly affected by the events on Marathon Monday and if I know NETT, we'll be organizing more events to honor the victims and raise money to help them. But it's also good to be back to normal, trying to spread good vibes through running.

A Message to Whoever Did This

We supported each other before the blast. We sprinted to help each other after the blast.
We picked each other up off the ground and pulled the debris off each other.
We put pressure on wounds while still in our sweat-drenched singlets.
We wrapped volunteer's jackets around bloodied limbs.
We cried on each other's shoulders, wrapped in mylar.
We continued toward the finish line with bombs going off 20 feet away and immediately turned around to help others behind us.

We'll continue to cross finish lines and we'll continue to turn around and help others behind us.  
We are millions strong and growing stronger every day, including today.

You didn't stop us. You can't stop us.

NETT's Dietary Secrets Bring Success

It's only Sunday night and it's already been an incredibly busy weekend for NETT.

On Saturday morning, Bob Segal took to the trails like a Mini Pony should and finished third in his (newish) age group at the Merrimack River Trail Race. His secret?

"In addition to just being in better shape and having run the course before, I drank beet juice before the race! An idea that Zach first planted in my brain last fall. It was even written up in a recent edition of Trail Runner magazine, with studies confirming that it somehow helps your body use oxygen more efficiently. So I tried it in a 5K trail race in late March and again yesterday and in both cases I ran faster than last year. I still think most of it has to do with experience and conditioning but the juice may help too!"

Nice work Bob. We love to hear about our veteran runners influencing the kids like that!

Also on Saturday morning Doris and Crazy Dave took to the streets (and bike paths) of Vermont to run the Unplugged Half Marathon. Doris paced herself smartly to a new PR in a decent headwind while Crazy Dave ran a PW in the half but managed seventh place overall and first master.

They Chow-Hannons rewarded themselves with burgers and beers from the Farmhouse Tap and Grill (two thumbs up!) (Doris admitted that burgers were in her mind for most of the race).

Speaking of eating, NETT had its annual pre-Boston carbo-loading fest! A few Mini Ponies ate like a full stable and enjoyed a mess of food! (Thanks JD!) Check out the pics here on the Facebook.

Lastly, GOOD LUCK to Marshall, Amanada and Ali on Monday. The training will pay off.

NETT to host Wellesley 1 Miler for Hannah's Fund

Great news! New England Track & Trail will be organizing and hosting the Wellesley 1 Miler this year on May 12 at a new location, Elm Bank Reservation in Wellesley!

Once again all of the proceeds from the race will benefit the Hannah Randolph Memorial Fund, which provides scholarships to deserving 9th graders who share Hannah's enthusiasm for athletics, arts, and friendship.

We can use all the runners and volunteers we can get, so sign up now! All of the details can be found at www.wellesley1miler.org and on Facebook.