Mini Pony Trio Takes Top Spots at Hale Obstacle Race

Apparently, the 26x1 relay wasn't enough for three adventurous mini ponies. So after helping put the first "T" back in NETT, Crazy Dave, Big Ben and the original Ponyette Cindy took to the trail of Hale Reservation for the Hale Obstacle Course Race. And the results were....surprising.

The race involved running 5K on trails with various "obstacles" the overcome along the way. This included a hand-over-hand climb up Cat Rock, carrying logs, doing push-ups and sit-ups and a few other challenges along the way.

So, the results.....yeah....technically the results list Big Ben as the top finisher and Crazy Dave a few strides behind. Well the heterolifemates were certainly just a few ticks apart, but the actual race winner was Dave Conforto of the HFC Striders (lawschool classmate of another MiniPony all around good guy). Despite their best efforts to convince the organizers they were not, in fact, 1-2, somehow the results still showed them as the top 2 and Cindy as the second-place female finisher.

As with all the races in the Hale Race series, the funds raised go to help inner-city kids go to camp out in the 'burbs, so all the fun was for a good cause.

And as you can see, the trio (and Doris as their cheering section) had a LOT of laughs at the race. When asked why on earth he was laughing so hard in the picture, Dave said. "Me and Ben....won!" But why's that so funny? "It's funny 'cuz we're fat."

NETT Claims 4th Place at the SRR 26x1 Mile Relay

NETT made history on Saturday, by gathering 26 club members to claim 4th place overall at the Somerville Road Runners 26x1 Mile Relay. This was (as far as any NETT member can recall) the biggest group of NETT runners ever assembled for a single race and huge thanks to team captain Eminem for gathering the troops, herding the cats, and dealing with a few last-minute curveballs with her usual calm.

Here's NETT's race by the numbers:
Overall place: 4 out of 17
Finish time: 2:34:56
Fastest split of the day: 4:33
Youngest member of the NETT team: 15
Oldest member: 62
"Top 3" finishes in the age groups: 6
Countries represented on the NETT team: 8

• Haiti
• Taiwan
• Denmark
• Turkey
• England 
• Russia
• Canada
• US

But perhaps the most fun part was the mix of members that came out for the day. The NETT roster represented a great mix of longtime members and new faces (some very new) and all mixed together well. The "old guard" was well represented. Two of the club's founders Crazy Dave and Paul actually finished within two seconds of each other and were 9th and 10th masters overall--how's that for consistency over the years? "First generation" NETTers who have been members for more than a decade came out including the Winthers, Jean Dany, and Jerry D. Club stalwarts like Bob, Eminem and the KJ-Wangs were there all day. And a host of new faces all seemed to really enjoy the event.

The team's performance was best summed up by the comments of an SRR runner who approached the NETT table at the post-race party and asked "So Track and Trail? What are you guys all about?" (And just to show she respected our club she dumped a pitcher of beer on our table and laps!)

Big thanks to the SRR folks who organized this fun event. What a nightmare the results for this thing must be! Nice work. (I was impressed at the "green" commitment when a guy who ran a 4:45 mile is picking recyclables out of the trash 20 minutes later).

We'll be back next year.

Busy Weekend for NETT Racers at Multiple Event Events

It was a busy weekend for NETT members racing on the roads and trails this weekend.

For starters, Frank KJ took third overall at the Rye by the Sea Duathlon. He ranked fourth in the first run, 8th on the bike, and fourth on the second run. How that gets him third overall is beyond us here at the NETT news room but that's what the results say. Not bad for a 47-year-old!

 Not to be outdone by Frank's run/bike/run Amanda took to the roads of Newton Saturday for a run-run-don't run at the Heartbreak Hill Festival. She completed the 5K in 23:53 and only a couple hours later banged out a 10K in 48:42. Take THAT boys!

Mini Ponies Chris, Allison, and Bob headed north to the Kupenda 5 Mile XC race in Wenham in continuing pursuit of their age-group titles in the North Shore Trail Series. Chris was 7th overall, second master in 31:11. Bob got a raw deal by having to score in the 50+ age group, but still managed 10th. Allison skipped and weaved to 38th overall in 40:45

On Sunday, NETT runners didn't get much saner with a couple hearty souls braving the mid-day heat of 80+ degrees at the Great Lincoln Steeplechase. Crazy Dave managed third overall in 43:45. Katy/Kathryn ran hard early on and won her age group in 58:28. If Dave had remembered her NETT shirt, we're sure she could have shaved a few mins off that time!

The best part of the race was winning a Marshall-made Medal with a great picture of St. Anne's church on it. Nothing like it anywhere. Thanks Marshall!
Congrats to all the Mini Ponies out there this weekend.