Jingle Bells! Two Mini Ponies crash Davis Square 5K

Two NETTers ran the Jingle Bells 5K last weekend with great results. Here's Bobble Head Bob's report:

"Slava finished 21 out of 650 in his age group and I came in 4th out of 62 in mine today in the Marathon Sports Jingle Bell 5K in Davis Square, Somerville. Perfect weather but hard to run your fastest in such a big race (5,000), so I think we both did well. No pix except for a lame selfie. Results  are posted here."

Way to get in the Holiday Spirit guys! 

Ponies Take the Cup(s) at Walter's Run in second leg of NETT Winter Double

Overall winner
First place, Men 40-49
Third place Women 40-49
Third place Women 50-59

In part 2 of the annual NETT Winter Double, a few hearty Mini Ponies took to the streets of West Roxbury for Walter's Run with very positive results posted here.

Zack, Crazy Dave and Karyn all did the double. Zack went 2 for 2 on the weekend, winning Walter's Run in a blistering 16:07 more than a minute ahead of second place. Crazy Dave was next for NETT, winning the men's master's division and both Karyn and Mairead were third in their age groups. Bobblehead Bob ran a very solid sub-23 in the very competitive 60-69 category.

As always the Parkway Running Club put on a very well-organized and fun race. New RDs Reyna and Brian did a fantastic job motivating volunteers and getting great prizes (mugs, gift certs, etc.).

It was the great cap to the annual NETT Winter Double. 

Storm the tower! Mini Ponies Crush it at Mt Hood

First overall
Second place overall.
First Female 50-59
Second Female 40-49
First place, Men's Open Team.
First place women's Master's team.
Second place, Men's Master's Team
Fourth place Women's Open team

How's that for kicking total ass.

The NETT Mini Ponies basically dominated the Assault on Mount Hood XC race today with a great mix of team stalwarts and new faces teaming up to Assault the course.

HUGE congrats to Zack for literally running away with the race, paced only by his pal and new NETT favorite Joe. Going 1-2 pretty much sewed up the men's open category, but Slava made sure of it by running way beyond his current fitness level!

The Women's open team was a bright spot with three of NETT's top female recruits--Julia, Steph, and Bridget teaming up to finish fourth in a very tough category.

The women's master's team were paced by Kristin (second female 40-49) and Karyn (first female 50-59) and Julie "Save the Day McVeigh" basically scrapping her morning plans to show up and help the team to the victory!

And the men's master's team was paced superbly by Paul, Chris, newcomer Joe with Crazy Dave and Andy offering support.

Big thanks to our cheering section (Slava's family, new recruit Matt ) coming out for the day.

As always, the Melrose Running Club put on a great event on an insanely tough course. Great food, post-race awards ("YOU get a nutcraker, YOU get a nutcracker, YOU get a nutcraker). Brian Slater's crew just brings it every year.

Overall, an amazing day--THIS is what it's all about! Great results, but most importantly a LOAD of smiles and fun.

YP Takes the TARC Winter Crown, Bob Grabs an Age Group Podium

Big Congrats to Young Patrick who ran away with the 40-mile TARC Fells Trail Ultra Winter trail race last weekend.

The race, which was founded by NETT's own Bogie D, does laps of the Fells Skyline trail and runners can do laps either clockwise or counterclockwise. As a result, runners don't have a great sense for what place they might be in during the race. YP said he wasn't sure how close he was to second place. Well, it turns out he had a full 24 minute lead by the end of the race.
See the full results here.


YP wasn't the only one who had a good race weekend, too. Bobblehead Bob had his own success. Here's his report:

"On a whim I registered for the Cambridge Winter Classic 5K on Saturday last minute and jogged over from my home in Somerville to the race at Central Square on Sunday morning. Nice crisp, bright day and saw several familiar faces.

It was my first 5K road race since January 1st, the hip injury in the marathon, etc. so I wanted to get a baseline to see where I was fitness-wise before I run Walter's Race next Sunday December 13. I had been doing some track work outdoors and indoors lately trying to regain more of my speed, so I wanted to see if that work had made any impact on my fast twitch muscles.

Well, there were a couple of surprises.

The first was that they made a mistake marking off the course, so it turned out to be almost 3.5 miles instead of 3.1. So, my initial dismay at my time was tempered when the actual, longer distance on my Garmin matched other runner's measurements and ultimately the race officials'.

The second surprise was that I came in third out of 47 runners in the 60+ category!

Slava --- who at 39 is at the top of his age group --- was there too and ran a blistering pace to finish in the top 20 out of 450 runners in his age group!"
Full results here:

https://my.racewire.com/result/7013246

Congrats Bob!

NETT lays it down in Upton

Congrats to Young Patrick and Bob Segal for performing well at the recent durtyfeets Upton Trail Race. Patrick came in first in his age group and third overall in the half marathon (long) distance in Upton State Park, fractured collarbone and all. Bob came in second in the Senior division of the 10.5k (short), which for this race started at age 55+. Bob says, "It was a cool crisp day, perfect for running. Nice trails with rocks, roots, hills, fire roads, the works!"

Full results here. 

NETT goes 1-2 at Watertown, gets a little whacked at Busa Bushwhack

Mini Ponies were charging all over the place this past weekend on the roads and trails.

Huge congrats to Zack and Paul for teaming up to finish 1-2 at the Watertown Boys and Girls Club 5K Road Race. For Zack it was a mere tempo run, but for Paul, who doesn't race on his feet all that often, it was a smart race. "The guy who won the last two years tried sticking with Zack the first mile. I think that helped wear him down so I had a chance to take him with 1/2-mile to go. I knew better than to try keeping with Zack!


If you're wondering why Paul wasn't wearing his NETT shirt, he had a VERY good reason. His wife was running for school committee and Paul sayd, "Given the local event and two days until the election I was wearing Candace's campaign t-shirt to get a bit more visibility for her (then spent the afternoon handing out leaflets up and down those hill-roads across from the Watertown track NETT used to do hill workouts on).

And by the way, Candace won her election, so chalk up one more victory for the NETT family this weekend!

Meanwhile over at the Busa Bushwhack trail race in Framingham, things didn't go quite as well for the Mini Ponies. In the 10 miler, YP got a bit dinged up after taking a pretty nasty fall which slowed him down to 7th place overall. Crazy Dave posted another mediocre result finishing in 1:12. And NETT newcomer Julia got the "full" trail running experience by taking a slight detour but still finished in a speedy 1:30 over the rugged 10 mile course.

In the five-mile race, Adrienne did a real number of her ankle and had to drop out of the race. And we all know her well enough to know that had to be a nasty injury-and it was, her ankle and foot immediately swelling up. Thankfully, the race organizers do SUCH a good job here, they had a ride for her back to the school where there were two EMTs waiting to treat her and wrap her ankle in ice. (That's one of those nice EMTs in the back of the photo and it now you know why Adrienne is seated!).

The best performances of the day for NETT came in the five-mile race our trio of most mature runners finished 12th (Patrick finishing in a spot that equals 1/5 his age), 18th (Marshall) and  36th (Bob). Great work guys.

(In this pic Crazy Dave and YP hob-nob with trail running royalty--Art Gulliver and Rich Busa. YP definitely doesn't have a problem warming up to folks! )

NETT's M+Ms Go Over (to) Niagra Falls

NETT's Mini Ponies raced well in two countries this weekend (including one race that actually spanned two countries!).

On Saturday Eminem and Eminem Jr. (aka K-M-M and N-M-M) headed to Niagara Falls for the Niagara Falls International Marathon and Half Marathon. Initially, things were not looking hopeful for the younger of the duo, who suffered a para-spinal lumbar sprain about 10 days prior. The question was...would he run or wouldn't he? Dr. Ron determined that running would not create further injury...the decision would wait for a game day assessment. Well...with the help of a few pain patches, a lot of optimism, and unbelievable determination, he completed the half in a very respectable 1:37 (7:28 pace) and won first-in-age-group for his effort.

The senior member of the family team was ecstatic about her race, finishing in 3:57:05, about 3 minutes faster than her Boston Qualifier in very strong headwinds. Her brief report: "I ran the first half, from Buffalo, across the Peace Bridge and into Canada, comfortably and confidently with the 3:50 pace group. Stayed with them through the 30k (18.6 miles) when the headwinds along the Niagara River really picked up. It felt like we were running carrying weights for the last 8 miles. By that time I was a little depleted and slowed my pace down by nearly 35 seconds per mile until the finish. So my second half was just over 5 minutes slower than my first. That said, I had no doubt that I'd finish, and couldn't wait to see my support crew by the roaring Falls at the finish line. Exciting day!" Her run earned her 6th place in her age group, a medal with a rotating Canada-US flag, and tea from Tim Horton's!

Back in the USA, one of this fall's most prolific runners, Ilya Bass, completed the Canton Fall Classic 10k in 47:41 (a speedy 7:41 pace!) placing him 8th in his age group. Congrats!

Stay tuned for next weekend's results, when a sizable crew of Mini Ponies heads to the Busa Bushwack Trail Race.

Mini Ponies Crash the Age Groups at Ravenswood, Scarecrow races

NETT Mini Ponies had a very successful weekend, taking multiple age group awards at the Ravenswood Trail Race and the Lincoln Scarecrow race.

First, here's Bobblehead Bob's report from Ravenswood:

The Hall family did quite well today at the very technical Ravenswood 4.1 mile trail race in Gloucester. Andy and Bridget ran together, pacing her to second place in her age group. Meanwhile, Kristin, who owns this race it seems, finished first in her age group. And on top of that, during the post-race raffle, the Hall family won a family membership to the trustee organization that sponsored the race. They can go to all their parks and conservation lands for free! In my firdt North Shore Trail Series race of the season, I was happy to come in second in my age group. Beautiful crisp fall day and lots of goodies afterward.Full results posted here.

Meanwhile over in Lincoln, Paddlah Steve took the 60+ age group at the Lincoln Scarecrow 5K race, edging out his age-group nemesis (and all around good guy) Joel B.

And lastly Beet Juice Zack crushed the filed at the Pam's Run 10K in Wayland, running away with the race in 33:28, a cakewalk for Zack. Results here.

Mini Ponies Roll Onto Wayland

The NETT XC specialists headed to the Wayland XC race for the umtheenth time and had a ball racing around the fields and trails of Wayland High School. On on the men's side, the Mini Ponies rolled out their more veteran squad and made the top 10 teams (okay, there were only 10 teams). Not bad. The trio of Steve, Marshall, and Patrick all finished in sequential order, a great XC team strategy. (Andy dropped in the first quarter with a bad hamstring).

On the ladies' side, our newest member Steph had a ball in her second trail race and Katie did double-duty as runner and mom/coach shuttling between the youth races and her own 5K. 

On a more historic note I'm pretty sure NETT has had some representation at Wayland every year since it's inception. It's a great race. 

Video: NETT Wings moves up to 9th place at Reach the Beach

Breaking news in the NETT newsroom: The Wings team somehow moved up to 9th place overall in the final results for the Reach the Beach relay (one of the top teams must have been penalized in the final results).

Also, here's a fun video that documents our journey through the wilds of New Hampshire. Enjoy!

Perseverance Personified: Marshall and Bob go 1-3 at Houghton's Pond Trail Race

Huge congrats to two of NETT's most senior members for overcoming injury issues and successfully returning to trail racing. 

Marshall and Bob took 1st and 3rd in their age group at the Houghton's Pond trail race this weekend, both having worked their butts off in the past months (and more, in Marshall's case) to rehab and recover from nagging injuries. Here's Bob's report:


"On a cool, clear perfect day to run in Milton, the NETT masters division was well represented in the 6.2 mile trail race with Marshall Randolph running a blistering pace to finish first in his age group and 31 overall. Bob Segal completed the NETT sandwich around Segey Borisov by finishing third in the age group. Stephen Peckiconis ran a fine race himself and was kind enough to take this photo of the top three 60-69 finishers."

Whether it's training, charity work, racing or injury recovery, these two guys lead by example and NETT is lucky to count them among our members. 

Full results here:http://www.coolrunning.com/results/15/ma/Oct4_Hought_set2.shtml 

NETT takes overall, age group wins at Bird Park 4 Mile Trail Race

Congrats to Young Patrick and Bobblehead Bob for their performances this weekend. Here's Bob's report:

"\Pat and I decided independently to sneak in a quick 4 miler Saturday down in Walpole. I think we were both surprised to see each other there.

It was described as a trail race but it was really more of a cross-country race, similar in terrain to Elm Bank, with a mixture of mostly flat grass, dirt trail, and pavement. I told Pat he was my favorite to win the race, and he did! He got a real nice plaque for winning overall and he was first in his age group as well.

Full results posted here.

NETT Wings Team Cracks Top 10 at Reach the Beach

Breaking news: NETT's Wings Team finished in 10th place -- OVERALL -- at the Reach the Beach Relay this weekend. Not in their division. Not for a mixed team -- 10th place out of 500 teams, total. Full results are here: http://www.rtbrelay.com/liveresults/index.html and a more detailed report is on the way as well as a full set of photos. After we get some sleep. A lot of sleep,

NETT Masters Kick Off the XC Season at GBTC XC Festival (Video)

Four of NETT's more "seasoned" male runners kicked off the XC season by running the Greater Boston Track Club XC Festival. Rather than try to describe the scene, we've put together this fine video that describes the day well. Enjoy!

Thanks to GBTC for putting on a great team-focused event. Racers ranged from age 5 to 80 and that's REALLY what it's all about, right?

Full results are posted here.

The Young NETTers Take to the Trails

Here's a report from NETT's unofficial trail race reporter, Bob Segal:

On last Sunday (Young) Patrick and Zack represented NETT well at the Greenbelt's Beverly Commons Trail Race, Beverly, MA. Patrick came in second overall (and first in his age group) in a close duel with the eventual winner. Zack twisted his ankle in the first quarter mile but soldiered on and still finished in the top 25. Both guys ran tough races and showed a lot of mettle.

The weather was perfect and the race well run by the Greenbelt folks.

Thanks for the report Bob and congrats to Patrick and Zack!

NETT Hosts Another Successful Wellesley One for Hannah's Fund

Congrats and kudos to all the members of New England Track & Trail who helped organize a wildly successful race on Sunday.

The race at Elm Bank Reservation drew more than 300 registrants ranging from super speedy racers to toddlers and grandparents doing their first race. And that's exactly how we like it.

For results and photos you can check out the race web site here:
http://wellesley1miler.org/past-results/

All of the funds raised go to the Hannah Randolph Memorial Fund, which provides scholarships to students who share Hannah's passion for athletics, the arts, academics, and generally making the world a better place.

NETT volunteers, preps for Boston Marathon

It is a busy weekend for the NETT mini ponies and it's going to get busier!

On Friday night the group gathered for its annual pre-Boston Marathon dinner. It was fun time to get together and plow down massive amounts of food!

On Saturday morning a few of the Mini Ponies headed into the Marathon expo to pick up their bib numbers and ... low and behold the NETT magnetism brought them all together (despite the fact that they hadn't come together. Weird right??)

And later Saturday, they headed over to Cradles to Crayons for the annual Hannah Randolph Volunteer Day. Each year NETT members volunteer for a worthy cause to continue Hannah's legacy and try to make the world a better place. NETT crews cleaned shoes, inspected t-shirts, and packed up clothes for needy kids in the Boston area. Special thanks to Amanda for organizing the volunteer day and to all the NETT members who participated.

Now there's just one more stop on this busy weekend, right?

NETT Members Get Rewarded at North Shore Trail Series Awards Night

Three of NETT's finest got their just desserts at the recent North Shore Trail Series awards nights. Here's Bobble Head Bob's report:

The North Shore Trail Series awards night was held Jan. 12 at New England Running Company in Beverly. Those of us at the awards received really nice zip/hoodie sweatshirts and a pint glass for completing at least 8 of the 9 trail races.

The results of the 9-race series are here. Chris "Fluffy" Smith took second in his age group, Alison Lackey took second in her age group, each of them running all the races except the Stone Cat marathon. I took first in my age group for the second year in a row, and fool that I am, I ran all 9 races including Stone Cat.

This trail series is lots of fun and very well run. Races take place on nice trails in places like Lynn Woods, Gloucester, Beverly Farms, South Hamilton, Ipswich, and Wenham. The race courses go from 5K to 5, 7, 10 milers and end with the Stone Cat trail marathon in November. This year they may replace one of the 10 milers with a half marathon in the spring sometime. I highly recommend the series to all NETT members.

Congrats to all!