I cut this one a little close, I guess. I parked somewhat precariously on the shoulder of the road, and when I tried to register, a half hour or so before the start of the race, I was told I needed to find the race director and request that he re-open online registration so I […]

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My first two-race weekend in some time, and somehow, this ended up being a second surprise trail run in a row. The race itself was quite different: nearly 200 runners, pre-race group stretching, and the race was very well staffed and the route well signed. So many volunteers and signs along the route were sure […]

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Hartford probably hosts more races than any other town in the state, so I’m not sure why I haven’t run here before except because of just that reason: there’s no shortage of races, so I always felt like I could pick one up anytime. As I return from Alaska and the fall race season starts […]

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Located in that triangle formed by New Haven, Hartford, and New London, East Hampton is about an hour from home. It was raining until just before the start of the Belltown Spring Sprint, which was a benefit for a post-graduation party for the local high school seniors. The race was fine; I got passed by […]

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A nice, big, well-organized race (more than 400 runners), up in Windsor Locks, near the airport. We started and finished at the high school, and while I didn’t manage to come in under 25:00 again, I gave it a good effort. I don’t know the last time I saw as many people running in the […]

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The “elusive” status of Westbrook was enough to overcome the fact that the forecast predicted solid rain all day (to the point where the race website posted a pop-up indicating that the race would go on, rain or shine). The town is one of the closer targets left on my list, now numbering less than […]

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Crossing over 120 has somehow made 169 seem not as far out of reach, so I’ve been adding races to the calendar and trying to knock off as many as I can, when I can. It’s not going to happen in the “under ten years since I started” or “before I turn 50” milestones like […]

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Trying to keep a shorter gap between races over the winter—last year I went four months—I was glad to find a January race that wasn’t too far away. It was far enough away that there was snow on the ground, though, which we no longer have down here. It felt like a slog, honestly, as […]

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I always thought the minimum to count for a town race was a 5K, but apparently that’s not the case. This two mile race was a nice change of pace. While the girls headed off for their CMEA auditions, I headed to Berlin for this race. Lots of runners in costumes, and Christmas music was […]

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After last weekend’s race, Dad and I had talked about doing another one this weekend, but I was a little surprised he was up for it on his vacation. North Haven has been a surprisingly elusive town for me, so close but not a town I’ve managed to get to during all these years. The […]

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This time, Grace put her foot down and insisted on sleeping in, but my dad was up for a 5K, so we headed to Stonington and parked in the lot at the Mystic Aquarium. Having a pair of African penguins at the start was definitely a first. The race was well organized, heavily staffed, and […]

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Grace and I got up without too much trouble at 6:45 and made it to the Quiet Corner of the state for the 9 a.m. start in Ashford. I pulled off the road into the Ashford Park entrance, next to another car but more importantly, right on top of a concrete culvert hidden from view. […]

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Grace and I drove up to Farmington for a really nice 5K trail race at Winding Trails camp today. She was plagued by the same leg pain that bothered her during the ski season last year, so we took it slow, but she kept at it and ran most of the way. We’ve got out […]

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I had four races to choose from this morning, and went for the one I could get to in time, with a 10:30 start in Simsbury. The rain was steady the whole way up, and I only got there 20 minutes before the start. Another first: QR code, credit card-enabled registration on site, after which […]

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I’m getting closing sewing up all of New Haven and Fairfield Counties, so it was finally time to head back to Greenwich for maybe the second or third time since leaving there in 2000. I wonder if any of my former students’ families were running today… It’s been long enough that I don’t know if […]

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