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Sights & Sounds from the 2018 U.S. Snowshoe National Championships
Sights & Sounds from the 2018 Dion Snowshoe National Championships which took place in Woodford, Vermont at the Prospect Mountain Nordic Ski Center! They had received 40+ inches of snow just a couple of days before race weekend.
“Sprinting” by Gavin Nephew
Gavin Nephew who is 10 years old writes about a couple of XC races he competed in at the Weston Ski Track in MA.
Race Report: Cat’s Tail Trail Marathon 2017 “Coming in Hot” by Ben Nephew
"When I downloaded my GPS data from Catstail this year, the first “top result” listed was 400 meters in 71 seconds, my second best 400 on Strava. That was how we started the race. I don’t wear my watch for everything, but Catstail is a technical trail marathon with 7k of climb that takes 4.5 hours. Yes, the first 400m is downhill on a road, but that still doesn’t really make 4:44 pace a good idea. To put this in perspective, my mile PR is 4:34. This was a new level of “Coming in hot.”
FKT Report: Swan Song Loop in New Hampshire by Ben Nephew
This one scared me, literally and figuratively. Where do I start? I had hiked many of the trails, which includes several of the hardest trails in the Northeast, and the idea of linking them up into a massive loop seemed like the ultimate White Mountain test piece. It is that and then some.
The 2017 Battle of Escarpment by Ben Nephew
Ben talks about his 2016 race at the Escarpment Trail Run and how his day went chasing after Matthias Lipsey again at the 2017 running of the mountain goats. This was his 18th Escarpment!
"The Alpine Stress Test” The 2017 Whiteface Sky Run by Ben Nephew
There is nothing quite like the Whiteface Sky Racing weekend. Not only does it have the only vertical K in the Northeast on Saturday, the Sky Race on Sunday has another two VK’s! My goal for this year’s Sky Race was to run faster...
"Kids Outside" Cascade Mountain Trip Report by Ben Nephew
"While I knew Gavin would love the slide itself, I wasn’t sure how much he would enjoy any necessary off-trail travel to reach the slide. I asked Jan Wellford about the climb, and he said the bushwhacking was not that bad, you just had to get around the near vertical face of the falls, which is a major ice climbing spot in the winter months. I decided that Gav and I would give it a shot..."
Manitou’s Revenge 2017 "Respect" by Ben Nephew
This is a 54 mile adventure that runs through the heart of the Catskill Mountains of New York. These are extremely rugged and mountainous trails. This was Ben's 2nd time running the race. In 2014 he placed 2nd to Jan Wellford. Coming off an injury, Ben wasn’t sure how his day would go...
Alone Time at the 2017 Cayuga Trails 50 by Ben Nephew
Ben Nephew was back for another go at this years Cayuga Trails 50 Mile Run in Ithaca, New York! Here is how his race went.
FKT Report: Taconic Rim by Ben Nephew
Ben is I’m always interested in challenging new routes, and has been especially interested in new FKT routes in CT & MA that are accessible for months longer than trails up north so he found himself the South Taconic Trail along with the AT that gave him a challenging route of 27 miles with about 8,000 feet of gain and some amazing views!