White Memorial Summer Cross Country Series - Great event(s) you get to pick your distance - 2K, 3K, 4K or 5K. I choose to run the 5K all the time to build up my distance training. I think I ran 4 events out of the 8 and knocked 2 minutes off my time from first to last. This is a great series and put on by some great volunteers - we had 191 runners at one race! More info:
Litchfield Parks and Rec
Next - the 11th Annual People's Forest 7 mile Trail Run. Now 7 miles is not a lot, but when you have 2 climbs of over 500 feet and the second one is climbing on rocks... well you get the picture. I was lucky to run most of the race with Cindy S, and it was great to have someone to run with as it was easy to get lost in the woods. One section has you running on a thin ledge with a 40 ft drop to your left. I was happy with my time for the first time running this, and plan on doing better next year - after that???
Torrington Road Race - I was disappointed in my time, even though it was my 2nd fastest at this event. It got hot and muggy just before the race and that took most out of us. This race is hitting its 40th anniversary next year and the organizers promise something special.
Roxbury 8.2 mile Judd's Bridge Run - another fun run from the Roxbury Group - This was a fun course and my 5 mile mark time was faster that the Torrington Road Race! The weather was better and the grade slightly downhill - the back was a little tougher. Another great volunteer group - which leads to
Roxbury Mile II - This is a run event with a very challenging field - to pacing, just 6 minutes of flat out running. Bob was going solo on running the event, but people stepped up to help with the timing and scoring and this allowed two heats to be run. Results will be published later, but I ran a 6:21 in the first heat (okay time for what I had today) and ran about a 6:58 in the second - yes, I ran the second as a pacer for Bob and also to see what I could do - could have used a little more of a recovery, but quite happy with the results.
Now, with 6 weeks to go, am I ready to try for the Hartford Marathon????
