Race #18 = Border to Border

Race #18 took me to Douglas, MA just outside the birthplace of my mother in nearby Webster. My father grew up in neighboring Dudley, MA, so I sort of knew the region when The Last Mile Racing Company told me where I was racing tonight. It was a hot and humid day in New England, but the course was covered by a canopy of trees in the Douglas State Forest.

I might have been excited to run The Beach to Beacon or The D.A.R.E. Classic on the Loudon Speedway, but Charlie Olbrias, the President of The Last Mile Racing, was pumped up about this course. He found this route that had me starting in Douglas, MA going through Thompson, CT and then finishing in Douglas, MA again. Cool course on a humid evening. I ran my quickest time of the event at 4:40.39.

Here is a couple of photos of Charlie and I showing how this granite stone marks the change of the state line. On one side it is Connecticut and on the other side, it is Massachusetts.

After watching the video of me struggling

Race #16 – D.A.R.E. Classic (Part 1)

Race #16 on The SmoothToe New England Marathon…One Mile At A Time was the D.A.R.E. Classic on the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH. It was a very special evening as we celebrated the 19th year for this race www.dareclassic.com .

Here is a photo with Charlie Olbrias, from the Last Mile Racing Company, a color guard who performed before the 1 mile race, and Race Director, Maureen Steer who did a fabulous job along with the other NH State Police Officers.

We are going to publish another video this weekend of all the sights, sounds, and stories of this race, but first we will show the video of the one mile race. The rain held off, but not the wind as I struggled on the back stretch. I ran a 4:57.99 with a surge at the finish. I had an old friend, Jim Farrelly, at the wheel of the pace car along with Charlie Olbrias timing

Race #15 – Apple Orchard Mile

Race #15 was The Apple Orchard Mile in Londonderry, NH. We ran past Mack’s Apple Farm where they have done farming in Londonderry since 1732. My family used to go there as kids to buy apples by the bushel. We even had a

Race #14 – Beach to Beacon

Here is a photo from the Beach to Beacon 10K race and below is a video of the first mile.

Race #14 was the prestigious Beach to Beacon 10K. I ran the first mile of the race and it was featured in the Portland Press Herald http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story_pf.php?id=273917&ac=b2b. The Beach to Beacon 10K is a big race with 7,000 runners on the country roads of Cape Elizabeth, ME. The founder of the event, Joan Benoit, was there in attendance greeting runners and showing support for their efforts. I contacted Joan in February of this year about including the Beach to Beacon on The SmoothToe New England Marathon…One MIle At A Time race schedule.

Races #8, #9, #10 – MA and VT

Here is a little race footage from our races in Massachusetts and Vermont. Now we move onto Maine as I have 4 races in one week.
We will begin with our 2nd Capitol Race in Augusta on Saturday, Brunswick on Monday, Portland on Wednesday, and

Race #7 – The Covered Bridge Mile

Race #7 took place just over the Vermont border in a beautiful town called Woodstock, VT. I have presented tennis clinics at the Woodstock Inn the last two years and it was fun to return to one of my favorite Vermont towns to race part of the Covered Bridge Half Marathon course. Hosting the event were my dear friends from Sarasota, Mark and Kim Sheffield. Mark and Kim have a home in Woodstock for the summer months and spend the winters in Sarasota. Kim is one of my running partners. As a coach and competitive runner herself, she chose the best course for a road mile race as we raced on the pancake flat second mile of the Covered Bridge Half Marathon course. I had the pleasure to have Keith Drake to run with me. Keith

Race #6 – The Sunapee Sprint

Race #6 was held during Newbury, NH Old Home Day celebration. Newbury is a wonderful small town on Lake Sunapee. My old friend and selectman of Newbury, Gary Budd, hosted Sekyen and me. Thanks also to Travis Dezotell, from the Newbury Recreation Department, for helping put on the one-mile event.

Check out race #6, The Sunapee Sprint , video:

Next stop – Woodstock, VT!

Race #4 – Peltz Financial Mile

The Peltz Financial Mile took place on 7/8 in Windham, NH. It was the 4th race on the SmoothToe New England Marathon…One Mile At A Time tour. The beautiful neighborhood race course is part of the The Windham Turkey Trot 5 mile course