Back in December of 2017 I decided to sign up for my first Ultra Marathon after only previously ever running a local 5K as an “organized race”. This was the TARC (www.trailanimals.com) Winter Ultra at the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Massachusetts. This race was 32 miles of rugged, knee crunching terrain and 6000-ish feet of…
Review: Ultimate Direction AK Mountain Vest 3.0
After a couple of years of trail running with my trusty Ultimate Direction Wasp I decided it was time to retire it and move on. When I purchased the Wasp I was transitioning from primarily hiking to running and was seeking something that fit more like a backpack and less like a vest. Since then,…
Running the Pemi Loop – A Classic White Mountain Death March
September 22, 2017 I’ve been training hard on my local terrain in Massachusetts as well as hitting the White Mountains when I can. Trail running regularly with as much elevation gain and technical terrain as I can get my hands on. I wasn’t training for a race. There would be no medal or award ceremony…
Field Tested: Altra Lone Peak 3.5 Trail Running Shoe Review
Thru Hikers, Backpacker’s and Trail Runners will be excited to see a new version of the Altra Lone Peak on the shelves! The Altra Lone Peak 3.5! For the past 2-3 years or so I’ve been trail running and hiking wearing the Altra Lone Peak trail running shoes. These shoes have evolved over the years…
Field Tested: Katadyn BeFree 1.0L Water Filter
When I first got into hiking and backpacking I would carry an MSR Sweetwater pump style water filter. This type of filters uses a lever/plunger assembly and tubing to filtrate the water through a carbon filter for drinking. While they do work really well for filtering gross dirty water in a fast manner, they are…
5 Awesome Destinations For The Boston Based Hiker
You’re a hiker or trail runner working on your New Hampshire 48 4000 footers… but you live near BOSTON in Massachusetts! The struggle is real! For most simply uprooting your family, destroying your career, and moving north isn’t really an option. Even the most dedicated are weekend warriors at best. Speaking as a seasoned “Masshole” myself…
Altra Lone Peak 3.0 Review – In Search Of The Perfect Shoe
Back Story Two long years ago I made the switch to trail runners from my heavy waterproof leather boots. My first pair of trail runners were a pair of La Sportiva Wildcat GTX. While these are pretty awesome in spring snow, they are rather bulky, waterproof shoes. During a Presi Traverse I quickly learned that…
Video: Why I Do It
I decided to try something different. I was browsing through my gigantic library of images and video’s from over the past few years. Instead of creating some long dragged out video you’d lose interest in I decided to smash it all into a 3 minute video. Here’s the result… Let me know what you think…
Single Day Pemi Loop! – August 2015
With cooler days in New England becoming more common. The sun going down earlier and earlier with each passing day. I decided I needed to squeeze in another long trail run / hike in the whites before the seasons change. Having just completed a Presidential Traverse in July… I wanted to push myself harder than before. This brought me to the Pemigewasset Loop AKA the Pemi Loop!