The 1,000 Mile High Club

An historic run for the E Streeters today as Tommy Scanlon roared past the 1,000 mile mark for what he thinks is the first time ever, with a 10+ mile trail run in the Mine Falls Park in Nashua, N.H.

Tommy was joined by his fellow 2011 Marathon Men (except for Ryan Scanlon, who was notching his mileage in the Ocean State), and to commemorate, purely by coincidence, some of us broke out the swag from the 2010 Boston Marathon. A fashion gaffe, yes, but it gave us the air of looking like gangstas when running in another state.And to look the gangsta part, here's the chin stroke line-up to confirm it:Andrew crosses the bridge at Khazad Dum, and unlike the Balrog, he did pass.Barry was running so fast today, he was a blur.By the way, if you haven't checked it out yet, scope out Barry's running blog through the Lowell Sun at http://runningthevalley.wordpress.com/

When you're exploring new trails, it's always nice to have a map handy. Now if only they could read it.Troubled on a Bridge over Water:At one point, Andrew got separated from the group, but worry not - from out of the woods we heard the familiar locator cry of Carloooossss, and the E Streeters were reunited.At the end of his 1,000 mile trek, Tommy can manage a fist bump, but wonders where the perks are that come with being a member of the Mile High Club instead.That's not fog rolling in off these weary wanderers, it's steam.Congrats to all the extended E Streeter family for another successful year of logging the miles, whether it was running, walking, cycling, swimming, on streets, trails, bikes, or treadmills. On to the next 1,000!

An E Streeter Christmas

'Twas the day before Christmas, the temperature was rotten
But all was not lost, E Streeters were running in Groton

A brisk 24 degrees, some decided to can it,
But all of us knew Scott needed help with his graniteA hot breakfast would be waiting, a menu most grand,
Thanks to Susan, dear Susan, coffee cup in her hand. The breakfast, you see, was the true Groton draw,
Just ask these two men, fine brothers-in-lawIn Groton on trails, the water it freezes,
Giving grown men the chance to talk about baby cheeses

Today's trails were terrific, up hills high and low,

If you got lost, no worries, Scott knew where to goSome other E Streeters were dining on hams,
While this stalwart group had to climb beaver damsThe terrain it was tough, it could set men to cryin'
But not this E Streeter, no sir, not our Ryan

We ran on the trails for quite a long while,

We get best results when we run single file

At the halfway point, Scott was just doin' fine,

Out in Groton, the home of good old-fashioned moonshine

The E Streeter bunch, in the early morning fog,

Picture taken by Barry, for use on his blogOn the home stretch we head, everyone feeling just fab
But feeling quite worried, remembering that slab

At the end, in Scott's driveway, a pooped E Streeter pup,

But Ryan's got enough energy for one last thumb's up

We laughed at the granite in spite of ourselves,

And a special thank you to Sue's two kitchen elves

All as one, we did gather, feeling quite broken-hearted,

Knowing that finally, it was time to get started

When the heavy lifting started, somehow John, he was gone

But things were under control with Andrew looking on

We began the long journey, one step at a time,

This job would have been easier when we were in our prime

John made it to the party, albeit a tad late,

He made it in time for us to pass through the gate

Thought it might not actually seem it, 700 pounds were quite hard,

An eternity later, and we made it to the yard

With John ably shouting our paces in reps,

We began the tricky process of tackling the steps

Then Scott had a revelation, he said Holy Spit!

I don't think I measured if this thing it would fit!

With Sue looking on, her nerves quite a wreck,

We finally made it onto the back deck

With words of encouragement from Heather, Court, and Sue,

We said okay, we're here, NOW what do we do?

I know Scott was grateful for the help from his chaps,

But really, the day, it was saved by the straps

The stove slab did get planted with guts, brawn and hustle,

Good thing Scott's got friends who boast lots of muscle

We sat down to breakfast, pretty soon it was gone,

And all around the table, everyone asked "where was Sean?"

There were eggs, there was bacon, there were vitamin waters,

And for Scott and I, our two beautiful daughters

As we left from the Spences, saying bye to our bros,

We yelled Merry Christmas, and of course, Carlooooooos!

Merry Christmas to the entire extended E Streeter family!

E Streetebowers

We're nothing if not opportunists.

With the New England Patriots ready to square off tomorrow against the Denver Broncos and their quarterback whose name escapes me, the E Streeters figured today's run provided us with a chance to pay our own homage to the frenzy. Well most of us, at least. Carlos apparently hasn't caught the wave yet.The E Streeters took our Saturday run to the trails of Great Brook in Carlisle, one of the truly best circuits of trails to be found anywhere in our area for a great 7 mile run this morning.
The run featured the return of Andrew, home from Holy Cross for the Christmas break!

And it was all downhill from there. (Look at Sub-4 Sean setting the pace out front.)
If you've never checked out Great Brook, it's a must-see, whether you're a cross country trail runner or skier, though we're thankful that on December 17th, we're still able to be running on the trails, free of ice and snow. Sorry skiers!

Sporting our best Christmas colors, this father-son duo is outstanding in their field.Shots during the run courtesy of the iphone. And just in case you're wondering how we capture some of these award-winning pics after it's all said and done? Here's The Tripod Trailrunner himself, John Piekos.

Best of luck to the Pats tomorrow!

Jack Rabbits

The extended E Streeters family took to the Bruce Freeman Trail this morning for an important cause, raising money for Jack Christianson, who is bravely fighting leukemia. All of the proceeds from today's run and walk are being used to help Jack's family cope with so many other costs as they help their son tackle the disease. (And if you couldn't make it today, any donations are still welcome! Checks can be made payable to the Christianson Family Fund, c/o Krisy Ostrowski, and can be mailed to Kristy at 6 Margate Road, Nashu, N.H., 03062!) Please donate if you can, especially during this holiday season!

Pre-race, the extended E Streeters, now adding kids' bicycles to our repertoire.

Jill took the early lead, right out of the gate, but alas, it would not last long.Because Tommy wasted no time in blowing by herHere he is again, all smiles now, feeling satisfied with himself because he's crushed Jill in his wake.Sean and Barry, with their pace bike.At least one of the Scanlon boys would prove he had a chivalrous side today, though.Me, trying to figure out why the Scanlon boys are dressed in identical running suits.We're still all smiles at this point.Shea took off before her dad could take her bike and ride it back in.No bananas, and no husband (Jonathan was home tossing his Christmas cookies), Ruth was no nonsense out on the trail today!Surpisingly, none of us were even able to come close to catching Kara Haas, who makes us all look sadly old and and amazingly slow. An E Streeter alone, Tom Hildreth is trying to figure out where everyone is!Apparently, Anne walks the Freeman Trail every week, because our cameras keep picking her up out there.Dos corazons, en amor:This could have made for a great Christmas card, but the Kennys already got this year's mailed out.Post-ride, Shea found a quiet corner and took up a position that many of us feel like assuming after so many of our runs. Thanks again to everyone for turning out, and congratulations to the organizers, who pulled in quite a healthy number of participants to give Jack and his family a helping hand this holiday season!