I love the running community and I love partying with them! We have everything! We have our health and everything else is an extra blessing.
 
I was blessed to finish the USATF Mountain Series and became a Mountain Goat along with fellow Goons Taz and Thunder God. It was an experience and accomplishment that I will never forget.
 
Mountain racing is not easy. It is very humbling. It is also crazy, aggravating, challenging, hot, humid, buggy, involves very heavy breathing, along with muscle torture. It is also full of laughter, good friends, new friends, great parties and the toughest runners in New England.
 
In my previous race report I talked about the first three mountain races, Northfield, Wachusett Mountain and Pack Monadnock Mountain. The final three races were Cranmore, Loon and Mt. Ascutney.
 
Out of all six races I found Cranmore and Loon to be the toughest. At Cranmore, you had to run up the mountain and then back down twice! On the down hill you needed to keep yourself under control because if not, you would end up like Bloody Bob. Yes fellow Goons, I was on my first loop running a steep down hill and all of the sudden I hear this guy screaming, “I CAN’T STOP, GET OUT OF THE WAY!” This guy comes screaming past me out of control and then goes into flight and lands. I stopped to help him and put water over his wounds on his head and arms. Bloody Bob ended up finishing the race but had to get bandaged up first. This guy has some true Goon talents.
 
The next day after Cranmore I got an email from Thunder God stating that he had to walk sideways because his quads were hurting so bad. Great stuff and he was not kidding. My quads were talking to me three days after Cranmore.
 
I found Loon to be just as tough as Cranmore. The course was torture. You ran up the mountain for about a mile, and then you ran down, then back up, then down, and back up to the top. When I saw the gondolas at the top I thought I was done. Wrong! You had to run back down a black diamond, and then take a hairpin turn to look at a black diamond that you had to climb back up.
 
Once up and over I thought I was going to be at the finish. Wrong! You had to run back down another steep decline and then when you got to the bottom you finished on a very steep grade kind of like the finish of Mt. Washington. My only problem with this course is that I really needed to be wearing trail shoes. I had to be very careful on the steep down hills because the shoes I was wearing were for road running and had no traction. I learned my lesson for next year.
 
The final race was Mt. Ascutney. This course is like a mini Mt. Washington and is approximately 4 miles. I was very excited because I knew when I finished that I would become a Mountain Goat plus Scott Mason (Flash) was also running and what Scott did not know is that he was going to be inducted into the Goon Squad later that day.
 
It was damn hot at the start and the course begins with an instant climb. Flash and I ran together for most of the race. He would pass me, and then I would pass him. This went on for most of the race. I was lucky enough to squeak past him by a few second at the finish but had to pay the price. Flash made me run down the mountain with him, pure torture on the quads. He wasn’t even an official Goon and was all ready out of control like a true Goon! It was good to be a Goat and Flash and I had a great time running down the mountain and later at the party. Post race party was a great ending to the Mountain Series. Beers, friends and inducting Flash into the Goon Squad.
 
I think the official Silver Bullet Goon Limo will be rolling to all Mountain Races next year and I hope to have it packed with Goons who want to be Goats.
 
Keep positive, keep running, and keep having fun. I was practicing my Goat call with Goatie at track but she still does the best Baa…Baa…
 
Final Overall Results USATF Mountain Series
 
Taz                     2nd Place
Thunder God       10th Place
Doctor Death:-/   50th Place
 
Doc D:-/