It has been quite a start to summer for The Firm Project the past few weeks and things should only pick up in the weeks to come!

After a wet and cold Sunday for the 2016 Japan Run, the duo of Erik and Connor returned to the streets of NYC a week later for the Brooklyn Half Marathon on the 21st of May. Always proving to be an excellent race year in and year out, the two Firm Project racers went in looking to have some fun and test the fitness a month removed from the Boston Marathon.

Rising well before the city streets were filled with the usual hustle and bustle of a New York City Saturday, Connor and Erik found themselves shooting down Washington Ave. just past 7am and hitting the first mile just over 5:30. While Connor would be slightly out front for the 1/3 of the race, Erik would eventually like up with his teammate as the race entered Prospect Park. Riding a wave of momentum and adrenaline, Erik exited the park and hit Ocean Avenue in hot pursuit of a new personal best. Despite the solitude down Ocean Avenue, Erik would stay composed and go onto cross the line in Brighton Beach with a huge new PR of 74:16. Still finding his form, Connor wasn’t too far off his compatriot and came home in a respectable 74:25.

The Brooklyn Half was an important reminder that the benefits of the Firm Project methodology are all about the long game, especially after a paltry Boston Marathon performance. This was an epicurean race for me, one that wouldn’t have been possible without the dog meat, ersatz plumes, and rock solid friends & teammates. I know everyone at the Firm is looking forward to cashing in some dividends as we try sole waltzes with shorter races this summer.

Kicking off the month of June, our faithful NYC duo once again headed to their daily stomping ground and toed the line at the 2016 NYRR Retro 4-Miler. That Sunday’s race conditions weren’t necessarily ideal, as it was quite humid and temperatures hovered in the mid 70’s as the race got underway. Despite the adverse conditions, Connor displayed his growing fitness and finished up in a respectable 21:25. Taking 40th place overall in the competitive field, Connor’s race was a ten second improvement from his showing at the Japan Run and a strong step in the right direction. As we know, not every race out will be spectacular and Erik did his best to hang tough on a subpar day. Stopping the clock in 22:39, Erik would finish in 81st place overall. At The Firm, we feel that it’s important to highlight the good, the bad, and the ugly, so below you will find Erik’s person log from race day.

Moving forward from the Retro 4-Miler, we now find ourselves just a few days away from one of our biggest races of the summer – The Mount Washington Road Race. A grueling 7.6 mile trek up the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi, we are very excited to return a place where we have experienced much success over the past few year. We are also quite excited for our upcoming Mt.Washington experience, as we will be welcoming back our faithful leader from the West coast, Jerzy Eisenberg-Guyot. Please stay tuned over the next few days for updates and fun anecdotes on our journey to the summit!