Summer Report!

We haven’t been doing the best job of blogging during these summer months, but we have been busy racing all throughout New England and putting in the work for a big fall!

Following our journey to the White Mountains in late June, we laid off the racing and focused on getting some quality training under our belts. Making sure to still keep things fun over the hiatus from official racing, we saw Erik hop in a local 5K Road Race over the July 4th holiday weekend to get in a nice workout. Running well out in front from the gun, Erik comfortably cruised to an easy win at the 15th Annual Smallwood July 4th 5k. Not too far behind Erik was Firm Project ally, Jeff Marvel taking 2nd overall! A few weeks removed from Fourth of July, we once again packed up our bags and loaded up the car to head to the great state of Maine. Once arriving in the happening city of Portland, we would round the travel day with a short ferry ride to the picturesque, Peaks Island! Serving as a summer retreat for the Firm Project over the last few years, we thrilled to be back on the island once again for the 29th Annual Peaks Island Road Race. Ensuring adequate rest from the previous days travel and accumulation we arrived about 36 hours prior to the race, which meant a fun and relaxing pre-race day on Friday. It was certainly made sweeter by the addition of our friends from California and North Carolina, who would also be joining us for a great weekend!

After enjoying a quality home cooked pasta dinner and a restorative night of sleep, we woke up refreshed and ready to take on the challenging Peaks Island course. Despite the unusually warm temperatures for the Casco Bay area, the crew was undeterred and focused on claiming top honors for another year. Getting off the line comfortably, we would see Matt Rand sit comfortably on the early race leaders, while Connor took position just off the leaders with his own competitive contingent. Right before two miles and cresting the biggest hill of the course, Matt kept his foot down on the throttle and broke free from his competition. Running alone for the rest of the race, Matt kept things in check and took home his 5th straight Peaks Island title with a time of 27:05. It certainly was not Matt’s fastest time run, but it was enough to secure a win and keep the streak alive! Working well amongst top competition, Connor held his own and crossed the line in 29:00 for 5th place overall. While also off his personal best Peaks Island time, Connor has now finished in the Top 5 at every Peaks Island race since his first appearance in 2013. Despite just missing a Top 10 Finish, Jeff Marvel finished strong in 11th place and a time of 30:41. Rounding out the Firm Project contingency would be Adam Brosh taking 23rd place (32:43), Sam Haney finishing in 53rd (36:03) and Cliff Bargar right behind in 55th place (36:08). While it might not have been the fastest day for Firm Project racers, we were still quite pleased with the efforts displayed. Plus, you can never be too disappointed when you can add some “hardware” to your shelf!