tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84511007812765846482024-03-16T05:16:20.477-04:00fill me with meaningAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15893232247473261696noreply@blogger.comBlogger511125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-89620811221962989872019-10-20T15:43:00.001-04:002019-10-20T15:43:41.414-04:00Ghost Train Trail RaceI wasn't prepared to love Ghost Train, but I did. I woke up this morning at 5:15 a.m. completely unenthusiastic about the prospect of driving up to Milford, NH to run a 15 mile trail race. It was dark and cold; I was nicely spooned around my boyfriend in bed. Did I really want to haul myself up and go run for a few hours? Yes, of course, I did. Kind of.
Ghost Train, put on by TARC, is both an Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-85800696734793823782019-10-07T13:42:00.002-04:002019-10-07T13:42:36.487-04:00Rugged Maniac 2019If you’re an obstacle course racer, chances are that you’re aware that Rugged Maniac is a fun time. The 5K, 25 obstacle event features unique and enjoyable obstacles at a do-able distance. It’s a great introductory race if you’re a diehard who wants to bring your friends.
My first Rugged Maniac was two years ago. Though I can almost always be found hanging out with my NE Spahten teammates, Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-34724529299275915912019-09-21T17:16:00.002-04:002019-09-21T17:16:43.910-04:00Bonefrog Boston 2019For the second year, Bonefrog, an OCR brand run by Navy SEALs and local to my area of Massachusetts, hosted its Boston event at Carter & Stevens Farm in Barre. The farm is about a 40 minute drive from my house. A few weeks out from the event, I noticed I had a free weekend and that there was a 30% off coupon posted on Facebook. Why the heck not? I find Bonefrog to be an enjoyable race and a Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-84960649225655647502019-08-17T14:37:00.002-04:002019-08-17T14:37:52.258-04:00Anchor Down Ultra 6 HourI don't change plans. Which is why I surprised myself last Monday afternoon when I sent an email to my coach with the following message:
I spent a lot of time at NorAm thinking about the 12 hour Anchor Down Ultra (7pm - 7am) and the more I thought the more I realized that I needed to switch it up. The reasons are this: (a) I signed up for ADU because it was what my Ragnar Trail team was doing Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-77661360386608475812019-08-13T14:19:00.001-04:002019-08-13T14:23:01.744-04:00North American OCR Championships 2019: Team Relay & Charity Open
Sunday of a race weekend is always tough. You're sore. You're tired. You're probably "hangry." Perhaps you just want to get home and settle yourself on your coach under your cat with a book and some tea. And there's one more day of racing.
The final day of the North American OCR Championships featured the team relay and the charity 7K events. The team relay allowed for groups of three, where Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-17305083291195322182019-08-12T14:02:00.004-04:002019-08-12T15:54:04.520-04:00North American OCR Championships 2019: 15K40 obstacles. 15 kilometers. Over 3,000 feet of elevation. The 2019 North American OCR Championships 15K beat me down like very few races have.
Saturday morning dawned perfect for racing. Temperatures were in the 50s and wouldn't get out of the mid-60s. There was a mix of sun and clouds. I was sore from my efforts of the previous day, but I was determined that I would give the 15K race my allNicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-60220596511791108052019-08-12T13:39:00.000-04:002019-08-13T12:41:44.608-04:00North American OCR Championships 2019: 3KLast year, my one and only goal was to have 100% obstacle completion at one of the races of the NorAm OCR Championships. I did it on lasts year's 3K, in what remains probably my happiest moment as an athlete. This year, going into NorAm, I knew things would be different.
Thus far, 2019 has been the year of the ultra. The bulk of my training has been focused on running long and slow. It'sNicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-82089276441550285112019-07-15T15:31:00.002-04:002019-07-15T15:31:49.037-04:00Savage Race Boston 2019In its third year in Massachusetts, Savage Race 2019 at Carter & Stevens Farm in Barre, Massachusetts once again delivered on the fun. Running Savage Race with my NE Spahtens friends from our Ragnar team, NES Ninjas, has become an annual tradition I look forward to. For 2019, a core contingent of us showed up -- Jess (our most excellent NES Ninjas Captain!), along with Bobby, his girlfriend, Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-35628002192383686002019-06-26T14:46:00.000-04:002019-07-01T11:16:42.579-04:00Vegan Power 50KIt is official. My coach, Geoffrey, and his wife, Heather, at Hart Strength & Endurance are a bad influence. Why? Because at 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, I found myself in Pittsfield State Forest at the starting line of the Vegan Power 50K, a six-loop trail ultramarathon sponsored by BURCS (Berkshire Ultra Running Community for Service).
The way this entire thing came to pass sounds entirely Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-7446860893186466822019-05-13T11:25:00.001-04:002019-05-14T09:49:21.904-04:00Ragnar Cape Cod 2019For the sixth (!) consecutive year, I had the privilege of running Ragnar Cape Cod with the New England Spahtens Ninja team. For those who have not participated, Ragnar is a 12-person relay race that covers approximately 200 miles. Runners take turns running "legs" and hand off from person to person. Each runner runs three times over the course of around 36 hours as the team makes its way from Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-56034724483708067032019-05-06T14:04:00.000-04:002019-05-07T09:49:45.411-04:00Cinco de Mjolnir Ultra Viking 2019I'm a fan of Viking Obstacle Course, a fixed course of around six miles at Sunny Hill golf resort in Greenville, New York. I try to make it there every year for at least one of their several races. 2018 ended up being busy and the races just didn't fit into my schedule. As a result, I was determined to make it to Viking in 2019. Enter their May 5 race, Cinco de Mjolnir Ultra Viking.
It actually Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-75953649332463063162019-03-31T15:45:00.002-04:002019-03-31T15:45:33.309-04:00Black Birch Vineyard 10 MilerMarch 31, 2019 was the inaugural Black Birch Vineyard 10 Miler. There aren't that many 10 milers that are available; plus, this one was put on by the folks who organize the Happy Valley and Fort Hill Brewery Half Marathons. I was impressed enough by last year's Fort Hill Brewery Half to sign-up again, and it made me want to give the Black Birch Vineyard 10 Miler a try. I anticipated based onNicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-59683090157691273312019-02-04T10:07:00.001-05:002019-02-04T10:07:08.415-05:00Shale Hill Polar Bear 8 Hour 2019The temperature gauge on my Volkswagen registered -10 degrees Fahrenheit as I pulled out of the driveway of the Lake Bomoseen house where I was staying with my fellow NE Spahten teammates. It was 6:00 a.m. and I was headed to Shale Hill for their final race, Polar Bear 8 Hour.
The sky was still dark when I pulled into the parking lot and made my way up the hill to the barn for check-in.Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-42864639050106970342018-12-21T10:56:00.001-05:002018-12-21T10:56:33.475-05:002018 in review; 2019 in planning2018 was the year of coaching. I joined forces with Hart Strength and Endurance and thus approached 2018 with more intentionality, planfulness, and strategy than former years. This worked. I trained hard, stayed focused, and had more improvement as an athlete this year than ever before.
Other years have been years of growth -- years where I have tried lots of new things. In contrast, 2018 Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-11102508401369186032018-11-20T13:17:00.000-05:002018-11-20T13:17:01.872-05:00F.I.T. XI Fall 2018November 17, 2018, F.I.T. Challenge hosted their eleventh event at their regular venue, Diamond Hill in Cumberland, Rhode Island. F.I.T. Challenge is always a popular event with me. The (slightly over) 5K course is absolutely the right blend of challenge and do-ability and makes this race both an accomplishment and good fun.
F.I.T. Challenge also offers a lot of options for racers who really Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-64214064687991755842018-10-05T11:17:00.001-04:002018-10-05T11:17:18.240-04:00Wineglass MarathonI had always figured that the Wineglass Marathon would be my first marathon. That is, until it wasn't. I ran my first marathon in 2016 and ended up selecting the Newport Marathon. Less than a year after that, I did the Vermont City Marathon in 2017. But Wineglass was always there in the back of my mind. The reason being that Wineglass Marathon sounded fantastic -- scenic course up in the Finger Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-5158254121261029392018-09-08T15:14:00.002-04:002018-09-10T10:14:55.173-04:00Bonefrog Boston 2018
This year, for the first time, Massachusetts native company, Bonefrog, took their obstacle race to Carter & Stevens Farm for the September Bonefrog Boston event. My last Bonefrog was at their home venue, Berkshire East in Charlemont, MA. However, I had taken a year off from Bonefrog, a mix of circumstances based on my schedule and personal course design preferences. When I saw that Bonefrog Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-67975625955176483032018-08-13T13:19:00.002-04:002018-08-13T13:19:41.047-04:00North American OCR Championships 2018: Team Relay & Charity Open
The last day of the North American OCR Championships featured two events, the Team Relay and the Charity Open 7K to benefit the Stratton Foundation. My team from OCR World Championships, Tiny^2 + 1, had once again joined forces for the team race at NorAm. Niki and Steve were good teammates from the Spahtens and excellent friends to do the team run with because we all were on the same page -- Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-3512471450975672202018-08-11T20:52:00.001-04:002018-08-11T20:52:55.302-04:00North American OCR Championships 2018: 15K15K. 39 obstacles. Hard core. The 2018 North American OCR Championships delivered on the difficulty with the 15K race, which had over twice the number of obstacles from Friday's 3K course and what felt like infinitely more feet of elevation.
The women 30 - 34 wave set out early in the day at 9:15 a.m., an amazing privilege, not the least because rain was predicted for the afternoon. The Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-15970454538308104832018-08-10T17:38:00.001-04:002018-08-11T20:53:25.383-04:00North American OCR Championships 2018: 3KThe story of my 3K race at the North American OCR Championships begins with the past. In October 2017, I traveled to Canada to participate in the OCR World Championships. I had trained hard. I thought I was ready. But I wasn't. The course was harder than I anticipated and the difference between my expectations for my success and reality were mentally challenging. I had been convinced I would keepNicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-44642853109185287932018-08-06T20:18:00.001-04:002018-08-07T10:30:28.390-04:00Ragnar Trail Vermont 2018"We experienced some next level Noah's Arc shit this weekend, so how is it even possible that I have a sunburn?" I posted on Facebook to the NES Ninja Trail group page the afternoon after getting home from Ragnar Trail Vermont. My teammates agreed -- nothing could sum up the weekend better.
2018 was my third running Ragnar Trail with the NES Ninjas (and the team's fourth year in existence). Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-13836322603151260972018-07-14T17:43:00.000-04:002018-07-16T11:30:50.234-04:00Savage Race Boston 2018Fun! My goal for Savage Race 2018 was to have a good time and chill with my NE Spahten friends. Check and check. I already have plans to register for 2019.
Savage Race came up to New England for the first time in 2017. I had been eager to check it out and, if you read my blog post from that race, it didn't disappoint. Savage Race prides itself on having the best obstacles and being the perfect Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-75820289678769039432018-07-09T12:52:00.004-04:002018-07-10T13:55:31.715-04:0024 Hours of Shale Hell 2018Shale Hill just put on their last summer race, Shale Hell. The weekend of July 7 - 8, up in Benson, Vermont, I took place in the final summer event of the soon-to-be-closing Shale Hill. With one final race, Polar Bear 2019, the fixed obstacle course venue, which has been offering training and races for over six years, will close shop.
I have been going to Shale Hill for training and racing Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-44152584498852414862018-06-26T17:32:00.002-04:002018-07-10T10:53:14.575-04:00Tough Mudder Boston 2018On Sunday, I took part in my fifth Tough Mudder. After four years of racing at Mount Snow in Dover, Vermont, the Tough Mudder crew moved this year's New England event to Charlton, Massachusetts and renamed it Tough Mudder Boston.
In addition to a new venue, the course took on a new format. In the past, Tough Mudder has focused their efforts on a 10 mile course format. Recently, they have Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8451100781276584648.post-86923809378681945642018-06-21T14:49:00.000-04:002018-06-21T14:49:34.610-04:00Mid-Season ReviewRace season is approaching. I traditionally have opened my season with Ragnar Cape Cod and then transitioned into obstacle course racing for much of the summer. This year is no different. Over the next few months I have quite a few races coming up:
June:
- Tough Mudder
July:
- 24 Hours of Shale Hell
- Savage Race
August:
- Ragnar Trail
- North American OCR Championships
Nicole Sibleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12353639254160295200noreply@blogger.com0