Name: Darrel Lasell

Town: Williamstown, VT

Where are you from originally and what brought you to this area?
I was born and raised in Williamstown. In 1984 I built a house on land I got from my father about half a mile from where I grew up.

What do you do professionally?
I am the in the QA department at AADCO Medical Inc. In Randolph, VT. We make leaded aprons, shields and accessories for radiation protection in the X-Ray room.

How long have you been running?
During high school I lived on the outskirts of town. The school bus ride home would take more than an hour, but my neighbor and I could run home in about half an hour.

How long have you been running competitively?
I ran XC in 1975 during my senior year at Williamstown Jr/Sr High School and earned the White letter award as MVP (it was a small team). Although I was a very active hiker and geocacher, I did not race again until 2015. My first real race was in Stowe, Race to the Top of Vermont.

Why do you run?
In 2014, I was 265 lbs. and although a very active hiker, I was having trouble keeping up with my fellow hikers. Then I started experiencing problems with my vision and the Dr discovered I had very high blood pressure (219/139) causing blood vessels to break in the back of my eyes. The Dr. told me to lose some weight and put me on some BP meds. At first I could barely jog half a mile downhill. With portion control and ambitious exercise the result was me losing 50 lbs in 5 months. I still eat pizza and cookies, just not the whole thing. My goal was to be able to run up a mt and keep up with Cris Cote, a hiking buddy and runner.

Then we got a new Husky, Chloie, she loved to run and was a terror if she didn’t get enough exercise. A year later, a second Husky, Dakota, and then a third Husky, Lexie. They love to take me out for a run, whenever they can (or terrorize the house if they don’t). They are my personal trainers (I don’t get a day off). I guess I am a bit like them now. If I don’t get some rigorous exercise every day, I get cranky.

Last year, I got down to 180 lbs. and I have my blood pressure under control.

Recent memorable moment while running?
In 2019 I ran all 9 races of the Winter Wild series by Team Amp. They are challenging/rewarding races, that are made really fun by the RD and fellow mtn runners. Each race is up a ski area Mtn with great views, and to top it off, last year, I took 1st place in AG for the series.

Best athletic accomplishment and why?
In 2019 I decided to try to run 100 actual races, This meant I would have to run an average of 2 races a week, almost every weekend of the year. I prefer trail or mountain races to flat road races, but there are not enough throughout the year. So I decided to try to have 50% of these races be trail/mtn, and fill in with road races when I could. During the year I ran 2 Marathons, 4 half marathons, and 24 more races that were 10k or more. I finished my 100th race on Dec. 31st at the CVR New Years Eve 5k in Montpelier. One of my fellow runners made Yeti cookies, my wife got me a nice trophy to help me celebrate, and the Central Vermont Runners club gave me the “Consistent Persistency Award”.

If you like to race, what is your favorite race distance? Why?
All the way to the top (of the mtn). The distance isn’t as important as the accomplishment of making it to the summit , and the finish.

If you like to race, notable race moment or most memorable race?
Mansfield Double Up, An 11 mile race up and over Mount Mansfield (twice) on some of the most technical trails I have run (crawled). Or maybe the Groton Forest Trail Race, also in VT. A 26.5 mile trail race with a combination of log roads, hiking trails and root/rock hopping trails, 3 mountain vistas and loops around Kettle and Osmore pond. Or any of the Ironworks Adventure races.

Training partners?
Susannah Gravel who carpools with me to the TNT workouts and hosts Friday Night Trail runs, providing all sorts of training advice. Or Cris Cote, who is even more ambitious than I am, always looking for something a little more challenging.

Cross training activities?
In the winter, I do snowshoe races, using Dion racing snowshoes. A lightweight ergonomic snowshoe that meets U.S. Snowshoe Association regulations. And I also do a little back country skiing on my Altai Hok skis. They are a short wide hybrid ski, with a metal edges and a permanent mid section skin. They are sometimes called a gliding snowshoe.

Favorite local running route?
From home with the pups, I run down Winchester (class 4 road) to route 14 and then go back up to the top of the Graham Rd. It’s about 750 ft of elevation and 4 miles RT. The other is from work in Randolph, I start at the Montague Golf course, cross the Stock farm Rd, go up Clover hill (not maintained in winter) to the top. Turn rt (south) onto Fish Hill for about .25 miles, then turn left (east) onto trail 13 of GMSF. – loop around and return. also about 750 ft of elevation and 4 miles RT.

Favorite post run treat?
Since I am not a fast runner, I guess I am in it for the social time, A craft brew (stout) from Good Measure Brewing after Wednesday night Runderachievers. Or Maple cream pie from P&H truck stop in Wells River. But the treat is sharing it with friends.

Strangest place ever run?
Jogging with the Pups while Cheryl is shopping in West Leb. I would do loops around Applebee’s, BJs, JC Penny, and K-Mart.

Any notable streaks or other unusual running events?
I For the month of Jan 2019. I did a Winter Warrior challenge to run 5 miles every day outside. It was tough with the frigid weather and early morning snow. Then in Aug and Sept of 2019 I did it again. For Oct of 2019 I ran 750 of elevation every day without regard of distance. This proved to be the toughest as I developed knee issues (probably because I had no real rest days).

What made you start running?
In High school it was because I wanted to avoid the long bus ride – But in 2014 it was to lose weight.

Who is your running “idol”?
I am impressed by those guys a little older than me, like Jim Burnett, or Fred Ross who power up the Mountains while making it look easy – But I hope to someday be like George Etzweiler, still running up Mt Washington at 99 years old.

Are your reasons for running now the same or different than the reason you first started?
I need some rigorous exercise to control my weight, I need the outlet and fresh air to control my stress. And I really enjoy the social/camaraderie of runners.

Why did you join UVRC?
I saw it on the internet as a listing for races in the area. Since then, I have learned of the TNT workouts, a valuable resource.

Ever run in a costume?
Last year at a Halloween race I was dressed as a Super Trooper. – the year before I was a cowboy (hard to run with chaps on)

The only running shoe for me is
Hoka for road, and Solomon for trails

Ever been injured? How did it happen?
In May of 2018, I was running the Bradford, Race to the top. I was running very well and feeling a little over confident. At the finish line, there is a rock about 2 or 3 feet high, that the kids run and jump off. The photographer will squat down and get a great jump shot photo. As I crossed the finish line, I felt like a kid and did the rock jump, but landed wrong and sprained my ankle pretty bad. The worst part is… no picture. The camera guy wasn’t ready, because he didn’t think this OLD guy was gonna do the jump.

Hot or cold weather runner?
I definitely like the cold better. I sweat easily and will be drenched with sweat after most runs. I often run in shorts and tee shirt and carry a towel, while others are bundled in jackets.

Morning or evening runner?
Mornings are better to run alone. Evenings are better for social time and a brew.

What is your motivation?
For my health – both mental and physical.

I run therefore I am
tolerable.

How did you become interested in running?
I have poor eye/hand coordination and was lousy at most ball sports in school, however I could run with my classmates fairly well and not worry about getting picked last for the team.

What is your favorite race?
The Gunstock Ascension Race – a unique race where you run/crawl up the Gunstock ski area to the summit and take a 13 min ride down on the Panorama lift as many times as you can in the allotted time (I chose the 3 hr). The ride back down is within view of the service road. This allows you to cheer (or heckle) your running buddies as you ride back down. Each lap is about 1.5 miles and 1300 feet of gain. My first summit took 24:49 min, but my 5th summit took 33:40. It has been a low key, keep it simple race in the past – I think they have plans to go big this year.

Favorite running book/film?
Because I have some sort of ADD… I can’t sit down and read a book, and don’t make time to watch a movie. However I did really enjoy Born To Run by Christopher McDougall on audio disc.

What does your daily workout consist of?
It is a bit different now that I am injured. But most of the year I take the dogs for a jog in the morning every week day. At lunch I take an hour to either walk or trail run about 3 or 4 miles. I try to go to TNT on Tuesdays, Runderachievers on Wednesday (start at Good Measure Brewing in Northfield, go for a group run of about 3 miles and then meet back at the brewery for $3 pints). Friday night trail runs at GMSF Trails from Susannah Gravel’s house in Randolph (about 4 miles with snacks and drinks afterwards). On weekends if I am not racing, I either run with CVR Long run (5 to 10 miles) or do a core workout in my vegetable garden, cutting firewood, push mow the lawn or shovel snow.

How about favorite work out?
hills

What is your diet like?
I eat just about anything… but weekdays I start with a big bowl of oatmeal that has diced apple, raisins, cranberries, or fresh wild berries when in season and a generous amount of maple syrup. Lunch is usually chicken breast and home grown veggies, cheese sticks and yogurt. Supper is usually light, like burger or fish and a veggie with a few candies for dessert.

If you could run with anyone, who would be the person?
Any runner that could enjoy my pace.

Additional input or comments?
My wife Cheryl and I are part of a Facebook group called VT251: The Race Less Traveled. Members of the group have a long term goal of running a race in each of Vermont’s 251 towns. A guy named Dave Devarney runs a facebook page to keep track of all the races in VT, and will keep track of any member interested in the challenge. He keeps a leader-board to show your progress as well as a colored map showing where you have raced. He does this all free of charge with the goal of promoting running throughout the state. Currently my wife Cheryl is at the top of the leader-board with 187 towns.

People to mention?
Most importantly is my wife Cheryl, who supports my habit. Without her, my schedule would not allow the time or ability to participate in these activities. In addition to supporting me, she has gotten into running and has run in lots of races as well as volunteered at many.

What else should the club know about you?
I am not very fast, but I give it my best.

I have come to know and enjoy the company/camaraderie of my fellow runners. Especially the social time. It’s what makes this sport so enjoyable. I often shout out in the tough part of a race “If you’re not having fun, then you’re doing it wrong!”

Aside from running, what are your hobbies?
My wife and I have been very active in Geocaching, A hobby where you use a GPS to go and find a hidden container. Often the containers are hidden in unique locations. Because of these geocaches Cheryl and I have hiked hundreds of mountains and to all of the fire towers in VT. We also have visited about 100 of the covered bridges of VT.

I haven’t biked or gone fishing in years, but we still go camping, especially when there is a race or two in a remote location.