On February 18 Kate Bogli and family, owners of Maple View Farms Brewery, hosted the farm’s first trail race. Set for the middle of winter, the original plan was for a 5k snowshoe race. Many would assume February to be cold and snow covered. However, the weather was unseasonably warm with no snow in sight. Therefore, snowshoes were unnecessary.
The course was designed to show runners the family’s favorite places on the property to snowshoe. It offered varied terrain with open farm fields, an old growth forest and a beautiful section of the Salmon Brook. The course was three loops with each loop being just over a mile. This allowed spectators to cheer on runners multiple times throughout the race.
Runners finished at the perfect end point for a brewery race, crossing the finish line under the farm’s impressive hop arch especially when the hops are in bloom during the late summer. Thirty-three runners toed the line, but Kirt Orgren took an early lead and held on strong for his first ever win, finishing the 5k in 22:59. Pamela Sullivan took first place for the women with a time of 28:56.
While the runners were a diverse group of ages, many racers were part of the 169 club. This popular Connecticut running club has the goal of racing in all 169 towns. Many members said that this was one of the best they’ve been to in Connecticut. Second place runner Jason Snukis said he very much enjoyed his prior visit to the brewery and was excited to have an excuse to come back for a trail race and to sample more craft beers. Not only was the course good for the adults, but it was a perfect course for kids to try long distance running. There was fairly flat terrain, and it was very well marked. Three kids participated and did amazingly well.
When the race was over, everyone was able to gather at the brewery space, enjoy the farm’s craft beer and meet up with friends new and old and most importantly, congratulate each other. Kate even had the Chic-Fil-A food truck for both spectators and racers to enjoy at the finish line.
Kate is very proud of how the race turned out, and she enjoyed watching the racers cross the finish line with smiles. “I’ve always enjoyed 5K races. I’ve volunteered on the Granby Road Race Committee for about 10 years, and I love how a road race can be a fun community event. The race was meant to get people out and about on the farm. The brewery lawn can be a fun place to hang out, but we have 50 acres to explore here, and we love sharing it with the public,” she shared.
Having fun local events creates such enthusiasm amongst residents and the greater area community. Thanks to the fun and success of the first race, the brewery is slated to host another trail race on Aug. 19. Hopefully after learning about the first race, more Granby residents will participate or come and hang out. Don’t forget to register early as this event sold out, and the Bogli family hopes to see you there.