Former local soccer star to run ultramarathon, fundraising for local Title 1 school
Poughkeepsie Journal. November 28, 2023
by Stephen Haynes
Even for a lifelong athlete accustomed to running for extended periods, traveling 50 miles on foot seems quite the endeavor.
Vinny Colantuono completed a marathon once before, two years ago, but the former Arlington High School soccer star has now challenged himself to one-up that. Well, technically, double-up that distance.
“I’ve always enjoyed training and conditioning,” he said, “but I really got into running after college and it’s been a great outlet. It pushes me to find new limits and extend my boundaries.”
ROCKING THE RIDGE
Ultra Running Magazine. June 7, 2023
by Joe Brown
Celebrating its 10th year, the 2023 Rock The Ridge took place in the scenic Hudson Valley of New York State about 90 miles north of New York City. Specifically, all of this goes down on the land of Mohonk Preserve, a nature preserve that spreads across 8,000 acres and is situated between the Hudson River and the Shawangunk Ridge. Mohonk Preserve includes forested areas, creeks, ponds and a ridge with stunning views.
Poughkeepsie runner fought through elements to Rock the Ridge
Poughkeepsie Journal. June 7, 2022
By Pete Colaizzo
Although he didn’t start running until much later in life, Poughkeepsie resident David Fernekes has fit right in with the mindset of the sport. He started running 16 years ago, at age 48, when he decided to participate in the Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot road races.
Prior to becoming a runner, Fernekes was usually chasing some fitness-related ambition. “I’ve always been goal oriented,’’ he said, “and I like to have something on my calendar to train for.” Read more…
How group trainings, support helped Shawangunk runner ‘Rock the Ridge’
Poughkeepsie Journal. June 1, 2022
By Pete Colaizzo
Most weekends, there is a large group of runners who gather early in the morning at the Mohonk Preserve in Ulster County for long runs of varying lengths along the seemingly endless carriage trails in the Shawangunk Ridge.
Many of these runners are marathoners, usually in training for a big-city spring or fall 26.2-miler. Others are simply there for the world-class scenery, elevation and just general good vibes. That often describes Karen Miura, who, along with her husband Steve and her loyal rescue dog Lucy, can be found at Mohonk almost every weekend. Read more…
Sayreville Detective to Compete in 50-Mile Race
TAPinto Raritan Bay. February 22, 2022
By ROBERT FALLO
SAYREVILLE, NJ — A Sayreville police detective will participate in a 50-mile endurance challenge to support Mohonk Preserve in Gardiner, NY, on May 14, 2022.
Jason Mader will be racing in Rock The Ridge to support the conservation work. It is the preserve’s largest fundraiser of the year. Mader has previously competed in multiple obstacle races and endurance events, including the Atlantic City Marathon and Spartan Race. Read more…
New Paltz runner stays ahead of Father Time at race to protect Mohonk Preserve
Poughkeepsie Journal. October 5, 2021
By Pete Colaizzo
The classic Allman Brothers Band song starts out with the sweet slide guitar of Warren Haynes, followed by the soulful singing of the late Gregg Allman. It’s got a cheerful, Bo Diddly beat, followed by these not-so-cheerful lyrics: “No one left to run with anymore. No one left to do those crazy things we used to do before.”
If Norman Goluskin were listening to this circa 1994 tune, he could surely nod his head to the beat and relate. The New Paltz runner turned 83 on Sept. 25. He celebrated by participating in the Rock The Ridge (RTR) 50-mile ultra marathon, as part of the event’s relay. Read More…
Registration now open for May 2 Rock The Ridge ultramarathon
Hudson Valley One. January 7, 2020
By Erin Quinn
Ultramarathons or “ultras” (defined as any running race that is longer than a standard 26.22-mile marathon) have skyrocketed in popularity over the past two decades. There are now people who not only run, but race distances of 30, 50 and even 100 miles at a clip. There are no limits, it seems, to what human beings are capable of doing when they put their minds to it. Like all amazing feats, it often takes a certain type of person, a certain type of place along with a specific type of culture to make these experiences achievable. I can think of no better environment to pose such a challenge than right here in New Paltz, where hundreds of miles of antique carriage roads and trails unveil some of the most stunning natural features of the Shawangunk Ridge, from conglomerate cliff faces to raging waterfalls, pitch-pine barrens and swollen sky lakes. Read More…
Running Scared at Rock The Ridge
UltraRunning Magazine. June 25, 2019
By Jason Friedman
I ran the first edition of Rock The Ridge (RTR) in 2013, and the race has grown into the largest annual fundraiser for the Mohonk Preserve, a private, non-profit land trust that maintains over 7,000 acres of open space in the Shawangunk Mountains in New York. Over the first five years, the race was a jointly managed event between a pair of local RDs and the Preserve. In 2019, the race had about 400 starters, plus another 50 or so relay teams, and the event went off (more or less) without a hitch. Read more…
In Studio with 98.1 WKZE
February 16, 2018
Trishul Cherns: Seeking the Moment
UltraRunning Magazine. January 4, 2018
Trishul Cherns maintains a thick timeworn binder with meticulous notes of each race he’s completed. When added up he has run 247 ultramarathons with over 42,000 racing miles… and counting. By his estimation, in May 2018 at Rock the Ridge 50 Mile, he will reach his 250th ultramarathon. He’s hoping for some friends to join and run it with him to celebrate. Read More…
Rocking the Ridge at Mohonk: Passion, perseverance and a fighting spirit
The Chronicle. April, 13, 2018
By Geri Corey
Goshen Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Terry Smallin is a man of strength. His latest test of strength is running the 50-mile endurance challenge — “Rock the Ridge” — at Mohonk Preserve in Gardiner, NY.
Physically, his strength brought him many rewards, beginning with high school sports, like football, baseball, basketball and track, and then playing semi-professional football, and ultimately, running with the Utica Boilermakers Runners Club. Read more…
On the Run: Father/daughter bonding over 50 miles
Poughkeepsie Journal. July 2, 2015.
by Pete Colaizzo
As the father of four daughters, it’s impossible to calculate how many recreational activities Mike Kristofik participated in with them during their formative years, as he and his wife raised them in Rhinebeck. Now that his children are all grown up and moved on to their adult lives, those days are most certainly a distant memory for Dr. Mike, the amiable Hyde Park dentist.
Earlier this spring, though, Kristofik found a way to reconnect with his daughter Lisa — one mile at a time. Kristofik and his daughter participated in the Rock the Ridge 50-mile endurance challenge in Ulster County. The duo completed the long-distance event through the beautiful trails of the Mohonk Preserve and beyond in the breathtaking Shawangunk Ridge of the Catskills. It was an effort that took all day and some of the night — but it made for a memory that will last a lifetime. Read more…
Best of Hudson Valley: New Adventure Race
Hudson Valley Magazine. October 2013.
ROCK THE RIDGE 50-MILE CHALLENGE, New Paltz.
The name of this unusual endurance event, which debuted this year, may be enough to scare off some would-be participants. But close to 188 hardy souls took on the challenge of either walking or running 50 miles of the Mohonk Preserve’s scenic-but-strenuous trails and carriage roads in 24 hours or less. A wide range of athletes, from ultramarathoners to weekend warriors, took part in the event, which doubles as a fund-raiser for the preserve. Despite tired legs – and several bear sightings – the challenge proved successful on both fronts: 90 percent of the entrants finished on time, and more than $100,000 was added to the preserve’s coffers. See article online.
A 50-Mile Run Debuts in N.Y.
The Wall Street Journal. May 3, 2013.
By Sara Germano
Fifty miles—it’s the distance John F. Kennedy believed Americans should be fit enough to cover on foot, an idea he popularized 50 years ago. On Saturday in Ulster County, some 220 people are expected to attempt that feat in a new race, launched to support the Mohonk Preserve.
The Rock the Ridge 50 Mile Challenge is the brainchild of Ken Posner and Norman Goluskin, distance-running veterans who hope this race will stand out for welcoming people of all fitness abilities. See full article online.
Roger on Running: Running for the Environment – Rock the Ridge and Run the Park
Runner’s World. January 23, 2013.
By Roger Robinson
In the original story of Pheidippides, the big moment comes when the running messenger meets Pan, the goat-footed Nature god, who asks him to tell the city people of Greece that they have been negligent in their worship. So it was a runner who made contact between wild nature and human civilisation, a runner who reminded humans of their responsibilities toward the natural environment. I want to celebrate some 21st century running events that do the same.
The Rock the Ridge Endurance Challenge on May 6 is a new trail race/run/walk/relay on the Shawangunk Ridge, 90 miles north of New York City, a spectacular unspoiled landscape that the Nature Conservancy designated “one of the earth’s last great places.” The Ridge is a long, 200ft high hog’s back of rock and forest that stands between the wide tamed spaces of the Hudson Valley and the wild heaving mountains of the Catskills. It’s a place of high bare cliffs and deep tree-filled gullies, glacial lakes and waterfalls, rocky creeks and tall oaks, concealed caves, vast vistas, and towering falcons, a place that often gives you the sense that it has scarcely changed since the dinosaurs. See full article online.
Banner photo by Gerald Berliner