We reached out to Rosa Moriello & Tim Ritchie to get their comments on their Firehouse records going down. As expected both were extremely gracious and enthusiastic about the new guard taking control. Here's what they had to say:
Tim: "The king is dead! Long live the king!"
Rosa: "When Amy told me she was going for the record, I was relieved to hear that it was going to be a fellow teammate who would be taking the crown from me. The women's record was no Tim Ritchie record - not to say it was a walk in the park either! When I found out how fast she ran, I couldn't have felt more proud of her. After seeing the work she put into for her OTQ attempt and injury to occur, I am so happy to see that not only has she found the motivation to get fit during a pandemic, but she's come back SO strong."
Tim: "This is awesome. I am super pumped to see someone go sub-49 on Firehouse and it is about dang time. We both know Boston is THE running city and the depth of talent and quality of community work ethic right now is at a high. Looking over some photos it seems this attempt was a team effort with support, cheers, group running, etc - as it should be. I know Harvard, the Charles and other places have become popular training spots, but there is no denying the benefit of taking it to the hills. I did and still believe that Firehouse forms fitness. Happy to be called a "former" Firehouse champ, but I don't know if I am the "first." My understanding is RT [Randy Thomas], Don Ricciato, Jack McDonald, Rodgers and the whole Squires crew would routinely run this loop at the lunch hour. Over 60min was unacceptable and they would race the end of the loop from the current HHRC location to the sighting of Gasson Tower every time. I have to think there were a few sub-50's back then! Amazing to think of the footprints that are left on this loop."
Rosa: "Records are meant to be broken but Firehouse is meant to stay in the Heartbreak family. I am so happy to see the record stay with the Heartbreaker's Flyers. And I am so happy to see that Amy is on a strong comeback - this record is just the start for her! Post COVID, Amy told me she is expecting a re-match. I told her "Imagine the day where you, me, Taylor, Ildi, and Jordan all line up to crush a firehouse together as part of the build up for you ladies heading to the 2024 Olympic Trials. I would love to have a whole lady crew out there pushing each other to see what we can do - ladies supporting ladies!" So, I guess I don't have a choice but to come back and grab a group record!"
Tim: "I do not know if I have it in me to take the record back but if there was one thing that would inspire me to add some hills into today's long run.. this was it!"
Rosa: "I'm amazed by the group that went after these records. We're in the middle of a pandemic. There are no races. There is no reason to be fit. Most days, it's hard to understand why anything even matters right now. The mental strength you need to tell yourself every day that you need to go for that run so you can run a "backyard" race is impressive. It seems like everyone is struggling to find motivation these days. I'm impressed this group was not only able to figure out something to be excited for but to maintain that excitement and get after it. It makes me excited to see what they can accomplish once races are back!"
Tim: "Congrats to Stephen and good luck to the future Champ. Let the dominoes fall."