LIFE

"Mountain biking isn't punk rock anymore," says Mick Ferraro of the New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA). "It's a very mainstream sport now. You show up prepared, you go on group rides, you hang out afterwards. The vibe is: I'm here to raise my cortisol levels, talk to people, be outside, hear the sounds, maybe see a bear. It's 'let's have fun.'"

On September 11, 2001, Leah Lopez took a late breakfast before heading into New York C ity on a Metro North train that never arrived. "I happened to be on the train an hour later than I woul d have usually been," she says over coffee at LaSalle in Collinsville. "After that I doubled down on what I really wanted to do with my life."

On coaching Nykesha Sales, fighting cancer, and what to order at George's Originally posted on April 29, 2025 By Carl Wiser Staff Writer Brian Hurlock at The Blue House Bagel Co. & Cafe. “I always was a positive person, whether I was coaching or officiating or being in the restaurant.” When I met Brian Hurlock he was refereeing a 4th-grade rec league basketball game between Canton and Burlington. He would high five a kid if he made a good play; when he called a foul, he t

David Lloyd at LaSalle in Collinsville. He was 25 when he started in TV as an unpaid intern in Macon, Georgia. This story was originally posted on Feb. 14, 2025 By Carl Wiser Staff Writer David Lloyd has been at ESPN since 1997, starting on ESPNEWS and now anchoring their flagship show, SportsCenter. It's a long way from Macon, Georgia, where he started his broadcasting career as a 25-year-old unpaid intern. "I worked at a Bennigan's during the day as a waiter and then ever

Aimee Petras (third from right) on the river during a FRWA excursion this summer in Collinsville. Photo by Rick Warters This story was originally posted on March 25, 2025 By Carl Wiser Staff Writer We take it for granted that we can swim, fish, tube and kayak in the Farmington River, but behind the scenes, the Farmington River Watershed Association is making sure the water stays clean and the river remains accessible. "We fight for the river to have a voice," says Aimee Pet