Author: brogan

Coming off the November Project leadership gathering in Seattle, we’re feeling great! We set out on this trip with a few goals: 

• Give our leaders tools and ability to understand certain powerful topics
• Share important NP stories
• Listen to the many voices of co-leaders and members
• Connect more deeply with Brooks Running
• Simply share space with one another.

We did all of that and then some and we’ll make sure to share the learnings and takeaways with the whole movement in the upcoming weeks and months. But for now, we want to share this combined all-time high energy inside leadership with the rest of the movement.  read more

Below is the play by play plan for the full weekend (September 14-16) in Milwaukee, WI for the annual November Project Summit. For those just jumping in, the #NPSUMMIT is the gathering of all tribes from all over the world, in this case all 49 groups, for a long/fun weekend of trail racing, training, celebrating, and meeting new faces from all over who love this odd fitness movement the way we do. The race, as always, is one of the locations stops, for the Endurance Challenge Series by The North Face (Use code “NP20” to register here). If you want to get completely educated on what this has looked like over the years, scroll to the far bottom of this post and view videos from 2013 through last year, 2017 in Boston. read more

All November Project Co-Leaders and members, from every tribe, are invited to gather this September in Wisconsin at the 6th Annual November Project Summit, rallying around the Endurance Challenge Wisconsin via Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Much like the past few years that we pulled this weekend off, it will be fun to see tribes from all over the world training, racing, connecting, partying, and seeing a new place, side by side, as one big, happy family. But that is way off in September.

Our #NPSUMMIT isn’t next week. Next week is something we’ve never done before and is something that we wanted to share with you, but unfortunately is only for Co-Leaders. Are we trying to make you jealous? No, but for the strength of the entire movement, this might be our most important outing yet, and thought you would also think it is badass. This “Meeting Of the Minds” is our dream leadership gathering in the middle of nowhere and is 100% supported by our partners at The North Face. Next week has been built as a way to connect our Co-Leaders to one another and the best way to make November Project, as a global movement, as connected as possible. The “Meeting Of the Minds,” or “M.O.M.” will gather leaders (via air travel from far off places like Malaysia, London, and Worcester) in the same camping space located in Somewhere, California, where workshops about all things leadership will take place.

M.O.M. will have the NP Co-Leaders truly experience the outdoors & one another through camping, climbing, mountain biking, cooking out, and sharing stories each evening around the campfire. For those of you new to November Project, The North Face has supported November Project since 2014, and nobody does outdoor/run/train better than our combined powers. Next week will be further proof.

So, yes, we are pumped, and yes, you’ll see images on personal handles & tribe’s handles from this magical place next week, as we celebrate our M.O.M. You’ll catch social media glimpses of this circus reunion and laugh. Yes, we are still looking at September as the full reunion vibe of all tribes, leaders & members. And we know that because of the relationships built and experiences, uh, experienced next week that ECSWI will be an even better weekend with stronger leadership going forward.

See you on the social media waves and at the next sunrise bounce near you. 

Spoiler 1: #NPSUMMIT, November Project’s Annual gathering, will be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin this coming September 14-16. You’ll want to sign up for the Endurance Challenge Wisconsin for a Saturday race. read more

When I sat down to start writing this blog about my road trip months ago I was confronted by one of my biggest personal challenges. For those who know me, it is no secret that I am a scatterbrained, idea junkie. My mind is a water slide of creative thought, and endless imagination. Many people see this as a fun, great gift, and when fully embraced it very well can be. However, there is another side of this gift that many people either never get to see, or are too protective of me, or my feelings, to acknowledge. The truth is that on the flip side of this gift, are things I struggle with – taking action, and staying focused. After all, how many ideas or thoughts can one person generate before reaching a saturation point and failing to ever embrace action? Before November Project I had little direction for myself. I was well aware of this issue, but I never knew where to start with my decision making, or where to focus my energy. My lifestyle was not familiar with exercising self-discipline, and the art of setting my own intentions. In some ways that can be seen as liberating and beautiful. But if you don’t pay attention, it can get you lost really quickly in a place you may or may not want to be.

As the weeks went by I was repeatedly confronted with how easy it was for me to get lost when writing this. I have so much to say about this trip, this movement, where I was before November Project came into my life, and where I am now. But like many other times in my life I just didn’t know where to start, or where to go. But with the help of some friends, I eventually focused myself on the question: What is this road trip about? What point am I trying to make? Well the truth about my road trip is that it was originally a compulsive decision born out of emotion. That’s right. This epic idea was an emotional response to…

1. a breakup that resulted in me owning a car
2. Post Boston Marathon depression/pre-Summit angst
3. Realizing that I didn’t want to wait to live my life anymore.
4, Celebrating my 30th year of life.

Does this mean I don’t really want to do it? Or that I’m thinking about breaking the biggest verbal I’ve ever made? No, and HELL NO. It just means that when I announced this trip, it was more of an idea that didn’t actually have a plan, or a vision to go along with it. All I knew is that I wanted to do it, but I honestly had no idea HOW I was going to do it. Facing that reality was scary at first because I have a history of crumbling under the weight of my own ideas. Sometimes I’ve become overwhelmed with sadness and worry thinking about how disappointed for me my friends would be if I didn’t figure everything out. It would be infinitely worse than the time I forgot my solo in the Newsies concert in front of my entire elementary school. I didn’t want to ever sing again after that because it can be hard to see that we have a choice on how to move forward through our pain and insecurity. It’s easy to worry about letting people down, or embarrassing yourself in front of people that matter to you. The thing about November Project is that when you tell your tribe members you want to do some crazy epic shit, you become accountable to everyone, including yourself for taking action, and staying focused. Over the years I’ve learned that friends don’t hold you accountable to embarrass you, judge you, or make you feel insecure. They do it because they believe in you, and look forward to you and your ability to move forward and pursue happiness even in the face of your personal challenges. The support from this community has helped me realize that I’m capable enough to be the captain of my life. And over the last 3 years, I have begun to learn how to chose my destination, stay focused, and weather the elements to get there.

With that in mind, I chose for my trip to start in Boston during the weekend of the marathon in April because it has been one of my favorite weekends for the past 3 years because of November Project. If you aren’t sure if you can make it to Summit, then this is probably your second best bet each year to see a bunch of your friends from tribes around the world. What better way to kick off a cross country road trip?!? Over the years I have gotten into such a beautiful routine of saying “I will see you Wednesday/Friday”, that leaving Boston, or Summit, or some gathering where traverballers are present always leaves me with an unfamiliar void. When will I see this really awesome person again? 6 months? 2 years? That was my feeling leaving Boston for the marathon, and again for Summit this past year, except during the latter it was multiplied a few thousand times over. That feeling left me with a couple strong beliefs. I truly believe that…

1. That spending quality time with the people in this community is worth going out on a limb for.
2. That there are stories that are worth traveling 10,000 miles to hear. I’m reminded of this with every blog post I read from one of you. Together our stories are an anthology of different backgrounds, experiences, and views that each of us can take perspective away from.
3. That seeing Manitoba and Saskatchewan, running around the Redwoods, eating authentic southern style cuisine, and learning how to surf in Cali, cannot wait until I’m 30, or 40.
4. That we show up to November Project because we are ready to be challenged, motivated, and inspired to do things, or meet people we never thought or knew we could connect with.
5. I believe…I believe….I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky….I think about it every night and day. Spread my wings and fly away. You get the point…

Belief is a powerful thing. It’s powerful because once you believe in something it becomes real to you. I’ve always come up with ideas like this without ever believing that I was capable of bringing them to life. If you are anything like me, being surrounded by people who are willing to believe in each other is a confidence builder that helps us face the challenges life throws our way as we each navigate through our lives trying to figure things out. To me that’s the special thing about this movement – the potential we have to come together, connect over a variety of things, and contribute to each other’s progress – fitness, or not. This trip is going to be a huge challenge for me, but the more I talk to you all about my goals the more I maintain belief in myself. The thought of how loved and supported I feel in this community brings me to tears in the happiest of ways because it has filled the void of a family life that I have been missing for almost a decade.

Since I plan to hit 30+ workouts, this trip will last about 6 months with the plan to end in Denver, CO around October. Below is a table of the tribes I will be visiting in no specific order. However, if you want to tag along and spread the NP love/hype, or host some whacky traverballers for a couple nights, just reach out to me, and I will gladly send you a more specific itinerary so we can coordinate the biggest tribe carpool relay/NP sleepover EVER. Your company is necessary for this trip to be epic so I completely expect a full ride the entire way!!! Otherwise, if you are interested in being mildly cool, then at least follow along with my journey by tuning into the How Was Your Run Today podcast, and by following The Wireless Athlete on Facebook and IG.

Boston
Orlando
Regina (Queens City)
Worcester
New Orleans
Edmonton
NYC
Austin
Calgary
Philadelphia
Kansas City
Vancouver
Baltimore
Victoria
Chicago
San Diego
Madison
Milwaukee
Virginia Beach
San Francisco
Minneapolis
Atlanta
Los Angeles
Winnipeg
Brooklyn
Dallas
Kelowna
Washington D.C.
Seattle
Phoenix
Richmond
Portland
Denver

November Project starts with you just showing up. But the work for me has come not just in testing my limits at the workouts, but also in identifying what I have to give, and learning what I need to take. I’m bringing the adventure, and I thank you all in advanced for providing me with the direction, focus, and support that’s going to make this road trip not just possible, but memorable and life changing. I am also very awkward at goodbyes, so I am just going to wrap this up by saying… see you on the road.

Coming to a bounce near you

Vinnie ¢
#Neverstopexploring
#FocusMoreWireLess
#NPclassOf2014
#NProadtrip2018

#FollowTheCent

Starting today, Thursday, December 21st 2017, until Jan 1st, November Project will be hosting an Instagram Photo Contest.

Wear your #GrassrootsGear (November Project painted shirt) and GO BIG. We are looking for the WOW factor as you wear your clearly visible NP gear in a photo that will make your Instagram audience say DANG! Go big, make a splash, get the shot, post using #NP_PhotoContest – All photos will be judged by November Project Co-Founders, Community Bosses, and Co-Leaders around the world… so let’s see something way out there. Oh, and bonus points will go to anyone wearing gear by The North Face (our official partner for the past 3 years of World Takeover) in the photo, showing off in extreme conditions, or making this worldwide audience laugh. Again, Instagram only. Tagging @NovemberProject, @TheNorthFace, or even your local tribe Co-Leaders IN your photo can only help your chances of winning, as it will enhance your level of reach & visibility.

That’s it, no more tips, no more advice, charge your phone, grab your shirt, and get out there and go crazy! The Top 3 Champion Finalists from #NP_PhotoContest will win this sick backpack from our friends at The North Face, pre-painted with the NP logo on the white outside. Get out their and start posting for #NP_PhotoContest, and we’ll see you on the internet!

Please don’t get hurt or arrested. November Project is not responsible for injury or bail.