You all want to know where Monday’s Destination Deck is, and we do too! Just kidding, it’s going to be HERE, right where the little map thingy shows you in the NP Tracker.
The rest of the blog is dedicated to one dedicated dude, Toby Snedecor. Go ahead, try to say his last name. You won’t be able to do it. But try to find a guy who is heart is bigger or who has more love for NP and you won’t be able to do that either. From wearing a Superman costume for the entirety of several marathons, to needing no reason at all to wear a costume to a workout, to committing to climbing stadium stairs sideways because of an injury, to simply showing up as much and as often as possible–in person and in support of others–Toby is the man. He also grows a hell of a beard and takes some snazzy bathroom photos in a 3-piece suit when he’s not busy teaching French to high school students. And if you think you can linger after a workout, watch out…as long as he doesn’t have to rush off to work, Toby will linger longer than lizards lying in the sun, guaranteed. But don’t let us spoil all the fun facts about Toby. Read on. And then hug the man when you see him, he’s one of those human beings you’re glad you know.
Name: Toby Snedecor
Date of First Workout: February 20th, 2013
Why’d you Just Show Up?
My wife’s friend JLQ posted on Facebook about the Ninja Race, and I thought to myself “that sounds amazing, I need to join these people.” Having nearly thrown up the last time I’d raced a 5K and knowing it was bitterly cold that night, I passed on the Ninja Race and instead showed up at the next stadium workout… and I was hooked.
Bostonian or Transplant?
I moved here from southeastern PA in 2009.
Tribes Visited:
Washington DC, New York City.
Tribe Crush:
TRIBE CRUSH STAIRS.
Favorite NP Day of the Week:
The one ending in Y.
Favorite Recurring Workout:
They’re all my favorite, in their own special ways.
Least Favorite Recurring Workout:
The “Toby has to be at work on time” workout. It’s the one where I have to pretend I’m a responsible adult and drive to work instead of working out and honestly I don’t know why I keep doing it.
Favorite NP Workout EVER:
Oh, man. So many possibilities. There was that Wednesday one on the track in the deep snow where Dylan and I teamed up, the first time I completed a full tour, the madness of #5ummit at the Stadium, the two proposal workouts, the one in the skatepark under the Zakim, the Boston Ballet, the one in the T where we got yelled at… but my favorite NP workout is the next one, because it’s the one where I get to see all these crazy people again and do something ridiculous with them.
I’ll never forget…
My problem with this prompt is not that I’ve forgotten stuff, it’s that I remember SO MUCH. Sebastians by Sebastian’s, running the stadium in a blizzard with snow accumulating on my eyebrows, my first destination deck on the Mass Ave bridge (pushups and planks!), playing sharks and minnows by the Irish Famine Memorial downtown, that plank-off in the Common that ended because we got tired of waiting for the two or three holdouts… we’re tied into this web of community and positivity and memory, and honestly I think I’ll be answering my hospice nurse with a “F*** YEAH” when he asks if I’m good.
I laughed hardest when…
I laugh too much at NP to answer this.
Anyone inspire you at NP that you haven’t told yet (now’s the time…don’t make it weird)?
Hell yes. There are *so many* people who are badass and inspiring in our tribe for so many reasons, and I am not the greatest at telling people that they’re inspirational. I feel like pushing ourselves to be better and drawing inspiration from the people around us is part of the NP fabric. Rather than single somebody out here, I’m going to try and tell more people directly.
Why do you keep showing up?
Because I love it. Because this s*** is good. Because I have so many friends here. Because NP is a force for good in my life, in my city, and in my world. Because positive, inclusive, boisterous communities are what my life is all about.
What do you do for a living?
High school French teaching, although I haven’t been able to make a living doing that lately, so that answer might change.
When you were a child, what did you “want to do when you grow up?”
Astronaut/firefighter/
What is your superpower?
I can eat more than you might expect.
What’s a question that we didn’t ask that we should’ve?
You should ask for my Paris travel tips. (Seriously, if you are traveling to Paris, I have made a Google Doc full of stuff that will improve your trip.)
