Michelle Merlis

Residence: Albany 
Age: 33
Spouse: Husband, Josh Merlis
Profession: Economist
Sports: Mountain, Ultra and Trail Running
Favorite Quote: Actually, I can.

By Kristen Hislop

Imagine sitting at a table at an awards ceremony after running trails for five hours unlike any you had seen before. You are listening to 50 different languages being spoken around you. Those at your table all don Team USA gear. The results are announced. Team USA second place – that’s your team! You head up onto the stage and have a silver medal placed around your neck. You stand next to your idols. Got chills yet? Michelle Merlis just had this experience at the 2022 World Mountain and Trail Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand. 

Michelle wasn’t much of a runner growing up in the Hudson Valley. Her first love was basketball at Wallkill High School, though she also ran track for two years. At Elmira College, she played JV basketball there. “I love the team sport aspect,” she said. “After graduation, I had this moment of, ‘What do I do now?’ I still wanted to be active and push myself in other ways. She finally took up running for fun as a graduate student at Purdue University to stay in shape and relieve stress. She fell in love with the sport.

Michelle has some solid experience on the trails, but a year ago she was training for the 2022 Boston Marathon. A February trip to Joshua Tree National Park in southern California would lead to a change in the plan. “I figured I could run Boston anytime, but who knew if I’d ever get a chance to go for a USATF worlds team spot at the Breakneck Point Trail Run at Hudson Highlands State Park near Beacon – the first US citizen male and female finishers would earn a slot on Team USA at the World Mountain & Trail Running Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand in November. It’s a very technical and challenging 42K course that really suits my trail running skills. By mid-March, I was chasing the win at Breakneck and spent the next six weeks training on the course every weekend.”

On April 30th, she won the Breakneck race, covering the 26-mile trail marathon – with 9,000 feet of elevation gain/loss over rocks and roots with some hand-over-foot climbing – in five hours, 26 minutes. Focus and hard work meant the opportunity to join Team USA in Thailand on Nov. 4-6, and run the 40K race there. About making Team USA, she says, “It was on my radar. I just never imagined it would happen at this point in my running career.” Her dad is from the Albany area and her mom moved here to escape communist Poland to have a better life and she’s lived what you’d call the American dream. She appreciates all the hard work they put in to give her and my brother a better life. Michelle’s always been an outdoorsy person and grew up hiking a lot. Once she found out you could run on trails, move faster and cover more terrain, she was sold.

Michelle’s husband Josh, founder of the Albany Running Exchange and owner of ARE Event Productions (event timing and management), adds “The most impressive aspect of her qualification to me was how she managed the necessary specificity of training to maximize her chances on race day – all while working full-time. Considering the reality that we do not live in the mountains, she spent every weekend driving for hours to either the Adirondacks, Catskills, or the Hudson Highlands trails. During the week, limited by her work schedule which left little daylight on either end of her workday, she often would get on the treadmill at a mind boggling 40% grade to simulate the elevation of being in the mountains. In short, she was all in.” Michelle moved to Albany four years ago and works as an economist with the New York Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s power grid.

For those who don’t know, USA Track & Field is the governing body for road, track & field, race walking, cross-country, and mountain, ultra and trail (MUT) running. Each discipline has qualifying standards and races to get to the world championships. Mere mortals can race alongside those headed to compete on the world stage. USATF provides funding for the athletes for travel, food, and lodging for the race. USATF officials can apply to volunteer at world championships and physical therapists, coaches and those who want to serve as staff can apply. Getting involved with USATF Adirondack chapter is a great way to see how you can either compete at the national/world level or support those who do.

As you might imagine, wearing the Team USA gear is an honor and Michelle was ready to do us proud. Her lead up to Thailand included a training block out West. “I was able to get a ten-week sabbatical from work to train/race and I spent five of those weeks training in Flagstaff, Ariz. The race in Thailand was going to be a unique challenge because it was basically two giant hills five miles up/down (4,000 feet up/down) and then one smaller one. Flagstaff is a running mecca so Michelle was able to meet up with professional athletes training at altitude and recovering equal gusto. Physical and massage therapists, a gym, sauna, and of course high-altitude access were at her fingertips, which Michelle said, “was the best training block of my life.”

Michelle noted, “A lot of the athletes had been on US teams before and are professionals. Some of them are previous world champions and they all have amazing running resumes. It was surreal to be surrounded by people I’ve admired for years, and everyone was so nice and down-to-earth.” She finished a respectable 57th out of 72 finishers, completing the 40K course in 5:07:31. In the team results, Spain won gold, USA silver, and United Kingdom bronze.

Her husband Josh was along for the trip and was documenting it via Facebook Live posts. If Michelle didn’t already know athletes, Josh was out meeting and interviewing them, which allowed friends and family to share in the experience in real time. Michelle didn’t expect that so many would tune in. “It felt so special because I felt like my personal and running community was able to be there with me. I owe a lot to them and was just so grateful and so motivated to show up for everyone.”

Back to the gear, it didn’t disappoint. Michelle says, “The Team USA gear was so cool! We literally had the same singlet and kit as the 2020 Olympians. A few weeks out from travel, they send you a huge USA suitcase filled with gear. The expectation is that you bring everything and wear it the whole time because the trip is sponsored/paid for by USATF. There were jacket/pant sets, including one for the podium – which we made as a team so I got to wear that! Plus, some T-shirts, shorts, hats, socks, backpack... and some items that were not needed for Thailand like arm and leg warmers. There’s a nice rain jacket, which I didn’t wear until the final hours of my trip after arriving back in NYC to freezing rain.”

Most athlete’s travel with their race foods, as Michelle did. She fueled with Spring Energy gels (mostly “Awesome Sauce”) for nutrition and Skratch for hydration. Eating about 350-500 calories per hour with plenty of electrolytes. She notes, “I’ve always felt that just because you can do something, like run 16 miles without nutrition or hydration, it doesn’t mean you should do it. I give a lot of credit to adequate fueling – in general and in training – for faster recovery and injury resilience.” While she loves Thai food, “gluten free” is not a well understood concept in the northern part of Thailand. Diagnosed as gluten intolerant a couple of years ago she ended up feeling almost non-stop nauseous while there.

Anyone who does endurance events knows that those around you are a critical part of your team. “I had tremendous support from my running and strength coaches, mentors, and a handful of PTs and LMTs. My parents always support me by coming to races and listening to me talk on and on about running. My mom also will cook me a meal anytime I’m down training near them and was sending me gels and hydration to aid in training. Our neighbor watched our cat for most of the fall while I was away and Josh was on the road for work. My coworkers picked up a lot while I was away. Running friends asked about training and wished me luck. And of course, Josh supported me all of the way. He came to Thailand (missing some big events for his company), didn’t blink an eye when I wanted to train in Flagstaff, and he’s endured many bike rides supporting me on long runs. I’ll never forget the power of feeling the love of so many people behind me.”

It is amazing where the sport of running can take you. Unlike many other sports, you can engage competitively or for fun over a lifetime. Josh noted, “When we could not communicate verbally, we all shared the same love for running, grit, and physical exertion.” Keep your heart and eyes open to where the trails and roads will lead you!

Kristen Hislop (president@adirondack.usatf.org) of USATF Adirondack would like to see more local athletes get involved. Contact her to learn more about opportunities.