Battle Road Track Club (BRTC) was founded in 2016 as an elite level track and cross country team based in Boston, MA. Currently BRTC is led by club President Meghan McCormick, and coached by Francis Cusick and Alexandra (Sasha) Mindel. Meghan ran for Cornell University ‘16 and has been on the team since 2016. Read the Bio’s of Coach Fran and Coach Sasha here (link).
BRTC has undergone numerous name changes since its original inception as the Nike Boston Track Club circa 1986. In 2000, the team was renamed the Reebok Boston Track club. In 2005, New Balance became the major sponsor of the team and the team was renamed the New Balance Track Club. In 2008, the team began debuting its signature green color and working on its new logo. The dragon logo, drawing inspiration from a sailing ship, was launched at Club National Championships in 2012.
At the USATF Team Cross Country Championships in 2015 it was announced that the team would be renamed to our current name, the Battle Road Track Club featuring our new logo. When looking for inspiration for this new chapter, the club looked to a local landmark steeped in history and a monument to the type of passion that drives runners to always seek personal improvement. The Battle Road Trail is such an important part of American History and local pride, but also a pillar of the greater Boston running community. A favorite training spot of this and other groups in the area, the miles of serene country paths are a symbol from the past of the type of spirit, dedication, triumph, and sacrifice required to achieve success within the sport. BRTC was coached by Kevin Curtin and Ryan Carrara, from 2016 to 2021. As an athlete, Curtin participated in the 1988 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 1500 meters, earned All-America honors in cross country for Brandeis, and was captain of the Judges’ 1983 NCAA Division III national championship team. Ryan Carrara was a standout track and cross country runner at UMASS Amherst (Class of ‘98) before joining and eventually coaching the Battle Road Track club. He has now become an accomplished Master’s runner but nevertheless still holds some of the team’s top times in the marathon and half marathon. In 2021, Fran took over as head coach after having many successful years as a member of the team. During the pandemic, the team shrank in size and over the next two years Coach Fran along with our recruitment board members, helped attract numerous talented runners, growing the team to record size resulting in numerous new BRTC club records. In 2022, the team officially became a 501c non-profit organization. In Fall 2023, after many years on the team Sasha joined the staff as the assistant coach, bringing her elite status in long distance racing.
Over the years, there have been numerous stand-out individual performances on the team. Rebecca Donaghue won the USATF Club National XC Championship in 2008. Furthermore, she was a US Olympic Trials finalist for the 5000m. In 2016, we had three more trials qualifiers, with Sasha, Katie DiCamillo, and Keely Maguire, competing in the US Olympic Marathon trials in Los Angeles. In Spring of 2019, Rosie Donegan qualified for Worlds for her home country of Australia after a club record performance of 9:37 in the steeplechase. In Fall of 2019, Hayley Green was selected as one of three runners chosen to represent her home country of New Zealand at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Denmark. In 2022, teammates Lily Robinson and Sarika Temme-Bapat went 1, 2 in the USATF New England Cross Country Grand Prix, racking up numerous top 5 individual finishes over the course of the 5 race series. In 2023, BC alum and new BRTC team member Anna Oeser was able to consistently drop time off her 5000m, setting a club record of 15:30 at our Twilight Home Meet Series and earning a spot at the USATF Track Championships in Eugene, Oregon. Her training partner, Holly Rees, also had a fantastic 2023 season, culminating in qualifying and competing in the UK Athletics Championships for Team Scotland. Fellow BRTC teammate and countrymen Declan Neary, also qualified for the meet in the steeplechase, where he finished 6th in a competitive field.
The team has not only experienced individual success, but has been able to dominate the cross country and road racing scene as a team. Both teams have made a habit of finishing in the top 3 teams at the USATF New England XC Meet, with 15 top 3 finishes from the Men’s team and 16 top 3 finishes from the Women’s team over the past 17 years (2006-2022). Both the Men’s and Women’s team finished first in the 5 series USATF New England Cross Country Grand Prix in 2022. The BRTC Men’s and Women’s teams have finished in the top 10 at the USATF Club National Cross Country Championships 2 and 11 times respectively since 2004.
Please email aaron.lucci@gmail.com if you have any comments or additions to this page.