Team Red Dog Coffee Roasters
Team RDCR 2021
Chuck Fessler
I'm a Ph.D. student at Michigan State University studying Mathematics Education. Most of the I'd rather be biking, running, and exploring. I was introduced to endurance sports by a high school teacher who was a triathlete. By the end of college I had run a number of half-marathons and discovered the world of bike touring. In 2007, to celebrate college graduation, I rode my bicycle from Anacortes, WA to Boston, MA. Since this experience, I continued to participate in long-distance running and cycling. In 2011 I met Hannah Fessler and our mutual love for the outdoor adventure and endurance sports sealed the deal. Over the course of our marriage, we have climbed over 20 14ers while we lived in Colorado, supported each other as we participated in our various sports, and gone on three bike tours. In 2017 rode from Jasper, Alberta to Jackson Hole, WY (~1300 miles); in 2018 we cycled the Green Mountain Loop in Vermont (~380 miles), and in 2019 we cycled the Adirondack Park Loop in NY (~395 miles).
Nathan Berry and Roux the Shark
After she was rescued from the middle of the road in early 2015, I quickly discovered that a Catahoula leopard puppy was a terrific running partner. Roux and I have been trail running and adventuring for five years now. When we're not training on our local trails around Memphis, Tennessee, we're usually travelling to races or cross country for some mountain adventures. In the past year alone, Roux has summited the highest peak in the Rockies and on the east coast, won a 25k and 50k, and inspired me to launch a podcast. Roux's adventures can be heard on the Adventure Dog Podcast along with a new doggo guest each episode. A few of the races we have scheduled this year are the Memphis Humane Society Fast and Furriest 5k, Witch Dance Trail 50k in Mississippi, Walking Tall 50k in Tennessee, as well as some trail adventures in Leadville, Colorado. Roux can be found on instagram @rouxtheshark, I'm @nathanwberry, and together we are @adventuredogpodcast.
Anne Okonowski
Anne is a long-time runner from Southeast Michigan. She calls Metro-Detroit home,although she has only recently returned from running, teaching, and studying in theUpper Peninsula. Anne ran cross country and track for Wayne State University duringundergrad and then finished her NCAA eligibility at Northern Michigan University intrack and field as a graduate student. She made it through undergrad without drinkingcoffee, then discovered how great a warm mug in her hand felt on cold, cold wintermornings. She quickly learned that she only likes drinking the good stuff. She also madea New Year's Resolution to "pet more dogs". This often occurs when she's out trainingfor her upcoming races.
Paul Fitzpatrick
Brad Dains
Mike Sobczak
What’s up guys! My name is Mike Sobczak or as most of the population of the Tri-State area has known me since I was in high school “Subs.” I’m the owner of Training for Warriors (Doylestown) located in Bucks County PA where i’ve lived since I graduated from college in 2003 (Originally a Jersey Boy!). I’ve been married to my rock Krista since 2013, we have a 4 year old Luca, and another one on the way Due August 1st! I’ve been an athlete my whole life from Track and Field, Lacrosse, Rugby, and to most recently Powerlifting. I absolutely LOVE the Powerlifting community and everything in it from the standards, the judging, to the practices itself.
Whitney Quinlan and Mako
I am originally from Colorado. Chuck and I have two vizslas Flynn (7) and Wilson (2). We enjoy being active together and like hiking, biking, running, and bike touring.
I began competing in triathlons when I was 16 years old after my mother encouraged me to join her, as I was already competing on the cross country and swimming teams at my high school. In college, I joined the University of Colorado Boulder triathlon team and competed in the collegiate nationals in 2007.
After college, I got serious about running and raced in multiple half marathons. While living in Jacksonville, FL, I met Chuck and we quickly bonded over our love of running and we both trained for our first marathon together in 2011. After we were married and had moved back to Colorado, Chuck talked me into our first bike tour, and, in 2017, we rode from Jasper, Canada to Jackson Hole, Wyoming over three weeks. Since moving to Michigan in 2017, we have continued doing yearly bike tours, most recently in the Adirondack mountains of New York and the Green mountains of Vermont.
I returned to training for and competing in triathlons after moving to Michigan. In 2019, I completed my first Ironman 70.3 in Traverse City with my mother. After some peer pressure and coming off the high from that race I signed up for Ironman Lake Placid 2020. This will be my goal race for this race season.
Michelle Stolz
Hi! I'm Michelle- an outdoor enthusiast who loves trail running, skiing, and participating in trail and ultra races. Because of my location, I love to take up north to do a lot of running on the Superior Hiking trail with my husband and vizsla, Bean. I love to run on new trails but love the accessibility of the local trails as well to catch up with friends and of course, get overly excited with seeing other dogs! Really excited to be part of team RDCR this year and love seeing what the other teammates are up to (and of course their pups!)
Rebecca Corrente
I grew up in the Michigan countryside at the base of a long, sloping road. It was the challenge of my youth to make it to the top of that incline without stopping, and to this day I am strong on hills. I’ve been running on and off for three decades now. A couple years of high school cross country led to 5k’s as an adult, and recently, to my first marathon and ultramarathon. I started in on triathlons about ten years ago, and while I initially found them overwhelming and chaotic, I’ve become addicted to the cross training and camaraderie and sense of achievement. I’ve done several half Ironmans and suspect I’ll get a full under my belt in the next few years. For now, I’m really happy to be representing a company that cherishes some of my favorite things, and I look forward to a season full of good coffee and good fun!
Orissa Loftin
My name is Orissa Loftin and have been married for 14 years and my husband and I currently have a 2 year Vizsla named Libby and two 3 year old Whippets named Brody and Riley. We found out about the Vizsla breed from our old dog, Mocha, who was a choclolate lab/vizsla mix. She was the best girl, and after she passed, we decided to get a female Vizsla. After surviving the puppy months (oh, man those were tough!), Libby has turned into the most loving and sweet companion. Unfortunately, her recall is not where it needs to be for off leash running, but she does love to join me for my trail runs on lead and I’m slowly working up her endurance. We got our whippets from a rescue and they are the best buddies for Libby. I think Brody is going to be our runner. He seems to have the endurance and loves to go for runs too.
I began my multi sport career about 11 years ago. I started off with just cycling, but when my husband suggested we do a triathlon, I signed us up for a local sprint Tri and was quickly addicted! I’ve completed countless sprints and Olympic distance races, about 14 half ironman distance races, and 2 Ironman races.
I completed my first ultra race in 2018, a 50k run in Bastrop, TX. It was a very neat experience and something that I would love to do again, especially as a destination race in a beautiful location. I find that’s the best way to get up close and personal with nature!
In 2019, my friend convinced me to sign up for the Phoenix-Mesa Marathon after I had vowed to never do a road marathon again. But after a 5 year hiatus, I successfully trained and completed this race and had such a good time, I signed up for and completed The California International Marathon in December of 2019. I didn’t mean to bookend the year with marathons, but it was fun and I’m glad I did it!
This year, my biggest adventure will be my first swimrun race! I’m super excited to jump into this new sport and I’m also looking for some trail races to jump into along the way!
Joelle Vaught
My name is Joelle Vaught and I’m a trail/ultra runner from Boise, Idaho. I have a 15 year old son, Chase and 3 amazing trail dogs, Marley (lab mix rescue), Oakley (pointer rescue) and Scout (German wirehair pointer). I’ve been addicted to the outdoors most of my life and began competing in various types of races since college. I started running and would do local 10K races which evolved into longer races, my first marathon was in 1998. When I moved to Boise I got into mountain biking and road biking and eventually got on a team and raced both. This led me to become interested in adventure racing which I pursued and was lucky enough to find great teammates and raced all over the U.S., in Mexico and even got to do the Eco Challenge in Fiji. After having my son, I had less time so I decided to concentrate on one sport and that became trail running. I was fortunate to be sponsored by Montrail (Mountain Hardware/Columbia), Clif Bar, and Drymax socks and raced for over a decade in events 50K to 100 miles. I got to race in Australia and New Zealand and travel to Europe. Nearly 4 years ago, after a great spring of racing involving 2 course records, an FKT of the Zion traverse, and a run around Rainier on the Wonderland trail, I got up one morning and my hamstring ruptured 10 minutes into a run. I ended up having surgery to reattach my hamstring but this seriously changed my running. Luckily now, I am able to race again but not to the level I previously was at. In the last few years I have become passionate about photography while running, mostly of my dogs doing what they love most! I also now put on a trail marathon and half marathon here in Boise called the Dirty Dog and I get to donate proceeds to the trails and to dog rescues! I’m so excited to be on the Red Dog Coffee Roasters teams – nothing better than caffeine and dogs!!
Marc O'Neal
Marc O’Neal, Lockport, IL, has been involved with running for the past 28 years. He was introduced to running in seventh grade and has been involved with the sport ever since. After running in high school in Davenport, IA, his home town, he then competed in XC and track and field for four years at Washington University in St. Louis. Following collegiate racing, Marc turned to longer races, racing in four marathons with a personal best of 2:48. Upon completing his undergraduate degree, he then attended Washington University in St. Louis Program in Physical Therapy, earning a Doctorate in Physical Therapy. This Physical Therapy degree helped further his love for running, giving him a new appreciation for how the body moves. He has used his PT degree to help many runners over the past 16 years of practice in an outpatient orthopedic setting. It has also allowed him to become an assistant coach with Carl Sandburg High School’s running program, located in Orland Park IL. He has been able to work with the program to help minimize and manage running-related injuries. Carl Sandburg is widely considered one of the best distance/mid-distance running programs in the country.
When he is not working with local runners, Marc likes to compete on the local running scene. In addition to running, he has also competed in a couple of stair climbs. Most notably, he placed third in the open division and 13th overall, including elites, in the 2016 Hustle up the Hancock, with a time of 12:34. After running many local races by himself, he was excited to start competing with his three-year-old vizsla, Penny Sue. She has recently raced in two races and has won both. She won the 2018 Run for Paws 5k with her personal best of 17:14. She is the one-time defending champ and Marc is the seven-time defending champion in the Lockport Township High School Foundation 5k. When Penny Sue is not running on leash, she loves to spend time off leash running around with her friends at the local dog park and playing with her 11- and 9-year-old human brothers. She is the bestest dog. Marc is thankful to represent Red Dog Coffee Roasters, as he and his family have fallen deeply in love with Vizslas.
Frances Tuite
My name is Tony Simcic and this is my girl Pico. Our chosen distraction is Disc Dogging though some do not like that term for it, so let’s call it K9 disc games. My daughter Julia is the one who brought it to my attention some years ago, but I have never really had a dog that was motivated for it. So, I played some with my daughters GSD’s. My other advocation is Vizsla Rescue and I have over the years trained and competed with some of my fosters for discing. And this is how I became aware of Red Dog Coffee Roasters, since some of the proceeds from their “Rescue Blend” are donated to the rescue I am affiliated with.
As for our competition, Pico and I focus mostly on Skyhoundz Disc Dogathon or Classic but will also attend USDDN, AWI and Up Dog events. Pico is just really getting started, many of the organizations will not let a dog compete until they are 18 months old particularly for “Freestyle” and Pico is not yet 2. Mostly for the dog’s safety, they do not want them jumping unnaturally high until the growth plates have closed. So the 2020 season will be Pico’s first full year of competition but already half the season has been cancelled due to Corona and the second half is sketchy right now but we are still able to train and above all this is why I do this. I believe that anything that encourages you to spend more quality time with your dog and keeps you moving is a good thing, both for me and my dog. The other truly outstanding part of this sport is as a member of the Kansas City Disc Dogs Demo Team I get to play with my dog in some amazing places. Everywhere for pre-game at a Kansas City Royals game and Halftime at collage basketball games to a special 4th of July performance for our military at Fort Leonard Wood.
Mary Elliotte
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