A note from Freetrail: You know Ellie Pell from the Freetrail Fam Pod, but did you know she has an insatiable need to get to know you, and I mean REALLY get to know you? Like, what’s your favorite kind of cheese? “You Made it Weird” is Ellie’s brainchild because while she loves that these athletes are mega-talented she also wants to know what ELSE IS THERE?! Look for You Made it Weird every Friday (or in this case – Tuesday).
You Made it Weird With Michelle Merlis
When I was a wee babe, I tried a race in the Catskills called Escarpment. I was super new to trail running but had done a 50 kilometer race, so yep, I was a TRAIL ATHLETE. Well those 18 miles are some of the toughest terrain this side of Ohio and it kicked my sorry butt pretty badly. I stumbled my way to 6th while Michelle, a local mountain goat, won the race and set a course record. I had no idea how people run those kinds of things and vowed to “stay in my lane” – meaning run courses that I can actually run. Michelle however continues to dominate that type of beast coast terrain and has set the FKT on the Devil’s Path and won the Breakneck Point Trail Marathon sending her to represent team USA in Thailand in 2022. Michelle is deeply involved in the local Albany running community and though she’s supremely talented and tough, she’s also the kindest person I’ve ever spoken with. The compassion and heart radiates off her and her smile warms my heart. Michelle is someone I know I would run with every day if I lived closer. Don’t tell her, but I have flight alerts on to Albany so one day I will get the chance… that’s not too creepy is it?
Find Michelle on Instagram, Strava, and Ultrasignup.
Who are you and what do you do?
I’m Michelle – or Meesh to some. Shelly, only if you’re my parents or my cousins. I run in the mountains, spend a lot of time talking to my cat and giving her massages with my massage gun, and am married to the most interesting man alive.
Do any of your group chats have names? If so, what are you willing to share? How did they get that name? What is a major topic of discussion in them?
Okay, I have a few group chats but they’re pretty standard/not that interesting (college girlfriends, run groups), and I know this is supposed to be about me, but it would be a missed opportunity to not talk about the main group chat that gets discussed at home/in our friend circle, “the boys chat”. Tangentially, this is actually about me, because a friend once listed the 10 most important things in my husband’s life, in order of importance, and “the boys chat” was number one. “The boys chat” has taken many formal names – most recently “Searching for Pimon Sowhida” and “The Delightful Group Chat for Men” – but is generally known as “the boys chat”. From what I can gather it’s mostly just my husband sending random messages – screenshots of the ads he gets on Facebook/Instagram, doctored newspaper articles to include salacious information about other guys in the group, political memes – and is a way for them to coordinate workouts/runs. I’ve considered starting a rival chat for the partners of all of those in the boys chat so we can elude a similar level of middle school energy. For my part, it would mostly just be quotes of things my husband says because there’s usually one to two gems per day.
If you could change one thing about your favorite social media platform, what would it be?
I want to go back to seeing information in chronological order from my friends/people I follow – exhausted by the “algorithms”!
What is a book of fiction that you really enjoyed, for no other reason than you liked it?
Tenth of December by George Saunders
What is one song you’ve been listening to on repeat recently?
Chatter by Connor Price
What is one trend that started in 2020 that you love?
People (generally) being more conscious of not going to social functions if they’re sick.
What is one trend that started in 2020 that you hate?
My husband getting addicted to playing online chess…
What are the last three emojis you used?
😳🙂🙏
What is the last thing you bought online?
A COROS watch as a prize for a training group that I worked with through the spring.
What is your most controversial food opinion?
Road runners are the worst at fueling during their training.
What three videos are at the top of your YouTube recommended homepage?
Corn: Last Week Tonight w/ John Oliver
2024 BOLDERBoulder presented by Runners Roost
Chill & Relax in a Rainy Lofi Town
Which Allie is your favorite?
Allie Mac!
What argument in mass media do you not understand or think is a worthless issue?
Haven’t looked at a news publication since leaving my job in April so I don’t even know what the arguments are anymore.
When you go home for the holidays, what is the food or tradition that it wouldn’t be the holidays without?
My father has been a volunteer firefighter for my entire life (and most of his) – without fail, there is always a call on any major holiday. As soon as we hear the pager going off, we know he’s off to the call.
When I say in-seam you say…?
3”, nothing more, nothing less
When has your ego caused you to do something you sort of regret but also would describe as wild and worth it?
Probably what I’m doing right now, which is quitting my job to spend the year participating in the Skyrunning World Series (although I doubt I’ll regret it).
What was your worst running fuel decision? What was the surprising best?
Unbeknownst to me at the time, the worst was definitely when the only thing I packed for running the Devil’s Path was moldy Bobo bars. I still can hardly look at one. The best, which is at a very high level, was hiring a registered dietician to plan my meals based around my training (shout out to Kylee Van Horn at FlyNutrition!).
What is your death row meal?
Some solid street tacos.
Out and back or looped course? Why?
Out and back; feels more like “you’re bringing it home” when you turn around to me.
Barkley or 24H track race? Why?
24H track race – Barkley seems a lot more like hiking than running and I really don’t care for hiking (yeah, so why am I doing the skyrunning series?).
When I say PTRA you say?
Let me google that because I have no idea.
What is one thing that absolutely scares you? Why?
Heights, I have an irrational fear that I’ll completely lose control of my mind/body and somehow end up over the edge (and, again, why am I doing the skyrunning series?).
What is a time you felt you didn’t measure up? How did you get through that?
Being at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships; I totally felt like making the team was a mistake. Still not sure I’ve totally gotten through it but doing the work and training week after week helps.
Who is another runner that flies under the radar that we should all get to know?
Lindsey McDonald