Thornton Academy Postscripts Alumni Magazine Spring 2020 | Page 4

LESSONS
FROM THE RACE:
FEATURE
Evan Moreshead ’08 Finds
Adventure in Teamwork
As a software engineer at Hubspot, the Bostonbased
inbound marketing software company, Evan
Moreshead ’08 spends a lot of time at his computer
writing code. “The rest of my life is kind of boring
compared to racing,” he explains with a smile. Evan began
Adventure Racing in 2014 after he learned about the sport
from a coworker. “I kept bothering him with questions
until he finally said the best way to learn is to try. So, he
signed me up for a 12-hour race; I wasn’t quite ready.” At
present, Moreshead participates in five to seven races a
year and trains regularly to be able to compete. He runs 65
miles a week and bikes in the evenings, coming together
with his teammates on occasion to practice particularly
challenging race skills, like pack rafting. “I really
appreciate the combination of both intense individual
practice, and the opportunity to bring it all together and
work as a team...the logistics and strategy of it all.”
Upon hearing Moreshead speak about his adventures
it’s easy to imagine he was always an athlete, but that’s
not the case. While at TA, he was involved in new media
and spent his four years as TATV’s webmaster. But being
a team player doesn’t necessarily require a uniform
or cleats. He remembers lots of collaborative projects
during his time as a Trojan, and learned to value both the
challenge and the fun found in working together during
his high school years. When he arrived at Rochester
Institute of Technology (RIT) in the fall of 2008, a chance
conversation between his father and the crew coach led to a
major change in his life; Evan decided to join the crew team.
While he started out as one of the least in shape of the rowers,
he finished strong—a four-year collegiate athlete, and one
of the fastest and strongest on his team. “Even though I was
nervous and out of my element, I tried something new and it
transformed into a whole new passion. I wouldn’t be here if
I didn’t say yes to something new.”
It’s not surprising that he began looking for another
challenge when he graduated from RIT and moved to
Boston. He wanted to do more than just run, and he
wanted a team to compete with. Enter Adventure Racing;
at its core it is a collaborative sport that asks participants
to work together as they navigate over an unmarked
wilderness course. Race terrain mostly requires biking,
trekking, and paddling, though some events also include
opportunities to rock climb and abseil, ski, and white
4 Story by Katie Beane · Photos Courtesy of Evan Moreshead/Team Strong Machine