Meet Mark, Cynthia and Staff
Mark and Cynthia Lorenzoni, co-owners since 1982
Mark and Cynthia met at Michigan State (their alma mater) in 1979 and were married in 1980 after moving to Charlottesville. While in college, Cynthia worked part time for Frank Shorter at his running shop in East Lansing and very much enjoyed her job. Because there was a need in the community (there was no other running specialty shop) and because of their passion for the sport they decided in the winter of 1982 to open their own shop in the tree lined, brick sidewalked street (Elliewood) across from the University of Virginia. By 1984, thanks to the overwhelming support of their customers, they moved up the street to a bigger location (again in the upstairs of an old house). Over the next 14 years their business and their family grew (they now have four children) and in the spring of 1999 they moved, once again thanks to the support of their wonderful customers, to a much bigger location (another upstairs spot on Elliewood but this time with twice the space). In the fall of 2006 Ragged Mountain moved DOWNSTAIRS to their largest location in their first 25 years of community business. Despite the dramatic physical growth of their business over the years, Mark and Cynthia and their staff are still very committed to providing their customers with the most courteous and professional service. They continue to adhere to their original mission of treating each and every one of their customers, no matter their ability, first class and to give all of them the very best service.
Cynthia has been consistently running (except for time off during her four pregnancies and a bout with plantar fasciitis) since 1972. She grew up in Farmington, Connecticut where she went undefeated in cross country and track during her four years of high school. She was the the National High School Record holder for two miles in 1976 (11:03) and went on to compete for Michigan State University as a scholarship athlete and Team Captain in cross country, indoor and outdoor track. She continued to compete after college on the roads, where from 1980-1984 she registered a 2:38 p.r. in the marathon, 34:40 for 10K and a 56:50 for ten miles. Since then, Cynthia hasn’t competed on the national level although she will jump into a local race now and then. She still very much enjoys running almost everyday of the week. Cynthia spends most of her time volunteering on civic projects and being a “mom”. She thoroughly enjoys her current role as a community volunteer and as one of the loudest cheerers on the sidelines of her children’s racing events.
Mark has been running since the spring of 1973, when he ran the quarter mile as a Senior for his high school track team in New Jersey. He was a recreational runner throughout college but after graduating, thanks to Cynthia’s encouragement, he competed on the roads and is most proud of his 36:15 time on the legendary Batesville 10K course and his 59:42 at the Virginia Ten Miler. In 1981 he began his amateur coaching career by writing programs for Cynthia. Since then he has coached thousands of runners (recreational, novice and elite) to their personal goals. Mark runs five miles three days a week with his partner Bernie Webb. His personal injuries have been I.T.B. and plantar fasciitis, both of which are long gone (knock on wood). He rarely competes but when he does he struggles to break 8 minute/mile pace, a far cry from his p.r.‘s from the early eighties but good enough for an “old man”!
We currently have 40 part-time employees at Ragged Mountain. All of them run on a regular basis and most are between the ages of 16 and 23. Some are competitive runners (for high school or college squads) but most are recreational runners, who run just for fun and get out 3-4 times/week for 30-45 minutes at a time.
In addition to being runners we also require that our employees thoroughly enjoy working with people. We take about four months to train them on how to analyze gait, evaluate running injuries and correctly recommend and fit shoes and inserts based on that information. We are blessed that they stay with our “family” for an average of three to five years.
One of the things we are most proud of about our employees is how involved they are with their community. Many of our High Schoolers are active with civic and church groups and our college students belong to a variety of service organizations and causes. All of them freely volunteer their time to help those in need.