This is the time of year, as the days get longer and the weather becomes increasingly warmer, that runners tend to get out and rack up more and more mileage after a long winter's lull. Newtown running extraordinaire Kevin Hoyt, however, is one of those joggers who is already at a high level and in midseason form.

From January through March for the past four years, Mr Hoyt, 27, has participated in the Boston Build Up series of four road races sponsored by ClubCT as well as the Boston Blowout, the culminating race. The races are held in Fairfield, Norwalk, and Ridgefield, with each of the first four runs increasing in distance from a 10K to a 15K, then 20 and 25K.

Participants in the Blowout have a choice to race 10, 20, or 30K. Mr Hoyt, naturally, has always run the longest of the options.

"I like the challenge of getting the 30K completed," Mr Hoyt said.

To make this winter running feat all the more impressive, Mr Hoyt has won each and every one of these races. That's 20 first-place finishes.

Mr Hoyt said the Boston Build Up Series is enjoyable because of the hilly courses. "It's a nice challenge to have all those hills," he said.

Most of these races include 150-200 people, and the final race typically has about 100-150 participants.

He's used the series to prepare for the Boston Marathon and also simply to continue racing through the cold winter months when there are fewer racing options.

Generally, Mr Hoyt runs seven days a week and has compiled about 4,000 miles per year each of the past couple of years, while averaging about 3,000 miles per year since he started running competitively.

Hoyt runs both on roads and trails in town. He averages around 70 to 75 miles per week, but ramps that up to about 100 per week when preparing for marathons and other long races.

Where It All Began

Mr Hoyt ran a bit as a middle school student, but first became competitive in running as a high school student at the age of 14. His parents pushed him to join the cross country team at Newtown High and the rest is pretty much history.

"I enjoyed it and that's where it started," Mr Hoyt said.

He ran cross country, as well as winter indoor and spring outdoor track and field throughout high school. A 2008 NHS graduate, Mr Hoyt was an All State cross country competitor who went on to compete at Keene State where he competed at the national championships twice, once qualifying as part of the team and once as an individual.

Mr Hoyt is a regular winner or top finisher of any number of Newtown's dozen and ever-growing number of road races.

Among the more memorable road races Mr Hoyt ran was a 5K in Cheshire during 2016 in which the winner was awarded round-trip airfare to anyplace in the United States. Mr Hoyt trailed for much of the race before pulling out a late victory. He used the airfare to watch the Olympic trials for track and field in Eugene, Ore.

Mr Hoyt has not kept track, but he has won approximately 50 or so races.

It is not all about winning, but crossing the finish line first, or the objective to do so, that drives Mr Hoyt to do his best.

"You always expect to do well. It's always a sense of accomplishment and relief when you go out and win. At the end of the day I find if you go out with a hard effort, if you don't win, you can take a lesson from that race and learn from it," said Mr Hoyt, adding that he will tweak his training or workouts as he sees fit to better prepare himself for the next competition.

Mr Hoyt continues to have strong ties to the high school program, as he serves as an assistant coach with the Newtown High boys' track and field team.

"I know what it feels like to be in their shoes. It's very rewarding to see them succeed from their hard work and effort they put in," Mr Hoyt said of the student-athletes.

He also works as a paraeducator in the Special Education department at NHS. Working full-time, plus coaching, makes for the biggest challenge Mr Hoyt has running.

"Sometimes that means getting out before work in the morning and sometimes it's when you get home and want to sit down on the couch in a warm house, but go outside and run," he said.

This running enthusiast has completed five marathons, including the New York City Marathon twice, as well as the Boston and Chicago Marathons, and another in Pennsylvania. He completes about 10 to 15 races per year, including 5Ks, among them some of Newtown's races.

So how many pairs of running shoes has he gone through?

"Too many to count," he said.

A reason for lacing up the shoes and going for a jog, Mr Hoyt says, is to enjoy Mother Nature, regardless of the season.

"I'm a big fan of being outdoors. It's a nice time to get out and see what's going on in the world and get some fresh air," Mr Hoyt said.

He has been attending the Northeast Kingdom Running Camp in Vermont - originally as a camper and now a coach - all told for 13 years. He has a 74-year-old running friend at the camp who is from Florida, and who provides some inspiration for the 27-year-old.

"He still gets out and runs and that's what I'm hoping for," Mr Hoyt said.