20 Miles, a 5-min Sellout, and Daffodils

Not too shabby of a St Patrick's Day yesterday. I doubt it related closely to the many people I saw screaming and making fools of themselves in downtown Kent mid-day, but it was great. At 6:15am, I was on the road for 20 miles from my home. First up, I crushed 10 miles in 1hr, 18min at 7:47 per mile under super heavy fog. As the run progressed, the sun was beginning to rise in the east with a very small Mr. Moon remaining. My Pure Connect's were treating me well so far. Back home at the agreed-upon time of 7:30am, I met up with Marjie for our couples' run of "Karen's Loop" of 8.2 miles. It's a hilly, quiet loop through the country that we love to share, especially under lifting fog, rising sun, and Spring springing all around. Back at home at 18.2 miles, I dropped her off and crushed the final 1.8 miles in under 7:30 per mile. I have to say, I'm impressed. For a shoe only weighing 7.2oz and with only 4mm between my body and the asphalt (a 200lb body), it is flat-out awesome. (here are the specs, if interested) Advisable to take out a minimal shoe on a 20 miler? Not at first, but I've been working towards this for awhile and with stronger feet now because of it, I'm reaping the benefits. This morning? I feel like another 20-miler is in me...but alas, a day of rest. :-)

Back at home, I had a few eggs and toast and readied for the High Noon Scramble...or better known as registration for the 2012 Oil Creek Trail Runs. Oil Creek was home to my 3rd 100-miler and most memorable event of my life and also responsible for many friendships I would not have otherwise had. This year, I signed up for the Oil Creek 50K as did Marjie. This will be her first shot at the distance and I'll be with her for every step. At 12:05pm, it was SOLD OUT. In 2009, it sold out in 5 months. This year? 5 minutes.

My youngest is 11 years old today, too. Yesterday after the registration took place, I took her for her first pair of running shoes at Vertical Runner in Hudson. Of course, she got a pair of Brooks. :-) Brooks Adrenaline GTS, of course. Watching her walk barefoot, she's in great need for stability and that's the perfect shoe for her. I hope to start running a bit with her with an eventual 5K together. That was pretty cool to pick up some shoes with her. Of course, I shopped a bit, myself. :-)

After some shoes, we wandered through downtown Kent, strategically avoiding the college crowd which was very much intoxicated mid-day, already. No need for her to see/hear stuff like I was hearing in the distance. We parked near the Cuyahoga River and made our way up to the new Tree City Coffee and shared a Mint Frappe then went on down along the river for a walk in the sunshine. It really was nice down there and a chance to just hang out. Along the trail, I noticed a daffodil that was just beginning to peek out at the world. How often do we get to witness this? We see the finished product but rarely do we see it first enter the world like this. Pretty awesome. (see below) Afterwards, we headed on home. Great times and a brilliant, warm day in mid-March in northeast Ohio!

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