The Recap!

The annual Charlie Brown
Thanksgiving meal that we have
for lunch. Because it's awesome.

Happy Friday and post-Thanksgiving feasting!! I hope yours was a great one spending it exactly the way you wanted!! Ours was super-duper! I enjoyed exchanging messages and phone calls and cooking the normal stuff while Pit Crew #2 and Aaron got into making some new stuff and playing games and watching Home Alone ... all of the things that come together to make our Thanksgiving what we've come to love! And, of course, all of that came after our family morning run! Here's how our fourth go at the Turkey Trax went down!!

I woke up with a start around 5 a.m. because I had a sudden panic that our turkey -- which was on our deck swimming in its brine in a cooler -- had refrozen because it was so cold overnight. I woke up Aaron (because shouldn't he have to check on such things?), he got up to confirm the turkey was just fine, and I think he went back to sleep. In the meantime, I not only didn't really go back to sleep, but I also realized I'd thrown away the directions for cooking the raw pie I'd bought. I wasn't too worried about it, but it did keep my mind buzzing enough that I didn't get back to a good sleep. That's the best way ever to start a morning of a run! But, ready or not, it was soon time to head out!

Fortunately, when we arrived at the start, it didn't feel as cold as the temperature read which was right at 30 degrees. (That particular chill was reserved for the end of the run when we were all sweaty. Fun!) There weren't as many people dressed in festive wear as I've seen in the past, but there were some fun ones like ...

... and ...

... and, these ladies that were getting a jump on the upcoming holiday ...

And, of course:

Let's get a better view of Aaron's hat, shall we?

And, how could I resist showing off these two?!

While prowling around the start, we saw and chatted with a couple of people we know. I have to say that the atmosphere of this run is among the friendliest. Everyone is simply in a good mood and not taking it particularly seriously. And, if they are, I'm not hanging with them anyway while they talk time and focus on winning one of the age group prizes:

I'll bake my own pie, thanks. That is, if I
can figure out workable directions. hahaha

Finally, it was time to get to the start, but not before our annual pre-race selfie!

It just has to be done!

As we were walking, PC#2 and I were talking about (which is another way of saying making fun of) the selfies we recently watched Josh Duggar take on an episode of 19 Kids and Counting because he's always in the foreground holding the camera way up high capturing the rest of the people small in the background. So, of course, we had to try it:

Seeing as I cut Aaron's head off, I concede this technique requires more than I have to give. You take this round, Josh Duggar!

So, here's part of the view from the starting line:

Note the dude in the rainbow unicorn hat, upper left. I would
like to add that that guy was fast ... must have been his
rainbow magic ...

And, here's Pit Crew #3 and I hunkered down to let everyone around us block the wind:

And, here's what we saw when we took off!

Who starts a race up a hill? Most races
around here do, and there's not much that
can be done about it. But, still!

There's Aaron almost at the summit of the start's hill!

We decided we were the homies, and Aaron was the home slice.
We're cool like that.

With the minor exception of that first little incline, this was a really good course and one none of us had before run. We were surprised the venue had changed from the previous years, but, with this course, we approved. I'm sure that pleases race organizers near and far.

ANYWAY, the four of us commit to hanging together, and we found our groove pretty early on. We also found this before the first mile:


This little girl rocked that pie hat.

Funny story about being at this point: PC#2 noted, "I don't think they really marked the route with mile markers this time," to which I responded, "That's because we've not yet gone a mile," to which she responded, "WHAT?!" Keeping in mind she's a pretty natural athlete and can go-go-go when she has time to train-train-train, this was really quite funny. And, it just goes to show how long a mile can feel to anybody.

Just before wrapping this whole thing up, I found this!

If it's there to find, there's a good chance
I'm going to do so! I can thank my friend,
parking meter back there, for this!

In no time, we wrapped it up!

And, in no time, the boys found the post-race food!

PC#2 and I each had a bite, but these
didn't hit the spot.

Correction: They did not hit the girls' spot!

We hung around the finish for just a bit, but, then that post-race chill set it, and it was time to leave!! But, not before our finish line selfie!

There it is! The 2014 installment of Turkey Trax ... that run that's often advertised as "Work off your dinner before you eat it," which is a complete load of crap but fun to laugh about!

In the middle of the Turkey Trax route, I even said to myself, "Yeah, I'm really over this running thing for a few days!" And, so it shall be with another rest from running day tomorrow! The day is sure to be full, though, because it's time to decorate!! See you tomorrow ...