I've had a splendid day, Readers.
My running goal is complete,
and I'm celebrating.
Eloise has some wine,
some flowers,
and a terrific new key chain to remind me just how cool people are.
Honestly, this is my drink of choice,
but tonight, I've acquired a taste for this.
So, you ask, How did this brainchild begin, Eloise?
That's easy.
It's all her fault.
This is my friend Tracy Northern.
She got this hair-brained idea to run a marathon. She ran the Chicago marathon last October. I am very proud of her.
However, when your friend is training for a marathon, you kind of get sucked into the roller coaster of emotions, too. She'd call me and whine that she couldn't make it one more footstep, and I'd tell her she could. Tracy would find me afterwards, the run always leaving her feeling like she could take on the world. Even stoic Heather my friend who wears the crown of Running Queen, is training for a marathon right now. She griped this afternoon about how she hates it.
The craziest part is that as soon as it was over, instead of feeling relieved, Tracy said, "I need my next thing..."
"What kind of crack did they sell you on the streets of Chicago?" was something along the lines of my supportive response.
A fitness junkie always needs the next hit, I guess.
Last October, I had been working out with Dr. Krauza and this new group of people called Team Adrenaline, for a few weeks. I was digging them. "Maybe you should come and try my new workout group," I said. Within a few months Tracy was hooked, too.
As a result of Team Adrenaline's outdoor workouts, I began to look at fitness in different ways. I spied this sign in the parking lot of the winery across the street from my house, 6 Mile Cellars. To Eloise, that looked like a running goal.
Maybe I can RUN to all those wineries.
Now that sounds kind of fun!
(Dr. Krauza reworked my definition of "fun")
Eloise couldn't wait to bling up the mile markers with some virtual push pins.
We finished the sign in May.
Bart at 6 Mile Cellars suggested a Celebration Run.
We did it today.
It was an almost 12 miler.
We ran it in the heat of the afternoon sun.
We knew it was going to be a doozy, so we hydrated up and met at CJ & Jen Kelly's house out in in the middle of nowhere.
We had a pre-run turkey feeding,
and a ukulele serenade,
then headed out.
The run through No Mans Land was pretty.
We passed lots of barns,
and ran some horrendous hills!
Eloise still stopped to smell the flowers,
check out some creeks,
and wave to some cars on I-90.
It was tar was bubbling hot!
But grandma came to the rescue!
We planted Grandmas Helen and Joyce at the 8 mile water stop.
Once a nurse, always a nurse. Grandma Joyce said water down the back cooled the body.
Grandma Helen was more than happy to assist in the first aid.
We rounded the corner to 6 Mile before the storm clouds rolled through.
Bart was waiting for us at the finish and high fived everyone,
as did Sam!
Sam also enjoys chasing people with water to "cool them down."
Inside the winery,
Bart arranged for wine sampling and gourmet boxed lunches for all of us.
The group photo on this one is my favorite. Everyone looks so happy!
It probably had something to do with Sam's water cool down, right?
CJ gave each of us roses and a really cool key chain.
It was the biggest surprise yet.
Thanks, CJ!
The Winery Runs as per Bart's sign post are complete. We all agreed to continue more of the Destination Runs to some summer-fun locations like ice cream stands. There has been so much interest generated in the Winery Runs, I do believe they will continue and each take on their own spins and flavors.
It's the end of my goal, but I think of it this way:
Eloise thinks this is the beginning of something very, very good.
Enjoy the video set to the song Glad You Came by The Wanted. Their other single I have is Chasing the Sun, and that would have been appropriate for today, too. The video is a collection of photos from all of the Winery Runs, January through June.
I'm glad you came!
Eloise
No comments:
Post a Comment