backyard burn -- part deux

More fall leaves littered the ground. They were a little browner this time. The weather was perfect: crisp and cool, and I wore my cozy gloves to keep my hands warm. I was in prime running condition and I zipped ahead of the pack, finishing 27^th in my age group. I was proud of that. The race track wrapped around a large swath of land in Fairfax. It was a little hilly, but very gradual -- just bumpy enough to keep it interesting. The most ridiculous thing about the course was that they’d plopped a really ugly power relay station right in the middle of this beautiful park. And the course looped around it. We had to run over smashed concrete blocks and mud just so we could approach this horrendous power plant. It looked like a scene from a post apocalyptic road race. I assumed that Mad Max and Tina Turner were going to show up in a tricked out 18-wheeler. But no luck. I kind of wanted to sing, “We don’t need another hero” with her. Just to make my buddy Stephen jealous. (He’s a huge fan.)

(mantra: I am strong, fierce and pissed....)

(get out of my way, bitch!)

(Cute boys # 316 and 317)

(hot pareve boys 560 and 498)

Had she been there, Tina would have shared a Gatorade and Tanqueray cocktail with me at the finish line and we would’ve discussed the true meaning of the lyric, “We don’t need to know the way home.” It would’ve been so glam. I would of course be panting a little bit, because I was very winded at the end of the 50 minutes because I didn’t take my usual walk breaks (except maybe once for about 10 seconds so that I wouldn’t run into people in front of me.) Do the walk breaks slow me down? Yes. By about 9 minutes. But are they really necessary? Apparently not. I just have to stay focused.

26 275 Jeffery Blender 34 Alexandria VA 50:45