The Absolutely Fabulous Flying Fur Run....

That is correct!  Today was a day for the Dogs!   (In more than one way...More on that later.)  At 1 PM today,  the Flying Pig Marathon threw in a race for people who had dogs.   Two miles of Slobbery, Tail wagging, Canine goodness! Imagine you are a person who enjoys running.  And then imagine you're also a person who loves Dogs!   Now combine those two themes and you can imagine just where I was this afternoon.   

The dogs were from just about every breed and breed combination you could imagine.   Every shape and size were present.  I got to pet a lot of them.  And I took so many pictures I almost melted down my camera. Good thing I got all of those "other pictures" from this morning off of there, otherwise I might not have had enough memory.

The dogs where fast, too!   The winner completed the 2 miles in just under 10 minutes!  It must be nice having four legs.  I can only imagine it helps when chasing a PR for a distance.   

But before you get too excited, there were plenty of slower dogs coming across at more realistic times.  You could see the change somewhere along the way when the dogs stopped pulling their owners, and instead, the owners were pulling the dogs across the finish line.  But at least it appeared everyone had a good time.  

I feel like  there is something else I missed today.   Something I should mention  on the blog....

Well,  There certainly are a LOT of dog pics and videos.   I probably should try to select the best ones so folks don't get too bored. Mastiffs, Greyhounds, Great Danes,  Bermese Mountain dogs... just to name a few. It is a good thing the rain held off for the run.  Unlike this morning...

Oh Yeah!  This morning!  I knew I forgot something.   Cheryl and Mike ran a 5K and 10 K this morning.   And it rained in between the races. The only thing worse than a wet dog... is a wet Runner! Thankfully, it did not rain too hard. 

I guess I should mention how they did...   "Kind of good," I suppose.   Both of them got age group awards for the 10k, at least.  I think both of them fared slightly worse during the 5K.  Since the races took part during the wee hours of morning,  the pictures did not turn out as well as the pictures of the dogs.  But I guess I can bump a few dog pics for some Cheryl and Mike running pics.   

I should also mention that I mis-spoke yesterday  when I said they were going to also run a half marathon today.  Apparently, that is slated for Tomorrow.  So we get to do this whole thing over again tomorrow morning.... Only without the dogs.   

Pam and I discovered early on that our plan on catching the runners was flawed, as the paths over the river were on bridged that could not be accessed by us.  So we basically got them as the started and finished.   Kind of boring, but there it is. ( Hence, the plethora of Dog Pics....)

So now Cheryl has three finisher's medals and two awards. ( I think) with the Grand Half Marathon still on the horizon for Tomorrow morning.   And then, we get to go back home.    But in the mean time.... More Flying Pigs!  thanks for stopping in.

Greetings from Cincinnati!

That is correct!  We are currently in Cincinnati, Ohio... on the Kentucky side of the river.    Try making sense out of that explanation!   I guess there is a border here or something...

Anyway!  

Cheryl just finished the 1 mile run, along with the Zakoseks.   All three of them ran the introductory one mile race for the Flying Pig Marathon.   I guess it is a rather huge event.   But more on that later. 

So...   Long trip.   Cheryl drove all of it, leaving me to be bored the entire trip.   But that did have a benefit of allowing me to be less grumpy at the Expo when we finally arrived in town. 

The expo was pretty big.  I guess this is a "top 10" event for most runners in the nation.  Mostly for the Marathon.  However... There are these "challenges" that allow people who lack the desire or fortitude of running a full marathon... To run a "mostly" marathon... By running a one mile, 5K, 10 K and Half marathon all in rapid succession.  As you can imagine,  this is the plan the trio formulated for this race.  

Ok, A little back story.   Pam and Mike have already run this race.   Pam ran the Half marathon last year and Mike ran the Full Marathon.  They enjoyed it so much, the "Conned"  Cheryl into joining them this year. But they wanted something slightly different this go around.   Why not attempt the challenge. 

Well.  I should also mention that Pam is out of this little caper as she was only signed up to run the one mile.   The rest of the challenge will be run by the Dynamic Duo (or Cheryl and Mike) as Pam and I chase them around the labyrinth of Cincinnati. And yes... There will be plenty of drinking involved!

Did I mention the Expo was big?   Yes, there were lots of things to ogle and drool over.   Good thing Cheryl was so tired she wanted to leave early.  Otherwise, there might have been more redundant purchases made. As  it was, she managed to leave with only one additional race shirt and a sticker.

Speaking of Shirts... I got Five!  Cheryl gave me all of hers for this race.  And I guess there was a shirt for every race and the Challenge.   Looks like I will be rocking the Flying Pig Style for the next six to eight months.  I'll be the envy of everyone in Wellman,  Iowa.  

So... the race!  Yes!  Tonight was the one mile run...   complete with me missing everyone but Cheryl and getting completely lost trying to find the Finish line.  Did I mention Cincinnati is confusing?   Well, it is!  And Everyone finished their race and was drinking beer while I hung out in the "lost Child area" waiting for someone to find me.  Did I cry?  Well... NO... But after a little reflection, it probably would have sped up the location process. The bad part was I was holding everyone's ID, clothing, and Money for the Beer.   But I guess that did not matter much, as everyone got two cans of beer as they crossed the finish line. And best of all... They saved a beer for me. ( It was good... I refreshing wheat beer.) 

Afterwards, we headed to the Waffle House for some waffles.   But they were closed ( 24 hours?   Not this one apparently.) And then to the Skyline Chili, which was also closed.   Finally,  we stumbled into White Castle.   Cheryl had never been in one and everyone had a story they wanted to share.   So ... we dined in there.   

A little rough around the edges.... but the food was edible.   And I think everyone enjoyed the experience.  Except Cheryl.   Who complained that the Waffles were too crispy.   There is just no pleasing some people.  

Tomorrow... the remaining three races!   A 10 K, followed by a 5K followed by a Half Marathon.  Pam and I will be chasing them around with Camera in Hand and Flask  in pocket.   Hopefully I will be able to capture them better than I did this evening.   Pam and I have staked out several locations to hopefully capture the runners.   And if we are still sober,  we might actually be able to catch them. 
Well,  An Early morning calls tomorrow, so I better call this post done and prepare for tomorrow's adventure.   The rain is supposed to hold off tomorrow, so we may have gotten lucky on this one.   Then again, it may change  at any time.   Wish us luck!  And Thanks for stopping in.