Running in the Rain with Friends

What a great training weekend in wet weather!
The photos above:
1) Me "launching",
2)Me trying to take a picture of Beth's launch but cutting off her head,
3)Tammy, Beth and Annette decked out w/ green for an early St Patrick's day celebratory run
4)Rick and Jim on the Beartree Gap Trail
5)Our Montrails put to good use!

Yesterday's run has no photos (wayyy to wet and figures to cold to work anyway!). Dennis Norris and I planned a 22+ mile run and we met just before 9am on the Railroad Grade Road. 22.2 miles in rainy 36 degree weather in 3:01. There is no way I would have been motivated to do an extended tempo run without Dennis. Thank you my friend for a very fun morning and a GREAT training run!

Today opened to the same sort of drizzle and fog, but warmer by about 15 degrees. I met Rick and Tammy and Beth and Jim and did a variation of their early St Patrick's Day celebration run. I chose to create my own modification because I didn't want the strain of too much technical wet stuff-and wanted more flat stuff for what I am currently working towards. So I met the gang after running 5 miles on the VA Creeper Trail. We ran and kidded around for 11ish single track miles before splitting up. I totaled around 27 on dirt in just under a very mellow and fun five and a half hours!
What an awesomely fun day in soggy Southwestern VA! Thank you Beth, Tammy, Jim and Rick!