***8 Track to be added – welcome to Bryan Roden-Reynolds!***
Since there was apparently no official Odyssey this morning per the Twiterverse, the Wilderness Off the Books crew will post our backblast.
So, for a number of weeks, a groups of green-minded (read: lazy) Wilderness participants will gather at the popular launch time of 0510 on selected days of the week to take on 5-6 miles. Usually led by Ultraman in a series of text messages the evening prior, a gaggle of runners will appear with proper safety gear and head out at a semi-2ndF pace for about an hour and arrive back before most of the Friday posts end so school drop offs can occur in a timely manner.
Plans were made (with some ins and outs) and off we went (initially just YHC, Ultra, Ikea and Tagless). We picked up MEGAPHONE and Die Hard on the Parkway and talked about banks and debates and etc. Then the decision tree at the greenway – right through the mean streets of Cedarfield or left and the memories of your Huntersville Half? Decision = left, Bernie and Hillary would be proud.
As we inched towards the trail head for the greenway (previously known as the Odyssey launch), we came across a young man in all black running attire, who asked if we were with F3. Bryan had made his first post at GCC/Dragonslayer with Ty Webb yesterday and heard about this great running workout on Friday THAT NO ONE SHOWED UP FOR THIS MORNING.
Change in course – as a recent launch change had been announced (but maybe not on the website or to anyone else who might have shared with this FNG when he mentioned out loud that he likes to run), we agreed to show him where Starbucks was as that was the latest rumor of the Friday starting line. No dice, sadclowns aplenty in the parking lot but no sign of any runners.
2nd change in course – Ultra re-plotted our path into the business park, by the cop shop and around through the friendly confines of Melbourne to the back of the greenway to hook back into the Wynfield pipeline. As we wound our way through the revised course, Die Hard, MEGAPHONE and YHC quietly came up with naming ideas.
As we thought we might release our man before we got to Wynfield, we pulled a stop and dropped on Bryan, with his apparent lack of technology (or at least not as savvy as us F3 types…yet) the given name of…8 Track. Clearly not offended, the newly minted 8 Track agreed to join us on our return to Wynfield (we shared that most kidnappers would have simply left him in a bag in the woods).
We travelled down the first hill and the silent ninja that is Mortimer appeared, as always, out of nowhere to join the group. Not sweating, the T-1000 caught up, then passed us but held off long enough to agree to escort 8 Track back to his car parked at the FL-based grocery chain.
The usual peel-offs and returns to quiet homes, then the not so COT-departure as is the custom.
Total mileage – 7ish, depending on who you ask. Well worth the extra time and effort.
As a side note – we agreed that this is what F3 is all about – finding a man who is looking for others to share an early morning workout and some fellowship and ensuring he is not left behind.
Aye.
Humbly submitted 11 March 2016,
Jorel