Not at first, mind you. As about forty of us gathered around the Blows's fish pond, where the Mufti was gregariously distributing anniversary t-shirts, the sky was maybe partly cloudy, or overcast if you're pessimistic. The heat and humidity were doing their thing, and Job Blow was out in the driveway, making sure no one ran over the neighbor's mailbox. Despite vigorous efforts by our Fearless Leader, a pair of New Balance lost-and-found shoes went unclaimed (Mufti! Do not drop those in the fish pond!) and after a bit people slowly straggled out front for the brief. I frankly remember nothing of JB's sapient comments, having been mildly concussed by an over-enthusiastic hasher gesticulating recklessly, but there may have been something about blue chalk and true trail being determined by at least four, not three, ons.
It's a RUNNING club! Somebody RUN! |
The usual HIU generous feast was laid out on the kitchen buffet, with roast pork and three salads (the tortellini artichoke was my favorite, although the bean-corn-avocado was a very strong contender). A wide variety of beer was available, as were Black Box and Ch. Ste. Michelle wines. Dessert was ridiculous, and included super-fresh and juicy cantaloupe, many pastries and two flavors of ice cream.
Mufti's roll was notable for the strength of the replies, except when he got to Zipperhead and Rrock Starr, who didn't make a peep. Eventually someone realized they were still out on trail, in the dark and the wet, and a search party formed. A whole bunch of people got cheers for their first runs -- a German, I think, and at least a couple of Americans -- and BC3 is getting awfully close to 500. Then a huge gust of cheering burst out as our lost sheep returned to the fold, with tales of winding trails and invisible marks and very, very wet t-shirts.
My attempts at photographing the koi were dismal failures, but you can see much of the other stuff in the pictures here.