Recap and Night-Cap

Lots of beer- and running-related activity over the last few days. To summarize:

Friday Evening: I attended the Wild World of Beer and Wine at the Memphis Zoo with my wife, my brother, and my sister-in-law. In addition to trying a nice variety of wines both domestic and foreign (the highlight of which was the Quady Electra Orange Muscat, which is the first wine that my wife has ever truly enjoyed), we sampled beer varieties from Sierra Nevada (the previously reviewed Kellerweis and the very "beery" and tasty Summerfest) as well several beers under the Saranac label from Matt Brewing Company in Utica, NY. The Saranac beers were all flavorful and fairly full bodied (and resembled in many ways the beers from our local Ghost River brewery); I tried the Pale Ale, Adirondack Lager, and Black Forest Ale, with the last one being my favorite. The event was held at the Teton Trek Lodge and gave me a great night out with my family.

Saturday: I ran the Youth Villages 5k Saturday morning. I wasn't sure that following a night of beer and wine tasting with a race would be the best idea (I'm still not sure it was), but several cups of water overnight seemed to neutralize any untoward effects of the WWWB and I was able to finish in a record time (for me) of 20:17. (I've signed up for a 10k on May 1...maybe a similar pre-race beverage regimen will produce a similarly good race result?) After the race, I ran about 7.5 miles on the blue trail south of Shelby Farms; since I ran about half a mile warming up before the 5k, I'll round off my total Saturday mileage at about 11 miles.

Sunday: No running. After my first liturgy at St. Paul Skete (and a wonderful catfish lunch thanks to the hospitality of Mother Nektaria) and an afternoon band practice, Cindy and I visited friends for dessert, lovely conversation, and (for the menfolk) beer--Ghost River Hefeweizen, which, out of a freshly opened growler, is always tasty, but especially so when shared among good company. Cheers, Charlie!

Today (Monday): Long run, again at my favorite place to run, the Wolf River Trails. I ran mainly on the blue trail, with some time on the yellow trail as well as an accidental detour on an unmarked connecting trail between the blue and yellow trails...there's something slightly scary yet also thrilling about running when you have no idea when you'll return to familiar territory--you just have to keep moving. Total distance = about 14.5 miles. After somehow summoning the energy to play basketball with my good friend Donnie, I ended the evening with a night-cap of Chimay Triple as I read a chapter from C.S. Lewis's The Four Loves. I'm nothing like an expert on Belgian Trappist ales, but I know a "sipping beer" when I taste one, and this one did not disappoint.