Day Five - Perfect Weather

I have had a smile on my face for most of the last five days while running. I am fully aware that the weather has played a large part in that joy. It is much easier to run in cool weather and complete overcast as compared to running under a burning sun with temps and humidity in the 80s and 90s. The weather was absolutely perfect today - complete overcast all day - temps in the 50s - no precipitation. The odds that we will have perfect weather again on the Run is very low - but we we can always hope and pray for it! No hip issues to report today!
Lots of turns today due to city streets and the use of portions of six different trails today - Interurban Trail, Rainier Trail, Issaquah-Preston Trail, Preston-Snoqualmie Trail, Snoqualmie Ridge Trail, and the Snoqualmie Valley Trail. I really enjoyed the trails today as we one again ran through some lush green areas. Justin saw a bear cross the trail about 50 yards ahead of him while running the Preston-Snoqualmie Trail!!! WOW! Primarily due to a wrong turn I was actually able to catch and run with Jennifer for 5 or 6 miles today. I note those miles passed quickly as we had our first chance to talk about past races we have run and to discuss other run related topics.
Food has been important to Justin, Jennifer, and myself as we have to consume enough calories to fuel the body each day. On Friday and Saturday the three of us and crew went to Harmon's Hub in Tacoma for dinner. We went two nights in a row because the food was absolutely superb!!! I had Italian Sausage pizza - a small one on Friday - but I went for the large on Saturday to keep me fueled. Riley was our server both nights and we received first class service for our dinners. Thanks Riley. Joining us for dinner Saturday night was Jim and Bernadette Miller. Jim and I served together at the Navy Personnel Command in Millington, TN and it was fantastic to see Jim and Bernadette for dinner two weekends in a row as we also had a great night the previous Saturday before the Run started. Tonight Karen and I ate dinner at Scott's Dairy Freeze in North Bend which has been in business since 1951. Later Jennifer, Karen, and I went back for ice cream. I already knew that the Dairy Freeze was a fantastic place since I stopped there twice while preparing for the Run, and I was not disappointed once again as I had a super Philly Cheesesteak and fries for dinner tonight which I followed later with a hot fudge sundae with whoppers as an additional topping. Ken - who had made my Cheesesteak earlier - struck up a conversation with the three of us as we waited for our sundaes to be made. It was enjoyable to talk to Ken about the Run. Later Ken came out into the dining room and introduced himself as the Mayor of North Bend. No wonder North bend is a great place. Seriously, I note that Karen really likes this town as the view of Mount Si is exceptional. North Bend - from what I have seen - is indeed a nice place. The Mayor's business card says, "North Bend; easy to reach, hard to leave." No disagreement from me!
Scorekeeper reports the following day five times for 39.23 miles:
Justin     6:04:12
Jennifer 7:49:10
Mike      7:53:51