On a spur-of-the-moment decision, Ev and I decided to take our friend up on his offer and head down to North Carolina for Thanksgiving. 10 hours after deciding, we commandeered my brother Vince’s car and were on the road. Despite some traffic we made it down to the small town of Lexington, NC with plenty of time to help get things ready. A delicious meal ensued.

As with all my weekend adventures, I look forward to running in new places. Lexington would offer its own beauty and uniqueness that sets it apart from the usual DC paths… and so much more. Allow me to paint the picture for you: it was 8am on a clear Saturday morning. The grass had frosted slightly overnight and the air was refreshing in my lungs. A great day for a run! As is customary, I mapped out my route the night before in a simple out-n-back fashion so not to get too lost.

Turned out to only be 5 turns out, and 5 turns back. Pretty good. Nothing like that garbage above. As I began down the first of what would be many, many (oh-so-many) hills, I took note of how fresh the air smelled and how peaceful it was. That is, until I met… ::insert ominous music:: …Charlie. I’m sure Charlie is very nice once you get to know him, but he was a bit too friendly. This is a better representation of Charlie, but picture him without the boat anchor and hear him roaring at me.

I should mention that the dog-leash business in North Carolina must be in the tank, because maybe one in five was kept off my heels. So anyway, Charlie was the toughest of my battles. His prison warden old lady owner stepped out onto her porch and yelled “Charlie, git over he’ya RIGHT NOW!” Charlie wasn’t having it at first, but then backed down and returned to his den home.

Really he caught me terrified out of my mind off-guard. I kept an eye out for more encounters. The next “friend” greeted me around mile 4 right after a tough uphill. I took a page out of Cesar’s book and intimidated the IAMS out of her. As I continued, feeling good as I cruised through hill after hill and narrowly escaping fending off a few more canines, I felt the ground shake. SHAKE. It was a cataclysmic bark from a massive rottweiler. For a second I thought my long run was going to turn into a speed workout until I realized this behemoth was the one-in-five who was restrained. Although, I think he was only “restrained” because he chose to be. He could have torn the tree he was tied to along with him after me if he wanted.

Well, the rest of the run was smooth. I considered finding another route back so to avoid any more encounters but decided to brave it. Fortunately all my good friends headed in for lunch (or found another unsuspecting runner.) Maybe that’s why I didn’t see anyone else…

The Details:

Lexington, NC Chase Run:

Route

The Hills!

Brutal Hills, perfect for training for the Miami Marathon...