20 Mile Early Morning Group Run, J Styles and Thunderstorm

When I got home from work on Sunday night I was tired and ready for bed. Springing forward for Daylight Savings Time did not happen on an ideal day.

I was planning on staying home Saturday evening to rest up for Sunday however I found out that the newspaper was incorrect and that the Washington vs Washington State basketball game was not on local TV as reported. A Huskies victory would mean the first outright Pac-10 Championship since 1953 and I wanted to see it. The Thunder were having a watch party at Buffalo Wild Wings near by so I texted my co-worker Todd to see if the Apple Cup game was on TV there and he confirmed it (UW-WSU started at 5pm and the Thunder game was at 7pm so a handful of my co-workers were at BWW getting things set up). I then headed over to BWW and caught the 2nd half of the game while enjoying a tasty Parmasian Flatbread meal.

3.5 hours of sleep Saturday night, that's all I had. I went to bed too late on Saturday night and woke up early so that I could head downtown for a 7am marathon training run with the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon. The temperature for the run was in the mid to high 40s and I would guess that around 300 people showed up for a 20 mile run throughout the city (many of the group ran approx 10 miles as they were training for the half marathon). I've never run in a training group before and have to say that I loved it and wish I had done it in the past. Water stations were set up every 3 miles, complete with Powerade, pretzels and Gu as we ran the majority of the marathon course and there was a nice layout of snacks at the end of the run. I'm not someone that talks much when I run and had minimal conversations during the 20 miles but it was just helpful to run in a pack from a psychological standpoint. Also was a great way to see parts of OKC that I had not seen before or in some cases had driven by without paying much attention. Everyone runs their own pace and the group I ran in changed from one water station to the next. Much better than training by myself.

Normally you want to let your body rest after a 20 mile run however the Thunder had a home game on Sunday so I headed home to eat and shower before heading down to the Ford Center. We played the Philadelphia 76ers and easily won the game. The highlight of the night was seeing "J Styles" and his Dad Rick. J Styles is 7 year old Jalen Testerman, an amazing kid from Seattle who is a talented break dancer (type in his name on YouTube and watch his appearance on Ellen last year). J Styles performed regularly at Sonics games over the last couple of seasons and the Thunder flew him out to have him dance for the OKC crowd. I didn't know they were going to be at the game and of course they show up on the night that I leave my camera at home. Jalen performed twice and I missed both of them although I did catch him running off of the court after the first performance and got to hear the crowd applaud his efforts. Good to talk with him and his Dad though before and after the game. Always like to catch up with Seattle familiar faces.

Awesome thundershower here last night. Lots of rain, thunder and lightening which I enjoyed watching from my living room. It was 80 degrees here yesterday but that doesn't keep the elements away. Tis the season and I'm sure there will be other days and nights like this to follow in the not so distant future.