Tommy is Top Banana!

An early morning run on Veterans Day with the E Streeters, and appropriately enough, a veteran runner took the top spot in today's No Bananas 5K race on the Bruce Freeman trail in Chelmsford.  Tommy grabbed first place honors, and seems all too happy to share his iconic banana with anyone who cares to grab it.

Carlos seems afraid to share the banana trophy with his running nemesis

John, get your hand out of your pocket and your other one off Tommy's banana.

Tommy shares his banana trophy with Pippi Longstocking.

Tommy makes a point of showing off his banana right out of the gate

This reminds me - the Walking Dead is on tonight.

Really, there's not much to say about this photo.  It's just kind of sad that Tommy felt he needed to runlike that just to prove he's top banana.

 Banana in hand, Tommy is a blur heading out to the turnaround

Tommy even has his own cheering section out on the course.  Egomaniac.

Now sans banana, we make our way back in along the trail

 Some more of the Bananas finishers, including the Banana Bunch Queen herself, Ruth Whalen Crockett

It was a dog fight coming into the final stretch between John and Tom Hildreth.  Who would win?  Luckily, we have photographic proof to answer that question.

 Tom Hildreth nudges John right at the finish line.  The tassels from his hat clinched the victory.

Don't believe the blog author?  Check the official results.  They don't lie.  Hildreth clearly beat Piekos, and look, Scanlon edged Borges right at the finish as well.

 One half of this happy couple ran six miles today.  One didn't.  You figure out which is which.

Again, a shout out to all the men and women currently serving in the armed forces as well as those who have already served and returned home.  An honored Veteran's Day to all.

A Veterans Group Run

I never realized Bedford had so many hills.

And apparently, Barry, Tommy and I have no concept of what a Group Run is.

All that aside, the E Streeters took to the streets of Bedford today for a pair of races to benefit veterans and the services that support them.  A 5K run for some, a 10K for others.

Pre-race, Team MCC is ready to stake a claim to victory.

A pre-race look at the men and women's winners.  Well, half of that statement is true.

 After Carlos let us all know today was going to be simply a Group Run, the gun went off, and so was Carlos.  Literally, some of us hadn't even crossed the starting mat and Carlos was leaving us in his dust.  Thankfully, he didn't have to run alone though, as Sean caught up to him just to keep him company.

Meanwhile, the mustangs carried the middle of the pack, keeping it lively, and entertaining the masses along the way.

Stopping mid-race to pose with some of Bedford's finest keeping the streets safe for us runners

Post-race, with Bedford Police Chief Robert Bongiorno 

Somehow, we all managed to snag a medal.  Apparently they give those out for Group Runs. 

A great cause, a great time, and a great group of friends.  And a great Group Run, too.

Thanks to all the men and women in the Armed Forces who help provide the freedom that keeps this country safe and allows the E Streeters to run wherever they want.

Everybody's Got a Hungry Hartford

One more time for Bruce in the neighborhood, sorta, which means another E Streeter road trip.  This one, luckily, passed right by the front doors of Holy Cross, which meant we could pick up Andrew and have opportunities for father-son moments like this one, during Bruce's anthemic Born to Run

First though, a trip to Hartford wouldn't be complete with a solicitation of Angelino's Italian restaurant, home of the obscene portion sizes.  Pre-show, Martin, Barry and Andrew were ready to give the menu their thumbs up

Salud!  Iced tea, iceless Sprite, and Pepsi all around!

Inside the Hartford XL Center, we stop for a shot with Bruce

Heading to our respective seats, the father-son tandem strikes a pose made famous by my father

Once Bruce got the show underway, he wasted no time at all wading into the floor crowd of thousands to body surf back to the stage during his hit Hungry Heart

Partway through the show, Andrew and I made a beeline for a seat upgrade, grabbing some primo seats on Nils' side of the stage

 As always, Bruce used the entire stage to his advantage.  I only pray I'm that nimble when I'm 63 years old

Once again, Bruce braves the crowd during 10th Avenue Freeze Out, which included a touching tribute to deceased band members Clarence "Big Man" Clemons and "Phantom" Dan Federici

Born to Run, complete with Andrew on air gutiar

Potentially one of the best pictures I've ever taken of Andrew.  Clearly, he's pretty happy to be at yet another Bruce show.

 Take a bow, E Street band!

With unforgettable songs like a Bruce-solo-on-piano For You, a raucous 15-minute version of Kitty's Back, a rip-roaring Pink Cadillac and a rarity opening of Held Up Without a Gun, Bruce and the E Street Band delivered yet again, clocking in with a three-hour, fifteen minute marathon session.  Truly, this is the stuff of memory, and the father-son experiences that can never be quantified.  Tramps like us, indeed.

M-CAS Scores!

Another October, another Baystate Half-Marathon, and this year, it was Mike Cassidy, M-Cass himself, who had to carry the banner for the E Streeters, as the rest of us waited too long to sign up and got shut out!

That, however, didn't stop us from jumping in to run a lap with Mike and help set a blistering pace.  Referring, of course, to the blisters on our feet.

So what is it the Beatles say, Mike?  You get by with a little help from your friends!

We were waiting for him at the half-mile mark and spotted his neon orange tank amidst the sea of runners.

I think he was actually happy to see us at first.

And then Barry went and identified us to other runners as Mike's Zumba classmates, and suddenly, we had a wider berth around us.

Here, I think Barry is talking about his Zumba experience.

Fellow E Streeter Gina Spaziani joined the pack, accustomed as she is to running this course with the Lowell Police Academy.  Today, though, she didn't have to yell at anyone. 

Gina said I had a glowing personality.  She wasn't kidding.

Buoyed by the cheers of fellow E Street and MCC fitness fiend Jonathan Crockett, we cruised past Hadley Field

Mike begins the first of two lonely treks up the Rourke Bridge

 Gina cast me a dirty look, and got ready to kick it into overdrive

 With barely a parting glance, Gina was gone, ready to run a sub seven-minute mile

After a strategically-time bathroom break, Mike was ready to patronize the nearby water stop on Pawtucket Boulevard

Sean, Barry, and I set to the flanking maneuver, keeping the throngs of fans away from Mike, as they clamored for autographs, kisses, high-fives, and photo ops.

 
 What is it Jackson Browne says?  Running into the sun, but I'm running behind....

Rounding the curve onto the Aiken Street bridge, Mike readies himself for the paparazzi that lies ahead

With nary a glance, he blazes past the methadone clinic

Finally, the man who put the run into Run DMC readies himself for his second leg

With Mike sweating through his second leg, the rest of the E Streeters call it a day, happy to pose for pics and pretty damn happy they didn't have to do the whole thing today.

 Nicely done, Mike, way to represent!  Hope we didn't embarrass you too badly out there!