Last weekend we did some serious walking. On Saturday 18 walkers met at 6:15 at Borders Books to start a 13 mile walk out to Siesta Key. It was a beautiful morning and as we crossed the Siesta Drive Bridge we could see the rising sun reflected off the Ringling Causeway to the north.

It's always fun to try a new walking route. A change in scenery takes our minds off the distance and we focus on the sites and sounds around us. We paid careful attention to the numerous puddles left by heavy thunderstorms.

Our pit crew on Saturday was Darlene, her husband Steve and her nephew Danny (Tina's son). As always, we were very happy to spot them at mile 4 in Siesta Village. They were an even more welcome stop as we returned (mile 9).

We talked with many other pedestrians on this route. There was a 5K race through the Village so we skirted their route as the police directed traffic around all of us. Some pedestrians were interested in knowing more about the 3 Day Walk and we shared information and invited them to join us.

On Sunday there were 12 walkers when we met at Bayfront Park to walk 9 miles out to Ken Thompson Park and back. Rick (Mark's husband) organized the pit stop at a very beautiful shady spot near the water. He even planned the CD's playing in his convertible to give us a little more spring to our step as we arrive and departed.

Everyone seemed to have good feelings about these long walks. We've adopted a "bring it on" attitude and it's been great to walk with so many positive and enthusiastic people. A great preview of the actual 3 Day!