The Flying Pig
Saturday began like any other race day except this being Erin and Alycia's first race together. Go team Double Rainbow! Woke up early. Packed up my camera equipment, dogs, post-race water & gear and drove the girls downtown on the first nice Saturday in months.We parked in a garage and our old dog, Lucy, had to navigate the stairs. I think her eyes gave her more problems then her legs. After all, she can scale a fence faster then I could but she stumbled down the stairs about as gracefully as a giraffe through a tire obstacle course. Our other dog, Roxy, had no trouble with stairs and was, like always, super excited.
The five of us made our way towards the starting line of the Flying Pig. I stopped early with the dogs, wished them luck then sat to wait for the start. Erin and Alycia were the last two to cross the starting line after taking a quick moment to pose for a picture.
The three of us made camp on a street corner while all the runners trotted by. Between the other spectators and runners it's always a good time people watching. It's easy to make friends having the dogs with me as people of all ages came by to pet them. I was able to snap a quick picture as the girls ran by then I headed to the finish line to stake out a good spot. Luckily it was the last race of the day so the bridge overlooking the finish line was clearing out. I was able to grab a picture of the two of them finishing their first mother-daughter race. Walking back to the car Alycia had the brilliant idea of wanting to grab lunch and eat in a park. I realized that (all things being relative) Mt Airy forest was nearby with a huge dog park. So, we hopped in the truck and headed west. We picked up Subway and drove to the forest to eat lunch. My aunt was on her way to meet us at the dog park, but had to stop and pick up my niece and nephew and their dog.
Tree House
After lunch we stopped at the tree house in Mt Airy forest to kill some time. I hadn't been to the forest in years and had only heard of the tree house. This was new to Erin and Alyci and none of us had any idea what to expect. It was a treat and a great place to hang out. The most interesting was the wooden, carved bench inside looking more like drift wood that accidentally morphed into a bench. Anxious to get to the dog park we headed out. Dog Park in Mt Airy Forest
The five of us arrived at the same time as my aunt and her crew. The dog park was old hat for them but I hadn't been in years. And, like the rest of the forest trip, Erin and Alycia's first time. The first warm, dry Saturday in a long time brought everyone out to the park. Dogs running amok was great to see. Even our Lucy was prancing around and playing for a while. Roxy didn't know what to do. She'd run ahead, then stop and come back to make sure we were still there. That was the first time I'd seen her unleashed in an unfamiliar area with so much room to run. I think it may have freaked her out a little. Or it was her natural herding instinct wanting to make sure the group stayed together.
Ellie, the young pup of the family and the latest edition to my sister's family, was fun to watch tearing around the park. She was either chasing other dogs nonstop or jumping into the water buckets. Yes, there were a few buckets just big enough for her to squeeze into. Her whole body drenched she'd follow up with the standard dog shake flinging water everywhere. Aside from Ellie, it was great watching the kids interact with all the dogs. I even spotted a few smiles on my older niece; apparently dogs are "cool." The three of them had great fun chasing the dogs and trying to get them to run the obstacle course. It was good exercise for the kids to run up and down the ramp. Unfortunately, Lucy was the only one interested in the ramp and that was just for the shade. Ellie made it up and down the ramp a few times, but it didn't give chase, so off she went.
Unfortunately for Ellie our dogs were growing tired after a couple hours in the park and were starting to get annoyed by the other dogs. Not wanting to create an intra-city incident (they are East side dogs and all) we packed up and headed out. Instead of cutting the day short, we decided to make one last stop: Putz's Creamy Whip.Putz's Creamy Whip
Putz's is a West side staple in Cincinnati. When I was growing up my neighbor would load up all the neighborhood kids in the back of his pickup truck and drive us down to Putz's. Later, Gold Top opened closer to home which made a trip to Putz's even that much more special. It was a welcome bit of nostalgia having all the kids and dogs eating ice cream in the back of my (safely parked) truck. I'm glad to know that I could carry on that tradition to the next generation. Hopefully they'll look back one day with the same fond memories.
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