October, 2010 – Building a running base: New Orleans, Toronto, Calgary, Halifax, and Ottawa

Leslie Spit, Toronto, ON, Canada

There is a little time before I need to start my 18 week, or 17 week, or 16 week structured training program that will get me to the start line on April 18th, fit, healthy and rested up but I do need to start building my base of endurance. I had spent a fair bit if time on the bike during the hot summer in Toronto exploring the city, with a couple of rides out to the end of the man-made peninsula into Lake Ontario called Tommy Thompson Park, or the Leslie St spit as many locals call it, a favourite ride. Had also done a couple of runs each week down to Lake Ontario from ‘Little Korea’ on Bathurst that was my temporary home neighbourhood from May through August; plus a few laps of Christie Pit park, but no runs of significant distance.

Ninth Ward, New Orleans, LA, USA

Running is a part of my life so there was always the non-plan, planned runs. Being more optimistic than pragmatic, I did pack my running gear for the weekend in New Orleans at the start of October. An annual ‘boys sports weekend’, this year 17 of us ‘boys’ converged on the bayous for a little golf, an LSU-Tennessee NCAA football tilt and a N.O. Saints NFL game. Sure I’d run! Come Sunday afternoon, I could no longer take the pressure of the shoes looking out at me from the closet so off I went. One of the best things about running is that it’s a great way to explore a city or town or even a park. I ended up running to the Ninth Ward which was one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The one hour long ‘tourist run’ was a great escape from Bourbon Street and a close-up look at the clean-up efforts.

Point Pleasant, Halifax, NS, Canada

Thanksgiving out west was a chance to reacquaint myself with some choice trails and I always get a couple of runs up on Nose Hill in north Calgary in the fall when the views of the Rockies to the west provide a stunning vista under blue bird skies. Then later in the month, I was out on the east coast where I never miss the chance for a Sunday morning run out to Point Pleasant Park, a real gem on the Halifax peninsula! So there were a few miles on the old ‘sneakers’, but now that 42.2km loomed in the spring, was it enough of a base to build on for serious training?!