CrossRoads Blog

This year’s Super Bowl at least brought some ‘happy football feelings’. In a season where my team (err umm the err umm Detroit Lions) set a record for futility, my current hometown boys had made the Big Dance. It was a perfect Winter weather day, the sun was shining and the temperature was perfect for a good morning run.

Before knowing that the Cardinals were making it to the Super Bowl, Kimberly and I had signed up for the second annual ‘Super Sunday 5K’. It was just up the street at Thunderbird Paseo Park and put on by the Arizona Running Events guys. Seemed a perfect opportunity to get ourselves out of the sack and do a little exercise on a Sunday. For me it was all about humping it so I could then eat all the good stuff all day long while I watched the game, the pre game, the pre-pre game, the post game…. you get the picture.

Paseo Park really is a good place to run. It’s basically in Salt River Project’s Arizona Canal at 59th Ave and Thunderbird. The Canal is one of the longer ones in Phoenix and makes for great running, biking, etc trails seeing you don’t have to cross any roads (all run underneath for the most part). This part of the Canal makes for a near perfect 5K just by marking out a half way point in the sidewalk for an out an back easy 5K. Kimberly and I have even used this area for our long runs as you can go from 75th all the way to Tempe and more!

It was of course well ran, and a nice group showed up considering it’s a small local event. The best was they obviously had the shirts made after the Cardinals had won the Championship game, or they decided to have them changed, because the “Super Sunday” race shirts were customized with support for the Cardinals. How cool is that for a race souvenir (would have been much, much better had they won…).

We both ran a good race, I came in 7th overall and 2nd in my age group with a 21:36 time and Kimberly also took second in her age group (we always seem to do that same thing - thing) at just under 27 minutes. We hung out for a good while afterward. First we plopped down and enjoyed the banana’s and Snicker Protein Bars from the race promoters, and afterward decided to do a little more running and biking – so we just did the same 5K two more times. I figured I could now go home and let the eating in front of the TV begin…..

Well… after several months of training and hard work Kimberly is officially a “half-marathoner”. Of course we are talking about the PF Chang Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon held here in Phoenix which she had a great run that was surrounded by a whole couple days of running focused fun. I too actually ended up running the race with her. Originally Clay was going to come into town to race and I was going to be the drop-off man, but he had an injury that kept him sidelined until just recently, so I stepped in.

The whole thing was more of experience surrounding the sport of running than a race per se. In fact, I would say things kicked off on Friday. You are required to pick up your race bib and packet before the race at the fitness Expo that runs Friday and Saturday. Knowing it would way crazy busy Saturday we headed downtown on Friday lunchtime. The expo was at the Phoenix convention center and was actually quite a lot of fun. After getting our bibs and packets we walked around all the booths. It was nice because almost everything was really related to running. The biggest was all the PF Chang’s official race cloths. Sadly most of the items just did not fit Kimberly, so she ended up with just a hat and a shirt that is more to wear than run in (of course you do get a regular t-shirt in your race packet too).

Some of the highlights of the Expo was the Cliff Bar booth (hey I got a free bar and you know I live on those), the ‘nutrition designed specifically for you via a DMA profile’ booth (cool), the ‘one more mile’ booth that has a ton of cool saying running gear, and finding some rub on ibuprofen. The show was actually so big a couple of hours flew by before we got out of there.

With an early morning wake up coming Sunday, we wanted to have a chilled out day Saturday so we decided to walk around old town Scottsdale. They had a special Art Walk for the Race and I was able to have lunch with a friend and business acquaintance that was in from Portland. It was a beautiful day and I think we spent several hours walking the shops and checking out the art before heading back to our side of town for dinner at Buca Di Beppo.

When deciding to do the race Kimberly joined a running group up at our club, and the group was all getting together (I guess as is tradition) the night before the race for a dinner together. They are some great folks on ‘the team that Kimberly has really gotten to know (and me too somewhat) over the last few months. The dinner was early (for obvious reasons), we all enjoyed some ‘pump up’ conversation, carbed’ up on a ton of pasta and bread and called it a night about 7:00 or so. We got home, laid out all our stuff – which is a ton, you would be surprised – and hopped in bed with hopes of actually getting SOME SLEEP before having to wake up at 4:00 tomorrow and head to Tempe. I emphasize try to get sleep because for both Kimberly and me it seems so hard to sleep the night before something like this. Kind of like Kids on Christmas Eve I suppose. But unlike Xmas Eve, we had to run 13.1 miles starting less than 11 hours time we finally crawled under the sheets.

Luckily, we both fell asleep fairly early for us and actually got about 4 hours sleep before we decided to get up (15 minutes before the alarms went off – not sure why we even bother to set them). We pounded the oatmeal, packed the car, and did everything else and were out the door headed to Tempe about 5 minutes after 5:00am.

Seeing the race is a point-to-point race, you have to park at the end (Tempe) and then get shuttled to the starting area (Downtown Phoenix). We got parked an on the bus without much issue. After a grueling 45 minutes we finally got off the bus in Downtown. We had the stinkin’ heater seats and as cold as it was outside we were about dying of heat on the bus before she turned it off at my request (I was sweating!). Being a little spoiled we headed over to a pre arranged location called Stage Rock. Basically it was a boxing gym with attached tents near the race start. The good was it had heat, bathrooms that you could get into within a minute (versus the 30 minute wait plus around the start line) and a good place to stretch, etc. We enjoyed it for sure and I think it helped having an inside place the last hour before the race to relax and have a coffee.

Thirty minutes before the race we started heading over toward the start. I needed to use the bathroom but with 30 minute waits and (was was by then) only 15 minutes before the gun, it wasn’t going to happen. Hopefully next year they get more facilities! Anyway, with 26 ‘corrals’ (places you are assigned from the start based on projected finish times) we darn near were running to get to ours. Kimberly was in 10 and I was in 4. When we got to corral 10, we had a kiss and I reminded her (and myself) to enjoy. This was going to be a riot. Yes it was something that would be tough for old folks like us, but we trained for it and we were going to enjoy soaking it all in.

13.1 Miles, a lot of bands, a ton of smiles, and a couple hours later Kimberly and I ran into one another again at the gear pick up area where we planned to meet. Each of us were wearing our finisher medals and a couple of big grins. It was really a special experience. Kimberly said for sure her favorite race that we have done to date. I dug the vibe of Bisbee maybe a little more but this was way special for me too. We both had remembered to soak in the experience of doing our first (of what I am sure will be many more) half marathon. We smiled, slapped the hands of the young well wishers along the run and huffed and puffed our way to some pretty decent times for old folks like us :-). There is no doubt this will be an annual thing for us. So next year, put it on your calendar and come out an join us.

BTW have I mentioned: I am proud of my woman!

A few PHOTOS HERE

When we did the Frosty’s Race in December we saw a little flier for an upcoming run that was in support of the Arizona Veteran Program Association scholarship fund. Being it was to be held at Scottsdale Reach 11 Park, has a dirt track, supported a great cause, and was fairly close meant of course we had to do it. So another early rise Sunday morning it was.

The Reach 11 Horse Lovers Park really is a great place to run. Like all races here the run starts out on a little paved loop then heads you out in the dirt. Today the trail had much less water and mud spots to avoid versus the Frosty’s run. Plus it was a little warmer for the start – but still chilly pre-race. Overall a nice sunny day though and great morning for a run.

It was pretty cool to see a bunch of current military guys there for the run, including a couple older gents that were obviously veterans. In fact jumping forward for a second I think having the military youngin’s there helped push me as over the last couple hundred yards of the race I was neck and neck sprinting with a Marine.

So a fairly typical 5K race, well ran but the local Arizona Running Events folks again, but with one big exception. Kimberly and I of course got the Garmin watches for each other for Christmas that show distance ran among other things. So it was with much surprise that when we came up to the 1 mile marker on the trail and I looked at my watch, it showed like 1.3 miles. This then seemed to be the case the rest of the race. When my watch showed we hit the 5K (3.1 Miles) we were still well out on the trail with another looked like mile to go! This may not seem like too big an issue as we of course run longer, but your body tends to pick a speed based on distance. And at 3.1 Miles my body said ‘hey we gave you the 3.1 mile speed and there is not much more there old man’. So needless to say, the last bit to the finish line was a little more ‘heart beats’ than normal.

At the finish line everyone was talking about the distance being longer than a 5K. I figured when they did the awards and such that they would tell us it was longer because the military always “goes the extra mile for us” so we did the same or something like that. Well, not really, seems it was really nothing more than a boo-boo on the distance marking that morning. The total distance ended up being 3.95 Miles so over 6K even.

The best news about the race is I finally got my first 1st place showing in my group (Kimberly already had one from another). Kimberly placed 2nd too. After the event there was a nice raffle, some good food and a chance to say hello to some of the troops. Hard to beat starting a Sunday morning like this….

They call the race ‘Frosty’s Run’ and this morning it felt aptly named. We Kimberly and I first arrived at Horse Lover’s Park (Reach 11) in Scottsdale I think the temperature was in the low 40’s. It was clear and it warmed up real quick, but definitely one of those Scottsdale Winter mornings we get here – clear and cold!

The race was the 3rd annual event for “Health and Hope’ and is supportive of a local Hospice for the Valley. The run covers 10 miles and is as of this date the longest competitive run the we have done (a few longer in training of course). The course is basically packed dirt in the park and an ‘out-n-back’ track for the 10 miles. With the exception of some occasional puddle hopping or avoiding and minor up and downs it really is a great trail to run. Nearly like the road, but with much less stress on the knee dirt.

About 350 showed up for the two events, there was a 2 mile fun run too, and it was well managed by the Arizona Running Events Co. Those guys always seem to do a good job with these local races and the guy on the mic is also always good for a couple of good morning chuckles which also helps when you are cold and tired still.

We were really using the event as our training ‘long run’ for the week for the upcoming PF Chang Half Marathon so we did not push too hard. Still we had a decent showing as I came in with a time of 1:21 and Kimberly finished in an 1:35.

We will be there next year – with scarves and gloves I am sure.

For those who maybe didn’t know, Kimberly has been training very hard over the last few months for her upcoming PF Chang Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon. The event is getting very close now and her run schedule is ‘amping up’. As part of her training she works with a team up at our Country Club that all practice and train together. This week for one of their training runs they decided to all do an organized event together. Seeing it was local and on a Saturday morning, I decided to participate as well.

The event called Learning for Life has a 10K and a 5K. We did the 10K because the Arrowhead group was looking for about that many miles today. It’s a great smaller event that is focused on supporting youth groups. A lot of the adult runners seemed to be local police and fire officers (as it was also part of the event). In fact, Kimberly ended up running a big part of the race just behind the local SWAT team.

We had a great time. It was right up the way from us at the Peoria Stadium where the MLB players do spring training. The course ran along 83rd street to the viaduct, down past 75th a little then back for the 6.2 miles. After the run they had a magician and other activities for the participants. I got Kimberly a charity Police Bear.

For the first time of any run we have done together Kimberly and I both got a medal. I came in 6th overall and second in my age group a little over 49 minutes. Kimberly was FIRST in her age group! This was of course something she pointed out to me a few times… . Then again, I had to remind her that this was my second top 10 overall in the last 3 races!

What a truly enjoyable couple of weeks we were able to spend with family. It is times like this that really emphasize how blessed we are to be flexible enough to take some days and really enjoy when family visits. We had such occasion again when Cousin Pat and his wife Beth Dhooghe from Michigan came down for a visit.

Pat and Beth for sure wanted to get up to the Grand Canyon and the rest of the visit would fall around that. Without a doubt, the Canyon is ‘the’ place but we wanted to make sure they got the full ‘Arizona Experience’ so we mapped out quite a run around agenda while they were here.

After hanging around the homestead for a day of rest after arriving, we were off to the Canyon. We headed out early enough to make sure we would have time to get to the South Rim, walk around the main village area for a bit, get back to check into the The Grand Hotel lodge (we were staying outside the Park entrance in Tusayan) , and still get back over to the park for the Sunset. Making sure Pat and Beth caught a Grand Canyon Sunset and Sunrise was something I had been focused on from the time I heard they were coming.

We arrived at the Park by lunch. Having planned ahead we had packed the cooler with some sandwiches so we could experience a ‘lunch table’ like no other. We all pulled up a rock and just stared out in amazement at the incredible views of the Grand Canyon. Pat and Beth were of course in awe – but so were we. I don’t care how many times you see this place, it was Pat and Beth’s first and Kimberly and my fourth or so just this year – it’s still the same, it is just utterly stunning.

After lunch we walked around the village, Pat and I even headed down the Bright Angel Trail a bit below the Rim and of course enjoyed the nice climb back out. We then left out the Park to check into the lodge and get a quick little rest before heading back over to the Park to catch the Sunset. Just before we got to our view stop, we spotted a whole herd of Elk. They were right there in front of us, so we stopped the car, grabbed the cameras and started following them along the woods. How cool it was to see these great creatures up close in the wild like that. Pat is a HUGE Elk fan and was just so tickled that he got a chance to see the herd. I think before we left we had seen just about all the Arizona animals.

After a nice dinner that night at the country themed restaurant with a live singer, we hit the bed early. The plan was to leave over to the Park at about 5:10 the next morning to make sure we caught the 6:20 Sunrise. Like most good spots at the Grand Canyon, you will have some hiking to do after you park the car. So while the drive from lodge to parking was only 15 minutes or so, the hike to our spot was a good 25 plus. Anyway, the sunrise experience was of course incredible. While this time of year it does not rise in the perfect spot, it still is something special to see the Canyon come alive like that. It was a cold one, it required some good hiking, but it was more than worth it of course. After watching the Sunrise, Kimberly and I dropped off Pat and Beth at the village for some breakfast and we had a chance to do another run along the Rim. We did 8 miles again along the S. Rim trail and it again confirmed to me there is no better place in the world for a morning run.

After we left the Grand Canyon with Cousins Pat and Beth we headed up to Las Vegas for a couple of nights. I like to say, kind of like going from one of the God’s most amazing creations to one of Mans most amazing. It was the typical Vegas experience: lots of walking, little rest, great food and entertainment. We hit Lawry’sfor the Prime Rib, we walked Venetian and Caesar’s, and Pat and Beth got a chance to see the Cirque De Solis show Mystere that night.

The whole Canyon-Vegas loop was such a great time with the Cousins. Even all the hours in the car seemed to pass quickly as we got to catch up on so many great old times. I sure hope it’s not too long before we get to do this again with them…

GRAND CANYON PICS HERE
VEGAS PICS HERE

By Kimberly
Bisbee Arizona is located not too far from Tombstone, AZ and is a great little place to visit anytime of the year. It is full of unique art and antique shops and even more full of history as an old mining town. There are cement stairs all though out the city that the copper miners used and most of the steps are still in working conditions thanks in part to the Bisbee 1000 Stair Climb Event. The event is a unique combination of running 4.4 miles and climbing the aptly named 1000 stairs.

This was the 18th year of the event which had us and other runners trekking through the streets of the city and up 8 separate sets of stairs totally actually 1037 steps. Although the mileage is not huge the elevation of the run and the steps and just the fact that the city is at a high elevation makes for a challenging but thrilling run. The first (almost) mile is a downhill run (nice due to what is to come) and then the first set of steps makes one realize that the run will not be too easy. Mostly on the steps due to the amount of runners, individuals are walking briskly upwards and then taking off when reaching the top until getting to the next set of steps. The steps are old but well managed and since there are houses situated at all levels in the city so most of the time the runners are going past homes as they rise upwards. Many of the city’s “eclectic” citizens cheer on the runners from their yard offering words of encouragement and smiling faces. As a participant in this year’s race I really appreciated and enjoyed the kindness of everyone, not only the people putting on the race but also the other racers – it was a great vibe. This was a very competitive event and chip timed but there was no pushing or rushing one another on the steps. People allowed others to pass if they desired and if one had to step aside to get a breath they were given easy access back to the steps when they were ready. What a great race.

Michael and I both did very well. We both came in 11th for our age/gender category out of 61 in my group and I think 64 in his (RESULTS HERE). Michael was 116th overall with a time of 44:32 and I came in 321st with 52:37 – out of a total of over 1100 runners. It was not only a great race but also a great weekend. We enjoyed being able to eat our own food (our old hotel had a kitchen), we meet some great folks from Phoenix (Bill and Greta – and their Aunt too), and Oh By The Way if you get to Bisbee eat at Cafe Roka! It was the best meal Michael and I have had in a very long time! I had the artichoke and mushroom lasagna and it was a flavor explosion! Michael had the Chicken and said it was better. Great service and outstanding food.

Overall Bisbee is a great little weekend trip anytime, but for sure was a special weekend for the Stair Climb. We will be back next year – and Michael says look out Ice Man Competitors (this is another event with 155 stairs and a 10lb block of ice….)

Last year’s Komen Race for the Cure was about as special a day as can be in life. It will be a day that stays with me forever. We talked a little about it in THIS BLOG. There was something special that day and I doubt there will ever be another one like it. But having said that, every Komen Race day is pretty amazing and special for us, and this year was no exception.

For those maybe not as familiar, the Susan Komen Race for the Cure is one of the biggest events that support the foundation. They have many of them throughout the US in the bigger cities. Phoenix this year had near 40,000 runners and walkers, including about 800 plus Survivors (woman who have had Breast Cancer). It’s a day of celebration and remembrance. Everything is based around the run, but they always have a neat setup of ‘walk around’ activities and vendors at the Race location. The vendors all really do a great job, as does the Komen group, of making the Survivors feel special. This year even included a Survivors parade before the race that Kimberly participated in (in the 10-14 year Survivor Group!).

A couple things made this year very special as well. Mostly because this last year my mother was diagnosed and treated for Breast Cancer. In fact she really just finished the radiation treatments about the time for the Race. So we both of course were ‘running for Mom’ this year. As you would expect the runs are really about celebration and remembrance too – in fact we always wear the signs that say who’s survival we are celebrating (and others who are being remembered).

Kimberly was pretty pumped up for the day. She had the added motivation of celebration for Mom to add to her Race. In case you didn’t know the Misses is pretty competitive. And while the Komen is ‘non-competitive race’ (not chip timed) they still give awards and recognition to the top 3 finishers overall and among Survivors. Having finished 7th or so last year, and knowing she now is a couple of minutes faster on her 5K time, there was a decent chance she could move up paces and maybe even had a shot at Top 3. She of course did amazing improving to 5th overall and cutting a huge amount of time off her last year results. I was so proud again, it’s pretty cool to have a wife with that kind of drive, strength and commitment.

The day started way too early – about 4:30, in order to get ready, get down there, walk around, park, do the parade, etc (so little sleep of course). The rest of the day beside the race was walking around, getting the pink goodies, eating some banana’s and taking lot’s of pictures. Kimberly even got to see a couple of her Racer/Survivor friends she met last year (pretty cool). She did an interview with Channel 12 just before the Race (she’s quite photogenic you know). Speaking of photo’s I was the camera man again and had to quick run over to the car to drop off the bag so I could run the race as well when the rest of the group started. I had a good run considering I ran in the ChaCha yesterday morning as well.

We of course are already looking forward to next year’s race. We will raise more money for the great cause, celebrate 12 years for Kimberly and 1 for Mom, and we will have better race times

As we have talked about in a lot of this year’s Blog’s, Running has become one of our ‘gig’s’. When now officially even look for races and unique cities to run around for our weekend fun. It’s a riot, healthy and cheap… all hard to beat. From an event standpoint, most all runs are some sort of street run of a fixed distance (5K, 10K, half marathon, etc.). So these have been our focus, as that’s really what the options are. Having said this, occasionally there is a unique event that is not just the typical street run. For example our upcoming Bisbee 1000 which is 4.4 miles and 1000 plus stairs (yeah sounds like fun huh?). And another I just had a chance to compete in; the Cactus ChaCha Trail Run.

The Cactus ChaCha is right up my alley. While I am still fairly new to running, I will always identify more with Trail Running. I enjoy the dirt and rock much more than the street or a treadmill. Sadly though, there are not just many organized trail running events. In fact, aside from the ChaCha, the only other one in our area each year that I know of is the Lake Pleasant Good Dam Run we did in April and that is only ½ trail.

In any event, the ChaCha has a 3 mile and a 7 mile race. I had planned on the 7 miler (fairly close to what I do a couple of times a week now) but with the ankle still a little jacked (I wrap it) I thought I better stick to the 3 miler. I had a great time. The course was at the White Tank Park Competitive track. It is a good track, small rocks everywhere but not too much elevation changes. The exception being a nice little wash near the end. I ended up coming in 14th place overall (7th gender) out of 170 in the 3 mile race. My time was 23:19 which I was mostly happy with considering the ankle and the trail conditions. The event was well ran and a good group of folks out there (trail runners are a little different breed I think). As example: the ChaCha had breakfast burritos for the runners at the end along with the typical banana.

I am looking forward to next year, no ankle issue, and hopefully it will not be followed the next day with another race as this year’s was (we do the Komen Race for the Cure tomorrow).

I was thinking the other that it is amazing how in such a relatively short time, ‘getting out to the dirt and rock’ (i.e. trail running) has become such a huge part of my life. This was emphasized recently when I jacked my ankle but good, and could barely walk let alone trail run. For those who did not know – I decided one day I needed a change of pace from my normal running tracks at Thunderbird Park. So I headed over to Piestewa Peak. While it is a little busy, it is the perfect trail run for a downhill thrill, and one heck of a challenge to sputter up the thing. It’s only about 1.2 miles to the summit but has a 1200 foot elevation gain in that distance. The trail is pretty much all rock and quite narrow. However, you can pass someone so long as each person takes a side.

I had a good run up the hill. I would say half a ‘chug run’ and half power hike. Then was the fun part, an all out hump it - crazy man - run down. Sadly no sooner than maybe sixty seconds into the run down and an older gentleman decides to jump sideways as I was passing. This caused me to try to avoid landing all over him and I was forced to change mid stride. Next thing you know, he is apologizing big time and I am watching my ankle, or more like my whole lower leg, swell three sizes before my eyes. Worst, I was still one mile and one thousand feet above the car. I think it took me 45 minutes to get down from that spot versus the six or seven it should have. I spent the next few days doing the RICE method, using crutches and reading on the net everything I could on rehabilitation in the fastest time.

So this whole experience made me miss some days where I could not trail run, run at the gym etc. and I can’t tell you how frustrating it has been. I mean, heck, I have only been doing this for about a year but man-o-man has it become a big deal. I need it, like an addiction I think. I need that part of the day where you can plug in the headset, step into the heat, get sweaty and forget about everything else for an hour.

So, needless to say I will do everything I can to get back as fast as I can – push it, but not over do it that it cost more time. I need to be ready to run in the Komen at least with Kimberly. In addition to the regular runs, I will miss a couple of events that I had planned on doing.

That’s about it…. Just wanted to share my surprise really of how much things can change in one year. What was not even on my radar 14 months ago, is now something I am losing my mind because I can’t do…..

By Kimberly

I set some resolutions in January of 2008 to run faster in both a 5K and a 10K. I tried to set my goals difficult enough to challenge me but not too hard as to be unobtainable by me. I may have underestimated myself because in April I ran a 5K in downtown Phoenix and beat my goal of 25 minutes by several seconds and just this last week I felt I was ready to run a fast 10K (on the treadmill) and meet my goal of 58 minutes. I was especially encouraged by a song by Kidd Rock called “Cocky” with the basic message to me of it is not bragging if you do it. I should add that hip hop is not the typical kind of music I listen to and in fact much of it is harsh and I question the language/terms much of it uses but while running the beat and SOME of the lyrics really get me going.

So Thursday I got on the treadmill and set the timer for 58 minutes, not giving myself any room for failure and ran. I paced myself and held back at some points knowing that as a 43 year old grandmother I needed to conserve some of my energy. I beat my goal and finished in 57:42. I was happy with my progress and happy that I have learned to pace myself and thrilled that I did not feel entirely spent afterward. Which speaks to my next goal. I am going to do the PF Chang Half Marathon in January of next year. I am setting a goal at this point of 2 hours and 10 minutes, just under 10 minute miles for 13.2 miles. It is much more of a challenge that the 10K (6.2 miles) but one I am willing to work for.

Kimberly and I love spending time together, and we seem to have a growing addiction to running. Though it has been tough to combine the two as Kimberly likes running the streets and the treadmill and my preference is for the trails and rocks. So, other than when we do the races, it’s been kind of a ‘something we both like that we do not do together much’ type situation. But while up in Michigan on our recent trip this all changed, and it couldn’t be cooler as we have now ‘found a new gig’.

When traveling it can be tough to find time (and a way) to exercise. Without a gym, running around wherever you are tends to be what you do. Being away from home this last month presented many such opportunities. I think the first time we ran together was around a hotel in Texas. We needed to get some runs in before the upcoming races so we thought what they heck might as well do it here. We put on the ipods, and just started running around the hotel area. It was pretty cool, even though we were both in our own music world and not talking (though sometimes we would) it was something we were doing together and we were really enjoying it. An unexpected part was how fun it felt that we were ‘seeing a different place’ on the run even though in this case is was just around a hotel in Amarillo. We did it again when we were in Oklahoma and then on the way to Michigan outside a hotel in Indiana.

Next thing you know, we start thinking, why not combine a nice run with anytime we check out a new city (small town, tourist town, beach area, whatever). It would give us a great way to see a ton of the town, maybe spot something we would not have noticed, and because we would have seen most of the place we might have a better idea of where we want to hang after the run. We did it in Michigan a couple more times (a great run around the beach town of Saugatuck included) and we now have added it to our weekend fun options and an alternative to hiking.

Which I guess finally brings us to the reason for this blog :-). This weekend we headed up to Jerome, a great little town about 100 miles north of Phoenix. Jerome calls itself a Ghost town, because at one time it was about dead (used to be a big copper mining area way back when), but it is a pretty lively little artsy community now. It is also essentially on the side of a hill, many of the houses are on stilts because the pitch is so steep. Anyway, we headed out early, got to Jerome, parked the car and did a great run around the town. Seeing it is fairly small, in the hour and five minutes we ran around we did a couple loops of most everything. This run was especially ‘fun’ in that you are either running downhill or uphill the whole time. Jerome has about zero flat land.

After the run, we walked around the shops, took some pictures (ask me about the ghost house in the one overlooking the valley – WEIRD). We then headed over to Prescott (up the mountain and down the other side) and walked around the festival they had and did some antique shops for the rest of the day. A perfect “Arizona Saturday”.

We are really looking forward to doing many more runs together as we explore many more new sites and towns. Some PICTURES HERE