Tag Archives: USA

Running

Seattle, WA – March 25, 2013

Maggie and I used to run around Green Lake at least 4-5 times per week for years. Still, each morning, each sunrise is different and we find something new to enjoy. It was late March, the days were getting longer the spring was in the air and the mountain was out. On days like that, I try to remember to bring my camera and take pictures. We were treated to a very fiery sunrise, great views of the Mt Rainier and a lot of flowers on the trees.

Very colorful sunrise
Sunrise over the Green Lake
Mt. Rainier
Maggie and flowers
Running

Athens, GA – January 28, 2013

I was in Athens (University of Georgia) for work, so naturally I used this opportunity to run at a new place. I had relatively busy schedule, but as always, I make sure to go to bed early, wake up early and go for a run before my day starts.

Also, as usual, I planned my runs using maps and Google Earth, but this time this did not produce great results. My first run (January 28) was supposed to be along the banks of a nice river (or a creek), but instead I ended up running along what seemed like a very short canal and then ended up in a less-than-great-neighborhood. I turned back towards the hotel and took few detours on the way to make this run a bit longer. In all, on 28th, my run was 5.4 miles at about 8.5 minute mile pace. I usually try to run faster (7.30 mm seems to work well for me), but so often I am just not in the shape I would like to be, so I have to go slow.

Next day (January 29), I decided to run through the UGA campus instead, and that seemed to work out much better. From my hotel (Holiday Inn on W Broad St.), I went south on S Lumpkin St., then east on Carlton St., then south on E Campus Rd to intramural fields. After running few times around the fields, I went back more-less the same way. The total distance was somewhat shorter (5.2 miles), but I kept the same pace which, considering this was my second day to run in a row was not bad.

Athens Run – January 28, 2013 5.4 miles at 8.5 minutes per mile
Athens Run – January 29, 2013 5.2 miles at 8.5 minutes per mile
UGA Mascot
UGA Campus
Running

Seattle, WA – January 01, 2013

What better way to start a new year than with a run? I love running on January 1st, but it is not often that I manage to actually do it. Maggie is usually freaked out by fireworks most of the night for the New Years, so neither one of us gets much sleep. It is very difficult to run after just few hours of sleep.

Still, this year, we managed to get out and run at our favorite place, Green Lake. It was chilly, but nice morning. Moon was about ¾ full. Sun was just coming up and we made great pictures of the lake. On one of them you can see the Space Needle in the distance.

Maggie waiting for food after a run
Green Lake, early in the morning
Moon setting over the Green Lake
Space Needle in the distance
Running

Waikoloa, HI – December 03, 2012

We were back at Waikoloa for our annual vacation, so I was running at the same place as before. One thing I tried to change this time was to see how far I can get running on the beach south, towards Kona. Turns out, not very far… I run out of sand and came to the very rocky part in about a minute or two. From there, I up the beach, to Marriott and then back to Hilton. At Hilton, I went around the resort once to make this even 4 miles (still very short).

Big Island Run - December 03, 2012.12.03 4.0miles 8.5 minute mile
Big Island Run – December 03, 2012.12.03
4.0miles 8.5 minute mile
Running

Seattle, WA – November 15, 2012

I love beautiful, fiery sunrises and I love foggy days. Combine those two things and you have a quite spectacular run.
Maggie and I went out at our normal time, around 6 am and run down to the Green Lake. It was quite foggy, but as we were completing our run, the fog thinned out on the east side and we could see an awesome sunrise. Good thing, I had my camera with me.
Total run was our usual, 4 miles.

OK, we are back. Give me food now!
Sunrise through the fog
Running

Richland, Washington – November 05, 2012

I was in Richland for work and stayed at Red Lion hotel, by the river. That was very convenient for running, so I used that opportunity to run three mornings in a row on the Riverfront trail. I was quite amazed at how great the trail was, and surprised to see that there were very few people on it. First two days, I went north from my hotel, staying on the trail all the way to the Ferry rd. where it ends. From there, I went back the same way. Third day, I took the trail south, went under the I-182 bridge and from there followed the trail going west for about a mile. I went the same route on the way back.
All in all, this is a great place to run. Very scenic, beautiful sunrises, clean air.

Sunrise over the Columbia River
The Riverfront Trail
Sunrise over the Columbia River
Sunrise over the Columbia River
Richland Run November 06, 2012. 6.4 miles
Richland Run November 07, 2012. 4.8 miles
Richland Run November 05, 2012. 6.4 miles
Running

Memphis, TN – April 12, 2012

Memphis, Tennessee, a town on the Mississippi river. I was there for work and stayed at Crowne Plaza by the I-40. During my stay there, I went running several times but recorded it on my GPS only once.

From the hotel, I went down N 3rd street and then crossed the A.W. Willis Bridge to the Mud Island. On the island, I ran north on the Mississippi Greenbelt trail, along the Mississippi river, all the way to the Wolf River. From there, I ran south, to Mud Island River Park went back to the bridge and then took the N 2nd Avenue to my hotel. The total distance was 6.7 miles.

While running along the trail, I took photographs of the Mississippi River and American Queen river boat.

Memphis, TN – April 12, 2012 6.7 miles
American Queen on the Mississippi River
American Queen on the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
Mississippi River
Mississippi River
Running

Orlando, FL – April 05, 2011

t was beginning of April and it was already way to hot in Orlando. That is crazy. We stayed at Hilton Grand Vacations at SeaWorld and the AACR was at the Convention Center nearby.

I ran several times while here, but recorded it only once. For this run, I went from the hotel and turned right on the Central Florida Parkway, then left on the International Drive, under the highway 528 all the way to the Convention Center. From there, I ran back on the International Drive, and went around the SeaWorld from the other side (Sea Harbor Drive), back to the hotel. Total distance covered was 5.1 miles.

Orlando Run - April 05, 2011 (5.1 miles)
Orlando Run – April 05, 2011 (5.1 miles)
biking

Bike to work (Seattle, WA) – April 04, 2011

This post is not about a run for a change; instead it is about a bike ride that I take almost every day (riding to work). It is a short ride, just over 9 miles for the round trip, but it does have a decent climb.

It seems quite flat when viewed on the Google Earth, but trust me, there is a lot of climbing. South Lake Union (where I work) is at the Sea level, and Phinney Ridge is at 350 ft.

Bike to Work
Bike to Work
Running

Waikoloa, HI – December 08, 2010

Few days after Thanksgiving, we traveled to Hawaii for a family vacation. We went to the Big Island and stayed at the excellent Hilton Waikoloa Hotel. If you are traveling with kids, this is absolutely the best place to stay on the Big Island (probably all of Hawaii). Sadly, Maggie could not come with us, so she stayed in Seattle and I ran by myself.

I have to say, I was surprised at how hard it was to find a nice place to run there. I examined the map and Google Earth in detail, asked around, but nothing obvious came up. Two options were mentioned, running in a circle on Waikoloa Beach Drive or running on Queen Ka’ahumany Highway and neither one seemed appealing.

At the end, I ran down on Waikoloa Beach Drive to Ku’uali’I Place and then all the way to the Ocean by Lava Lava Beach club. Sandy part of the beach there was quite short, so I only took it to Marriott hotel and then run back to Waikoloa Beach Drive and my hotel. At hotel, I ran around the resort before getting back to my room. All this was only 3.4 miles. While the run was short, it was not too bad. Some of it was on the Waikoloa Drive, some on the beach, some through the resort.

Big Island Run - December 08, 2010 (3.4 miles)
Big Island Run – December 08, 2010 (3.4 miles)
Running

Bozeman, MT – July 20, 2010

Bozeman is one of my favorite places. I’ve been here a number of times in the past. This year I came for the ASV meeting which was held at Montana State University (accommodation was at the dorms). This was my second ASV meeting in Bozeman.

During this trip, I went running several times, few shorter runs and one long one. There are very nice trails in the area near the MSU where I stayed. I ran on Bozeman Trail, Gallagator Linear Trail, etc. Things got a bit confusing during the longer run, as we were trying to stay on the trail, but kept getting lost (I ran with a friend who was also at the meeting). As much as all Bozeman runs were fun (and they were), thing that I remember the best was a huge breakfast at the Nova Café after our 11.8 mile run. That place was awesome!

Bozeman Run – July 20, 2010 (11.8 miles)
Bozeman Run – July 21, 2010 (5.7 miles)
Bozeman, MT
Running

Portland, OR – June 21, 2010

In Portland, I stayed at Residence Inn Downtown/Riverplace, just off the I 5, right on the Willamette River. Weather was decent and I went for an early morning run along the river front.
From the hotel, I went North, following the river, under the Hawthorne Bridge, Morrison Bridge, Burnside Bridge and then I crossed to the East side of the river on the Steel Bridge. For some reason, my GPS does not seem to be synchronized with the map and shows me as walking over the water to the other side and back. Rest assured that I actually went over the bridge. I am guessing that all that steel interfered with the GPS signal. Once on the other side, I run South past the East side of the Burnside Bridge and then pretty much took the exact same route back. Had I planned this a bit better, I could have probably run in a circle or something. I generally do not like to go back and forth the same way, but this is how it worked out this time.
Generally, this is a pleasant run, nice scenery, river views. There was some noise from traffic, but not too bad. If you are ever in Portland, you cannot go wrong with this route.

Portland, Oregon, 4.4 mile run, June 21, 2010
Portland, Oregon, 4.4 mile run, June 21, 2010
Running

Long Beach, WA – May 28, 2010

Long Beach in Washington State is really true to its name. Although their claim to have the longest beach in the world is exaggerated, beach at Long Beach is pretty long (28 miles). Town is located on the south-west corner of Washington State, about 160 miles from Seattle. In addition to the beach, there is a lot of history here. Over 200 years ago (November 19, 1805), Captain Clark arrived at the Pacific Ocean for the very first time in what is now Long Beach, WA.

We stayed at Super 8, which is a great hotel. Dogs are welcome, people are very nice, and hotel is very close to the beach … what else is there to say. We used to come here with kids, enjoy the beach and the town. After seeing movie “The Impossible” however, I am not quite comfortable bringing kids here. Maggie and I still visit from time to time though.

I went running with Maggie at Long Beach a number of times. This time, I finally got to record it. The route is very simple: From the hotel, we ran towards the beach, continue on the boardwalk, and then come back right next to the Ocean. We ran anything from 3 miles (really a minimum run), to over 9 miles. Runs that I recorded on this trip were 4.9 and 6.0 miles long.

Long Beach Run - May 29, 2010 (4.9 miles)
Long Beach Run – May 29, 2010 (4.9 miles)
Long Beach Run - May 29, 2010 (6.0 miles)
Long Beach Run – May 29, 2010 (6.0 miles)
Running

Boston, MA – April 29, 2010

It’s been a while since I’ve been in Boston. I used to spend so much time here, that arriving here almost felt like coming home. This time, I stayed at Hotel Marlowe (in East Cambridge) and went running two times (recorded only one though).

From the hotel, I followed the river going south west to Boston University Bridge, crossed it to Boston and then followed the river back to Charles River Dam which got me back to the hotel. Total for this run was 5.9 miles. A very nice thing for this route was that most of it was by the river.

Boston Run - April 29, 2010 (5.9 miles)
Boston Run – April 29, 2010 (5.9 miles)
Running

Green Lake (Seattle, WA) – July 29, 2007

I used to live in Ravenna neighborhood in Seattle. During that time, Maggie and I would run to the Green Lake, go all the way around and run back. This route was 5.7 miles and was a great way to start our day. Maggie loves to run around the Green Lake (squirrels!), and the part on the streets was not too bad either since we always went early in the morning before the rush hour. Some days, we would also go to the lake after work and go around again (we drove to the lake, and then walked around).

Most mornings, from our apartment, we ran west on N 65th Street then on Ravenna Boulevard to Green Lake Park. Once at the lake, we ran counter clock wise, came up the N 64th Street, and then go east on N 65th Street all the way back home.

Green Lake Run July 29, 2007
Green Lake Run July 29, 2007
Running

Indianapolis, IN – June 3, 2007

I was in Indianapolis for the 55th ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry. I stayed at Westin, which is just across the street from the Convention Center. When I checked in, I asked for their recommendations for places to run and they gave me a little map showing all the good local running trails. Nice!

I managed to run most of the mornings during my stay, despite the fact that we went to The Slippery Noodle almost every night (I highly recommend The Slippery Noodle!). I was alternating between a shorter and a longer route.

For both runs, I would first go north from the hotel, and then west on New York Street, which took me across the White River. Once on the other side, I went down the N White River Parkway Drive to Washington Street which goes back all the way to the hotel. For the longer runs, I would detour on the N West Street and go up the Canal Walk to 10th Street and back. Longer runs were about 6 and shorter about 3 miles. Overall, this was a pretty pleasant run, although there was a lot of traffic at few places.

Indianapolis Run June 03, 2007
Indianapolis Run June 03, 2007
Indianapolis Run June 04, 2007
Indianapolis Run June 04, 2007
Running

Boston, MA – May 14, 2007

I used to travel to Boston quite often. For a while, I was spending almost half of my time there (the other half, I was in Salt Lake City). My favorite place to stay there was Holiday Inn on Beacon Street in Brookline. Hotel was OK, had decent breakfast and it was very close to Longwood Campus where I worked.

I had a number of running routes starting from that hotel, some shorter, some longer. The shortest one was just over 3 miles, while the longest one was over 10 miles (Boston sightseeing, Freedom Trail and the Boston Harbor). My most common running route, was this one I recorded on May 14, 2007.

From the hotel, I ran on Beacon Street towards the downtown, turned left on Mass Avenue and went across the Harvard Bridge over Charles River. On the other side, in Cambridge, I went left and ran along the river, crossed the Boston University Bridge, went around the Amory Playground and then back to the hotel. This route was about 4.2 miles. Most of it was on the streets, and even early in the morning there was significant traffic, but for being in the city it was not too bad. The part along the river was very nice.

Boston Run 4.2 miles
Boston Run 4.2 miles
Running

New York City, NY – May 11, 2007

Next stop on my trip was Boston, and since I had a whole weekend to get there (there was no point in flying back to the West Coast for a day), I drove. I spent a night at the hotel in New York City (Club Quarters on 45th Street – near the Times Square).

I have been traveling for days, and was a bit tired, but I did not want to miss an opportunity to run in NYC. I got up early in the morning, ran east to the 6th Avenue and then straight up to the Central Park. I have to say, this was quite an experience. Years ago, I watched Marathon Man, the movie, and I remembered a scene where Dustin Hoffman runs along the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir. For some reason, that scene got stuck in my head (much more than the “is it safe” scene), so I made sure to run by the Reservoir. I’ve been to the Central Park before, and I’ve been by the track next to the Reservoir before, but this was the first time I ran there. After going around the Reservoir, I ran back on the east side of the Park and then down the 5th Avenue back to 45th Street. That was a very nice, 6.7 mile long run. The part on the streets was a bit tough, but the part through the park more than made up for it.

New York City Run
New York City Run
Running

Rahway, NJ – May 11, 2007

I used to travel to Rahway several times each month. Being the creature of habit, I would always stay at Holiday Inn hotel in Clark. Once I find the place I like, I always go back and do not try to change things. The restaurant there was OK and I had a decent running route, so why not.

Early in the morning, from the hotel, I would run south past Mother Seton Regional High School, then follow Broadway over a small climb and after the Madison Avenue Park, continue down Madison Avenue . After passing the Rahway High School, I would turn right on the Midwood Drive which goes by the Robinsons branch of the Rahway River. Then, for some reason (and now I have no idea why) from that point, I would always go back the same way I came. As I am looking at the map now, it seems that it would make much more sense to continue through the neighborhoods and come back from the other side of Mother Seton High School.

Be that as it may, it was a decent route and it comes to about 4 miles.

Rahway Run
Rahway Run