Something weird happened on my early morning 12 miler yesterday. Two runners…count’em two…purposely went out of their way to come over to my side of the street just to say Hi, and when I went to the store to pick up a bottle of Gatorade, the guy in front of me at the cash register actually turned to me and said, “Why don’t you go ahead of me, you’ve got only 1 thing, I’ve got 4.” Wow, I must be dreaming
Well, I’m not dreaming but I am in California! Actually, I’ve been in San Francisco for the past few days attending a medical conference (that explains why I’ve been behind on my blog writing and reading this week…sorry!) and one thing I’ve definitely noticed is how runners are treated somewhat differently here than I’m used to back home. For one thing, cars actually stop when I’m running in the street even when they have the right of way. For another, other morning people always acknowledge my presence when I’m running by. I can’t tell whether it’s because they recognize me as being from out of town or if it’s just politeness on their part. Either way, it is quite refreshing not to have to pretend that I don’t know anybody when I’m running.
Another new experience I had this week was doing speedwork on a perfectly manicured high school track. It was such a shock for me to find this tiny piece of running heaven in the middle of my run the other day that I had to drop pace and do some impromptu 400m intervals just to test it out. I was such a novice at tracking running that I didn’t know which lane constituted 400 meters (the inner lane), and what the proper etiquette was in terms of passing (can pass either side, but preferably on left). Yeah, I had to wiki that online after I got back to the hotel to find the answers. Still, I had fun pretending to run fast and imagining 15,000 fans roaring and screaming as I turned down toward the last corner into the final straightaway. Yeah, I definitely missed out in high school.
My runs this week have been sporadic, due to my crazy conference schedule. Although I am enjoying myself in this strangely friendly city, I am somewhat anxious to go back home soon so I can resume my regular running and training. While I’m here though, I hope to get in a few long runs so I can practice running the hills in this weather in preparation for marathon day which is now less than 2 months away. Yikes!
Hope you all have a wonderful week. I’ll check in periodically so don’t be afraid to comment (especially if anyone has good suggestions for good running routes in SF!) I’ll be reading even if writing won’t be as convenient.
16 comments:
Friendly people! How will you survive? :)
You've gotta run Lombard Street! I can't say I have, but if the opportunity presented itself, I'd do it in a second. To say the least, it would provide some hill training!
On my long run on Saturday, I was in a great mood, and kept giving a huge grin, a wave, and a good morning to everyone I passed. We're friendly in the Northeast too! You just have to come running with me. Super Runners Shop: Sunday, July 5. Be there :)
Hope you continue to have fun in SF!
Yep. Californians -we're nice people, usually.
If you're a "typical tourist" we might not be so nice. ha ha.
ah refreshing - friendly people. It always throws me off my game once I run somewhere other than the city. Enjoy your time in SF!
I love finding things I don't expect on my runs, it gives me some extra oomph!
I'd suggest running anywhere along the ocean. Also, I found going through Golden Gate Park was really nice.
Hi Lam
Hope you are having a great trip and it certainly sounds like it. It is a really sad thing that we are surprised when we are shown common courtesy by traffic. It is at best rude and at worst dangerous. I have had mostly great experiences with my fellow runners, but than again we are a different breed....
Best of luck with the training and have a safe trip back.
So it's true that west coasters are friendlier than east coasters??
Are you going to be sad when you get back to NY and everyone ignores you and cars try to hit you? SF is fun!! Glad you are having a good time.
If you really want friendly, come to the midwest. After a 5K on Saturday, my husband (transplanted East Coast guy) was waiting behind a woman for a bottle of water. He was getting annoyed because she was taking too long... when she turned around, said, "Here, I got you a cold one," and handed him a bottle.
hehe...now you can see why i fell in love with the city when I went there last summer :)
you're just missing a lot of rain and thunder here in NYC :)
One of my secret worries about running the SF Marathon is that I'll love the city so much that I'll never want to leave.
hey....just wanted you to know that i'm still reading your blog :) You are quite the novelist. Congrats on the boards, and joining the flyers (even though I left them). I'm leaving NYC for warmer lands, but someday I'll miss NY.
Ok, so I just read the second post. If you're still in the Bay area, I have plenty of running suggestions for you-- some in the city of SF and some just outside. Email me or comment on my blog or whatever. SF/the Bay Area is running mecca! Love me some Bay Area running!
I LOVE running in a new place and exploring, isn't it fun? I'm glad you had such good fortune too.
Learn anything at the conference? I've definitely been taking your dehydration advice to heart and not overdoing it if I get too low. Unfortunately I've needed it a couple times which means I've been none to smart on hydration lately. :P
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