To many, this final "last" question may seem insignificant, but, to me it is not. You see, I think of running routes like good friends. My current running route, a 4.47 mile loop across a leafy, squirrel-infested local park, through the affluent neighborhood surrounding the former mansion-turned-art-museum of a local oil baron, and, finally, down a trendy local thoroughfare for a night out, has played a large part in my experience in and perception of Tulsa, Oklahoma. This is what happens when you run habitually run the same route, three to four times a week, for an entire year.
You see, running is my outlet, a medium for meditation, a refresher to my senses, and an empty time and space for processing. Running, thinking, but often just running. Nevertheless, if one wanted a highlight reel of my worries, musings, ponderings, griefs, and joys from this year, or, from my life, they could probably just mine my brain for runs.
This stream of consciousness would show anxieties about relationships and residency. It would display memories from each day, procedures or situations in which I succeeded or failed or landed somewhere in between. It would harvest thoughts about where I am in life, how I got here, and where I am going.
And then, in a way I can't fully explain, it would project a scatter of thoughts of people, places, and situations that haven't quite been put together yet. Thinking, but not thinking, sometimes with only the sound of whatever line of music I have in stuck in my head. Perhaps the nature of this dynamic amalgam of incoherent processing explains my preference for routine in my routes over the years.
High School - The Quarry Hill Loop (4.99 miles)
Features:
- crossing a pedestrian bridge over Circle Drive
- obligatory stretching at Parkwood Hills Park
- paved trail through Quarry Hill Park
- 250 feet elevation gain over last 2 miles, sometimes used for hill workouts
- had to get home by 5 pm to do paper route
Freshman Year - The Temple Loop (3.78 miles)
Features:
- spiritual analogies abound for this loop up the foot of the mountain, past the Missionary Training Center, and around the temple
- often wondered what goes on in the temple
- "do it for my future wife!" occasionally used as personal motivator on steepest section of hill before reaching high point
- second half of run was literally all downhill
Post-mission BYU - Tour de Provo (4.46 miles)
Features of the Tour de Provo:
- kinda, sorta escaping the BYU bubble on the south side of this route
- getting a feel for downtown Provo, since I rarely ventured down there otherwise
- lots of glass buildings for checking myself out while running
- passing the Provo Tabernacle which I sang in during my Men's Chorus days (pre-fire/temple days)
The Fulham House - Golf Course Loop (4.01 miles)
Features of the golf course loop:
- aforementioned golf course with the rare stray golf ball sighting
- no major stoplights or roads to cross
- post-study session review while running - I vividly remember reviewing microbiology in my mind and on flashcards as I ran during lead up to my first medical board exam
- minimal turning
Wheaton, Maryland - Sligo Creek Loop (3.89 miles)
Features of the Sligo Creek Loop:
- peaceful, non-city vibes alongside the Sligo Creek and surrounding forested area
- occasional deer sightings
- black squirrels, the ugly cousins of the Eastern Gray Squirrel common in Minnesota
- small wooden bridge crossing to access the Sligo Creek Trail
Uptown Minneapolis - Lake of the Isles Loop (4.58 miles)
Features of this loop:
- one of a kind view of downtown Minneapolis skyline with Lake of the Isles in the foreground
- an array of beautiful, lakeside mansions bordering the lake
- plentiful locals getting out and moving their bodies
- icy, cold winter running
4th Year of Medical School - Stone Arch Bridge Out-and-back (5.12 miles)
Features of the run:
- crossing the Stone Arch Bridge, a former train-bridge now turned pedestrian bridge spanning the Mississippi river at the site of the the now-defunct flour mills upon which Minneapolis was built
- picturesque views of the Minneapolis Skyline with the bridge and its rows of overhanging pedestrian lights in the foreground
- cutting through "Dinkytown," a popular street near the University of Minnesota's campus, always bustling with students
- running underneath the majestic Hennepin Avenue bridge, a large tan, stone suspension bridge with teal green accents crossing the Mississippi River to the north of the Stone Arch Bridge
Tulsa, Oklahoma - the Philbrook Loop (4.49 miles)
Features:
- pull-up pit-stops at the local park and private school's field along the way
- mansions among larger mansions
- 68 degree air conditioned apartment at the end of my runs since my landlady didn't charge extra for utilities
- not inside hospital (crucial for first year of residency)