Like many runners, my favorite way to explore a new city, town, or area is by running through and/or around it. Not only do I feel like I’m able to experience more sights, scenes, trails and roads than I would be able to view from a car window, but I also feel more in tune and connected with the place itself, and the people — most notably, the fellow runners, walkers and cyclists — I encounter along the way.

Over the summer, I woke up early to run to the piers of Pismo Beach and watch surfers catch waves while the rest of the bachelorette party I was traveling with slept in. In September, I got to run the ski trails of Park City (while breathing heavily, of course). And most recently in October, I got to run through the streets of Lakewood — Colorado which also proved challenging, but was a welcome change from the heavily crowded and busy streets of the city that I’m used to.

That’s probably why the activity I anticipated most when visiting Austin, Texas, this past weekend was a leisurely jog on the running and bike path along the Colorado River. And unlike in California, I didn’t have to do it alone.

Continue reading “Breakfast Tacos and 800s in Austin” →