I was on a course in Leipzig on Thurs and Fri. I've been there before but not as a runner. So research was done beforehand on where there are bits of green to run in close to the hotel and on arrival the question was asked whether it was safe to run in said bits of green. On the first morning I walked part of the route (it was a rest day anyway). Phew, lots of traffic, pavements very uneven, tracks in the park really rutted. Plenty of potential for a spectacular JSS fall. Not happy with my first route I strolled around in the evening as well, got my bearings well sorted out and looked forward to my run this morning.
I had a slight headache this morning, I definitely don't drink enough when travelling. But it vanished pretty quickly in the cool morning air. I trotted along, senses sharpened by the unfamiliar territory, very careful to pick my feet up on cobblestones, flitting down side streets to avoid the main roads, aware that the parks had more inclines than I'm used to. So many traffic lights as well, although I'd chosen a route to avoid them. I sprinted across some roads in a blissful burst of speed. It felt very good. Then the sudden awareness that the next patch of green should have turned up by now. Somehow I had taken a wrong turning. But that was part of the fun - I love exploring new places and lets face it, I wasn't going to be miles away from anywhere in such a short time. Then a building popped up that I recognized from my explorations yesterday. How on earth did I get there? I was well off course, but also well-chuffed that I knew how to get back on course. In the end the actual run in the park was shorter than I'd intended but I really enjoyed the whole thing. I felt light, my breathing was great, I sprinted easily over the roads feeling like a real runner in front of all those cars. I got lost but I found myself again and I got back to the hotel after about 35 mins to find I'd run at about the same speed as my last run in Munich - which was without traffic lights and stops. Yet it felt so much easier today.
Oh and I took runswithdogs with me as well, because she enjoyed our run in Berlin last week!