Running On the Run:
Tips for the Traveling Runner
by Melissa Field

I have this idea, as so many runners do, of seeing the world via my running shoes.  Seeing places through running is intimate and peaceful.  It is the reason why so many of us enjoy running so much.  Getting there, however, is uncomfortably intimate and sucks up precious taper and rest days with thoughts of connecting flights and time zones.
The traveling runner must search out a city’s best running paths, navigate through various modes of transportation to find the race expo and the race starting line, dress according to unfamiliar weather, acclimate to foreign altitudes, and find carb-healthy restaurants.  Exhausting! 
Still, if you’re in search of new adventures, or you simply must travel for work, try these tips for better running on the run:

• Wear your running shoes instead of packing them.  Running shoes take up too much space in a bag, so keep them on and keep your feet happy.
• In the spring and fall, pack both a warm and a cold weather running outfit.  You never know when the weather might change. 
• Go to the grocery store before leaving and stock-up on your favorite energy gels and pre-race snacks.  There is nothing worse than standing in front of a McDonalds at an airport wishing you had a nice bagel and banana instead. 
• Avoid coffee and soda and opt for large quantities of water.
• Eat those free peanuts!
• Research good local restaurants ahead of time and make a reservation.  Weekend races mean weekend crowds and you don’t want to be waiting for a table when you could be catching some pre-race shut-eye. 
• Spend the day before a race figuring out how to get to the starting line the next morning.
• Hit the local running store to find out about the best paths and trails.  Once you’re out running, ask fellow runners for additional suggestions on where to run.
• Take you own water bottle.  Drinking fountains are often hard to come by or shut-off during cooler seasons.

Once you start traveling for running, you will notice that runners are the same everywhere.  We are, in fact, each other’s most reassuring reward when running on the run.  A comforting thought in this big, wide world.