They Call Us Run D.C.

I'm strapped with rap when I attack, I'm stunning
Darrly Mack on track and I'm off, and running -
And that ladies in gentlemen should be the first and only time I quote Run D.M.C. lyrics in this blog.  I hope.

Anyone who runs consistently has favorite courses.  It might be a particular trail.  It might be an especially challenging course that pushes you to your limits.  It might be one that stands out for its environs.  Or it might be a particular race like the Boston or Disney Marathons that are distinctly historic for the totality of the event.

While I could easily rattle off many of my favorite courses logged in the 26 years I've been tallying miles (hmm, maybe another blog entry?), one of my undeniably favorite courses to run is along the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

It's not just because it's flat, or that you might get to see Steve Rogers running laps by you On Your Left. (Of course I watched for him.)

It's the sheer majesty.

One can't help but be in awe of the monuments, memorials, and magnitude that marks the mall.

I recently had the opportunity to cover the course again, in D.C. for a whirlwind tour of the Hill in one of my roles at Middlesex Community College.

I stayed in a hotel a bit further out from the hub this time, a couple of blocks from the National Zoo, but an early morning run in unseasonably warm temps allowed me to log more than seven miles on a picture perfect morning.  Truth be told, I would have kept going a lot further, but appointments beckoned.

And lest anyone leap to an incorrect conclusion, no I did not run through the Vietnam Wall or Korean Conflict memorials.  That'd be disrespectful.

A the Vietnam memorial, it amazes me that I've never visited when there hasn't been something left for the fallen, all these decades later.  There was also a pack of Camel cigarettes a few feet away.

The statues and monuments throughout our Nation's capital are unrivaled anywhere.

Sadly, I couldn't run through the Smithsonian Zoo to say good morning to the pandas, as it wasn't open.

You never know who you're going to see out on your runs.

It could be Marilyn.

Or Gandhi.

Julie Hay could better fill you in on the stories behind her university's hippo statue.

Legend has it that if you rub its' nose, you'll have good luck.

Never forget. 

Yeah, I know it's dorky to ask total strangers to take your pic in the middle of a run, but I'm not into selfies, and I wanted to document the run.

Damn, what a view from atop the steps of the Lincoln Memorial

Honest Abe

One of my personal favorite stops is the Korean War memorial, because that's the conflict that my father, Jimmy Cook, served in.

My dad never told many tales of his time over there.  It was always a challenge to get him to talk about the experience.  But I never hesitate to pay tribute to his service every time I get to walk alongside this formation of soldiers.

And then there's the monument in the middle of it all.

And finally, the people's house.

Funny thing about the blocks in D.C. - you automatically extend your runs exponentially just by adding on a single block - as in the case of the White House.  Adding this loop to the run is a lot longer than you think.

But it's worth it.

Sadly, thanks to the folks who insist on scaling the fence, there's now ANOTHER layer of fencing that prevents you from even getting up close next to the border fence.

Sappy, yeah, I know. But damn, I loves me this run.

How about you - what are some of YOUR favorite courses to run/walk?