April 15, 2017 - For Heidi!

Today's run was sponsored by Heidi! Thanks so much for continuing to help fund the Ty Taylor Memorial Campship Endowment. We're getting so close to fully funding the endowment, I appreciate your help! Soon, YMCA Camp Miller will be able to send a deserving camper to camp for free every year in honor of an amazing man.

I'm so excited to write about this run! In most ways, it sums up exactly what running in Delhi has been all about for me over the past several years.

Heidi was kind enough to donate for the write up, thank you so much. It has been truly an honor getting to know her over the years. I'll confess though, when I first met her, I was a little intimidated and unsure about what it would be like hanging out with a parent and not just other teachers. I was bridging an unknown gap, going out of my comfort zone. Luckily, it was exceedingly easy to chat with her on runs and we've been doing it ever since. In fact, she's outlasted several teachers in our running group. If I'm not wrong, she holds the most seniority in the group! And she's by far the biggest recruiter of new runners. Due to her hard work, friendliness and ability to do what I can't, I've been able to meet several great people that didn't actually work with me. Chalk it up to another benefit of running. Thanks, friend.

Saturday's run had to have a theme, of course. Heidi has been along for all of the themed runs, the drawing routes, the (probably) dangerous runs and more. Always with a smile. So, it had to be the Round Buildings Run I put together in 2013.

Circles seem to be a theme in Delhi. Traffic circles are everywhere, markets are designed in circles, and several buildings in the heart of Lutyens' Delhi share the shape. To clarify, Edwin Lutyens along with Sir Hebert Baker, was the chief architect of the British Raj in the 1920s and 30s. He was responsible for shaping much of what is now known as New Delhi, the nerve center of the capital's government.

This eight mile route passes nearby to what is perhaps the most iconic round building in the capital - The Sansad Bhawan, or Parliament House. Lutyens' signature was combining local and traditional elements in his works. The Parliament is inspired by the Chakra Wheel, the symbol in the center of India's flag.

New Delhi's round post office, the Gole Dak Khanna, was built in 1934 by R.T. Russel, the same architect who later finished Connaught Place, Delhi's iconic round market. For an incredible glimpse into what the area was like, take the time to read this wonderful recounting of Lalit Nirula's growing up in CP.

The final round building inspired a bit of controversy during our excursion. Tempted to play tour guide, I talked about the main building of Gole Market. I mentioned its octagonal shape, making it in fact, not a round building. Quickly, Tim (a scientist!) piped up, "Are you sure? There seem to be more sides than that." Given that we could see four of them from our vantage point, I knew he was right.

 slyronit via Flickr

It was also designed by Lutyens and was the principal market area that served his Delhi. It was also the precursor to the more grandiose Connaught Place. Saturday's controversy isn't the only one surrounding this dodecagonal building, though. Over the years, tenants have fought and lost to keep their shops open as the building crumbled around them. A wonderful monument to the past it was supposed to be redone in 2009 as part of the build-up to the Commonwealth Games, but for now, it stands in ruins, victim to time and the political machine that Lutyens buildings call home.

RUN STATS:
Distance - 8.09 miles
Time - 1:12:54

For Dr. A! - The Old Delhi Half Marathon

Dr. A came in with a very generous donation that showed up in my records after a plea that would get this run in the books! Thanks for urging me write up my travels around my Delhi. But the thanks is truly for helping to establish an on-going campship that will award a scholarship to needy children in the name of my friend, Ty Taylor. Everyone else can donate and get a dedicated run just by clicking on this link - http://www.ymcacampmiller.org/donate/ty-taylor-campship-endowment/

By the way, Dr. A is no stranger to travel writing. Check out her work for the Washington Post here.

Saturday's run marked the third or fourth installment (April 2014) of the Old Delhi Half Marathon. There's nothing official about this run, it just happens to be 13 or 14 miles round trip. There's certainly no rigamarole or pomp associated with it. Not like the upcoming British History Half Marathon. There are no bibs, no note cards. The attraction and the allure of the run is its destination.

Old Delhi calls to us. We spend our days in leafy Chanakyapuri, where the streets are wide, the cows are few and as they say in our CPR classes, the scene is safe. Old Delhi is none of those things. It's crowded, chaotic and cacophonous. It's a little dangerous.

But more that any of those things, it's interesting. Old Delhi is real. It pulses and breathes with all of its inhabitants and it wraps you up.

Like last week, the run drew a crowd. 12 wonderful friends showed up early on a Saturday morning to head to Old Delhi. Getting there was largely uneventful. We took it easy. The air wasn't great, the heat was already getting up there and we had a large spread of runners. (Confession-these are my favorite runs). Everyone comes out, we run along at a nice pace, we chat and we enjoy the scenery. At least, the scenery that can be seen. Delhi Gate was shrouded in the Delhi pollution, and from our position high on the Raj Path, we could just make out the outline. Undaunted, we continued on.

And that's when I saw it. My second most favorite font on a building in Delhi. And it was just around the corner from my first! The All India Fine Arts & Crafts Society building has an absolutely incredible Art Deco font. The letters are so tall and skinny!

Taken from the AIFACS website. I'll take a better shot someday.

My favorite. The subtlety in the U! Oh dear.

After that occupied my time for a few minutes, we arrived in grand style to the Heart of New Delhi - Connaught Place. Our entry into the inner circle was heralded by too many street dogs to count. And they were angry. At what, exactly, was unclear. Each other? Us? The apparent lack of commitment and dedication to the revitalization of the "largest financial, commercial and business centres" in the city?

We left the dogs to their platitudes and continued on. From CP, the run gets "interesting." As Laura and I were running alongside speeding, deafening traffic on Minto Road, I leaned over and yelled, "This is nice. Relaxing." The population density seemed to double or triple as we crossed the border of the two Delhis. Looking up, I saw three hornbills in flight. I tried to attract the others runners attention, but I think they just assumed my muffled yells were related to me getting run over by an autorickshaw or falling in a hole. At least I saw them. Or was it a diesel-injected dream?

And then we were there. The literal edge of Old Delhi. All twelve of us stopped for a group photo in front of the Turkman Gate, one of the five remaining entrance/exits to the walled city of Shahjahanabad, the seventh incarnation of the city of Delhi.

After the photo (and a breather), I immediately took the group on  a wrong turn. It was wrong for two reasons. Number 1: We were going the wrong way. Number 2: We ran past a smushed cat that was suffering far worse intestinal problems than Adam. Back on track, we headed into the fray of Sitaram Bazaar. We were dodging bikes, motorcycles, bicycle rickshaws, cows. You name it, we saw it. Old Delhi was positively buzzing with excitement at 7 in the morning on a Saturday and it was a workout just avoiding running into everything. At one point, it was suggested to me that I not bump into the cart in front of me. Why? Because of the legs (goat?) sticking out the back under the tarp were dangerously close.

From the Sitaram Bazaar, the route turns to the heart of Old Delhi at the Chawri Bazaar Metro Station. Many years ago, Kate and I ventured into the warrens of lanes and "go-downs" to have our wedding invitations printed. Years before that I was hopelessly enamored and agog at the smells, sight, ,and sounds of car horns honking, especially when I realized there were no cars on the street. I was passing a row of shops SELLING car horns and advertising by letting their product blast out its message.

And then, Jama Masjid.

Jama Masjid is one of the largest mosques in India and was built in the 17th century by Shah Jahan, the namesake of the seventh city of Delhi and the builder of the Taj Mahal. It's the center of all activity in Old Delhi and we journeyed around its exterior before we split off into the group that would run back and the group that would autorickshaw back in style.

The next stretch of old Delhi was more dodging and more gawking. But not too much gawking, as full attention was needed to ensure uprightedness! Today there were no goat heads, but plenty of buckets of brains. And livers. The last sight in Old Delhi this morning was a man walking out with a carcass. Over his shoulder. Fully carved. No wrapping.

We exited back at the Turkman Gate and headed home. It was a long (basically) straight trip home with not too much excitement. Which I suppose was good. We needed some time to decompress and unpack the images that will surely be enduring images of our time here in the Heart of India.

RUN STATS

Distance: 14.11 miles

Duration: 2:10:01

Soundtrack: Modest Mouse

For Bamlani!

This run is for Brian! He donated a while ago, but I was holding out for a DC run to dedicate to him, as a former denizen of the Nation's Capital.

I'm going to go ahead and call the trip to DC the final excuse in a late burst of roadblocks to my effective training. Early wake up calls, late nights, travel days, etc. are cramping my style and leaving more holes in my running calendar than a Michael Bay plot line.

Anyway, four days in DC yielded only one run. Due to work business, other AESers were in DC too.  Gene planned a great tour run. (For once I didn't have to plan the run!) How great is it to run in 'Merica with friends from Delhi? You're the greatest, Gene! I'm so glad that we were able to do this run together. It was an absolutely awesome day, humid as hell (that's DC in summer), but breezy and early enough to avoid the crowds. Having lived in Metro DC, it was a lot of fun to get out and see the sights again, and visit the new monuments that have been built since my last trip.

Gene and set out by Metro early Tuesday morning to avoid having to do a loop and to maximize our ability to sightsee along the way! We arrived to Capitol South Metro stop, passed the offices of Congress and headed toward the National Mall via the Capitol.

Tried to grab Gene in this pic, but he's too fast!

As soon as we passed the Capitol, I had to stop and take this picture of the sun rising over the Nation's Capitol like the dawning light of new hope moving forward. "God Bless the U-S-A!" Can you stand it? The patriotism one feels in DC is awe-inspiring! Let's pass some laws! Let's test some constitutionality!

Pictured: Metaphor for new hope

 We ran along the mall, passing other early-morning do-gooders, running tourists, congressional interns,  and various other fitness buffs. The city is full of runners. It's quite a change from Delhi, where often the only other people running are in flip-flops, trousers and button-downs on their way late to work. The highlights here were the US Botanical Garden, the American Indian Museum, the Hirshhorn Museum, Air and Space, the future African American Museum, Smithsonian Castle, Freer Gallery and the USDA(!). And that was just on our left. On the right, were a whole slew of other Smithsonians. All the while we had eyes on the Washington Monument dead ahead.

Stoplight selfie! Everyone in DC waits at red lights. Weird.

We turned left at the former World's Tallest Structure (damn you Eiffel Tower!) and headed toward the Tidal Basin. On our left, the US Holocaust Memorial Museum was opening for the day. A beagle on a leash was patrolling the premises, making sure it was safe for another day of operation. Skirting the Tidal Basin, we came upon the Jefferson Memorial, marking new DC territory for Gene. Excited by the chance to play tour guide, we detoured up the steps and inside.

TJ: Simpsons quote-"Nobody ever comes to see me."

 The next stop after the Jefferson Memorial is the FDR Memorial. This has always been one of my favorites in DC. The layout is so great, very park-like with lots of fitting tributes to a great man. Gene was equally impressed with the stop.

Moving along the Tidal Basin, the next two stops were new to me. I was excited to check out the MLK memorial. It is indeed impressive, and reading about the controversies that surround it doesn't take away from it's imposing presence.

Washington Monument as seen from the MLK Memorial.

 The next new stop was the also controversial World War II Memorial. I thought it was tastefully done and not an imposition on the Mall. Especially considering that we entered from the Mall, then could barely see it from the Lincoln Memorial.

The next stop was the Lincoln Memorial, complete with folktales about the American Sign Language "A" and "L" in Abe's hands and the optimistic/pessimistic profile views. Obviously, we reflected this in our selfie.

Lincoln Memorial Steps Selfie! Who's who?

One more stop in the National Mall area: the Korean War Memorial. This one has always blown my mind and the geometry of the space involved got me to thinking about how much of the meaning and planning of Memorial/Monument architecture must go unnoticed by us. For example, after reading the Wikipedia article, I learned that there are 19 soldiers in this field. When they reflect on the granite wall, there are 38, which represents the 38th parallel.

 

From the Korean War Memorial, we headed across the bridge back into Virginia, dodged highway traffic and found ourselves on the lovely Mount Vernon Trail. Most of this trail was a wooded boardwalk through the forest. It passes Teddy Roosevelt Island, which I should have run the day before, but couldn't motivate myself given the excuses in the beginning of this post.

All in all, it was a great day running in DC. Thanks to Brian for the inspiration and Gene for the company and for planning the route!

This run belongs to Bamlani with special shoutouts to Gene!

I'm dedicating runs to raise money for a campship in memory of our friend Ty Taylor at YMCA Camp Miller. Click here or here to donate. Please make sure you choose the Ty Taylor Campship option. And please let me know if you've made a donation so I can thank you!

RUN STATS:

Distance - 6.80 miles

Time - 59:30

Soundtrack - Not sure, too much great convo with Gene-O!

For Liz and Adam!

Saturday was the big day. It was a day that had been percolating like a pot of coffee in my grandfather's electric coffee pot.

The British History Half Marathon had finally arrived.

I originally planned this route in October of 2012 and had hoped to run it last year. The grand plan was a themed run inspired by the Siege of Delhi in 1857. I had traveled to the Coronation Memorial Park a few years ago and it just happened to be about 12-14 miles from campus. An idea was born. Why not do a point-to-point half marathon that started at the Coronation Memorial, passed through some major landmarks from the Delhi Mutiny and finish at school?

Sadly, the run never happened last school year. For various reasons, I couldn't inspire enough people to join me. But this year, things were different.

I started promoting the run on our running group a few months ago, trying to drum up interest and give people enough time to get up to distance.

One of the runners I hooked for this run was Adam. As a high school history teacher, Adam was keen to join. If you look back at the blog you'll see that Adam has joined for pieces of other fun runs. He was along for the Old Delhi Half, the Tughlaqabad 18 Miler and last weekend's Goodbye 10 miler. He's always been supportive of my themed runs, especially my Delhi sight-seeing runs and my historical tidbit runs. Thanks for the donation friend, I look forward to many more runs with you next year!

Today's other donor, Liz, has been a running buddy for a long time. Liz was very excited to join us and had been building up, getting ready, until she suffered some running injuries that have put her out of commission. Sadly, she's moving away, so our next run is a bit of a question mark. That said, in the world of international schoolery, I've learned that anything can happen. Thanks for your generous donation and thanks for being a friend. I've loved the running we've done together over the years!

The run starts from the Coronation Memorial Park. This park was the original site of the three Durbars that were held on the location. The first was in 1877 and commemorated the ascension to the throne of Victoria. Another Durbar was held in 1903. The durbar of 1911 was the only one attended by the King, King George V. The photo below marked the starting line or our run, the state of George V that originally stood in the cupola behind India Gate. It was moved to Coronation Park in the mid-1960s and it sat in an overgrown, weedy circle with other deposed British statues for years. 

The last time I was at the park, I had to creep through a half-open fence and wandered among the statues and empty pedestals. This time, I arrived in caravan with the 10 other runners to find that the park had undergone a significant face-lift. The statues had been repositioned in a circle surrounding the obelisk commemorating the 1911 Durbar. Extensive sidewalks and buildings are also being built, with the promise of an elaborate park.

We set out on the run, down a busy and dirty street. My run stopped abruptly, with water pouring down my back. My hydration pack had sprung a leak. My friends leapt to my aid as soon as I yelled "Help!" One was unsnapping my bag, another was pulling out the bladder and the rest stood bravely by, laughing, realizing that I wasn't in fact, peeing my pants.

After some adjustments we continued toward Delhi University. A crowd of people were on their way somewhere, a rally(?) - a party(?). We'll never know, because they went right and we went left. The first adventure of the day was under way as we all passed through a gate that definitely suggested that our entry might be restricted. It wasn't, thankfully, and we cruised through the quad.

Heidi and Tara. And Gandhi.

The next stop on the tour was the Flagstaff Tower. During the 1857 mutiny, the British wives and children holed up here waiting for news. I tried my best to recollect the story as I told my tour group and suggested they read more about it on my website - wikipedia.org

Great group of supportive friends!

We continued through the Kamla Nehru Ridge, again surprised at what great green areas there are in the city and we hit our first detour. After we crossed the road, entered a private nursery and were encouraged to leave, we were faced with the dilemma of choosing left or right. I took it upon myself to choose right and off we went. In a big circle. I probably added close to a mile with this wrong turn. Sorry team. Once we were back on track, we were running up a long hill (!) filled with monkeys. Sorry Ted. The next sight to behold was the Mutiny Memorial. We convinced a guard to let us in and it was time for selfies.

The Mutiny Memorial was the last stop in the Ridge, so we left, ran along a gnarly busy road filled with cars, dust and sun for too long, then turned off in search of the Red Fort. We missed the Kashmeri Gate, which was the entry point to the city of Delhi in 1857 and an important battle sight. We did reach the Red Fort, though and were able to run along its moat.

Preparing to leave Old Delhi, we stopped by the Delhi Gate for a quick photo, then off to the Turkman Gate. 

Near the Turkman Gate, we stopped for a drink break.

Pictured: Getting Drinks

Pictured: Nonplussed Observer

After finally leaving Old Delhi, we cut through Connaught Place (more selfies!) and then started the final leg back to school. At this point, we had covered almost 14 miles and I was feeling good. The pace had been relaxed, I was feeling strong and it was fun.

Getting back to school, we made sure to loop around so we could all finish together. Our half marathon had turned into almost 16 miles, so people were pooped. With only four miles to go to reach the 20 miles mark, I had to add another loop. I was feeling good, so I decided to go for it. Bernie and Ted joined. The first mile was great. When we hit the park, suddenly the heat came on strong. We were in full sun and our legs finally started talking to us. The Nehru Park Loop record is around 10:40, but it took us over 14 minutes that day.

We pulled up to school, the MapMyRun lady whispered 20 miles in my ear and I was satisfied. It was a great day of running and a great day with my friends. You guys rock!

This run belongs to Liz and Adam!

I'm dedicating runs to raise money for a campship in memory of our friend Ty Taylor at YMCA Camp Miller. Click here or here to donate. Please make sure you choose the Ty Taylor Campship option. And please let me know if you've made a donation so I can thank you!

RUN STATS:

Distance - 20.27 miles
Time - 3:02:43 - Over three hours of running!
Soundtrack - Death From Above 1979, Nine Inch Nails, Panda Bear, Hy Brazil Vol. 1 ...

Another Crazy Idea

I sent out a request for donations that would put me past $1000 in my fundraising and within minutes two sets of wonderful friends stepped up to help out. Thanks for your gifts, Matt & Skye and The Gregors. It really puts me in awe that so many friends are willing to help out with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep. The organization was so helpful to our family, and the ability to repay some of that kindness means a lot to us. Thank you.

In order to live up to the challenge of passing 1K, I conspired to offer up another of my crazy ideas for a run. Over the past two years, I've grown a reputation for dreaming up crazy runs and somehow convincing people to join me on them! Some of them have been themed (The Railroad Run, The Embassies of the Countries I've Visited Run), some have been pictographic (The Star Run) and others have revolved around my desire to explore (How about a run to see the Hanuman Temple that's made of an 80 foot cement monkey? A 1/2 marathon to Old Delhi and Back? Okay? Let's go!). It was in this vein that I convinced Liz to join me on an exploratory run to Haus Khaz Village and back.

These are some of my most favorite runs in Delhi, or really anywhere. I sit down on MapMyRun, look around for cool stuff and plan routes that:

A: are actually on roads that are "supposed" to be there.
B: are not "dangerous" due to lack of aforementioned roads.
C: not too twisty turny so I can remember the route as we run.

Amazingly (and out of character for most of my crazy ideas for runs), Sunday's was a smashing success. The route to Haus Khaz was easy and except for one small missed entrance to Deer Park, the route went as planned.

Haus Khaz has enjoyed the ups and downs of gentrification. Although it is almost 800 years old, the modern history of the village is what draws most of its visitors. The ruins of the mosque, the reservoir and the madrasa are wonderful archeological sites, but the hip cafes, restaurants and art galleries are what the Delhi elite and expats are coming for. The ruins almost seem like a quaint afterthought. Like any good neighborhood, Haus Khaz became too cool for the cool kids and other, trendier neighborhoods are taking its place. But it wasn't the cafes and galleries I was looking for on Sunday, it was Deer Park. This expansive park would lend itself well to adding miles to a run that is no further than Lodi Garden. The thing about this run, though is the fact that it goes the other way! Most of our runs head east and north, but this one bears almost straight south. There's plenty to see on the way to Deer Park, including a run through the sleepy Netaji Nagar neighborhood, a dodgy Ring Road crossing and a bad stretch on Africa Avenue (crazy ideas, right?).

The arrival to Deer Park, though had me thinking other thoughts. We entered through the Commonwealth Games tennis complex and I was instantly amazed by how nice Deer Park was! There were large lawns, manicured trails and a nice path around the reservoir. If you squinted just right, it was reminiscent of a nice city park in Orlando or another urban area. It was still Delhi, though. The pack of street dogs that chased away an interloper into their territory, the creepers and the unnatural green color of the water told us that. But for here, nice. And for a new route that creates possibilities for more diversity in runs, really nice!

We tried to get from the reservoir up to the madrasa and the ruins, but all of the gates are barred and locked, so we explored a bit for a path out and into Haus Khaz. Eventually we found it, found the next segment and ran along the deer enclosure. Plenty of people were feeding the animals and we cruised past and came out of the park right where I thought we were going to. Success! The crazy route planning worked. I love it when that happens.

The rest of the run was along a busy road and back across the Ring Road and into Sarojini Nagar. We took a pit stop to replace some sweat with Lime Soda, which was much needed after a late night on Saturday. From there it was a few miles left to get home. After a bit more running, we decided that we had had enough adventures for the day and we hopped into an autorickshaw for a quick ride home.

Thanks for joining me Liz and supporting my crazy ideas!

If you want to support more crazy ideas, please donate to keep me running!

https://www.coloradogives.org/forellis

RUN STATS:

Distance - 7.57 miles

Time - 1:18:11

Temp at 6am - Hot. Damn hot.

Soundtrack - De la Soul, 3 Feet High and Rising.

May 25, 2013

Saturday's run was sponsored by Melissa and Scott! Thanks a million. Your donation is well-appreciated.

It's appropriate that this run was sponsored by Melissa and Scott because it was the three of us that went for  a run on Saturday. I've had a standing appointment to run with any and all comers this year as I've been training and Melissa and Scott have shown up for several. When I saw their names appear on the fundraising site Friday night, I wasn't surprised. They're very generous friends and we've become closer over the years through the heat, the sweat and the numerous miles.

We headed out for a nice 6.5 Miler, the Lodi Garden run. Lodi Garden is a favorite run for many of us, due to the shade, the wonderful monuments and the people watching. If you live in or near New Delhi and you're interested in a morning walk, jog or laughing yoga, this is the place for you. It can be a lot of fun to run to the park and see all of the people. Saturday was no exception. There seemed to be more people than usual, and finding room to run on the jogging track wasn't easy. No laughers this time, but there were plenty of people doing yoga-in groups, alone or just simply taking a moment to do a simple sun salutation. By the way, this is rapidly becoming one of favorite things to see on my morning jog. A faithful Delhite steps out of the shadows into the sunlight, brings his or her hands together in the namaste and takes a moment. At times, it can be magical. The ancient ruins of Lodi Garden make it even more spectacular. There's something that's so reaffirming about watching someone take a moment to give reverence to something that most of us take for granted. The sun for example. Or a tree.

Saturday's run was a good training run for all of us. Melissa and Scott will be running a half marathon in Milwaukee this summer. The pace was good and the weather wasn't too nasty.

As always, help if you can!

https://www.coloradogives.org/forellis

Here are a few pics of Lodi Garden that I took while not running!
 

RUN STATS:

Distance - 6.5 miles

Time - 1:10:06

Soundtrack - Galactic - The Other Side of Midnight (Live) and Ruckus

May 18, 2013

Thanks to my dear friends Becky and Isaac. This one was for you!

Today's run was awesome! The route is one that has achieved a cult status among the small handful of runners here at school (if such a thing exists). Can you have a cult following of 4 or 5?

I'm referring (of course) to the Star Run! This one is so special, I'm going to put the map in the middle of the post instead of at the bottom, where I normally put it.

As you can see, this route looks like a star (or a spur). This run has been in my pocket for over eight months, just like The Low Impact 5 Miler. It was a run that I mapped out, but never ran. I tried to get people to run it with me several times, but for one reason or another, it never happened. But today, we finally ran it! This run is designed to be a differentiated run, with something for everyone. At about the 3 mile point, we reach a traffic circle and people can choose to run as much or as little as they want.

I've actually mapped several possibilities for this one! I'm addicted.

Star 3-Do the beginning of Star 6 and take an autorickshaw home.

Star 6-To the roundabout and back. http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/195109620

Star 7-The first two spoke, with adjustments. http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/195110378

Star 8.5-Four spokes. http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/195110788

Star 9-All spokes, no roundabouts. http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/207598053

Star 10-All spokes, roundabouts and the extra bit to Rajpath. http://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/133177603

I was happy to have three adventurous colleagues join me for the Star Run, but it was Kendra's enthusiasm for the route that really made me feel good! Thanks Kendra. This year we've had a lot fewer runners due to injuries, air quality issues and the demanding pace of life at our school, so it meant a lot to have others show up for this run.

Nothing too crazy on the run. The first roundabout on spoke one has an old mosque in the middle of it, which is unusual for Delhi. Google Maps calls it the Sunhari Bagh Masjid. According to the one image I've found it was built in the 1700s, and it seems that Google Maps at least misspells the name, but there is a much more famous Sunehri Mosque in Old Delhi, so I think it's mislabeled too.

**UPDATE: It seems that the mosque is actually called Sunehri Bagh Road Masjid. I've found some voter logs for the people living there, but no real information.

In any case, it looks neat. There's also a mosque on the fourth spoke and the guards at the Taj Mahal (don't be fooled by the name!) Delhi Hotel were very friendly! Not a lot else interesting on this route, but it was a fun way to pack in 10 miles!

Thanks again, Becky and Isaac. If you want to be like Becky and Isaac, please follow the link and help out. Thanks a lot!

https://www.coloradogives.org/forellis

RUN STATS:

Distance - 10 miles

Time - 1:31:29

Soundtrack - Vampire Weekend and Daft Punk - Super secret copies of upcoming releases!

May 13, 2013

I took the weekend off from running and was rewarded with more donations! I know that's not how it's supposed to work but, Sharon, this run's for you. Thanks for your kindness.

Today's training run was a 5 Miler that I've been keeping in my back pocket for a while. I designed the run almost exactly one year ago; it was mapped on May 15, 2012 but I've never run it. At that point last year, I was experiencing the pains of training. My back was killing me. I thought maybe it was due to all of the street running I had been doing, so I made "The Low Impact 5 Miler." It was designed primarily around the the massive green lawns in Chanakyapuri, Shanti Path and the dirt paths of Nehru Park.

Chanakyapuri was designed as an add-on to New Delhi in the 1950s, after India won its independence from Britain. The area was set up as the Diplomatic area, a place to build all of the embassies that would soon be moving into the capital of the nascent nation, eager to develop diplomatic relations. The focal point of this new neighborhood would become the Shanti Path, or the Peace Road, with its sweeping, manicured, green lawns. It was eventually lined with trees and embassies. The streets surrounding the Shanti Path speak to us of the ideals of this new area of diplomacy. Panscheel Marg is the "Street of the Five Principles", celebrating a 5 nation treaty signed by PM Nehru. Satya Marg is the "Street of Truth," Niti Marg is the "Street of Politics," and Naya Marg is the "Street of Justice." Sader Patel, Jose Rizal, Jose Artigas, Alexander Dubceck, Kwame Nkrumah and Andre Malraux were all heroes and Chanakya himself was an ancient leader of India, a master of politics and diplomacy.

The run started and finished on Andre Malraux Marg, named for a French author, statesman and convicted tomb raider. This marg is a very standard part of almost all of my runs. The US embassy compound takes up two blocks, with the Swiss and French to the right. A right-hand turn in the shade of trees on the access road and Keir and I were running past Myanmar, Russia, the Netherlands and Canada. Not bad for a few minutes. From Canada, it's a straight shot across Shanti Path, dodging cars, auto-rickshaws and buses (not too many at 6am) and then a left-hand turn on the opposite access road. Now heading northeast, we passed Germany, Sudan and an abandoned(abandoned-looking?) Serbian embassy. Next is Pakistan with its towering blue domes and we take a right turn to head to Nehru park. The loop in Nehru Park is about 1.6 miles on a packed dirt track, then it's out and back to Peace Street. Another right and it's past the Commonwealth - Australia and the British High Commission. You see, they have High Commissions, we have embassies. Same, same, but different. The Norwegian Embassy is neatly tucked into the far corner of Shanti Path, then you cut across again and the northwest corner is bounded by the China. The US, Brits and Chinese all have huge plots of land. The next embassy comes after crossing Panscheel Marg, where the US embassy starts again. Then it's back to Andre Malraux to head back home.

I can't believe it took me a year to run this route. It's simple, interesting and largely devoid of traffic, direct sunlight or the other problematic features (read: dogs, monkeys, toxic fumes) of most Delhi street runs. It's definitely a keeper and will be a quick go-to for a 5 mile run.

Thanks again Sharon for the donation. If you can help a grieving family with a small gift, please do:

https://www.coloradogives.org/forellis

RUN STATS:

Distance - 5 miles (although Keir's GPS frequently puts us at less)

Time - 37:46

Temp at 6am - A reasonable 75 degrees F

Soundtrack - More repeats. I've got to do a better job of updating the iPod.

April 30, 2013

Today's run was inspired in part by yesterday's. Today I ran two roads that I've run past a million times, another that I wasn't sure if it was really there or not, and into one of those parks I mentioned. I was lucky enough to have company again, which always helps, especially when my company humors my crazy requests to go on scouting missions.

The old memorial-image by Deepak CC-BY-SA-2.0

The run today hinged on the National Police Memorial, a park I've gone past a lot. I convinced my running partners to join me on an exploration, so we hopped the fence and went inside. One of my them had heard that there was some type of memorial that had been taken down (it was, in 2007) or was controversial(it was, a waste of government money and an eyesore), so I looked it up when I wrote this post. Here is a site from the Indian government announcing a contest to design a new memorial. The entries were due in 2011. A winner was announced, by for now, the site sits abandoned. Here's a link to the plans by the winning firm. There are staircases that lead under the central pavilion, where the tower once sat, I suppose. We went down to explore and I was sufficiently creeped out, peeking around the dark, rubble filled area. But to my surprise, there were no vagrants, miscreants, hobos or even stray dogs. Just an overriding sense of decay. Here's to hoping that Delhi eventually gets it act together and invests appropriately in infrastructure.

RUN STATS:

Distance - 4 Miles

Time - 39:48

Soundtrack - Fade to Black, A Bluegrass Tribute to Metallica

April 28, 2013

Reasons to not get up early for this morning's run:

1.  6:00am on a Sunday morning.
2. No friends to run with.
3. Last night's surprise farewell party for our school's director.

I knew it was going to be a tough one. The motivation level was low for sure. I got home, ambitiously prepared my running clothes and set my alarm. During the first of my son's nightly wake-ups, I woke up and turned off my alarm. "Forget it," I said to myself. "Too many reasons to skip the run." Luckily, he woke up again, because at 4am, I turned the alarm back on because I knew that I'd be disappointed in myself if I didn't do today's run.

Reasons to get early for this morning's run

1. This run put me to my goal distance for April.
2. This was a new route with plenty of cool new things to see.
3. The weather wasn't terrible.

So, at 6am (give or take) I set out on a new 8 Miler. I usually try to plan my runs around a theme and this one was the "Round Buildings." The first three miles were travel miles, until the first round building presented itself. The Parliament of India was built in 1912 by English architectural golden boy, Edwin Lutyens. It opened in1927 while the Brits still controlled India. It was the site of the transfer of colonial power to Nehru in 1947 and is an important building in the history of the country.

 by <DEEPAK GUPTA>

 Lutyens designed and built most of New Delhi and his buildings are interesting combinations of local and traditional styles. 

The next stop was The Tuberculosis Association of India. Not a round building, but I'm in love with the font on the front of the building. One day I'll go and take a proper photo of it. Gorgeous!

The next round building was the Gole Dak Khanna, a post office built into a traffic circle near the Bangla Sahib Gurudwara and Sacred Heart Cathedral. It was built in 1934 by R.T. Russel, the same architect who finished Connaught Place. I poked my head into the Cathedral along the way; it seems so strange to see a Catholic Mass in India.

The final round building isn't technically round, but rather octagonal. The main building of Gole Market was also designed by Lutyens and was the principal market area that served his Delhi. It fills a traffic roundabout and has seen better days. It's a shame, because the building is cool and could easily be redone into some kind of heritage shopping center, art galleries, etc. It was supposed to be redone in 2009 as part of the build-up to the Commonwealth Games, but for now, it stands in ruins.

Finally, it was more religion as I ran along Madir Marg(Temple Street). Hindu and Buddhist temples line the street. A quick diversion through the Talkatora Stadium Park had me catching glimpses of the two round stadiums built for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

RUN STATS:

Distance - 8.5 Miles

Time - 1:05:03

Soundtrack - Taj Mahal, Best of Taj Mahal and Hanapepe Dream