The Olentangy Trail has seen quite a bit of Joshua and me of late in this perfect weather. Though, Joshua sees more of the Trail on his bike than I do running on foot.
Running parallel to SR315, the Olentangy Trail is just over 13 miles from its north end just outside the 270 circle in Worthington to its south end just past 670 near the Arena District where it connects to the Scioto Trail. It passes several school buildings in Worthington, Clintonville, and Upper Arlington as well as OSU. There's a path around Antrim Lake and through the Park of Roses. Unfortunately, the Trail will sometimes put you on a sidewalk in a neighborhood or very close to a busy traffic artery, but overall, it is a safe, well maintained, paved path for walkers, runners, and cyclists.
When I have to run after work, I usually keep them short ~ a few miles of hills at a metropark or speed internals on the treadmill. But, the Trail is great for long runs. It is relatively flat with a few inclines here and there, it curves along the Olentangy River so one is not resigned to a straight line, and the recently repainted, highly visible mile markers make it easy to travel just about any distance with certainty. Without a smart phone or an MP3 player, I don't listen to anything when I run, which allows me to take in more of what I see. I have seen herons and cranes in the river, snakes on the path, and deer who seem to want to race. Where the Trail passes the high school, I've seen baseball games on the lower diamond and heard lacrosse announcements from the main field. The Trail passes several smaller neighborhood parks where kids climb on the equipment while teens play frisbee and soccer and the adults chat on park benches.
Yet, a runner needs to be cautious on the Trail. It seems as if, just like on the road, people are not always the most courteous. Couples and small groups think nothing of hogging the entire width of the trail, making it difficult to pass. Dog walkers do not always clean up after their pets. Cyclists like to scare the wits out of you by sneaking up to pass without an audible signal in advance. The rules of the Trail are essentially the same and the rules of the road ~ slower traffic keep to the right, look before passing, and use appropriate signals. Why is this so difficult?
Today's 8 miles was a down-and-back-again between Olentangy Park and Henderson Rd. Pacing slower than I would for a shorter run, I was on the Trail for quite a while ~ and it was fairly uneventful. Unless you consider the narrowly avoided collision as one cyclist passed me while there were 2 others oncoming from the opposite direction. Or the lady getting sick in the tall grass at the edge of one of the clearings off the Trail. Or the cyclist that slowed to match my pitiful-by-comparison 11 minute mile pace to compliment one of the tattoos on my back. Nothing out of the ordinary. Joshua very recently left his mark on the Trail ~ literally, a bloody mark as he went down on his bike 10 miles from the end of his ride. Yes, the Trail sees quite a bit of Joshua and me.
