I gotta admit, I was a little nervous heading into my 16-mile training run on Sept. 8.
First, it was my longest run ever, and second, I was running with the San Francisco team from the National AIDS Marathon Training Program ( NAMTP ) , as opposed to the regular Chicago crew I run with. I feared the incredible hills of San Francisco streets and, dare I mention, Crooked Street. Plus, after running, I was gonna see all my friends from Tristar Productions at their SF Collectors Show—and they all knew I was running in the morning and would be asking how it went.
We started at Golden Gate Park, and since I'm not too familiar with many San Fran landmarks, I don't know the exact route, though we certainly ran to San Francisco State University and around Lake Merced.
In San Francisco, there were countless turns and streetlights; to say I was lost about 10 minutes in would be an under-statement. Heck, I really don't know how they remember exactly where they're going. And the SF route, unlike the Chicago path, doesn't feature countless perfectly-sculpted bodies running in the opposite direction, which always is easy on the eyes.
I'm heading into the homestretch for the 2007 Florence Marathon on Nov. 25—and I couldn't be more excited!
Would you please consider sponsoring your favorite writing runner and help the AIDS Foundation of Chicago in the process? Please go to my Web site ( www.firstgiving.com/rossruns ) while I run to Florence, Italy. Thanks, Ross.