Two Feet in the Graveyard

Graveyard, originally uploaded by timmredpath.

I was talking to my friend the other day and she randomly asked me where I was. I told her that I was at the cemetery. It's not really as weird as it sounds even though I was not there to visit a particular person.

You see, I visit the local cemetery at least three times a week. I go there to run/walk. Again, it's not as weird as it seems; at least not around here. This was not my 'regular' thing, but here's the story:

A few years ago, I was training to run a half marathon. I was training w/a group and it was at the beginning of Winter. So we mainly ran on the treadmill at the local YMCA. However, if you are training for a marathon, at some point you have to (or you should) get out and run on some race-like surface. The ladies I was training w/knew the area quite well. They ruled out the county fairgrounds (which I still have yet to visit) and agreed on the cemetery. Of course, I got the time wrong for the first session and by the time I found the place, they were finishing up, so I had to (well, I guess I could have bailed) run in the cemetery alone ... ooooooh.

That's the story, so now I go there frequently. There are lots of positives to going to the graveyard to run/walk:

1. It's quiet ands serene
2. Usually, no pets allowed
3. Usually a smooth surface
4. Very few obstacles in the way
5. Oh, it's free

There are however, some disadvantages to using this particular venue:

1. Some time drivers tend to drive fast and they don't really expect to see pedestrians
2. You need to know the cemetery hours (I was almost locked in a cemetery once a while back when a friend and I went running there; I guess I am not really new to using the cemetary as a track, huh?)
3. You have to watch out for old creepy guys (and old creepy gals for that matter)

So, that's my no cost recommendation for today! Get to running!