From Fog Town to Phoenix: the Land of Perpetual Sunshine

Since moving back to St. John’s last May after 8 years of living and training in Burnaby, BC, I have immensely enjoyed becoming reacquainted with all of the beautiful running trails as well as a more laidback feel of a smaller city. 

St. John's is ideal for training during the Fall months because this is the time when I do most of my longer, toughen-me-up training sessions: long runs (20km +), long(er) tempo runs and interval workouts off the track. The rugged, hilly terrain and upredictable weather patterns of St. John's are great to up the mental toughness component of these workouts during this time of year!

I would argue that St. John’s is underappreciated for how great our running trails are for such as small city. Many of the rivers, ponds and lakes throughout the city are connected by a network of gravel trails that are ideal for workouts. Although our current track facilities are not ideal, I’m excited about what this rapidly growing city will have to offer runners as I have heard about future plans for state of the art track and field facilities to be built in the coming years.

On the other hand, as track season approaches and Winter takes hold, it's time to sublet the apartment and get outta dodge. Consistency and quality is key during this time of year, which has brought me down to Phoenix, the polar opposite of St. John's: barely a hill to be found with winds that almost never exceed 20km/h and * if * there are clouds they most likely contain dust, not moisture. I've realized that I'm not a huge fan of living in the desert, but these conditions are ideal for track work. The first few days down here kinda make me feel like Rango fresh outta the aquarium and I also suddenly develop a strange propensity for Country Music.

Anyway, I'm not complaining. I know that it is a huge privilege to be down here training with the likes of Lisa Aguilera, Ashley Hinther, Leanna MacLean, Celia Peters and Lemlem Ogbassilassie, among other elites who come and go.

But, I'll sure be happy to get back home to St. John's when all is said and done!