This short article will help you in you’re in a slump, need a new trail, or are somewhere new and just need to get out and about.
There’s been a lot of great articles written about this, although I think that trails represent a bit different situation than just regular road runners.
We found several good articles, but we liked a lot of what this one had to say:
Local trail runners obviously know the trails in the area. They’ll know the steep ones, the flat ones, the rocky and the rutted, as well as what trails are ideal in different weather and different times of year. To find local trail runners, ask around. You might be surprised to find your neighbor, your son’s teacher or your friend’s friend is a trail runner.
So true! talking to runners you see, asking around about who runs and where, can really pay off! Whether it’s people in a store, at work, or anywhere else, you’d be surprised what you can find out by simply asking – I know I’ve been happy several times when I started chatting with a stranger and ended up finding out about a cool run in the area.
Trail running clubs, and even road running clubs, usually have weekly group runs on trails. Most are friendly, casual, and made for all speeds and levels of runners, where no one will be left behind or lost. (Some clubs have speed-oriented runs, in which case the group run will be labeled as such.) Running specialty stores also host runs, often on trails, and many areas have trail running “meet-ups.” Search online for “group trail run” and the name of the town or region and you should find some options.
This. Getting in touch with a local store or club is a great way to find groups and run. This is a go to if you are new or visiting and want to find out where a trail head is.
We’ve done this in places like Breckenridge, where we walked into a sports store and just started talking to the guy behind the counter. 5 minutes later we had a great 20 mile trail run that we never would have known about otherwise.
It may be obvious to do a web search for nearby trail runs. But consider also searching for hiking and mountain biking trails in the area. Sometimes there’s more information on hiking and mountain biking trails than for trail running, and those trails may very well be prime for running.
Using hiking trail website and books was actually how we got started finding trails to run on – I highly recommend this as well although there are more running-centric websites and guides out there these days.
Finally, a quick top 5 from the same article above is a good reminder on your best bets for finding a good trail to run:
1. Keep your eyes peeled
2. Team up
3. Join a group run
4. Ask around
5. Search online How to Find a Good Running Trail
What are your favorite options for finding new places to run?
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