Some of my most enjoyable runs have come with a hotel key card in my pocket. Travel is exploration and there’s no adventure quite like lacing ‘em up and heading out of the lobby with only a vague idea of where you’re going and how to get back. One very early morning on a business trip in Kansas City, I did a four-miler in Shawnee Mission Park that saw me outnumbered 33-1 by white-tailed deer. And a nine-miler in San Francisco brought me to the foot of the bigger-than-I’d-ever-dreamed Golden Gate Bridge before I had to turn for home away from home. Hotel treadmills are fine, I’ve done my share of miles on them. But every now and then, wave goodbye to the bellman and get out there. Sure, you might need an extra shower. But they’ll bring more towels.
