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Stories from the run commute: Running the North Saskatchewan River

This summer, we’re talking to Canadian runners who run commute to work or school. This week, Thomas Scully tells us about running to the University of Edmonton multiple times a week. 

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Thomas Scully heads out his door and cruises along residential Edmonton streets for a kilometre before entering into the network of river valley trails that run along the North Saskatchewan River. In the second kilometre of his run,  he hits Mill Creek ravine, a green area the leads him towards cycle paths. Running along the paths, he looks at the view: the river is running below him and off in the distance is a view of downtown Edmonton. He continues on until he reaches the University of Edmonton campus on the south bank of the river.

Oftentimes, the route is a total of 5.7K. But with all of the options offered by the river valley trail system, he can extend that when he wants to. This is the route that he takes to and from the campus multiple times a week. Sometimes, it serves as a warm up for a workout (he trains for marathons) and other times it’s an easy run. “If I want to make my run longer I can cross the river on dedicated pedestrian and cycling paths and make my run over 30K without having to run down roads,” says Scully.

Scully is in his fourth year of a five-year PhD in organic chemistry. He started running a few years ago but started the run commute just last year. “I was looking for a way to add more miles to my training week without infringing on my already busy work schedule,” he says. He leaves his house every morning at 5:30 a.m. “This allows me to get into the gym and do my weight lifting workout after my run and then get into the shower. I shower at the university gym, which is only a three minute walk to my office,” he says.

Panorama of Edmonton

Like most, he runs with a backpack but compared to many other run commuters, it’s a little more hefty than usual. He says it’s around 15 to 20 pounds on his morning run. He fills it with a thermos of coffee, containers with his lunch and dinner in them, a post workout shake, his laptop, paperwork and a change of clothes. “It is heavier and larger than typical run commuter bags but I find the comfort, and the ability to bring extra clothes in case of weather changes is more than worth it,” he says adding that it’s convenient for him to have a bigger bag in the event that he goes somewhere after work and needs to lug bulky winter clothing.

Every runner has a reward for continuing and staying dedicated to the sport. Run commuters in general will say that it’s a time saver– a way to increase the mileage during a time when they would already be busy. For Scully, running started as a way to better his health and increase his fitness. “I started from a place of very low fitness and I was carrying around a lot of extra weight,” he says adding that it took until the fall of 2013 before he could run a two-kilometre route at eight minutes per kilometre without stopping.

That route which was once so difficult is the middle two kilometres along the top of the river valley on his run commute route. Now, it’s hardly a distance to sweat. Back then, it was a major goal.

“On days I’m feeling down I can turn up the speed on this section and then look back at my older times,” he says. “It always makes me feel a little better.”

 

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