I am so excited to share our new Run 52 t-shirt design, created by the insanely talented Melissa Back!

Route #8: Columbia Tusculum

Admittedly we could run to Columbia Tusculum since it’s less than a half mile from our home. However, to maximize the time and miles we spend in the neighborhood, we will start this route by driving the short distance to Alms Park and parking on the circle drive. We’ll run through the hilly, windy roads and then down Stanley towards the dense, hillside residential neighborhood known for its Victorian “Painted Ladies.”

We’ll cut across Columbia Parkway to check out the neighborhood’s floodplain Historic District which includes Hamilton County’s oldest continuously occupied home (the Morris House at 3644 Eastern Avenue) as well as the Carnegie Center, which is a former Carnegie Library turned into an events venue and community space.

Once we have explored the low-lying Historic District, we’ll head back across Columbia Parkway towards Delta and then run up and down Golden Avenue, stopping to enjoy the view of the river from Anderson Park.

Simply due to its proximity to our home, we’ve spent quite a bit of time in Columbia Tusculum. We’ve had more than our share of mediocre meals at Allyn’s and three or four fabulous ones at Green Dog Café. I drive through this neighborhood every single day on my way to and from work and I feel like I know it pretty well: it has a yoga studio, a fitness center, a community garden, a Starbucks, and a place to use my Speedway Gas Rewards card. What more could you ask for?

And yet, I feel like I know Columbia Tusculum only by car: just driving through it on my way to somewhere else, or parking and heading directly into a restaurant. This will be my first experience with Columbia Tusculum on foot and I know this run will be a good indicator of the neighborhood’s livability.

See the full map with mile markers at my USA Track and Field Saved Route.


-Kayla

College Hill

26 degrees, Sunny. College Hill is not North College Hill. College Hill was not the subject of the reality show College Hill. And, although it was named after two of them, College Hill does not have a college. However, true to its name, College Hill is at the top of a giant hill. That didn’t surprise me. However, about thirty seconds into our run, Kayla was threatening to turn back. This was the longest hill we had faced so far.

About ¾ of the way up the hill we turned into the Twin Towers senior living community. I have to admit, I was hesitant to do too much uninvited exploring after our misadventure at the Summit mental health facility.

Thankfully, our visit to the Twin Towers was uneventful. Beyond the main building, we arrived at a condo development that featured single story ranches that reminded us of some of the communities we have seen in Naples. Of course, here it was about 50 degrees colder.

Leaving the Twin Towers, we powered our way to the intersection of Hamilton and Belmont. This is where we found Grace Episcopal Church with its giant red door.

Kayla suggested a quick detour down Pasadena, where she stopped in front of a forgettable two story home. Just when I suspected she was trying to take a break, Kayla explained this was home to the College Hill Post Office in the late 1880's. The building’s anonymity led me to wonder if this week’s news might lead to a similar fate for all post offices. I hope not.

Kayla discovered that the College Hill Rec Center is a runner friendly pit stop. On her way out she struck this lovely pose.

Much of College Hill is residential, so rather than trying to ineptly describe the homes with my limited architectural vocabulary (one-story, two-story), I've posted a bunch of pictures. So put on your favorite home song--option #1 or option #2--and check these out.

Kayla pointed out that number 3 is a funeral home, but I say it still counts. We emerged on Hamilton Ave. in College Hill’s business district. The words on the base of this sign read “neighborly” and “diverse.” After our run, I couldn’t disagree with either description.

The business district features an ArtWorks mural. I was puzzled by this one. It’s entitled “A Perfect Day in College Hill” and features random objects.

We continued along the business district until we were retracing our steps down the hill. Now, the uphill battle that we had fought earlier was a relaxing downhill leading us back to the car. Kayla even managed to leave me in the dust.

Route #7: College Hill

We’ll start this Saturday's run at Bethlehem Temple Learning Center on the corner of Hamilton Avenue and Rockford Place. We’ll run up Hamilton and pass LaBoiteaux Woods on the left (there is going to be an Underground Railroad trail tour at LaBoiteaux on Sunday and I would love to go if I can get my chores done!).

From there we’ll veer off onto Ridge Drive to look at the Twin Towers Retirement Community, which was built in 1908 as the Methodist Home for the Aged.

On Belmont, we need to take a quick detour on Pasadena on our right to check out the Old College Hill Post Office, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. Despite extensive research (20 minutes on Google) I could not determine why this structure is on the National Register. I did see that it was sold to a private owner in July of last year for the whooping sum of $4000.

Once we’re back on Belmont we’ll pass Aiken College and Career High School and then the College Hill Town Hall, which is a Samuel Hannford building and also listed on the National Register.

Belmont is also the location of Laurel Court, a Gilded Age mansion, built by Peter G. Thompson in 1907. Thompson was the founder of Champion Paper Company, of Hamilton, Ohio. The Champion Paper Company was a looming figure from my childhood—an immense factory on the river. The layoffs that hit the company in the 1990s marked my first personal awareness of a changing economy. Every once in a while I’ll have a dream of being lost in an industrial maze and I know that the images my unconscious draws from have their roots in the Champion Factory on North B Street.

(Hamilton's Champion Paper Factory)

On our tour, we’ll also spend lots of time on Hamilton Avenue and North Bend, which are the neighborhood’s main thoroughfares. Not having spent much time in College Hill, this will be a good chance to see what businesses and restaurants might draw us back.

For a clickable map with mile markers, visit my saved route on USA Track and Field.


-Kayla

Clifton

February 2, 2013. 30 degrees, light snow falling, three inches on the ground.

Everything about our Clifton run today was beautiful: the homes, the trees, the shops, the snow. We started out on the edge of Burnet Woods, which was blocked with barricades—perhaps in an attempt to deter the sled riders?

First, we ran through the residential blocks behind the business district: big, unique homes on perfect-sized lots.

We ran up Middleton, which is a wide thoroughfare with little traffic. The sidewalks were a bit treacherous (and I was feeling a bit hesitant after last week’s fall) so we ran in the street.

Middleton took us to Lafayette, and from there we veered off onto North Cliff. We stopped at the Probasco mansion, where I felt the pangs of my distant relative’s lost fortune:

Back on Lafayette, we took a detour onto Windings, which is a new subdivision of cookie-cutter duplexes leading to a hundred-year old castle that has been converted into condominiums. The juxtaposition of old and new is striking and we would have taken a photo if not for the “No Trespassing, Residents Only” signs. We didn’t want to press our luck.

Lafayette leads to Mt. Storm park, which has a phenomenal view of the Mill Creek Valley and a gazebo called “The Temple of Love.” Unfortunately, this was as close as we could get:

Lafayette winds down to Ludlow on a narrow road through the woods. The lack of sidewalks made me feel a bit uncomfortable and I was unnerved to learn that Donnie includes this stretch on his regular runs through Clifton. Too dangerous!

Next, we had the daunting task of running up Ludlow. Look, we live in Mt. Lookout—hills on a run are unavoidable. But this. Was like. None other.

I briefly considered admitting defeat and WALKING to the top, but the gorgeous homes offered a bit of a distraction from the pain:

And we stopped for just a moment to admire the cemetery under fresh snow:

And for me to check my email (and catch my breath):

I pulled it together and made it up the hill to the business district. Obligatory photo ops in front of a few old favorites:

For the record, I've never been to J. Gumbo's, I was trying to get a shot of Skyline.

On Clifton Avenue, we ran into Suzy, Luna, and Bruno.

Suzy had originally planned to run the Clifton route with us but said that her shins hurt from last night’s dinner/dance party.

(Recapping said dance party.)

After chatting with Suzy, we ran up to the Clifton Cultural Arts Center and the Fairview German Language School. I imagine someday I might be camping out overnight to make sure little Cash Leroy Warner gets a spot here. Here is some foreshadowing:

Next we ran by the Unitarian Universalist church that Donnie and I attended for five weeks last winter. The space is breathtaking and we might have continued to go if not for the flu-season hand-holding.

I didn’t realize it until today, but the architecture of the Unitarian church echoes the Church of the Annunciation just around the corner:

And close by is the Islamic mosque:

Clifton has been my favorite run to date. When we first moved to Cincinnati in 2007 we had considered renting the second floor of this little house off Ludlow:

Now I know that if we ever do move to Clifton (it’s on the short list) the running routes are as picturesque as the housing options.

Before I sign off, I want to point out that turquoise running top I’m wearing in these photos is brand new and was a birthday gift from Don and Janet!

Yes, the box that it came in did say very clearly, “Do not open until birthday.” And no, I haven’t had my birthday yet. When Janet texted Donnie to ask if I had opened it anyway, Donnie replied, “Do you know Kay Kay?”

-Kay Kay

Route #6: Clifton

View Run 52: Clifton in a larger map

Kayla and I have spent a lot of time in Clifton. Clifton is where Kayla, as a highschooler, came to see the Rocky Horror picture show on the weekends. Clifton is where I came as a highschooler to see if I wanted to go to UC (little did I know it was only a matter of time). And, now that we’ve been here a few years, Clifton is where we go to see movies, eat Indian food, and go for a run.

So what’s left to see in a neighborhood that we know so well? Well, we’re going to start from Burnet Woods, which is an expansive park that borders the University of Cincinnati. Truthfully, we don’t come to Burnet Woods often enough. Considering its size and beauty, it will make for a great starting/finishing line.

From Burnet Woods we’ll head down Clifton and turn onto Terrace. This will be some familiar territory: Clifton is often on our short list of places to move.

We’ll cross Ludlow and head up Middleton Ave the gateway to Clifton’s mansion district. Somewhere along Middleton--I can’t remember where--we will see my favorite home in the city, a beige Mid Century Modern.

The highlight of our run will be Oakwood. Oakwood is the Probasco family mansion. Who are the Probasco’s you ask? Well, Henry Probasco was Kayla’s distant relative, who was a successful inventor (he also donated the fountain in Fountain Square to honor of his friend Tyler Davidson). After asking to inspect the deed, we will linger in front of Oakwood for a while before going on our way.

Lafayette will lead us into Mt. Storm Park which is another awesome Cincinnati park.

An interesting stop enroute to the park will be the condo complex at the end of Windings Lane. Neff’s Castle has been everything from a Pork Baron’s home to a parochial school to a SWAT team training ground.

We’ll eventually come out onto Ludlow and run by some of our favorite places: (1) Esquire Theater, (2) Graeter’s, and (3) Ambar. Ludlow has some real spirit, which makes it a great street to run down at any time of the day. We will also pass the sight for the new Gaslight Grocery, which is going to replace the longstanding, but recently defunct, IGA.

Finally, I’ve included a loop that includes: Clifton Cultural Arts Center, Islamic Association of Cincinnati, Fairview German Language School, and St. John’s Unitarian Church. From there we will climb Clifton (because every Clifton run must end up a massive hill) and return to Burnet Woods.

Carthage

January 26, 2013 25 degrees. Cloudy. When we arrived we climbed out of the car and got warmed up (a tough task on this day) in front of Su Casa, which is in an old school building just off Carthage’s main business strip. We started south on Fairpark, heading through the residential area which looks similar to other northern-Cincinnati neighborhoods. There is a clear architectural mish-mash (my technical term) with really old brick two-stories next to more modern models (mine, too). Kayla pointed out this row of Potter Hill homes.

We made our way east back to Vine Street, where we emerged in the business district. Here Carthage's Latin American influence emanates throughout the district. El Valle Verde, a restaurant/grocery store, takes up about a half block. In the next block is a coin laundry with two suns on its sign: they were good stand-ins for the one that was missing on this gray day.

Down the street from El Valle Verde was this doctor's office, which is unlike any building I have seen in Cincinnati. On first impression, Kayla thought it was the library.

Our last stop before leaving the business district was Carthage's ArtWorks mural. This mural is entitled “A Postcard From Home.” At the top is a bilingual banner which reads “welcome to all”/“bienvendios a todos.” Contributing to the spirit of welcoming was a teenager who actually said hello to us as we ran by.  In such close proximity to the mural it seemed significant.

I should also add that Carthage is the first neighborhood where we spotted another runner. This guy was a boxer. He donned a cut-off sweatshirt and wore his hood up as he threw left and right jabs. We didn't stop and ask for a picture. Just beyond the business district, the layout transformed from quaint storefronts and unique architecture into car lots with giant Native Americans (there’s only one of these).

That is Chief "Pontiac." Not to be confused with Chief Pontiac.

Apparently the dealership's jingle was, “Where Paddock meets Vine at the Big Indian Sign...” History says the Chief’s arm once moved up and down and was decked with neon lights. Is the Chief just harmless kitsch, representing a different era, or is he a demeaning caricature? Up the street from the caricature, we arrived at the Seymour Trailhead.

This was a great discovery, as I am always on the lookout for new trails. The stretch of trail we ran was quite short, yet it was also very scenic and totally flat.

The trail would be a great place for some short, fast workouts. I ran along it imaging it being someday connected to Northside's greenway trail. Such an extension would result in just over 3 miles of trail. Then--just when I thought I was on to something--I came across this organization that is working for a 28 mile trail along the Mill Creek. Even better.

At the end of our run, I wanted to stop at the beer depot and get a picture of this "ice cold beer" sign. In hindsight, this was a terrible decision.

As I lined up the shot, I heard what I thought was a little kid screaming at the top of his lungs. None of my business, I thought. When I came to the alley next to the beer depot, I found the screamer--it was Kayla, and she was on her back holding her ankle. She had slipped on the ice (and, mistaking her for a little kid, I had totally ignored her). Fortunately, we got her to the car which was only a few blocks away. She spent the rest of the day watching Tia and Tamera. As of this writing, our challenge is not in jeopardy: consistent application of reality television has reduced most of the swelling.

Unfortunately, grand, all-encompassing reflections on Carthage were limited by the urgency of the slip and fall. However, a trip back to El Valle Verde is definitely in order, and hopefully someday Carthage can be a nice stop along a fantastic trail.