Hidden Temple in the City

 

Last Thursday I was riding my bike home from work and my ART appointment when I looked over the side of a bridge and saw what looked like a lovely park. 

When I got home I looked on Google maps and realized I was riding right over the Ping Tom Memorial Park.  I’d recently read about it in the Chicago Tribune but I had no idea where it was.  Until now. 

Some quick calculations and I realized I could do an easy 5 mile run there and back from my apartment.  So, on Friday morning I headed out my front door with Ping Tom Park as my goal.

After several days of temperatures in the 90s the cooler morning air felt wonderful.  Running came easy even though I hadn’t been out on my feet like that in over a week. 

Sure, I had to stop at some intersections and sure my Garmin wouldn’t find a signal for what felt like forever, but I had a goal and I was running and I loved it.

The park is set behind a housing complex in a rather industrial area of the city.  Unfortunately when I was running they were picking up trash from the apartment buildings to every so often you’d get a whiff of something unpleasant.  But the park was filled with people sitting in the sun, doing Tai Chi in the shade, or just walking along the paths.

I didn’t have a much time as I wanted to explore so I’ll definitely be back.  It was an easy run from my apartment (although not the most scenic) and the park has a drinking fountain for that mid-run refreshment. 

And the other best part?  My hip felt perfectly fine afterward.  Maybe all this PT and ART is finally doing something.