Always Running Against the Wind

Navigational Art and Directions by Colleen Yorke, © 2015.

Running is better than therapy. The DTLA Running Group has changed my life in profound ways. The group is made up of diverse, young professionals, who are interested in music, law, science, art, and other cultures. Some runners visit from abroad and stay with us for a brief while, tracking their marks through Los Angeles' road maze. Others have set their foot prints onto other continents and are the richer for it. Languages such as Farsi, French and Spanish are spoken, and on a weekly basis runners reload on beer and carbs, re-connecting with other pacers after a city night run. Thanks to the group I have grown as a runner, I have made great friends, and after years of uneasy relation, I finally considered Los Angeles a "home". When I run, I clear my heart and my soul. I empty out my lungs and I give my legs all I have got. And at the end of a run, I am a step closer to my new horizons. Running is better than therapy. To change things around, in the end, it is entirely up to you, and how far you are willing to run to meet your goal.

Downtown Los Angeles Running

Navigational Artwork and Directions by Colleen Yorke, © 2015.

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A marathon takes about 40,000 steps to complete, and every step puts up to four times our body weight on each foot. As of today I have been running a little over 1,500 miles, the equivalent of 58 marathon races, about 2 million steps, inflicting a total of 1.38 trillion pounds of pressure on my feet, and knees. How could my body possibly take all of that pounding? And wouldn't it be smart to stop? Surely, there are sports gentler to the bones than running...!

Then I find myself on the road again, taking in the view, breathing in the life and smells of a city I love. I run the streets of Los Angeles, get lost, and find myself again. Running inspired me to track my routes and to create navigational artwork for other runners sharing the road with me. I have created and collected over 55 different runs through the heart of Los Angeles, and here I would like to share them with you, one by one. 

Run along side with me, and stay tuned!