Question for Dallas Area Runners

White Rock Lake is the mecca for runners. It's a flat loop around the lake of 9-10 miles. It's mostly concrete and asphalt. There is also a concrete sidewalk that leads to the lake from a park a 15 minute drive from the Cooper Clinic is. It's 7 miles from the park to the lake, with mile markers; there is some room to run on the grass next to the path.

Check

www.cccd.org

for the local running club. They put on a race once a month of varying distances, as does the Plano Pacers club.

We used to live in a 2 bedroom apt that was about 15 minutes from the Cooper Clinic and paid about 700/mo. (that was two years ago). This was one of the cheaper places in a not so cheap North Dallas neighborhood.

Mark

What is your age and ability? Although Dallas has plenty to offer, it is somewhat disappointing for a city it's size. It is not runner friendly as far as places to run are concerned. The air quality in the summer is terrible and like the previous poster said, everything is concrete. I lived there for 8 years and had a hard time finding asphalt, let alone dirt trails. White Rock Lake is a pretty place, just too much concrete. The summer (which starts in April/May and lasts til October are killers as well.

Also check out the Plano (about 15 miles north of Dallas) Pacers website

http://www.planopacers.org/

My recommendation to you is "Don't Go". I don't mean to be captain bringdown, but I lived in Plano for a summer and the running stank. The whole area is a concrete wonderland....cars everywhere. I couldn't find a decent place to run from the door of my 2 bedroom apt ($650/mo). The whole North Dallas area is full of the pseudo-rich. It had a pretentious air about it which rubbed me the wrong way.

If you DO go, these are your options....

White Rock Lake is good for a 9-10 miler, but is mostly concrete path. Though you can run on grass or dirt just alongside in places.

Plano has a pretty good linear parks system with miles of paved trails. Hope you like out and back courses.

If you can find a running club that would probably make things a lot better.

Try to run in the mornings when the temperature is reasonable (80s).

Good luck.

Thanks for the advice, even if it does not sound so optimistic. I live in Atlanta now and the heat is no problem, but I am used to trails and variety and it does not sound like Dallas has too much of either of these. Any word on Austin? I'm running the marathon there next month, but also considering an internship there.

i lived in dallas for 3 months on a temporary work transplant, and after searching high and low for places to run i ended up at white rock lake every day. as has been stated...lots of concrete, but scenic, and an easy way to run 10 everyday.

JBH19 wrote:

Thanks for the advice, even if it does not sound so optimistic. I live in Atlanta now and the heat is no problem, but I am used to trails and variety and it does not sound like Dallas has too much of either of these. Any word on Austin? I'm running the marathon there next month, but also considering an internship there.

If you head out to Grapevine (about 20 minutes away), you can run at Rock Ledge Park. There are some decent trails there. I believe it's about a 15 to 16-mile roundtrip. I understand it can be a little busy on the weekends with the mountain bikers.

Concrete is the biggest issue, but I have 11 miles of bike trails in my neighborhood, and it's nice to be able to run on them 24/7 without any problems.

Austin has the townlake trail, which is up to (I think) 14 miles of mostly dirt/gravel trails, with some sidewalk stretches, along with several other parks that have long trails, including the greenbelt (which can be fairly rocky in parts, smooth trails in others), and other parks. Several training groups exist, you can check out more about austin, or ask questions on the forum, at www.runtex.com

I lived in Dallas for 7 years, and yes it is pretty much all concrete (I don't even think they know what asphalt is, let alone dirt). There are lots of parks, but all concrete trails with lots of weekend bikers and rollerbladers. Since you are from Atlanta, then yes you are already used to the heat. However, being one of the top 3 windiest major cities in the U.S., the wind is a constant 20-25 mph most every day, it hardly ever lets up and it seems you are always running into it. A plus for Dallas is there are a lot of opportunities to race, good food and lots of entertainment.

If you are making your choice based on running, then I would pick Austin.......hands down! (LARunner, where are you?). The trails and competitive training groups as well as scenery makes Austin one of the top running and training environments in the South.

Norbuck Park by White Rock North side has some okay trails and some grass. Stop by Run-On on Mockingbird and talk to Bob Wallace for groups and other places. White Rock is the mecca but don't hesitate to go off into the neighborhoods that surround the park.

I've spent a week in Austin before too. The running there is much better than Dallas. If all else is equal, try to get the internship in Austin.

Mentioned above, Town Lake Trail goes up and down both sides of the Colorado(?) River through the middle of town. It is crushed stone the whole way which was great. Very scenic too.