The Waugh Cloverleaf

I am tagging the Waugh Cloverleaf as both one of the Summits of Houston since it is a good little spot where you can add some hills into your training and as part of my Run This Town section, because I think it is an often overlooked little treasure in Houston running.

The Waugh Cloverleaf is an almost 1 mile loop with 2 nice little ascents and descents.  There are sections of sidewalk and pretty well worn path that go all the way around the inside of the loop.  The distance coupled with the fact that you never cross a road or have to deal with bikes and the fact that you are consistently either going uphill or downhill makes it an awesome tool to have in your running route selection/training arsenal.  I find it great for speed work (mile repeats on the cloverleaf are brutal/awesome), tempo runs, and for adding some bonus slightly more difficult miles into the middle of a long run if I am going to be passing by.  Living in a big flat city, there really aren't any places where you can have a long hilly run, but the cloverleaf allows you to run for as many miles as you want while constantly going up and down.  None of the climbs are significant and people from any place with real hills would laugh at it, but I guarantee if you aren't used to running hills and run a few laps of the cloverleaf you will feel it!

Stats:
Elevation:  15-20 feet of gain or loss on each hill (but there are 2 ups and 2 downs every mile).
Distance: Just under 1 mile (my GPS usually logs it at .97 miles)
Average Grade: 1.5% (a little steeper going around the loops, but it levels out in between the loops)

Location:
At the intersection of Memorial Drive and Waugh Dr (Heights Blvd turns into Waugh).  If you are driving there it is probably best to park at Spotts Park on Willia St.

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Surfside Bridge

 

I am dedicating the first of my Summits of Houston posts to the Surfside Bridge.  The surfside bridge is probably my favorite "hill" in the Houston area.  It is one of the longest and most sustained climbs you can get (which isn't saying much) and it has some pretty great views of the Gulf of Mexico from the top.  The bridge has a nice shoulder for almost the entire way, so you don't feel to cramped with the cars. It only takes about an hour to get there from downtown, which really isn't that bad.  There is a nice gas station at the bottom of the bridge that has restrooms and a good selection of options for refueling and rehydrating.  And, the best part is....when you are done you can walk over to Surfside beach and go for a dip in the ocean!

Stats:
Elevation: around 75 feet of gain and loss
Distance: about .75 miles to go from one side to the other
Average grade: around 3.5% (no too steep, but enough that you feel it)

This means that 1 lap of the bridge (over and back) nets you about 150 feet of climb (and 150 feet of descent).  So in 7 laps you can pick up 10.5 miles and around 1000 feet of vertical.

Location:
On Hwy 332 in between Freeport and Surfside Beach (about 1 hour south of Houston off of Hwy 288). 

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Summits of Houston

Like the title of the blog says, "The hills are here, we just have to use a little creativity to see them."  Believe it or not, there are places in and around Houston where creative and eager runners can find a little vertical.  So, I am dedicating this section of the blog to places around town (and relatively nearby) where you can put some elevation into your run.

Look for posts tagged with "Summits of Houston" by clicking on the Summits of Houston link at the top of the page...... I will be gradually updating this section as I can.