John C. Evanoff was born in Reno in 1947. He attended and graduated Reno High School, the University of Nevada and later, Truckee Meadows Community College. He has won awards for his writing and has written for international, national and local publications. John published a book of poems entitled HeartJazz and is working on a book of short stories, a novel/screenplay and another book of poems. He and his wife Sharon of 23 years are avid outdoor adventurers, golfers, photographers and explorers of Nevada/California history and geography. He has been a member of many charitable organizations and several associations in the region. He writes these columns about the area he's known and loved so that you can get a better appreciation of the land, its history and its people. If you'd like to contact John with questions or comments, please use the "Contact Us" link in the navigation bar above.

July, 2009
By John Evanoff

The seventh on my top ten-list of favorite treks around the Truckee Meadows is actually a jog. I know some of you might just want to walk this and that is perfectly alright. What is neat about this trek is that if you work at it and build your endurance to complete it, you can join others who love this route by entering the once a year event titled the “Reno Journal Jog.”

The jog or walk begins Foster Drive next to Reno High School. You can park at the YMCA-Bridge Church lot or in the school parking lot. I used this route as a work out for 10k runs or just to enjoy the west Reno neighborhoods and beautiful Idlewild Park. From Foster Drive heading east past my old high school where I graduated in 1965, take a right on Booth Street and head south to California Avenue. Originally, students in the late 1800’s in and around Reno went to school in one room facilities until 1879 when a building was constructed downtown on 4th Street between Arlington and West Street. After a fire destroyed that structure, a new building was constructed and opened in 1912 on the same site. The population growth eventually led to the construction of the building on Booth Street in 1951. The building on West Street then became known as Central Junior High, where I attended a long time ago, and then Central Intermediate until it was torn down for a casino named the Sundowner in 1968. The current campus and one of a kind alumni building out front are a testament to the history of Reno’s high school education and comradeship. Many a “Huskie” alumni have fond memories of the high school and their life growing up in west Reno. The fifty foot “R” in the middle of the circular driveway in front of the school is normally adorned with flowers, usually red and blue, the school colors. Each year, graduating students add their touch to the more than seventy acre campus and building as a reminder of their footsteps through this important educational journey. You can visit the alumni building which was completed in 2000 on most Saturdays between 10am and 1pm to view the memorabilia dating back to 1879.

As you walk or jog southwest on California Avenue, you will go past the Village Mall and then take a left on Mayberry Drive heading west to Hunter Lake Drive then south to Plumb Lane and then right on Plumb Lane to Ferris Lane. Heading north on Ferris, you will eventually head down a steep incline to Mayberry Drive, then you head west again on Mayberry to take a right on Sherwood Drive and go north to Idlewild Drive and take a right. This part of the jog is the most picturesque because it follows the Truckee River into Idlewild Park. Take a left on Latimore Drive at the softball field and head into the park. Keep to the left along the river walk across from the California Building and kiddie park. You will eventually come out almost at the Booth Street Bridge at the east entrance of the park. There, you’ll take a right onto Idlewild Drive going west past the municipal pool. I earned my lifeguard certificate at that pool way back when. You’ll then take a left on Hunter Lake Drive and go up a slight knoll, then go left on Foster Drive and back to your car in the Reno High or the YMCA-Bridge Church parking lot. If you need to walk off the run, the Foster Field Reno High Football field has a quarter mile track I liked to use to wind down and relax. Total length of the jog or walk is 8k or 4.9 miles.

All of this comes with a little effort to eventually finish either the walk or the jog in the Journal Jog in September in one of 60 categories. They have categories including elite, individual, heavyweights, walk, wheelchair and stroller and teams including family, corporate, school, husband/wife, pair, mother/daughter, mother/son, father/daughter and father/son. The Journal Jog uses all the proceeds from the fun run-walk for literacy and education grants given out by the Reno Gazette/Journal during the year. Most of the runs I have been in were team affairs I put together, which is a great way to get your family members or business associates in shape or at least out into the streets for a fun and light workout. On many more occasions, I have run the course just to get in some miles for another race or to mix up my routine. I would take a number of other roads and avenues from this route to either shorten or lengthen the route, but I always left in the Idlewild Park section because it’s one of my favorites. Part of remaining healthy all my life has included walking, hiking or running and this jog is one of the best because so many people participate and keep you energized throughout the route.

If you intend to add this event to your bucket list or regular agenda, be sure to be in shape. For those just starting out, work up to three-times-a-week runs or walks of thirty to forty minutes each with plenty of warm up and warm downs included so you stretch those muscles and ligaments. I put in fifteen minutes of a light workout and stretches before any run and sometimes as much as a half hour for a jog of more than three miles. Get some good walking or running shoes and break them in with short runs and then move to longer walks or runs as you progress through a couple months at minimum. July is perfect to start a regimen if you haven’t one already. You will be gearing up for September which leaves you ten weeks to get in shape. The most important thing is not to push it. Relax and have fun and enjoy the sights. Take along your ipod but watch the traffic. Better yet, take a partner so you can keep your interest in what you want to obtain and have goals in easy view. Each small step leads to fulfilling the ultimate goal of finishing the jog in under one hour or the walk in under an hour and forty minutes.

For more on the Journal Jog, call the Reno Gazette-Journal.

My seventh favorite of my top ten treks is a race, but more importantly a goal to stay in shape to manage other treks with ease. Good luck and have fun gearing up for this September.