Where to Run in Wichita, KS!

Seems like I am travelling more and more these days, all over the country! As a fitness enthusiast and a runner, sometimes it's very difficult to fit in a run or a workout while travelling, especially to conventions and meetings. Not so at my most recent convention, the National Farmers Union Convention in Wichita, KS. I was in Wichita for four days and sneaked in runs and walks outside every day. When I recently saw that Jessie over on The Right Fits started a series called Where Should I Run? on her blog, I knew I could contribute a post about where to run in Wichita!

River Walk Trail in Wichita, KS! 

The convention I attended was held at the Hyatt Regency Wichita. It was a very, very nice, brand new hotel situated right on the Arkansas River, which bisects the city of Wichita. I know I would not have had the opportunity to get nearly as much outdoor fitness into my trip if it weren't for staying at this hotel. Even before leaving, I had scoped the hotel website for the availability of a fitness center. They had a nice gym on site, but they also advertised right on the website that the Arkansas River has a really nice paved walking and jogging trail along its banks. They even post a map of the pathway system right on their website, and you can view by clicking here.  It's a PDF you can even download onto your phone and take with you on your run. The small portion they show on their map is 7 miles, but I know there are many, many offshoots from what is depicted. (I have an old, not-so-smart phone, so I don't have any fancy apps that map my run, and I can't seem to figure out how to get the PDF to actually copy and paste onto my blog, so you'll have to live with clicking on the link. Sorry... :/)

These steps lead directly to the River Walk from the Hyatt Regency, which was my home for the time I was in Wichita.

I began each of my runs from my hotel, but if you're looking for a place to park, I'd suggest starting off at the science museum along the west bank of the river.  It's called Exploration Place and it looked like a nice science museum and planetarium. It also looked like they had free parking and it puts you right at a bridge and trail access. Easy.

That building with awesome architecture that's sort of centered in this picture, right on the river, is the science museum. There is parking adjacent to the building, with easy access to the path.

Sunday afternoon was the most wide-open my schedule was during the convention so I decided this would be the best day to head out for a run. With the hotel literally steps away from the River Trail, it was so easy to walk right out the door and get started. I did about four miles, running up one side of the river, to the Keeper of the Plains Statue, crossing, then heading farther north a bit. Then I turned around and headed south on the west bank of the river and back to the hotel.

Keeper of the Plains Statue, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon!

This trail is a pretty great place to run! I was very impressed with the excellent signage and maps along both sides. The trail linked several monuments and museums so that a person could walk (or run!) among them and get quite a tour and taste of the area. I passed the Veteran's Memorial, a really neat looking science museum, and of course, the Keeper of the Plains statue. If a person had more time or was staying in Wichita longer, it would be great to explore some of the many offshoots of the river trail system. A quick internet search showed several area running stores, and I'm sure any of them would be able to point people in the right direction. Alas, I did not have time to visit them myself.

Some of the signage along the path.

There was also a great abundance of people using the path on this nice Sunday. From people walking their dogs to riding bikes, enjoying picnics, and checking out the statue, this was the place to be.

One of the many bridges that cross the rivers. I love the bridge design!

The wildlife was definitely NOT afraid of humans!

Speaking of the statue... it was really cool! It is a 44 foot tall metal statue located at the confluence of the Arkansas and Little Arkansas rivers. It was about a mile from my hotel, and accessed by bridges from either bank of the river. The statue was erected in 1974 to commemorate the nation's bicentennial, and was designed by a Native American artist. There were little paths all around it and information about Native American culture. Definitely worth a minute or two to stop and look around! If nothing else, the statue is very striking! I took several photos.

More views of Keeper of the Plains.

It was so great to get my legs stretched and moving during a long week of convention activities, which is mostly a lot of sitting. Monday afternoon, my friend Joellyn and I went out for another short run again, enjoying the nice weather. We ran a short two-mile loop up to the Keeper of the Plains, across the river, and back. It was definitely windier on Monday, but the sunshine was warm and the passers-by friendly. We had a great time and it was nice to catch up a little bit, while being active! I so rarely get to run with another person that it was great just to have some company!

Me and Joellyn, along the Arkansas River!

So, I know that this isn't the most in-depth post ever for where to run in Wichita, but it definitely gives a starting point for anyone who is looking for a place to begin.  I highly recommend the river trail. It was clean, organized, well-trafficked during the day, and comfortable. Great to be on the river and not to have to worry about cars and traffic, and lovely to enjoy the people watching and animal watching. If you're ever in Wichita, take a jog on this path!

NFU Convention in Wichita, KS

Did you have to take U.S. Government when you were in high school? I distinctly remember struggling to sit through that class my senior year, interjecting the occasional eyeroll into my teacher's boring spiel about different branches of government or whatever the topic of the day may have been. I was probably thinking ahead to my next track meet, or what I would be doing with friends over the weekend. Anything but considering how our government operated. I didn't enjoy that class and I struggled to see how I fit in to the success of the American political system as a seventeen year old in Iowa. 

Now, I wish I could go back to high school government class and re-learn everything I've forgotten! Now, I'm witnessing how government and political process works first-hand. 

For about four days earlier this week, I was in Wichita, KS at the National Farmers Union Convention. I was representing Montana Farmers Union as a Delegate, elected at our own state convention last fall. If you want to read the speech I delivered at our State convention, you can read it HERE.   I gave the speech as sort of a wrap up to the experience Jeff and I had with the FUE program we participated in, but it had the unintended result of working as somewhat of a campaign speech that got me elected as a Delegate to the National convention. 

In fact, our chief lobbyist for Montana Farmers Union had approached my husband to ask if he would consider being a delegate. He declined, as the trip is always in the middle of calving, and said that I would probably be interested, which I was. So that's how I got my name in the ring. There were five of us who ran and we each stood up and told a bit about ourselves and why we thought we would be a good Delegate. Out of the five of us who ran, three of us were elected to attend National along with two of our MFU Board members, our State President, and a Youth Delegate. Our State Membership Director was also present for the trip. It was an awesome group! 

Group photo of the Montana Delegation, taken at the Evening for Education Gala.
Pretty good looking bunch!

I had attended the previous year's NFU Convention in Santa Fe as part of the FUE Leadership Training agenda, but it was completely different to attend as a Delegate. The main responsibility I held as a Delegate was to participate in the adoption of National Farmers Union Policy. The Montana Delegation as a whole, held the task of ensuring our state policies were concurrent with national policy and recommend changes if need be. We were able to stand up to the microphone and voice our own opinions as we saw fit, and also voted on key issues throughout the proceedings. 

Laura Ginsburg was a member of the Rules and Credentials Committee in addition to serving as a Delegate.

Several of our Montana Delegation approached the mike and stated a few words here and there, whether in favor or opposition of a particular change or section of policy. It was really cool to be part of democracy happening, and truly from a grassroots level. I also found that I really enjoyed utilizing Parliamentary Procedure, and observing how that works. 

My dear friend, Bryan Klabunde of Minnesota, takes to the mic to discuss issues pertaining to raw and unpasteurized milk.
Way to go, Bryan!

Another Montanan, Jake Fagan, and I also met with the Next Generation Advisory Council for the first time while in Whichita. We were both selected to be on this national committee that will advise the NFU board on how to attract new, young, and beginning farmers to Farmers Union, train them for leadership, and keep them involved, etc. It was the very first meeting of a brand new committee, so the first meeting was spent largely going over logistics. We are still refining exactly what we as a committee will do and we're even planning on changing the name of the group. Nevertheless, it was so exciting to be in a room of creative, passionate people who really have a thing for farming and working together! Totally inspiring. I can't wait for this group to continue moving forward. 

The biggest takeaway I had from this past week was simply that when focusing on what we all have in common, we can do great things. Bringing people together who are passionate about agriculture and Rural America is a good thing.  It was also simply wonderful to see some of the people who I have gotten to know through FUE and Farmers Union, who have become very dear friends, and also to get to know some new friends even better- Laura and Jake, for example. I literally have not laughed so much in a long, long time as I did while in Wichita, and that's due to spending quality time with some funny, amazing, intelligent people. I returned home feeling charged up and empowered to continue moving forward within this organization, and knowing that I have a strong network of friends throughout the country who feel the same way. 

NFU President Roger Johnson addresses the Delegation before proceedings began.
The other people are members of the National Policy Committee.
The Montana Delegation was seated in the front row, so this was my view for the entirety of policy debate! Awesome to be right in the action!!

When I got back to school on Wednesday afternoon, just in time for track practice, I was feeling excited about how the previous four days had gone but also very tired from travel. It also turned out that I would be the only coach available to coach about 20 high school kids at practice that day. I began practice by apologizing for having missed so many days of practice and explained where I had been. One kid asked me, incredulously, "You mean you were, like, doing government stuff?" And I replied by explaining that at the time, Government was not a class I enjoyed, but now I was sure glad I had that background because it gave me the framework to make this convention the success that it was. 

What can I say-- I'm kind of a big deal. ;)