Park Forest 5 miler. With Sari. Took a
Sharecar 40 miles south to this distant south suburb. Cool, foggy morning. A much smaller race (400) than it used to be twenty years ago in its heyday (2000+), when it was ten miles long and ran five miles through Sauk Trail Woods (Home of the Saukies indians).
Felt rested and fit; started off at a good pace, trying to keep my Finn wife in sight. Passed a couple guys that looked about my age, and came in at 52 even, 4:16 faster than a five-mile race I did last year, and my fastest in four years. Shows the value of my returning hormonal balance. But no where close to Sari, who ran a 47:42.
Park Forest is a 1940's-style planned community similar to Sweden and the UK. But unlike the European planned communities, Park Forest has been sliding downhill for 30 or more years, since its major central shopping center folded...Americans just don't like being "forced" to do anything.
Such as walk to your distant car. Housing units were clustered in parkland, with limited parking nearby. Parkland and play areas have now been paved over for extensive parking lots adjacent to all housing.
Or live modestly. Housing was originally small, with restrictive zoning preventing enlargement. Zoning code has been vastly revised to encourage adding-on.
Or live in multiethnic neighborhoods. Unlike most of the rest of Chicago's suburbs in the 1950's Park Forest had no restrictive lease covenants regarding race or ethnicity. Park Forest is now almost half black. But I have to say, everyone still seems to get along fine.
Or walk to shop, work and recreation. The community was originally honeycombed with pedestrian walkways through forested parkland...most walkways have been enlarged into wide streets.