Why Flat Hills Road?
Flat Hills Road really exists. It’s in Amherst, near the northeast corner where Amherst borders Leverett and Shutesbury. It is not terribly flat, and the name has amused me (and other runners I’ve told about it) since I first saw it.
From where I tend to start my runs in Amherst, Flat Hills Road is reached in around twenty minutes to a half hour. Running Flat Hills is committing to a relatively thoughtful run of around an hour or more. For me, mentally, running Flat Hills means making a commitment and doing some real work.
The thing is, the more I run the hills on Flat Hills Road, the flatter they get. Maybe it’s not as silly a name as I first thought.