A local read from Jason Ji. Shanghai runner. Friend of SOAR.
You don’t outrun Shanghai. You move with it.
Suzhou River is long and exposed. A working artery. Distance without theatre.
Century Park is repetition. Ten kilometres, counted and recounted.
Xuhui Riverside is compression. Towers, water, movement locked together.
Summer belongs to the early hours. Six a.m. before heat and noise arrive.
Weekends sharpen later. Eight a.m. sessions. Structured. Social, but not loose.
After dark, the city exhales. Eight-thirty starts. Crews move together.
The run sets the tone. The rest follows.
BasdBan. Bizzyboy. Bread. Sandwiches.
Coffee Dealer. CunKouDaShu. O.P.S. Coffee.
Bella Napoli. HomeSlice. Pizza.
Blacktoes. Stage2.
Culture-forward. Visually aware. City-native.
LuWan.Scale.
Structure. Serious miles.
Different expressions. Same intent.
Ektos isn’t a destination. It’s infrastructure.
Lockers. Showers. Space to stop and talk.
In the centre of the city, that combination is rare.
Ektos is where Shanghai runners regroup.
What happens next is up to them.
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