<p>First off, I can't wait to meet all of you on campus next year.</p>
<p>Secondly, I was wondering how the exercising facilities are UPenn are. Can we use the official Penn track at leisure or is it only for official races? Are there open basketball courts on campus? Are there good scenic paths to run 5-6 miles at a time?</p>
<p>Ahhh I love this!</p>
<p>I think this details it University</a> of Pennsylvania, Department of Recreation</p>
<p>WOoo niceee. The interior of the gym in the pic kinda reminds me of the dental school lol.</p>
<p>Also, for outdoor running there is a path that run along the Skuykill and reaches Fairmont Park. It's very scenic and runs right past the art museum, I ran there all the time until it got cold.</p>
<p>That's awesome! Does it lead to a soft trail or is it all pavement?</p>
<p>Also, I heard alot about the safeness of west philly; is it at all dangerous to be running off campus?</p>
<p>^that trail part of philly is perfectly safe....real estate there are ridiculusly high lol
haha penn has great fitness facilities, i go there sometimes with my parents lol...wow..guess they built new gyms lol the one behind the tennis courts was pretty awful..
i think u can go on the track as much as u like just not on event days i think</p>
<p>we have to pay for the membership right? Starcane? lol</p>
<p>The whole safety thing is overblown. Use common sense, and generally speaking, you'll be fine. </p>
<p>I run off campus all the time, and the great thing about Philly is that if you give it the opportunity and get familiar with the actual city, you'll find that it's actually a great running path. I used to run along the river, but grew up and went into the city more and more. I now run into center city (to Chinatown, Rittenhouse Square, etc.) whenever I get a chance. </p>
<p>The gym here is ace (Pottruck, that is. Hutch does suck). This is coming from a gym/sports addict. You will be satisfied.</p>
<p>Edit: They charge you automatically per year.</p>
<p>Ya I agree...I row for penn and we run to and from the boathouse and along the river pretty frequently. It's nice and scenic along the river, though it is pavement not a soft dirt trail. You can definitely run on the track. The gates to the stadium are pretty much always open, and all you need to do is flash your Penncard at the security guard if they question you. Pottruck is a really great facility and probably has any machine you would want to use. I've never been to the actual gym part of Hutch (only the basement where they house all our rowing machines), but I would say it's better just to use Pottruck. The gym fees are automatically included in your fees for the university, so you might as well use the facilities as often as you can.</p>