Rocky, though a fictional character, is one of our most famous Philadelphians, and probably more famous still is his training montages, including the classic running up the Art Museum steps. One of the best scenes in sports movie history shows Rocky running all around the shitty parts of Kensington, along the Schuylkill, in the Italian Market, and finally, sprinting up those steps and posing in triumph.
I’ve always wanted to complete this run for myself... but to actually run from Kenso to South Philly back to the Schuylkill is insane, and something that I will not be able to do, at least not this summer.
However, there is a prior running montage in Rocky, one that I achieved today... more or less. Check out the video below.
I followed this video as best I could in the hopes of recreating the experience for myself.
SAME: I set my alarm for 4:00 AM.
DIFFERENT: I didn’t get out of bed right away. It took me till like 4:15.
DIFFERENT: I couldn’t turn on the radio because Pam was sleeping. If Rocky had been shacked up with Adrian at the time I’m sure he would done the same thing.
SAME: I did eat an egg. Except it was one egg, not five. And it was hard-boiled, not raw. Is eating raw eggs even safe? According to this forum, probably not. I’m glad Rocky didn’t get food poisoning.
DIFFERENT: Rocky trained in the cold, and while 4:30 AM in August isn’t overbearingly hot, it certainly wasn’t cold enough for me to go heavier than shorts and a T-shirt.
SAME: I legitimately started at the same exact spot that Rocky did. 1818 E. Tusculum St, near the corner of Kensington and Lehigh. Check it out:
I’m kind of shocked that I didn’t see anyone else starting their early morning run from the same location.
SAME: I tried to do the same stretches that Rocky did beforehand, but I added a couple extra as well, especially some arm stretches (since I wasn’t going to be stretching my arms too much during the run like Rocky did, I’m not one for boxer punching the air).
DIFFERENT: Um... I’m guessing I had a few more concerns about safety than Rocky did? I’m not gonna lie, it was a little creepy walking through Kenso so early in the morning. But I saw more people sleeping than I saw awake, and no one gave me shit, and I wasn’t carrying any cash on me, so we all good.
SAME: I ran the same direction as Rocky... at least for 75 yards down Tusculum. Rocky turned right at Kensington Ave. I turned left.
DIFFERENT: There’s no way in hell I ran the exact same route as Rocky. I ran as little as I could, going all the way down Front St. when it breaks off of Kensington Ave., then going right on Girard, left on Broad, and right on Spring Garden. The only scene between Tusculum and the Steps is when Rocky is running north on Broad St, very close to City Hall. I mean, that’s not too far out of the way, but I was already dying by the time I got to Broad St., there was no way I was going to tack on an additional mile. I just couldn’t.
SAME: I did end at the Art Museum Steps.
DIFFERENT: Traveling up those steps, since I’m in terrible shape, was less Rocky (clutching my side cramps as I slowly jogged up the steps), and more Creed (limping up the steps like an old man). When I made it to the top, I absolutely took a moment to admire the view. "If you look hard enough, you can see your whole life from here." Rocky says this at the end of Creed, and yeah, it’s corny, but I’m not gonna lie, looking out on my city, my home, thinking of those words, I choked up a little.
Love,
Joey
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