Running bored: how to put that spring back into your running gait

As runners you'll eventually come to the point where running is a habit.  You no longer have to give yourself a pep talk to get out of the door and into your shoes.  But there's something else that can inhibit your progress in training: BOREDOM.  I live in a very hilly neighborhood, which is a challenge and good for training.  But every once in a while I find myself dreading my run.  Runners love to run but we also love to run in fun places.  That's why races like the RockNRoll series holds their races in exciting places like Las Vegas and Dublin, Ireland.  There's no need to shell out hundreds of dollars to find that excitement though.  While it may seem counter-intuitive to DRIVE someone to run, think of it as an investment in your training.

When you're excited to run, you're more likely to do it.  In any city there are well-established "runner" areas.  In San Diego, Mission Bay is well known for being Runner Friendly, as is Lake Murray.  I was reminded of this topic by an article on the San Diego Military Lifestyle Blog.  In the comments on that article I posted "I have loads of favorite running spots! I live in Lakeside and its not a runner friendly area, so when I need to run distance training I have to drive. I enjoy running at Lake Murray in La Mesa, in Eastlake in the community near the ARCO olympic training center, along the Silver Strand (watch out for the triathletes! They’re in full training mode!), and along Mission Beach from the Pacific Beach Pier. San Diego has some of the best running areas!"  Is it obvious that I've fought boredom in my running?  

If driving to another area to run isn't possible, consider another solution to running boredom: apps.  Running apps come in all sorts of varieties.  There are some that change the tempo of your music to match your pace, there are some that give you feedback on your pace, and then there's my favorite Zombies, Run!  There's no way you can be bored when you're listening to a well written storyline about a post-apocalyptic world in which "Runners" are relied upon for food and supply gathering.  A great list of running apps to help fight boredom can be found at Greatist.com.  

What are ways that YOU fight running boredom?