I hear ya. Running in the city is difficult. Too many stoplights and dangers, hard to focus. We have Lake Shore Drive and I think Detroit has some running space near Windsor border and the boardwalk by Downtown, right? But if you don't live right along the lake, the idea of the casual run becomes less feasible. I used to do the four corners of my block, but that gets boring. Running at 4 AM when no one is around works, but that's usually when the "crazies" are out and that's sooo early. I try to drive or commute somewhere else and go run at the park district as much as I can where there's lots of space.

Thanks for the brewery recos, I will check it out! Last year I did Traffic Jam and Snug as well as Motor City Brewing across the street. The year before, Jolly Pumpkin. I'll have to check those out if I can make it down this year!