Run Safely

Now that it’s getting dark at what, 4 in the afternoon, chances are you might be heading out for a run in the dark.  It’s a good time to take inventory of your gear and make sure you’ve got some clothes and gear to help keep you safe.  Here are a few safety rules that we should all keep in mind, newbie and veteran alike.

Run against traffic Running against traffic allows you to potentially see impending danger.

Assume cars do not see you When I’m at an intersection or near traffic, I never run in front of a car unless I see the driver visually acknowledge me.  I’d rather lose 30 seconds in my run than life and limb.

Make yourself visible Have at least one clothing item that has some reflective elements. Illuminite has some cool clothes.  Or buy some sew on reflective tape and do it yourself.

ID Yourself Just like a will or other responsible vestiges of adulthood, you really should have some sort of ID on you should something happen.  RoadID is a great way to easily do this, just strap on a bracelet or shoe tag and then don’t worry about it again.

Make sure someone knows where you are Tell someone where you are running and how long you will be gone.

Especially for women Try to run with someone, there really is safety in numbers.  That’s not always possible so if you are running alone, think about carrying pepper spray. Run in well-lit areas at night and on high traffic paths and carry your cellphone with you.

If you encounter an unfriendly dog Stop running, don’t make eye contact, and don’t offer a hand to a dog that is snarling or growling at you.  If a dog starts to attack try and get anything other than a body part in his mouth – ipod, water bottle, etc. Pepper spray is another good weapon to have should you run into an angry dog.

If you encounter a bear or mountain lion I’m sorry, I’m too freaked out thinking about this to even research it.  If you live somewhere where this is likely, buy a treadmill.

Here’s a good song for your running mix, I really like the lyrics, especially:

Everyday we wake up
We choose Love
We choose light

That’s something not so bad to aspire to, eh?