the town of cary was rocked this week by the news of a local woman who went missing on a long run last saturday morning. unfortunately, she did not come home alive (for details, click here). it was a reminder to me to always put safety first when running. i found an extensive safety list on the web and thought i would share it here. BE SAFE OUT THERE LADIES (and gents). YOU CAN NEVER BE TOO CAREFUL.
1 - DON'T WEAR HEADSETS. Use your ears to be aware of your surroundings. Using headphones, you lose the use of an important sense: your hearing.
2 - Always stay alert and aware of what's going on around you. The more aware you are, the less vulnerable you are.
3 - Carry a cell phone or change for a phone call. Know the locations of call boxes and telephones along your regular route.
4 - Trust your intuition about a person or an area. React on your intuition and avoid a person or situation if you're unsure. If something tells you a situation is not "right", it isn't.
5 - Alter or vary your running route pattern; run in familiar areas if possible. In unfamiliar areas, such as while traveling, contact a local RRCA club or running store. Know where open businesses or stores are located.
6 - Run with a partner. Run with a dog.
7 - Write down or leave word of the direction of your run. Tell friends and family of your favorite running routes.
8 - Avoid unpopulated areas, deserted streets, and overgrown trails. Especially avoid unlit areas, especially at night. Run clear of parked cars or bushes.
9 - Carry identification or write your name, phone number, and blood type on the inside sole of your running shoe. Include any medical information. Don't wear jewelry.
10 - Ignore verbal harassment. Use discretion in acknowledging strangers. Look directly at others and be observant, but keep your distance and keep moving.
11 - Run against traffic so you can observe approaching automobiles.
12 - Wear reflective material if you must run before dawn or after dark.
13 - Practice memorizing license tags or identifying characteristics of strangers.
14 - Carry a noisemaker and/or OC (pepper) spray. Get training in self-defense and the use of pepper spray.
15 - CALL POLICE IMMEDIATELY if something happens to you or someone else, or you notice anyone out of the ordinary. It is important to report incidents immediately.
so interesting that you posted this today. on monday, i had to do an 11 mile run by myself, and i couldn't get out until about 8:30 pm. while i was on the river trail, it was light, and there were lots of people. i had planned on running on the river trail all the way to my house, but as i started running down university avenue, before getting back on the river trail, i just decided to stay on university, and take the major streets home. i had to call my husband while running, to have him check it out for me on mapmyrun, to see how far i needed to go to get my mileage in. but i was SO glad i did. i felt so safe, as there were lots of lights and cars, i was very familiar with the area, etc. but i have been so paranoid about this kind of thing lately, and have found myself passing guys when they are by themselves, and then i try to say back to myself what they were wearing, how tall they were, hair color, etc. weird huh? i guess it's good though. especially after hearing that horrible news about that girl. i felt good though reading all those safety tips, as i try to do almost all of those, most of all, just be aware, and trust your instincts!
ReplyDeleteI'm the worst at running alone and with my head phones turned way up. The YW had a guest speaker awhile back about self-defense, and general safety tips and that was one of the first things they said was don't wear headphones and/or if you do only wear one them in one ear... I've got to do better on my early morning runs!! Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeletethat is so awful and so scary. thanks for the safety reminders. i think we get a little too nonchalant about our safety while running sometimes.
ReplyDeletethat is so no cool.. that is what always scares me about running. my mom always goes alone and maren goes alone alot and i hate it! ed tells me to go running and i would but i have to have someone with me cause i am a super paranoid person.. i have been followed by cars before when just walking to and from school..so i HATE walking places by myself, let alone go running alone. if i ever have to i am always on the phone with someone and just ask them to talk to me for a bit in case.. ask mare, i used to call her everyday on my way to work in provo. anyway, be safe running.. my dog isn't big enough yet to protect me while running so i guess i need to find a partner....
ReplyDeletegood reminder. just when i get NOT scared to run alone...does anyone want to do 8 miles with me on monday morning (early) since i had to scratch my run this morning so ryan could bike around the ENTIRE bay?
ReplyDeleteand yes, kelli used to call me every day when walking to work. but i didn't mind it. :)
Oh scary! I always tell Christian what time I'll be back and where I'm going, but as this shows, that's just not enough. So so so sad. I try to carry my cell phone with me if I'm running alone. And if I wear headphones, I only wear one earbud so that I can always hear what's around me.
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