April from Run the Great Wide Somewhere, Erika from MCM Mama Runs, and Patty from No-Guilt Life.
This topic is Running Safety this week.
I am lucky in that all of my routes are done around my neighborhood on good streets and I never am alone or feel unsafe. I do my long runs at the Rose Bowl and there are ALWAYS people out.
However, this weekend was a bit different. I needed to get in 12.5 miles but the Rose Bowl was closed because of the JayZ/Beyonce concert so I decided to go down to Santa Monica. As I was planning out my route, I realized getting up and driving all of the way to Santa Monica (20 miles each way) by myself at 6am may not be the best idea. So I recruited my great boyfriend to come with me. We got down there at 6:45 (we slept in-oops) and started our run. He needed to get 4 miles in but decided to do 5 instead.
I was so glad to have him with me. We ran through the Venice Boardwalk where there were tons of street performers, homeless people, high people and more and I felt very safe with him next to me (no one approached us or anyone else). After we were done, I headed off towards Santa Monica and the Palisades by myself but did have my phone with me and kept my music down to a normal amount so I can wear people around me. My boyfriend put on roller skates and skated part of the way with me as well. The whole time I felt safe as I was never more than 30 seconds away from another person (most of the time, I was within 5 secs of someone). My boyfriend was being more conscious than I realized (I was struggling in the beginning of the run) and was slowing down and staying out of the way of everyone else.
This safety check did get me some things to think about before I take on a late night training run for Wine and Dine. The boyfriend may be tagging along for that one as well!
Safety Tips:
- Always let people know when you are heading out for a run
- Stick to well-known routes-sidewalks and trails work well
- Run in the direction of traffic so you can see cars as they are coming. You don't want to be surprised by a car behind you
- At intersections, look both ways and make eye contact with cars-I have had some pretty close calls by people not paying attention when they are driving or stopped at lights
- Wear light/reflective clothing. I run in a lot of neon so people can see me
- Run with a buddy-if you can
- Take your phone with you-better to be safe than sorry
- Music is fine, but make sure it is not too loud that you are not aware of your surroundings
- Have fun! Let's not forget, running is for fun! Don't get too anxious!
What are some of your Safety Tips?