Summer is quickly ending, which means shorter days, cooler
weather, and school. This fall, it is important to keep your safety in mind as
you run outdoors. Most safety precautions seem like common sense, but it is
easy to overlook our safety when we find it inconvenient, time-consuming, or
just uninteresting.
With the days getting shorter, and nights getting longer,
one of the most important things for runners to do is make sure they are
visible. This means that you should be easily seen by all cars that drive past
you. The easiest way to do this is wearing brightly colored clothing. Most
running clothes nowadays also have some sort of reflective material in order
for cars to see you even better. Headlamps and other reflectors also make you
more visible to road traffic.
If you do happen to be running on the road, whether it’s
during the day or night, it is very important to stay safe from traffic. The
most common, and possibly best, way to do this is by running against the flow
of traffic. By running against traffic, you are better able to see oncoming
cars and react in the case of an emergency. In case there is an emergency, it
is important for runners to have some form of I.D. with them. Some runners choose
to wear I.D. wristbands, others choose to carry a cell phone or driver’s
license.
Lastly, runners should always make sure that they are never
alone. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you should always run with a partner.
Sometimes this means you should make sure that somebody knows where you are
going and just about what time you should return. That way, if something does
happen, people you know and trust will know that something happened and may be
able to find you easier. It is also a good idea to run in familiar, safe
places.
As a runner, I do my best to put my safety first. Being at
college, I do find it hard to run during daylight hours. This usually results
in me running at, or slightly after, sunset. Luckily, I really like colorful
shorts and t-shirts, so wearing brightly colored clothing doesn’t prove to be
too much trouble. Going to school in a small town also ensures that I always
have a sidewalk to run on, as well as little traffic to worry about. It is
still important to me to run against traffic anyways just in case something
would go wrong. As far as identification, I keep my student I.D. card in the
tiny key-pocket of my shorts. Having a roommate, as well as a bunch of friends
living on campus, it is usually fairly easy for me to find someone to tell them
where I am going. As I said before, our town is not very big, so I never go too
far, but I am always sure to tell at least one person where I am going and how
long I plan on being gone.
I sincerely hope that all of you reading this post either
take these safety precautions already, or plan on playing it safe in the
future. Always put your safety above your workout.
Stay Alive!
Danielle ♥
