Following the Steps

I am not going to lie, I think about my safety a lot when running. I'm not talking about being mugged or robbed when I am out, but I do think about the traffic. I no longer run with headphones so this helps me stay more aware of my surroundings, but still, many drivers are oblivious to runners.

To be honest, I cannot blame all of them. Aside from simply not paying attention, often it is because I run in areas where it may not be that common to encounter runners. Also, I run through a lot of neighborhoods with intersections where the cross traffic does not stop or people do not have a good of a range of vision when backing out of their driveways. It's amazing how many people fail to look both ways or check their surroundings when driving.

My head is often on a swivel when I run and I have had to make a quick move to the side or apply my breaks to yield to the unaware.

For runs over a few miles, I will carry my phone, driver's license, and medical insurance card. I realized last year that as reassuring as it may seem to be carrying my phone, it is not a full-proof option. What happens if it breaks during a collision? What happens if the battery dies during one of my runs? How will anyone know to call Jody? I have her listed as my ICE (in case of an emergency), but will people know to look up this contact?

As a backup, I made a couple slight investments to minimize these risks.

First, I carry (not necessarily wear) an ID wristband. This wristband has Jody's contact information on it as well as our home address.

With this wristband, my phone can quit working and there is still a way to get a hold of her in case of an emergency.

The other service that I also use is Strava's Beacon. This a feature that comes with a subscription to Strava Premium, which costs about $6 a month. When I start my run via the Strava app, Beacon allows me to send a link of my run to anyone I like. This allows the person who receives the text to track my progress in real-time (with a minor delay). She can also see my phone's battery life. More importantly, she can tell if I have stopped for no apparent reason and where I stopped.

Beacon has also allowed Jody to determine when and where she decides to run with me. In the past, Jody has started my long runs with me because it is easier this way. She had a couple attempts to join me towards the end of my run, but this proved difficult. I would print my route but, the problem was, I have been known to deviate from these plans to avoid construction, hills, or because I just was not feeling the original path.

Now, with Beacon, I can deviate all I want and she is still able to follow along. She can take a couple educated guesses about my intentions, especially when I return to our neighborhood. So far, she has had only success "finding" me and joining me in the final stretches of my runs.