Women- do you run alone?

What the media sensationalized and the reality for most people are very different. I worked nights (7pm to 7am) and would go for walks at 2 and 3 in the morning by myself. According to most media I should be dead. I won't let fear of a 'maybe' rule my life. Granted, I also took precautions- cell phone, mace, and stay in lit areas.
An example of the media distorting views is, I met a Dr from Pakistan, nice guy with a lovely family, and he said when they first came over they were afraid to leave their house after dark because of all the gangs/shootings.

RAinWA wrote: »

I don't run, but I'm out walking between 4 and 5 a.m. every day it isn't icy with the dog and the cat. It's not a high crime area but I'm careful and careful of traffic (people aren't paying attention that early I have found). I think being very aware of your surroundings is important.

My husband worries about it more now that the dog has gone deaf - she used to be really good at alerting me to the odd coyote (or bunny) in the vicinity. The cat isn't very good at alerting me to perceived dangers.

I don't think I could give up the early morning walks, I enjoy them way too much. Besides, the dog lets me know when it's walk time and she's very, very persistent.

That's cats for you.

I gave up running on my country road. My biggest fear after worrying about loose dogs was worrying about getting run over by a distracted driver. I had to analyze every car coming towards me to determine if: 1) the driver sees me and will move over, 2) the driver is texting and doesn't see me, 3) the driver is aware of me, but refuses to move over, or, refuses to slow down if someone is coming the other direction. (time to jump in the ditch?) I run on my gym's track in the winter and on an outside track in warm weather.

As far as driving to a park or neighborhood to run, several year's ago, my husband talked me into taking a CCW course in order to carry a handgun on runs. I got the permit, but decided that if I need a gun in order to feel safe somewhere, then, you know, I just don't want to be there at all.

WickAndArtoo wrote: »

Your post was wonderful and it was incredibly kind that you took the time to post something so helpful. Thank you so much for caring enough to do so!

I will always run alone, because otherwise I would never get to run! But the reality is that every time I leave the house alone I face these risks, and I know that. You have posted a wonderful wealth of information on how to take control and empower ourselves the best we can if we choose to not let the fear take over our lives.

Hopefully someday I won't fear a run alone, or a walk to my car from a store or a visit to a public restroom...but until then I just have to do my best to notice and avoid anything amiss.

mo135 wrote: »

My post above was not meant to discourage women from running alone. The purpose was to arm those who do, or anyone for that matter, with some tools to improve their safety.

Thank you for the kind words. If, by using what I outlined in that post, you channel the fear into vigilance, you find that the fear goes away but the vigilance remains. Once people commit to maintaining good situational awareness they find that they never look at the world the same way again.