Now that the long days of summer are over, I thought it
would be a good time to look at how to stay safe while running in the dark.
1)
Pepper
spray is a great personal defense mechanism, unless you spray yourself in
the face. Then you just made your attacker’s job easier. You can use a can of
silly string and practice on your kids.
2)
Take your “stranger danger” or “weenie” whistle with you. It could even be a
cheap whistle from the dollar store. Like a scream, a whistle could help get
someone’s attention.
3)
Keep your ID
on you. No, your fake ID won’t help you here.
4)
Have emergency
contact information on your phone’s lock screen. By the way, don’t put your
own phone number on your lock screen with a message saying, “In case of
emergency, call…” or “If lost, please call….” The person who finds your phone
would be calling himself.
5) Make sure you are visible. There are lights that clip to your clothes or lights that
wrap around your arm or leg. There are also headlamps that make you look like a
train coming down the railroad tracks. Just make sure you make a loud train
noise as you are approaching oncoming runners. My favorite light is the Tracer
360 by Noxgear. It looks like you are a character in the movie Tron, but it will help keep you safe.
6) Self-defense
training can’t hurt. You can learn to throat punch, knee kick, or eye
poke. If you want to really go all out,
complete your ninja training and take out your attacker with your throwing star
or nun chucks.
7)
Don’t have your music blaring. You are much less
likely to hear
your attacker if you’re rockin’ out to “Eye
of the Tiger”. Some tips include
running with only one ear bud in, keeping the music at a low volume, or avoiding
music altogether.
8)
Tell
someone that you are going
for a run and how long it should take. Just
don’t run off to the strip club instead. When your partner calls to check up on
you, it might be hard to explain why they hear the announcer in the background
announcing Tiffany
to the stage.
Picture Credit: Google
Images, labeled for reuse
Eye of the Tiger - https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2249/2521833783_8042be4f83_z.jpg?zz=1
Copyright 2014
*Used by permission of MOKO.Mobi, Inc.
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