Bike Path Hazards

I have had two days to run solo as the girls have spent the night with their dad. I am use to seizing these opportunities to run. Especially so this summer as he is gone a lot for his work schedule. Yesterday I ran 7 and today 8. I was thinking I should go longer but I hurt my shoulder/neck the other day running with the jogger. It is bothering me to the point I am taking some Ibuprofen (don't like to do that). Last night I took two baths to try to soak out the kink. I don't think it did much, but my skin feels great!



Needless to say I was running today later than I normally would have and the bike path was more crowded. There are three things which I have come to realize may do me in down there. I am not sure if it will one by itself or a combination of all three together.



Hazard number one: small children riding bikes.



I mean the really little guys with training wheels and all. Here is the danger, the little guy /girls (usually a boy though) is racing along ahead of the parents who are walking behind. The parents spotting a runner coming shout out to the child, "Johnny, watch out for the runner." Now here is where the problem comes in. The child doesn't hear the parents clearly (why do they never hear clearly? I don't know). So the child turns around to look back at mom and dad. "What?" Now at this point the bike changes the course of direction and begins to move in very haphazardly all over the path. The more this happens the more the parents yell the longer the child keeps looking back and yelling, "What?" I of course am now running up in the woods to avoid the situation all together.



Hazard number two: dogs on retractable leashes.



These things are deadly. I kid you not. And before anyone thinks I just have a things against dogs let me point out that I own one.

Not a very smart one but a dog none the less. Shown here having torn out the bottom of his dog bed, turned it upside down, and sleeping on it.


So dogs are not my problem, it is the type of leashes. See the leashes let the dog wander at a greater or shorter distance from the owner. Maybe to the other side of the bike path to sniff out all the delectable scents. The leash has an interesting feature in case you haven't noticed. The first few inches are usually an inch or so wide and made from a colored fabric. The main length of the leash is a thin, black cord. Black being the key. The leash is black, the bike path is paved with black top. I can not tell when running up to it that there is a leash attached to the dog. It blends in with the black top until I am right on top of it. And for some reason it does not occur to some people to pull the dog over to their side of the path. It usually involves a quick lunge, a stop, or a hurdle on my part. None of which I am prone to wanting to do in the middle of a work out.





Hazard number three: tourists (mostly from Quebec) on rental bikes.



Today involved numerous encounters with hazard number three. The first incident was three bikers that I needed to pass. That alone is problematic. I mean do you realize how slowly you have to be on a bike to be passed by someone running? I was thinking they may have wanted to save the bike rental money and just walk. I have digressed though. The problem was that they were spread across the entire path and kept switching positions with each other. I had to run across the lawn to get around with out some of us colliding. Then I rounded a corner to find a whole group (about 7) had just laid their bikes across the entire path to walk over and take in the view. It was kind of crazy.



I am grateful to have escaped today's run with no injuries. But I am telling you I feel like at some point one of these things will catch me!