When I think of an endurance athlete, the word punk definitely does not come to mind. Well, I like to think of myself as an endurance athlete, but I guess I have a little inner punk as well.
At some point in my running history, I became frustrated with oblivious and/or self absorbed motorists and decided to fight back. I don't remember plotting it out, it just kind of happened. A car got close enough to me that I thought I could touch it and so I did. This evolved into what is now known by me as car smacking. I have never been the recipient of a car smacking, but I can assure you it is startling. Just imagine driving along passing a pedestrian, whom you may or may not have seen and then you hear a loud thud.
So the secret is out, if a car gets close enough to me, I let them know by applying a generous amount of force from my hand to their vehicle. At first I always assumed this just ticked people off or made them realize how close they really were. However, I had an encounter that changed my perspective.
Out for a run one morning on a curvy road in the dark, an SUV was coming towards me. It was obvious they had no idea I was there and they were headed right for me. This time instead of smacking the SUV, I jumped into the air and shoved off the side of the car to avoid getting hit. Without missing a step, I landed and kept going. When I looked over my shoulder, I noticed the SUV was stopped and a man was getting out. I was pretty frustrated and assumed he wanted to fight me or something. I looped around and headed back towards him to give him a piece of my mind. To my surprise he was terrified and asked if I was alright. I said yes and threw in a ”watch where you are going”. Somehow it had not occurred to me that I was making people may think they hit me.
So I guess that is the mean streak in me. I am not proud of it so I try to rationalize my behavior. Perhaps scaring them makes them more aware in the future and keeps them from hitting someone else. An elderly person or a child who may not be as aware of what is going on. I also think about how it is their laziness or rudeness, and my safety, I have a lot more to lose.
I have never talked to or heard about another runner who participates in this sort of practice. I can’t imagine that I am alone. If you have a similar story, please share.
Today's Run:
6 mile repeats with 1:30 recovery between each
6:39
6:36
6:30
6:23
6:23
6:11
About Me
- Jason
- I now have my first two marathon's under my belt. They were much slower then I had anticipated. I have learned a lot along the way and now I am on a quest for marathon redemption.
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11 comments:
I have to laugh reading this post...can't say I have done that, but my husband ended up on the hood of a car once (NOT on purpose) so I have no patience or sympathy for careless drivers.
Well, I think it's hilarious! And those rude, careless drivers get what they get!! I agree that you may just make them aware enough so that someone else doesn't get hurt or killed in the process of their being idiots behind the wheel. Keep on car smackin' I say.
Around here we have trails, paths and sidewalks. There is no reason to be running or riding out in the street. We talk about the idiot runners and bikers....
That man deserved to get yelled at.
Impressive mile repeats!
Funny to read, I do the same thing sometimes. It's less of a "sport" for me, but after reading your post, I might start doing it more actively!
My biggest pet peeve in NYC was cars (especially taxis) making a turn without looking to see if anyone is approaching the cross-walk or intentionally cutting off the people crossing. In my own version of car smacking, I'd often pound the rear side or trunk of a car who pulled that on me. I got yelled at a few times and even chased down the block once (by an angry fat guy who was shouting that I damaged his car and tried to punch his wife who was in the back seat), but I always figured that on crowded Manhattan streets, I could out-run just about anyone!
I am pretty passive by nature so feel pretty bad arse when I go so far as to throw dirty looks at careless drivers. I think I err on the side of caution -- you never know when someone psycho is behind the wheel who will get pissed off at your retaliation. I have thought about slapping people's car as they go by, though.
I have thought about smacking a car ever since I saw a girl do it in high school...I finally did it once to a slow-moving vehicle that was turning during a "walk" light and I was clearly crossing in front of her car. I'm cautious, but this lady must've been blind not to see me standing in front of her car, so I don't regret doing it. Idiots!!
well if the driver is startled they obviously need to wake up and pay better attention. as long as you aren't going out of the way to hit their car i think it's justified. maybe you could take a little bit of the 'tude out of your smacks though ;)
glad you didn't get hit.
i've done it once, when a woman literally ran right into me. i saw it coming and she was going slow anyway, but i smacked her hood, stopped and stared for about 5 seconds, then took off again.
You know what that guy that stopped is going to be a lot more careful now. Be careful out there bud.
So they are ALWAYS wrong and you are ALWAYS right? Must be great to be perfect!!
Seriously...when driving you are watching for pedestrians who are walking for the most part...so if someone runs out in front of you they may appear more suddenly, a little tolerance on your part..and maybe watching for cars would make it all a safer place. What if you scared someone so much that they veered away and hit someone else...how would you feel?
Sorry...for some reason your "better than thou" attitude irritated me...maybe I am misunderstanding you. So I'll leave now LOL. Just be safe and treat people with respect is all I am saying.
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