Posted at The Loop, the blogs at Runner’sWorld.com
It’s a little after seven in the morning, not quite light but not fully dark either. I’m two minutes into a run, chugging up a minor incline, on the left side of the road, no sidewalks, not even a decent patch of grass to skim along. Headlights appear ahead, and I glance behind me to see if there’s anyone approaching from behind. There’s no one else—just me and the oncoming car. It’s still a quarter mile away but the driver nevertheless eases into the other lane. I wait until he’s a hundred yards away, and then lift my hand in thanks.
Do you wave when you run? I do—my theory is that every runner is a running ambassador, and it is our duty to spread goodwill to those who have to interact with us. I’m lucky in that the neighborhoods where I run are mostly run-friendly: sidewalks, running trails, plenty of crosswalks at the busy intersections. But sometimes I wind up on a road without a sidewalk, and so I run in the street. I always run on the left side of the road, so I can see any cars coming, and most of the time they make a point of giving me as much space as possible.
And want them to be glad they did it. I want them to know it’s appreciated—so I wave, knowing that they’ll come across another runner someday, and that we’re grateful for the consideration. Sometimes if the traffic is a bit busy, I might come across three or four cars in a row. But they each get a wave, even if it looks like I think I’m in a parade or something.
I wave to other runners, too, and pedestrians if we’re sharing a sidewalk. (I don’t wave to bikers, because I don’t want them to think they have to take their hands off the handlebars and wave back—to them I give a very obvious head-nod). I figure that as lonely a sport as running can be, it’s god to acknowledge others as much as possible.
I guess it comes down to this: I don’t have to run. Running is a luxury, an indulgence, and if someone has to adjust their activity to accommodate me, they’re doing me a favor. Some guy in pick-up truck, on his way to a job, didn’t wake up in the morning expecting to have to deal with a potential deadly situation on the asphalt. And maybe it’s not big deal to turn the wheel a few degrees for a few seconds. But it’s no big deal to hold my hand up for a few seconds and smile, either.
And sometimes they wave back, and smile too. And to me that’s pretty cool.