Fall is here and that means shorter days.  Many of my female athletes ask questions about safety at night.  Some of them live in busy cities where others live off of country back roads.  I have had the opportunity to live in busy places and back roads sometimes without a house for miles.  Each place has its own set of challenges.  I often tried to pretend I was tough and wanted to prove that I was not afraid, but, I was stalked, chased and harassed on Strava.  Even believing that women should not have to be afraid, I quickly learned that I had to be aware and safe when I was out alone on my run.

Strava is fun, but, it is also a great way for stalkers to stalk.  Set your Strava to private.  Yes, they have a way to block your start/finish, but, when I lived off of a dirt road and was the only home there it was pretty easy to learn where I lived.  In a busy city this can work because it is hard to know exactly which home or apartment you live in.  

Don’t run the same route on the same day at the same time.  I will circle back to Strava (or even sharing your route on social). I had a patient who knew I was in the office alone at 6:30am until the rest of the dental team showed up at 7.  He always picked that time to have his appointment.  Someone had been following me in a truck for weeks on my runs after work.  One time I ran into the woods terrified.  The police don’t really care to believe you until something happens so calling the police and going in to report the stalking was not helpful.  One morning he came in for his appointment, got into my chair and began to tell me how he enjoys following me on my runs.  He found me on Strava and knew exactly where to find me.  My boss called the police for me and had him banned from coming into the office.  Don’t be predictable.

Know your route, know how to run into the woods.  Learn which homes have people in them when you run and have doorbell cameras.  Have an escape plan.  This sounds ridiculous but your strength is running and if you have a car following you, running to someone’s front door and knocking on it or just dashing into the woods and hiding with your headlamp off can save your life.

Do not run with headphones where you cannot hear footsteps or breaths.  Listen for cars driving slow behind you (very hard with the new electric cars but you can often hear the tires on the road).  If you slow down or speed up and the steps behind you match the change in your stride, do your best to get to a place where you are not alone.  If you have mace or your cell phone have them both handy.  If you have Siri turn it on for your run so you don’t have to fumble to make a call.

Tell a friend or family member your route, expected finish time and if you have a tracker use it.  I share my location on my phone so that I can be tracked by a trusted person.  If I am not back within a reasonable time they can check in to see where I am.  I also have that person keep their phone on so that I can call the if there is a problem or I feel nervous.

Run on known safe routes.  Sometimes a rec path is more dangerous than a road.  I have run on rec paths that drift out of a neighborhood and through the woods.  Rec paths are easy for stalkers to access and hide on.  They can feel safer because of it being a rec path, but can also be more dangerous. I was once chased by someone with their pants off on what I thought was a safe path.  When it is dark out its easier for people to hide and wait for a solo person.  Country roads can also be misleading and with very few homes they create a situation where you may not have cell service or a door to knock on.

Road safety matters too!  Wear bright and reflective clothing. They even make light up running vests that make you look like a holiday decoration but you will be seen!  Pay attention, especially on rainy nights and make sure you also have a headlamp on too.  On a busy road or a sidewalk along a busy road being seen will reduce your chances of being run over.  E-bikes are a new thing to watch out for as well.  Many people use them to commute and they use rec paths and side walks.  I have seen some people on their phones and not paying attention while on the bike.  They do go fast enough where you could get hurt if they hit you.  Pay attention to your surroundings and be bright.

Running at night can be so fun and peaceful.  There have been nights in the winter where the moon reflects off of the snow and headlights make it shimmer like a field of diamonds.  The sound of the leaves in the fall can be so soothing on an evening run.  Seeing halloween decorations, holiday lights and the stars in the sky are some of my favorite things about running in the dark.  You don’t need to be terrified to go running solo at night but you should have a plan and be prepared in case something does happen.  I have been lucky enough to have the ability to dart in the woods and disappear from stalkers or out run them.  All of the times that were close calls were because I had in headphones, didn’t want to believe it was happening, shared my runs publicly and didn’t put my safety first.

Kristina Folcik is a coach with Team RunRun, to learn more about her or to work with her, check out her coach profile.