Phone Calls on Runs

Sometimes when I am out on a run (usually also out of breath and wheezing!) I get a phone call from a client.

After greetings, it’s “Are you OK?” “Should I call 911?”  “Are you all right?” “I can call back.”

I explain I am just out running. I tell them I am __ miles into a __ mile run. Then, it’s “You run?” “You’re kidding…right?” “Wow.” “You do this often?”

Now, here’s what interesting. After the disbelief is suspended, clients often become quite appreciative and impressed. There is a noticeable shift from “client” status to “friend and partner” status. The business relationship is now a relationship built on respect and mutual engagement for success.

Sometimes those conversations turn into a 20 minute walks with a friend covering a wide range of topics. Sometimes those conversations are cut short because the client is not sure what to say/do next… but they always call back within five minutes and the conversation continues.

Then there is my daughter Kelly. I confess that I often schedule a run in her neighborhood just because I know what she will do. I will drop by, leave my car in the driveway, and take off on a run. If I am gone more than an hour, she will inevitably call. “Where are you?” “Are you ok?” “Are you coming home?” “You’re where?!” “Don’t over tax yourself!” “Do you have enough water?!” “How are your knees?” “When will you be back?”

I love it. I love hearing her voice. I appreciate her concern. I always look forward to when the call comes. And sometimes I lengthen the run, just to make sure I get the call.  Is that wrong?

I am truly blessed with family and friends. Some live in my house. Some live across town. Some live half way around the globe.

Sophie is on the right side of the guy in the yellow shirt!

I got a call today on Skype from Sophie Huang from Shenzhen China. “Sophie” is a very bright, energetic, and competent young adult with whom I had the pleasure to meet while working with study groups on college campuses in Nanchang China. She wanted to wish me happy birthday and to know how the Stockholm Marathon went and if she could contribute to the cause. (She can’t send money over the internet, but wanted to mail me yaun, RMB in an envelope!) and yes, the call came during a run… and her first words were, “Are you OK? Are you running!?”

Top 10 Reasons Why Runners don't like Sidewalks (or Why You find Runners in the Street—on Asphalt)

Hey! Why do runners run in the street?! Don't they know that's what sidewalks are for? Well, here are some obstacles runners face. Some of these are very common on every run. Some are rare, but deadly when encountered. Runners love meeting people and 95% of the time such brief encounters are fun, affirming, adventurous!  Especially when running in exotic places! (meaning not your neighborhood. I love the fact that I have been privileged to run on trails, dirt roads, paths and pavements in over 20 countries and 40 states--this list reflects that. So, there are those who can be quite obnoxious to a runner who is just wanting to keep moving. I hope somebody reads this and can turn it into a “funny” “humorous” list, because that is really the intent. It is not meant to be offensive or accusatory.  I’m just not that funny. Here we go:

10.  We like our knees! Running on asphalt is easier on the knees. Concrete sidewalks are extremely hard surfaces.

9.   We hate tripping! Sidewalks are split into panels that quickly become uneven. Tripping over these panels as you are trying to increase/steady your pace is a major cause of injury.

8.   We don’t like getting continually banged in the head! Low hanging branches that aren’t trimmed turns a sprint into a duck walk for a runner.

7.   We need a hard hat! Construction projects, internet/cable lines, open manholes, cracked/broken water pipes, plugged sewer lines, work on power lines, all create obstacle courses that are impossible to navigate without getting into the street.

6.   We love our neighbors but … Garbage cans, trash cans, recycling bins, toys, bicycles, scooters, cars and trucks are all too common in blocking safe access to sidewalks. In continually dodging them, runners wind up sidestepping onto the street so often we might as well stay there.

5.   Some days we might as well be a mudder…Mud, grass clumps, wet moss, lawn mower grass clippings, sprinkler systems spurting more water into the street than on the lawn... all make for a slippery run.

4.   And then there is poop. Ever run Brush Creek off the Plaza? Seven miles of goose droppings. Closer to home, on any given day I can run down a neighborhood street and plant a foot in fresh doggy ….

3.   dogs. Dogs. DOGS. I love dogs. Generally, I can make friends with most any creature. BUT, there are those times... Yapping, snarling, growling. Chasing, snapping, biting. On a leash that reaches the sidewalk but not the street. Off a leash and lunging at your leg as if it is lunch. On a leash with a dog walker that thinks it’s “cute” to let them chase after you. On a leash with a dog-walker who thinks you are running to violate them and their pet is their protector.

2.   People. Walkers in pairs, threesomes, gaggles, who spread across the entire sidewalk and look at you as if you are invading their space. Children playing on the sidewalk… they’re so adorable… until they stick their foot out in your path to see if you will trip. Police. Soldiers…in riot gear. Security guards. Street vendors.

1.   There is NO sidewalk.

Jabra Fratburgers and Running Apps

Been using a new running app lately. I thought the voice inside my head, when announcing my training mode, was saying "fratburgers" and "party on".  Strange, but maybe some new hip lingo. 

Today I realized she was telling me "fat burn" and "cardio" hmmm. I either need a hearing aid or a translation app with my Jabra Sport Pulse wireless buds. I also love the stats: A 13.1 mile half marathon shows up on my app as a 14.6 mile run and my heart rate often goes up to 187 bpm … if only!   

Stockholm Syndrome

While on the train to Stockholm, I was visiting with a Swedish young man and jokingly made a comparison between the Stockholm syndrome and running a marathon. He was not amused. According to Wikipedia, Stockholm Syndrome “is a psychological phenomenon in which hostages have positive feelings toward their captors, sometimes to the point of defending and identifying with the captors. These feelings are generally considered irrational in light of the danger or risk endured by the victims, who essentially mistake a lack of abuse from their captors for an act of kindness.”

I was joking that running a marathon is like being “captured” by the thrill of the race, having positive feelings about running 26+ miles, while knowing that the end will probably involve pain, dehydration, exhaustion (and in my case, hyperthermia—and no one left to see me cross the finish line).  In trying to explain my feeble attempts at humor, I went on to say that one could view marathoners as irrational, masochistic and delusional. OK. It wasn’t funny. That’s why I’m not a comedian.

If you have forgotten, Stockholm Syndrome is named after the Norrmalmstorg robbery of Kreditbanken at Norrmalmstorg in Stockholm, Sweden. During the crime, several bank employees were held hostage in a bank vault from August 23 to 28, 1973, while their captors negotiated with police. During this standoff, the victims became emotionally attached to their captors, rejected assistance from government officials at one point, and even defended their captors after they were freed. The term was coined by Nils Bejerot, consultant psychiatrist to the police when it happened. He called it "Norrmalmstorgssyndromet" (Swedish), directly translated as The Norrmalmstorg Syndrome, but then later became known abroad as the Stockholm syndrome. (Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome)

For some Swedes, Stockholm still has a negative image because of this coined phrase referencing a robbery nearly 50 years ago.

I think we ought to change the image. Let’s campaign for the Stockholm Syndrome to be a phrase referring to a psychological phenomenon in which runners from all over the world come to run a marathon for the purpose of raising funds to eradicate poverty.

24,000 strong at the Start Line... took us 12 minutes to reach that line!

The new entry into Wikipedia could go something like’ “Runners have positive feelings toward their Swedish hosts, sometimes to the point of vacationing and often staying in the homes of Swedish families. They raise hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to minimize the danger and risk endured by the victims of poverty on a daily basis.”

I am always amazed at the number of fun-loving folks across the globe who participate in their favorite passion for worthy humanitarian causes. I am blessed to be able to combine my love of other cultures, adventure for travel,  passion for running, and commitment to eradicating poverty into fantastic life experiences like this one.