Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2002 23:53:18 +0000
From: "Kurt Bray" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: t-and-f: yelling at runners (was: favortie sport...)
>I think that gh is accurate that the whole thing is further evidence of a
>breakdown in civility, but perhaps it's even more accurate to say that
>individuals are feeling less and less secure about themselves and
>compensate
>by making fun of others in far more stupid ways than past generations did.
>I.'ve been honked/yelled-at/mocked in northern Calif., southern Calif.,
>Oregon, Minnesota, Florida, and pretty much every other place where I've run
>more than once or twice.
>My own theory on why they do it is that, by running past them, many people
>of a more sedentary life style are automatically annoyed. Because by your
>very willingness to so visibly work so hard at something they are too lazy
t>o do, you are inadvertently asserting a form of moral superiority over
t>hem. And they resent it.
>Kurt Bray
I think it's also a function of the venue you choose, too. I've had beer
cans and verbal epithets thrown my way on country roads all over. But in
20 years here in Eugene, I have heard not even a catcall, largely because
my jogging is limited to bike paths, where there are relatively few people,
and no motor vehicles. I'm sure the runners in the community who go out on
long jaunts would have a different story to tell.
As an aside, I knew Eugene was the place for me on my first visit, in
June of 1971. While running on a local golf course, a collie dashed out
from a nearby yard and latched onto my achilles. The neighbor next door
ran over, helped chase the dog off, and promised to call Animal
Control. My kind of town.
