Rules of Running on the Road

Okay, so I'm not a runner, and during the few times I do run, I'm usually running on a treadmill or on an indoor track.  I'm never outside running on the road.  Despite never running on the road, I do have a fairly good idea of the rules that every runner should follow when running on the road.  These are rules that I intend on passing along to my daughters as they get older.  So why am I bringing this up now, before they are old enough to appreciate and understand the rules of running?  Let me explain.

The other day I was taking my younger daughter to daycare.  I had an early lab, so we were on the road around 7:30 AM.  The eastern sky was just starting to brighten, but it was still relatively dark out.  While driving on an undivided four lane road (two lanes each way), I noticed the car in front of me suddenly swerve to the left.  I'm wondering why the heck that car swerved, when in the middle of that thought I had to suddenly swerve to the left as well.  In front of me, moments from being struck by my car, is a lady running on the road.

Now, I fully understand that runners have the right to run on the road, but there are certain rules they must follow to avoid being hit and killed by a car.  Here are a few rules that this lady did not follow, resulting in her almost being hit by the car in front of me, almost being hit by me, and probably almost being hit by the cars behind me.  I say almost, because there was no article in the news later that day of a lady being killed while running on the road.  

1.  Every runner, if running in the dark or semi-dark, should wear flashers, reflectors, or something else that gives of light to denote that they are there.  This lady had none of these.

2.  Every runner, if running in the dark or semi-dark, should wear light colored clothing.  Dark colored clothing is more difficult to see.  This lady was wearing all black!  Yes, you read that correctly.  She was wearing all black.

3.  Runners, when running on the road, should always run AGAINST the traffic.  Never run with the traffic.  Running against the traffic allows you to see the cars as they approach.  Therefore you have a better idea if the driver sees you, and you can maneuver out of the way if necessary.  This lady was running WITH the traffic.

4.  If running on the road, runners should run as close as possible to the edge or curb.  This seems as if it should be common sense, but this lady was running 3-4 feet away from the curb.  There was enough room for at least 1, if not 2 or 3 runners to run next to her!

I'm not sure if this lady had a death wish or not, but she was breaking every rule in the book.  I'll teach my daughters the rules of running and why those rules are important.  Those rules aren't there simply to have rules.  Those rules are there to save your life.