Running rape hits close to home

by Jacki Donaldson (Subscribe to Jacki Donaldson's posts)
May 21st 2008 3:00PM

In my very own city, in a neighborhood just a few miles away, a 36-year-old woman was beaten and raped while jogging this morning. She wasn't far from her house, on a trail that winds through her sprawling subdivision, when a man got out of his car, assaulted her at gunpoint, and got away when her screams beckoned another jogger. The man is on the loose. The woman, now in the hospital, is left scarred forever.

I don't know much else about this story -- I don't really want to know more -- but I do realize that my own solo darkened morning runs through area neighborhoods have got to stop. I don't like it. But I do like my life. And so I can run on my treadmill at home. Or I can run outdoors during daylight hours, perhaps with a friend tagging along, or I can focus my efforts at the gym. I don't have to run outside, in the dark, alone. In fact, I'd be pretty wise not to.

Fitness, clearly, isn't always good for your health, especially with a possible side effect like rape. So please, let this story motivate you to take every possible safety precaution when you're working out. It's exactly what I'm going to do.

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Comments (4)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

linmoco 5-21-2008 @ 3:58PM

No more 4:30 am runs for me. I run with my little beagle. Some of the stretchs don't have houses for 3 or 400 yards. Scary!

angelarburley 5-21-2008 @ 6:07PM

I run at all hours, day and night and I used to worry about this until I read a statistic showing that most crime (about 51%) happens during daylight hours. Sunlight does not equate to safety. I refuse to live my life in fear and not do the things I want to just because I live in the 4th largest city in the u.s. I do carry a cellphone with me at all times while running and try to keep an eye on what is going on around me. I also carry a weapon at all times, so I can fight back if something happens. I hate to hear stories like this and wish we didn't have these things happening, unfortunately that is not the real world we live in. I wish her all the best in her recovery and hope they catch the jerk.

Goldnpwrgirl 5-21-2008 @ 6:07PM

I usually run with my dog (medium size) and had recently considered running earlier in the morning to get a better jump start on my day. The warnings above have definately changed my mind. I will wait till the sun comes up.

runner_girl 5-22-2008 @ 8:39AM

This kind of story makes me so angry. I HATE that as a woman I need to be more careful than my husband does about when and where I run. It shouldn't be this way. It is this way and I have to do what I can to stay safe, but it just angers me so.
I hope she recovers and is able to get out there and run again soon.