Sigh. Least bit, not least but…

@Jamie, @Laura … right. Full disclosure, when I run in the dark (or light, but particularly the dark b/c I do that from home not work) now, I am mostly running with my large dog. On average, he’s about as aggressive as a watermelon, but I suspect would respond differently if he thought I were threatened (he is very much “my dog.”). And while he is not the least but threatening, himself, to people who know dogs, he is big enough that even most of those approach with caution. So.

That said, I ran in the dark before he came into my life. I live in a warmer and smaller place than Laura does, so the conditions are different (even mid-winter, I rarely need to worry about slipping on something frozen). And up until about 9 at night (I do not run in the morning), there are a pretty good number of walkers/runners out and about where I live. The lumpy sidewalks are an issue, so I go slower, or lift my feet higher (or both), or run on the roads — which does not mean “in traffic,” where I am talking about. And there are neighborhoods near mine with paved or smooth greenways that I make some use of, though less when it is dark.

Honestly, as with anything I think it’s a matter of familiarity or not, and having done it without encountering trouble, I now feel comfortable doing it. Of course nothing is risk free …

@Nancy- many thanks! Another publicity project to embark upon!

@Jamie- I get jumpy about safety too. But the safety issue I worry about more in the dark is whether cars can see me. I’m running on streets. People sometimes behave as if they’ve never seen a pedestrian before. Plus it’s hilly/curvy. So to me it’s not worth it.

@Alexicographer: I get jumpy about safety. I worry about potential encounters with others; I worry about missing my footing here in my older neighborhood where the sidewalks are uneven. I once fell while running at night and sprained my ankle badly while more than a mile from home. No fun at all.

It’s not super-sensible to worry more about assault in the pre-dawn hours than during quiet stretches of the day (all of the attacks I know of on our multi-use trail have happened during daylight hours, for instance), but I worry anyway.

I run (or jog) in the dark … do you have particular thoughts or questions on the experience?

@Amy – that would be a change of pace! Yep, winter can be good for cross-training.

@Jamie – I generally aim to run when it’s light if I’m running outside. This is a major upside of self-employment – that I can do this during the weeks, even in winter. Although sunrise is around 7:10 these days, meaning it’s somewhat light by about 6:45 – so I guess a short outdoor run could work if one had to be at work at 9-ish, without too epic a commute.

I only ran on the slippery trail because I didn’t know it was going to be slippery. We ran slower than usual (we did 7 miles in a time we’ve often done 8) and tried to run around the worst of it. Definitely worth walking at points vs. slipping and getting an injury!