Labor Day

Yesterday was really just naps and swimmer's ear and irritability.  It was not much to make a note of, for serious.

Today, however, was rather notable.  My four year old and I popped out of bed and headed in to run the Franklin Classic.  Here was the plan:

1) Pack the jog stroller
2) Four year old rides in the jog stroller while I push during the 5k
3) Park the jog stroller
4) Run the fun run with my four year old

In my head, before the run, the plan had several potential flaws:

1) My four year old does not love to sit in the jog stroller any more
2) He might insist on getting out of the jog stroller OR try to leap from the jog stroller while it was moving
3) There was the possibility of someone not wanting to run the fun run once we got there
4) There was the possibility of someone starting the fun run, THEN stopping in the middle and having to be carried back to where ever the jog stroller was now parked.

None of my anticipated flaws actually happened.  Here is what really happened and what I learned about myself.

1) No one should be allowed to push a jog stroller in a road race.  I easily hit 400 people in the heel with the jog stroller.  I was careening around sidewalks and orange cones with my child yelling "whoa, whoa, whoa" the whole way.  I was a hazard.  No two ways about it.  If you see me registered in your race with a jog stroller, go complain to the officials until they kick me out.

2) Most of the people that I hit where wearing ipod earbuds (which I always wear when I can), so when I yelled "whoa" or "excuse me" they could not hear me, then I surged forward and hit them in the heel.  It was not intentional, it was just a comedy of errors.  Probably earbuds and jog strollers are a bad combination.

3) Since the sidewalks were off limits for road racers, I thought I could safely race my jog stroller on the sidewalk (though clearly breaking the rules) and not hit anyone.  However, there were always a few rouge runners on the sidewalks, and when I ran blind around a corner, I would hit someone.

Lesson learned.  Jog strollers are treacherous.  One year (several years ago), I ran a local race, The Boulevard Bolt and I heard that someone was impaled by a jog stroller.  This was just a rumor and maybe it didn't actually happen, BUT at the time I sort of rolled my eyes about the idea of something so silly.  BUT, having been the maniaical pusher of a careening jog stroller, I can see it.  I am lucky that no one required medical attention from my uncoordinated pushing.  Maybe they did, and I just kept running and didn't notice.

Beware of jog strollers.  It is my Labor Day advice.