Contemplations on a Really Bad Idea
Posted By Randy on June 2, 2010
I have a subscription to the Zenhabits newsletter, regularly enjoy returning to their excellent website, and highly recommend it. Today I discovered a guest post titled “A Beginner’s Guide to Trail Running” accompanied by the beautiful photograph at left and written by Matthew Frazier of No Meat Athlete. According to the note about the author at the end of the article, Mr. Frazier is training for his first “50-mile ultramarathon”. I wish him well, but having read the article and reflecting on this practice of “trail running” as he describes it, I think it’s more likely he’ll be eaten by coyotes or a mountain lion, stung to death by wasps, or maimed by somebody’s dog before he achieves his goal. Don’t overthink this. Every part of this trail running article strikes a chord in me because I get exactly the same thrill and soul nurturing effect Mr. Frazier describes from being in the wild myself – all except for the running part.
People get into trouble in the wild because the gobsmacking grandeur of it outhollers the distant echo of what was known and lived by our wilder ancestors, now grown faint and perverted through a combination of disuse, marketing, and wishful thinking in place of reality. Actually in reality, creatures in the wild that aren’t hummingbirds don’t dash madly from place to place, and for those that do as part of their normal behaviour, the practice has developed for sound reasons of survival and only seems mad. For most animals, if they run it’s either after or away from something. To catch or avoid becoming prey. Running uses up valuable energy reserves, attracts unwanted attention, and is employed as a means to an end, not an end in itself.
A predator views running as a reason to give chase. No need to go to the woods to test this. Try running away from a dog some time. Forest trails are rarely straight or flat and speed takes away the ability to read what is ahead, like “overdriving” your headlights by driving too fast at night. Other animals that normally don’t want anything to do with humans, black bear and moose for example, but let us not forget skunks, porcupines, raccoons, venomous snakes if you go where they live, and even deer under the right circumstances, can be expected to act with defensive ferocity if surprised by a large creature that they suddenly find to be close by and running toward them with unknown intent. Think on this, and think on how these encounters regularly end badly for the animal that is now branded as dangerous, fit only to be run to ground and killed.
With no offense intended to Mr. Frazier, I think his article would have been improved if item 7 in his “7 Steps to Your First Trail Run” was followed by yet an eighth step – DON’T RUN!
Walk the trails of the wild. Slow down. Sense it all and soak it up. Do as the wild things do.
I agree 100%, but do have to say that a vast majority of the trails used for these ultramarathon trail racing events are the same trails hundreds of locals frequent on a daily basis and scare all the real wildlife out of their habitats. Outside Magazine’s Annual Buyer’s Guide came out last month and more than half the issue was devoted towards trail running gear-it must be the new “in thing” as far as outdoor sports goes.
Coyote chewed buttock might end up being the new shin splint. Unfortunately, while Mr. Frazier is himself training for that ultramarathon, the tone of this article promotes running in the wild as a personal development activity. Thankfully he does warn his readers to, wherever possible, run with a friend. Unfortunately, that bit of advice reminded me of the old joke about the two guys being chased by a bear. One stopped to put on his running shoes explaining, “I don’t have to outrun that bear, I only have to outrun you.”
Too true. Thankfully I have my Dad’s Norwegian endurance abilities-Yuppie John and Yuppie Jane don’t stand a chance. I bet 400 dollar running shoes taste better than my 5 year old New Balances anyway…
The outrunning the friend part is very true. Jason and I go running and biking quite often. We encouter many dogs on our runs and we always joke that neither of us have to outrun the dog just each other. Only bad part is Jason can run faster than me. Guess I know why he always wants me to go with.
Wasn’t there something in the marriage vows that had to do with Jason promising to protect you? Maybe that got left out somehow.
[…] my 2 June 2010 article titled Contemplations on a Really bad Idea, I talked about the abysmally stupid practice of “trail running” and its singular […]
Aha! Not being a runner, it never occurred to me but makes perfect sense. Leave it to us human beings to take a completely unnatural, unsafe, unsound behavior and make a sport (special shoes, clothing, hydration systems, etc.) out of it.
You know how it goes Gary – it’s all fun and games until somebody loses an eye. Then it’s a sport.
[…] running, walking, sitting on a bus, in a public park, or in the woods; clarity of perception is paramount […]
[…] This is entirely up the trail of another article published here on 2 June 2010 under the title Contemplations on a Really Bad Idea. […]
Great article and makes perfect sence. Had a guy in my area just get attacked by a black bear with cubs in a surprise encounter just like you described. His dog is truely a hero and he is lucky but sadly the bear was destroyed and the cubs relocated.
Thanks Shane. Even when you're careful, shit can happen.
Thanks Shane. Even when you're careful, shit can happen.