29 February 2008
The Most Dangerous Car
Posted by Matt Stargardt under: Matt Stargardt .
Runners beware.
The most dangerous car on the road today is not the 2 ton SUV or the rickety old college student special, rather there is a new threat that runners must now contend with: The Hybrid. No longer can you depend on the comforting rumble of an internal compbustion engine to alert you to an oncoming car, instead you must also listen for the faint golf car like hum of an electric engine. This what the buffalo must have experienced when it encountered its first train, or when a deer was caught staring into the headlights of the first model T.
This stealth car could not have come at a worse time. For the first time in history Ipods and MP3 playing have become both widespread and light enough to be acceptable to run with. No serious runner in the 80’s ever ran with a walkman, unless it was for personal protection . With a hand grip and the metal case, it rivaled a can of mace. Now, the modern equipment is light enough to make a pack of gum feel weight conscious, yet still powerful enough to cause hearing loss.
I have a local Hybrid that always seems to catch me by surprise. I’ll be at a four way stop, look left and right for crossing traffic, and then get that feeling like a bumper is closing in on my knee. Sure enough there it is.
I do have a plan if a car is ever to hit me. I don’t know the record for the amount of damage caused by a runner to a vehicle in a collision, but I will be attempted to break it. I just need enough notice to get airborn to get my butt on the hood, so that I can roll up the windshield, using my fingers to flash the appropriate sign to the driver.
I know that the easiest solution would be not not wear the ipod while running…….but that would feel like returning to dialup after experiencing cable….its not happening. I have faith that technology will eventually provide an answer to the problem it created. I’m am sure Apple can come up with a chip that can be placed under the bumper of a car, that can send out a warning to any ipods in the area of its rapid approach………..or we could also just require Hybrids and other ultra quiet cars to drag cans behind them.
Matt
1 more cold run
3 Comments so far...
Mike D Says:
29 February 2008 at 4:04 pm.
Or maybe old baseball cards in the spokes of the wheels….
Steve Kelly Says:
1 March 2008 at 7:13 am.
Brilliant post Road Warrior. I’ve seen people run with a stick to ward off stray dogs…perhaps you could use it to Granderson that hybrid into a ditch!
Lisa Gillary Says:
3 March 2008 at 11:59 am.
I run in the Metro Detroit area and you can tell when you’re in West Bloomfield (aka East Grand Rapids) versus Farmington Hills (aka Zeeland) - in WB you can’t hear the cars due to the “quality” and newness of the vehicle versus the humans who can’t afford the Lexus or other “fancy pants” cars in Farmington Hills. And that IS without headphones! Pop on the tunes and forget about it!