Pepper
09-16-2006, 12:56 AM
OK, so I'm sitting in my recliner, laptop on my lap, and it's about half past midnight. The sliders are open on this balmy late summer evening, and the sounds of the crickets and coyotes are providing an evening serenade as I surf the net.
Out of the corner of my eye I see some lights go by. This is not uncommon, as the sliders face the road, and car lights are visible. Then I realize that traffic is backed up and moving extremely slowly. Then, among the car lights, I see other, smaller lights. So, I go to the door and look. Sure enough, there's a road-race - grown adults wearing little teeny weeny lights on their heads, sometimes on their feet, and sometimes on their chests and backs. These lights are apparently powered by the motion of the runners (with the stronger runners' lights being far brighter than the slower runners' lights As they run in the pitch dark, they resemble creatures from another planet with twinkling lights adorning themselves.
Then, as I watch in amazement at hundreds, yes hundreds of these twinkling runners pass in front of my house it occurs to me ~~~ IT'S PAST MIDNIGHT ON A FRIDAY NIGHT AND THERE ARE PEOPLE RUNNING DOWN A DARK COUNTRY HIGHWAY, IN A FAIRLY DENSE FOG, AT THE SAME TIME THAT FOLKS ARE LEAVING THE BARS AFTER AN EVENING OF LIQUID ENTERTAINMENT! :eek:
As I continue watching in pure amazement, wondering how none of these people are hit by cars whose drivers are completely taken by surprise at the twinkling lights moving down the road, I realize that there are no cars heading north on 107. I watch for the better part of an hour, and sure enough not one car passes going north. Meanwhile, a parade of vans, trucks and SUV's, many brightly festooned with christmas lights on their roofs, proceeds south past my house. Many of the drivers and passengers in these vehicles shout words of encouragement to the runners, or offer bottles of water. The runners sometimes shout back to the cars, or carry on loud conversations as they run along. I think to myself - how many residents along this road are being jolted awake by these sudden outbursts, only to go to the window and see a nighttime parade of christmas-tree-light decorated cars, and a bunch of alien lights hopping down the street?
I gotta tell ya, I am really left wondering about the sanity of anybody who willingly chooses to engage in a race that requires them to run down dark, unfamiliar roads in the middle of the night. I sit here and watch as runner after runner goes by, and parade after parade of cars, all in groups, pass along beside them. In between are individual runners comletely on their own in the dark, with nothing but their little twinkly light-caps to guide the way. What happens if one of them trips on a rock in the road, or steps too close to the edge and falls in a ditch. Who's gonna know? How about if one (heaven forbid) get's hit by a car that comes out of my street where there is no officer stopping him, and heads north, not knowing what's going on? Honestly, this is anything but safe if you ask me (not that anybody did).
I'm gonna hit the sack now, but rest assured it's gonna be a while before I fall asleep. I'll be laying awake worrying about these grown people whose idea of fun is running in the fog on a dark country road while the bars are letting out. And worrying about the folks already asleep who are at risk getting the life scared out of them if they happen to wake up and look out the window on their way to the bathroom! :rolleye2:
Somebody, please, tell me what these people are thinking!!!
Out of the corner of my eye I see some lights go by. This is not uncommon, as the sliders face the road, and car lights are visible. Then I realize that traffic is backed up and moving extremely slowly. Then, among the car lights, I see other, smaller lights. So, I go to the door and look. Sure enough, there's a road-race - grown adults wearing little teeny weeny lights on their heads, sometimes on their feet, and sometimes on their chests and backs. These lights are apparently powered by the motion of the runners (with the stronger runners' lights being far brighter than the slower runners' lights As they run in the pitch dark, they resemble creatures from another planet with twinkling lights adorning themselves.
Then, as I watch in amazement at hundreds, yes hundreds of these twinkling runners pass in front of my house it occurs to me ~~~ IT'S PAST MIDNIGHT ON A FRIDAY NIGHT AND THERE ARE PEOPLE RUNNING DOWN A DARK COUNTRY HIGHWAY, IN A FAIRLY DENSE FOG, AT THE SAME TIME THAT FOLKS ARE LEAVING THE BARS AFTER AN EVENING OF LIQUID ENTERTAINMENT! :eek:
As I continue watching in pure amazement, wondering how none of these people are hit by cars whose drivers are completely taken by surprise at the twinkling lights moving down the road, I realize that there are no cars heading north on 107. I watch for the better part of an hour, and sure enough not one car passes going north. Meanwhile, a parade of vans, trucks and SUV's, many brightly festooned with christmas lights on their roofs, proceeds south past my house. Many of the drivers and passengers in these vehicles shout words of encouragement to the runners, or offer bottles of water. The runners sometimes shout back to the cars, or carry on loud conversations as they run along. I think to myself - how many residents along this road are being jolted awake by these sudden outbursts, only to go to the window and see a nighttime parade of christmas-tree-light decorated cars, and a bunch of alien lights hopping down the street?
I gotta tell ya, I am really left wondering about the sanity of anybody who willingly chooses to engage in a race that requires them to run down dark, unfamiliar roads in the middle of the night. I sit here and watch as runner after runner goes by, and parade after parade of cars, all in groups, pass along beside them. In between are individual runners comletely on their own in the dark, with nothing but their little twinkly light-caps to guide the way. What happens if one of them trips on a rock in the road, or steps too close to the edge and falls in a ditch. Who's gonna know? How about if one (heaven forbid) get's hit by a car that comes out of my street where there is no officer stopping him, and heads north, not knowing what's going on? Honestly, this is anything but safe if you ask me (not that anybody did).
I'm gonna hit the sack now, but rest assured it's gonna be a while before I fall asleep. I'll be laying awake worrying about these grown people whose idea of fun is running in the fog on a dark country road while the bars are letting out. And worrying about the folks already asleep who are at risk getting the life scared out of them if they happen to wake up and look out the window on their way to the bathroom! :rolleye2:
Somebody, please, tell me what these people are thinking!!!