In the "What are they thinking?" Category ...

[Pepper]

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!

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!

Somebody, please, tell me what these people are thinking!!!

[pmj]

Yes, this is pretty dangerous. There were signs along Rt 28 in Barnstead/Pittsfield yesterday warning motorists to be aware that there was an road race last night and that there would be runners along the highway.
Why not run early in the morning after sunrise???

pmj

[KonaChick]

Are towns granting permission for these races?? Don't you have to get permits from the town to engage in these 5k's or whatever it was? I would think so...and I would start there as far as complaints. Call your town hall and do a little investigation work and let them know you're not happy.

[nshore]

I think this was the "Race to the Beach Relay",...which is a 200 mile, 24 hour event..

[Rose]

Originally Posted by Pepper

Somebody, please, tell me what these people are thinking!!!

Pepper,

My first reaction is "do runner's think?"

They were participating in a 200-mile relay race called Reach the Beach. Here's a link to a story about the race

http://www.thelandmark.com/news/2006..._News/101.html

The link to the article about the race in the Citizen isn't working at the moment.

Have a good race weekend,
Rose

[Pepper]

Indeed, it was the "Reach the Beach" relay! I found the homepage for the event, and it can be accessed here: http://www.rtbrelay.com/index.shtml

Rose - most of the links in the Citizen online this morning are not working , which is what encouraged me to seek info elsewhere via Google. Thanks for the link to the other newspaper!

I checked out the route on the homepage, and discovered why the runners may have been more "high volume" when they were on my road. Certain areas were listed as Quiet Zone - my neighborhood was not one of them.

pmj - I'm glad some towns warned folks in advance! Would have been nice to see some warning signs on Rte 107 yesterday.

[pmj]

Absolutely, Pepper. Signs should have been posted on all legs.
At least it was for a good cause and hopefully all were safe!

pmj

[Island Life]

What a surreal and amazing thing to see. I would have loved to see it - better yet to have participated in it. One Halloween Night, as we were taking the kids trick-or-treating, we saw a line of lights coming toward us. They were floating about 4 feet in the air, bobbing around a little bit. For the longest time we saw only the lights. As they neared, we saw that they were headlamps worn by a group of 8 or 10 adult cyclists dressed in costumes. They glided by silently and waved. It felt like we were in an artsy film and I never will forget that experience.

[mcdude]

Pepper:
As I was reading along on your post I kept thinking..this is a joke....or....what is she drinking?

I have heard about this Reach the Beach Relay because I read about it in the local newspaper...they were seeking permits at a town meeting in Barnstead. JJ Goodwin's on Rt. 28 was one of their "rest stops".

Here's from a blog from the 2003 event:

2:00 AM Saturday - I nestle peacefully into our mothership "moosemobile". Moose Digger takes off for a be-sparkled run through residential Gilmanton. He pulled the lucky straw! With his early difficult run, he looks forward to a serengeti-flat four and a half-mile run. As crowded as a Christmas mall, he weaves his way through a virtual throng of runners. Chatty runners kibitz and enjoy the company of newfound running buddies on the darkened road. Companionship on a lonely night course, priceless.

With a lopsided moose smile and dangling headlamp Moose Chaffee is next to be serenaded off on his 6.4 mile moon light stroll. Destination: JJ Goodwins Eatery and Sports Pub, Barnstead New Hampshire. Granted in 1727, Barnstead is home to nine lakes, 3,886 residents and for a short while 1000 noisy runners and six sleep-deprived moose. Early settlers named Barnstead after Cape Cods' Barnstable and Long Islands' Hampstead.

I guess I didn't realize that this goes on all night long! Kinda crazy...

Pepper; Glad to hear you weren't hallucinating!

McD

[Weirs guy]

Note to runners: running through my neighborhood in the middle of the night and waking me and my family up will get you shot at with a paint ball gun. I understand its for a good cause, but the road will still be there in the morning.

[SAMIAM]

I was told that they were heading to an Al Gore 2008 rally and were running at night so as to release less carbon monoxide into the atmosphere.The SUV's accompanying them were all converted to bio fuel.

[pmj]

hehehe..good one,Samiam. They were also probably trying to avoid the global warming effects and running with cool night breezes.

[Weirs guy]

Didn't Al Gore invent bio-fuel?

[ITD]

Originally Posted by Weirs guy

Didn't Al Gore invent bio-fuel?

Nah, it was the internet......... Smart guy that Gore, poster boy for Global Warming..

[KBoater]

Pepper,
I so glad you found my trained fire flies. I lost them the 4th of July in Wolfeboro It did take them a long time to get to your house but they only go about after midnight.

[rander7823]

Live Free or Die....unless you bother me.

[Weirs guy]

Originally Posted by rander7823

Live Free or Die....unless you bother me.

More like the Wiccan Rede "An it harm none do what thou will". I don't think anyone has the right to "impose" their good time on someone else.

[Pepper]

Originally Posted by rander7823

Live Free or Die....unless you bother me.

Not sure why you think I feel this way.

[rander7823]

Sorry my comment wasn't meant for you....as you seemed quite amused by the whole situation.
It was more of a mischievious catalyst to see how wound up everyone would get.

[Pepper]

Originally Posted by rander7823

Sorry my comment wasn't meant for you....as you seemed quite amused by the whole situation.
It was more of a mischievious catalyst to see how wound up everyone would get.

Bad boy! Trying to start and and

These days, fortunately, there's a lot more and and even an occassional !!!

But I will say, you almost got me !

[Airwaves]

Note to folks in NH

Now and again we folk from the lower states need to "get away" and since NH is the first place we can "get way" to, some of us do.

I have been known to leave the Fitzwilliam Inn the weekend following Thanksgiving with a group of about 20 folk and go for a walk.

That means 20 of us are walking down the dark streets of Fitzwilliam!

Running? Hell that healthy crap will kill ya

[rander7823]

Originally Posted by Pepper

Bad boy! Trying to start and and

These days, fortunately, there's a lot more and and even an occassional !!!

I always like a good "discussion" so I tend to send stupid stuff just to get it going. And like I always tell her "It was a simple question with a yes or no answer and you said yes......don't blame me"