Safety first, runners

I love the fact that Spokane residents get out to exercise in all kinds of weather, day or night. I am an avid outdoor runner, but in doing so I take the appropriate steps to ensure, to the best of my abilities, that I return home safely.

What befuddles me is the number of individuals partaking in these activities on busy city/county roads that don’t care about themselves, or maybe prefer to be naturally selected for removal. But because I care, I would like to share these few words of advice:

Buy (and wear) the proper protective gear. This includes a reflective safety vest (not just neon clothing, which is not reflective), a headlamp with good lumen output, and what many call a butt or tail light, which is usually red.

In doing so, you have a better chance of not getting hit by the increasing number of cellphone users not paying attention while driving.

Best of luck. And, oh, by the way, to the runners on Glenrose Street (35 mph) who I encountered a few weeks back running five abreast around a corner, I probably should have brushed back one of you as a teachable moment.

Jonathan Wald

Spokane