Paul Turner: Predawn hours offer proof that running is in our Spokane DNA

I see them every weekday morning.

Sometimes in groups of three or four. Sometimes as side-by-side pairs. And then there are the men or women striding along by themselves.

Sometimes there’s a loyal dog. All are running away from lifestyle inertia in Spokane’s predawn darkness.

Day after day. Morning after morning. Running, running, running.

Even if it’s make-you-whimper cold. When the streets are icy, you can hear their pull-over cleats scratching the pavement as they purposefully pass beneath one streetlight and then another.

Bloomsday is still months away. But, to me, these early birds are more impressive than anything that will happen in broad daylight on the first Sunday in May.

Can you imagine how much easier it would have been to stay in a nice, warm bed? Maybe get just a few more winks? Then ease into the day.

Oh, I know. It’s not just a Spokane thing. I suppose there are predawn runners everywhere.

But standing near a corner of 37th and Perry at 5:45 a.m. and watching them go by as I wait for the No. 43 bus, it feels like a Spokane thing. It has for years. Maybe because, from my vantage, we have a lot of these hardy souls.

A few of the lean runners look like they might have shockingly little body fat. They move swiftly with ground swallowing strides. One moment, they’re here. Then they’re gone.

Others appear less like whippets and more like people familiar with spending some quality time on the couch.

And yet, somewhere within themselves they found the discipline to roll out of bed and shake a leg. I’m told having a running partner can make a big difference when excuses for staying home start to seem enticing.

I wouldn’t know. I have not been a runner since Nixon was president.

I’ve had lots of friends who are runners (some don’t like it when you say “joggers”). But to tell you the truth, I’ve occasionally found the way a few runners wrap themselves in unbridled self-regard, well, a little off-putting.

But then I started riding a bike in 2008 and could not shut up about it. If you got within 20 feet of me, you ran a real risk of hearing more than you wanted to know about my new bike light or tweaks to my commuting route.

Is it too late to apologize to those I bored with my not-always-scintillating bicycling revelations?

Here’s the thing, though. I have zero qualms about saluting these early morning runners.

It’s not just a simple matter of admiring their dedication, which I do. I like that they chose to make a habit of these predawn workouts, when certainly easier options beckoned.

Frankly, it’s sort of inspiring. Makes one proud of his neighbors – even if you don’t know their names.

Sure, you can see Spokane runners exercising all through the day. There’s nothing magic about predawn training, I suppose.

But I like seeing them out there. Lifts my spirits.

They say running is in this city’s DNA. So too, it could be argued, is getting up early. (Think railroads and going fishing.)

Often festooned with reflective apparel, some in this early morning vanguard wear blinkers and headband lights that make them look like miners in sneakers.

Some runners carry on conversations as they traverse the streets of Spokane. I imagine a cloud of chatter trailing behind them as they retrace their familiar routes.

Others say nothing and go about their business like phantoms in the night’s last gasp.

People run for different reasons. Some do it for fitness and health. Others like what it does for their appearance.

But if I had to guess, I’d say some of Spokane’s predawn runners are attracted to the idea of clearing their heads of static as they prepare to tackle the rest of their day. They might even formulate a plan of attack for work by the time they get home and turn on the shower.

Some onlookers might see them out there running in the dark and question their sanity, especially when the winter weather is going sideways.

But I admire them, and wish them.

I hope warm welcome-home smiles await them when they come in from the cold.