Running is such a positive part of my life but every once in a while annoying things happen. Here’s a short list of my running pet peeves. (I don’t want to seem like a negative Nilly…no offense to any Nilly’s out there…so I have included a positive flip side. 🙂

1. Having cars pull out in front of me without looking.

         I’m sure you can all relate to this. It happens all the time while driving. Click here for safety tips.      

• On the flip side…All’s good if they wave and apologize. 🙂

2. Dog poop on the sidewalk, or anywhere in my path for that matter.         Gross! Pick up after your dog!

       For more on running with your dog click here.

• On the flip side…Maybe they used their last bag on an earlier poop. It happens. :-/

3. People that don’t smile or nod. Especially if you see them all the time.     🙁 

        Check out my post on running etiquette here.

• On the flip side…They could just be in a zone or prefer to be left alone. I can respect that. 

4. Litter! Why do people litter? I’ll never understand it. 🙁

• On the flip side…There is no flip side, except at least today the streets were mostly clean, especially where it’s usually littered with 99cent Store receipts and candy wrappers. All clean today! A big thanks to our city workers! Do you ever pick up a piece of trash along your route? 

5. Yappy little dogs and their oblivious owners.

          Some tiny dogs act like they want to kill you. If my German Shepherd acted like that there would be all kinds of issues.

• On the flip side…The little dog is just trying to protect itself and seem bigger. I blame the lack of discipline from the owner.

6. Bikes on the sidewalk. Bikes belong on the street.

• On the flip side…If there is no bike lane, it’s an unsafe section of street, or if a kid is riding the bike.

So there you have my list of pet peeves related to road running. Not a terribly long list.

Is there anything you would add? 

Running is suppose to be positive and relieve stress, so I don’t dwell on any of these, but some days it’s an effort to just let it go. 🙂

Thanks for reading and stay positive!

Keep running!

Denise