[sueandskip]

Whatever happened to running in your neighborhood....why the street....That makes about as much sense to me as the people who park in the street...We need a common sense law !

[sueandskip]

Originally Posted by karostay

Courtesy has been on the down hill slide here for the past few years.
When we first arrived in the villages everyone in golf carts waved said hello
Rarely happens any more so sad

Age is the difference...That's why you always hear that the people on the older side is much nicer !!!

[DAWN MARIE]

Originally Posted by sueandskip

Whatever happened to running in your neighborhood....why the street....That makes about as much sense to me as the people who park in the street...We need a common sense law !

My neighborhood has a one mile circle in both directions. The most I can do is 2 miles but even some of that will end up on O'Dell as I loop around. When I go out to do a seven mile run it's not possible unless I want to run around and around my neighborhood which would be tedious to say the least. Not to mention I run five days a week.

Most runs are out and back. If I do a six miler I go out three miles, turn around and come home. I live over by the Amelia PO. So for me I have to run over the Morse Bridge and back to get in 6 miles. If I go in the other direction I run to Captivia and back or Gators and back is another route. Most of the run is on golf cart paths but in between roads have to be used.

So back to common sense. In order for distance runners to run effectively sometimes they have no choice to run on the roads which makes the most logical sense to get the distance in.

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by sueandskip

Whatever happened to running in your neighborhood....why the street....That makes about as much sense to me as the people who park in the street...We need a common sense law !

If you run 5-7 miles per day that an awful lot of the same streets to run if you don't at least go down some of the semi-main roads to get to other locations.

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by sueandskip

Age is the difference...That's why you always hear that the people on the older side is much nicer !!!

I have many, many patients who live on the 'older side'. Believe me: Not ALWAYS nicer.

But in general most TV'ers are very pleasant, in or out, of the hospital.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by DAWN MARIE

Rubicon...Did you ever think about just stopping until the lone runner goes by? Two seconds. All that is necessary is to lift your foot off the pedal. That's it. Wave while you're at it. It will make our day.

There is actually enough room for both cart and runner on those lanes without the cart actually going into the car traffic. The few times I've run on Morse Blvd I've gone into the grassy area when an upcoming cart approaches but there might be a spot or two where that might be a problem. Also when a runner is putting in a lot of mileage sometimes they find themselves on the roadways because there's isn't enough golf cart paths to run on. We do our best to stay on the paths but sometimes a mile or two is needed to get ourselves onto the next path and out of major traffic. We would rather run with as little traffic as possible as that is the ideal but for various reasons that's not always doable. There isn't that many runners out there for this to be an issue.

Hi Dawn Marie: Have you ever heard of a vehicle being rear ended because someone other vehicle stopped abruptly.

Have you ever studied risks? Because if you have the only method of preventing an accident is to remove or reduce those elements that may create an accident.

Someone could store gas in their garage for years but suddenly one day the gas ignites. Some one charges their electric cart every day for years but suddenly a fire erupts.

Runners desire to use the diamond lanes causes drivers to react and no one cares until a jogger is run down or a golf cart pulls into the path of a vehicle behind him.

I studies risk all my career and people just don't fully appreciate how in an instant their lives are altered forever.

Personal Best Regards:

[eremite06]

Originally Posted by George Bieniaszek

As in boating, a general rule of thumb is anything larger than you has the right of way!!!

No.......sailboats have the right of way, regardless of size. Yeah, if you have something huge bearing down on you, rule of thumb comes into play.

[Chazz]

Sadly, from reading the many posts in this thread, it appears to me that the only certain solution is an impractical one that will never happen. Several lanes on each main road designated for each type of user (i.e automotive, golf cart, bicycle, walker, and jogger). That would be five lanes in each direction. Completely nuts! So, we are left with the need to make do with what we have, which entails equally good doses of common sense and courtesy. Let's not get hurt, nor hurt anyone else out there.

[DAWN MARIE]

Originally Posted by rubicon

Hi Dawn Marie: Have you ever heard of a vehicle being rear ended because someone other vehicle stopped abruptly.

Have you ever studied risks? Because if you have the only method of preventing an accident is to remove or reduce those elements that may create an accident.

Runners desire to use the diamond lanes causes drivers to react and no one cares until a jogger is run down or a golf cart pulls into the path of a vehicle behind him.

Let's face it. There are all sorts of risks involving driving. You could have a seizure or a heart attack as well. So you might as well not drive to be on the safe side.

Runners running against traffic cuts down any major risk involved. Like I've already said...I've not heard of one runner causing an accident in the Villages but have heard of many accidents caused by speeding golf carts. So why don't we eliminate the greater risk by getting rid of the carts? If that's your argument, that makes the most common sense doesn't it?

A cart is NOT going to pull into the path of a vehicle when I'm running. I've already stated that when I see a cart coming towards me with a car on its tail I jump on the sidewalk to give the cart plenty of room (even tho I really don't have to..I'm not that big) so the driver doesn't have to watch me and the car behind him at the same time. Besides all that, a cart does have another option if a car is bearing down on him from behind with an upcoming runner. He can take his foot off the pedal and stay right in the lane until either the runner or car passes...like I said...two seconds.

I've run all over the country and have coached at the HS level for years back home. Again, I've NEVER heard of one instance even when a HS kid caused an accident. I think the problem here really..to be honest...is the fact that golf cart drivers come face to face with an upcoming runner unlike when you're driving a car and they just don't like it. Before, in a car, it didn't matter because the runner was on the side of the road and not in the road so it didn't matter. Now, both cart driver and runner have to share the same territory and the cart drivers are incensed about it.

[zonerboy]

Some serious runners I have encountered seem to exhibit a rather strange attitude.
And that attitude is this: There is absolutely nothing in the entire universe that is more important than a runner being able to maintain their chosen pace, never having to break stride, slow down, or (heaven forbid) stop until their run is complete. Stop signs, traffic lights, etc. do not apply to them. Other pedestrians, bicycles, golf carts, other motorized vehicles all should yield to these runners.
So if you are driving your golf cart down the diamond lane and encounter one of these types coming right at you, do not expect them to get out of the way. They are way more important than you are. After all they are engaged in being healthy. And you are not.
Be aware.

[DAWN MARIE]

At zonerboy...this is a double sided argument. Funny...I think the same about the cart drivers.

[tommy steam]

If I see a runner coming towards me I slow way down to make sure they can pass me safely. I am defensive driver and I would not try to stare down a runner to see who blinks first. I'm driving a 4000 lb car or a 700 lb golf cart and common sense tells me the walker or runner is going to be a lot worse off than me if I hit them.

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by zonerboy

Some serious runners I have encountered seem to exhibit a rather strange attitude.
And that attitude is this: There is absolutely nothing in the entire universe that is more important than a runner being able to maintain their chosen pace, never having to break stride, slow down, or (heaven forbid) stop until their run is complete. Stop signs, traffic lights, etc. do not apply to them. Other pedestrians, bicycles, golf carts, other motorized vehicles all should yield to these runners.
So if you are driving your golf cart down the diamond lane and encounter one of these types coming right at you, do not expect them to get out of the way. They are way more important than you are. After all they are engaged in being healthy. And you are not.
Be aware.

I'm pretty sure you've never been a serious runner with those opinions. I ran every day 365 (ok maybe 350) for over 10 years. Not sure what your metrics are for SERIOUS. But I ran 5-6 miles every day in under 8 min pace. Not going to get into the Olympics but not too shabby for fitness runners. Not once did I take my safety into play to keep my pace. If no one is coming I will slow at a stop sign instead of stop but I have stopped if there are other vehicles in the area.

I know you said SOME serious runners but not the ones I ran with. Only once did I have a close call and that was the CAR running the stop sign while I had none. But even then I half expect it so I was able to halt enough to avoid being hit.

The opinions on this post are very similar to those about bike riding. Those that have done it with one opinion and those that have never done it thinking the bikers are always at fault. If you don't believe me go back and read the numerous threads we've had on runners and bikers. I've seen it for over 6 years on this site.

[Chazz]

Originally Posted by Russ_Boston

I'm pretty sure you've never been a serious runner with those opinions. I ran every day 365 (ok maybe 350) for over 10 years. Not sure what your metrics are for SERIOUS. But I ran 5-6 miles every day in under 8 min pace. Not going to get into the Olympics but not too shabby for fitness runners. Not once did I take my safety into play to keep my pace. If no one is coming I will slow at a stop sign instead of stop but I have stopped if there are other vehicles in the area.

I know you said SOME serious runners but not the ones I ran with. Only once did I have a close call and that was the CAR running the stop sign while I had none. But even then I half expect it so I was able to halt enough to avoid being hit.

The opinions on this post are very similar to those about bike riding. Those that have done it with one opinion and those that have never done it thinking the bikers are always at fault. If you don't believe me go back and read the numerous threads we've had on runners and bikers. I've seen it for over 6 years on this site.

You can include golf cart drivers in with that jogger/bicycle group, too. It seems like whoever is at the top of the food chain (metaphorically speaking) has little to no tolerance of the lower life forms that occupy space on the roads that some think they own.

[Mama C]

As a walker i walk towards traffic--- if there is no car traffic i do not move into the grass-- if there is car traffic and a cart is also coming i stop and move into the grass--smile and wave!