How often do you get the nod/wave?

fixer-

i respond to anyone who says hello to me or makes eye contact with me. would be rude not to. but i'm not going to waste my breath on people who don't care or who i don't care about. i live in chicago and the lakefront is jammed with people (at least during the summer). if i chose to acknowledge them all, i wouldn't have the lungs to run. most people here don't care to talk to people when they're running for whatever reason (i have my theories). i find people are more open in the suburbs and smaller towns and when i occassionally run in them i find myself conforming to that. but i probably pass more people on a single ten mile run than you see on your runs over a month or two. environment, as the original poster alluded to, is important.

I like the intercourse "Hello."

Well I guess I'll know you when I see you out on the lake front path. The douche-bag with the King's crown and sceptor deeming runner's worthy or not. Hahahaha. Pretentious ass.

I've noticed that in Columbus, ohio people are too stuck on themselves when they run. I always , atleast, give a half assed wave to people I pass when I run because I respect the fact they are out doing something instead of watching their ass get bigger, however, I usually don't get one back. Now when I'm on the road with my bike and pass another cyclist I always get a nod/wave.

I grew up in Southern California and no one ever even made eye contact when you went by. After college I moved to Indiana and every single person says at least hello. It really freaked me out at first that everyone was talking to me. But, know I am into it and always at least nod (if I am working really hard). People will even wave even if you see them more than once, like on an out and back run.

When I go back to California to visit I forget and try to say "hi" to people and they look at you like you are going to kill them.

semper fi wrote:

I've noticed that in Columbus, ohio people are too stuck on themselves when they run. I always , atleast, give a half assed wave to people I pass when I run because I respect the fact they are out doing something instead of watching their ass get bigger, however, I usually don't get one back. Now when I'm on the road with my bike and pass another cyclist I always get a nod/wave.

semper fi,

Where in Columbus do you run brother?

High Banks

Indy is very weird. We have two main running paths. One of them is the Monon, which everyone in the city uses for everything. The other is the Canal Towpath, which is used mainly by runners, and some bikers. On the Monon, most people won't acknowlege you at all, on the Canal everyone always waves, says hello, etc.. I think it probably has a lot to do with the type of people that use each trail.

I almost always acknowledge others in some way or another unless I'm haveing a very shitty day or am completely out of gas. Usually I get a response.

I have a problem with a couple of the comments about not acknowledging lesser quality runners. I hope you were joking about that. I am one of the better runners in my area (which I will be the fist to admit is not setting the bar very high). I wish I would see more of the 5 hour marathoners, baby stroller pushers, fittness jogger types out there. Anything to increase the numbers or runners/joggers/bikers on our roads. In areas like the one I live there there is a shortage of usable routes for us to use and this would put more pressure on city leaders to make the place a little more fitness oriented. I could also dream that it would also increase acceptance of people like us by those whos favorite form of recreation is flipping us off while howling witty comments from their car like "run Forest run" or "hey fag".

Here's the thing that really gets me is the soccer mom, walkers who feel they need to run in the middle of the trail. When I see them I make the first move to move to the right side of the trail and give them a friendly nod/wave. They stick their noses in the air with their headphones blasting and keep going. I think it is great they are out there trying to lose some weight but show a little respect.

If it is clear that some walker that is headed toward me isn't going to do their half in making room for me (I'll do my half), I will always run as close to them as possible; most likely brushing up against them. Fuck em!

semper fi wrote:

High Banks

Good place - I get over there once in a while.

Any one train in Albequerque NM? I ran there one time on a buisiness trip and will never again. Everyone starred like they had never seen someone run before. I'm fairly white, but I've never had so many people yelling at me before. I thought one guy was going to get out of his vehicle and pound the crap out of me just for running on his sidewalk. He was yelling at the top of his lungs while driving by. The whole time there I didn't actually see anyone training outdoors. Saw the odd kid on roller blades but that's it.

Robert Cheseret gave me the wave a few days ago.

I say hello to most everyone. In superfat America, anyone who is out there trying their best deserves a welcome greeting.

I'm in southern California. A lot of people see me from a short distance and make sure they avoid eye contact as we pass each other. Sometimes I'll still say "Hey", but won't get any response. Usually I don't bother though if they are purposely avoiding eye contact.

chuck d:

I should have left that last line out. My story had nothing to do with you. Since you live in Chicago, I have to give you a break. There are a billion people out on those bike paths, and most of them (90%) probably deserve "disdain" like I was commenting on. So, I give you a pass (I'm being sarcastic, but you do deserve a pass).

I was on a killer bike ride tonight :20 warmup, 34 miles at 24 avg, 1:10 easy after (3:00 total). After the fast part I rode backwards and covered an 19 mile loop we sometimes do and found myself going opposite to about 100 slower people in the bike club. People who are about 14-16 mph. God, at first there was one every 15 secs and i waved to each, and most waved back. Then there were whole packs and they kept waving at me, so i kind of had to. But it was getting ridiculous for a mile or so. People every two seconds all wanting to wave at each other.

So, I know what you are saying. I was proud of myself though, I waved at about 20 different fat, recumbent riders, and a ton of wobbly, tonner, middle-aged folks on all kinds of bikes. And I didn't feel it was a burden.

Had this occurred during the hammer-fest part of the ride though, they would have gotten nothing.

i give it to anyone i see and gives eye contact. As far as the beauty queens, they are the best ones to say hi too. Theres no sense in in being known as the asshole runner around town by the local hotties. A simple hello can go a long way, so to speak.

Frank Booth wrote:

I say hello to most everyone. In superfat America, anyone who is out there trying their best deserves a welcome greeting.

I say hello and smile at EVERYone that I encounter while jogging/running (and most who are walking as well)...where's the downside??? In the many years when I ran in golden gate park twice a day every day to the tune of 100+ miles a week (late 70s/early 80s)there were a couple of folks that I'd see on a nearly daily basis that just plain did not respond for the longest time...at some point, when they realized that I was as much a part of their daily routine as they were part of mine, they would eventually break down and offer some sense ofacknoledgement...

...always have made a sort of game out of it...you know, kinda like "what'll it take to get someone to smile at you"...an interesting experiment that becomes particularly useful in other lifestyle scenarios such as searching for a mate or a sales career.

MF