Running with a gun?

Oh yeah, and this was not intended to start an argument on whether or not guns are evil or not.

I think you raise a good question. Down here in Georgia it's not so bad; but if I lived in Atlanta, yeah, I would actually consider carrying mace or a small firearm. But I don't have a permit yet, so I wouldn't want to be caught with a gun.

Why would you live in an area like that if you want to run outside? I can't imagine how you can enjoy the run if you have to pay intense attention to anyone around you that might endanger your life?

If you are a serious enough runner, move to a better area would be the obvious choice. Otherwise (not a serious runner), you will stop and choose to do something else that is safer. So, I really doubt anyone would carry a gun on his daily run - maybe once or twice while in an unfamiliar area (providing this person has a license in that state and carry his license with him running as well).

In my experience over many years of running through "bad neighborhoods", no one has any interest in runners. You pose no threat, you have nothing worth stealing. People have no logical reason for harming you. Give people their space, don't act like a victim, if someone says hello say hello back, and mind your own business. If anyone makes a comment, bite your tongue and just keep running. In fact, these are good rules in any neighborhood.

I run with mace while running by myself on trails. I'm home for Easter Break right now and forgot my mace at school, so when I went out to the dunes I ran with a pocket knife lol. I really don't think it would have come in handy if I actually needed it, given the time it would have taken for me to get it out of my key pocket and open it, but it made me feel a little better.

northern boy wrote:

In my experience over many years of running through "bad neighborhoods", no one has any interest in runners. You pose no threat, you have nothing worth stealing. People have no logical reason for harming you. Give people their space, don't act like a victim, if someone says hello say hello back, and mind your own business. If anyone makes a comment, bite your tongue and just keep running. In fact, these are good rules in any neighborhood.

It depends on just how bad the bad neighborhood is. Some neighborhoods that the typical suburban white guy would consider to be "bad" really aren't all that unsafe, especially since it's pretty obvious that you have nothing to steal. At the same time, there really are some truly dangerous places that are full of truly dangerous people. There are places where people will kick your ass or worse just to show their fellow gang members how tough they are. I'm not going to claim to be any kind of expert on gang ruled neighborhoods, but I do know that there are places in this country where people will harm you without a logical reason.

That being said, in my opinion, the way to deal with this is to avoid such places rather than to run there and carry a gun.

In southwest Phoenix it gets bad. I run with a knife, a cell phone and a dog tag. I've been jumped twice in six months already, but didn't get beaten too bad.

this brings up a good question, are guns evil or not?

people are evil, dumb shit

I cannot imagine a serious runner being forced to run in a neighborhood bad enough to warrant carrying a gun. For christ sakes, a 20 minute drive from just about anywhere in this country will get you to a decent neighborhood. Or get on the bus.

I have a CCP and several guns, I've never once considered carrying one on a run. Long wilderness hikes, sure, and if I were a woman on a trail run I'd like to be carrying. But a man in a city? Come on, use your imagination and run somewhere better.

zodski wrote:

In southwest Phoenix it gets bad. I run with a knife, a cell phone and a dog tag. I've been jumped twice in six months already, but didn't get beaten too bad.

how do they catch you?

This is a good question. There are a lot of bears where i run. I've ran into a couple and scared them away but i would like to be prepared if they decide to attack.

Bodyguards often use a Marom Dolphin Easy Draw Holster running.

Michael Scott wrote:

I cannot imagine a serious runner being forced to run in a neighborhood bad enough to warrant carrying a gun. For christ sakes, a 20 minute drive from just about anywhere in this country will get you to a decent neighborhood. Or get on the bus.

I quess you haven't noticed gas prices lately haven't you?

20 minute drive every day for running equates to easily an extra 100 dollars a month for Gas. For some people, maybe as much as 150-200.

Bus Fares are also similarly expensive, maybe not as, but far less of an option- if you miss the bus you're *****.

Running will soon be something where you either have to live in a safe area or the burbs, or have enough money to drive/commute to your workout locale. Not cool.

i think a gun would be too heavy to run with... even the lightest one i have would still be pretty bulky to carry, even with a holster turned around at the small of your back which would be about the only way to distribute the weight properly.. i think the best defense is running quick.. if you have to run at dusk/dark, make it a shorter tempo run. on a few occasions i have rolled after dark in the city and actually found more hobo/sketch type cheering at you than anything else.

Don't know about guns, but I don't feel safe running without a couple of grenades strapped to my body

face the facts wrote:

zodski wrote:

In southwest Phoenix it gets bad. I run with a knife, a cell phone and a dog tag. I've been jumped twice in six months already, but didn't get beaten too bad.

how do they catch you?

Both times we were on the same path heading toward each other.

uo wrote:

Michael Scott wrote:

I cannot imagine a serious runner being forced to run in a neighborhood bad enough to warrant carrying a gun. For christ sakes, a 20 minute drive from just about anywhere in this country will get you to a decent neighborhood. Or get on the bus.

I quess you haven't noticed gas prices lately haven't you?

20 minute drive every day for running equates to easily an extra 100 dollars a month for Gas. For some people, maybe as much as 150-200.

Bus Fares are also similarly expensive, maybe not as, but far less of an option- if you miss the bus you're *****.

Running will soon be something where you either have to live in a safe area or the burbs, or have enough money to drive/commute to your workout locale. Not cool.

Dude, if you are so poor you can't afford to live anywhere but a war-zone ghetto and don't have a car or bus pass, then you should stop running and start focusing on getting a job that allows you to live.

Seriously, how many runners live in places that are so violent they need to consider carrying a gun? I live right outsie of DC, one of the most violent cities in America, and the absolute WORST parts of the city are no more than 2 miles away from safe enough places to run.

Also, if you run early in the morning, you're less likely to come across riff raff. I used to live in New Orleans and ran through some bad areas and never had a problem running around sunrise. Thugs usually aren't early risers.

OTOH, I was at a conference in downtown Atlanta a few years ago. I went running early in the morning and I knew I was in a seedy area when I came across 3 prostitutes... one of which was clad only in fish net (with very, very big holes). It was actually rather sad to see them standing there knowing what they were doing. I never have understood why any guy would go to a prostitute. Seems like it'd be safer to lick the inside of a public toilet.