Things you've seen while running...

PaulieC

OK, so not strictly running per se, but...

I was out early one days last week and spotted a fox in the car park of the local garda station. Then on Sunday morning, while running through the main street in Ranelagh, I saw what I believe to be a mink (or some sort of marten). It was black, about 20 inches long, including the tail was rambling up the footpath!

What's the most unusual thing you've seen while out running ??

hardCopy

Nearly ran into someone taking a dump behind a tree at a half marathon last year.

nerraw1111

Two strangers having a pretend conversation, just moments after I interrupted them getting er, ahem acquainted with one another in the park.

spurscormac

hardCopy wrote: »

Nearly ran into someone taking a dump behind a tree at a half marathon last year.

Were you on route to do same?

mikemac1

Deceded in my wisdom to go for a run in the Phoenix Park in the early morning but it was still dark.

I've no headlamp and realy it was a terrible idea, it's pitch black from the entrance opposite that track in Chapelizod up to the Chesterfield Avenue which is either is badly lit or I'm getting dazzled out of it by cars on full lights

Twice I'd be going along at a slow pace afraid of tripping and someone obviously heard my footsteps and they'd just step out suddenly and look at me. Freaked the hell out of me

I remember a Romanian lady was attacked up there, was in the newspapers, I guess in warm weather maybe homeless people are spending the night there



Not running but cycling, before entering Portmarnock, after a small roundabout there is a small bridge, marshy ground. Area full of ducks.
Mammy duck walking across the road cool as could be, little ducklings following her and cars and jeeps and me on the bike stopped and waiting, everyone smiling
Seems to happen a lot at that bit of road

ThisRegard

hardCopy wrote: »

Nearly ran into someone taking a dump behind a tree at a half marathon last year.

A runner ahead of me a couple of weeks ago ducked twice into the trees to drop his shorts in the space of a few minutes. Sad thing was that it took his second visit before I caught and passed him.

Saw a frog recently on a footpath in a place where I'd never expect one to be. Strangely that's about as odd as it gets despite running in some remote and dodgy areas.

There was a similar thread a while ago wasn't there ?

mark_jmc

a few years ago while i was training for the DCM I was out on a Sunday morning doing a long run, for those who know Limerick I was running up the hill towards the Castletroy Golf club from the ballysimon side when a car passed me at high speed. as the car went over the crest of the hill the (joyrider) lost control of the car , mounted the footpath, went up a grass verge and landed upside down in a driveway after clearing a 10 foot wall, by the time i got to the car the 'driver' was long gone. If I had been 100 meters ahead of where I was, I was a goner

rom

People dogging when I was running with my headlamp at night over the winter.

looseliver

While in Ardgillan park I seen a magpie steal an infant bird from a nest and fly off with it flapping in its mouth while being chased by its parents. I think they were starlings!
About a week ago in the same park I sawn the fresh carcass of a pigeon with most of the meat eaten away.

rom

looseliver wrote: »

While in Ardgillan park I seen a magpie steal an infant bird from a nest and fly off with it flapping in its mouth while being chased by its parents. I think they were starlings!
About a week ago in the same park I sawn the fresh carcass of a pigeon with most of the meat eaten away.

Sounds like a TV3 movie.

cloneslad

When I lived in Korea:

Saw a cage of big enough Dogs on a little mountainous island I used to do a 13k loop around. This was unusual as most Korean people live in apartments and have those little tiny dogs for pets, on little mountainous island I used to do a 13k loop around.

Never really though much more of it, then each time I'd see it the cage would get more and more dogs in it. They were crammed in it, and I thought 'that's no way to keep pets'. It was only when I investigated it more that I realised that the 'house' opposite the cage was a restaurant, and the dogs were for 보신탕 (bosintang). I felt sorry for them, but there wasn't much I could do for them.

wrstan

Dolphins in Killiney Bay!

ThisRegard

That Korea story is awful. I know it happens, I just don't want to be reminded about it.

hollypink

I saw a girl walking a cat on a lead one day when I was out running. It looked a bit strange but on reflection, it doesn't seem like a bad idea. My sister has a house cat and never lets her outside in case she is hit by a car.

Run on country roads in Kerry, so animals not that unusual. But one night I passed a farmer who just said "pigs" to me and nodded back the road, and when I ran around the bend there were two pretty aggressive pigs blocking the way. Managed to get around them and about 3 or 400 hundred yards further on saw a cow - not in the least unusual, except it was standing on top of a wall at a height over my head! Which I had never seen before. I know the ground inside the wall was higher, but still was a peculiar sight. Not sure how it got up or down.

Pisco Sour

Kangaroo when out training in the sticks last year. Kangaroos at a distance from the track in Bendigo when competing, and a possum in a tree when warming down beside the track one day.

Pisco Sour

cloneslad wrote: »

When I lived in Korea:

Saw a cage of big enough Dogs on a little mountainous island I used to do a 13k loop around. This was unusual as most Korean people live in apartments and have those little tiny dogs for pets, on little mountainous island I used to do a 13k loop around.

Never really though much more of it, then each time I'd see it the cage would get more and more dogs in it. They were crammed in it, and I thought 'that's no way to keep pets'. It was only when I investigated it more that I realised that the 'house' opposite the cage was a restaurant, and the dogs were for 보신탕 (bosintang). I felt sorry for them, but there wasn't much I could do for them.

Was in Korea and nowhere would you see Dog on the menu in Korea (I was looking out for it for interests sake, not to eat it obviously). Found out that after the 1988 Olympics in Seoul there was such outrage about the fact dog was on the menu that they took it off the English menu, but it obviously remains on the Korean menu, so only those who can read Korean will ever know if it is on the menu or not. Strange country.

I never got the dog thing, we eat just about anything else, fish, flesh or foul, but we seem to baulk at cats and dogs. It would no more bother me...as long as the taste was okay.

lway

Saw three, early teen, lads taking a shortcut through a housing estate decided to vault a wooden fence, first guy got over ok, second guy tripped, flapped his arms a bit then fell flat on his face on the ground.

The other two and myself couldn't help but burst out laughing at his misfortune.

Killerz

hollypink wrote: »

I saw a girl walking a cat on a lead one day when I was out running. It looked a bit strange but on reflection, it doesn't seem like a bad idea. My sister has a house cat and never lets her outside in case she is hit by a car.

I've seen this a couple of times here in Toronto myself. I cant imagine cats like being led around on a lead.

Have also seen a small snake while out running here - frightened the life out of me, did a serious leap over it. First time I saw a chipmunk was a delightful moment too, happened while running the trails here in Toronto. Have seen hundreds of those cuddly badboys since.....

Not so unusual per se, but on one of my first runs on the snowy trails downtown a couple of years ago, when I came across someone x-country skiing towards me, I found that a bit surreal.

Ahhhh, Canadians.

earlyevening

I like to occassionally take in the Liffey boardwalk on a run.

You see a lot there. Use your imagination. It all happens.

cloneslad

Pisco Sour wrote: »

Was in Korea and nowhere would you see Dog on the menu in Korea (I was looking out for it for interests sake, not to eat it obviously). Found out that after the 1988 Olympics in Seoul there was such outrage about the fact dog was on the menu that they took it off the English menu, but it obviously remains on the Korean menu, so only those who can read Korean will ever know if it is on the menu or not. Strange country.

Apparently there was a bosintang restaurant about a 5 minute walk from my apartment too. They don't advertise the fact that they sell it, but it has pictures of the soup, though it just looks like an normal meat in it.

Deleted User wrote: »

I never got the dog thing, we eat just about anything else, fish, flesh or foul, but we seem to baulk at cats and dogs. It would no more bother me...as long as the taste was okay.

I know we're going off topic here, but the reason most are against it is how it is slaughtered. Traditionally they hang it off a hook, while alive, and beat it / torture it for hours, to help get its adrenaline pumping, then they kill it. It is believed that this adrenaline will then give the person eating it lots of energy and stamina.



Another funny thing I saw was when I was out running on New Years eve in Seoul, along the Han river and it was minus 15 degrees. I started running towards a race coming the other way. It wasn't a large field, about 100 runners or so, most of them waved at me, gave me a 'hello' but then I saw this older man in the distance, he would have been in his late 50s / early 60s, and had a big happy smiley face on him, so I knew he was thinking of something in English to say to me, then, as I was going passed him, he said 'ahhh, my balls are ice, my balls are ice' It took me about 100 metres to truly take in what he had just said.

mdlb

was running up in cratloe woods near limerick last year and came around a corner to find two deer standing in the middle of the road looking at me.
the trotted along in front of me for about a hundred meters before darting into the woods.
was the closest I have been to wild deer.

also on another occasion in cratloe three dodgy looking caracters popped out of the trees in front of me with a bag of cans......very odd place for knacker drinking as it was about 3 or 4 k from the car park!!

jebuz

Another deer one

As a regular runner in the phoenix park I see a lot of deer up close, but the best was one chilly winter morning in January. It was almost pitch black still and I headed in the exit gate on Chapelizod road towards the S-bends around the magazine fort, my breath steaming up in front of me...it was a cold one! There was a radiant full moon dominating the skyline and as I headed up the bend, I saw there perched on top of the fort hill, a deer standing tall eclipsing the moon, his antlers proudly illuminated by the moonlight and still as a mountain.

Honestly, It was like a scene from a film and there wasn't a soul to be seen which made it even more special. I had to stop in awe for a moment then trudged on with a smile. It's stuff like that makes getting up in those winter mornings worthwhile, even if they're rare

ThisRegard

Oh, I just remembered a deer one. One morning some of the herd were crossing at the OSI and there was one straggler. He ran after the rest who were by then on the other side of the road but he didn't see a car coming, and the car was going faster than it should have been in the park anyway. Oh noes I was thinking but the deer literally jumped right over the car and made it safely to the other side of the road. I'm not sure the driver of the car even realised what happened as they didn't even slow down.

theboyblunder

ThisRegard wrote: »

Oh, I just remembered a deer one. One morning some of the herd were crossing at the OSI and there was one straggler. He ran after the rest who were by then on the other side of the road but he didn't see a car coming, and the car was going faster than it should have been in the park anyway. Oh noes I was thinking but the deer literally jumped right over the car and made it safely to the other side of the road. I'm not sure the driver of the car even realised what happened as they didn't even slow down.

I was nearly run over by a deer early in the morning outside a dublin HOUSING ESTATE! Last thing i expected. Nearly crapped myself.


Second scariest thing ive seen while running is my own shadow. The realisation that im not exactly graceful as a gazelle was quite a shock.

brdboard

While running in Kerry on a quiet road, I came around a corner and a hare took off up the road in front of me.
I don't see that kind of thing too often, so had a smile in my face until the next hill!

ThePiedPiper

I was running in Kenya one morning, when I saw a man chase a monkey down the street. I think the monkey had stolen stuff off his fruit stall or something. The thieving little pr!ck..

RunForestRun

RunForestRun wrote: »

I was running in Kenya one morning, when I saw a man chase a monkey down the street. I think the monkey had stolen stuff off his fruit stall or something. The thieving little pr!ck..

I had a few good deer stories, running around Killarney National Park, but no point in telling them now, they'll suffer by comparison!

career_move

I was running out in the country early one Sunday morning a few months ago. It was dim and foggy and I was about 2 miles from the nearest village when I saw a fully clothed body lying inside the ditch of a field. There was no gate to the field near the road only a few strands of barbed wire and the way the body was it looked like it could have been thrown from a car or something. I stopped and watched it for a few minutes and it didn't seem to move at all even when I shouted a few times. I was about to leg it when I remembered my phone. I was going to ring the guards but in the end I rang dad and got him to drive out and investigate. It turned out to be a young lad who was completely ossified with drink. Dad had to shake him like a rag doll and bellow in his ear for about 10 minutes before he finally came round. When he did stumble to his feet his only comment was to ask us why we had woken him up!

sureitsgrand

Another deer one here, too.

During last year's Race Series 10 miler (or maybe the half) a few deer jumped straight out onto the road and bounded along the route. It was an absolute miracle no one got hurt. I was in a world of my own and didn't notice the commotion at all - I only was lucky cause a guy behind me pushed me to the side.

And yes, I was wearing earphones.

JJJJNR

Seen a dopey German Shepard trying to attack a hedgehog with the dog coming off worse, for some reason it was very funny at the time.. damn endorphins.

ekevosu

About four weeks ago, I was running up the local country road where I live so very little traffic, just people living up the road. I saw a four wheel drive driving up the road and a big dog following it up the road. It was the owners way of walking the dog.

About a week later when I was walking my own dog up the road I saw a tractor coming down the road with the same driver as before and again the dog was following the tractor down the road.

When I ran in Korea I would regularly see people running in jeans and shoes, just whatever was handy and also old men and women at least in their seventies jogging along which you don't see here that often.

cloneslad

ekevosu wrote: »

When I ran in Korea I would regularly see people running in jeans and shoes, just whatever was handy and also old men and women at least in their seventies jogging along which you don't see here that often.

Walking backwards and clapping their hands, while wearing the full ajumma uniform (floral blouse and weird pants) topped off with compulsory visor

ekevosu

ekevosu wrote: »

About a week later when I was walking my own dog up the road I saw a tractor coming down the road with the same driver as before and again the dog was following the tractor down the road.

Small world, cos a few weeks back the wife told me take the dog for a jaunt. So I hopped into the tractor, whistled for Shep to follow me, and saw this runner I had seen the previous week, when I was out in the jeep, again walking Shep...

hot to trot

Few years ago doing the Lisbon marathon, there was a girl wearing tight fitting skin coloured shorts. There was a tall guy running with her. It started to rain and she got soaked. Her shorts became see through and she was wearing nothing or else a skimpy thong underneath and it looked like she was naked.

Men running up from behind went to overtake her and then when they spotted her rear they slowed right down and just gazed at her for about 20 seconds and then they would look straight ahead while speeding past her. Invariably they would turn around to say hello , when really all they wanted to do was look at her from the front to see what she looked like. Was HILARIOUS.

Run and Jump

On the Rock Road near Booterstown a few weeks ago, a guy out running while carrying a cup of coffee. Granted, it was a takeaway cup and not fine china with a saucer, but still...

In Paris one Sunday morning, a woman running while carrying a baguette - obviously made a pit stop at the bakery on her way home.

The Bois de Boulogne is the Paris equivalent of the Phoenix Park - not for deer, but for the other goings-on. One evening I misjudged the time and was in the middle of the park when it started getting dark and the 'night shift' started arriving. In a light running top and shorts I was still the most overdressed person in there that night. It went right past seedy and was just depressing.

Run and Jump

hot to trot wrote: »

Few years ago doing the Lisbon marathon, there was a girl wearing tight fitting skin coloured shorts. There was a tall guy running with her. It started to rain and she got soaked. Her shorts became see through and she was wearing nothing or else a skimpy thong underneath and it looked like she was naked.

Men running up from behind went to overtake her and then when they spotted her rear they slowed right down and just gazed at her for about 20 seconds and then they would look straight ahead while speeding past her. Invariably they would turn around to say hello , when really all they wanted to do was look at her from the front to see what she looked like. Was HILARIOUS.

Sounds like you were there for a fair bit longer than your allotted 20 seconds

hardCopy

Run and Jump wrote: »

hot to trot wrote: »

Few years ago doing the Lisbon marathon, there was a girl wearing tight fitting skin coloured shorts. There was a tall guy running with her. It started to rain and she got soaked. Her shorts became see through and she was wearing nothing or else a skimpy thong underneath and it looked like she was naked.

Men running up from behind went to overtake her and then when they spotted her rear they slowed right down and just gazed at her for about 20 seconds and then they would look straight ahead while speeding past her. Invariably they would turn around to say hello , when really all they wanted to do was look at her from the front to see what she looked like. Was HILARIOUS.

Sounds like you were there for a fair bit longer than your allotted 20 seconds

It's funny how the best looking girls are always just about at your target pace.

Mint Sauce

Other runners overtake me.

Krusty_Clown

Run and Jump wrote:

Sounds like you were there for a fair bit longer than your allotted 20 seconds

hardCopy wrote: »

It's funny how the best looking girls are always just about at your target pace.

Hot to trot is, of course, one of those best looking girls.

kit3

Was out for a very early run recently on a deserted beach in Mayo, loving the fact that it was early enough to have noone else around. Then came on a man shouting into a phone saying that he had just come through a 12 week trial and that he wasn't going back and glaring at me as I passed. Quickly regretted the lack of company around as the imagination kicked in. Went back the road way and went later for a few days. Probably nothing much to it but ruined my buzz ! Usually only have to contend with the odd dead seal or suicidal sheep there !

Timmaay

I've told this story once or twice before here, but given the context I'll repeat it again! I was doing a local race in Wicklow few years back, I was somewhere in the top 10, it was about 1/2 way through the race, when I head what sounded like two lads behind me sprinting flatout! I was thinking to myself what the hell are they at, its nowhere near the finish, and I knew most of the top of the field and was not expecting anyone else to pass me.

Turns out it wasn't too runners, but a loose horse, spiriting away from its owners (who were two travellers chasing it, shouting off the top of their heads!) The horse kept on going and left all of us for dead, until it swung down a different road 1/2km later. Totally lost my focus about the race, and was laughing my head off ha!

sideswipe

Running in Central Park NY a couple years ago very early in the morning. Saw a guy running wearing a wide brim hat, his cat was perched on top attached to a lead! worst thing was he was he flew past me doing about 7min miles and I hadn't the energy to keep up!

newbyrunner

kit3 wrote: »

Was out for a very early run recently on a deserted beach in Mayo, loving the fact that it was early enough to have noone else around. Then came on a man shouting into a phone...

Is this the Mayo equivalent of the Bois de Boulogne?

mdlb

Was running along the other day in Antwerp and came to pedestrian crossing. next thing a big crown came cycling along the road with flowers all over their bikes, 20-30 of them. turns out it was a wedding party, bride was in a trainler attached to one of the bikes and groom was in the sidecar of a motorbike which was following along behind. bizzare to say the least...

I also on the same run saw a guy who was dressed perfectly normally except for a bright blue top hat with a feather in it.......

ClashCityRocker

Running to work early one wet, windy morning a few months back, I ran past a fella huddled up in a big jacket walking two dogs. Just after I passed him I thought "wait a minute, was that....?", and looked back to see a thoroughly miserable looking Graham Norton, clearly wishing he was still in bed

Craptacular

On a dusk LSR in the Phoenix Park I ran into a drove of hares on the S bends. There were dozens of them. It wasn't the weirdest thing to find in a large park by any means but it certainly had me smiling for a mile or so.

ThisRegard

You talking about the S-bends at the Furry Glen ? They're (I always though they were rabbits) a regular sight there and are quite brazen, they don't seem to be frightened off by people too easily and you'd see them early in the afternoon too.

Krusty_Clown

I had a frog cross my path at about 10:30pm last night, as I ran along the N11 at Cabinteely. Funny thing was that it must have crossed both lanes of the dual carriageway to get to the cycle-path. All I could think of was...

Krusty_Clown

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

George Costanza...