Runner's Blog: If you want to GO, You gotta GLOW

By Coach Michele Maciejewski

Wait, a second…. it’s only 4:30 p.m. Why is it dark out already? It happens every year. We forget that after daylight savings and as we inch closer to the solstice, it gets dark before we even get out of school and work.

If we still want to get outside, what’s a runner and walker to do? Glow. That’s right, we gotta glow if we wanna go.

I remember the first time I had to slap on my neon vest, light and headlamp and traipse around the Syracuse University neighborhood. It was December and a schoolmate and I had to get in enough miles training for a late winter half marathon. It took a couple pieces of extra gear, more time to get ready and I thought it would be boring.

As it turns out, the world looks quite a bit different in the dark. It sounds a bit different. It even feels different. In November and December, we night runners and walkers get to experience the soft glow of holiday lights on people’s homes. And we experience it in more detail than driving by in a car.

And after that, we get the softly falling snow in the beam of our headlamps. We get the peace and stillness of the dark. We still get to train out there for our favorite winter races, local and around the country, because we choose to equip ourselves and adapt to the inevitable.

As always, safety needs to be a winter runner and walker’s priority. If you feel safer running off-traffic but don’t want to be alone in the dark, Fleet Feet Sports, Syracuse still has two more dusk runs!

This week’s Dusk Run is tomorrow: 6 to 7 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Butternut Street entrance to the Erie Canal in Dewitt. The run/walk is 30 minutes out and 30 minutes back, and perfect for all abilities. A headlamp and reflective piece of gear is required.

The final Dusk Run on Tuesday, Nov. 21 is also our annual Glow-Vember celebration of all things running and safety. The event starts at 6 p.m. We’ll run from Fleet Feet Sports in Dewitt and then celebrate after with snacks and an awesome Safety Bundle Package.

Stay safe on the roadways by making sure you can see and be seen! To help you with this, Fleet Feet Sports is excited to offer a Safety Bundle Package! The bundle includes a Nathan Bandolier Reflective Vest, Neutron Fire Headlamp and LED Strobelight. The Safety Bundle price is $56 ($70 if purchased separately).