I practically had the streets to myself this morning and that was such a wonderful feeling, if only because no one could see me slogging along. It may not have been a pretty sight.

We’re now at that time of year when it is still dark at 5:00 am. This does not make me happy at all. It’s hard to get up at that time of day to begin but man, it’s even harder when it’s dark. Then let’s throw in some rain and that equals almost zero people outside at that time.

I love running in the rain during the summer and fall, it really is so refreshing especially when the humidity is incredibly high. There is also some practicality to running in the rain — you need to get used to it just so that you have an idea of what it will feel like if it happens on race day. Number one tip is that you should apply even more Body Glide than you normally would. Wet clothes get heavy and rub against your skin when it normally wouldn’t. Running in the rain makes you hard core although others may look at you like you’re crazy. But that’s okay, really.

But I was a little dumb this morning and did something I often preach about not doing. I wore dark gray clothes on a dark gray morning. The only thing you could probably see of me were my new white running shoes. Not a good idea.

While it may be nice and quiet out and few people are out and about it does give the occasional car driver the opportunity to skip stop signs, speed on an stretch of the road, and little chance of seeing you if you can’t be seen. I don’t have a local emergency contact these days with my mother still dealing with her own health issues. If something happens to me we’re both screwed. I need to be smarter and want to remind everyone else to be smarter as well. Make sure you can be seen, make sure you can hear away is going on around you, and make sure someone knows the route you’re running and when you expect to be back.

Running at this time of day can be fun and adventurous and not for the wimpy but be safe my friends.