Safe places to jog when it's dark?

marla_singer · October 2009

Subject: Safe places to jog when it's dark?

This summer I took up jogging and I want to keep up my training. I enjoy running in the early evening, and it's obviously getting darker earlier. Where is a safe place to jog in the evening? I'm looking for something that is safe, well-lit, and few-to-no intersections to cross.

old time brooklyn · October 2009

That "Marla Singer" is posting this is....interesting. The real Marla would just jog in the darkest part of the park and think that getting dragged in the woods and raped in the ass by a man-wolf was part of her daily exercise.

doublediamond · October 2009

the gym?

Or the sidewalk? Although I've always hated doing that. Hard to find a well-lit, no intersection area outside of a park or a school track. I wouldn't run in prospect park in the evening, but I believe many do.

apophis36 · October 2009

Running on the outside perimeter of the park on prospect park west or Flatbush ave would definitely be safer than running inside (There are houses, and cars going down the street), fewer blind corners, and there wouldn't be any streets to cross if you ran on the park side, but I'm not sure on a absolute level how comfortable you would be...I'd try it around dusk when there are still a few people out and see what its like...

You can get rolled anywhere in NYC if you aren't paying attention, wearing "mug me" ear phones, etc...

whatchuwant · October 2009

Actually, Eastern Parkway has pretty good and long bike/walk lanes running along side it. It's well lit and even, and with many major intersections with subway stops, pretty safe.

marla_singer · October 2009

Thanks for the replies!

I've read the posts from people complaining about how bright Eastern Parkway has gotten at night, so that might work well. I also like the Prospect Park perimeter ideas. If I do run when it it's dark out, I'll leave the headphones at home.

Time Out New York (the fitness issue) has a coupon for 1 month at Crunch for $50, so maybe I will do that, too.

Thanks for the help, all!

arrbecca · October 2009

If you run the outside perimeter of Prospect Park, you should be careful on the Flatbush Ave side (runs along the length of the botanical garden). It's a long unpopulated stretch that makes me a tad uncomfortable.

whynot_31 · October 2009

arrbecca wrote: If you run the outside perimeter of Prospect Park, you should be careful on the Flatbush Ave side (runs along the length of the botanical garden). It's a long unpopulated stretch that makes me a tad uncomfortable.

yes.

and late at night it often provides parking to large trucks, and the women (?) who service those who drive them.

...some late night walks with my dog.

independent mind · October 2009

I saw someone get mugged in front of the brooklyn museum in july and the perps ran down the flatbush side of the park, so be aware......

I carry pepper spray whenever I run alone.....

xlizellx · October 2009

i walk to and from work, and it's generally dark now -- walking on eastern parkway is nice (bright, lots of people/cars around but not in your way) and wouldn't make me nervous. plus its wide enough to go around people.

che · October 2009

For a few years I've run fairly regularly around the perimeter of the park between about 10 PM and 1 AM. The main loop inside the park is usually busy enough to always be near people until an hour or two after dusk. Later than that, I always run around the perimeter.

Just speaking for myself (and I'm a white male in my mid-30s), I've never felt even a little unsafe there then. Partly that's just from never encountering anyone who seemed to particularly notice me, much less seem menacing. Partly it's from reasoning that I'm a high-cost, low-value target—no iPod, phone, wallet, or even watch, and moving quickly. Nobody capable of making that calculation is going to attack me. People so out of their minds that they're incapable of lizard-brain cost-benefit analysis are unlikely to be energetic enough to chase me or fast enough to catch (a scared, adrenalized) me. So then, whatever kind of super-speedy, completely-out-of-their-minds character that leaves to be worried about is just someone I'm statistically really unlikely to have to deal with. And if there actually are such more-loop-de-loop-than-a-rabid-racoon zippy banditos around somewhere, I'm figure I'm likelier to encounter them at noon on Fulton Mall than I am out among the handful of strollers, bench-sitters, and guys on the DL who're puttering around the park edge at midnight.

modsquad · October 2009

CHE wrote: For a few years I've run fairly regularly around the perimeter of the park between about 10 PM and 1 AM. The main loop inside the park is usually busy enough to always be near people until an hour or two after dusk. Later than that, I always run around the perimeter.

Just speaking for myself (and I'm a white male in my mid-30s), I've never felt even a little unsafe there then. Partly that's just from never encountering anyone who seemed to particularly notice me, much less seem menacing. Partly it's from reasoning that I'm a high-cost, low-value target—no iPod, phone, wallet, or even watch, and moving quickly. Nobody capable of making that calculation is going to attack me. People so out of their minds that they're incapable of lizard-brain cost-benefit analysis are unlikely to be energetic enough to chase me or fast enough to catch (a scared, adrenalized) me. So then, whatever kind of super-speedy, completely-out-of-their-minds character that leaves to be worried about is just someone I'm statistically really unlikely to have to deal with. And if there actually are such more-loop-de-loop-than-a-rabid-racoon zippy banditos around somewhere, I'm figure I'm likelier to encounter them at noon on Fulton Mall than I am out among the handful of strollers, bench-sitters, and guys on the DL who're puttering around the park edge at midnight.

Yeah, but doesn't running on the concrete kill your legs?

whynot_31 · October 2009

^^^ my late night dog walking philosophy is similar.

...but I think these are female posters looking for a safe place. Higher risks...

stooplady · October 2009

I am a bit more leary of being asssaulted on this site than on being injured or attacked in my neighborhood. :shaking2:

che · October 2009

modsquad wrote: Yeah, but doesn't running on the concrete kill your legs?

Hm. I've never noticed that. Do you think (serious question) concrete is signif. harder than asphalt?

If I'm taking it out on my knees, the peaceful quiet of that time of late night and going 3+ miles more or less without crossing a street are worth it.

modsquad · October 2009

CHE wrote: [quote=modsquad]Yeah, but doesn't running on the concrete kill your legs?

Hm. I've never noticed that. Do you think (serious question) concrete is signif. harder than asphalt?

If I'm taking it out on my knees, the peaceful quiet of that time of late night and going 3+ miles more or less without crossing a street are worth it.
Actually srsly yes. Concrete definitely kills my legs compared to asphalt.. Maybe I'm overly sensitive, I've been accused of that before on Brooklynian.

catwalkertexasranger · October 2009

Suggestion. Eastern Parkway, Some lighting good foot traffic, good surface, free from most debris and big holes. From the circle to Franklin on both sides is a good for short runs. Don't wear a hoodie and don't wear your IPOD.

bkhoosierfan · October 2009

i find a good indicator to be the gothamist map with crime postings
its pretty easy to see which side of the park has more crime and at what times they are more likely to occur.. it just happens to match up with what has already been mentioned of course
of course I have been looking at the map for over 2 years now but its usually very consistant

http://gothamist.com/map/

opossumqueen · October 2009

If you like dogs, maybe you could borrow one for your jogs. Surely a friend or neighbor has an energetic pup that would benefit from a jog and you could have extra security and possibly make a few bucks. I mention this b/c I know someone who pays their friend to take their dog with her when she jogs--wins all around.

I used to dog sit for neighbors for cheap just so I had a dog (they were all really big, but big babies) to explore the quiet parts of Crown Heights I didn't usually venture into alone. I'm a petite woman and definitely got harassed much less when I had the dogs.

laura782 · October 2009

As a female in her 20s who also likes to run I'm also mindful of these nighttime neighborhood running concerns... I generally stick to bigger streets that have bike lanes -- and run in the bike lanes, against traffic. There isn't much bike traffic when it's dark, the asphalt is easier on the knees than the sidewalk, and the car traffic + pedestrian activity of the bigger streets adds an element of safety. Just make sure you're running against traffic. Vanderbuilt, Bergen/Dean, Carlton and Franklin are all decent. You can add Eastern Parkway and complete the circle, depending on where/how far you like to run.

marla_singer · October 2009

Thanks everyone for the suggestions! Like a few of you, I'm also a petite woman, so these tips were right on the mark for me. (Anyone want to lend me a dog?) Thanks again!

asil · October 2009

I've been running a few times a week in the park around 7:30-8pm. I stay on the main road, and there aren't a lot of people but definitely enough other runners and bikers that I'm never out-of-sight of other people. I don't go all the way around because I'm not up to that distance yet, so just run half of what I want then turn around and run back. Honestly, I think it is totally fine at that hour and sticking to the road.

But great idea to borrow a dog! That would make it so much more fun. Anyone got a dog to lend?

Safe places to jog when it's dark?

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Safe places to jog when it&#39;s dark?

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Safe places to jog when it's dark?