Running, Walking, the Great Outdoors and Those Who Would Kill Us-How to Survive

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The morning sun was starting to rise over the Arizona Mountains as Gwyneth glanced out of her bedroom window while slipping into running shorts. Her morning anticipation was kicking in for her connection with nature. The fit 27 year old ran 6 mornings a week, ran the same route, and wore essentially the same gear to maximize her smooth and flowing professional like stride. Gwyneth took along pepper spray in case of encountering an aggressive animal even though she’d never seen a mountain lion or black bear.

Gwyneth’s friends and family all knew that she started her mornings with a run so when she didn’t show up for work that Tuesday, the concern started. Gwyneth was missing for two days until the local authorities found her. Her body was found a few feet off of a path near a rural roadway that she ran across just about every morning. She was battered and bruised and had put up a hardy struggle against a human predator who finally strangled her. Later, it was determined that she had been sexually abused as well.

I love my times in the great outdoors. It’s my time to connect with the outdoors as well as myself. Shakespeare had it right when he wrote, “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” “This our life, exempt from public haunt, finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything.”

I don’t run like Gwyneth, but I walk. And I don’t trek the same area, I go to different spots some of which are quite secluded. It’s weird that I enjoy trekking in the woods at all because I was almost killed—strangled by a predator when I was eight. A lot has changed since then for me one of which is that I’ve taught personal protection for many years.

So, when I hear of a story of a rape or a murder in the woods it hits home for me for several reasons.

Read along and find out what you should do to keep safe while you run, walk or even bird-watch in the great outdoors.

When I walk, oftentimes, I realize that just ahead, there are perfect areas for a human predator to make his move to rob, rape or murder me, or the next runner who may follow after me. If he makes his move on me, at a glance, this is what he gets. A fit, pretty large man walking with a large German Shepard dog. I usually walk with my best friend, Max. Well, that’s just what a predator can see of me at a glance but there may be more. I may also have a gun, knife or fighting skills. Do you think he’s going to make that move against me? Probably not. Let me go further. If I walked that way every day in the same spot and I had something that he desperately wanted from me, do you think he could come up with ways to defeat me and my dog? The answer is yes that he’d have a good chance to do so. Where I’m going with this is that if you walk or run just about every day in the same spot at the same time and if you may have something a perverted predator may want, you’re leaving yourself very vulnerable to a planned attack. When you are a woman, you have what some predators desperately want, it’s just the way life is. So, when you run, walk or even bird-watch, change your routine regularly. Be systematically unsystematic.

How about pepper spray? Absolutely fantastic. I’ve used it many times against enraged people, successfully. But here’s the thing about spray and also a handgun for that matter. They both must be completely ready at hand to be taken out and used IMMEDIATELY. Many people purchase a gun or spray for protection and they would be way too slow taking the weapon out when a predator attacked. And being way too slow to pull it, point it and be completely ready to use it would be worthless to have it. That weapon must fly out of its holster towards that crazed attacker in no more than two seconds but closer to one second. It must be instantaneous.

So, if you plan on walking, running and enjoying in the outdoors, consider these points.

  1. Be systematically unsystematic
  2. Consider a large canister of quality pepper spray with at least three inert practice canisters. Inert cannisters have water instead of pepper in them and are used for training. Practice taking them out quickly and spraying at a practice bad guy or (wall)—very quickly.
  3. Consider getting a handgun. If you go this route get great training from someone who has skills in realistic firearm deployment. Make sure you can pull that pistol out in a flash and be completely ready to fully deploy it against an attacker.
  4. Dogs can be a good deterrent and can even physically keep a bad guy away but dogs can also be neutralized by a human being. Do not rely solely on a dog without having your own skill sets ready whether they are pepper spray, a handgun or other skills you are well versed in.
  5. Consider self-defense training from a realistic street attack oriented trainer or school. Practice regularly in how to protect yourself and how to strike an attacker with success.
  6. Be with others. There is safety and deterrence in numbers.

Enjoy the great outdoors but be prepared to avoid or survive an attack.

Steve’s latest book: jhttps://tinyurl.com/2p8a3v3r

Steve Kovacs
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Steve Kovacs

About Steve Kovacs

Steve's the bestselling author of 'Protect Your Kids! The Simple Keys to Children's Safety and Survival'. He's written many articles on a wide variety of topics and has three published books. Steve's a three-time survivor of violence in his youth, a former police supervisor and a graduate of The Police Executive Leadership College (PELC) and was also an award winning part-time college Criminal Justice instructor. For several years, Steve did written and radio political and current event commentary and was the former host of the long running 'The Kovacs Perspective' Internet radio and TV talk show. Steve presently owns a small businesses in Ohio--The Mayfield Academy of Self-Defense.

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