This being the holiday season, runners are being hounded by email entreaties, TV commercials and pop-up ads for running products ranging from compression socks to Human Growth Hormone dietary supplements.
Lately, it seems like every ad I see is for Road ID.
Yes, yes. I know. As a runner who does many a long training run out in the middle of rural Yolo County, I might be wise to have my name and contact information on my person in case some maniac in a white pickup truck picks me off.
But the constant barrage that I absolutely, positively no-doubt-about-it need Road ID is off-putting. It popped up again in my email today. I saw it recently when I signed up online for a race. Saturday, while watching the recap of the Hawaii Iroman Championships on NBC, triathletes were pushing Road ID. Today, in his Runner's World blog, ultra dude Dean Karnazes puts it on his must-have Christmas gifts.
So, why haven't I purchased a Road ID?
I don't want to wear the thing around my wrist while I run. Too distracting.
It's ridiculous, I know. I'm a guy who wears a bulky Garmin Forerunner GPS watch on one wrist and, on long runs, a hydration pack on my back. So what's the big deal with a light-weight Road ID on the other wrist?
Hey, I never said I was rational.
Looking deeper into my twisted psyche, I think it may be a case of massive denial. If I don't think about getting run over on the road, it won't happen to me. If I wear a Road ID, I'm giving in to fear and admitting that I could get in an accident on the road. (I have had a couple close calls -- not my fault -- over the years.)
Maybe I'll make Road ID a New Year's Running Resolution, but I don't count on it.
Anecdotally, I haven't seen a lot of runners donning Road IDs. Maybe that's just the heedless runners I hang with.
Anyway, do you use Road ID -- or at least carry some form of identification on you during a run? 'Fess up.
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