We might live in suburbia, but in order to get to one of his
preferred running routes, Matt has to cross a horrible intersection. Two major roads intersect and Matt has to cross both. I worry every time he walks out the
door. Disclaimer: I’m a worrier by nature (remember the fire
hydrant story?). I make him run with a phone now, which he complains about
because it weighs him down or might get wet or lost or some other possibly bad
thing. But, it makes me feel better so he takes it with him. The
road has walk lights (but they don’t make a sound to indicate it is safe to
walk) and they stop for a reasonable amount of time, but the problem is, cars
that are turning right don’t seem to care that a runner (or anyone for that
matter) might be crossing the road at a speed less than a car in a hurry to get
somewhere. I’ve nearly gotten hit twice and the only reason I didn’t is
that I could see a car hurling towards me going way over the posted 40 MPH
speed limit. Matt wouldn’t see that car. I know the phone won’t stop
him from getting hit, but it makes me feel a little better knowing that he or
someone will be able to call me. I always make him tell me exactly where
he is going and when he will get back. Over the years he has learned to
add a buffer (don’t think I haven’t figured this out, Matt!) so that I don’t
start calling him two minutes after he said he would back only to find out he
needed to take a stop for a drink of water or a bathroom. I hope to
never write about how he called me because something happened at this intersection.
I know bad drivers aren’t a problem for visually impaired runners alone, but it
certainly is more of a problem and it scares me. I sometimes wonder if
the “Blind Pedestrian” signs do anything. I suggested to Matt that we see
about having one added to the intersection near our house, but he is
opposed. Instead, I’ll continue to worry every time he goes for a run
until he walks back through the door.
My husband Matt is a lot of things. He is a wonderful husband to me and father to our three (adorable!) little children. He is an avid runner. He’s a financial analyst. He’s also legally blind. This blog is my attempt to follow him on his journey to the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro. We have no idea what this journey will look like, or exactly how we’ll get there, but we are determined to try.
No comments:
Post a Comment