Sidewalk Etiquette

So I was wondering on my run this afternoon, who has the right away on the sidewalk?? Runners or walkers?

I ask this because my experience with walkers is that some will move out of your way and some won't. For example, I came upon a lady tonight that gladly moved to the side and gave me plenty of room to go by. But then I also came upon a pair of ladies walking side by side. Do you think that the ladies would move to single file so that I could pass??? Of course they wouldn't...I ended up going into the street to pass (there was a row of trees/shrubs on both sides).

Both are pedestrians so I think it just comes down to common courtesy. Some people are courteous; others aren't. That said, sometimes courteous people can be unaware and inadvertantly 'rude'. Best not to judge; just run.

I think there are people that are just unaware and appear to be rude (those would be people you come up from behind). I think the rude ones are the ones that walk right toward you as if you are not on the sidewalk. I run and walk on the sidewalk and this irritates me. In fact, I walk to and from work everyday and shoulder check about 2 people on average everyday. The sidewalk is 8 wide and there will be 7 people hogging the sidewalk and 1 random, clueless moron that tries to make it 8 wide....at a detriment to them, because I'm not moving. This happened today to a chick that looked right at me and walked straight toward me. I didn't move and our shoulders met and I kept walking like nothing happened. She gasped. It hurt a little because I'm sunburned.

So, I guess what I'm saying is that I have more sympathy for those with their backs to me (even though they should use their God given brains to realize people may be behind them...I digress). I have zero patience for those walking/running toward me....with 2 exceptions: you're elderly or you're pregnant. Outside of that, your ass is potentially on the ground.

Yield to the faster person is the way I operate. That's mostly from living in New York. But if it's a commercial area (tons of storefronts or something), I understand people not moving out of the way. But yeah, if you're facing me and taking up the whole sidewalk, I'm running smack into you unless you move.

@Mike MacLellan wrote:Yield to the faster person is the way I operate. That's mostly from living in New York. But if it's a commercial area (tons of storefronts or something), I understand people not moving out of the way. But yeah, if you're facing me and taking up the whole sidewalk, I'm running smack into you unless you move.

@Mike MacLellan wrote:Yield to the faster person is the way I operate. That's mostly from living in New York. But if it's a commercial area (tons of storefronts or something), I understand people not moving out of the way. But yeah, if you're facing me and taking up the whole sidewalk, I'm running smack into you unless you move.

This reminds me of a run/confrontation I had a year or so ago. It was a hot summer evening, and my running partner and I were about 12 miles into our 15 miler. It was warm, humid, and generally, shitty running weather.

As we ran down the running path, three teenage girls were walking three abreast across. They decided to play chicken, and hell if I was going to move for them. I ran straight into the arms of the one in the middle, and she was forced to wrap her arms around my shirtless, sweaty upper body as we went chest to chest. She walked away screaming and a bit smellier than seconds before while the other two girls and us runners got a good laugh.

@Mr MattM wrote:Both are pedestrians so I think it just comes down to common courtesy. Some people are courteous; others aren't. That said, sometimes courteous people can be unaware and inadvertantly 'rude'. Best not to judge; just run.

I am with Matt on this. We spend tons of time on the road and are much more aware of safety and courtesy, while others are just relax there, thus don't pay that much attention. Where I run, I can always go on the grass or street etc, so I just plan early.

When I do tempo, I do go on park path where there are very few people in the morning so that I can focus and go fast.

@Bob wrote: I ran straight into the arms of the one in the middle, and she was forced to wrap her arms around my shirtless, sweaty upper body as we went chest to chest. She walked away screaming and a bit smellier then seconds before while the other two girls and us runners got a good laugh.

BWAHAHA!

Bob wins. Fucking hilarious. Are you sure you hadn't painted "free hugs" across your chest?

I always yield to walkers. My thinking is that it's much easier for me to run the extra the few feet off the sidewalk or into the street as I'm moving faster. Plus if I run into the street and a car tries to hit me, I get to punch it.

I usually get off and run into the street (left side) especially if they have a dog even if it might be friendly. But some people will get off. I will say I'm not overly thrilled when I have to run into the grass or when a bike runs me off the side walk and doesn't even say thank you or excuse me but that's just the way it goes. It's funny when you run the same general area/routes and you recognize who is out at that time and know if they'll say good morning or get off the sidewalk (or to the side) for you.

If I'm coming up from behind them I will just move off to the side and go by them. If they're coming at me and walking side by side and see me coming and refuse to move to one side then I'm not moving either. I have no patience for those that think they own the sidewalk.

@Bob wrote:

@Mike MacLellan wrote:Yield to the faster person is the way I operate. That's mostly from living in New York. But if it's a commercial area (tons of storefronts or something), I understand people not moving out of the way. But yeah, if you're facing me and taking up the whole sidewalk, I'm running smack into you unless you move.

This reminds me of a run/confrontation I had a year or so ago. It was a hot summer evening, and my running partner and I were about 12 miles into our 15 miler. It was warm, humid, and generally, shitty running weather.

As we ran down the running path, three teenage girls were walking three abreast across. They decided to play chicken, and hell if I was going to move for them. I ran straight into the arms of the one in the middle, and she was forced to wrap her arms around my shirtless, sweaty upper body as we went chest to chest. She walked away screaming and a bit smellier than seconds before while the other two girls and us runners got a good laugh.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Love it!!!

My take is that if you are coming up from behind someone, then the walker has the right away. But if you are meeting them head on, the runner should have the right away. Especially if you make eye contact with that person.

99% of us wrote:I have no patience for those that think they own the sidewalk.

This is in no way intended to single-out the person who said it, because it's a sentiment that it seems like 99% of us share - Greg being the only real exception so far.

But by saying that people should move for us, aren't we more or less suggesting that WE own the sidewalk?

To me a sidewalk is like a road. If I'm driving on the right side and two cars are coming at me with one of them being on their left side of the road I shouldn't drive off the side of the road so they can stay side by side. If I'm running on the right side of the sidewalk why should I have to move off of it because two people coming at me decide to stay side by side instead moving to their side of the sidewalk?

@Alex Kubacki wrote:To me a sidewalk is like a road. If I'm driving on the right side and two cars are coming at me with one of them being on their left side of the road I shouldn't drive off the side of the road so they can stay side by side. If I'm running on the right side of the sidewalk why should I have to move off of it because two people coming at me decide to stay side by side instead moving to their side of the sidewalk?

In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

@Dave-O wrote:In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

As do I.

In a nautical analogy, a motor boat must alwasy yield to a sailboat. A sailboat cannot react as quickly. When running, I'm the motorboat. The walker is the sailboat. I can easily shift course in a single stride and efficiently go around, whereas a side-by-side walker is going to have to either stop or speed up and make a completely sideways move to get single file. Very inefficient.

@Mike MacLellan wrote:Bob wins. Fucking hilarious. Are you sure you hadn't painted "free hugs" across your chest?

I bet he uses that Axe body spray.

@Mr MattM wrote:

@Dave-O wrote:In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

As do I.

In a nautical analogy, a motor boat must alwasy yield to a sailboat. A sailboat cannot react as quickly. When running, I'm the motorboat. The walker is the sailboat. I can easily shift course in a single stride and efficiently go around, whereas a side-by-side walker is going to have to either stop or speed up and make a completely sideways move to get single file. Very inefficient.

This exact scenario happened to me today at the track. A man and woman were walking in lanes 1 and 2, so everytime I came upon them, i had to be Kenny and move out into lane 3. When I started my third repeat half, they realized what was happening and moved to lanes 4 and 5, so that I could have the inside lanes. I thanked them when I went by.

@Michele "1L" Keane wrote:

@Mr MattM wrote:

@Dave-O wrote:In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

As do I.

In a nautical analogy, a motor boat must alwasy yield to a sailboat. A sailboat cannot react as quickly. When running, I'm the motorboat. The walker is the sailboat. I can easily shift course in a single stride and efficiently go around, whereas a side-by-side walker is going to have to either stop or speed up and make a completely sideways move to get single file. Very inefficient.

This exact scenario happened to me today at the track. A man and woman were walking in lanes 1 and 2, so everytime I came upon them, i had to be Kenny and move out into lane 3. When I started my third repeat half, they realized what was happening and moved to lanes 4 and 5, so that I could have the inside lanes. I thanked them when I went by.

Track is different cause it is built for runners instead. I started asking very politely people, especially their kids, to move away.

I rarely, if ever, run on the sidewalk (concrete) but stick to the asphalt pavement. Luckily I run in a small subdivision across the hyway from my cul-de-sac that gives me plenty of running options with minimal traffic.

@Dave-O wrote:In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

+1

Luckily for me, I don't have to deal with walkers on the sidewalk too often here.

@Dave-O wrote:In an ideal world, the walkers will yield.

But when I run, I operate under the assumption that every driver and pedestrian has his or her head firmly implanted up their ass. Thus, I just take the initiative to move out of the way.

+1

It's not worth the risk of getting hit by a car -- the car will win every time. And I don't think there are specific rules for sidewalks. We all share them, so if the people coming toward you don't yield then the runner should. What purpose does it serve to run directly into them? No wonder I think sometimes drivers are aiming for me! They've probably had a run-in with a rude runner.

On another note... when you approach a pedestrian from behind, do you say "passing" or "on your left" or do you just quietly creep up behind and scare the shit out of them?