So I sit here, 7 am waiting. I can hear the clouds rumbling angerly outside my window as I pour my coffee and peel my banana. I sit in my front deck porch wondering what the weather is going to decide to do: rain now, hold off for a few hours, sprinkle and pass us by like a dandelion blowing in the wind. Whatever mother earth decides to do is going to determine when and how far and if I run this morning—I’ll wait it out for now, the lightning is beginning.

Don’t get me wrong, running in the rain can be liberating. As long as it’s warm, the wind isn’t blowing drops in your eyes blinding you, and you don’t mind getting wet. When out in the rain, it can be a powerful experience: mud splashing up on your calves, shirt drenched and sticking to your skin, water dripping from your chin…it’s great! Sometimes I pretend to be some sort of warrior Goddess running through the streets. But at what point do you need to come in from the storm and seek shelter? The last thing you want to do is put yourself in danger just to get some miles under your feet.


Some runners say, “there is no breaking point, I’ll run through anything.” Others opinions range from only running in dry weather, only running in light, warm rain, only running rain and thunder, no lightening, others believe that anything is fair game. I urge you to look at the weather before you hit the pavement, watch the radar over a cuppa joe and make sure you’re not going to get stuck in a down pour/hail storm/near flood 4 miles from your house trying to keep your I-pod dry and duck for cover in the darkness of 5am when the streets are virtually empty and there is no gas station near by to hide in… not that I have any experience in an event like this…

In other words, utilize your resources, don’t run in lightening, and every once and while bring out the tribal Goddess/God in you and run like a free-spirited kid through the light summer rain, you’ll like it—I promise!