Running

        Writing about camp trails yesterday brought me a new topic last night. There was this girl at camp that I really liked, who was a runner. She would be seen early in the morning or late in the afternoon, running off down the trails, and I thought that this would be a great way to get “in” with her; to offer to run along with her.

        Now if you are a girl who used to run at camp, don’t get all weird and start thinking that I’m talking about you. I was at camp for over 20 years, and there are at least 6 girls over that time period who fit the description I’ve given, so don’t get all excited. The fact is that in my experience there were an incredible number of runners among our female staff. Every time I came across a girl on one of the trails she seemed to be running somewhere or other. Or was just about to start.

        The point of my story is that I could never keep up. I would have the sense to try running myself, before committing to running in the presence of someone I hoped to impress, and I discovered quickly what I already knew; I don’t like running unless it is dark and I am involved in a pursuit (in front or behind). As the pursuer, if I can’t keep up, I just take a shortcut. If I’m the pursued and I can’t keep ahead, I just claim that I was also chasing someone who escaped ahead of me. But when you’re jogging alongside a cute girl, and you can’t keep up, there just are no good outcomes. And running alongside is a much longer type of pursuit than I was willing to commit to. So I let them all go.

        But my question to all you runners out there is this. What was the best trail at camp for jogging? Where did it take you, and what did you see? And finally, girls, why were you always running?