To talk to this girl

[Oysterbabe]

I’ve been walking the same route to work for about a year and inevitably see a lot of the same people every day. What they may or may not know is that I am secretly racing them. There is one girl in particular who is usually walking up my road as I leave the house. She’s pretty fast and sometimes she overtakes me and sometimes I stay ahead of her. We’ve never made eye contact or spoken but I feel sure that knows that we’re racing and I’m sure she purposely swishes her ponytail at me as she’s overtaking. She wears very cloppy shoes so I can usually hear her approaching from behind even when I have my headphones on.

I’m 23 weeks pregnant now and getting a bit slower as my hip has been giving me a bit of bother. She wins most days and this is just going to get worse. This morning I set off down the road and straightaway could hear clop clop clop so I upped the pace a bit, determined to at least beat her to the traffic lights at the bottom of the hill. It was going pretty well as her clops got a bit faster too but weren’t getting any louder so I thought I was holding her. Upped the pace a bit more to the point where I had a bit of a light sweat on and still no sign of her overtaking. Made it to the lights first (yes!) and risked a glance back over my shoulder and saw that no one was there. Was a bit puzzled by this until I started walking again, heard the clop clop clop and realised that my keys had been knocking against my phone in my bag when I walked and this was what I had been hearing.

While finishing my walk to work at a rather more leisurely pace I started thinking about how I’m probably slightly mad. Do other people secretly race to work? Would it be unreasonable if next time I smiled at my swishy haired opponent and maybe said good morning? Would this be breaking some kind of commuter grand prix rule? To be honest she doesn’t look very friendly but maybe she’s just focused on the race.

[FruSirkaOla]

I reckon the red skirt is a coat, and the beige/cream thing is a skirt with a slit up the back?

[HellKitty]

If she gets close to overtaking then have a pregnancy 'twinge', when she stops all concerned you can elbow her out the way. Ya snooze ya lose.

[Polyannatunnel]

I always do this on the Severn Bridge, wait at the tolls and then put my foot down to the floor to try and beat every other car before the lanes begin to merge.

[Jo4040]

You don't wear trainers with that coat/kind of flowy putslfit that she has got on under her coat. She must be a MNetter or at the very least racing you.

That's haliarious

If you speak to her ...she's so going to end up your new babys Godmother and you will go racing running together to loose your baby weight

[Jo4040]

Outfit *

[BitOutOfPractice]

Jo4040 lots of people in LOndon wear trainers with their work clothes on their way to work.

[Jo4040]

Can't you tell I don't live in London then...or never been

I thought bcz OP took a photo of the trainers it was unusual

[Lweji]

It's unusual for this girl, according to the op.

[Oysterbabe]

Normally she wears cloppy shoes.

[anothernumberone]

OP you are an evil genius. I like the cut of your jib.

[SocksRock]

I race people in the gym who are on the machines either side of me. Normally who can be the next to a certain number of calories or kilometres. I'm sure they don't know they are being raced...

[jp0303]

Oyster you are right up my street, thanks for the giggles.

I remember being about 13 and my Mum being really busy in the kitchen and going batshit crazy at me to stop wittering on and distracting her. At the time I had been telling her about how I race people who are walking ahead of me when I'm on my own to help me to get to places on time and giving her my tally of how many people I'd beaten that day!

[3luckystars]

I don't race but I definitely am aware of other people timings.
We live about 2 minutes from the school. A neighbour across the road is so effing smug that she is on her way BACK a from the school while everyone else is walking towards it. I thought I was ok about it but on Monday I saw her children out walking to school when I was just getting up out of bed and I started jumping up and down like rumplestilskin.

[Oysterbabe]

I'm returning to work after maternity leave in about 6 weeks so will be resuming my racing. I walked the route today as I needed something in town. There was a man walking too and he was winning because I was pushing the heavy pram. Then he made a big mistake. There are two ways you can go to take you to the same place. He chose the shorter one but has a busy road with a complicated traffic light sequence. The longer route is faster 9/10. When I got into town I looked over my shoulder and he was behind me. I'm back in the game!

[TwentyCups]

Nice to hear from you OP! Glad to see you are still racing

[MoonlightandMusic]

Welcome back to the game indeed!

[DipsyLaLa22]

Good luck!

[Curiousrugbymum]

I have a colleague who met her DP through a protracted period of mutual racing on a shared multi stage (train/walk/tube/walk) London commute

[standingonlego]

Fitness fanatics both !

[TheEmmaDilemma]

She's back. This has had me truly pissing myself laughing.

I do this all the time. With commentary.

[Scousegeordie]

This is the best thread ever!!! Glad your back in training OP!

[YouCanShoveYourOtherGranny]

Welcome back! This thread is such a delight - and it makes me so happy to find others like me. I race everyone, everywhere. They don't expect it from me - I may look like just another middle aged fat lady, but boy, am I determined! I suss out the exact spot to stand in to be first on the train or the bus, to cross the street, to get in (or out) the door. First down the stairs, and out of the parking lot. Somehow, everyone around me knows, and perhaps just lets me win? Or maybe it is the evil eye - I noticed one poor unsuspecting fellow commuter had gone quite pale as she tried to get on before me last week. Guess I should pay attention to what my face is doing as I'm getting ready to win....

[Ninarina]

This is the cutest thing I've read on Mumsnet. Made me laugh. I want to be your friend