Should I have just kept on running

[JuliaSaysHi]

running my usual route this morning - do this regularly. In the distance - zig zag path, I see a black figure. Bit strange as warm today. Definitely black hood but and think face was covered. I am never spooked on this run although it is a river path with forest on one side. I stop on the zig zag hill path thinking figure will walk past me and then I can run on deeper into the forest area. But figure does not come towards me - I assume waiting? At this point, I am frightened and turn and run back out of the forest area onto public path. I wait at the top of the public path and no one appears. Another lady is approaching forest with her dog and I warn her of what I saw - we both decide to stick to path. I now feel I may have just seen someone wearing black - but where did they go? Very strange and unnerving.

Always follow your gut instincts.

It may have been innocent but your gut suggested otherwise, and told you to be on the safe side. Not a bad thing.

I believe you should always trust your gut in these situations.

I would not risk it OP. There are so many odd people about .A while ago I was walking my dog on the golf course nearby.No one around .A huge foreign guy appeared. must have been about 6ft 6 and very muscular .He walked towards me and I was so scared/shaking .He smiled and said "lovely dog!" Even so It spooked me that if he had been bad news, there would have been no one nearby .I would be careful OP there is just nowhere left that is 100% safe sadly

You have no obligation to the person in black - to not offend them by your turning back, they are a stranger. They are either a stranger up to no good, or a stranger not up to no good, either way you turning back was your benefit- don't over think it

You have no obligation to the person in black - to not offend them by your turning back, they are a stranger. They are either a stranger up to no good, or a stranger not up to no good, either way you turning back was your benefit- don't over think it

Because he was tall, large generally or foreign?
that made him odd, or a threat?

They can’t attack you if you’re not there. If you’re ever tempted to run - you run! I think you totally did the right thing OP, especially about warning the other person as well.

Better to follow your gut, it was probably totally harmless, someone on the phone or something, so not moving. If you normally feel safe there I hope you will be able to run there again without fear.

Uh oh, someone mentioned "foreign", good thing someone arrived on the thread to pick it apart to make a barely-concealed political point even though the rest of the comment was bloody obvious that some bloke built like a brick shithouse is blatantly a threat to a lone woman. 🙄 Someone will be on next to ask how the PP knew it was a man because that silly political point hasn't been made yet either.

You did exactly the right thing. It probably was harmless but there is no point risking it if you feel something isn’t right. As an aside, this is exactly why I share my location with my DH. There was a very sneary thread on here about doing that but I run alone as well and he keeps an eye on me to make sure I’m still moving along.

Where does she say he was odd?

@JuliaSaysHi
Very sensible, you've got instincts for a reason, always follow them.
👏 for warning the other lady too.
Never worry about looking silly or offending anyone.
Your safety comes first

I would have done the same thing. It was insensitive of whoever it was to be wearing that shitty type ninja uniform wanna be thugs wear. I think those black face coverings should be banned. Why would anyone sane and aimiable hide their face? It’s not ok.
Great job on warning the other woman too. Well done.

How did you know he was foreign? Bit weird to describe that like it's a scary trait

The "barely concealed" political point came from the poster who brought it up. It's called "barely concealed" racism.

In her second sentence. Before the racism.

That was a generalisation. She didn't say the man she saw was odd.

@SriouslyWhutNow so maybe I should just have reported the racist comment made by @dottiedodah ?

If someone genuinely thinks that anyone larger, taller them should be prevented from taking a walk because they might pose a threat, of god forbid they make an inoffensive comment and happen to have a foreign accent, maybe they'd be better off staying home & keeping their racist opinions to herself.

If your gut is telling you something is off, I think it's prudent to heed it. After all, it's that gut instinct that has kept the human race going for this long!

She wrote "There are so many odd people about" then went on, in the same paragraph, to describe an incident where she met a stranger and was intimidated by him. If she didn't think he was odd, she is a confusingly poor writer.

@ThinWomansBrain

"If someone genuinely thinks that anyone larger, taller them should be prevented from taking a walk because they might pose a threat..."

I don't think anyone on this thread has suggested that. But I do know that if I'm dog walking, or whatever, in a fairly remote place and I see a lone man coming towards me I am momentarily uneasy. I'd like to say that I (along with countless other women) am being utterly irrational. But we're not. There is a reason why women feel this way.

This makes me so sad as a mum of a bi-racial older teenage boy who you will only ever see out of the house wearing a black coat or hoody with the hood up - even if it’s 30+ degrees. I worry people will automatically look at him and think he’s up to no good and should be afraid and intimidated by him when the reality is he has autism, hates being outside so has his hood up to shut out the world, would much rather be in his room on Roblox and is scared of tiny spiders (honestly would and could not hurt a fly). He's more likely to bore you to death with his monologue of the differences between the Lego Hulk figures in each different set than with any form of violence.
I know people say trust your gut, but also consider your unconscious bias

Yes women, risk your safety so you don’t accidentally offend someone 🙄

It's not unreasonable to be wary of men, partly because they are likely to be physically more powerful than you.

It unreasonable to be more wary of men because you perceive they may be "foreign".