"covid police" shouting at joggers

DragonPig · 2021-06-16T03:59:17+00:00

I'm not in the UK and we're still under tough restrictions here - one of them being that you're only allowed to exercise in your own neighbourhood. I had the windows open yesterday and heard someone properly shouting at this man who was jogging! He wouldn't allow him to jog around our block and forced him to turn around! Did things like this happen in the UK? Tbh the large groups of joggers did annoy me as they'd take up the whole road and make no attempt to social distance but this guy, just one man by himself. Idk. It makes the neighbourhood seem a very unwelcoming place. I hate covid.

Prokupatuscrakedatus · 16/06/2021 06:20

There were threads on here ... there were lots of people channeling their inner Blockwart.

Whinginadeville · 16/06/2021 06:53

The joggers in my village were a right pain sweaty breathy pavement stealing knob cheeses tbh. No idea where they all came from and they vanished fairly quickly. Lots of people started shouting at them it was quite amusing most of them were 30/40 year old men obviously not used to being bollocked.

badpuma · 16/06/2021 06:56

I was yelled at while running even though I was wearing a mask and running in the middle of the road. I felt a bit sorry for the people yelling who'd clearly got themselves so stressed they couldn't function any more.

It's much easier now as the days are longer and the ground is drier so there are far more times and places to run than there were in January.

Now the problem is completely uncontrolled 'just friendly' dogs...

NellWilsonsWhiteHair · 16/06/2021 06:58

I think lots of arseholes have felt empowered by the pandemic to voice their irrational objections to other groups of people. This includes runners, old people, fat people, teachers, and I’m sure any number of other random groups they like to project onto.

MRex · 16/06/2021 07:03

No, round here normal people just let each other get on with things, although the local park stupidly banned bikes for a while. When there were a raft of complaints, they muttered darkly about cyclists breathing and claimed they were reducing accidents (by pushing cyclists onto roads with lots of traffic instead of the park). I thought most of the craziness like that was fairly limited to the initial couple of months of the pandemic, it's been widely known for a long time that there is minimal transmission risk outside.

BritWifeInUSA · 16/06/2021 07:11

Oh, what you have missed on here, OP! We saw it all here: wanting to report people for buying nothing but 2 cucumbers in a shopping trip, anyone who bought an Easter egg was a grandma killer, milk was not an essential item, curtain twitchers noting number plates of card parked in drives and the times they arrived and left, someone was reported for taking her baby to a completely empty park, people being yelled at to stick to the one-way system in an empty shop. People in the UK became absolutely hysterical about the whole thing. I don’t think any other country had such an active “COVID police” as the UK. It would have been hilarious if it wasn’t so worrying.

Bobholll · 16/06/2021 08:22

What @BritWifeInUSA said. It was mental. It still is sometimes but thankfully mostly on mumsnet & not in real life. The amount of times I’ve been told I’m selfish etc for doing stuff within the rules cos ‘variants’ cos ‘cases are rising’ 🙄

looptheloopinahulahoop · 16/06/2021 08:24

How bizarre. Why did the runner not tell the nosy idiot to bog off and carry on? I would have done!

I've run right through the pandemic (in the UK) and although I've had a few people stop and turn their backs to me to avoid my virus-shedding breath, nobody has yelled at me.

But yes for a while in the UK the hatred of virus shedding joggers huffing and puffing over everyone they passed was even greater than the hatred of cyclists.

As for only exercising in your neighbourhood or within a certain radius of your home, I always wondered how the virus knew when you were magically 5.1km from home or whatever and would leap on you at that point.

Original poster

DragonPig · 16/06/2021 08:25

@BritWifeInUSA

Oh, what you have missed on here, OP! We saw it all here: wanting to report people for buying nothing but 2 cucumbers in a shopping trip, anyone who bought an Easter egg was a grandma killer, milk was not an essential item, curtain twitchers noting number plates of card parked in drives and the times they arrived and left, someone was reported for taking her baby to a completely empty park, people being yelled at to stick to the one-way system in an empty shop. People in the UK became absolutely hysterical about the whole thing. I don’t think any other country had such an active “COVID police” as the UK. It would have been hilarious if it wasn’t so worrying.

Yes tbh I avoid the covid boards as it's so depressing so it sounds like I missed a lot!

People here are not generally too bad, this public shouting was a first. Most of the time they just moan in the neighbourhood WhatsApp.

OP posts:

RaspberryCoulis · 16/06/2021 08:26

My friend lives in a small village about 20 miles outside Glasgow, during the first lockdown her neighbour spent most of the day looking out of the window writing down in his notebook when people were leaving home and when they were coming back.

Anyone who went over his acceptable time limit was spoken to.

Long and the short of it is he has completely ruined any friendships he ever had within the village, and made himself the community pariah.

looptheloopinahulahoop · 16/06/2021 08:29

Oh my goodness @RaspberryCoulis.

I'd have just told him to bog off too.

RaspberryCoulis · 16/06/2021 08:32

Yes me too. But these are older, polite, very non-confrontational women. My friend was very forgiving and took the view that he was anxious and frightened and that was why he was behaving in the way he was.

Ohdeariedear · 16/06/2021 08:37

Yes, early on we as a family of four were shouted at a lady while out cycling - she shouted “you are killing me!” at us as we passed her.

It’s important to note at this point that the lady shouting at us for cycling….. was also out cycling 🤷‍♀️

Ohdeariedear · 16/06/2021 08:39

(We we’re allowed as a family group, before anyone says FOUR OF YOU!!!)

Lostinacloud · 16/06/2021 08:40

It’s just madness.

My theory on this has always been the same. If you truly have covid and so as a result are feeling unwell, the last place you’d be is out in the street running!
I had covid last October. It was mild and lasted maximum a week. However, besides being morally obliged to stay at home anyway, the last thing I felt like doing with a raging headache and desire to lie on the sofa all day watching tv was put my joggers on and go for a good old run
And asymptomatic spread has always been a questionable theory.

user1477249785 · 16/06/2021 08:46

Yeah running appears to have drawn particular ire. I don't know why. Outside transmission is limited and running in a public space is a completely legitimate activity. I'm a runner and saw masses of vitriol despite doing my best to be thoughtful of others

frumpety · 16/06/2021 09:04

I rarely witnessed any first hand, but I don't run or cycle because I am lazy, a few friends who do both mentioned odd comments/behaviour early on in the pandemic, but not heard anyone mention any since the beginning of last Summer.

Honey12346 · 16/06/2021 09:18

One time I was waiting in line to do something very much essential. Other people in line too. A woman came out of nowhere to start yelling at us to stand more space out and saying she doesn't understand how we're not scared (there was literally no room for us to be further spaced apart). It was my first encounter with covid hysteria and I could not stop laughing!

osbertthesyrianhamster · 16/06/2021 09:25

What BritWife said.

Auntienumber8 · 16/06/2021 09:30

DH runs regularly but dodges people walking especially if he is running up behind them. Over the last year two runners have been so zoned out with headphones on they have run up behind me and almost bumped in to me.

PotassiumChloride · 16/06/2021 09:38

Jogging is the main super-spreading activity. Especially solo jogging. That’s the worst.

looptheloopinahulahoop · 16/06/2021 10:57

@PotassiumChloride

Jogging is the main super-spreading activity. Especially solo jogging. That’s the worst.

applespearslemons · 16/06/2021 15:37

Shouting at joggers is ridiculous

Shouldn't we all try keep ourselves healthy and fit? Where is the harm?

MikeWozniaksGloriousTache · 16/06/2021 15:49

What I don't like about joggers is their ability to ninja up behind you and barely give you a second to react. Difficult when you're walking a nervous dog and are pregnant, nearly was knocked off my feet by a nob like this the other day. A simple 'excuse me' or even 'coming through' would have give me a chance to step to one side.

They're not all like that, but my experience is many don't warn you they're approaching to adjust your positioning on the pavement. Nothing to do with covid though.