r/running•
Sacamato

Reprise: Have any of you given nicknames to the other runners you regularly encounter on your runs?

I run in my neighborhood at about the same time every morning, so I see the same people a lot. And if I see someone more than 2 or 3 times, I give them a nickname. I posted this exact same question last year, but now I have so many more nicknames to share. Maybe you guys do too (or you missed this thread last year).

So besides the people I mentioned last year (Mr. and Mrs. Mute, Bouncy Smiley, Tower, Military Man, Neighbor Man, Sensei, and Ninja), I now have:

Twice Shy: This is a couple I recently started to see walking around the lake. At first, they would look at me like I had two heads when I said "Good morning" to them, but I think I have them trained now, and they smile and say "Good morning" back. I call them "Twice Shy" because they were shy at first, and there are two of them. I almost called them "Kajagoogoo" for reasons which will be apparent to anyone familiar with one hit wonders from the 80s.
My Girlfriend: She was actually the first person I ever nicknamed (before I started to run actually), but I forgot to mention her in my post last year. When I first moved to this neighborhood, I saw her walking her dog one morning while I was driving by. She waved at me, and I assumed it was because she was one of my new neighbors on my floor. It turns out she's not, so when I realized that I naturally thought, "Well, she must have been waving at me because she's my girlfriend." The name stuck. Her dog is awesome.
Praise the Lord: I say, "Good morning," he says, "Good morning, praise the lord." It's like clockwork. What other name could I possibly have given him?
The Wave: The Wave doesn't say anything. He just waves at me. Even if it's the third time I've passed him.
Tuesday Crew: A group of 3 or 4 women that meet at the lake and run every Wednesday. Either they used to meet on Tuesdays, or I'm an idiot.
Funny Lady and the Funny Bunch: I call her Funny Lady because she doesn't smile. I see her and her bunch walking while I'm on my long runs on Sundays. The only reason I know it's the Funny Bunch is because Funny Lady is there. If she was sick one day, and the rest of the women she walks with were walking without her, I wouldn't even recognize them.
Hills: He does a hill workout on the same hill almost every day. And he wears long sleeves and long pants even when it's above 70.
Walker and Texas Ranger: Texas Ranger is a black dog that is very well-trained. He walks without a leash, but is very good about getting off the sidewalk and sitting when I'm running by, although he sometimes needs to be told to by his owner, Walker, who otherwise does not speak.
Napoleon Dynamite: Looks like a running version of Napoleon Dynamite, i.e., not awkward or gangly, just a teenager with big curly hair. I must be intimidating, because he will cross the street if he's coming at me on the same side as me, and then he will cross back after he passes me.
Sumo: I try to keep all my nicknames positive, so I feel bad about this one, but I do already have a Ninja and a Sensei, so this fits in with that theme. Anyway, he's a big Asian kid I see out walking. He also actively avoids me, Napoleon Dynamite style.
Cyborg: She runs with a camelbak and headphones, so with all these tubes and wires going everywhere, she got named Cyborg.
Mustache: Dude is a badass runner and has a big pushbroom mustache. I think he fights crime by sweeping criminals under a rug with his mustache.
Biker: Every day at around 7 AM, he's biking into my neighborhood. 7 days a week, rain or shine. Sometimes I see him on my morning commute, sometimes I see him while I'm running. He's always wearing street clothes and doesn't go particularly fast, so I think he's commuting. No one else is the Biker. There can be only one.
Pam: That's actually her name.
Team Badass: I only saw them once, but they got an honorary nickname because we kept running into each other on the same long run. Between the first and last time I saw them that day, I had probably run 13 or 14 miles, so I assume they were also out for at least that long.
Joy: Smiles way too much for a runner at 80+ degrees.
Soccer Pro: I see this kid all the time on the soccer field practicing, sometimes with friends, and sometimes alone. With all the time he puts in, I really hope he gets good and turns pro some day.
Stroller Runner and Dog Runner: I think this might be the same woman. I've seen her running with a stroller and running with her dog. Sometimes, I am not very imaginative.
Deuce: A couple that walks. I must have seen them dozens of times, and I could find nothing that distinguished them in any way. Nothing that I could make a nickname out of. So they're Deuce, because there are two of them. I actually just came up with this one this morning.
Beard: Because his beard is bigger than mine.
God Dammit: I am usually the only one out at 4:30 in the morning, and I thought that made me pretty badass, but this guy was running out of the parking lot one morning when I was just walking to my starting point. So I said "God Dammit" because he beat me. Then a little later that same morning, he passed me, and he wasn't wearing a shirt. I have to wear a shirt, because hair. So I said "God Dammit" again, because he's faster and less shirt-requiring. I haven't seen him since, and God Dammit, I hope I never do. I'm sure he's a nice guy though.

There are still a few more people I see that I haven't given nicknames to yet, but I will eventually.

So, what about you guys?

Edit: People I forgot to mention: Picnic, Track Suit, and Firecracker. I'll save 'em for next year.

Posted Sep 4, 2013, 2:59 PM UTC · edited

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