Thursday, August 16, 2007

Nothing like a dirtbag to ruin a good thing

A friend of mine forwarded me this email that she got from another friend of hers.

Note: I changed some details to protect the affected parties. :0)

From: ParvatiPatil@hogwarts.com
Sent: Friday, August 10, 2007 9:33 PM
To: Bones, Susan
Subject: Woman attacked on Shrieking Shack Trail

Susan~Here's the account of the attack I told you about. Be careful!! Parvati

Hi Everyone - My friend's daughter was attacked yesterday on the Shrieking Shack bike trail. She was jogging in the late afternoon wearing an iPod and a man wearing a mask came up behind her and started hitting her with a heavy stick and trying to drag her off the trail. She fought very very hard and he gave up and ran off. Some other people then came along and called the police and she was taken to the hospital where DNA samples were taken from under her fingernails. Luckily, she is okay. The police also found the stick. But the man is still on the loose so I wanted everyone to be extra careful and vigilant if they go on the trail. I believe the attack occurred in Hogsmeade, past Madam Puddifoot's.

My choice of names asides, this email is for real! Yes my friends...the trail in question is where I do my weekend long runs. In fact, I pass by this specific area all the time! :(

I'm trying not to be upset about it and trying to put things in prospective. The said attack happened on a late Thursday afternoon. Typically, the trail is not as busy on the weekdays especially at this time. I run at peak time (Saturday mornings) and there are tons of people at the trail at all times. There are times where I'm alone, but it's no more than a minute before someone else comes along.

It does bring the message home to always be alert, no matter what. And even though I run at a busy time, I will now be scouring the net for pepper spray.

8 comments:

Angela said...

i saw that on the news yesterday! Be careful :)

KatieFeldmom said...

LOL at the names you chose.

On a more serious note though, be careful and take care of yourself!!!

leslie said...

That just sucks. Can you borrow someone's dog? Nobody messes with runners with dogs...

Be safe.

Unknown said...

Hey girl...wow, that is pretty scarey. Nothing like a freak to take the fun out of your runs. YEP..I too would invest in some pepper spray. I also wouldn't run with my IPOD-just to be a bit more aware of my surroundings. I would also sharpen all my finger nails to points and run in heels...that way if something were to happen, the blow of the SHARP heels in the groin would definitely get this creeps attention :) All kidding aside...PLEASE be careful.

FV Tom said...

I was wondering about the names ... nice work.

BE CAREFUL!

havlow said...

That's pretty scary stuff there!! I seem to remember they also have "screamers" for runners too. Basically you attach them to your wrist or something, pull out the key and it sets off an ear piercing shrill. Something else to add to the arsenal or pepper spray.

On an aside it scares me how much I understood every HP reference in that letter. Blimey!

Laurie said...

Very scarey! Please be careful. I tend to when I'm out to have only one earpiece in so I have music but can hear what's going on around me as well.

Irene said...

I can't believe how often this is happening! It sounds almost identical to what happened here earlier this month. Yep. It's a good idea to carry pepper spray.