Murphy’s Law for Runners

Murphy’s Law is an old adage that says, “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” As many runners can attest, Murphy’s Law can sometimes hold true in running. Although running can be full of spectacular, inspiring moments, runners encounter their fair share of problems and embarrassing moments. See how many of these you can relate to:

You don’t need to use the porta-potty at the start, where there are dozens of toilets. But as soon as you start the race and there isn’t a bathroom in sight, you need to go…immediately.
You run hard during your entire 5-mile run and the minute you start walking to cool down, a friend drives past you and honks.
If you wear white during a run, it will start raining.
If you skip the sunscreen and leave your sunglasses at home because it’s cloudy when you start your run, the sun will come out when you’re a couple of miles in. Then when you remember to be prepared for a sunny run, it gets cloudy and stays that way for your entire run.
When you finally get the courage to sign up for a certain race, it will be sold out.
You plan your running route so that you pass a public bathroom halfway through your long run, only to find it locked when you get there.
As soon as you feel like your training is going really, really well, you get injured.
You finally find a pair of running shorts that you love and then discover that they’ve discontinued them.
You pick the shortest porta-potty line, but the other lines move much faster.
When you feel like you could use a quick break to catch your breath at a traffic light, the light is green. When you’re in a groove and want to keep running, it’s red.
You planned the perfect music playlist for your race, and your phone stops working when you’re one mile in.
When running on a narrow road, two cars driving in opposite directions will pass right at the moment you’re running next to them.
You train during a brutally cold winter for your marathon and then get an unseasonably warm race day.
When you just feel like running by yourself during a race, there are a ton of other runners around you. Then when you really want some company, you’re all alone.
During an out-and-back run, you’re running into a headwind. When you finally turn around, the wind changes directions so you’re running into the wind…again.