Monday, March 30, 2020 – Walking Trail Etiquette During the Coronavirus

I have walked the trails near my home for three hours a day for the last two weeks and feel I have accumulated enough knowledge to make judgements. Much as Amy Vanderbuilt wrote her Complete Book of Etiquette, I developed 10 Rules for Sharing a Walking Trail During the Coronavirus:

1. Be courteous and considerate. Practice social distancing — keep six feet away from people.

2. Bicyclists, scooter riders, skateboarders, rollerbladers and roller skaters, runners, lazy people, oblivious people, people who only care about themselves and people who do not notice others’ needs — along with those with strollers, baby carriages and wagons — READ RULE NO. 1.

3. If you can reach out and touch people when you pass them, YOU ARE TOO CLOSE. Exception: Your arms are six feet long.

4. If you are behind people, give them adequate warning that you are going to pass. The most courteous thing to do is shout “Right” or “Left” to let them know which direction you are coming from, so they can move to the opposite side of the trail. You also can act like chefs in a commercial kitchen shouting “Behind!” when they have something hot in their hands. The coronavirus is something hot that we are juggling in our hands right now. So, if you are less than six feet from me, you may burn me.

5. If you are a couple (man & woman, two women, two men, parent & child) walking beside each other on a trail, walk single file when passing another person. Most of the trails I walk on are generously wide —10 feet. A couple walking comfortably side by side takes up four feet. So, if I want to be six feet from them, where do I end up? Walking in the wet grass.

6. Men: Do not run or ride a bicycle bare-chested. Bare chests should only be seen when swimming or if you are starring in a movie unless you have a physique like Dwayne Johnson.

7. When you walk dogs and they poop, PICK IT UP!!! Don’t leave it in the middle of the trail for people to trip over or squish all over the bottom of their shoes or tires.

8. Do not put dogs in baby carriages unless they are physically unable to walk.

9. Do not walk your dogs while skateboarding.

10. Do not carry your dogs in a backpack while riding a bicycle.

The behaviors listed above are actual examples I have witnessed on my daily walks. Ten Rules for Sharing a Walking Trail During the Coronavirus are nothing but the Golden Rule which appears in all world religions, e.g. in Matthew 7:12, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”