I don’t really know how to do this.

You speak for me. I think you speak for all of us.

I really need to activate my run angel! I just got new pepper spray this week. Last night I finally learned how to use the Garmin live track.
Funny how when I run with males, I leave this all at home. Sadly they are the best preventative safety measure for women.

I’m sorry for your loss of a friend.
And for all of us women–the feeling of loss, bit by bit, over our safety and autonomy. And the rising inequity of what “safety” means, when so many people are hoping and trying and needing and wanting to do what should be the safest thing ever–finding time to take care of ourselves so we have the foundation we need to take care of everyone in our world.
Words are my thing–I have a PhD in them, and I seem to always have too many of them to share–but words fail me and have failed me since hearing about this.
Even though I don’t run anymore.
And even though yesterday in broad daylight, in a time in the afternoon when many people are on the trails, and I went for a walk and had to text my husband “in case I go missing, this is what I am wearing…”

No two ways around it: heartbreak is the only word I know.

I think this touches all of us deeply. This feeling of violation, targeting, vulnerability, and fear is horrific and heartbreaking. I’m so sorry for what Liza must have gone through and for her family and community grieving for her.

As someone who is also feeling this deeply–crying on my run the other day and thinking about her when I’m trying to sleep at night–I cannot get her death out of my thoughts; her children, her husband, her parents, her siblings are all facing life without her. And, I’m saying this as someone who never interacted with her. Take care, Janae. I hope you find some peace in knowing that you two internet friends brightened each other’s lives.

It is so completely devastating! I used to run by myself almost daily, at 5am (haven’t done that in years). And I was always careful, but I could have been Eliza too. It angers me to no end.
Giving our whole community a big hug ❤️

I feel like you said all my thoughts. Devastated for her family and friends and for all the runners waking up with the same feelings.

Prayers for the family and friends of Liza. I didn’t know her but her character of strength and perseverance are evident. I’ll carry those on my next run instead of the fear I want to grasp onto right now.

Oh my goodness, I just read the news story, this is so heartbreaking.

I’m sorry that you lost a friend. It’s devastating and heartbreaking to know that male violence is always a risk to women who are just existing in the world. The problem is really too staggering to even come to terms with – I don’t know how to begin to process it.

Despite that, I think it’s important to remember that the probability of being abducted by a stranger is very, very low. The consequences are very high and that’s what we see in these horrible cases, but we’re all at far greater risk every day from driving cars (to name just one deadly risk that we all tend to downplay). When you think about the risks of running outside alone, it’s important to also think of the benefits – the mental strength, the alone time, the independence, the nature time, the dedication, the promise to yourself, whatever matters to you. The vase majority of all female runners will never, ever be abducted. Would it be a good risk calculus to run indoors 100% of the time that you’re alone, knowing that you’re guaranteed to miss most of those benefits? It isn’t for me. I don’t want to live my life worrying about the rare scenarios, as tragic as they are, and running alone indoors for years on end is too extreme a measure for too rare a risk. For me, common sense precautions (like letting someone know where I’ll be and avoiding sketchy areas) are enough. I hope they’ll always be enough given that I can’t control every risk.

This morning’s run was so hard. I am out my door every day at the same time Eliza did, yet I made it back home this morning. The difference this morning was I strapped on my piece…to run along the most affluent part of Oahu because I no longer feel safe. A stranger chastised me on the internet yesterday for running so early in the morning, meanwhile this same thing could easily happen at 4:30pm these days. She is quite lucky I refuse to argue with strangers, especially on social media outlets these days. Our world needs to do better. I will forever live to the motto I have tattoed on my forearm “only be afraid of being afraid”.

You really put what I’ve been feeling into words. Every slightly sketchy run experience comes to mind. And every time I think about going out early in the last week, I rethink it.
I cannot imagine what her family is going through or what she went through. It is beyond heart breaking.