Wednesday afternoon I left work early for a dentist appointment 4:00PM, but I didn’t get home until 6:00PM! I missed my appointment and was angry that I left work early for nothing. The TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) is not “The better way”. Later that night, I complained to my chiropractor Marco that since I ran the Sporting Life 10K in 56:09, I should have just run home from work. We laughed, but little did I know I’d have to put my money where my mouth was, because today I chased a bus down for half a mile. Yes, that’s right: I ran for half a mile in my work clothes while carrying my purse and all of the crap I usually drag home with me at the end of the day. Fortunately I had my running shoes with me. God bless Asics! Here’s what happened:
I saw my bus at the end of the station waiting in its bay. I ran towards it, reached the bus and stopped in front of the door just as he’s closing it. So I knocked and waited for him to open the door. Keep in mind he hasn’t pulled out yet, he’s still sitting in the bus bay. He looked up at me, smiled and then proceeded to drive off, waving as he left. Seriously? You saw me and you’re STILL leaving? WTF? Had he not waved, I probably would have waited for the next bus but I decided I’d try to catch him at the next stop down the street, a quarter-mile away. Remember, I love challenges.
To be fair, I wasn’t running flat out against the bus. I knew the traffic and lights would slow the bus down enough that I’d have a chance of getting to the stop first. Luckily I got there with time to spare, and the bus was still at least 50 meters back. I’m smiling and happy because I’m getting on that bus. Yay me! But apparently he recognized me because the same driver looked over at me and sailed on by, leaving at least five other angry people at the stop. At this point, I could have walked into the nearby Starbucks, ordered a Frappuccino, waited for the next bus, and called it a day. No, now it’s personal.
I took off running again. I knew the next time I’d possibly have a chance to catch him was at the next major intersection another quarter-mile away. Those of you who know me know that I do speed work running quarter miles as fast as I can. Who knew it would actually come in handy? Well, despite the driver getting stuck at a traffic light and waiting for passengers, I just reached the stop as he was pulling away. Crap. Now I call it a day because I wasn’t going to chase this jerk all the way home.
But then another bus pulled up and I got on, because now I have a shot at catching up. This driver looked he might be a cool dude so I explained to him what happened. I wasn’t sure if his shock was because I had run a half mile, or why the bus driver wouldn’t stop for me. He tells me he’ll try to get me on that bus, and when we finally catch a break at a light he tells me to get off and go for it. I was worried because the other driver might not let me on (again). This driver says he’ll let me back on his bus if that happens. I get off and for the fourth time that day, I run for the bus. I knock on the door, the driver looks over and sees that it’s me. Yeah, it’s me. Again. He gives me a dirty look, waits and then opens the door to let me on.
This blog post should have been about the shepherd’s pie I made or the lemon curd recipe my friend shared with me, but instead it’s about an unhappy bus driver who decided I didn’t deserve get on his bus. I’ve learned that there are a lot of people who take pleasure in knowing they can make someone else unhappy. Clearly, this driver was one of those people. I don’t let people like that get to me. Be fearless and don’t mess with a runner! Yeah! And don’t worry, I’ll be back later with those recipes !
That’s my feel good story of the day, what’s yours?
menubyvicky 
Wow, I’m impressed you ran that far. I’d have given up, and probably let it fester a bit. Did you get his name or number? I’d honestly report him, not just for what he did to you but because he also impacted those other people at the stop out of spite. He’s representing his company poorly.
I guess speed work comes in handy but it was annoying running with my purse and stuff. I got his number alright and his picture! Ha! There are some good bus drivers out there. He’s just not one of them.
I wouldn’t be able to run with that stuff. I hate running with a backpack even.
I remember when I was little, my kindergarten class was on the bus for a special trip. A large guy was coming up to the stop (not nearly as close to the stop as you were) and the bus started to pull away because he didn’t see the guy. The big guy started running and he caught up to the side of the bus, near the back, and body checked the bus. He hit it so hard (he was really large) the whole bus was rocking back and forth. The driver stopped because he thought he hit something, and the guy just casually walked on, paid his fare, and sat down. LOL
Yikes! 🙂
Wow! Christi and I both agree that you should report that driver. He should not be allowed to treat customers in that fashion. If others have reported him, perhaps your call will be the tipping point that causes the company to issue a reprimand. But I have to say that I am really impressed that you ran that bus down — twice! If I had done something like that, I think I would have had some ‘words’ with that driver as I reached my ‘stop’ to let him know I was reporting him.
I thought about saying something to him when I got on the bus but I was still a good 5K from home. I didn’t want to get booted from the bus and have to walk. He would have been in the wrong but I was tired at that point. I sent in a Tweet to the transit CS dept. and they said they would report it. Drivers here are unionized so I’m not holding my breath but we’ll see. Thanks for the support 🙂
thank you for your nice comment on my pet hate’s post. Have a nice week.
Oh my gosh. What a jerk!
You must be so proud you stood up for yourself like that!!!
Love your artwork on him though 🙂
Yeah I drew all over his face partially to get out the aggression and then partially because I wasn’t sure if I would get in trouble for posting his picture. Thanks for your support 🙂
Bravo for chasing that bus/driver down! One summer I decided to use our city’s transit system in an effort to be more environmentally conscious and had an experience similar to yours. After my bus went sailing past me as I stood by the sign, I turned to the person standing next to me (and the sign) and asked “you can see me, right?” Unlike you, I gave up (way to easily) and walked back home – to my car. Great post! I loved it!!
Thanks 🙂
Oh there are days when I’m stuck underground or days like Thursday when I think, why didn’t I drive? Although I’m now thinking about saving myself the cost of the transit pass and just running to and from work. We’ll see!
Thx for connecting with me on foodbuzz. I have subscribed to your feed and can’t wait to see what your next post will be!
Thanks for stopping by to visit!
OMG what a jerk. Did you report him. I would drop a dime then follow up with a letter or email with a link to this blog
I did report him but the drivers in the city are unionized so I’m not sure if anything will happen to him. At the very least, I hope he gets a note on his file. I did see him yesterday and he did wait for other people who were running for his bus. Maybe someone talked to him or he was in a better mood 🙂
This is the first post I have read from your blog and it was great. I’m glad you chased after him. Next time he wants to be a jerk he will remember you and think twice. I see you are an avid runner – I have been thinking about getting back into running to improve my judo, but I am not sure where a good place is to start, maybe you can offer some advice? I am horrible at running, and I am wondering if there is a good way to ease into it, or a more effective way to improve e.g. treadmill or outdoors, interval training or constant speed etc. Any help is greatly appreciated! 😀
Thanks for stopping by! You know, I did complain about the driver and I saw him once after that but not since then.
If you’re getting into running, I would say the first thing is to make sure you’ve got fresh running shoes. You don’t want to be running on shoes with little to no support (unless you’re barefoot running but that’s a whole different beast). If you’re worried about impact and your joints, start out on the treadmill and gradually transition to the street. You can start out with run/walk intervals. So run for a minute and walk for 4 and as you feel more comfortable, increase the running and decrease the walk breaks. Start out slow and keep the distances small and increase them as your indurance improves. HTH!
Hmm… Maybe I should do a post on this 🙂
thanks for the tips! Sonuds great – I have a nice new pair of brooks running shoes that I bought just before I broke my foot haha so they are still pretty fresh! I will try what you suggested and let you know how I go! Thanks for the advice 😀
You’re welcome! I hope your foot feels better soon 🙂 I did a post on tips for new runners. There are a few more tips there. Check it out: https://menubyvicky.com/2012/06/08/fearless-friday-10-tips-for-new-runners/