I don't feel extra safe when I'm using mine.  I run along the water and I'm so paranoid about tripping and the stroller going shooting off into the harbor that i always always use the wrist tether and I slow down when I'm *right next* to the water.

Maybe I'm missing something, but how is the safety or lack thereof of the jogging stroller called into question by this sad event?  A parent walking a baby in a non-jogging stroller is also vulnerable to being hit by a car, even if they're on the sidewalk.  When cars hit pedestrians, pedestrians get badly hurt, and some people are bad drivers so this will happen sometimes whether or not a baby or stroller is involved.  The baby in the jogging stroller was unhurt, while the mother was apparently severely injured, so that's presumably a point in the stroller's favor.  What's the new info here that would make one question whether it's safe (meaning 'like all of life, not really safe, but not notably more risky than everything else') to jog with a baby in a jogging stroller?

Shortly after I ordered my Mountain Buggy while I was pregnant, this news story broke:

gawker.com/.../mountain-buggy-stroller-slowly-usurps-bugaboo-hotness-112943.php

I thought to myself, "Phew!  I made the right choice.  Why, if a building ever collapses on us..." and at about that point I came to my senses.

Does a jogging stroller offer more protection for your child in case of an accident?  Probably.  They're generally made of heavier gauge aluminum than other models.  But the truth is you just have to be vigilant when you're out with your kids in any stroller.  Even the bestest, most spendy stroller available is no match for a city bus going 25 MPH.

I'm not a jogger.  My stroller is a twin-hauler/grocery getter.  But pushing a couple of kids around the city for a couple of years has taught me a few things about being a cautious pedestrian.  One of the things I started doing in our busy, traffic heavy Chicago neighborhood is waiting for the walk signal back at the building line.  Like most urban folks, I used to stand right at the edge of the sidewalk and right at the edge of the platform to be the first one out the gate when the light changed or train pulled up.  Now I hang back.  I also try and use the foot brake any time I'm waiting on a slight incline.  These are really simple things that can make a big difference in case a car loses control, a person turns left without seeing you long after their light has turned red, or some harried commuter shoves past you to get a good spot on the platform.  Pretty common sense stuff, I guess.

Something else I remember reading about was that drivers are prone to not noticing the presence of a stroller.  In other words, somebody driving a vehicle may think they have plenty of room to turn while you're in the cross walk because they don't see your stroller.  

I guess what I'm trying to say is that the city is a jungle, no matter if you're pushing a five dollar umbrella stroller or a Bugaboo.  Be careful out there.  

I think drivers need to be more aware.  I live in a relatively quiet neighborhood in Chicago, and I have seen --several times-- drivers pull in front of and around cars that were waiting for the crosswalk to clear and almost hit older people, people walking with kids, people pushing strollers.  What are they thinking?  The answer is that they are not -- the fact that a pedestrian or family could be in the crosswalk never occurred to them.

Before I became a parent, I used to ride my bike to work downtown in good weather; I was almost hit once and was hit another time by drivers who were only tracking cars, not pedestrian and bicycle traffic.  The woman who hit me complained to me, while I was lying on the ground, that she should not have to be looking for cross traffic AND checking the crosswalk.  Like life is too hard as it is.  And then she complained when I asked her to pay for the cost of my helmet.  I told her that it was send $40 for a helmet or wait for a lawsuit, so she sent the check.  But the sense of entitlement still galls me.

Driving the speed limit and looking out for other cars is not the limit of anyone's responsibility behind the wheel.  That said, I love my jogging strollers.  They are my ticket to freedom  as a mother and I like to run and I will still run and bike despite all the awful drivers and cabbies who think pedestrians and cyclists are made of rubber.  Maybe driver training just needs to emphasize the fact that crosswalks, sidewalks, and the sides of roads are for people.   But I think the sense of entitlement people feel in the cars, and the need to get there faster, overwhelms their better judgment.

Not to derail a perfectly good stroller conversation, but I have to commiserate with Hyde Park Parent.

What this God Damn city needs to do is start ticketing drivers that don't stop for pedestrians in cross walks.  I have seen this "I'll just pass you going forty while you wait for some people to cross the street" maneuver before.  It's bullshit, and it's illegal.  In fact, it's illegal in every state in the country to fail to yield to a pedestrian in a marked crosswalk.  At some point in history some states (Oregon, California) decided to enforce this law, while others have not.  That's part of the reason you see women with kids and pets trying to sprint across the street in the middle of Western Avenue.  They figure it doesn't matter if they're in a crosswalk or not, nobody is going to stop for them anyway.

At some point this city is going to have to start enforcing these traffic laws.  Doling out heavy fines is the only way to get idiots like the woman who hit you to pay attention to anybody other than herself.

I'm lucky if cars slow down for me while I'm walking out of Super Wal-Mart with 4 kids in tow. I guess they not only don't notice us, but, they also don't see the glaring, neon, striped, pedestrian street pavement painted in front of them. Can anyone say..."get the f*ck off your cell phone!!"?

This accident happened on my road, on which I've walked (albeit a short distance) hundreds of times with my little ones in a double stroller.  The road lacks a shoulder, but the traffic is relatively light, the view wide open.  It's easy to hear cars coming.  It's easy to assume your visibility as a pedestrian.  I've come to expect most drivers to automatically give me a full-lane pass.

It seems miraculous that Michelle Benson is in fair condition, without life-threatening or internal injuries (www.jacksonholenews.com/article.php -- sorry, I don't know how to hyperlink here).

Doubtless it was her body taking the full impact and the stroller being in front of her that saved her baby, not the type of stroller, though it seems this accident would recommend the stroller.   It is also lucky that the car was a Honda Civic and not a truck, SUV, RV, or any of the heavier vehicles frequenting this road.  

Tragic as this was, it seems like a pretty freak accident caused by the driver's inattention.  It's immensely relieving that it seems the woman hit will recover (fully?  please send good thoughts).  I will by extra-vigilant with my preschoolers on the way to the PO from now on, but hopefully even more vigilant as a driver.  And I hope that's true for everyone who reads this story.

Jenande, thank you so much for posting about Michelle Benson's condition and filling us in on more details of what happened.  I'm immensely relieved that it appears that she'll recover, and like most of you above, I'm still astounded by the entitlement and inattention of the drivers around us.

I feel like my sense of invulnerability pretty much left the building when I had children! I don't go around paranoid, by any means but whenever I am in situations that involve... wheels (bikes, strollers, cars, scooters, wheelies!), I feel myself tensing up. But it doesn't stop me from hauling out my double jogger for a jaunt to the library. This story, horrible and frightening, serves as a reminder to me as both a driver and a pedestrian to keep my eagle-eyes focused... on safety.

Ria Sharon

Editor

www.the-best-baby-strollers.com

Hi you all, thanks for being concerned.  My story has gotten a  lot of attention; for 2 reasons, I think.  First of all, it involved a baby. Second, it involved a subject that we all are infuriated about: distracted driving, i.e. with cell phones.  I am doing much better now, thanks!  The jogging stroller I had was simply a Baby Jogger, that rolled several times but protected my baby from harm, thank the Lord.  I received a concussion, a broken jaw, broken ribs, broken elbow, a extremely large, deep laceration on the back of my calf, and a crushed foot.  I was life-flighted to Idaho Falls from Jackson and had 3 surgeries, was in the hospital for a week, my jaw is still wired shut, and I am still on home IV antibiotics and home health.  So this problem with distracted driving is huge, because the injuries that pedestrians sustain from being hit by a car are devastating.  I cannot take care of my baby right now.  And it breaks my heart.