Joanne Lee SmithChronic pain and symptoms recovery Nurse / Coach

Adrenaline Rush: My Terrifying Trail Running Encounter

26 Jul 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:08

In this first‑person YouTube monologue, Joanne Smith recounts a startling incident that occurred during a warm, peaceful trail run. While she was enjoying the flow of her run, a vehicle traveling at an extreme speed—faster than any ambulance she’s ever seen—swept past her on a residential road. Instinctively, she dove behind a lamppost to avoid being hit. The vehicle then turned around and came back toward her, prompting an immediate, adrenaline‑fueled sprint. Joanne reflects on how the surge of adrenaline enabled her to run at a pace she never realized she could achieve (a 6‑minute mile) and uses the experience to illustrate why she loves trail running, emphasizing the thrill, quick reflexes, and personal empowerment that come from confronting unexpected danger.

Chapters

I decided it's a really warm day, but I really want to go out because I want to get outside and go for a run. And it was, um, I decided to go like a bit later, and I was having a really nice time, really like in the flow, feeling really peaceful. And right behind me comes the fastest vehicle I've ever seen moving in a residential area, and even faster than an ambulance when It's like, gotta get somewhere. It was like top speed. It really— I pinned myself to the side. I jumped behind a lamppost. I mean, instinctively, I just jumped out of the way. And then I was like, oh gosh, I've got to get out of the way. And then before I knew it, before I even had a chance to like even figure out what happened, it came coming back towards me. Oh my gosh. And at that point, I did not realise I could run a 6-minute mile, but it turns out that when adrenaline kicked in, bam, I was just sprinting to get out of that road, and that's why I love trail running so much.