Writing about talking about running

This morning I was walking the dog when a guy on a bicycle called out to me, “Training for anything?” and started pulling over to chat. I paused, because considering the context, this was an odd question. Did Miles and I look like we were practicing for a dog show? But then I thought, “I bet I’ve talked to this guy about running before.” There are a few folks that I’ve had one-off conversations with over the years because they’ve seen me out-and-about in the neighborhood racking up miles. They know me well because they see me running by but I really have no idea who they are because, well, I don’t see them. I’m also not great with names/faces/contexts with people that I only meet once or twice, so I’ll generally try and fake it a bit if I get into a conversation with someone that seems like they know me. There have been a number of times that running has led to discussions with seemingly random people. Once, a woman came up to me in a coffee shop and said, “It’s weird not to see you…