Aggressive stances of the potential attacker and any other people standing around Aggressive, abusive, and unfriendly language being shouted out Threats being made to you and others The brandishing of weapons, whether obviously a weapon, or a makeshift weapon such as pieces of wood, cut glass, broken items that have been sharpened etc. Menacing gestures and attitudes Your inner gut feeling tells you that you’re getting into a bad situation; sense it and listen to your senses.
Avoid making eye contact with any aggressor. Doing so can be enough to provoke an attack. Equally, say nothing at all to the aggressor; give the aggressor the space needed to chill on focusing on you as a target. By leaving before a confrontation even ensues, you may “outrun” your attacker by deflating their opportunity and not have to run that far at all; just around the corner and out of sight. Be aware that many of us are media-primed to think we need to “stand and fight”. That is not only a baseless assumption (after all, movie fight scenes take months to choreograph, film and edit!) but doing so will potentially endanger your life. Peculiar notions of bravery and nobility can blind you to danger.
If you are not able to run at all, you’re going to have to use other self-defense mechanisms to escape, such as walking away fast, not provoking the situation, hiding as soon as possible, or deflecting blows and protecting your vulnerable organs if the worst happens.
Don’t wait to see how the situation will evolve. It is probably going to evolve in a direction that won’t be beneficial for you, so presume the worse and get running as soon as you can.
Run fast initially to place distance between you and the attacker. However, after an initial burst, you need to both assess the commitment of the pursuer (are they following or not?) and then to pace yourself and run without exerting yourself. If this person is insistent on pursuing you and you have no energy at all left should they catch you, you won’t be able to protect yourself. Pacing yourself is especially important if there is a long way to safety or if you have to throw your attacker off the scent should they pursue you. Aim to run where it is easy to do so and where you won’t meet dead ends, high drops, or find yourself cornered. If you don’t know the terrain that way, keep a good eye ahead on where you’re going. If you can see your attacker beginning to lag, give your running a good burst of speed to seal the distance between you, then return to your pace. By this stage you may be able to lose them through their own lack of endurance. Keep a clear head. You will need to keep thinking and not just let your legs be the solution to your problem. Eventually they are going to get tired and your adrenaline will run down and leave you very tired. Try to keep your wits about you, thinking ahead to how you can throw off a pursuer if need be. Ignore any cries of “Coward!” or “Come back here!”. You are doing the right thing by leaving as fast as you’re able.
Make noise. Try to attract attention by yelling out “Help me!” and other phrases designed to draw the attention of others to your plight. A great option is to yell, “FIRE!” People who don’t want to get involved in a personal situation may turn their backs on “HELP” but most will be curious and come to see where the fire is located. More people mean more help. If you are in an urban environment, look for a safe place, for example, busy business premises, a police or fire station, hospital, etc. If you are in the woods, run downhill or downstream. If there is a hiding space such as a rock under-hanging, or a cave, you might consider using these to recover and to use your cell phone if you have it with you. However, be conscious that if you can find a hiding place while running, so can your pursuer if they’ve been watching your flight and haven’t lost sight of you; also be aware that they may know the terrain better than you. Look for ways to make following you difficult. Run into a group of people, create obstacles for your pursuers, such as running into a group of people or a building with multiple floors, dashing through traffic (dangerous!) or through a market with lots of stalls, etc. Any time you’re around people, scream your head off for help and to scare off the pursuers. Run to bright areas. An attacker is a lot less likely to follow you into well-lit areas where they’ll be easier to see and recognized by not only you but by others as well.
Read How to avoid a street fight and How to defend yourself in an extreme street fight for more information on ways to defend yourself should your escape strategy fail initially. Don’t give up though; keep believing you can get away and remain focused on getting away while protecting yourself as best you can.
