Cincinnati's Flying Pig Marathon came to a painful end for one runner, who was tased and arrested while trying to complete the race in the nude.According to Associated Press reports, police saw 35-year-old Brett Henderson of St. Paris, Ohio, running naked through downtown Cincinnati, and ordered him to stop and get in a police car. When Henderson refused, police stunned him with a taser and arrested him.
But according to the nude runner's mother, Lee, Henderson didn't set out to run naked. She says her son had borrowed a pair of running shorts from his father, but they kept slipping down as he ran. So he chose to finish the race he had trained for, even if it meant running completely bare.
In later interviews, Henderson confirmed his mother's stories and told reporters that runners have a kind of "show must go on" attitude.
"I've run in marathons all over the country, and I think I know the running culture pretty well, and I know that anything goes on race day," Henderson told the Urbana Daily Citizen. "This is something that happens and is tolerated in the running culture.... In fact, running naked was encouraged in a marathon I ran in San Francisco, so I don't know why this was such a big deal."
After drawstring problems forced him to abandon his shorts, Henderson tried tying his tank top around his waist, but that didn't work either. "All the other runners were supportive and kept encouraging me to continue, so I was running naked," he explained.
Henderson has pleaded not guilty to charges of public indecency and obstructing official business. His trial has been set for May 13, two days before San Francisco's Bay to Breakers, a 12K race in which people routinely run naked without fear of getting stunned.
Too bad for Henderson that Ohio isn't a little more like Northern California.
Note: Photo is for illustration purposes only and does not depict the reported events.
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