If you’ve ever been out running by yourself and felt a little unsafe, you’ve likely either had to change your route or cut the run short to head to a more secure environment.
This fear is one many runners know well, and that’s why runners David and Ellen Caren decided it was time to invent something that could offer peace of mind and keep runners safe.
Run Angel is the first personal safety wrist wearable that not only sends SMS messages and emails to loved ones in the event of an emergency, but it also emits a 120 decibel, high-pitched siren when activated to shock unsuspecting attackers and notify passersby of your whereabouts.
In this episode, David shares how the idea, company, and product were developed, as well as some additional safety tips all runners should keep in mind.
To get a Run Angel for you or a loved one, go to runangel.com and use coupon code RUNCON20 for 20% off your purchase.
4:28 Can you tell us a little about your background? How did you first get into running?
6:05 How are the running venues in County Cork, Ireland?
8:45 What prompted you and your wife, Ellen, to launch Run Angel?
12:44 What’s it been like to start your own company and were there any hiccups along the way?
16:10 What was the prototype phase like for such a unique device?
20:20 How loud is 120 decibels?
22:11 What was / is the testing process like?
23:41 How does the silent alarm / Guardian Alert system work?
26:07 What sets Run Angel apart from other wearables on the market?
29:13 How is the device powered?
32:59 What other advice do you have for staying safe while running?
37:09 Is it not enough to simply be aware of your surroundings if you wear earphones when running?
39:19 How did you expand your market to the US through the Ignite Start-Up Program?
42:24 Is Run Angel available globally and how can people buy it?
45:21What is Run Angel working on now?
“No matter where you run, you still have that sense of vulnerability that something could happen or you could fall down or trip over something.”
“I was knocked to the ground by someone who wasn’t obviously out running, and instead of exchanging apologies and helping each other up, this guy just ran back in the direction he came from.”
“I remember having aspirations of bringing Run Angel out in 12 months and we were quickly told that you’d want to add 2-3 years onto that and we kind of snickered at that. But it did take that long.”
“When you’re dealing with a safety wearable, you’re dealing with a life element.”
“(Other wearable safety tech) isn’t notifying your attacker that you’ve just activated anything other than you’ve let nearest and dearest know that you’ve been attacked or had a fall.”
“Once we reached the threshold of 120 decibels, we went back and said, ‘OK, can we tune this frequency so that it will resonate in the human hearing zone?’”
“120 decibels is DISTRACTINGLY loud and that’s the goal. It is LOUD.”
“Each Run Angel is put into an acoustic chamber and it’s sound tested, so before it goes into a box we make a record of what the sound is.”
“There’s a few clever things you can do with Run Angel with or without the sound and a few remote activities you can do as well.”
“In the event of an attack, you have to know where your safety wearable is and the wrist is the first place you will invariably go to.”
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