When you catch sight of behavior in public that is the obvious result of a deep-rooted psychosis or a profound psychological disorder, it can be very disturbing. When this occurs within an entire group of people, all at once, it’s especially unsettling.

Yesterday evening, a group of over 400 runners passed through a park using a very awkward and unconventional running style. They were trying to run, but there was an extreme lack of coordination. Random twitches and spasms were happening. The group seemed to have lost their grip of reality, and their chances of re-gripping did not look good.

In response, many witnesses called 911, and a nearby lot soon filled with emergency vehicles. However, because the group was running and seemed particularly good at it, needed help was not able to catch up with them.

The next day, a report of the incident and a few photos were submitted to a psychologist, Dr. William Smithpeters, for evaluation. His assessment was grim.

“It’s rare to see this level of psychological instability. For it to infect an entire group at once is almost unheard of. This group needs to get into treatment immediately.”

Though the logistics of treating over 400 people would seem daunting, Dr. Smithpeters considers it a secondary concern.

“If treatment doesn’t start right away, this group is going off the deep end. They can stack themselves to the ceiling, or they can pack themselves in my office like sardines. Whatever it takes, they need to come in right away.”

However, turns out the unbalanced runners were members of the Flying Irish Running Club. They were prancercising in an attempt to set a world record for largest prancercise group. Their attempt, which resulted in a world record, can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opFZvHwYTPA.  The original prancerciser, and her video, can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-50GjySwew.