A CLEVELAND personal trainer says she is nervous about travelling her usual morning route after she was the victim of an alleged attempted car jacking last week.
Julie Fox said she was driving through Cleveland shortly before 5am when she heard a loud car approaching from behind.
"I live in Raby Bay and I'd left home about 4.50 to get to my running group," she said.
"My car is a convertible and I had the roof off from the day before.
"(The other car) sort of sped up, swerved around me like something from a movie and cut me off on a 45 degree angle and stopped in front of me.
"My immediate reaction was thinking they were an undercover police car. Then I thought 'it could be road rage'."
Ms Fox told police the driver and passenger had gotten out of the car and approached her. One of them was reportedly holding an unknown object and yelled at her to get out of the car.
"It was then that I thought, 'I've got to react here'," she said.
"I put my foot on the accelerator as hard as I could and drove around them.
"It was very quick but very scary at the same time.
"I was just lucky. The detective said to me a lot of people just freeze."
Ms Fox, a Redlands resident of more than 30 years, said she had never known something like that to happen in the area.
However, she had previously had two cars stolen and her home broken into.
"I remember driving out thinking what a beautiful morning it was, but they take that away from us," she said.
"Especially at that time in the morning, you don't think of it as being unsafe while you're driving.
"People need to know that these things can happen in our little community."
She urged drivers to lock their doors and be alert.
"I wish I'd put my hand on the horn so someone might have seen the number plate," she said.
"I feel much more nervous of what can happen and making sure I am that little bit more conscious and careful."
