Why?
I love the book The Rum Diary by Hunter S. Thompson. It is crazy. It involves travel. It involves alcohol. What's not to like?
So I thought; why not play a pun on words and undertake a project called The Run Diary. Clever eh?
I set myself no timeline. No specific agenda. I would simply travel to destinations that feature (or are similar) to those in Thompson's book. That would essentially mean Florida and the Caribbean.
You will notice I have taken the liberty to sometimes include a simple tropical island and for that I ask for your forgiveness.
Race 1: Bermuda;
lost in the triangle
I like to have one
slightly "crazy" challenge per year and I found one I wanted to do in
Bermuda.
In January 2014 I decide that my “crazy” run for the year would be The Bermuda Triangle Challenge. It consists of 3 races in 3 days starting with a 1 mile race on Friday, 10km race on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday. Since it was bound to be cold in England in January I thought that a little jaunt to the island would be most welcome weather wise and the event sounded like fun too!
In January 2014 I decide that my “crazy” run for the year would be The Bermuda Triangle Challenge. It consists of 3 races in 3 days starting with a 1 mile race on Friday, 10km race on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday. Since it was bound to be cold in England in January I thought that a little jaunt to the island would be most welcome weather wise and the event sounded like fun too!
Bermuda is a
wonderful island and I thoroughly enjoyed being there. I love the colourful
houses and the roofs designed to collect and re-use rainwater is genius. It was
my first time staying in an all0inclusive resort and I didn’t regret it. Let’s
just say I was well fuelled for the races that were coming up. We swam in the
pool each morning, I did stretching and exercise on our deserted beach and we
swam in the waters in the natural cave in our resort. It was chilly but a
brilliantly unique experience. We also visited the spectacular caves nearby to
our hotel which were beautiful although a real highlight came when the tour
guide said that a local cat used to like coming into the caves but since she
had an abortion she no longer liked it down there. I am pretty sure he meant
since she was spayed but perhaps I am wrong. Maybe the cats of Bermuda are able
to make a choice as to whether to terminate unwanted pregnancies? We also spent
a great day in the sun visiting the many beaches including the famous pink sand
beaches. They aren’t fuchsia but they certainly did have a certain glow. So
onto the runs (as in race and not the shits) that I was here to take part in.
Here's how it went.
1 mile:
The first race was actually on Friday night at 7pm local time (which was 11pm my time since I had only flown in the night before.) The race took place on the main street in the capital Hamilton and there had been a gorgeous sunset as we waited in our pens for the start whistle. I was in wave 3 with each wave setting off 4 minutes apart. Unlike races in the UK in January waiting around was very pleasant in the early evening moderate climate. Talking to a few locals in my wave I wanted to check if the race started at 7pm since I wanted to text Steven to let him know the plan and they responded that "it starts at 7pm but remember we are on island time" i.e. it may be late so relax.
The route took us up the main road and had us turn back on ourselves at "the birdcage" which sadly is not the drag club but a booth in the middle of the road where policemen used to stand to direct traffic pre-traffic lights. We then ran straight down the main road to a statue which we had to circumnavigate before ending up back where we started.
I finished the race in 5 minutes 41 seconds which was good. I enjoyed it and the atmosphere was fun. Locals congratulating you from the balcony of bars along the street was nice and I am sure their friendliness was aided by having a few Dark and Stormys (the local cocktail) after work. I know that was certainly Steven and Karen’s excuse for being so vocal from the balcony bar. It also accounted for their piss taking when they asked me if I had lactic burn since the race commentator had mentioned many runners would suffer from it. In their rum intoxicated state they found this hilarious that anyone would be tired out after only a mile. I challenged them to run the race then instead. The words off and fuck were mentioned but not necessarily in that order.
Only post-race did I find out that anyone able to run under 4 minutes in the race wins $10,000. If I had known that I would have run quicker! Still I can breathe easy now that I know nobody has ever done this primarily due to the difficult turns mentioned before. I guess it's always something I can aim for right?
10km:
The morning of the 10km race appeared quite nice running conditions....a little cloudy but dry. Roll forward and hour or two when we were at the local stadium for the start and it was chucking down with rain. Whilst it was still warm I can honestly say that I have never run in rain that heavy before. The roads quickly started to resemble rivers and within 1km I felt like I was competing in the steeplechase. My clothes were wet through and my shoes were drenched. The rain was that heavy that you couldn't really admire the surroundings as there was so much rain you could only just see in front of you. The crowd was still great as they lined the street. As a runner I experienced a Bridget Jones moment when a car on the other side of the road went through a puddle and completely soaked me. Not so bad since I expected to be wet but lovely that spectators still ran the risk of this in order to come out and cheer us on.
The course was tough and A LOT hillier than I had anticipated. I was making good progress and at certain points thought that I could beat my own record but at the 5 mile mark we were faced with a hill that felt like it was 90 degrees. It went on for an age until we reached the stadium where we had started. Coming onto the track for the final stretch it was nice to hear the commentator mention my name and where I was from.
As I crossed the line I heard him also say that I was the first Triangle Challenge competitor to come in which was exciting for the two seconds before I collected my medal and the volunteer corrected him and said I was actually the second Triangle Challenger to come home! Oh well that still meant I had done well!
I finished in 38 minutes 39 seconds which was nowhere near a best but placed me 19th overall in the race and 2nd in my age category (30-39) which left me with a nice little extra award. Talking to a local racer afterwards I mentioned the hilly route and she said that tomorrow's half marathon was much easier.....therefore I could relax and go back to the hotel and dry off!
Half Marathon:
The morning of the half marathon was lovely and I could tell it was going to be a nice rain free day. The race was due to start and end in Hamilton and as per island time the starting area was still being setup when all the runners arrived. 8am rolled around pretty quickly and they were good to go and we set off on time. The route took us out of town over a few hills and round some villages. Overall I felt like it was going really well. As I was fairly near the front of the race I had started to break away and was quite far ahead of the "pack" but not within sight of the elite professionals so it felt like a bit of private race.
At 3 miles the leading female overtook me but I still thought that must be pretty good timing since running was after all her job! The route was lovely and we ran all along the coast so it was great to see the sea and the colourful houses dotted amongst the hills. It felt like I was running in Bermuda versus the torrential rain of the day before! There was one other runner about 100m ahead of me pretty much the whole way so I used him as my pacer to keep going. As we came back into Hamilton I knew I was nearly at the finish and only had to go straight onto the finish until the organisers played a cruel trick on us that made us go back on ourselves to make up presumably the last few hundred meters. Mean but actually worked out quite fun as the guy I was pacing myself against high fived me as he went past on the final stretch. A minute or so later I crossed the line.
I finished in 1 hour 22 minutes 36 seconds which placed me 10th overall and 3rd in my age group (30-39) which again lead me to get another extra award at the race ceremony that night.
Overall results:
At the award ceremony that night they announced the results of the Bermuda Triangle Challenge. It turned out that I came second which I was really pleased with.
My combined time for the three events was 2 hours 6 minutes 56 seconds which is not bad considering the first half marathon I ever did on its own was 2 hours 17 minutes. Sadly I just missed out on the big prize and cash as they only award that to the winner rather than the top three but nevertheless a really good event and I would recommend it and Bermuda as a place to visit. Maybe I can go back and try and steal the top prize another year? It was also an opportunity for me to meet Joan Benoit who was the first Olympic Marathon gold medalist from the first woman’s marathon in 1984. After the awards we had dinner at the hotel and clearly I had too many drinks to celebrate as by the time I went to bed I was adamant that the following day I was going to look round a house we had seen for sale on the island that cost $45 million.....
Here's how it went.
1 mile:
The first race was actually on Friday night at 7pm local time (which was 11pm my time since I had only flown in the night before.) The race took place on the main street in the capital Hamilton and there had been a gorgeous sunset as we waited in our pens for the start whistle. I was in wave 3 with each wave setting off 4 minutes apart. Unlike races in the UK in January waiting around was very pleasant in the early evening moderate climate. Talking to a few locals in my wave I wanted to check if the race started at 7pm since I wanted to text Steven to let him know the plan and they responded that "it starts at 7pm but remember we are on island time" i.e. it may be late so relax.
The route took us up the main road and had us turn back on ourselves at "the birdcage" which sadly is not the drag club but a booth in the middle of the road where policemen used to stand to direct traffic pre-traffic lights. We then ran straight down the main road to a statue which we had to circumnavigate before ending up back where we started.
I finished the race in 5 minutes 41 seconds which was good. I enjoyed it and the atmosphere was fun. Locals congratulating you from the balcony of bars along the street was nice and I am sure their friendliness was aided by having a few Dark and Stormys (the local cocktail) after work. I know that was certainly Steven and Karen’s excuse for being so vocal from the balcony bar. It also accounted for their piss taking when they asked me if I had lactic burn since the race commentator had mentioned many runners would suffer from it. In their rum intoxicated state they found this hilarious that anyone would be tired out after only a mile. I challenged them to run the race then instead. The words off and fuck were mentioned but not necessarily in that order.
Only post-race did I find out that anyone able to run under 4 minutes in the race wins $10,000. If I had known that I would have run quicker! Still I can breathe easy now that I know nobody has ever done this primarily due to the difficult turns mentioned before. I guess it's always something I can aim for right?
10km:
The morning of the 10km race appeared quite nice running conditions....a little cloudy but dry. Roll forward and hour or two when we were at the local stadium for the start and it was chucking down with rain. Whilst it was still warm I can honestly say that I have never run in rain that heavy before. The roads quickly started to resemble rivers and within 1km I felt like I was competing in the steeplechase. My clothes were wet through and my shoes were drenched. The rain was that heavy that you couldn't really admire the surroundings as there was so much rain you could only just see in front of you. The crowd was still great as they lined the street. As a runner I experienced a Bridget Jones moment when a car on the other side of the road went through a puddle and completely soaked me. Not so bad since I expected to be wet but lovely that spectators still ran the risk of this in order to come out and cheer us on.
The course was tough and A LOT hillier than I had anticipated. I was making good progress and at certain points thought that I could beat my own record but at the 5 mile mark we were faced with a hill that felt like it was 90 degrees. It went on for an age until we reached the stadium where we had started. Coming onto the track for the final stretch it was nice to hear the commentator mention my name and where I was from.
As I crossed the line I heard him also say that I was the first Triangle Challenge competitor to come in which was exciting for the two seconds before I collected my medal and the volunteer corrected him and said I was actually the second Triangle Challenger to come home! Oh well that still meant I had done well!
I finished in 38 minutes 39 seconds which was nowhere near a best but placed me 19th overall in the race and 2nd in my age category (30-39) which left me with a nice little extra award. Talking to a local racer afterwards I mentioned the hilly route and she said that tomorrow's half marathon was much easier.....therefore I could relax and go back to the hotel and dry off!
Half Marathon:
The morning of the half marathon was lovely and I could tell it was going to be a nice rain free day. The race was due to start and end in Hamilton and as per island time the starting area was still being setup when all the runners arrived. 8am rolled around pretty quickly and they were good to go and we set off on time. The route took us out of town over a few hills and round some villages. Overall I felt like it was going really well. As I was fairly near the front of the race I had started to break away and was quite far ahead of the "pack" but not within sight of the elite professionals so it felt like a bit of private race.
At 3 miles the leading female overtook me but I still thought that must be pretty good timing since running was after all her job! The route was lovely and we ran all along the coast so it was great to see the sea and the colourful houses dotted amongst the hills. It felt like I was running in Bermuda versus the torrential rain of the day before! There was one other runner about 100m ahead of me pretty much the whole way so I used him as my pacer to keep going. As we came back into Hamilton I knew I was nearly at the finish and only had to go straight onto the finish until the organisers played a cruel trick on us that made us go back on ourselves to make up presumably the last few hundred meters. Mean but actually worked out quite fun as the guy I was pacing myself against high fived me as he went past on the final stretch. A minute or so later I crossed the line.
I finished in 1 hour 22 minutes 36 seconds which placed me 10th overall and 3rd in my age group (30-39) which again lead me to get another extra award at the race ceremony that night.
Overall results:
At the award ceremony that night they announced the results of the Bermuda Triangle Challenge. It turned out that I came second which I was really pleased with.
My combined time for the three events was 2 hours 6 minutes 56 seconds which is not bad considering the first half marathon I ever did on its own was 2 hours 17 minutes. Sadly I just missed out on the big prize and cash as they only award that to the winner rather than the top three but nevertheless a really good event and I would recommend it and Bermuda as a place to visit. Maybe I can go back and try and steal the top prize another year? It was also an opportunity for me to meet Joan Benoit who was the first Olympic Marathon gold medalist from the first woman’s marathon in 1984. After the awards we had dinner at the hotel and clearly I had too many drinks to celebrate as by the time I went to bed I was adamant that the following day I was going to look round a house we had seen for sale on the island that cost $45 million.....
P.S. Once sober I did not view or become the
owner of a $45 million pad….
Race 2: Dashing
thru the sand in Grand Cayman
I arrived in
Grand Cayman on 22nd December ready for a sunny Christmas ahead
of a friend’s wedding on the 29th. Picking up the hire car I was
perusing the usual racks of tourist brochures and came across a “what’s
on” guide and gave that a flick. Two things stood out to me:
1) A recipe for
Egg Nog
2) An advert
for the dashing thru the sand run
In my head I
agreed to both.
I had been to
Grand Cayman once before and had enjoyed the short 48 hours on the island. Rum
point is a favourite place of mine to sink a few mud slide cocktails and
kissing a wild stingray in the sea is possibly one of the most random snogs of
my life so the island was sure to offer more in the week I was there.
First things
first. It was time to make some Egg Nog. I have never made it from scratch
before but can tell you now that every festive season from now on it will be as
traditional as mince pies, Christmas tunes and Starbucks Eggnog lattes.
I then signed up
for the dashing thru the sand event. Only a few hours later I got a
personal email from the organiser to welcome me to the island and to let
me know all the final arrangements for the day. I think he was excited
that I had travelled from London….a detail I would realise why later on after
the race.
On Christmas
morning I had a swim in the sea at sunrise accompanied by some Prosecco on the
beach. I then decided to have a short run along the beach in order to prepare
for the race the next day. It. Was. Hard. The heat was quite something to
contend with (I am certain the lobster we had later on for Christmas dinner
could have BBQ’d itself) but the sand was pretty deep and every step was a
challenge. It reminded me of when I first started getting into running back in
2010 when I took a trip to Carbis Bay in Cornwall and would run on the beach
before breakfast. Again a beautiful beach but harder to train on than the roads
of London.
So getting up on
Boxing Day we made our way down to the start where we met Jerry (the race
organiser) to say hello and to pick up our t-shirts. It was a very friendly
atmosphere and everyone was still in the Christmas spirit. Some wore Santa
hats. Some wore reindeer antlers (moi included.) Some wore halos. Some simply
looked like seasoned beach runners with no tops on. They looked good. Those
would be the people I needed to chase. I also followed their lead and removed
my trainers to run barefoot (also slightly aided by the fact I had just been
caught by a rogue wave and was soaking.)
We started at
07:30 so the heat was not so strong. We ran along the beautiful 7 mile beach
(not all of it….just 1.5 miles) and the stretch that we took was on less of a
camber than my run the day before and on much harder sand. It was really fun.
Running barefoot was a real treat and I would say something I would adopt
forever but I know that it will only be whenever I have the chance to run on
sand. Occasionally the waves came right up onto the beach which was a welcome
cool down as well as making me feel like David Hasselhof or was it Pamela
Anderson? You decide.
I finished in a
healthy 7th place out of around 200 people I think. Coconut
water was in abundance at the end (this is the Caribbean after all) as well as
a breakfast buffet at a beach bar. They announced the prizes for the top 4 men
and women finishers as well as giving a prize for the person that had travelled
the furthest to get to the race. We lost out to some people from France but
were then given a special present for making our way from London. A lovely
gesture.
A lovely race in
a lovely country. I then ran on the beach every day until I left and even
managed to see another sting ray swimming right next to the shore proving that
it’s always worthwhile to still keep running whilst on my jollies as I get to
see things I would ordinarily miss.
Race 3: Miami
& Key West; I was in Miami bitch
For Steven’s 40th
we planned a trip to Miami and the Florida keys. I swear sometimes we fall
outside of the stereotypical gay scene but I have to admit that both
destinations I guess are pretty gay. That’s not to say they are both full of
pretty gays. We did see a few people along South Beach that may have looked a
million dollars in their head but even to my (sometimes) not critical eye
should have dressed rather differently.
We arrived in
Miami and were due to be meeting Steven’s friend Jen who lived in Grand Cayman.
She had made the short hop over to Florida for Steven’s birthday and her flight
had arrived just a little before ours. Steven called her and told me she had
got a car and would meet us outside arrivals. Brilliant. The girl had done good
to get a cab so quickly. We greeted each other the way friends do when they
haven’t seen each other for months and then hopped into the car. I was in the
front. Steven and Jen gossiping in the back. The driver was talking to me a
little which was a little annoying as I was trying to listen in to the
conversation in the back. The driver told me he had been in Miami for only two
weeks in total. He tried to point out Star Island to me where he thought the
famous and rich lived. Whatever I thought; let me listen to the back seat
gossip. We pulled up outside the Hotel Victor and we got out the car. The
driver asked Jen if she should park here for now. For now? What difference did
it make? Once we had unloaded the bags he would be on his way right? As Steven
and I made our way to reception to check in I asked Steven why the driver was
helping Jen with her bags and coming into the hotel with her. Well he’s Jen’s
boyfriend from back in Cayman. Why…who did you think he was? WTF?! Firstly
Steven never told me that Jen even had a boyfriend let alone that he was coming
to Miami with her. What a twat he must have thought I was. I am only grateful
that I didn’t ask him to put the meter on when we were in the car. Steven
laughed. A lot. He told Jen and Adrian (AKA our taxi driver) and they laughed a
lot. Thank goodness there are a lot of places in Miami where I could drown my
embarrassment in Daiquiris and Pina Coladas! It’s a story that will never leave
me and every time we meet up as a group it is mentioned. Thank God Adrian found
the funny side.
Miami is awesome.
No other way to describe it. The art deco buildings and the colours along South
Beach are just fantastic. I know it’s stereotypical gay but I don’t care. I love it there and
could quite happily reside there. I treated Steven to a tour around town in the
self-guided GPS Go-Car which was hilarious as well as a boat trip around Star
Island where the rich and famous live. Hey; didn’t my taxi driver show me this
on the way into town from the airport? We people watched during breakfast at
the News Café and enjoyed the never ending buy one get one free drinks in every
sea front bar. When I say buy one get one free it was more like buy one bucket
of Pina Colada and get another for free and then slip into an alcohol induced
coma. Or in my case think that I was being really quiet getting undressed for
bed in the hotel room whilst I was in fact already naked on the balcony.
How
lucky were those other hotel guests taking a midnight dip in the pool to see
that?
So I should
probably talk about running shouldn’t I? Well there isn’t too much to divulge on
the Miami front. Except for this. Running along South Beach in the morning
before breakfast is one of my favourite places to run. I love that you have
amazing buildings and hotels on one side of you and then the Atlantic on the
other. Fellow runners and walkers always smile at you and the temperature is
just pleasant for running. During my trip I would run each morning up and down
the front enjoying every minute. I would go back to Miami for this experience alone.
Souvenir t-shorts are not usually my bag (since I turned 15 at least) however
seeing a singlet with the words “I was in Miami Bitch” seemed like too good a
garment to pass up. I purchased it. I still wear it. That’s all.
So after a
brilliant few days in Miami and a day trip to the Everglades we drove down to
Key West. Highlights along the way were passing through Long Key (fantastic
name) as well as a visit to the Turtle Hospital. Set in an old motel with the
swimming pool now functioning as a convalescence pool for injured and rescued
sea turtles it was a great place to spend a few hours.
We arrived in Key
West at the Eden hotel. A favourite of mine out of all my travels. A welcome
beer, an uncrowded pool and a bench swing to sit on and read my book. Heaven.
Key West itself offered some great sights which included (but not limited to)
the smallest bar in the world on Duval Street (literally only two bar stools),
good restaurants, the nicest looking Hard Rock Café I have visited (guilty
pleasure of mine whenever I find one), amazing Key Lime pie at Kermit’s and a
boardwalk bar where we could enjoy sundowners whilst watching the sun go down.
Nice concept.
We took a Jet Ski
tour which had us circumnavigate the entire island. It was speedy. The rain
hurt when it hit you at speed. We caught the sun. The island didn’t seem too
big. It was only 90 miles to Cuba. Perhaps we could run (or jet) away with our
ski? Maybe next time.
This then lead me
to the idea than on one of my morning runs I would run around part of the
island. Couldn’t be too hard right? Wrong. I set off just a smidge too late at
around 9am. The sun was already rising and I was perspiring after only about 10
minutes. Lucky I was wearing my newly purchased Miami top. I must look local
surely? In my head I had mapped a route where I made my way to the top of the
island and then turned back on myself to run down to the most Southern point of
the Unites States where they have the monument publicizing this fact and that
you are only 90 miles from Cuba. I underestimated how far between the ends of
the islands it was. I was running for nearly 40 minutes and couldn’t see said
monument even in the distance. It wasn’t even there as a mirage despite me
sweating profusely and desperately needing water. I carried on for a little
while and then gave in and asked someone if I was close to the Southern point.
They seemed confused as I apparently was miles away. Oops. I made a new map in
my head as I needed to get back to the hotel as I thought Steven would soon
start to worry as I said I would only be an hour and I had already just passed
the hour mark and was still a long way from town. I cut through various
neighbourhoods and somehow miraculously ended up not far from the Eden hotel. I
got back to the hotel soaking, salty and in need of water. I have been gone
about 1 hour 25 minutes. Sorry I said to Steven. Didn’t mean to worry you by
being so much longer. You didn’t he said. Oh. Nice to be loved eh?! Maybe I
should have tried to complete my original route? Then again, I don’t think I
could have gone much longer without water so the sights I saw suited me just
fine.
Florida treated
me well and is somewhere I will return to do a more official run at some point.
Miami bitches you have been warned. I am coming back.
Race 4: Cuba
Havana was buzzing. The people had a built in joie de vivre (or was it from the rum?) Either way, it was a city I loved. The old town, the history, the vintage cars, the fumes, the cigar factory, the Tropicana dance show and the Cuba Libres made me fall in love with it.
I travelled aorund the island to Cienfugoes, Santa Clara and Trinidad which were all amazing. It was genuinely one of my favourite trips of all time.
We had one final night in Havana (indulging in a couple of daiquiris in Floridita) before heading to some of the more traditional bars in Havana. Naturally there were locals a plenty offering to sell me cigars if I were willing to go to their home to complete the transaction. I politely declined the all. My favourite sales pitch went like so:
Cuban: Would you like some home made cigars?
Me: No thanks
Cuban: My place is just around the corner
Me: Thank you but no
Cuban: You want some charlie?
Wow, that was the most unlikely up-sell I have ever seen attempted. If I wasn't game for the cigars it was pretty much a given I would be unsold on the charlie too.
That done it was time to leave Cuba. I was sad but happy I had the chance to visit and one day vowed to return.
So with The Run Diary idea under way I signed up for the Havana half marathon and would be going back again. Hurrah.
This time as well as Steven I would have a few other supporters with me in the form of Karen, Claire and Sophie. Lovely.
We went via Grand Cayman and took advantage of the bar opening time of 10:45am on British Airways. We were on a rum run after all right? The plane touched down in the Bahamas where the almost already empty plane emptied even more. Whilst we waited on board before our shuttle flight to the Caymans we amused ourselves with our version of the current mannequin challenge trend prompting one fellow passenger to comment:
"what the bloody hell is going on?"
Followed by:
"are you the crew?"
She better hope not as our post turbulence party where we drank BA dry of rum (literally) we wouldn't have been fit to run the plane.
After a 24 hour stint in Grand Cayman enjoying a BBQ and drinks including an Atlee mudslide at Rum Point (spotting the theme yet?) we were then onto our next island.
We landed in Havana and made it through immigration very quickly. Sophie commented that she was pleasantly surprised how easy it had been. Too soon to say that I feared. As per our last trip it was then almost a two hour wait until our bags turned up. How did it take them so long to get our bags from the plane which was just on the tarmac on the other side of the big glass door?
With no time to ponder on that (as we only had four days to enjoy the city) we made our way to the city center and The Presidente Hotel which would be our home for the next few days. Due to a fuck up on reception (surely no I hear you cry) it meant Steven and I were upgraded to the Presidential Suit on the top floor giving us a huge balcony with superb views over the city and ocean. It was a fuck up I could live with.
We wasted no time in enjoying our first or our many mojitos and exploring the city. To me it hadn't changed much. It still had the vintage feel with buildings displaying a former glory under a bruised exterior. The people were still as friendly as before and it felt much like my 2011 trip. There were naturally a few differences in the form of most people now having smartphones and hanging outside hotels to connect to free wifi as well as products such as the very American Coca-Cola now being on sale which would have happened a couple of years ago. On the whole though it felt like the same Havana.
We jumped into a 1950s car for a guided tour of the city. The fumes from the bonnet (or head if we stick to Americanisms) were strong. The history in Revolution Square still got to me. We visited a park on the outskirts of the city which was beautifully green but it made me sad that the river was quite polluted. We saw a statue of John Lennon on a bench. He gets everywhere that man, but his music does remind me of my parents so I don't mind. The malecon separating the city from the ocean remains one of my favourite roads in the World. It's stunning and driving along it in a vintage car with the wind in my (albeit short) hair was fantastic.
So the day before the race was here. I usually don't drink at all on that day but given the surroundings I still had one Cuba Libre while we were in one of the main squares of the old town. One wouldn't hurt right? Post lunch we made our way back to The Presidente and the others adjourned to the pool bar for a cocktail. I put on my trainers and made the short run along the malecon to the hotel where packet pick up was.
It was pretty organised which was a surprise. Within a few minutes I had my timing chip, the course map, and a poster to boot. On my way out of the hotel a local asked if he could have my trainers at the end of the race. He was the first of many to ask me that question which made me sad. Sad to think that they would do anything for my old and knackered trainers. When I hear people say that you should visit Cuba before it changes and the mass market "ruins" it now that Americans are able to travel there it makes me quite angry. Yes, Cuba is changing but that is a good thing. I agree it is an experience to see this vintage world but it must change. Why should Cubans live in the past just for our enjoyment to see a country that doesn't have Global brands as part of it? The change is good for Cubans I look forward to seeing them enjoy a richer life.
I got back to the hotel and laid out my gear for the morning. I got down to the hotel bar. The others had sunk a few more cocktails and were singing along to the 80s tunes the barman had put on. It was 5pm. They were on their way. Good effort. I ordered another Coke. It was fun to watch them but I wished I could have joined in. We went for an awesome dinner in a trendy converted factory (which is something that probably wouldn't have existed in 2011 Cuba) and the others sobered slightly.
The alarm was set early for race start. I had forgotten to buy some sustenance the day before and breakfast hadn't started at my hotel before I left. I hoped I would find an open shop once I got to the old town.
I flagged a taxi and was shortly outside the stunning Capitolio building. I was early and needed to pee (plus Steven needed his coffee fix.) So we ventured into a nearby 5 star hotel to use the facilities and buy a coffee. The doorman led us upstairs to the breakfast room. I peed (in the loo and not on the floor), Steven got a cup of coffee and I had some toast and a yoghurt. We fully intended to pay but the staff didn't seem setup for that. Oh well.
So I hit the start area with a little breakfast in me. The start corrals were the most chaotic I have ever experienced. There was a marathon, half marathon and a 10km taking place and they were all starting at the same time. In conjunction with that they were starting at the same place with no separation of your race distance or ability. Competitors ranged from those in standard running gear to those in jeans, t-shirt and shoes. I had read a review of the race before landing in Cuba which said that the race was like what running used to be like before marketing teams got involved. It seemed this was true.
The start area was packed. People were even lining up along the pavement which then led to the craziness that happened when the gun went off. The front of the pack pushed forward, those on the pavement were pushing in and I was left worrying what was going to happen. If someone had fallen it would have been catastrophic.
Fortunately I was fairly near the front and within about 1km I was able to start running as opposed to trundling that I had done at the beginning.
We ran along the malecon. I loved it. So much so I was running too fast but I couldn't seem to slow myself. I think i was running at about 3m 45s per kilometer which is way to fast for me to sustain for an entire half marathon. Never the less I was enjoying it.
My first water stop was interesting. Instead of bottles of water it was individual sealed bags of water. I couldn't work out how to open it whilst still running. During my thought process and gripping the bag it popped and its contents went all over me. It actually felt quite refreshing on my skin but I did fancy a drink. At least I knew I should use my teeth to open it at the next stop (and all others after.)
After 6km along the malecon we turned left up into the city. From there on in it was quite undulating. It was tough. It was humid. It was tiring. I actually started alternating on the water stops between drinking and pouring it over myself. The city was lovely and despite their not being huge crowd support I was enjoying the race.
We went past some parts of the city I didn't recognise and some that I did. As we approached Revolution Square I knew we were almost home. At this point a local runner was runing backwards (slightly de-motivating) and asking if he could have my trainers. An American lady ran past me and hollered "good job."
My knee was hurting and I wasn't sure why. By this point I had slowed considerably and I knew it was going to be a record time for my but I was determined not to stop. We were in the old town and I spotted and heard my personal supporters. It was great to see them. Our last hundred meters joined us with the 10km finishers. I crossed the line and was given another bag of water and a medal. I was pleased regardless of what my official results would show.
A celebration daquiri and cuba libre were calling. Back to Floridita it was then. I was hoping that the others would be up for a rather drunken night to rival the previous night (for them) although it seems there is a limit to the amount of rum one can consume in 24 hours. Still a lovely end to the day though.
I love Havana and the race weekend was exactly what I had been looking for. A great city. Wonderful company. Cocktails. Rum. And a run. Plus, we event got to see a lady drop and roll out of a police car. She wasn't great at it though as the policeman just got out of the car and picked her up. Surely if you are attempting that move you need to run once you're out of the car? Better luck for her next time.
Weirdly only 48 hours after our return to the U.K. it was announced that Fidel Castro had died and that Cuba would have nine days of mourning. It was strange thinking that had he died earlier that week our trip would have been very different. There would have been no rum. No run. No vibrant city. Only time will now tell how quickly things will change now that Fidel has passed.
P.S. I came 59th (out of 1,608 finishers) in a time of 1h 28m on the nose. So not a bad result (top 4%) given the shortness of the trip (and length of travel to get there) plus my less than ideal cocktail training.
Race 5: The Reggae Half Marathon – Jamaica (2nd December 2017)
Next on the list was Jamaica. It is easy to break this trip down and explain how it coined the phrase rumming:
-
Jamaica is stunning and a real treat to spend a
week on
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Our all inclusive hotel meant that staying off
the booze ahead of the race was not possible
-
I love rum
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Especially coconut rum
-
Jumping off the cliffs at Rick’s bar was superb
(despite giving me a bruised bum)
- I ordered a "Rum Runner" at a beach bar which resulted in instantly being tipsy
- So much so I jumped I felt the need to use the floating trampoline in the sea
- I ordered a "Rum Runner" at a beach bar which resulted in instantly being tipsy
- So much so I jumped I felt the need to use the floating trampoline in the sea
-
It was super hot (but Lisbon half in October had got me ready
for running in the heat)
-
I was just aiming to enjoy the race
-
The atmosphere at the start was great despite
the 5:15am start time
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The course was flat
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The supporters were noisy (in a good way)
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The boom boxes on the cars lining the way reminded
me of the Notting Hill Carnival
-
Bob Marley was played a lot (not just at the
race)
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The water stops were appreciated at every mile
-
The water came in bags like it did in Havana. I
was now well practiced at using them
-
When the 10km runners split off from us I was
not envious at all, I was loving the race
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The last 1 mile I ran with a guy from Sweden
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I only knew he was from Sweden as his top said
so
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We didn’t speak but just kept each other on pace
-
I planned to speak at the end only to find he
carried on for the full marathon
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Oh well, well done Per (I know your name from
stalking you on the results page!)
-
I crossed the line in 6th place overall
and 3rd in my age category of 35-39 year olds
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My time was 1h 27m 48s
-
I got a fresh coconut and can of Red Stripe for
finishing (as well as a medal)
-
I got in the sea to cool off and to change my shorts
-
Essentially I was skinny dipping for a few
seconds
- It felt good and slightly rebellious
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I loved this race and this country
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Please make sure you do it one day
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Jamaica, please have me back one day to race
again too!
P.S. There was also a smell of funny cigarettes at every water stop. You know what I mean! Perhaps that was what made me race 12 seconds quicker than in Cuba?
P.P.S Post race I went to Floyd's Pelican bar which was an amazing treat of a day and also to visit the home town of a mildly famous runner called Mr. Bolt.
P.P.P.S I visited Bob Marley's house in Kingston and learnt his Dad was a Scouser. Who knew? It seems all the greats hail from Liverpool: The Beatles, Atomic Kitten, Mel C, Circa Waves and now Bob ;-)
P.P.P.S I visited Bob Marley's house in Kingston and learnt his Dad was a Scouser. Who knew? It seems all the greats hail from Liverpool: The Beatles, Atomic Kitten, Mel C, Circa Waves and now Bob ;-)
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