Pamplona - It's go time
Thursday, 9 July 2009
It's 5am. The alarm has just gone off. Blurry eyed, we all stumble out of our beds and head for the car.
6.40am. We arrive in Pamplona and park the wagon. It is only now that the it is starting to register. In just over an hour, Reuben and I will be standing on a crowded street, waiting for the annual running of the bulls to start.
7.30am. Reuben and I make our way through the barriers, and enter the already packed street. We are informed by a seasoned runner, that in 25mins the Police barrier would be removed and we could take up a starting position anywhere on the course. Our preferred starting point, after Dead man's corner - tight right angle corner where bulls often loose their footing (point 4 on this map)
7.50am. Time check. The crowd is cheering, camera flashes are flickering, our hearts pounding at a million miles an hour, with the anxiety levels rising every second. Was this possibly the last dumb thing I will ever do?
8am. Go time! The first rocket is fired, shortly followed by the second. The bulls are on their way. Moments later the first wave of people rounded the corner. Reubs and I gave each other a look, then started legging it. The bulls came thundering past us, and we headed to the side to stay away from them, and their horns. Adding to the danger, people were loosing the footing all over the place and created further obstacles to move around. The end was close, and we could see the stadium entrance. The road narrowed, and people pushed their way through the emerging bottleneck and out into the safety of the open arena. The bulls were now in their holding pen.
8.05am. Breathing a sigh of relief, we congratulated each other on not becoming a victim, unlike fellow runners, who just one day later, would show how dangerous this festival actually is.
8.10am. Just when anxiety levels began normalising, the first of six smaller bulls is released into the arena to cause chaos amongst the people that have now gathered. After enduring the challenge of this first bull, we retreated to the safety of the barrier - adrenalin levels depleted.
10am. After watching the last 5 bulls have their fun with the crowd, we make tracks back to the car. Exhausted and hungry, we return back to San Sebastian for a brief kip, then hit the beach for the afternoon sun.
Putting life in extreme risk - tick
Labels: bulls, festivals, Spain, Travel
posted by Tim @ 3:18 pm,
