Tuesday, February 20, 2007

'Light Training' BA Style


By 4.00pm yesterday most of the marathon runners had arrived, including my brother and his girlfriend who had flown in from Canada. We all gathered in the hotel lobby for a 'light' training run; the 100 or so unusually attired collective were easy to spot.


What followed next was more of an extreme sport than a gentle jog. The thirty degree heat, humidity and dense pollution soon had people panting. Attempting to negotiate the city traffic was a terrifying experience. Crossing some of the widest roads in the world, in rush hour, with kamikaze drivers set on mowing you down is not something to be recommended. With little room on the pavement for all of us, at points we were forced to run in the road alongsided the endless streams of fume-belching lorries. Far from an easy pace it soon became clear that sprint was the only safe way of reaching the end of the run intact. No wonder the locals looked at us as if were a little 'loco'.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Nat. That jog in the traffic sounds like training in old Inverness. Say hello to Mat and Lou from me too. Look forward to reading your next entry.

Dunc

Anonymous said...

Nat, your brother's ex-Brit, Canadian friend here blogg'in from Victoria to wish you guys the best of luck with the remainder of the journey. Great site, and will be great to track 'La Aventura Tyler' as it unfolds. Having spent "mucho tiempo" in BsAs (8 times)I can appreciate the 'right for flight' jog you experienced! Try the pedestrian walkway 'Florida' next time and well, one can always hide behind the 'Obelisco' for shelter from 14-lanes of traffic...Yipes! Hope that your lungs will recover in time for the 'lucha' that cometh. Best of luck boys!

Anonymous said...

Extreme jogging! You could be setting a trend! I have to admit, I'm almost glad to be sitting in the safety of my office. Na really, even though me and exercise are allergic to each other, I'm really very envious of you all on this adventure of a life time! It all sounds mental! Looking forward to hearing more. Say hi to everyone and good luck.

Lee-Jade
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