A Placid Life...

If what they say is true, and a picture captures 1,000 words.. well, then I submit to the jury exhibit A.
I love this picture, not just because its family, but because it was taken when they weren't looking, in between the gaggle of photographers present at the wedding. I took a bizillion shots and went 'paparazzi' myself, but out of all of them, I kept reverting back to this one as my favorite.
Two Thursday's ago, a small gathering of close family members on the Smith side & Jackson side ventured up to Lake Placid, NY for Kevin & Leah' wedding. I myself, hadn't returned to Placid in over 10 years... and upon returning, was reminded why it was my favorite place in the world growing up.
I was very glad to be back to Placid, and my 'Tara' as I referred to it growing up. 'Tara' comes from the character Scarlett O'Hara's reference to her home. It really is a beautiful town, and I have had the pleasure of seeing it in the summer months, when the weather is text book perfect, and even in the winter when this lake pictured above 'Mirror Lake' is frozen over allowing for dog sledding (did it, and it is awesome). It is gorgeous in the summer & in the winter!
I was also very happy to get in some hiking while up there too! After climbing Whiteface Mtn. so many years ago, it sorta gets ingrained in you... you may not do it often, but it's like riding a bike... you never forget.

Run of my LIFE!

Quite literally!
I was eager and excited before the Encierro started.. and to say that my heart was pounding as hard as it ever has in my life, doesn't do it justice. I have NEVER felt my heart beat that fast! I will tell the story of my Encierro experience as it pertains to how my run went... and add in the parts I know about from the others, but obviously the second the bulls even entered the street post the 90 degree turn.. all mayhem broke lose, and the three of us that were together were instantly separated.
The morning started bright and early. We had arrived to Pamplona the evening before, and dee med this to be the one night of the whole trip we would NOT drink... as people we had spoken to throughout our adventure so far had highly recommended. We walked the course clear from the beginning of the bull pen, to the Plaza de Toros, just a hair over half a mile. The trickiness lies in the cobblestones.. they are difficult for the bulls to run on, and cause lots of slipping action, and while we are a bit more nimble on our feet.. when hundreds of people are pushing and shoving around you, you want to know if there are any extra special 'spots' or dips in the road on the part you intend to run.
Luckily Simon was able to discuss in detail with a local at the Plaza de Toros how exactly to go about staging, and running. We had read the books, but BEING there, talking with locals, is the absolute best thing. You can also find out how the morning's Encierro (running of the bulls) went. We would be running on "Day 2".
So back to the morning of. We awoke bright and early, and met out by the car at 6am to make the 25 minute walk to the city center where the course was. We had to enter at one specific point, because by 6:30 the fencing would be up, and if we weren't in the only open gate by 6:50, we stood a chance of being locked out and unable to run. There are no cameras allowed on the course, as well as no drunks, but obviously people sneak their cameras in (The picture above is of our group in the staging area at about 6:50 am), and some sneaky drunks manage to sober up enough to 'run'.
Jill and Genna made the decision to run the earlier part of the course, so after 7:30 Simon, Justin and I left them to make our way to our designated spot to run. I snapped this picture right before we started walking... gotta love the Brits!!
A few of the pieces of advice the local told us: 1.) respect tradition! Wear the official garb. They wont necessarily kick you out, but this is one time you want to respect the tradition and wear the attire. There are at least a dozen little tents in pamplona where you can spend under 25 euro to get the whole outfit. 2.) Pick a staging area to run, the bulls are FAST! You wont make it the entire way with them, and there will be so many people that will get in your way/push you, that you will inevitably slow down.. so pick you place to run along the course.
At 7:30 they released the police line that was blocking us from walking all along the course. As I said earlier, there is only one area that you can enter and exit the course from if you intend to run. Once you are in, you are locked in! No backing out at this point!! So at 7:30 they released the police line and Simon, Justin and I said our goodbyes to Jill and Genna and walked past the 90 degree turn (hamburger corner) to wait about 50-100meters past the turn. The streets were A LOT more narrow than I had expected. Id watched enough youtube.com videos to know that the course was narrow but SERIOUSLY.. this was small!
At 8am they release the first rocket which signifies that the bull pen is being opened and releasing the 6 Steers & 6 bulls. The female steers know the course, have run it each morning/year and lead out the bulls. The bulls are selected from a particular breeder as being his best bulls, and each day of the San Fermine festival (there are 7 days= 7 Encierro's) showcases a different breeder. These bulls have never run the course, and they are making their 'last run' into the plaza de toros. All 6 bulls will die that night in the Matador show. So yeah, do the math... 7 days, 6 bulls per day= lots of bulls dying each year for the San Fermine festival. But again... tradition.
So the three of us were standing together when we heard the first rocket go off.. yes, your heart kinda skips a beat when you hear it.. cause you know exactly what it means.. then you wait to hear the second rocket go off.. the second rocket indicates that the entire pack is out of the pen.. the longer it takes for the second rocket, the longer the Encierro might last, because the herd isn't together. This is where you hear the term 'swelto' (which I apologize, Im sure it's spelled wrong) A 'swelto' is a lone bull... which = danger. When they get seperated from the herd they get scared, and their first reaction is to attack. We were warned if we hear swelto, to look out.. but truth be told, even though there were two sweltos the day we ran.. I didn't hear CRAP!
The second rocket took a little bit, I think Simon counted about 20 seconds or so, but then it was a waiting game.. wait until the crowd pushes you... I was warned by my father, who did the running 30+ years ago, of the dangers of the crowd.. they push, they don't care if you are a female, etc.. yeah yeah. I had previously decided that if I was running, I would be running the dangerous part after the 90 degree turn, and I knew that I wouldn't need to be the fastest, just not the slowest, but most importantly.. be ready to jock people like I was 7ft tall. Adrenaline does funny things to you, I will tell you that. As we waited for noise, the crowd to start freaking out, etc.. my heart started pounding. I had my arms up literally ready to push back the second someone came towards me...
We heard the screaming first.. remember the part about 'if you hear the world swelto'? Yeah.. f that.. all you could hear was mass screaming, grown men, literally screaming at the tops of their lungs.. the vibrations.. oh yes, 500+kg (1200ish) pound bulls 600+kg steers, causes a lot of vibration. I heard the screaming first, then the crowd start to move. We were jumping up in place to try and see something coming, and before we knew it, we were all yelling GO! at the tops of our lungs. I just turned and started hauling ass. I had my arms up, and to say I was just trying to envision myself being 7ft tall and 300 pounds (a fast 300lbs) was an understatement. I was mentally prepared for people trying to knock me down, and I wasn't gonna go down without a fight. I turned my head at one point and saw two black bulls alone heading right towards me, I was still a bit off to the side, but I remember my thought clear as day, "well, I can dodge that way, or keep running and hope they run by me without seeing me" Thankfully, the later happened. You are running literally out of your mind, can feel the vibrations to your left, and the massive screaming. I hurdled several guys, the run was literally a blur. It felt like 10 seconds long.. then as we were coming towards the plaza door, I knew previously that it narrowed down considerably... as I ran on the right side, I realized my momentum was going far faster than my feet.. I had just jumped another person, including one girl that got trampled, and later pulled off under the fence. I stretched my arms out and grabbed a fence post and bear hugged it like no tomorrow. People were running by/into/at me but I just held on for dear life. Another guy happened to get the same idea as me, and was next to me, but eventually wrapped himself around me holding the pole like a shield.. I definitely owed that guy a beer, but I never found him after the run.
I hung out there just long enough to get my balance and throw myself back into the herd of people, and into the plaza de toros. Goal #2 achieved.. SUCKAFOO. Haha.. let me back up. 30ish years ago, Dad ran with the bulls.. he didn't make it into the plaza de toros because if you don't run in right with them, or close to, they shut the doors and you cant get in. In fairness, Dad ran from a different point on the course, and had I done that as well, probably wouldn't have made it in either... but I just gotta hold that over Dad's head. Nah-nanny boo boo :)
I cannot begin to encapsulate the emotion you feel when you get into the ring. Your heart is pounding through your chest, you want to hug every person around you because you all went through an adventure together and you made it! I happened to run in and to the right, and shortly after wandering around, found Simon. Snapped a picture, and were just completely excited that the other made it into the ring too! It literally is an amazing experience.
We knew about the vaquillas (baby steers) that they release to let the crazy boys chase them around. They have corks on their horns to 'protect' you.. but lets be realistic.. a cork on a horn does nothing.... Simon and I jumped up on the inner ledge of the bull ring and had a great view of the three vaquillas they released. Shortly after that, Justin saw us and made his way over. "Stay here, I'm gonna go slap a vaquilla on the ass!" And slap he did. Just ask him what his hand smelled like for the rest of the day!! haha.
We had a staged meeting point to meet the girls at 8:30 at the Hemmingway statue just outside the plaza de toros. I have to admit, the excitement really hit me when I saw them walk up and I realized that all 5 of us made it through the running!! Now it was time for Justin and I to wait in line for 2 hours to get Matador tickets for the nights show (so we could watch all of our bulls get it) and drink Sangria. Did I mention how much Pamplona likes Sangria... well, the answer is A LOT.
This was truly a life experience. I had made my mind up when I was a little girl, and had watched my Dad's pictures on a slide projector (holler for the 80's), that someday I was going to do it too... just like Dad. I think he figured I would forget about it. Haha, sorry Dad! I think he regrets ever showing me those slides. There are a few more slides he showed me of things I want to do as well (climb the pyramids, visit Sardinia- did that!) so maybe the moral of the story is kids are like sponges, they dont forget.. and if they really want to do something, there is nothing stopping them!
To all of the people that are planning/wanting to run in an Encierro... remember this: people have died, people will die. People get gored. It isnt a American production where they say its scary but really you are under close supervision. No, this is the real deal. You have to understand what you are getting yourself in to before you even think of doing it. There is a chance you can get hurt. It is true what the locals say... the bulls are the 1st thing to look out for, 2nd are all the people. This is classic 'flight response' happening here people. If someone is thinking they are going to die, they WILL push you out of the way/knock you down to preserve themselves. Don't think you will run with a group, because I promise you, you will lose each other. Have a staging area AND TIME to meet at post run. If you dont have every one in your party accounted for, head to a infirmary tent. DO carry a photo copy of your I.D. in your pants somewhere... do imagine yourself 10ft tall and bullet proof (Thanks Travis Tritt), and be prepared to act like it... you will run with your arms straight out in front of you jocking people as you pass them, or keeping them from getting too close to you. It is ok if you arent 10ft tall and bullet proof, cause I sure as heck am not.. but I have always lived by the motto 'It isnt the size of the dog in the fight, its the size of the fight in the dog'. People can do crazy things when high on adrenaline... last but not least. Have FUN! I can now say I've joined an elite group of crazy people who have run with the bulls during San Fermines, and an even smaller elite group of GIRLS.
I texted my mom when we got back to the hotel later, to let her know I made it safely.. and to take a jab at Dad, "Mom, Im safe, we all made it... and tell Dad his DAUGHTER made it into the Plaza de Toros! SUCKER!" hehe I know, I'm a competitive brat aren't I? ;)