This is the first time I take part at Granada half marathon. I´ve never considered myself prepared to take part at this half because it is too early in the season but this year I was eager to run at it since I had started training earlier and I was looking forward to meeting the new forumite Johnb.
It is really great for me to go back to Granada from time to time. I think it is a beautiful place and it reminds me of the time when I was a student at its university.
I left early in the morning, at 6:15. The temperature indicators showed 17º Celsius. When I was going towards the motorway, I saw a lot of youngsters at the Rambla going back home or somewhere else. When I was getting to Granada, I found a police car in front of me. As the speed limit was 100 km an hour in that part of the road, I decided to go behind them until the speed limit was 120 km per hour. Then, I overtook them and when I went out towards another motorway which would lead me to the sports pavilion I was going to, the policemen asked me to stop. So, I braked and waited for two civil guards to come to my car. There I was in my shorts and the Reading half T-shirt. They told me to show them my driving licence and the car documents. They told me that I was driving too close, that it could be dangerous in case they had to break quickly. I told them kindly that I thought I kept the distance correctly adding that I don´t like driving fast. I told them I was going to Granada half marathon. Fortunately, they let me go on without fining me. I drove on thinking that I am a really careful driver, so it would have been unfair to have been fined. I´ve only had a fine in twenty-eight years as a driver. It happened the first year I had my driving licence. There was a radar in Aguadulce, near Almería. The speed limit was 40 km per hour and I was driving at 60.
I managed to arrive at the sports centre in spite of the lack of indications after asking some people. It was early, about 8:20. The temperature was around 13º Celsius then. I picked up my race number and chip. I met some other people from Almería and a friend from Granada who I met in Córdoba when we were doing the military service in 1981. He works as a prison officer near Granada. He told me that he wasn´t going to run because he had some lumbago pains; his brother would run with his race number. While I was talking to him, John arrived on his bicycle and recognised me. We were very glad to meet. This friend from Granada knew John by sight because they have taken part in other races. Afterwards, I went with John to pick up his chip since he already had his race number. We talked about running, teaching English, Yorkshire, Almería, Granada, etc. John also introduced me to Paul and his wife. They live near Alhama de Granada and run a sort of outdoors company. Later, we went to a café where there were a lot of runners having something. They were frying churros but I thought that if I had some, I´d run even slower. So, John had a black coffee and I had a chocolate milkshake and two magdalenas, a sort of little sponge cakes. John didn´t feel like eating anything since he had had porridge for breakfast.
Afterwards, we went towards the sports centre again and met my friend Dani. He´s also a teacher of English. He lives in Granada where we met when we both studied English Philology there. He had come on bicycle and he took some photographs at the course and rode with me the last six kilometres.
John and I wished each other luck before the race and I went with Dani towards the last positions of the start line where Dani took a photo and met a friend who was taking part as well. The weather was good since it was about 15º Celsius by 10 am and the sun was shining. It was a beautiful morning more typical in spring than in autumn. As there was a man with a placard showing más de dos horas - more than two hours- I remained there and asked the man what time it meant. He said that depending on the people it could be one hour 58 minutes or two hours two minutes. He added that it could be seen in km 15. I noticed that he was wearing a T-shirt in which was written 1994 2005 Fifty marathons. He had a strong accent from Granada. The first kilometre took us 5´ 30´´. I managed to go with that group four or five kilometres but I preferred going at my pace doing km five in 28 minutes.I reached km 10 in around 56´30´´, which made me happy since I didn´t know if I´d be able to do ten kilometres under one hour. I remember talking to a man and a woman from Cuenca who told me about an interesting race in a beautiful surrounding with steep hills near that city in Castilla La Mancha. It is 15 km long and it is in June. There were a lot of drinking stands with water or oranges and in some also sponges and there were even some showers to go down them if you liked, which reminded me of Madrid marathon last year when it was really necessary due to the heat in Madrid on 25th April 2004. The people encouraged us a lot and the volunteers were very friendly as well. We ran near some cafés where I could smell of churros and once I could see in the background the Alhambra, a really beautiful Arabic building.
We went along neighbourhoods in the outskirts until we reached km 14 or 15 when we were in the city centre. Dani was on his bicycle and kept me company as far as the stadium. We went along Puerta Real - Granada´s Piccadilly Circus - and went towards Paseo del Salón where the Subida al Veleta starts. Unfortunately, Sierra Nevada has no snow yet, which is a wonderful view. We went along some avenues to reach the stadium. There were people encouraging us outside and inside. I managed to finish in two hours eight minutes 30 seconds real time. When I arrived, I picked up a bottle of water and a banana. Then, I gave back my chip and was given a bag with a long-sleeve T-shirt, a cap, a mini Maritoñi cake, a Puleva fruit milkshake, etc.
Afterwards, Dani and I went to the Coca Cola stand where I asked for a glass of Coke for Dani and a glass of Aquarius for myself. Then, I collected the sweatshirt I´d left at the Ropero, at the stand where clothes are left. I looked around to see if John was over there but I imagined he had finished long time before and had already left. Then, we went to my car where I got changed. After talking a little about running, teaching English as a foreign language, etc and thanking Dani for coming and taking pictures and keeping me company on his bike, we said goodbye since I had to pick up my sister and niece who had come the previous day by train and we were in a hurry. On the way to Almería, we stopped to eat some sandwiches, drink a Coke and buy some bread and cakes at a bakery.
I´ve really enjoyed this half marathon since I didn´t feel too tired. I think I can do a half marathon under two hours this season if I´m lucky with injuries and can train four or five days a week. It was great to meet John and having Dani there.
