planning a trip to run with the bulls next july. anyone here give it a try?
i bet Taniamdrid ran, and annoyed all the bulls and the runners that they all got along and colluded to get her
Yes - I did it summer of 2007 after graduation from undergrad. Probably one the most frequently told stories that I tell people when talking about Europe or Spain. Something I will probably never forget for the rest of my life. Top 5 on the “life list”. We took a bus in from Barcelona (a few hours) into Pamplona on the second day of the festival. We arrived to the city center amid a raging street festival that is Festival de San Fermin. I was with 4 good buddies from college and we immediately purchase one large jug of sangria each a proceed to join in on the festivities. After walking amongst the massive crowd and getting sufficiently buzzed we each buy the typical “encierro” garb - the white pants with red bandanna and sash. We make our way down to the city square (before almost getting knifed by some locals! be careful…) where they are playing one giant game of smear the queer with a rugby with probably 75+ people in a large concrete area that makes up the town center. I got the ball a few times an drunkenly ran and took down a few dudes before flipping it to some unsuspecting hombre who got absolutely slammed! Blood was everywhere… We then headed over to the park where there was a huge techno concert going on. (It’s probably about 2AM at this point and we are still in party mode). Oh yea - it gets pretty damn cold, too even though its in July. DEFINITELY bring a sweater or jacket. Having no reservations or hotel because everything gets booked months in advance (really small town as well) we decided to sleep at the park after the concert was over (along with many other people). Probably the worst sleep of my life! Freezing cold sleeping on a park bench worrying about vagrants coming to grab me did make for the best sleep. We found some cardboard and used it as blankets… Haha this is one of the funnier pictures we have from the trip. So morning comes and the start ringing this huge bell that means get over to the street where the running begins. One thing to note is that they are SUPER strict on taking pictures and will give you the boot if they see you with a camera. Also females aren’t allowed to run, but if you can wear baggy clothes and look like a dude you will be fine. So here we are hungover as sh!t in the middle of a packed alleyway meeting a bunch of other crazy fuc@Ks from all over the globe getting pumped on kicking some bull a$$. They ring a series of bells to let you know when they open the gates and when the first bulls are let go. It’s pretty damn crazy once these bells start to ring. Once the last bell is rung everybody starts running. If you are a bigger guy you’ll be in luck. Our group was all pretty much taller than 6’ and over 2 bills each so it was easy to stiff arm spainards and make sure you didn’t get speared. After the bulls run by you start chasing them and more bulls start running behind you. Watch the bulls on the turns - these guys are pretty big a slip all the time. Bring a newspaper rolled up and smack them for bonus points. The run is about .25 miles into the stadium where the real madness begins. We pretty much all lost track of each other despite our best efforts to watch each other backs during the run. Once we figured we were all alive and all made it into the stadium we regrouped and took a few quick glory pictures before the let the younger bulls (more agile and nutty than the big ones, and a lot more dangerous) So there is probably a crowd of about a few hundred thousand people watching all this go down which makes it all even crazier. They let one of the steers out into the stadium and it just starts smashing through people like nobodys business. A sea of people just parts so that it can run by, but usually the steer will get someone. This part in my opinion was a lot scarier and more dangerous than the actual running. I had a ton of blood on my clothes that wansn’t mine haha. Dudes will be literally trying to grab the bull by the horns and sit on its head to go for a ride. You’d see someone get on for a bit and the bull would launch them 5 feet in the air head over heel with a huge reaction and applause from the crowd. Nobody died in '07 but I know someone died this year for the first time in quite awhile. It was definitely one of the best memories of my life and without a doubt THE crazies thing I have ever done. Such an adrenalin rush. Good luck! Also - try to wear some distinctive hat or beanie. We did and we went on you tube the next day and were able to spot ourselves doing the running from videos that people had uploaded.
HAHAHAHAHA BEST STORY EVER
great story. I have some family in barca so staying with them. They have not ran yet but will next year. Question, I am planning on 6k all in for two people. Is that enough?
fxguy1234 is right on the spot with that story. Its an amazing experience that I’d highly recommend to anyone who wants to combine one of the wildest parties of the world with an unforgettable cultural event. But its still pretty much just a sangria soaked booze-fest with bulls. Definitely enjoy the party, but don’t be drunk or too hungover if you’re planning to run because you need to be aware. Almost more dangerous than the bulls is the human aspect to the run. When you pack thousands of people in some narrow street and let them know that bulls are coming, they start to panic and push (some of them stiff arm, which is more than necessary). So be sure to keep your head, and arms up. Also, women are allowed to run but its mostly dominated by men. The glory of the run is in the stadium. If you run the route (3 mins./half mile), try to be situated more towards the front of the pack than the back so you make it into the hour long fun-filled madness *as mentioned above. 6k all-in should do it, especially if you have a place to stay in Barcelona. If you don’t want to sleep outside, you should book something before January. If you don’t mind sleeping outside, all you need is a few jugs of sangria and… yeah, thats it. Be safe and enjoy!
thanks guy for all the help. Flights are about 1k right now so I am booking this month
Sounds amazing, but incredibly dangerous. I see pictures of this event and their horns aren’t even filed…how do people not get gored?
You should go dressed in a bear suit.
running of the bears happen in march 2008. been there done that
nuppal Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You should go dressed in a bear suit. he should go in his birthday suit, and show his nuppals
sublimity Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > nuppal Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > You should go dressed in a bear suit. > > he should go in his birthday suit, and show his > nuppals I have just renamed my balls, cannot believe I never thought of this before.
There is a birthday suit run the day before the festival as a protest by animal rights activists. Take running of the bulls, strip it naked, move it early and remove the bulls… now you’ve got the Running of the Nudes. Check it out : http://gospain.about.com/od/pamplonabullrun/f/running_nudes.htm @nocareer The big bulls on the run don’t have anything done with their horns, and that’s usually when the goring happens. But the little ones that are unleashed in the arena have capped horns. Capped yes, but would still hurt like $hit taking one of those capped horns to the face.
Anyone seen the video of the guy taking a horn up the ass? I am not even kidding
thanks for the clarification, CFA I’ve seen that video. It’s pretty horrifying.
nuppal Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Anyone seen the video of the guy taking a horn up > the ass? I am not even kidding if i were to run showing my nuppals, it would be tough for the bulls to distinguish me and the other bulls - so i would be much safer.
sublimity Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > nuppal Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Anyone seen the video of the guy taking a horn > up > > the ass? I am not even kidding > > if i were to run showing my nuppals, it would be > tough for the bulls to distinguish me and the > other bulls - so i would be much safer. Oh see, i don’t have that problem. My nuppals, well, I mean…shit.
I did a few years ago it was was a blast…
i did it earlier this year… craziest thing i’ve ever done… best adrenaline rush i recommend being there on the first day of the week-long festival…huge party atmosphere, everyone throwing sangria on each other…good times