My first year I ran several times. I got close enough to see the bulls and feel the fear. I was 23 years old and a former college football player and boxer. I was physically fit and able to sprint and handle the onslaught of other runners smashing into me. The run is extremely violent. The most important goals any first time runner should have are to avoid getting hurt themselves, avoid getting someone else hurt, and avoid interfering with the herd. If you can do all three of those, you’ve succeeded. Mainly you will want to run along the side of the street and hopefully see the bulls thunder past. Now the more ambitious runners need to take into consideration their age and physical abilities. If you are under 40 years old, physically fit, strong enough to handle fully grown men smashing into you while running at full speed, then you may want to try to run a little closer than the other first timers, maybe even running alongside the bulls, not close enough to touch them but close enough to see them galloping past just a few feet away. The most important thing for first time runners to do, is stay out of the center of the street. You have no way to gage their speed and they are much faster than you can imagine. My first time running close to the bulls was in my second year. You don’t want to rush yourself up close to the bulls, that is a sure way to get seriously injured in your first run. What are some of your goals for your first run? Does anyone have a first run experience they’d like to share?
