Here is another installment in my Frequently Asked Questions series, answering lots of the questions I get about running here in Morocco and about our running tours. In the first FAQ post, I answered a common question about running stores in Marrakech (which you can find here).
When talking with our clients before their runs one of the most often asked questions I get is "What pace will we be running during our tour?". This is an understandable question and you may have been wondering the same thing. Since running tours are still a relatively new idea in the running community most people naturally have a lot of questions about them.
When running any of our running tours here in Morocco you will be guided by an experienced runner who will be both your guide and coach for the entirety of your run. When some people hear this they begin to worry that they will be unable to keep up with their guide's pace especially if they are new to the sport. Will it be okay to take a walking break if needed? What about stopping to take a picture, will my guide be okay with that?
Another concern that I hear often is from those training for upcoming races and are curious if they will be able to run a certain pace that will help them not miss out too much on their training plan. They want to make sure that there won't be a lot of stopping and starting on the tour.
Simple answer: We run at your pace in an effort to give you the best experience possible.
The more involved answer to both these groups is that there is no need to worry, your guide will run at your pace, within reason. As I said earlier our guides are experienced runners and they are used to running at all kinds of paces as requested by our clients. If you need a walk break or want to stop for a picture that's okay, just let your guide know. You don't need to feel like you're holding your guide back.
However, if you want to run your tour at a rather fast pace you will lose out on a lot of the experience that makes our runs unique. We have found that a 7:30 minute mile pace is about the fastest pace the running tours are enjoyable at. Your guide will be talking and pointing things out, you might have questions about something, and you'll likely be running in the center of town so going any faster than this just doesn't make for the best experience. And that's what we want to give you.
If a faster pace run is what you are wanting and don't care as much about seeing the sights let us know and we will see what we can do to help you accomplish your running goals while visiting Marrakech.
So, no matter your skill level or preferred pace we welcome you to sign up for our running tours and experience Marrakech in a unique way that few get to.
