"Running" Errands

  Recently I have read several blogs discussing cyclists, not commuters but guys who really only use their bikes for exercise, using their bikes to run errands rather than just for training. I love this idea and have even occasionally run errands on my bike. However, as I was reading these blogs I began to think why can't I do this with my sport. Yeah I walk to the grocery store occasionally and walk to buy our fruits and vegetables from the guy who sells on the street here but why not actually do what the phrase says you are doing, "run errands?" I mean throw on my Sauconys, my shorts, dry wick shirt, grab a back pack, turn on the Garmin and run some errands. There have been occasions when my wife knew I was heading out for a run and she would ask me to pick up some things during my cool down but that’s not what I'm talking about here.

  So the other day I had something I needed to pick-up from a store on the fringe of the old market here in Marrakech and I had a six mile easy run to do but not enough time to do both. As I was thinking about whether I could put off this little errand one more day, I realized why not just run there buy what I needed and go home? This would be the perfect opportunity to try out my new excuse to go for a run.

  When I got home I grabbed a small running back pack that I bought last year in Spain (something like this), some money and headed out the door. I knew a route that would take me three miles to get to the store so off I went. One of the places I occasionally run is down by the old market, there is always so much to see. What I don't normally do is run down there after 5pm when everyone is driving or riding home. Traffic is nuts! But that is about what time my run was.

This is the kind of traffic I have to deal with all the time. Buses, taxis, cyclists, and donkey pulled carts.

One of the entrances to the old market

  I made it down there taking an easy pace and without any problems. After about a minute of looking for the store then explaining to the man what it was I needed I secured my purchase in my bag and headed off back home.

The store where I bought what I needed

 An old gate

Bab (Gate) Doukkala

  So how would I say my little experience in "running an errand" go? I'd say it went great. But I have come to realize the limitations associated with this kind of endeavor. Let me list a few:

1. Just as with a bike you are limited by the size of your bag. It is unlikely that you would have a pleasant experience doing this kind of shopping with a 35+ liter hiking pack (like this).
2. Carry something liquid and your likely to have problems especially if that something is a soda... think about that for a second.
3. People in the check-out line will think you're crazy, but many people already think that about your running already so who cares what they think. Just don’t use a towel in the store to wipe your sweat unless you plan to buy it.

  Well, I hope I've given you something to think about. Now get out there and run some errands.

Getting Spooked on a Run in the Woods

    I mentioned in an earlier post that my time running in Morocco and in general has given me many opportunities to meet people I would not have otherwise. Sometimes those meetings are others that are running, sometimes they are people in a convenience store, and other times they are people I do not even speak to but will never forget. 

    I was running about six months ago in a forest between Rabat and Temara, Morocco. I was on some of the smaller trails that crisscross that forest (mule trails) and I had not seen anyone the whole time I was out there. As I came around a bent in the trails there was a guy walking by himself so I stepped off the trail as I passed him. 

    This is where this guy, who would have normally faded away from my memory without a second thought became someone I will never forget. As I passed him this quiet man who did not even acknowledge my "passing on your right" (in Arabic) suddenly came alive. He turned toward me, threw his arms up in the air like a mother bear defending her cubs, contorted his face into quite an interesting expression, and screamed a blood curtailing screech at the top of his lungs. 

    I was in total shock, in fact I was likely screaming myself (in a manly way). I jumped and then took off not knowing what this man was doing. After about ten meters I looked behind me to see if he was gaining on me only to see him walking with his hand back in his pockets, head down, smiling.

    Do you have any similar experiences with people who you met on a run that you will never forget? You can leave your story below in the comments. Then get out for a run.

Never Without Entertainment

    One of the advantages to living in Morocco and being a runner is the awesome things I get to see and conversations I get to have while out on my runs (especially my long runs). I have seen all kinds of interesting/crazy things I do not think I would have ever seen had I not been a runner. For example, just the other day I was on a ten mile run, really close to Jma El Fna, the famous old square in Marakech. I was about to cross a road when I had to just stop and smile because right in front of me was a man on an ancient bike with a 7 foot tree resting on the rack on the back of his bike. 

    This is not by any means an isolated incident. A few months ago while out on another long run (this was a 20 miler in Rabat), I was stopping by a little convenience store (here it would be called a hanout) to buy a bottle of water. I often do my long runs in the middle of cities and because of this  I do not carry my Camelbak since there are stores everywhere that I can buy water from. I only carry the water I need to last until it's late enough in the morning when stores begin to open. Back to the story, I stopped at a store and asked to buy a cold bottle of water. The owner gave me the water, I payed then turned to leave, and suddenly realized I no longer had the bottle. The man had taken the bottle back and was looking at me very concerned. After a moment of silence he asked me, "Are you running?" To which I said I was. He then explained to me as he walked out the front door that because I was hot if I were to drink cold water I would die or become very sick. When he returned to his store he had in his hand a bottle of water that had been sitting in the sun. After handing it to me he said, "that's better, now you will not be sick, go run." I knew better than to argue with this cultural belief and continued my run with a hot bottle of water.

   Sights and conversations like these make running so much more exciting. I love running in the woods and on trails, in the country on wide open roads with clean air, but if I never ran in the city I would not get to have interesting conversations or receive encouragement from older men sitting on rocks watching the sunset near the ocean. I would not get to see snake charmers, four men on one moped, castles, city walls, and a culture so different from my own. I love running in the city and I love running in Morocco.