Postcard from Spain
BUENOS DIAS, welcome to Tarjeta Postal de Espana - or for those whose chat up line on the Costas is limited to "dos cervezas por favor", welcome to the first in a series of postcards from Spain, courtesy of John Tussler.
"When I moved over here to Guardamar near Alicante just over three years ago one of the first things on my agenda was to do what most devoted runners do and that was to make contact with a group of runners.
This was easily done by perusing the local papers and having finally settled into my new home and integrated myself in the local running community, the next step was to join a Spanish running club so I am now, with a small number of other ex-pats, a member of the Club de Atletismo Millennium de Torrevieja and the Spanish Federation which is the Spanish equivalent of UK Athletics.
Joining the club has proved to be remarkable value for money as the membership is just ten euros per year (£7) for which you get a club vest, shorts and sweat shirt, unlimited free access to the athletics track and entry to a number of selected races is paid for by the club. Membership to the Spanish Federation is extra.
Where I am situated is very close to a nature reserve consisting of a large lake surrounded by pine trees so there are many tracks and trails locally to train on. However most of the races available are run on roads as cross country races are extremely rare and multi-terrain races non-existent.
The main races tend to be half-marathons and take place between October and April when the weather is cooler. Strangely there are no 10km races around, which seems surprising to us considering it is a metric distance.
Throughout the summer, many towns and villages hold races which coincide with their own local fiestas and these generally consist of 400m for three to four year-old children building up over distance in two year age groups to between 5 and 7km for seniors and veterans (although as with most things in Spain these tend not to be accurate measurements and can be considerably shorter).
These races cost nothing to enter - you just turn up, register and run. The awards are more generous than those usually received in the UK with prizes generally given for the first five finishers in each category from the youngest age group right through to each veteran age group up to 60 plus. I competed in a number of these races last year with the following results:-
June 4th: 5.8km Formentura 26.33
June 12th: 5km Catral 23.41
Aug 6th: 11km Hondon de las Nievas 50.16
Aug 13th: 7.2km Hondon de las Nievas 32.05
Sept 3rd: 6.8km Crevillente 32.26
Sept 18th: 8.9km La Romana 45.42
Dec 4th: 5.4km Torrevieja 24.52
The club thinks nothing, however, of travelling much longer distances for races as evidenced by the fact that a year ago we embarked on a five hour coach trip to Toledo just south of Madrid and an overnight stay in a hotel to take part in age group cross country races. These were gentle Hampshire League type races rather than the Today's Runner variety, round a park and then followed by a five hour return journey.
This was a good experience (especially as it was all free) and a great way to see other parts of Spain.
The half marathon 'season' resumes in October so if anyone is interested in coming over to take part in any from this time of year feel free to contact me on (0034)965013205 or (0034)677811254 or by email at john_tussler@hotmail.com
I will provide details in a future 'postcard' once the relevant dates become available.
I have already had a visit from Ian and Mags Smith who came over to do the Torrevieja half marathon in February so any feedback on the hospitality offered can be obtained from them! I can accommodate up to four people."