Last night we made our way up to the Couples Swept sports complex away for the pre-race pasta party. There were a LOT of people there. The pasta was good, even though it was a bit of a feeding-frenzy. You don’t want to get between a runner and a pot of pasta the night before a marathon.
This morning I was up and about at 3:15am so that I could see Bea off to the roundabout for her shuttle to the Reggae Marathon venue at Long Bay Beach Park. Luckily, the owner of the condo we are staying at offered me her car so that we wouldn’t have to walk the road in the dark and late/early at night. I have to admit I was a little concerned about that too, so her offer was immediately and gratefully accepted.
I stood out in the yard and waited as Bea pinned her number on her jersey. It was still full-on dark. I expected early morning tranquility but was amazed at the noise level. I could hear music booming from a couple of sources - the beach I think, and the occasional ‘Braaap!’ of a motorcycle off in the distance. But mostly it was the dogs. There must be 1,000 dogs in Redground and it seemed the majority of them were out barking and howling to each other at 3:15am.
Approaching the roundabout we saw that it was all decked out in Christmas finery. The trees, all wrapped in little lights, were gaily lit. When I dropped Bea off there was already a gaggle of runners there waiting for the first shuttle. They were being watched over by a half dozen of Negril’s finest, smartly attired in their crisp uniforms. Am I the only one who thinks getting up at 3:00am to go running is a bit odd? I drove back to the condo and went straight back to bed.
Anyhow – I slept for about 3 hours. Bea got back at around 9:00. She had a good run and won a medal. It says ‘Finisher’ on it. All runners crossing the finishing line received a medal and a jelly coconut for electrolyte replenishment. Coconut water is supped to be the best for that. She said she bumped into PGW milling around the recovery area. He was drinking a Red Stripe. Red Stripe was a sponsor so the beer was free to runners. Next time she saw PGW he had a Red Stripe Raspberry. He’s probably still up there, getting his money’s worth – you go, Dave.
There’s some kind of motorcycle race going on today on Hermitage Road. No . . . wait . . . Oh . . . that’s just the regular traffic.
Just two of the 1000's of dogs that roam Negril. These two picked us up near Ragga's and tagged along with us for about an hour.
This jackfruit looks big, but they are all that size.
