Oh, I know where you will immediately go in your imaginations when you read that title. Now imagine a big wave washing up on the shore, and as it goes out to sea, let that image of a lithe, brown bikini-clad woman running in the sand wash away with the returning wave. Of course that isn't me. And I am only wishing that is the image that came to your mind. Come away from the shore now, back to where the sand lies in hard packed layers and where you can hear the surf crashing in the distance. That is where I run in my modest shorts, gross pure-poly race shirt, sport sox and running shoes. And nearly every run session offers up new delights.
As soon as the sun works it's way above the Sierra Laguna mountains to our east and peeps its first light into our windows, I am awake and donning my running garb and am out the door in time to be blinded by that sun as it breaks low on our horizon. The air is unusually cool, the birds singing sweetly, and only a few Mexicans and vigilant dogs are out taking advantage of the morning air. It is mighty fine to greet a Baja day with a run.
By now, I've established four routes that even a directionally-impaired gringa can safely navigate. Each one differs enough to offer fresh experiences on each rotation. The surfaces of each route provide sand hard enough for easy running and soft enough for little impact on old joints. Few cars travel the narrow roads at this hour, so sharing it with those eager drivers is no problem.
The running route most parallel to the beach jogs east before cutting south through fields of basil. The workers come to the fields before dawn and when they are harvesting (by hand) the air fills even more strongly with the aroma of sweet basil. Other run routes take off east away from the ocean and toward the rising sun. At a point halfway through my 5K run the tranquil rural road climbs to the high speed Transpeninsular Highway, the only highway serving the entire length of Baja. One morning clouds backed up against the mountains and delayed sunrise a quarter hour or so. I approached the highway just as the sun promised to break over the tops of the clouds. I heard the rare sound of a tractor's engine behind me just as I reached my turn around point. As I turned my route homeward and toward the approaching tractor I was greeted by that wonderful glow of morning sun. There, caught in the sun's first direct rays, piled high on the tractor, four smiling Mexican faces greeted me. The joy reflected on their lit-up smiles and eyes propelled me forward.
The most northerly route I use is a bit shorter than the others and offers a brief beach view. A frequent visitor to the quiet beaches in the early morning light is a lone caballero riding his horse bareback while leading another. The second, riderless horse bears red taped sox above all four hooves. One morning I came upon the trio within a quarter mile of the highway. The riderless horse became aware of me before the cowboy, and nervously turned his equine head toward me. On the second look, he gave a little toss of his head and I decided better to walk for a bit than upset them all. By now the cowboy turned to see what was causing the ruckus. With a smile and a wave accompanying his over-the-shoulder glance, he guided the horses up a side road where I could just see the corner of a building hidden in the trees.
One brave day I finished this shorter route much more quickly than anticipated, so I tried a very short loop on that soft, sandy beach. Ha! And I thought the elliptical machine set at an incline in the gym was hard work! I did complete my distance there in the soft mushy sand (requiring a valiant effort) before returning to the ease of the harder sandy road. Remember, all this is at sea level and much easier and faster than at home in Montana. Nonetheless, i was feeling rather proud of myself for going the distance in the soft sand and not giving in to fatigue and sore muscles. Now you can picture Suzanne Stallone at the end of that beach jog, fists above head, smiling at her little personal victory. And if you listen closely, I bet you can almost hear that theme song refraining, "running strong now......"
It does help, when running, to have a good imagination.
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