Paying for a Thrill

A friend of mine posted a new event on Facebook asking who wanted to do this with him.

 

AND

 

 

Here's why I will NOT doing this event:

 

I do NOT want to ever have to dodge a bull so that I do not get trampled. I certainly would not pay money to have to dodge a bull.

 

 

I weigh 103 pounds. Bulls weigh about 2000 pounds.

I don't even have to do the math to know that I do not want to be anywhere near a bull.

 

I have been known to stumble and fall just when I am walking. I wouldn't want to take the chance that I would run and stumble in front of a bull.

Here are the recommendations from The Great Bull Run: If you fall down, stay down and cover your head until the bulls pass. This isn’t guaranteed to protect you, but it’s your best chance of avoiding a serious injury.

 

Here's my best chance of avoiding a serious injury - DON"T SIGN UP!!!

 

Another reason - it is dangerous and The Great Bull Run people admit it. When asked, "Isn't it dangerous?" they state:

Of course!  Much like rock climbing, mountain biking, skydiving and other extreme sports, running with live bulls is an inherently dangerous activity (which is why it’s so thrilling).  By participating in the run, you accept the risk that you might be trampled, gored, rammed or tossed in the air by a bull, or bumped, jostled, tripped or trampled by your fellow runners.  We do what we can to minimize those risks by using less-aggressive bulls than those used in Spain and allowing runners to hide in nooks and climb over the track fence if necessary, but make no mistake: you could get seriously injured in this event. That’s why there’s a mandatory insurance fee during the registration process and medical staff on site.
Interesting fact: There have been only fifteen deaths in the Pamplona running of the bulls in the past 102 years!  Even so, we’ve added significantly more safety precautions for The Great Bull Run to further reduce that risk (but you could still die).

 

If I really want to run with bulls I would make a trip to Pamplona and do the real deal.

You know, there are probably way more idiots here in Southern California that will go to this event, than in Pamplona, where the running of the bulls is seeped in tradition. But even there people get hurt.

 

According to Wikipedia, about 200 to 300 people are injured each year in the Pamplona running of the bulls, mostly with contusions from falling down. These people did not need to go to the hospital, but last year 50 people did have to go to the hospital for more severe injuries, 6 of them were gored.

I picked the picture that didn't show blood, but you can find a lot of pictures of people being gored by bulls online, with LOTS of blood. Yikes, just looking at the goring pictures online was enough to make me decide not to go to Pamplona this year or EVER to run with the bulls.

 

Okay, so no way would I sign up for the "Run with the Bulls" locally, but what about the Tomato Royale part of the event. Maybe I could just do that part.

 

Sign me up?

 

 

 

NO!

NEVER!!!!

 

And here is why.

I am a mother for God's sake!!!

I have spent years (YES, YEARS!!!) trying to keep my children from having food fights. Sometimes after a meal, my dining room can look as if a food fight happened, even if it didn't.

So I do NOT need to pay to participate in something like this.

 

All I would have to do is give my family permission NOT to have manners at the table.

 

 Another reason I would NOT sign up for this event is the certainty that there would be stains on clothes. LOOK at the pictures above. Just looking at these pictures makes me break into a sweat thinking of how I am going to get the stains out and I have spent the past 23 years trying to get freaking stains out of my children's clothes.

I had to laugh that this was a man trying to get out stains.

HAHAHAHA!

 

And why would I want to pay to have people throw tomatoes at me?

I don't want anyone to throw anything at me.

Especially something that causes stains.

 

It all just seems so ridiculous.

 

But if you are hell-bent on participating in the Tomato Royale, I will make this offer to you:

If you are going to pay($25/$35/$45 depending on how soon you sign up) to participate, you can give the money to me instead to be used as a donation to a charity. In return you

can stand in my front yard and I will serve you a beer (you do get a beer at the "official" even if you are 21 or over, so I can meet that offer). I'll play loud music and serve you pizza. (They are offering great bands and tasty food, but I only have so much to work with.) I'll give you a free-tshirt and write TOMATO ROYALE on it in black Sharpie. I am sure I have a race tshirt around here somewhere in your size. (The "official" event is providing a tshirt).

And I will throw tomatoes at you.

 

I will NOT, however, be responsible for the stains in your clothes. For a little extra money donated, I will let my dog chase you down the street.

 

Maybe not as thrilling as being chased by a bull, but a lot safer.