Oh, BULL!

So this morning, I was up at the crack of stupid to meet up with a couple thousand people down by the Convention Center for the annual Running of the Bulls, New Orleans-style. This is my second year.

This is kinda like the Festival of San Fermin in Spain, only instead of actual bulls--which are cost prohibitive and messy--they use roller derby girls with bats.

The object of the event is to run/walk the course through downtown New Orleans while the roller girls dash in and out of the crowd and take shots at as many backsides as they can.

And in case you were wondering, some of these gals can really hit. I'm here to tell the world.

You can run, but you cannot hide.

Of course some you don't try too hard to get away from.

And just when you think you're safe at the end, there's a gauntlet you have to run where most of the gals, being faster than the runners, are now waiting.

Even Elvis got his.

And there was a mariachi band...with drinks. Because New Orleans. (Gotta stay hydrated, right?)

And a good time was had by all.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need another ice pack. I'm kinda sore for some reason.

And here's the pics and commentary from last year. Clearly I did not learn a thing.

Running with the Bulls, New Orleans style

Otherwise titled: "Why I can't sit down right now."


So here in New Orleans. everything gets celebrated, even Spain's Festival of San Fermin. A couple thousand people came out this morning to run the streets of New Orleans, just like they're doing in Spain right now.

Yep, even Elvis.

Of course we can't have real bulls here. Half these people are drunk by 8am...it'd be a slaughter. But they had to have something, so they brought in "bulls" in the form of roller derby girls from all across the south. Roller derby girls with bats.

It got real, right from the beginning. The runners ran, and the skating bulls batted.

Over a course of about a mile, we ran/walked and tried to dodge these fast-moving, agile angry women.

Aw damn...this one sees me.

There were so many bulls and they moved so fast. You try to keep an eye one one or two and another zips up from behind and WHACK! Few were spared, least of all those of us cheeky enough to paste target stickers on our backsides....or those of us who threw taunts as the skaters skated by, not realizing that they'd all be waiting for us at the end of the run.

This one had my number too.

And they wasn't the only ones. I might have jeered at a few too many, probably like this guy.

But finally we reached the end. And there was a band.

And a few dozen more bat-wielding Amazons who were out for blood as they worked to get everyone trying to cross the finish line. I was too busy dodging to get more pics.

But it was fun, and the money collected went for charity so that's some consolation for how I'm feeling now.