Daily Speculations

The Web Site of Victor Niederhoffer & Laurel Kenner

Dedicated to the scientific method, free markets, deflating ballyhoo, creating value, and laughter;  a forum for us to use our meager abilities to make the world of specinvestments a better place.

 

Home

Write to us at: (address is not clickable)

5/11/04
Andrew Moe: The Running of the Bulls

True madness infects the Spaniards in Pamplona once a year, drawing a crowd from all over the world for the annual running of the bulls. For those who make their living by staying one step ahead of the masses, the event offers a unique opportunity to study human crowd behavior in a fast moving, high risk situation.

The run itself is approximately 800m (1/2 mile) long and features several turns and changes in width. Parts of the journey are open areas, parts are fenced, parts have sheer walls. In the end the raging crowd is funneled into a narrow corral leading into the bullring - the final destination. Pile-ups of bodies are common here. Along the entire route are thousands of cheering spectators, many of them drunk. A good number of fellow runners may also have had a bolt or two for courage.

Because the bulls can cover 100m in less than 6 seconds, it is impossible to outrun them for more than a very short stretch. They get slowed down around corners or if they stop to gorge someone, but even at 600 kilos each, they are amazingly agile. Natural instinct drives them to move as quicly as possible along the enclosed route. According to the San Fermin Guide, "If they are not distracted by anything, they will follow a straight path all the way to their bullpen." Of course hundreds of runners scampering about in red sashes hardly provides a distraction...

Michener recounts the appearance of the bulls in the Drifters:

"we saw men dashing furiously into the plaza as if hell we at their heels, and a moment later the first bulls appeared, large dark figures running purposefully ahead, looking from side to side but not chopping with their horns. A mass of runners seemed to clog the way before them, but as the bulls reached any given spot, the crowd mysteriously opened, only to close as the bulls passed."

Hemingway clarifies the dangers of the entrance to the bullring in The Sun Always Rises:

"There were so many people running ahead of the bulls that the mass thickened and slowed up going through the gate into the ring, and as the bulls passed, galloping together, heavy, muddy-sided, horns swinging, one shot ahead, caught a man in the running crowd in the back and lifted him in the air. Both the man's arms were by his sides, his head went back as the horn went in, and the bull lifted him and then dropped him. The bull picked another man running in front, but the man disappeared into the crowd, and the crowd was through the gate and into the ring with the bulls behind them."

The following rules for running with the bulls have been culled from the accounts above as well as those unearthed by Google.

  1. Don't call attention to yourself. This is the surest way to get gored.
  2. Don't touch the bulls. This gets them really mad and draws their attention.
  3. Know the course. Each area of the course offers some type of escape strategy, but you must be aware of your location to use the right one.
  4. If you fall, stay down. It's better to get trampled than gorged.
  5. Don't run behind the bulls. They can stop on a dime and turn on you.
  6. Don't stand still. Amazingly, this happens every year.
  7. Fan out when you enter the ring. The bottleneck is the worst place to be.
  8. Bulls can't climb, but they can run through you.
  9. Be as aware of the runners in front as the bulls behind. The can trip you, cause pileups, clog exits and block paths you may have been counting on.
  10. When you hear the hooves, you should already be moving.
  11. Don't get between a separated (rogue) bull and the pack. All of nature turns against you.
  12. You get maximum street credibility by running through the entrance to the bullring alongside a bull. Of course, that's riskiest thing you can do. Despite never having run with the bulls in Spain, I have been trampled by the markets on several occasions.
  13. A Baker's Dozen: 13. If you make it out alive, despite the early hour (8 AM), the party begins immediately.

Comments from those who have experienced it in person are most welcome.

-- Best, Andrew Moe

 

San Fermin Guide (Official Site: Photos Here are Especially Good): http://tinyurl.com/37dly

He Who Hesitates is Lunch (one man's account): http://tinyurl.com/32d4n

Doctor Danger's Advice: http://tinyurl.com/2x9mc