DECIUAN. 1994 have had the good fortune to travel to West Aftica tore this year on business, rst over Easter and then ‘again in midsummer. Thad been to Africa a number of ‘tines before, but never to The Gambia, a small country ‘tone millsn people running the length of the Gambia River, The country is partial enclave: itis surrounded north and south by Senegal, and on the west by the [Atlante Ocean. ‘The Gambia is former British colony ‘which received independence in 1965. The Gambia was fade famous in the mid-seventies by Alex Hailoy’s ‘book and television series entitled "Roots", which is the try of an African slave by the name of Kunta Kints fand bis journey from Joffure to a. plantation in the ‘American Deep South, 1 Like to combine travel with running, and what better place to do it than along the tropical shores of the Enutheastern Atlantic Ocean in midwinter. Virtually ‘unknown to Canadians, The Gambia is popular resort for Europeans, the British, They are attracted by the fun, eand, sea'snd relatively cheap package deals. The tourist brochures refer to it as The Smiling Coast. One fof the first things Tike todo after Tong trip isto go for {brisk jog. In the Gambia, thie means running slong the beach pretty well as far as you like in ether ‘itection My colleagues and I were staying at a hotel along the Kombo Coast, approximately 20 milee from the eapitsl, Banjul. The beaches are relatively lean and unspoiled, palm trees line the shore, and there is almost always a Hit wind blowing: off the land in the morning, and off the seain the afternoon. Because the area is fry close tothe Equator, it tends to get extremely hot and humid by around 9AM, and stays that way until sbout SPM. ‘About the only time te un with comfort would be inthe arly morning and late afternoon. Evening running. is impractical, because the sun sets shortly after GPM virtually year-round, snd. there are hardly any Srcetlights anywhere ‘The beaches in this part of The Gambia are idea for ‘running, because there Is a wide intertidal zone where the sand is hardpacked, and, there are no rocky headlands or other obstructions. The locals tend to run é ° ON THE RUN. in their bare feet, a 1a Zala Budd, but I found this too ‘much like running on conerate. You ean run far miles tlong the coast without encountering a soul. Around {he hotel clusters, you have to be constantly on guard gun Bustle who prey upon You tthe pot ot Romners I met in The Gambia tand to run for various reasons, rich like runners anywhere, The loeal kids, ‘to and from school each day because school buses are in short supply. Young men use beach running to train for soon, which is alae played along the beach. From time to time one also sees joggers stopping to do calisthenics, which in this part of the World combines tlements of hatha yoga and meditation, Ihave yet to see a woman running in Africa, ora leat nota lol woman. Te may have ta do with the fact that ‘women are rupposed to cover themselves head to toe, Which makes running impractical, if not impeseble? I Ihave alaa yet to drop in on any’ of the Hash House Harrier clubs in the region, although I keep promising myceif Iwill, Maybe my hesitation has to da with the fact that their tins reportedly end with a traditional beer drinking session and I don't drink. I prefer the freedom to ran wherever I fee! Ike running, whenever I feel like it, and however far I fel like running. Groups tend to get inthe way of that, and besides, tis dificult torun and hold conversation atthe same Ue ‘One of the things I ike most about running is that itis ‘avery portable’ sport. Its an enjoyable way to explore ‘2 new part ofthe word, without having to get on local tour bus. Ita aloo a great way to meet doeal people During one imprompts run on my first top to The Gatbis, for instance, a Toeal fellow named. "Kayim’ fame up alongside and we jogged together. He ran in Sandals each ay before soccer practice, and I Rept thumping into bim, and so we would Tun together, ‘usually in silence: During my second trip to his country Tieept an eye open for him, but our paths did not eros ‘A third trip to The Gambia has been put on hold Iecause of recent military coup, but with abit of luck {will return there before long, = perhaps we will run into each other once again,