Training in Abu Dhabi

Why Abu Dhabi? by Faris Al-Sultan

In the year 1999, before everyone knew the United Arab Emirates, Dubai or Abu Dhabi, I travelled the first time to Al Ain, the oasis city 160 kilometres southeast of Abu Dhabi. Why? A long lasting friendship connects my farther with some local families and I did a trip to the seven emirates to visit them. I was not yet a triathlete at that time. A few years later already as an athlete as I was looking for a good training camp destination I remembered the comfortable warm and dry weather, the low frequented and good roads and the Jabel Haffet, the mountain which can be rode with the road bike. So I started the adventure.

My first training camp was from the athletic point of view not that productive but I found the love to the Emirates. In the following years I could experience the development of the country and its infrastructure, the change of the population composition, the tenfold increase of the triathletes, the formation of a high standard bike shop and a lot more. The increase of the traffic and the hotel prices was a not that pleasing by-product of that development.

Many people from pros to absolute amateurs accompanied me in the Emirates or went recently by themselves to take the advantage of the good conditions. I could fill books with the things I experienced there and they are topics of conversations of many common dinners.

Training in Al Ain

The winter months (November to April) provide perfect training conditions in the emirate Abu Dhabi. In December and January there are around 20 degrees Celsius. In March the 30 degree line is reached or even crossed. The weather conditions are usually very stable and rain drops are seen seldom.

Swimming

In Al Ain there are 2 outdoor training pools, which both belong to a hotel complex. The Hilton Hotel offers a 25 meters pool and the Intercontinental Hotel one with the length of 33 meters. Both are appropriate for swimming workouts and usually there is enough free space in the pool.  Beside the pools there are gyms at both location, which complete the training.

Cycling

There are various options for cycling around Al Ain. In general the road surface is very good and the volume of traffic is low as soon as you have crossed the borderline of the city. Most of the roads have shoulders, which cyclers can use. The topography of all (except one) routes is flat or lightly hilly. There you ride the dunes up and down of course along the road and not in the sand. The Jabel Hafeet is the big exception. The climb is approximately 10 kilometers until you reach a huge place with a sensational view over Al Ain and the surrounding area. That is the only mountain that can be climbed in that way. As Al Ain is a city next to the border of Oman also the neighbor country can be explored with the bike. It is a fact that on both side there is desert. Though both countries are different. You will find an ocean of sand in Abu Dhabi whereas the Oman is more like a rock desert. But both are really worth to be seen.

Running

Runners find also different routes in Al Ain. Firstly the wadi should be mentioned which is the desiccated riverbed. There you can run endlessly in both directions but you will not find any shadow. If it gets too hot the oasis of Al Ain ist the perfect place for a running session. An endless number of paths lead through the little date groves. It is quite common that people, who are there for the first time, do not find the way out and their running workout gets longer than expected. Those who like it tough can also climb Jabel Hafeet per pedes on the road or on the cliffy tracks.

Food in Al Ain

The cuisine in Al Ain is multifaceted. The variation starts at the traditional Arabic foot and goes through the Arabic doner to the Inidan and Asian cuisine. Even fast food can be consumed from all different fast food chains. The cheap worker restaurants are an interesting experience where Pakistani truck driver go for dinner. A little more fancy is the Hotel Mercure on the Jabel Hafeet. There you can combine good food with a perfect ambience. The view over the sea of lights at night is impressive.