Since I ran a marathon the weekend before last, people have telling me that I’m a bit daft. That running that sort of distance is bad for your health and a one way ticket to life-long injury. A New York Times article today tells the tale how we have evolved to be the best long distance running animals on earth. Sure I should have trained for the race, but even without training we’re all built to go the distance. So even if you haven’t trained, might as well head out and try something ridiculous.
This weekend I was back in Amsterdam for the fourth time in a year to run the Amsterdam Marathon. The only problem was that I hadn’t trained. At all. I ran a lot in June, but then I spent the summer on the road. And though I wore out a pair of running shoes walking around stadiums, I hadn’t run more than 5-6 times with friends or just to see some of the towns. I am reasonably active though, so with a little help from my friend willpower (though he abandoned me for a stretch between 35 and 40 km) I pulled it off in a bit under five hours. Not an impressive time, but something I’m happy with considering the amount of preparation I put in.
Returning to work on Monday I was told just how foolhardy I was since three people had dropped dead running the Detroit Marathon the same day that I was pounding the pavement in Amsterdam. Of course at that fatality rate, the last 15 years of the Detroit Marathon has a lower fatality rate than commuting in the UK. The point is that much like you need to commute, you need to go out and enjoy life – which will always come with some risk. And personally, I’d much rather take that small risk than the risk of having a dull life. So if you’re thinking of doing something fairly ridiculous, might I recommend a major physical challenge. That’s adventure.
I like the feel of Chicago, especially the way that it opens onto the water. As soon as I arrived I grabbed my running shoes for a run along the river and then down the lake front. I enjoyed the run so much that the next morning I did it again, this time with my camera. The slide show above is from that run.
Dean Karnazes is a certifiable bad-ass, and his tale of tracking down and tackling the world’s toughest running challenges is the stuff that gets me fired up to go globe trotting. His narrative chronicling his long hours on the road comes right to the edge of the feeling that I love about travelling. It’s that sense of being in a new place, not necessarily physically, but mentally and emotionally that I chase when I travel.
Of course ultra-endurance running is a world different from globe trotting, one is a grueling sport and the other could be classified as a leisure activity (if you’re doing it wrong). But I think that there is a similarity in the sort of high that we seek. It’s the feeling you get when you are out of control of control and have the choice to either stop and fail, or push harder and come out the other side a winner. The feeling at the end of the trip isn’t necessarily even as great as that feeling in a moment when a slightly more sane person would turn back, but you forge on. Dean captures that feeling, which is damned hard thing to do.
I’ve got a copy of the book, and in line with good book sharing practices, I want to pass it along to another person. If you haven’t read the book, leave a comment on this post and let me know if you want it. I’ll get back to you by email and send it to you, anywhere in the world, doesn’t matter.
