ultramarathoning or candy?

Rash update: left arm all better, right arm improved but not quite there yet. I've eaten a lot of candy this weekend.

To get myself pumped up about (eventually) getting back on the road, I've been thinking about training for a new race next year. I did some research and found some pretty weird stuff. Did you know there are a handful of people who run a 3,100 mile race around one city block in Queens, New York, every summer? Yes, 3,100 miles, otherwise known as almost 5,000 km. They do this over 51 days, logging over 60 miles (yes, that's roughly 100 km) a day.

I'm breaking out into a bit of a sweat, btw, because this post is getting kinda math-test-stressful.

Every day, the crazy people start running at 6am and they stop at around midnight. And they keep circling the same block continuously, for the full 51 days. For added fun, this is in the summer, and NYC can get pretty darn hot.

Who the hell are these people? Seriously. I feel they should all come to my house, lie on one of my couches, and eat some candy with me. As I've learned over the past few days, candy is delicious. Running over 60 miles a day for 51 days is not.

It's called the Self-Transcendence 3,100 Mile Race, which imho is a pretty crappy-sounding name when compared to Sour Patch Kids or Swedish Fish. The race is the brainchild of this guy, Sri Chinmoy,

who was (he died recently) a meditation centre owner of Bangladeshi origin. The first fact you need to know is that he claimed he could live on 90 minutes of sleep every day and lift more than 7,000 pounds with each arm. The second fact you need to know is that he didn't seem to actually do the runs himself.

Candy, people. Delicious. And my couches are pretty darn comfy too.

RainyBow