Run and Be Numb

Single city block hosts world's longest race
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The longest foot race in the world is 3,100 miles, long enough to stretch from New York to Los Angeles. Those who run it choose a different route: they circle one city block in Queens -- for two months straight.

The athletes lap their block more than 5,000 times. They wear out 12 pairs of shoes. They run more than two marathons daily. In the heat and rain of a New York summer, they stop for virtually nothing except to sleep between midnight and 6 a.m.

"I think this is what they're looking for: The feeling that you're living life for real," runner Pranab Vladovic said of himself and 13 other athletes now competing in the 10th annual Self-Transcendence 3,100 Mile Race in Jamaica, Queens.




The 51-day event is sponsored by followers of meditation master Sri Chinmoy, who teaches his students to excel mentally and physically. Some swim the channel between England and France or climb a mountain. Those in the race run under the motto "Run and Become. Become and Run."



Ok, so my day wasn't as hard as that. But I started the week off with a rugged bi-AL-thalon: 20 mile bike and 4 mile run on hilly terrain. I pushed along as hard as I could on the hills. And I stopped only long enough to throw the bike in the back of the truck and change shoes. The bike was about 65 minutes and the run was about 32 minutes. And I was wiped after.

I'm pretty happy: the leg feels pretty strong. And I'm feeling pretty fucking beat up. This morning at PT (last week of PT) I didn't look the therapist in the eye. I just gave him a side of the mouth "gonna take it easy today," and slinked over to the massage table.