Self-Transcendence 3100-Mile Race 2005

This page features a few anecdotes and reflections on the 2005 3100-Mile Race, rather than a blow-by-blow retelling. As with previous race writings, most of these words originally appeared on the Sri Chinmoy Inspiration site.

I finshed the 3100 mile race on Sunday 7 August. Abichal finished Monday, Ananda-Lahiri on Tuesday, and Martin finished Wednesday. Suprabha finished the next Sunday, to claim her ninth 3100-Mile Race finish. You can see more photos from the race at the Sri Chinmoy Races photo gallery.

Everyone agrees that this summer has been more consistently, relentlessly hot than last year. On the positive side, it rained a lot less. And we were granted occasional respite whenever a cold front came through. One day, it was as if a freezer door had opened, as an icy blast of air swept across us. But this was the exception rather than the rule. The first couple of days were punishingly hot, with a couple of runners going home for a cold shower during the second day. Then it got cool for a little bit. I was pretty happy with my first week of running; I was twenty miles ahead of the previous year's first week. Yet I could see that my dream of going under 51 days would remain in the dream-world. Srdjan was setting the pace; after two weeks he was doing around 65 miles a day. Little did we know he was going to crank out even higher daily totals as the race progressed.

We soon noticed the effect of the new concrete surface on our shoes: it was eating the soles away like sandpaper. Most of us had to think about ordering more shoes before too long. 200-300 miles was the lifespan of most of my shoes: less than one week's running. The race claimed 11 pairs from me in total. Weight makes a big difference in the equation: Ashprihanal (110 pounds) used 7 pairs, and Martin (200 pounds) used 14. And in Martin's case, the heels were often worn completely through, exposing the soft white rubber midsole.

We got to know the lap counters pretty well, passing by the station every few minutes. We got to know the two big digital race clocks pretty well, too, as they grew more erratic with each passing day, spouting nonsense numbers that looked more like letters of the alphabet as they descended irretrievably into eccentricity. Finally they were carted off to enjoy a well-deserved retirement. Perhaps more has been asked of these clocks over the years than any other race clocks in all of creation. I don't know if they date back to the very start of the multi-days, but they look old enough to have been there. By Abichal's reckoning, the Marathon Team has put on close to 100 multi-day races.

People often ask, "what do you think of while you're running all day?" Personally, I'm often thinking something along the lines of "I wish these laps would go by a little quicker!" In my daily schedule, I would usually try to complete 50 laps before taking a break- around 27 miles. In the first hour, I would get about 5 laps, then try to pick up the pace, hopefully to around 7 laps an hour. I would reach 50 between 1 and 2 pm, after 7 or 8 hours of running. Then I'd take a break. When I resumed, I would continue on to 80, 85, or even 93 laps before taking another break. Then finish the day off, hopefully with at least 100 laps (54.88 miles). I would finish around 11.30pm each night. Any later and I risked getting less than 5 hours of sleep before the alarm sounded at 5.22am. I felt that I couldn't get by with any less.

During the 3100-Mile Race, there was one publication that was perused with great interest by a great many of the runners. And what was this publication? None other than the Road Runner shoe catalogue. Many laps were spent in earnest study of this esteemed document. And many shoes were ordered. For when the local shoe stores can't provide you with that crucial protection between your fleshy foot and the cruel, callous concrete, there is only one place to turn to: The catalogue.

Yes, they have to ship them all the way from California. But, you (almost) always get what you want. And what did we want? Well, for the most part, Asics GT 2100s! There were some exceptions, of course. Suprabha always seems to start the race with exactly the right number of New Balance shoes, all the same model. Abichal is particular about the model he needs (also New Balance), you can't even get them in the US. Out of necessity, though, he had to try a few different types. Ananda-Lahiri favoured Asics DS Trainers, also a favourite of Ashprihanal. Ashprihanal also wore Mizunos. Tsvetan almost exclusively wore Mizuno Wave Precisions. Srdjan wore Nike Pegasus mostly, but seemed to like a pair of Spiras he got from Trishul (I had never previously heard of this brand, but they have a flashy website...) Trishul also wore Pegasus, but when he tried to order 5 pairs of extra-wide ones on the phone, he was told there were none available anywhere in the US, until the new model came out! Stutisheel wore Asics GT 1100s, which he got from Amazon.com (of all places.) They are his hands, and shoes, which you can see in the photo above.

So, once you get your shoes, you have to make your decision: to cut, or not to cut? Anyone who has read my postings will know that I like to cut. Straight out of the box. They're not going to look new for long, anyway. There's so much dirt and grime on the course that it gets through your socks and coats your feet. Also, they're not going to last long. In the catalogue, there was a competition sponsored by Asics. You could win "a lifetime's supply" of Asics shoes. In the fine print, it is revealed that a lifetime's supply amounts to 30 pairs. This isn't even enough for three 3100-mile races! Abichal said in his blog that one advantage of a cut shoe is that small stones can easily exit through the hole in the toe. Unfortunately, this is also how most of the small stones get in. Ananda-Lahiri liked to sit down on the concrete and remove his shoes to shake out the stones. He said his feet were so sensitive, he could feel even the smallest pebble. I asked him if he'd heard of the fairytale "The Princess and the Pea". He had.

This photo was taken at Suprabha's finish. Most of the runners are here. Smarana and Ashprihanal had already left for their respective homelands. I'm not sure where Martin was when this shot was taken. The gentleman third from the right is George, a kindly local who often brought us fruit during the race, and on occasion, freshly cooked corn-on-the-cob!