New Challenges

The possibility of stepping into a higher plane is quite real for
everyone. It requires no force or effort or sacrifice. It involves little
more than changing our ideas about what is normal.

-Deepak Chopra

I thought this quote was rather appropriate considering the ideas rattling around in my head as of late. I'm still trying to come up with a challenge for this year and in doing so I think I already found one for next year. There is a series of events in IL called the Grand Slam, which consists of 4 ultramarathons throughout the year. To qualify for the Grand slam standing you must finish each race in the allotted amount of time. These races will range from 30 miles to 50 miles and are all trail oriented. People most often ask 'why would you want to run that far' when first hearing about ultramarathons. I don't yet know the answer to that question... often the response is 'because it feels so damn good when you're done.' But for me it's about attempting to push my personal limits of what I can accomplish.

In ultra running it has been said that it's 90% mental and the other 10% is mental. It's about reconstructing your ideas about what is possible and what isn't. Just last night I was watching a movie called "Running the Sahara" in which 3 guys attempt to run the entire distance of the Sahara Desert. A distance of over 175 marathons, running every day with no rest days. They were averaging 40-50 miles per day in 140degree ground temperature heat. Almost everyone doubted their ability to do it, including the three runners at times. But the ultimate goal for them wasn't to run across a desert, it was to challenge the notion of what was humanly possible. It was to experience a level of suffering such that it would lead to a new outlook on life. It was more about surviving ones own doubt as opposed to surviving the brutal conditions around them.

So my goal for next year is the Grand Slam of Illinois trail running. But for me it's going to be about much more than running. It will be a will to power, a journey into suffering, and an exploration of previously unattainable goals and world views. I have found that great struggles give a greater appreciation for those precious people around us and a sense of connectivity to everything that surrounds us. And that is what I'm striving for.

Things to come...

The future often seems unsettling to me and I can't help but think that our current ways of life contribute almost wholly to that. What has spurred our excessive procreation, our need for mass produced items, and our unwillingness to compromise? Since when did we need bigger, better, more, faster? Our greed for more has led to an inevitable road where many will be lead toward a future of less rather than more. Less jobs, less food, less money, less possessions, less house, less car, less... To think this isn't a product of our own doing is to the point of ridiculous. We are a society that wants more for less, which leads to a number of problems. First off we buy cheaper products, products that don't last as long and end up in the trash, so that we have to buy more and use more resources. Second, we want to pay less, which means we have to pay workers less to produce these cheap items. We Americans don't want less... so we give up our jobs and factories to overseas countries that pay less. And even though we know these cheap products are costing our neighbors their jobs... we buy them... because we want, neigh, need them. Our economy, our health system, our food system, our water system, is all falling apart around us... but we don't care, not yet. We won't care until it affects us personally, and by us I mean the middle class, the majority, the heart and soul of the country that we love so much, but seem to be trying to destroy. And by the time we care... well you can see why the future is unsettling.