Dean's 50/50

I just finished reading Dean Karnazes' book 50/50. It's his account of running 50 marathons in fifty states in fifty days. What he accomplished is quite the feat but after completing the fifty with the New York marathon - in the incredibly fast time of just a tick over three hours - he wasn't sure what to do next, so he ran it again. Then he left New York and headed for California - running! He made it as far as Missouri, where he had started his marathon of marathons, and then decided to pack it in and go home. The big sissy. Anyway, the book outlines all the problems and the logistics of staging and completing such a huge undertaking but the biggest thing I came away with is, most of us could do similar things if we were so inclined. Maybe not run 200 miles at a stretch like Dean has, but certainly more than most of us would ever even consider.

In the bicycling world, Lon Haldeman would probably be considered Dean's equal. He won the first two bicycle races across America. He also won a couple of more times on a tandem. If you check out the link, it has a list of just a few of his accomplishments and they're mighty impressive. There are some quotes by other cyclists on the page and their no slouches, either. John Howard, for example, set the bicycle speed record at 152 miles per hour!

So what makes those guys and gals - Lon's wife is quite the long distance cyclist herself- so different from the rest of us? Obviously, some of it has to be genetic. But even without the "ultra" gene, what keeps us from doing these types of things. I've run a marathon and I was only 29 minutes and 44 seconds slower than Dean on the same course, I might add. I've also ridden what many consider the bicycling equivalent to a marathon, the century ride. 100 miles versus 26.2 for a marathon. Both of these were a lot easier than I expected them to be but I didn't undertake them lightly. I trained diligently, worked my mileage up in a sensible manner and had reasonable goals as far as time was concerned.

Does this mean I could be some type of ultra athlete, myself? I think so. Could I compete with Dean or Lon? No damn way. Besides being extremely gifted, they must have a fire burning inside them like a nuclear reactor. To have the combination of mental and physical toughness, as well as the passion to push themselves to the absolute limit and only come out stronger, is something most people can only dream about. Maybe that's the problem. Most people don't even dream about it. When the sky's the limit, how come we don't look much higher than the horizon?

If you're looking for a little inspiration and some practical running advice, check out 50/50 by Dean Karnazes. For even more inspiration check out Dean's first book, Ultramarathon Man and Lance Armstrong's It's Not About the Bike. Maybe you'll want to tackle the Western States 100 or Paris - Brest - Paris after that.