Connecting Ultrarunners Across The Globe
Shopping Cart
Your Cart is Empty
Quantity:
Subtotal
Taxes
Shipping
Total
International 100+ UltraRunning Foundation
International 100+ UltraRunning Foundation
On Coming Alive
On Coming Alive
by Claire Nana
May 2017
A few years ago, Dean Karnazes mentioned to me that he believed that it is in the struggle – in facing adversity – that we become most alive. Karnazes’s comment wasn’t entirely surprising given the context. I had sent him a copy of my book, Leverage: The Science of Turning Setbacks Into Springboards for a review. While in my book I argue that setbacks are often the catalyst of profound growth and the very thing that results in a dramatic shift in our sense of priorities, connecting us to a more clear, authentic sense of purpose, and in the process, revealing strengths within ourselves that we never knew existed, Karnazes’s statement had me thinking that perhaps adversity isn’t just about growth, but rather, about life. Perhaps in trying to remove all of the obstacles from our lives – to make life as comfortable as possible – we had forgotten how to live.
I her powerful TED talk, Sherry Turkle, author of Alone Together: Why We Expect More From Technology and Less From Ourselves, says that where we used to go to social media to express a feeling, now we go to social media to find a feeling.
The point Turkle makes is that as much as we love our instant gratification world, it hasn’t really loved us back. While we can have almost anything we want with the click, swipe, or touch of our fingertips, the thing we want the most – to feel – has been lost.
I, like Karnazes, think that people want something more. I think that people want to feel alive, but they also want their lives to matter. Greg Mckewen, the author of Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less, describes the process of connecting to your essential, or most meaningful, purpose like editing a book. You want to remove all of things that will confuse the reader, distract from the message of the book, or simply don’t need to be there. For McKewen, when you remove all of the obligations (spoken and unspoken), responsibilities, activities, and even relationships from your life that distract you from what you are most meant to do, the result is a deep rooted sense of purpose.
As a psychotherapist, I have always felt that a sense of purpose was its own energy form. While we can’t calculate the number of ATP units like we can with carbohydrates, proteins, and fats, we can’t help but notice it when we see it. I remember once, years ago, running an ultramarathon where one runner came through the aid station each time singing joyously at the top of his lungs. While he was given a few strange looks, he expressed what I suspect many of us felt.
I believe ultra-running is like that. It calls upon our deepest purpose – to face challenges, to persevere beyond our limits, to become alive. In its purest form, ultra-running is an act of self-actualization. We take what was given to us – two legs, a heart, lungs, and a mind – and we discover what we can do with it.
The limiting factor is usually not what we think it is. I have heard many people say, “I can’t possibly run that far”, or, “There is no way I could run for 24 hours,” but the truth is, none of us really knows. A friend of mine, who stills holds the cross country record for his college some 15 years later, used to tell me that you never know where a four minute mile lies. It could be inside someone covered by heavy layers of excess pounds, just waiting to be released. And yet, it may never see the light of day.
For most of us, a true purpose is also hidden under layers of obligations, expectations, assumptions, and fear. I don’t know that most of us will ever find it. But I do know this: we will likely feel more alive when we do.
At Icarus Florida UltraFest we believe in distilling ultrarunning to its purest form – that is, to abandon your limits and find out what you are made of. To date, we have had 9 records broken in events like the 144 hour race, the 72 hour race, the 48 hour race, the 24 hour race and the 12 hour race. We have had athletes representing 23 different nations all connected by the desire to push each other beyond their limits to a greater version of themselves.
First Published in Psych Central
First Published in Psych Central
by Claire Nana, LMFT
Symbolizing high flying ambition, the myth of Icarus warns us against complacency and hubris, and similarly, ultrarunning symbolizes the human drive for empowerment and warns us against heeding our own limitations, self doubt, and fears. To those in the sport, ultrarunning is not only a way to be better, but also to know thyself, and know what better means. To those on the outside of the sport, ultrarunning is the myth that truly heroic things are not achieved by mere mortals, but only by heroes. Icarus Florida UltraFest was organized with the idea that truly heroic things can be achieved by all of us -- if we are willing to put in the time, energy and effort demanded by the task.
During the 2014, 2015, and 2016 editions, athletes represented 23 countries and succeeded to break 9 new records as well as to qualify for the 24H national teams.
2014 Records:
Brad Compton - New American Age Group 144H Record
Jovica Spajic - New Serbian 144H Record
2015 Records:
Colby Wentlandt - New American Age Group 48H Record
Colby Wentlandt - New American Age Group 144H Record
Kimberley Van Delst - New Canadian Female Age Group 72H Record
Kimberley Van Delst - New Canadian Female Age Group 144H Record
Ed Ettinghousen - New American Age Group 144H Record
2016 Records:
Tina Andersen - New Danish Female 144H Record
Tina Andersen - New Scandinavian Female 144H Record