The following blog entry was submitted by Mark Dorion*
Amalia Dorion, aged 9.5, observed that “the runners all have cut-up shoes, and there are pieces of shoe around the loop. The little girl from New Zealand, Shakti (whose Dad is in the race and whose Mom is one of the race chefs), is very nice. We built fairy houses in the trees.” Time and time again, I am reminded of the energy and enthusiasm of children, and I feel all ultrarunners would do well to try to emulate this spirit and creativity. Sri Chinmoy himself often spoke to runners about the importance of “running with the heart of a child.” There are days I am in a multiday race, or running cross country through the woods,  or just jogging on the 3100 mile course, and I suddenly no longer feel like an old, limping, gray-bearded 51 year old, but am again “a 7 year old boy!” jumping hedges and skipping and singing while running (and i do some of my fastest miles when in that frame of mind too).
Monday afternoon I had an interesting, multicultural 7 mile run from near LaGuardia Airport (where my family was staying) through Flushing Meadows-Corona Park (where some of the 6 and 10 day loop was STILL flooded!) and down through Jamaica to the 3100 mile race site. I heard at least five different languages on the streets, passed through several parks and playgrounds, saw big patches of poison ivy along the roads, stopped to say Hi and use the restroom at the Oneness-Fountain Heart gourmet restaurant, and arrived on the 3100 loop to enthusiastic greetings from runners and race workers alike. I was also enroute to picking up my car, which had driven from out west to NYC by my old friends and well-known ultrarunners Arpan S. DeAngelo, Esq., and Vajra Henderson.
photo by Jowan
One rather dour runner who works at a restaurant near the 3100 mile race course told me that we should be careful “not to bother the runners,” and that he never went near the course, yet to a person the 3100 mile racers told me they were always happy to see a new, smiling face! In fact several of the competitors caught up to me to ask me questions or chat for a while. Dharbhasana Jade Lynn gave me a big smile and loud welcome, after which we had an analytical discussion on the pros and cons of different shoes and different styles of running. He is wearing very light Mizuno shoes, and I suggest he may want slightly heavier/ more supportive shoes to rotate with his 7 ouncers as the days on this concrete collosus of a course mount.
Pranjal Martin Milovnik explained that he had trained hard over the winter, but also tried to put on some weight before the race, and was concerned “maybe I did not gain enough.” While Pranjal is a muscular 6’3”, it is still estimated he will lose 15 pounds (2 stone) or more during the race. He has done several Ironman length triathlons and many multidays. Several spectators/ observers mentioned to me how “all the Slovak and Czech runners are very outgoing and friendly– Pranjal, Petr, Ananda-Lahari and others, who are not running this year.” Poor Petr has lost his voice (something that has happened to me many times in long ultras), and while running strong was stopping for regular ginger teas, cough drops, etc.
photo by Karnayati
One overriding impression I have of the race is how EASY the runners make it look. Most do not have handlers but just casually amble past the aid tables each lap, grabbing a little of this or that. It seems shoe adjustment and foot treatment (massage, new insoles, more cutting and adjusting of shoes, etc.) take up the most time for the athletes. The 1Km loop has a generally unforgiving concrete surface, although I will say that I have run on concrete paths that are much rougher and more sloped and potholed. I do enjoy the length and variety of the little loop, although a few more shade trees on the rugged north side might help. As we run, a young woman arborist plants flowers at the base of many of the big trees.
It is perhaps difficult for current-day US trail ultra specialists to see the appeal of running for weeks on end on a small, rock-hard loop. Oscar-winning director/ actor Roberto Benigni, in one film, opined dramatically that “It is a sad and beautiful life.” I feel this way after hearing US runners go on and on about how “boring” a race like the 3100 must be, how they can’t see any reason to ever consider doing something like this (an aside– most runners would be incapable physically and mentally of surviving a few days in such an event). It is SAD to me that people can have so little imagination, so little acceptance that there are all kinds of events, and many types of runners. YET it is a BEAUTIFUL race in its own way– the subtleties around the neighborhood, the variety of sights and sounds and smells in the course of the day, all this in the middle of the world’s most multicultural city (Queens, NYC).
