Featured stories from around the world

For those of you planning to tackle races of longer than marathon distance next year, the German Sri Chinmoy Marathon team has published a helpful race calendar of the ultra races organised by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon this year. In Europe, the races include the national 24 hour championships of Moldova and the Ukraine, and the calendar also features our two flagship events in the USA: the 6 and 10 day races in April, and the 3100 Mile Race in August - the world's longest certified road race.

Download calendar (pdf):  English  German

(Picture: Our 24, 12 and 6 hour race that takes place in Belgrade, Serbia in September)

After becoming only the 4th woman to complete the Oceans 7 Challenge - swimming seven of the world's iconic open water swims, including the English Channel and the North Channel - Abhejali Bernardová from our Czech Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team has now been nominated for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year. Abhejali completed her seventh and final swim this year on February 24, 2018, by conquering the Cook Strait between the North and South Island of New Zealand in quite challenging conditions. Voting is open to the public until January 1 2019, and can be accessed here.

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Her nomination reads: Abhejali Bernardová is a peace ultrarunner (6-day runs + 24-hour runs + 100 km runs) turned swimmer who promotes endurance sports and self-transcendence via media appearances and speeches to the public and at school. The member of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team became the 4th woman to complete the Oceans Seven. After achieving the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, she crossed the English Channel (14 hours 37 minutes), Strait of Gibraltar (4 hours 35 minutes), Catalina Channel (9 hours 46 minutes), Tsugaru Channel (11 hours 7 minutes), Molokai Channel (21 hours 52 minutes), North Channel (10 hours 23 minutes), and Cook Strait (13 hours 9 minutes) between the ages of 34 and 41 to become the first person from the Czech Republic - a landlocked country - to swim across 7 iconic channels, all successful on her first attempt. She organized a record number of swimmers in a new popular 6-hour pool swim in the Czech Republic shortly after her last channel swim. She teaches about the importance of a calm mind for success in the open water and on dryland. For being a Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team ambassador who achieved the Oceans Seven, for continuing to serve as a peace runner, race director and an organizer of extreme sports that gives others an opportunity to experience their own challenges under safe conditions, and for lending a helping hand and friendly smile with a passion for long distance swimming as a mentor for people of all ages and abilities, Abhejali Bernardová of the Czech Republic is a worthy nominee for the 2018 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year.

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Other nominees include such distinguished marathon swimmers as Pat Gallant-Charette (67), cold-water swimmer Jaimie Monahan and multiple world champion Ana Marcela Cunha for the women's award, or United Nations Environment Patron of the Oceans Lewis Pugh and trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific stage swimmer Ben Lecomte for the men's award.

Question (from interview on Daily News of Open Water Swimming): During your Oceans Seven channel swims, what point did you feel the absolute worse? How did you overcome this situation?

Abhejali: It was during the Molokai Channel crossing. The swim started at around 5 pm, it got dark by 7 pm, and I started to be really seasick. We arrived just 3 days prior to the swim - it was before my swim period, so I was tired and jet lagged on top of being seasick and depleted. After being seasick for quite a few hours, I asked how far we were. I usually don't do it, or much later, but I felt so exhausted physically - we also had to battle some strong current at the beginning of the swim. I was told we are not yet in the middle. I remember thinking that some miracle will have to happen for me to have enough physical strength to continue for another maybe 10 hours - it turned out to be much more. The team on the boat notified our friends around the world and they all ate on my behalf, sent their good wishes and prayers. Once the sun came out after maybe 12 hours of darkness, I was fine and could start eating. When all seemed back to normal I got badly stung by a jellyfish and then there was another strong current that had us moving only 1 mile per hour, but the worst was past. Read full interview »

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Sri Chinmoy believed that running is beneficial to physical health but also can give an inner spiritual fulfilment. Running teaches us determination, focus and reminds us of our aspiration to go beyond our previous limitations. Running is both physically challenging but, at the same time, gives an inner joy and satisfaction. Many runners attest to the fact that running can take us out of an ordinary consciousness and give a glimpse into a state of mind beyond our usual thoughts and emotions. 

“Running is a symbolic sport in the sense that it reminds us of spiritual seekers continuously running towards the goal; it resembles the seekers running inwardly to achieve the ultimate goal in meditation.”

Sri Chinmoy [1] 

Some of the spiritual aspects of running

Self-transcendence

“Self-transcendence gives us joy in boundless measure. When we transcend ourselves, we do not compete with others. We do not compete with the rest of the world, but at every moment we compete with ourselves. We compete only with our previous achievements. And each time we surpass our previous achievements, we get joy.”

Sri Chinmoy [2]

Self-transcendence is concerned with an attempt to beat our previous achievement and stretch our capacity. This self-transcendence can be measured in a race against the clock, but even if we can't beat our times, we can still strive to make a greater commitment and effort in our training and races. If we are detached from the outer result, we will feel joy from these attempts at self-transcendence. Whilst we may not have the capacity to beat others, we always have the opportunity to pursue our own self-transcendence attempts.

Determination

Running brings forward both our outer and inner determination. Running requires effort, focus and the willingness to challenge our body against the distance and elements. To complete a race requires a fixed mindset and determination to keep going.

Getting to know yourself

“When a runner focuses all his attention on a particular race, he is in a position to free his mind, liberate his mind, from uncomely distractions. Here one-pointed concentration is the pathfinder for a deeper meditative consciousness.”

– Sri Chinmoy [3]

Running takes us out of our comfort zone. It teaches us that we are more capable than we perhaps realise. To a non-runner, completing a marathon may seem an impossible task, but if we train, we realise we are capable of much more than we realise. Whilst running, we get in touch with a different part of ourself, and we learn more about our inner reserves.

Dynamism and inner peace

Question: Can running help get rid of frustration and anger?

Sri Chinmoy: Running is an excellent way to rid oneself of frustration and anger. If you are really angry with someone, go and run. After a mile or so you will see that your anger has gone away, either because you are totally exhausted or because the satisfaction that you gain from physical exertion has replaced your anger. [4]

A great benefit of running is that it shakes away our mental cobwebs. The dynamism of running helps us to get away from the petty concerns and worries of our mind. Dynamism is a powerful tool to bring to the fore more inner peace. When we are static, we become like a stagnant pool, when we move, it is like a clear flowing stream. The Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run combines both running long distances with an endeavour to share peace. Sri Chinmoy felt the dynamism of running across countries was an excellent way to share peace in a meaningful way. Running brings many of our good qualities to the fore.

How to bring spirituality into running

Self-transcendence vs competition

Rather than worrying about whether you can beat your competitors, focus instead on your own performance. Can you transcend your previous efforts? - Can you make the best possible effort given your circumstances? If you focus only on your self-transcendence, you will get joy from running - whatever the outer result. You will see fellow competitors - not as rivals, but fellow runners who can inspire your own efforts.

Meditation

If we meditate before running, we will be conscious of our inner stillness and inner reserves which can help us in the outer running. Meditation teaches us to be one-pointed and bring all our awareness of one aspect. When we run, we can see our running as an extension of our meditation. Just bring all your focus on to the running - the rhythm of breathing. Don't get distracted by thoughts, but just try to be the observer of the running. When the body is running, at top speed, feel at the same time an inner focus and inner equanimity.

"Again, the runner's outer speed has a special kind of poise or stillness at its very heart. An airplane travels very fast, yet inside the plane we feel no movement at all. It is all tranquility, all peace; and this inner tranquility we can bring to our outer life. In fact, the outer life, the outer movement, can be successful only when it comes from the inner poise."

- Sri Chinmoy [5]

Conscious Breathing

To make running a more meditative experience, we can concentrate on our breathing. We should feel our breath brings in not just oxygen but a divine energy. If we visualise we are breathing in cosmic energy and exhaling tiredness, we will gain more inner strength.

The inner value of running

"The main reason is that running reminds us of our inner goal. Whether we consciously run toward the goal or not, our very feeling that there is a goal helps us considerably."

- Sri Chinmoy [6]

If we value running as a spiritual exercise, then it can become something much more than just the outer running. When running, we can feel we are making inner progress and striving to reach our inner goal.

 

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Perspectives on the spirituality of running

Running the world’s longest race – Jayasalini

Jayasalini Abramovskikh talks about the experience of running the Sri Chinmoy 3100 Mile Self-Transcendence Race. In 2014, at her first attempt, Jayasalini became the first Russian woman to finish this grueling race which lasts for 52 consecutive days.

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Running as a pilgrimage

Sanjay Rawal, the director of the feature film "3100 Mile: Run and Become" talks about how he sees running as a spiritual pilgrimage.

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Samunnati on meditation and running

Samunnati Lehonkova is an Olympic marathon runner who took up running at an early age after becoming a disciple of Sri Chinmoy. In this short video, Samunnati talks about how she started meditation and running at the same time, and how she attempts to practise self-transcendence through running.

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3100: Run and Become

A film that explores the spiritual significance of running in different cultures across the world. It includes the Gaolo-San bushmen in Botswana, the legendary Japanese gyoman-san running monks, the Navajo runners in the deserts of Arizona, and the runners of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race in Jamaica, Queens, New York.

Related

• The inner significance of the Olympics
• Article on Self-transcendence

Sources: Quotes are taken from the following books by Sri Chinmoy: [1] from Japan: soul-beauty’s heart-garden, [2] from The oneness of the Eastern heart and the Western mind, part 3, [3] from Run and smile, smile and run, [4] [5] [6] from The outer running and the inner running.

On September 24, 2018, Adriano Passini from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team became the first person to swim from Laje de Santos - an islet known all over Brazil for its marine life - to the coastline, a distance of 25 miles (40 km). Adriano reached his goal at 7pm, after a journey of almost 12 hours.

Located a couple of hours away from São Paolo, Laje de Santos was the first ever marine park created by the state government, and is a favourite haunt of divers as well as people who visit for the local biodiversity. Adriano, who grew up in the nearby city of San Vicente, got the inspiration to do the crossing some years back on a a plane trip from Curitiba to São Paulo, when he saw Laje de Santos from the airplane. The conditions for the crossing are generally quite difficult, and there is only a narrow window to make the crossing before the waves become too rough - in May 2016, Adriano spent 3 weeks waiting for the waves to calm before ultimately having to abandon the attempt. This time, he had to wait until the last possible day before he would have had to return to his day job as an engineer.

Adriano was inspired to start swimming by his meditation teacher, Sri Chinmoy, who loved sports and saw that it was a field in which the practise of meditation could be put to powerful use. In particular, Sri Chinmoy encouraged his students to practise the philosophy of self-transcendence, to experience the liberating feeling of challenging one's percieved limitations. In 2013, Adriano swam the English Channel in a time of 11 hours and 10 minutes. (Members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team have crossed the channel 47 times to date - the second most by any team). He later wrote a book about his experiences.

During the crossing from to Laje de Santos to the city of Santos, Adriano had an experienced team accompanying him in the boat - Ashirvad Zaiantchick, who had previously assisted him in his Channel swim, and Adriano's father, Aurélio Passini Júnior, as well as two local navigators, Cesar Elvin Laso and Marcio Pires Lopes Jacaré from the local ATM diving club, both of whom had much experience in navigating the treacherous waters. The area near Santos lies on one of the busiest shipping lanes in the Americas, and Adriano passed around 50 large ships during his swim. The crew departed from the city of Santos at 5:30 a.m, arriving at Laje de Santos at 7:10 am to begin the swim. During the swim, the conditions were partially cloudy with no wind. The water temperature was around 22ºC, with waves of about 1 metre high throughout the crossing. Upon completion, Adriano remarked "Today a dream has been realised, the impossible has become possible; after a lot of effort, I'm really happy to arrive in the city of Santos and complete my goal."  

 

In the 2018 Berlin marathon, Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge set a new world record of 2:01:39 - slicing an astounding 1 minute 18 seconds from one of athletics' most prestigious records. Two members of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team also ran the race, and shared this unique experience with us.

To put Kipchoge's record in perspective, it is the equivalent to running 400m in 68.8 seconds - 100 times consecutively. Kipchoge's average pace for the record was 4:38.4 per mile, or 14:24.9 per 5K!

The two Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team runners - native Berliner Samalya Schäfer and Sadanand Magee from Ireland - both achieved a sub three-hour marathon, with Sadanand reaching this long-cherished goal for the first time.

Elated with setting a new sub-3 hour personal best (2.58.57), Sadanand related how the race felt extra special because of Kipochoge's record: “It was an incredible day. It was so special to run on the same day as Kipchoge and follow in the footsteps of the elite runners. Sri Chinmoy once commented that runners could help their own marathon by trying to tap into the intensity and speed of the top runners. So, as we ran along the blue line of the marathon course, I tried to focus on the speed and intensity of the best runners who were just ahead.”

“For myself, it has been a difficult build-up in the past few weeks, with a few minor injuries and a busy schedule. After km 32, the race became much tougher and I really had to work very hard to keep it together. When I finally came through the finish, we were over the moon to make it in under sub-three hours. But then, walking onwards, we heard a loudspeaker announce that the world record had been broken by Eliud Kipchoge. Everyone was really happy and celebrating; it made the whole occasion very memorable.”

“Berlin is an incredible marathon. The streets are lined with countless people who are really enthusiastic in offering support to all runners from the fastest to the slowest."

Training for a sub-three hour marathon

Sadanand, who owns the Gandharva Loka music store on Dublin's Georges St, has been running marathons for over a decade, with a previous best of 3:03, but this year he made a renewed effort to finally crack the three-hour barrier. Despite the pressure of moving this year to a bigger music store, he made his running a priority, and stuck to a strict training regime designed by fellow team-mate Abhinabha Tangerman from the Netherlands. During the race, Sadanand was also helped in pacing by Samalya, who a few weeks earlier ran 2.33.47 in winning the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence Marathon in New York. 

Sri Chinmoy was himself a keen runner and took a special interest in the concept of self-transcendence - the goal of man to strive for higher goals and go beyond the previous limits of past generations. In the 1980s and 1990s, Sri Chinmoy predicted that in the near future, someone would realise their capacity to run a sub-two hour marathon.  Speaking after the 1988 New York City Marathon, when Steve Jones ran 2:08:05, Sri Chinmoy said “Somebody has to come from Africa and break the record. Under two hours — I envision it. Somebody will run under two hours.” With Kipchoge getting ever closer, this dream of a sub-two hour marathon could now happen in the near future.

For almost three years, filmmaker Sanjay Rawal has been exploring the significance of running in different cultures across the world, spending time with the Gaolo-San bushmen in Botswana, the legendary Japanese gyoman-san running monks, and Navajo runners in the deserts of Arizona. A large part of his time was spent following the 52-day journey of the 3100 Mile Race, documenting two runners - our record holder and 14-time finisher Asprihanal Aalto from Finland and first-time entrant Shamita Achenbach-König from Austria - as they bravely embark on this modern day running oddyssey.

The result of all that hard work - the compelling 80-minute long documentary 3100: Run and Become - is now being released in theaters across the USA to an extremely enthusiastic reception.

"This film shows how great anyone can become when they transcend their limits." - Tegla Laroupe, women's marathon record holder

Find a theater near you:

• Purchase tickets: Seattle • Denver • Chicago • NYC
• For a full list of cities, and to request a screening in your own city, visit the official film site...

The Sri Chinmoy 3100 Mile Self-Transcendence Race is the world's longest certified footrace. In this - the 22nd edition of the race - ten runners completed a combined total of 28,475 miles around a modest block of concrete paving in Queens, New York, a journey akin to running the entire circumference of the earth, plus an extra 4,000 miles. Yet, behind these impressive statistics is an even more profound inner experience, as the runners seek to discover untapped reserves to overcome the physical and mental challenges of running this 'Everest of ultra-distance racing.'

Outwardly, there is little reward for sacrificing two months out of the year to come to this concrete block in New York, and yet there is an inner pull which attracts runners to keep coming back.

“This race was challenging because of the weather.  In the end, I am so happy and only grateful that I have done it.  You know at the end that it was worth the struggle.  I am just happy that I took the challenge and I could do it.  So at the end, there is always gratitude and gratitude.”

Surasa Mairer, women's winner

The 3100 Mile Race was founded by Sri Chinmoy in 1997, evolving out of the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team's pioneering promotion of multi-day distance events. Sri Chinmoy saw the innate human drive for self-transcendence as a process which could give a real sense of satisfaction.

“12 years ago when I completed my 2nd race here in 2006, he (Sri Chinmoy) was giving an interview to a journalist of a local TV station.  It was four hours before my finish and, as I was running by, I heard Sri Chinmoy saying, 'we can be truly happy only when we constantly transcend ourselves, both inwardly and outwardly.'”

Sopan Tsekov, Bulgaria, fifth-place finisher

After finishing the race on his first two attempts, Sopan returned five more times to the race and was unable to reach the 3100 Mile goal. Yet, the pull of the race is so strong, Sopan returned this year and finally managed to finish with little more than an hour to spare before the 52-day cutoff.

Kobi Oren from Israel is an ultra-running legend with an impressive palmeres. A third of the way into the race, he held a narrow lead over eventual winner Vasu Duzihy, from Russia. Yet as Vasu gained the lead and moved further out of reach, Oren began to experience that this unique race was about more than just winning, and he felt the inner necessity to live this unique opportunity to the full. He ended up finishing second, but the outer disappointment was more than compensated by the inner fulfilment.

"If it is just to run 1,000 miles three times more then it is worth nothing.  So I thought to myself, I want to do something else.  So when I decided to change after I had completed my first 1,000 miles.  Which I did in a record time of 13 days I decided I had to live differently.  Then came the change.”

Kobi Oren

Vasu Duzihy, the quiet-spoken man from St Petersburg, retained his title from 2017, winning the overall race for the third time with his seventh consecutive finish. As he crossed the line, he spoke about the inner meaning of the race.

“Everybody who finishes the race is the winner.  I think the race is a game of the Supreme, and we just play our roles.  It makes no difference if you win or you are second or last.  It is just a game that you need to play your own role...If by running here we are able to inspire others to go to to try new things and go to their limits. To do something in their own life.  To be a better citizen of the world.”

Vasu Duzihy

The second women's finisher was Kaneenika Janakova from Slovakia. She is the women's course record holder, breaking the record in 2017 with a time of 48 days+14:24:10. However, in this year's race, physical difficulties mid-race meant that at one stage she was 40 miles behind the daily average needed to finish the race. For any runner to fall behind the daily minimum of 60 miles is challenging both physically and mentally as it means the runner needs to exceed their previous daily average, despite the increased fatigue as the race progresses. However, like the other runners, she approached this philosophically and saw it as a challenge to overcome.

“What I am observing is that my miles are not what they should be to finish the race.  But just the same I feel that the more the race is happening, the more I want to continue.”

Kaneenika Janakova, after 3 days

Her reward was to finish on the last day of the race, with less than an hour to spare.

Like Oren, Ushika Muckenhumer from Salzburg, Austria also joined the illustrious list of finishers on his very first attempt. He finished in a time of 50 days+07:34:46 after a very consistent race.

To run a marathon is a considerable achievement, but to complete a race like the 3100 Mile Race in 52 days, is beyond anyone's comprehension. Even after 22 years of running the list of finishers is very exclusive - just over 40 names.

William Sichel hails from a tiny island in the Orkney Islands, Scotland with weather and conditions almost the complete opposite to a humid New York summer. In 2014, at 60 years of age, he became the oldest person to finish the race. This year, Sichel finished with a total of 2904 miles but still found time to appreciate the opportunity of this unique race - which brings the runner such a range of emotions and feelings, often all within the same day.

 

“This is all such an unusual experience, in every possible sense.  Both athletically, physically, and mentally.  It is such an unusual thing to do.  There are only a handful of people in the whole world that have ever done this. But those are the experiences that you take with you to the grave.  But you have to do them to get the benefit that they will always give back to you.”

 William Sichel

3100 Mile race 2018 - final results

1. Vasu Duzhiy, 52, St Petersburg Russia                44 days+16:03:53
2. Kobi Oren, 46,  Kiryat Tivon Israel                       46 days+03:24:48
3. Ushika Muckenhumer, 50, Salzburg Austria      50 days+07:34:46
4. Surasa Mairer, 59, Vienna   Austria                    51 days+12:47:37
5. Sopan Tsevtan Tsekov, 37, Sofia Bulgaria         51 days+16:46:38
6. Kaneenika Janakova, 48, Bratislava Slovakia     51 days+17:06:59

• William Sichel, 64, Sanday, Orkney Isles. Scotland   2904.2496  miles
• Smarana Puntigam, 47, Vienna   Austria                   2886.6880  miles
• Ananda-Lahari Zuscin, 43, Kosice   Slovakia             2874.0656  miles
• Yolanda Holder, 60, Corona, CA USA                        1210.6528  miles

At this race, there is no prize money or commercial presence. Occasionally, some outside media do visit the race, but mostly it involves long days of running around a modest and diverse borough of Queens.

Related

• Perfection Journey - Interview with runners, blog by Utpal. All quotes above are taken from Utpal's blog
• 3100 Mile Race photos by Jowan

In 2013, after many years of trying and some very near podium misses, Tejvan Pettinger from the Sri Chinmoy Cycling Team won the national cycling hill-climb title, one of the top races on the UK national cycling calendar. Tejvan began cycling in earnest in 2005, but despite being a promising rider the prospect of a national title seemed very much like a faraway dream. 

In the year before his passing in 2007, Tejvan's Guru (or spiritual teacher), Sri Chinmoy, made quite a few references to Tejvan being 'our cycling champion'. Sri Chinmoy preferred to teach his students through silent meditation, and was not one for frivolous comment; often these seemingly offhand remarks had a way of awakening his students to new possibilities. (For example, also in 2006-7, Sri Chinmoy repeatedly and seemingly offhandely asked another student, Grahak Cunningham, whether he had done our longest race, meaning the 3100 Mile race. Even though up until then he had very little ultrarunning experience, Grahak was inspired to start that race and see what happens - he went on to finish the race on his first attempt, and later won the race in 2012).

As the years went past, Tejvan realised that the goal of a national title was indeed possible and put more and more focus on it, both physically in terms of being in the best shape and having the right equipment and approach, but also inwardly in terms of being receptive to divine Grace - a journey which culminated in everything coming together in 2013 for the ultimate prize.

Even for elite runners, it is by no means guaranteed to finish the 3100 mile race within the 52 day cuttoff on your first attempt. This year  aw two runners do just that - Kobi Oren from Israel crossed the line in 46+ days, becoming the third fastest first-time finisher, and Ushika Muckenhummer from Salzburg, Vienna followed suit on day 51.

Matthias van Baaren has been sending us all kinds of interesting race graphs and statistics for many years now; this year he has compiled a list of first time finishes over the years. As you can see, in the early years the race often went past the official 51-day limit at Sri Chinmoy's discretion, but then in 2010 the limit was strictly enforced at 52 days. In 2011, the race organisers had to shut down the course due to an extended heat wave of over 100 degrees, which extended the deadline to 54 days.

The April/May/June issue of Hinduism Today contained an extremely in-depth article written by Dr. Kusumita Pedersen, Professor Emerita of Religious Studies at St. Francis College. Kusumita has been studying meditation with Sri Chinmoy since 1971 - long before the founding of the Marathon Team - and this article explores the many different ways in which sport can contribute to personal growth and development, and a happier world.

Quite unusually for Indian spiritual teachers, Sri Chinmoy was an avid sportsman who brought the philosophy of self-transcendence to all of his activities. The article talks at length about Sri Chinmoy's youth spent in an ashram in south India which included sports as an integral part of the discipline, the running and weightlifting endeavours he pursued throughout his life, and the different initiatives he founded - the Impossibility-Challenger festival which has featured numerous Guinness World record attempts, the Sri Chinmoy Oneness-Home Peace Run which has carried a burning peace torch to over 140 countries, and of course the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team. In particular, the article shares the inner experiences of some of the runners of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race, which the Marathon Team puts on every year and which is the longest certified road race in the world. The 2018 edition of the run started on June 17, and will continue until August 7.

“I hit the wall many times—and went on. I was convinced I had taken my body to the limits of its endurance, but then I went deeper, into the core of my being where strength, power, poise and silence all exist. If we can tap into this inner source, nothing can stop us moving forward.” - Grahak Cunningham, 4-time finisher and 2012 winner.

• Read the article »
• 3100 Mile race homepage »

On 17 June 2018, ten intrepid runners took to the start line of the world's longest certified road race - the 22nd edition of the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race. Over the next seven weeks, the runners will aim to complete a daily average of 60 miles or more in order to finish the race within the official time limit of 52 days. The runners have to contend with the hot New York summer, a hard concrete course and the many physical and mental challenges of competing in this epic of self-transcendence.

The race was founded by spiritual teacher and ultra-runner pioneer Sri Chinmoy, who saw distance running as a vehicle to enable runners to bring to the fore their physical, mental and spiritual capacities to complete this unique challenge.

“We have to believe in a higher Power.
Only by believing in a higher Power
Can we go beyond and beyond
Our limited, human capacity.”

– Sri Chinmoy [1]

In this year's race, we have the 2017 winner, Vasu Duzhiy from Russia. Also returning to the race is Kaneenika Janakova, from Slovakia who last year broke the women's world record, setting a time of 48 days+14:24:10. Proving that age is no barrier to ultra distance, the race also welcomes William Sichel (64) from Orkney, Scotland, UK. Sichel holds a host of Scottish and UK distance records and completed the race in 2014. Yolanda Holder, 60 years old and the only person to have racewalked the distance, also returns to the race after completing last year at her first attempt in a time of 51days+17:00:13. Surasa Mairer, former 3100 Mile women's record holder and current female world record holder for 1000 km, 700 miles, and 1300 miles is also starting.

View all runner's biographies.

First day's race

How to follow the race

This unique race has developed a following from all around the world. You can follow the race by viewing two race cams, daily results, daily blogs and photos.

• Daily results at 3100 Mile Race
• 3100 Mile home page - with Web Cam and race director's videos.
• Perfection Journey - Daily race blog by Utpal Marshall
• Photos by Jowan

Petra Kasperova from the Czech Republic, the winner of our Sri Chinmoy Six Day Race which took place this year in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in New York, was recently featured in a new inspirational book called Superhuman, by Rowan Hooper. The book looks at people who have achieved notable features of self-transcendence, and tries to answer what motivates them to reach for these goals. Petra finished this year's race with a total of 370 miles, at only her second attempt at running a multi-day event.

During the 6 day race, the runners can be out on the course for many hours at a time, and have to deal with numerous physical issues. Petra credits meditation with giving her the inner strength to overcome these obstacles.

I am certain I would never do so well in running if it wasn't for meditation and spiritual techniques that I have learned and applied during training and racing. The techniques can change from race to race and even during a race. I like to repeat mantras, qualities and prayers - that seems to help keeping my mind calm and focused. I try not to think at all, just to be focused. Repeating qualities like gratitude seem to keep my mind clear and make me more aware of what is going on inside of me and also outside of me.

Running is an integral part of Petra's life - she works in the specialist running shop Run and Become in London, where she advises runners on all manner of running issues. She often trains by running to work and back.

"I find that running has made me stronger, not just physically but on many different levels. It is always when we go outside our comfort zones, outside what we think is possible, when we transcend ourselves in any field of life (not just running), that's the time where we need to dig deep, and when we do, we get glimpses of who we truly are and who we really want to be – for a happy self and a happy world."

Related

• Petra's Victory in the Six-Day Race 2018 at Run and Become
• Six-Day Race at Sri Chinmoy Races
• Superhuman by Rowan Hooper at Amazon

Photos: Utpal Marshall. Perfection Journey

The philosophy behind Sri Chinmoy’s races is one of self-transcendence - getting joy by transcending one’s own capacities. However, he felt that competitive races did have their own value, provided it was done in the proper spirit. Here are some of his writings on the best frame of mind to approach competition:

In competitive sports, our primary aim should be not to surpass others but constantly to surpass ourselves. In the outer life, when we run with our friends, we are seeing who is actually the best. And we cannot properly evaluate our own capacity unless we have some standard of comparison. But we compete not for the sake of defeating others, but in order to bring forward our own capacity. Our best capacity comes forward only when there are other people around us. They inspire us to bring forward our utmost capacity, and we inspire them to bring forward their utmost capacity. This is why we have competitive sports.

The value of competition is that you will try to transcend your capacity. If you lose to somebody after trying your best, it is absolutely immaterial. But if you don’t make progress even here on the physical plane, then you won’t try to make progress on the spiritual plane. At that time you will say, “I get up at 7:00 or 8:00 and then once in a blue moon I meditate. Who is going to see?” If you are sincere about making progress on the spiritual plane, then you can start your sincerity with the physical plane. Then the progress you make will spread to the mind and to the heart. I wish to say that there is nothing wrong with a competitive spirit, provided it is competitive in a good sense. You are competing with yourself. 

While competing with others,
We see that our competition
Is actually with ourselves.

I always say that the goal is not static; the goal is an ever-transcending reality. Satisfaction is our goal, but we see that the goal itself is climbing high, higher, highest and running far, farther, farthest and diving deep, deeper, deepest.

A child's goal is to learn the alphabet. Then his goal becomes kindergarten, primary school, high school and college. And when he completes his university course, if he is sincere, he comes to realise that there is much more, infinitely more, for him to learn. Once a university student was boasting of his achievements. He said to Mother Earth, "I have completed my course. So look at me, look at what I have achieved." But Mother Earth said, "My son, you have just learnt the first letter of the alphabet. Now sit down and learn the rest."

The goal is constantly going high, higher, highest. Whatever we achieve can be today's goal, but it can never be tomorrow's goal. Tomorrow's goal is something infinitely higher, infinitely more illumining and infinitely more fulfilling. Perfection, which is satisfaction, is nothing short of constant self-transcendence. So here I wish to say that we do compete, but we compete with ourselves, with our own achievements, not with others.

References

The above writings were taken from Sri Chinmoy’s books The inner meaning of sport, A Twentieth Century Seeker, The body: humanity's fortress and Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees

Vilas Silverton of the Sri Chinmoy Cycling Team recently completed a 5,474km cycle ride across Australia - as part of the Indian Pacific Wheel Race.

Vilas from Bristol, England started in Perth on 17 March and finished in Sydney nearly four weeks later. The route crossed the wide uninhabited plains of Western Australia before passing through the cities of Adelaide, Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. During the race, Vilas rode mostly unsupported, often sleeping in make-shift shelters and buying his food on the way. For over 3,000 miles Vilas had to contend with heat, traffic, fatigue, long straight sections of headwind, the weight of his equipment, and the occasional temperamental kangaroo.

Vilas got inspired to do the ride after following the race in previous years and seeking a new personal target for self-transcendence in cycling.

In preparing for the race, Vilas attempted a few long audax rides through Great Britain, including a ride from Bristol to Glasgow and back. Over the cold English winter, Vilas completed several weeks of high mileage. However, his preparation was hampered by a knee injury from January to March, which meant little training in the final months. But, after an eventful few weeks, Vilas was able to complete the full distance finishing in Sydney.

Interview with Tejvan Pettinger

Q. What inspired you to do the race?

I followed the race closely last year, and I felt great joy in the heart at the prospect of entering the race.

Q. How did you prepare?

I rode the bike a lot! I built up over the year and completed some periods of high mileage. Though in Jan I injured my knee - so from Jan to Feb - I didn't ride much. And I needed to calm fears about not being able to train and even whether I would even be able to enter. But, after the good training in Dec, I felt I would be OK.

Q. How did you find ride itself?

Riding on the narrow roads was quite challenging. With cars passing close by, I found I was frequently inspired to pray for protection while cycling!

There were many challenges which made the ride more testing. On the first day, I was sick and this continued for much of the first week; as a result, I had to recalibrate my timescale. I just tried to ride as much or little as I could without worrying about time. The main objective was to finish. The fact I was sick meant I didn't physically push too much - it was an effort just to complete what seemed like the minimum.

During the ride, I learnt to be more tolerant and understanding of myself and other people. The various tests highlighted the importance of patience and resilience.

During the ride, I tried to be grateful for the moment and enjoy. When cycling I turned my phone off to avoid being distracted and gain an excuse to stop and break my rhythm.

Q. What did you enjoy about the event?

Meeting people by the side of the road who were following the ride on GPS tracking. For example, when I reached Adelaide, I found people were there to support and offer encouragement - I was grateful to meet people who were handing out food, and on some occasions putting me up for the night. Special thanks to friends in the Sri Chinmoy Centres in Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne.

Q. How did you feel about finishing?

I felt relieved, somewhat elated while also being quite tired. When I finished, I discovered a group of riders who had finished earlier were waiting at the steps of the Sydney Opera House. Very unexpected and beautiful. I was also happy not to be riding anymore!

Q. How do feel a week after the race has finished?

It's a really long way! But it is nice to hear people were inspired by the event.

Related

• Preparation for the Indian Pacific Wheel Race 2018
• My first Audax Ride - by Vilas

Vasu Dhuzhiy, from St Petersburg in Russia, is a two-time winner of the 3100 Mile Race, including a victory in last year's race despite having to spend many months during the previous year recovering from a serious back injury. 

Recently he was invited on a tour of the Ural region, visiting 4 cities - Prem, Omsk, Ekatirinburg and Chelyabinsk and giving many talks to marathoners and running enthusiasts. The tour started auspiciously right from Vasu’s arrival at Prem airport - a new airport terminal was being dedicated that day, and the Governor of Prem was there handing out free suitcases to the first 5 passengers who were arriving that day. When Vasu came out from the luggage area, he was very surprised to find the Governor waiting for him to shake his hand and present him with his free suitcase!

The talks usually began with a slideshow presentation, and then Vasu started talking about his experiences at the race; the inner aspect of the race, about meditation, concentration, positive thinking and so on. Vasu is well known in the Marathon Team for his gracious and humble manner, and this aspect of his talk, along with his frequent humorous anecdotes, was very endearing to the audience. The talk was followed by question and answer sessions which often lasted from hours. During one talk in Omsk, Evgeniy Nepsha, the winner of 24 hour race in the Russian championship, attended and later stayed behind to share many useful things from his experience - he even helped to organise another informal talk in a yurt-shaped Mongolian tea room.

The talks also attracted quite a lot of TV and newspaper coverage in the different cities.

Related

• TV news from Chelyabinsk (starts right away after short Advertisement)
• TV news from Perm (starts from 1:05 min)
• 3100 Mile Race homepage