Ultrarunning

Ultrarunning is the sport of running an ultramarathon, otherwise known as ultra distance, which is any event that involves running and/or walking longer than the traditional marathon length of 26.219 miles (42.195 km). With this said, ultrarunning is more than just long distance running, more than just a sport. Ultrarunning is part of culture in which testing one’s mental and physical limits is seen as necessity and passing the test is often determined by how much one suffers in the process.


The history of ultrarunning goes back to the genus Homo, when physiological traits and an array of features of the body adapted that gave early humans the crucial survival skill of endurance running (Lieberman, 2007). These traits were later passed on to Homo sapien and included the ability to sweat, which allowed early man to run without stopping as opposed to other species that must stop to pant in order to cool down. Before the invention of the first effective projectile weapon, the ability to run without pause made it possible for humans to use persistence hunting to capture their prey. Essentially, humans would run after an animal until that prey literally dropped dead from heat exhaustion.


Beyond persistence hunting, Native American cultures used endurance running as a way to travel and carry messages across long distances (Milroy, 2013). Some examples of this are the 240 mile Iroquois trail that was run in 3 days; the Aztec runners that brought King Montezuma news of Cortez landing over a distance of 260 miles in a relay fashion within 24 hours; and the famous Tarahumara tribe of the canyon lands of Mexico. This tribe still exists in small numbers and has kept long-distance running as a part of its cultural tradition. The Tarahumara, otherwise known as “the running people”, include long-distance running in there games, in their travel, and in their everyday lives.

From the long history of long distance running, a sport has emerged that, not unlike the the other endurance sports, tests one’s limits both mentally and physically. A predominant component of the ultrarunning co-culture is the individual-group dichotomy. Each competitor is racing alone, against his or her self, and against all the other competitors, but the competition doesn’t keep people from being part of a community. Camaraderie is a large part of the endurance sport culture, and it can be seen in the ultrarunning sport. An example of this comradery can be seen with Scott Jurek, one of the greatest ultra runners of all time. He is known for consistently winning ultra running events. When Scott does win, he sits in his sleeping bag at the finish line until every single participant has crossed the finish, clapping for each one as they complete the race (which can often take over 10 hours). This type of sportsmanship and camaraderie can be seen throughout the sport and is an integral part of the endurance sport co-culture.