The thoughts of John Pares

John ran a tremendous race on debut, achieving a GB qualifier in the process - he sent us this letter shortly after the race. Thanks John!

Roger,

Here are my comments. I hope it's not too long.

Wow, what an experience! This was my first 24 hour race and, although I'd trained well and was in the best shape of my life I was still feeling very nervous at the start. As it was, I loved it. The atmosphere was uplifting, the lap counters were fantastic and the other competitors and their helpers were a brilliant bunch. I felt full of energy through the whole event, it really felt as if I was doing something that my body was made for. There was something quite surreal about the weekend and my memory of it is almost dreamlike. I had a clear goal, GB qualification, but managed to really focus on that while staying relaxed and enjoying myself. I was in the "zone" for almost the whole 24 hours and it only started to unravel when I injured my left calf with about one-and-a-half hours to go. Without that I would have gone 3 or 4 miles further. I think I understand the concept of self-transcendence in this context. I achieved something that I couldn't have dreamt of a couple of years ago and yet, in my journey to this point, I managed to create, cherish and nurture a dream and then turn it into reality through self-belief and training and with the support of a lot of good people.

Some particular memories of the weekend? The banter with the lap counters, the support of my wonderful wife, the international flavour to the whole event, the late-night club-goers peering through the railings wondering what was going on, the wind in the trees just before dawn.

People: the teenage boys helping their dad (Pete Rogers?) who was completely zoned out at one point, meeting Steve Pope again and chatting through the first 20 minutes, Pam Storey completing marathon 99, John Keogh passing 100 miles, John Borland turning up on the off-chance he could compete and then running 73 miles at 77 years of age, Sandra Brown walking 200km, Torrill Fonn setting a Norwegian record, meeting Reima Hartikainen, hopefully a friend for life, Rune Akselson the gentleman giant, Tarit Stott - what a great guy, William Sichel who's web-site I'd devoured in advance of the event, Katherine Hay-Heddle smiling all the way. Hugs and kisses at the end.

Food: Eating pasta for tea, stewed apple and custard for supper and porridge and ice-cream for breakfast. At the end of it all I can remember sitting tired but elated in the changing room and noticing that I had chocolate milk all down my front and jam on my shoes.

All that's left is for me to say thank you to Shankara and the organisers, the lap counters (especially mine who were very special) and the other helpers who made this weekend a great success and helped me to realise my dream. Thank you!

John Pares

Race stories - more articles

I remember my first ultra-run. It was with a group of friends who had decided to run from London to Brighton. Our course was about 50 miles. The furthest I had ever run before that was a marathon. It felt like a big jump - almost double the distance. It was a step into the unknown. I had no idea if I would be able to do it or what I would experience.

I was fortunate that the group contained some experienced ultra-runners who had already covered this kind of distance (and much longer) many times. But the other half of the group were newbies, like me. Looking back on it, it was the perfect introduction. It was not a race, it was relaxed. There was no pressure to keep to a particular pace, we had lots of breaks (including a picnic!), it was a beautiful route through some charming villages, and most importantly it was a lot of fun! Of course it did get more and more difficult, but we all pulled together and everyone finished.

I felt a real sense of achievement because I wasn't sure whether I would be able to complete it. Afterwards, travelling back in the car it suddenly hit me. This was a really long way - it was even taking a long time by car on the motorway! We ran that whole way. Wow!

This is the thrill of ultra-running. You can do so much more than you think you can. You can go beyond your limits. We all limit ourselves. We tell ourselves that we can do this and can't do that. We create boundaries for ourselves. But the reality is that we can do far more than we think. My meditation teacher, Sri Chinmoy, takes it one step further: "We are all truly unlimited, if we only dare to try and have faith". So, there are actually no boundaries to what we can do. Just consider that!

This process of going beyond your limits Sri Chinmoy called "self-transcendence". He was, himself, the very embodiment of self-transcendence - endlessly creating. He drew millions of bird drawings, created over 100,000 poems, composed over 23,000 songs, gave 700 peace concerts around the world as well as excelling in weightlifting and many other diverse activities. Self-transcendence in the ultra-running world took the form of multi-day races which over time would increase in length from 6-day to 10-day, 700 miles to 1000 miles and then 1300 miles. Eventually it would culminate in the 3100 mile race - the world's longest running race, which is now held annually.

Self-transcendence is an inspiring goal but we all know in practice it can be very hard. Our muscles become very stiff so it is difficult to move, we get blisters, injuries assail us, our energy levels can crash and our stomach can find it difficult to digest everything we are taking in. However, I came to realise that although these were difficult experiences, they were not the hardest thing to overcome.

After running a marathon in one of my best times, I was talking to an ultra-running friend. He also ran the marathon but was inspired to run in a 47-mile race only 3 days later. To me this seemed crazy. It would normally take me a few weeks to really recover from a fast marathon and I would definitely leave it a few months before running another long race. The idea was unthinkable and so I didn't even consider it.

However, I met a few other people who also wanted to run this race and somehow I got caught up in the inspiration. That tiny mental shift from thinking something is impossible to entertaining it as a possibility allowed things to change... fast! The idea kept gnawing away at me until I felt that I should, in Sri Chinmoy's words, "dare to try" - for the experience if nothing else!

The start of the race felt odd. Normally I would find this part very easy - I would just have to control myself not to run too fast - but this time I was running slowly because I had no choice! I was still very stiff from the marathon. I was laughing because the idea of running 47 miles when I was already struggling in the first few miles felt crazy. But slowly things started to loosen up and I began moving quite well.

However, just after the half way point things started to get difficult. Very difficult. My energy really dipped. Instead of being one of the faster runners on the course I was now one of the slowest. Many people were passing me - even some old, non-runners. I had nothing left, I was finished. My thoughts compounded the problem: of course I couldn't do this; I was never any good at endurance events; what was I thinking? I should just quit the race and spend my time doing other things that I enjoyed more etc... When everything is hurting it is very easy to convince yourself to stop.

After a few miles in this sorry state I bumped into my friend Karteek (an experienced multi-day runner and English Channel swimmer) who was also running the race. I told him all my problems and that I really just wanted to give up. He encouraged me like anything to continue... but I was stuck in my own mental space and didn't want to listen to him.

But then I realised that he was also moving very slowly. I expect he had many more problems of his own, maybe they were worse than mine - but he was in a very cheerful, positive mood and had never countenanced the idea of pulling out. And this was the big difference between us. It was this difference that meant that he would finish the race while I would give up.

So - I decided to continue! It was very difficult but the energy crash did eventually go. Maybe it only lasted for 45 minutes or so but it felt like an eternity. However, it did go and I did finish. It was an important lesson. The difficult times will pass.

My main obstacle to finishing the race was not my physical suffering or even the energy crash. It was my own thoughts. I had let my thoughts run wild and they had convinced me to stop.

Our thoughts are incredibly powerful. They can control and bind us. How many thoughts we have at every moment! Thoughts about the past - regrets and problems, thoughts about what could happen in the future, worries and anxieties. Most of these thoughts are unnecessary and can often affect us in a negative way.

If we can learn to still our minds and focus on the present moment then we can simplify our lives and are able concentrate on what is important. We can harness the power of positive thoughts. This is the art of meditation. Meditation can have a positive influence on our lives and on all our activities - including ultra-running.

A few days later I had my third lesson in ultra-running. An experienced multi-day and 3100-mile runner, Ushika, invited me to join him on a 7-mile run. However, after completing both races my body was depleted and was horrendously stiff. I was struggling to walk around, so I declined his invitation. However, he wasn't giving-up on me that easily! So, I thought I would give it a try...

I have to say he was very patient with me. I was a series of complaints and problems but Ushika always had an answer. My Achilles is hurting so much. "Well, try doing this stretch". I have a sharp pain in my hamstrings. "OK, we will walk for a bit". I am feeling tired. "OK, let's stop for a few moments". Like this, eventually we covered 7 miles and for periods I was jogging fairly comfortably, albeit slowly.

How is that possible? This really blew my mind. When I was running with Ushika I felt like there really were no limits to how far you could run. You just had to find solutions. Again, it was a difference in attitude. I was always focusing on my problems and finding reasons why I should stop, but Ushika was always finding solutions so we could continue. Maybe this was the "faith" part of Sri Chinmoy's aphorism. Ushika had such belief that he would complete the distance that problems were just temporary setbacks and not insurmountable obstacles.

So, these are three things that I have learnt about ultra-running: you can do much more than you think you can; don't let negative thoughts control you and force you stop; when you have a problem, don't give up but look for a solution - there will always be one, you just have to keep trying!

Or, as Sri Chinmoy says: "We are all truly unlimited, if we only dare to try and have faith".

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About the author:

Nirbhasa is originally from Ireland but currently lives in Reykjavik, Iceland. He is an enthusiastic multi-day runner, having completed four times the Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race - the longest race in the world.

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.

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