Wednesday, 20 September, 2006

The Endurance 50

Dean Karnazes is attempting to run 50 marations in 50 consecutive days, in 50 states.  He started on Sunday the 17th.  Today he's in Little Rock, Arkansas.  He calls the event The North Face Endurance 50.  He also maintains a blog, Endurance Is.  This is some seriously impressive craziness.  I've run marathons, and I can tell you first hand that the last thing most runners want to do the day after a marathon is get up and run another one.

In the world of ultramarathoners, Dean Karnazes stands out.  Men's Fitness said he "might just be the fittest man in the world."  He regularly does 100 mile ultramarathons, and once ran 350 miles non-stop:  foregoing sleep for three consecutive days.  He's a mountain biker, surfer, triathlete, and I don't know what all else.  His book Ultramarathon Man is an international best seller.  Most people look at what this guy does and just shake their heads over the insanity of it all.  Not me.  I know what kind of dedication it takes to do what he does.  I'm impressed by anybody who sets a goal and continually works toward it.

I'm also quite impressed by the Endurance 50 web site.  This an an excellent use of Flash, and the site is very well designed, pleasing to the eye, and easy to navigate.  It displays the necessary information in an attractive design, without any extraneous bells and whistles.  It's a pleasant departure from all too many sites that look as if they were designed by people who think, "more is better."