Seen It: Running On the Sun (2000)

Given the current state of my personal training (which is to say, I'm not doing anything other than resting), I have taken to following the racing of others on-line and in person (sort of). On a personal level, this means taking my son to and from practice and following the successes of some of the folks I teach summer school with. Also, unbeknownst to me until I happened upon it online, the "king of all American Ultras," The Badwater Ultramarathon began yesterday, July 13 [Note: this post was originally published in 2009].

The race website (linked above) provides a variety of resources (Twitter, webcam, etc.) helpful in following the 83 individuals who are attempting to compete the "135 miles (217km) non-stop (run) from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA." This is a very bad-ass run, that only the incredibly fit and mentally ironclad athletes FINISH.

My introduction to the Badwater Ultra came, as things often do nowadays, via a documentary I purchased on a lark from Amazon.com about eight(!) years ago when I first began running (sort-of) seriously again. At that point in my life, I had a goal of running first a 5k, then a 10k and eventually planned to run a 50k, something I recently did for the second time.

Running On The Sun: The Badwater 135 (2000), this film is a documentary about one of the world's most infamous ultra-marathons. The "135" in the title refers to the race's one-hundred and thirty five mile distance! This intriguing, and often difficult (crazy grueling experience) to watch, documentary follows thirteen participants and their support teams as they train and compete in the most grueling ultra-marathon, the Badwater 135, which goes through Death Valley to the peaks of Mount Whitney. If this film is any indication it was as painful to run as one might suspect. The film, by director Mel Stuart, follows male and female athletes who each have taken very different paths to to this race, where finishing IS the accomplishment.

A mailman, a fitness instructor, a member of the Armed Forces, an amputee and others all start the race, while only a few finish. This film, in parts, becomes something of a horror movie: the intrigue is in watching to see how the runner's attempt to avoid (while eventually succumbing) to the film's "protagonist", the course itself. Turns and twists in the story are around every corner. One would imagine that the director had to make many difficult choices while editing the film, given the runners he chose to follow most closely, as they were not always the ones who emerged as finishers.

Those whom you would think at the start have the greatest chance, fall by the wayside, devastated by their failure to finish. But the overall sense of community these runners share triumphs in the end as those who have failed themselves, rally to support the runners who, though dehydrated, blistered, and psychologically battered, make their to the top of the mountain, both literally and figuratively.

Running On the Sun provides both an excellent introduction to the race and an entertaining diversion for those who do not participate in adventure racing, and a must-see for those who currently run, or have in the past, and are seeking to re-ignite their internal flames of motivation. I reckon I'll pop it into the DVD over the next two days, in addition to following the race online.

With visions of my own eventual return to training, dancing, sweating and bleeding in my head...