100 Miles? More Like 100 Miles of "Power Hiking" (and Other Ultra Running Misconceptions)
A person usually asks, "You ran how far?" The question often brings a tilted head and a furrowed brow. A look follows, which shows that a person tries to match the image of you, sitting at your desk, with the thought of you covering long distances by foot. Then someone makes the comment, "But… isn't that mostly walking?" This is a classic ultra running misconception. Let us discuss it.
It is true that a 100-mile race, or even a 50k, will have parts where the speed looks closer to a fast walk than a sprint. Especially on steep climbs, tough ground, or when tiredness arrives, the best way to move ahead often mixes running and power hiking. But this is not simply walking - it is walking with a purpose. It is walking with resolve - it is walking while your legs ache and your lungs plead for rest. If you tried walking like this for, say, 20 or 30 miles without a break, it would likely tire you as much as if you had run the entire way. No, Karen from accounting, it is not just walking.
Some people think that because it looks simpler than sprinting, it is simpler. Try spending 24 or more hours moving across different types of ground. Try finding your way in the dark, handling water and food, and fighting the inner thoughts that put doubts in your mind. Try doing all of that while you get little sleep and perhaps see things that are not there. It is not just about placing one foot in front of the other - it involves physical and mental endurance, a plan along with pure will. It is not simple. In fact, it is very hard. That is part of the reason for it.
The next time someone says your 100-mile "walk" must have been simple, you can smile politely and describe the fine points of ultra running. You can just nod, accept their well meaning misunderstanding, and know that you have achieved something truly unusual. Because you have. You are an ultra runner. You are a little bit strange. And you are certainly not just walking.
