Day 21…What You Do Inwardly (July 8)
Nirbhasa starts day 21 with 1300 well run miles and now a clear glimpse of the halfway point which is about 4 days away just now. Vasu, who is in first place has about a full day of running between them. Smarana in third is about a day behind. For Nirbhasa it is now most definitely about enjoying the experience as much as he can. Soon enough he will be making one last dash up 84 th ave and crossing the finish line.
“You know day 21 is the same as day 1. You just take each day as it comes and stay in the moment. You know of course if you do 1,000 miles or 1,300 miles it is really nice. It shows that you have made some progress. That somehow the goal is not such a far cry anymore.”
“But really it is not the accumulation of distance it is what you do inwardly here that counts. When you wake up every day that is what you try and work on.”
“I have been making the daily mileage requirement every day. That is quite nice. Obviously it seems my body is adjusted to the race this year. In a way that it wasn’t 2 years ago. So it is nice to not to have to think too much about that. Because if you just go a certain speed. Then not think too much about laps or miles. You are happy. You are on a certain speed. Then you can just keep going.”
“The beauty of being here is that it gives you a forum to really work on your inner life. With a dedication that it might not be possible to achieve in the outer world, unless your really really consciously set aside time.”
“I have been in 24 hour races where you can see people who do it by kind of pushing. You can do it by sticking on headphones and putting on loud music and willing your way to the finish, somehow gritting your way through the pain.”
