When I first heard about the Western States 100 a year ago it immediately gripped my attention. In case I haven't explicitely said this before, The Western States 100 in my dream race.
I found out over the summer that a documentary about the race was being made. I stalked the film company's website for months and pre-ordered a copy as soon as they made the option available. Unfortunately, due to some annoying mess ups thanks to the US Post Office, Christmas came and went and I didn't receive my copy until last week. Totally worth the wait!
The film follows the 2010 race in which four extremely talented ultra runners all went head to head. Hal Koerner, Anton Krupicka, Geoff Roes, and Killian Jornet have each taken home a number of first place finishes. I've read about them before, but seeing them in action is completely different. Killian doesn't run down mountains. He does parkour down them. They are world class athletes who surprisingly, with the exception of Killian, all lead normal lives. They have day jobs. They go to school. And every so often then run 100 miles on the weekend. Sounds good to me!
After introducing each of the guys and giving some background, the film cameras follow them in the days leading up to the race and then track them during the race itself. Sounds like a pretty tough gig for a camera man if you ask me. I coincidentally forgot which of them actually won the race that year, which made watching the film super suspenseful. It's amazing that in a race that long minutes and seconds can still make all the difference.
For me, watching this film wasn't just about watching their journey, but getting a sneak peak at the event itself, since I hope to run the course some day. I cringed as I watched them tear through the first 30 miles in the snow. "What makes me think I could do something like that?" As the film went on, however, and they showed the support of the volunteers and even some of the back-of-the-packers, I began to see my participation as more of a possibility. If you want it bad enough, you can make it happen.
If I wanted to run this race before, I want it now even more. Even Mike, who wasn't interested in watching the film in the first place, had a change of heart. His first words after the credits started to roll were "I want to do this." The film is inspiring and heart breaking. It makes you reflect on your own potential and start to imagine what is really possible in this world.
I found out over the summer that a documentary about the race was being made. I stalked the film company's website for months and pre-ordered a copy as soon as they made the option available. Unfortunately, due to some annoying mess ups thanks to the US Post Office, Christmas came and went and I didn't receive my copy until last week. Totally worth the wait!
The film follows the 2010 race in which four extremely talented ultra runners all went head to head. Hal Koerner, Anton Krupicka, Geoff Roes, and Killian Jornet have each taken home a number of first place finishes. I've read about them before, but seeing them in action is completely different. Killian doesn't run down mountains. He does parkour down them. They are world class athletes who surprisingly, with the exception of Killian, all lead normal lives. They have day jobs. They go to school. And every so often then run 100 miles on the weekend. Sounds good to me!
After introducing each of the guys and giving some background, the film cameras follow them in the days leading up to the race and then track them during the race itself. Sounds like a pretty tough gig for a camera man if you ask me. I coincidentally forgot which of them actually won the race that year, which made watching the film super suspenseful. It's amazing that in a race that long minutes and seconds can still make all the difference.
For me, watching this film wasn't just about watching their journey, but getting a sneak peak at the event itself, since I hope to run the course some day. I cringed as I watched them tear through the first 30 miles in the snow. "What makes me think I could do something like that?" As the film went on, however, and they showed the support of the volunteers and even some of the back-of-the-packers, I began to see my participation as more of a possibility. If you want it bad enough, you can make it happen.
I only wish the film had also followed some of the women leaders. I would love to see what their experiences were like. Maybe next time Journey Film??
Why wait for Journey Film...? I say this sounds like a blogger project for you. Train. Run. Video-blog!
ReplyDeleteGood to hear that you liked it! I've been holding off on spending the money on it, but I guess I ought to just do it!
ReplyDelete