3100 Miles: The World's Longest Foot Race

The world's longest ultramarathon will begin on August 30 in Jamaica, Queens, New York. It will also end in Jamaica, Queens, New York. It's the annual Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 3100 Mile Race, which will take place every day beginning at 6AM until midnight, for 52 days. The goal is to complete 3100 miles in that time, so each runner needs to complete almost 60 miles each day to stay on track. The distance coupled with insufficient sleep (for those who need the entire 18 hours each day) will be exacerbated by the monotony, as the route is barely over a half-mile long, and must be run over and over and over again.

It takes a special kind of runner to participate in such a grueling event, but plenty of people have done it. This year's runners are nine men and five women, all accomplished ultramarathon runners, most of whom have run this race before, some many times.  

The annual race was founded by Sri Chinmoy, a spiritual leader and athlete who promoted self-transcendence through meditation and peace through athletic competition. The race itself was founded in 1985, and expanded to 3100 miles in 1997. You will be able to follow the progress of the runners each day through the race website. -via Nag on the Lake

(Image credit: John Gillespie)