[Cog]

I forgotten about this particular road march from hell.

Our battalion went to the Northern Warfare Training Center in Wainwright, Alaska for a month of training in Arctic environments . Part of this training was a 10 mile trek in snowshoes in deep snow pulling a sled with our gear. Now we were in great shape from doing 5 miles a day run while at Fort Ord, Calif and a 12 mile road march every month. But the use of different muscles and the deep snow made this a true struggle.

The next day or so we were all sore and in pain, even the real jocks among us. Fortunately, there was plenty of beer to handle that particular problem.

[Revi]

The longest walk I ever did in one day was about 45 kilometers up and down mountains to talk to some people about building a bridge in Guatemala. They lived 20 klicks further down from where I was working. I remember feeling really worn out by the time I got back to my place.

It was like walking back in time. The people there got around on horses and lived many miles from the nearest road. They were Rabinal Achi mayan indians.

I used to walk 20 or more kilometers on a regular day, up and down mountains. I was in the Peace Corps. It was a cool job.

[seahorse2]

Dunewalker,

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 's')eahorse2, I think you owe the original poster, as well as the rest of us contributors, an apology. Firstly, you apparently did not read the original post. Secondly for some reason you have a need to denigrate our efforts. Thirdly you have chosen not to participate in the thread by relating your own experience. From your other writings I understand that you are a former army ranger or navy seal or some such. Surely you have some good epics to tell. My impression is that each story related above is of an emotional experience, etched in our memories, no matter how grand or ordinary it might seem to anyone else. We've given it our best shot--now how about yourself

[vision-master]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Revi', 'T')he longest walk I ever did in one day was about 45 kilometers up and down mountains to talk to some people about building a bridge in Guatemala. They lived 20 klicks further down from where I was working. I remember feeling really worn out by the time I got back to my place.

It was like walking back in time. The people there got around on horses and lived many miles from the nearest road. They were Rabinal Achi mayan indians.

I used to walk 20 or more kilometers on a regular day, up and down mountains. I was in the Peace Corps. It was a cool job.

[dunewalker]

seahorse2, since you still apparently haven't read the OP I'll quote part of it here for you:
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('angrybill', 'W')hat's the longest you've ever walked or ran within 24hours?
Why did you do it? (Stories welcomed)
Age at time of walk:
Current age:

I ran in a 1/2 marathon 2 times. First time at age 28, now I'm between 40-50s...

[seahorse2]

There's an old native American saying that one can never know themself until they lose their ego through physical exhaustion. I believe this to be true. When I was younger, I tried different things for the "feather in my cap" so to speak, but I quickly learned, like anyone who tries anything that pushes themselves to the physical limits, that the reward of the challenge is that moment when the ego is gone, and one is forced to endure the frailties of their own character.

The greatest moment of personal freedom is when nothing else matters anymore but the next step. When one no longer cares about what they look like, their weight, their job, the world, the religious or political issue of the day, the color of money, whether they have money, when they no longer care about what others think, or even what they think, when life is reduced to a single moment, just simply taking another step, is the greatest moment of personal freedom. It is the closest to seeing God that man can ever come. When a person comes to that moment, losing their ego, they will want it again and again. It doesn't matter if its a 20 mile march, a 2 mile run, a triathlon. Its different distance and event for everyone.

It is a very personal moment when you can no longer hide from yourself. You can only hope that you like what you find. When you realize how frail you are, you will understand why we long for the loving embrace of others. No one makes it in life alone. To think otherwise is an ego, an illusion of a reality that doesn't exist.

[angrybill]

Thanks to everyone who continues to share. You've opened my imagination to a world of experiences I knew not existed. The distance and age are pure statistics, but your real life stories are where it at, for sure. Please continue to share you stories, and continue to include distance and age(s).

PS: Yes, please stick to the original question as I do ask for the statistical data. "Distance and age…”, the title is only a title and doesn’t need be translated literal but it can be too." I'll put together a simple histogram according to age group and longest traveled within 24 hours. The stories are for personal benefit to us all whom read and get to know; I'm not looking to tackle long distance running or some event per say but I’m sure most of you will agree the life experiences shared are grand. Thanks.

[angrybill]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('seahorse2', 'T')here's an old native American saying that one can never know themself until they lose their ego through physical exhaustion. I believe this to be true. When I was younger, I tried different things for the "feather in my cap" so to speak, but I quickly learned, like anyone who tries anything that pushes themselves to the physical limits, that the reward of the challenge is that moment when the ego is gone, and one is forced to endure the frailties of their own character.

The greatest moment of personal freedom is when nothing else matters anymore but the next step. When one no longer cares about what they look like, their weight, their job, the world, the religious or political issue of the day, the color of money, whether they have money, when they no longer care about what others think, or even what they think, when life is reduced to a single moment, just simply taking another step, is the greatest moment of personal freedom. It is the closest to seeing God that man can ever come. When a person comes to that moment, losing their ego, they will want it again and again. It doesn't matter if its a 20 mile march, a 2 mile run, a triathlon. Its different distance and event for everyone.

It is a very personal moment when you can no longer hide from yourself. You can only hope that you like what you find. When you realize how frail you are, you will understand why we long for the loving embrace of others. No one makes it in life alone. To think otherwise is an ego, an illusion of a reality that doesn't exist.

[PrairieMule]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('seahorse2', 'T')here's an old native American saying that one can never know themself until they lose their ego through physical exhaustion. I believe this to be true. When I was younger, I tried different things for the "feather in my cap" so to speak, but I quickly learned, like anyone who tries anything that pushes themselves to the physical limits, that the reward of the challenge is that moment when the ego is gone, and one is forced to endure the frailties of their own character.

The greatest moment of personal freedom is when nothing else matters anymore but the next step. When one no longer cares about what they look like, their weight, their job, the world, the religious or political issue of the day, the color of money, whether they have money, when they no longer care about what others think, or even what they think, when life is reduced to a single moment, just simply taking another step, is the greatest moment of personal freedom. It is the closest to seeing God that man can ever come. When a person comes to that moment, losing their ego, they will want it again and again. It doesn't matter if its a 20 mile march, a 2 mile run, a triathlon. Its different distance and event for everyone.

It is a very personal moment when you can no longer hide from yourself. You can only hope that you like what you find. When you realize how frail you are, you will understand why we long for the loving embrace of others. No one makes it in life alone. To think otherwise is an ego, an illusion of a reality that doesn't exist.

[jasonraymondson]

The greatest accomplishment one can hope to achieve is to never have to any of that stuff in order to find themselves.

The greatest accomplishment of man is in knowing before the first step takes place, that we will never go as far as we want and further than we ever thought possible.

But, believing that we can touch stars, will eventually leading to our crash back to earth.

[yippleflipple]

I like seahorse's native american proverb story... too bad you cant have that feeling of complete loss of ego all the time

A couple of summers ago my dad and I took a trail up to the 3 lakes at young lakes, yosemite. I cant remember how long it was, must have been like 5 miles. We made it all the way down coming back in one day, but the climb up was tough and we set up camp before reaching the first lake. The climb up was an interesting experience having a big pack on your back... definately slept good that night. We got up to the second lake and set up camp to relax and enjoy the place. We eventually made our way up to the 3rd lake at the top which wasnt very far.. it was a neat place, just to see this little lake on this plateau on the mountain and just blue sky all around. That was my first hiking trip and it was nice to relax and read in a tent the next day or two and experience the lake and nature, in fact, I think humans should live like that every day... I brought a bunch of books but the whole time i was there i was reading Siddhartha by Herman Hesse..really good book... kind of gave me the idea to bring a really attractive Indian woman along with me some day when i go camping

[yippleflipple]

angrybill, I can relate to your story about being in the wild to a certain extent. One time I can remember getting lost in the woods, although I wasnt really lost, I just let myself wander and threw myself into a panic because it was getting late and couldnt find my way back. It is a strange feeling to feel vulnerable like that in nature, even if it is entirely imagined... I have had similair experiences in the ocean... if there's anything I have a natural fear of its ghosts and the ocean.. I can easily throw myself into a panic just by thinking about jellyfish and sharks swimming beneath my feet... the thing is that you never really know if they are down there... it can definately motivate you to swim long distances back to the shore...

I have often had that feeling in society as well but mostly just when i was little... there were many times when i got lost in the food 4 less grocery store which can be quite upsetting... and also, one time during a camping trip with my cousins... i went to the bathroom (it was a bit of a walk from our campsite) and I couldnt remember the way back, everything looked the same... there were people around but i didnt ask for help, I just wandered around for hours until it got dark and my uncle came along to look for me... i was really upset and beat myself up the whole time but didnt let anyone see it

[yippleflipple]

angrybill, I can relate to your story about being in the wild to a certain extent. One time I can remember getting lost in the woods, although I wasnt really lost, I just let myself wander and threw myself into a panic because it was getting late and couldnt find my way back. It is a strange feeling to feel vulnerable like that in nature, even if it is entirely imagined... I have had similair experiences in the ocean... if there's anything I have a natural fear of its ghosts and the ocean.. I can easily throw myself into a panic just by thinking about jellyfish and sharks swimming beneath my feet... the thing is that you never really know if they are down there... it can definately motivate you to swim long distances back to the shore...

I have often had that feeling in society as well but mostly just when i was little... there were many times when i got lost in the food 4 less grocery store which can be quite upsetting... and also, one time during a camping trip with my cousins... i went to the bathroom (it was a bit of a walk from our campsite) and I couldnt remember the way back, everything looked the same... there were people around but i didnt ask for help, I just wandered around for hours until it got dark and my uncle came along to look for me... i was really upset and beat myself up the whole time but didnt let anyone see it

[da23]

When I was 20 a small group of friends and myself tackled Striding Edge on Helvellyn. We took nothing in the way of equipment if anything should go wrong. My mum was also doing this mountain the same day with an organised hiking club.

Well we did it, it was actually raining upwards from both sides of this ridge
[flash width=250 height=250]http://www.stridingedge.net/images/2005/11.%20November/17th%20November%20-%20Striding%20Edge/Striding-Edge--049.jpg[/flash]

One of the guys had a shower cap on! Anyway we made it down the other side (you walk the length of the ridge not over the peak) and couldn't find the car park....we had gone down the wrong side.

Found a house and knocked on the door, our car was apparently 35 miles away by road but we had no money with us for a taxi. The only way back was back over that mountain. Thank god it was a full moon.

It was only when I got home the next day my mum told me they got to the place this photo was taken and the group decided to turn back, so did the marine trainees stood with them.

Puddles never tasted so good since

[angrybill]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('da23', 'W')hen I was 20 a small group of friends and myself tackled Striding Edge on Helvellyn. We took nothing in the way of equipment if anything should go wrong. My mum was also doing this mountain the same day with an organised hiking club.

Well we did it, it was actually raining upwards from both sides of this ridge
[flash width=250 height=250]http://www.stridingedge.net/images/2005/11.%20November/17th%20November%20-%20Striding%20Edge/Striding-Edge--049.jpg[/flash]

One of the guys had a shower cap on! Anyway we made it down the other side (you walk the length of the ridge not over the peak) and couldn't find the car park....we had gone down the wrong side.

Found a house and knocked on the door, our car was apparently 35 miles away by road but we had no money with us for a taxi. The only way back was back over that mountain. Thank god it was a full moon.

It was only when I got home the next day my mum told me they got to the place this photo was taken and the group decided to turn back, so did the marine trainees stood with them.

Puddles never tasted so good since

[da23]

Total distance was roughly only 20 miles both ways, it just seemed longer due to the terrain.

[angrybill]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('angrybill', 'W')hat's the longest you've ever walked or ran within 24hours?
Why did you do it? (Stories welcomed)
Age at time of walk:
Current age:

I ran in a 1/2 marathon 2 times. First time at age 28, now I'm between 40-50s (no need for exact age). That's a rather boring story, but others I've spoken to in person have very interesting stories like hiking the Appalachian or Rocky Mountains, for fund raisers, and my Japanese friend who walk 20 hours straight (30minute breaks every 2 hours) and next day turned around and came back. It was mandated by the Japanese government employment office and they use to do as a group. That practice has stopped since injuries were frequent.

[yippleflipple]

I ran a 1/2 marathon not too long ago... still feeling sore and it'll take me awhile before I fully recover... feels good to be done with it, but also feels like I accomplished something.
I'm not really sure why I did it, I could say a bunch of things but who knows the real reason. I suppose what got me motivated was that I was being fat and lazy and feeling guilty about it. I can also say it was the right thing to do because it was for charity. And also, a part of me probably wanted to express myself and to learn more about myself. Nietzsche said he doubts such pain improves us, but he knows it deepens us... somethin like that... and probably a part of me for some kind of power trip. But mostly, this song says it best: http://home.comcast.net/~ryderiv/Seagull.mp3

Yes, running is serious business. Hopefully, I got something good out of it. That was when I was in my very late teen years and I will officially start my 20s pretty soon.

[Quinny]

16.2 miles home from Old Trafford to Rossendale after missing last bus. 14 yrs old and knackered when I got home, not a pleasant experience along town roads.

Funniest one when I was about twelve years old doing my Scout Standard from Arnside to Silverdale along coastal path. We got half way and thought we'd take a 'short cut' across the bay which had a nice 'flat' seagrass surface.

The 'flat' face was cut by lots of drainage channels with very slippery muddy sides and small rivers in bottom of them (some of the channels were 'jumpable' some were 30' across and 10 ft deep.)

It took us about 6 hours to do about 8 miles and we were unrecognisable being completely covered in Mud which dried to a thick cake all over us. I could hardly lift my boots they were so heavy. As we were camping with no hot water it was quite difficult cleaning up after ourselves. It was also one of the longest continual laughs I've ever had as from the first slip in the mud we didn't stop laughing.

[angrybill]

Well, I just finished up a nice hike. 7.5 miles in 3 hrs.