Scott Jurek: Eat and Run

Some say it’s spring, but in Boulder it’s full on winter! Tony Krupicka and Joel Wolpert plow through 18” on Green Mountain.

It’s not everyday you get a chance to run with these guys! One of the highlights from my trip to Ethiopia was chasing Haile Gebrselassie and Yemane Adhane Tsegay on the trails outside of Addis Ababa at 9,000 ft.

Didn’t expect to see my name in the Runner’s World “Greatest Runner of All Time” Tournament, nonetheless I’m in the Top 8 going head to head with Kenenisa Bekele! It’s a huge honor, thank you! Would love to see the legendary Ann Trason in the mix, she gets a vote from me!

Did you make 2013 nutrition resolutions? Or maybe you simply vowed to eat better this year? No matter what nutritional program you follow, stay on course with these tips in my latest Competitor Running column.

A Journey of A Lifetime 

Restoring Sight. Educating Leaders. A Race for the Future.

Post-operative cataract patients celebrate in Mekelle, Ethiopia. Courtesy National Geographic Poland

PICTURE YOURSELF:

• running with world champions Haile Gebrselassie, Gebre Gebremariam and Werknesh Kidane
• touring the Ethiopian countryside with these legendary runners as your personal guides
• helping an eye patient remove their bandages and see for the first time
• exploring ancient trails with Scott Jurek that lead to some of the oldest Christian churches in the world
• participating in a half marathon alongside 100 up and coming Ethiopian runners 
• meeting teachers and children that benefit from sustainable education projects in rural villages
• cooking and camping in a rural village while learning the secrets of Ethiopian cuisine and the local community

Join me February 22, 2013 as I team up with The Himalayan Cataract Project (HCP) and imagine1day on the  ACCELERATE ETHIOPIA trip.  This is a trip of a lifetime that includes my passions of running, food and giving back.  I love when I can combine all of them together and ACCELERATE ETHIOPIA is a magical mix that I am looking forward to sharing with runners of all abilities.

The journey begins in the capital city of Addis Ababa where we will meet up with the legendary Haile Gebrselassiefor a run and a chance to pick his brain.

Haile Gebrselassie competing on the track in Hengelo, the Netherlands. Photo: Wikipedia

Gebre Gebremariam in 2011 NYC Marathon. Photo: Wikipedia

We’ll then make our way to Tigray, “The Cradle of Humanity” and the surrounding Gheralta Mountains.  World champs Gebre Gebremariam and Werknesh Kidane will join us for the rest of trip, giving us an insider’s view of their homeland.

Photo: Peter Doucette

Each day we will get out for fun training runs on local trails and dirt roads.  I’ll make sure Gebre and Werknesh take it easy on us!

The Gheralta Massif proper. Photo courtesy Gabe Rogel & Vertical Ethiopia

Accessing Abune Yemata. Photo by Peter Doucette

We’ll explore the mystical trails in the Gheralta Mountains that lead to sacred sites and ancient underground Christian churches that were hewn out of volcanic rock over 1000 years ago.

With a small group of 15 participants, you’ll have plenty of one on one time with the Ethiopian greats and I’ll be incorporating some running clinics into our daily schedule.

In the middle of our trip we will be participating in a three day eye camp where over 1000 people will be cured of blindness.  Working alongside HCP physicians and volunteers we will be escorting patients and assisting with bandage removal.  My friends who have worked at an eye camp tell me that watching a blind patient open their eyes after surgery is one of the most unforgettable experiences of their life.

A cataract patient is prepared for surgery in Mekelle, Ethiopia. Courtesy National Geographic Poland  

An Ethiopian farmer with his sight restored. Courtesy Toni Cervantes

A mother’s sight restored in Ethiopia after a Himalayan Cataract Project eye camp in Arbaminch. Courtesy Toni Cervantes

We’ll also be camping overnight with one of imagine1day’s partner communities where villagers will teach us how to cook Ethiopia’s famed dishes, take part in a sport competition with children, and party through the wee hours, singing and dancing under the stars with new friends.

A village celebration, drumming and dancing around a bonfire under the stars.  Photo: imagine1day

Preparing injera, Ethiopia’s staple made of the high-protein grain teff.  Photo courtesy Gabe Rogel and Vertical Ethiopia

A bubbling pot of shiro wat, a staple in Ethiopia made of powdered lentils, red onions and the perfect blend of spice.  Photo: imagine1day

While staying in the village participants will meet the some of the children, teachers and parents impacted by imagine1day’s work.  Since 2007, imagine1day’s work has benefitted over 45,000 children and 1,000 teachers, from 89 schools in the Tigray region.

Even in the absence of desks and books, children in Ethiopia are eager to learn.  In 2011, imagine1day built a fully furnished school for these children who were previously sitting on stones in makeshift classrooms in the northern Tigray region.  Photo: imagine1day

imagine1day’s Active Learning teacher training programs transform classrooms into student centred learning environments.  Photo: imagine1day

While visiting the schools we will get out on the field and take part in a sport competition with children.  Photo: imagine1day

The trip finishes with the first ever trail race in The Cradle of Humanity.  We’ll run a spectacular 13.1 mile course in the Gheralta Mountains joined by Gebre, Werknesh, and 100 up and coming Ethiopian runners.

Girls converge at the start line of a 1,500 metre race at an imagine1day interschool sports competition.  Photo: imagine1day

The Gheralta Massif proper—we’ll be running all around this one during our time in Tigray and the race itself starts at a town at its base. Photo courtesy Gabe Rogel and Vertical Ethiopia.

Rounding the corner of a dirt track, a group of boys compete for the title of fastest 3,000 metres amongst 30 of imagine1day’s partner schools.  Photo: imagine1day

Best of all, your participation in this trip will help fund the three day eye camp where The Himalayan Cataract Project will perform over 1000 eye surgeries.  In addition, the money you raise will continue imagine1day’s goal to ensure all Ethiopians have access to quality education funded free of foreign aid by 2030.

For more details and registration visit the ACCELERATE ETHIOPIA homepage.  Looking forward to eating and running through Ethiopia with you!

EAT and RUN debuts at #7 on The New York Times Hardcover NonFiction Bestseller List

In the first week of publication Eat & Run hit #7 on the The New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction List.  It was also #10 on the Combined Print and E-Book Nonfiction List.

The New York Times Sunday Book Review column, Inside the List by Parul Sehgal says:

“THE RUNNER: From wicked women to very virtuous men. Scott Jurek makes his debut on the hardcover nonfiction list this week — his book “Eat and Run,” written with Steve Friedman, comes in at No. 7 — but he’s been prominently featured in two best sellers: Timothy Ferriss’s “4-Hour Body,” which spent 41 weeks on the hardcover advice list, and “Born to Run,” by Christopher McDougall, which is entering its 63rd week on the paperback nonfiction list. Jurek’s memoir about going from “a shy kid with high blood pressure” to an “ultramarathoner” — an elite athlete who competes in foot races longer than 26.2 miles — is interspersed with recipes and running tips. Joan Rivers wouldn’t approve, but Jurek argues that his plant-based diet accounts for his astonishing records: he has won the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run seven straight times, and he recently set a new American record for running the most miles in 24 hours (165.7). PaceGillian Flynn, but that’s scary.”

A morning run in Central Park with Brooks Running teammate and London bound rockstar Desi Davila, what a great way to start National Running Day!  

Next stop is Boston tonight!

Join Christopher McDougall and I on the Harvard campus (Mac steps) at 4:30 pm for a Fun Run, and at the Brattle Theater at 6:00 pm for a presentation and book signing.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Leonard Lopate today at the WNYC studio this afternoon.  Although not a runner himself, he did ask some great questions!  You can listen to the broadcast here:  

http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/2012/jun/04/ultramarathoner-scott-jurek-eating-and-running/

In Publishers Weekly, Amazon’s Senior Editor, Chris Schelup, says “Ultramarathoner Scott Jurek’s newly released Eat & Run, with Steve Friedman, could be the next Born To Run.”  

Amazon also features Eat & Run in their Top 10 Editors’ Picks “Best Books of the the Month.”

Publisher’s Weekly listed Eat & Run in their “What’s Hot?” for this summer.  

I’ve been spending a lot of time chatting with some fun podcast hosts! You can listen to my latest ones with:

• Talk Ultra
• TrailRunner Nation
• Ultrarunner Podcast

They asked great questions, the conversations were lively and I dug deep into other aspects of training, racing and life.