Rothesay man just had to try a 490-km run through a desert
'Monster' ultra marathon through untamed parts of Arizona is about endurance, not speed
A 304-mile, five-day run under the Sonoran Desert sun may not sound like a good time to everyone, but Brian Demmings of Rothesay couldn't resist.
This spring, Demmings ran the inaugural Arizona Monster 300, an ultra marathon about 490 kilometres long — just to see if he could.
The run was created by Destination Trail, a company with events, according to its website, that "explore some of the most challenging, remote and mind-blowing terrain on the planet."
And the Arizona Monster 300 is certainly one of those.
"I think it's an adventure," said the 44-year-old Demmings, describing why he's taken on this and other runs.
"So much of our life is scheduled and stressful, and you know exactly what you're going to do. But this, you really don't."
The Arizona Monster 300, which begins in Superior, Ariz., and follows a crooked, hilly trail south to Patagonia, Ariz., is not a race but an endurance run, said Demmings, who works in IT.
But even if not about speed throughout, the marathon still has a sharp cut-off time of 170 hours, or just over seven days, for people taking part.
The first three men and women to finish receive a special award on top of the regular finisher's award, according to the runner manual. But the challenge is not to beat the other runners but to push yourself, to "try to go a little bit faster or harder."
On runs like this, Demmings said, he steps back and takes whatever time he needs to rest along the way. Because the Arizona Monster is an ultra marathon, he did not take any overnight sleeps — only breaks and naps.
A break "can be anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes to two or three hours, and that depends on if I want to have a nap at the aid station or if I just want to get more water, which is a problem in the desert, and then just move on."
Along the run, there are 19 aid stations, which have hot food, medical staff and ham radios.
Demmings said that he has gone for 24 hours without a break before, "but it usually ends up being a poor decision in the end … because you're just not rational after a while," He usually stops and rests when he feels the need.
Finding desert-like conditions in N.B.
Demmings was already a longtime runner when he became earnest about the sport in 2016. The next year, he ran in his first official ultra marathon, when Fundy National Park hosted the 50-kilometre Fundy Circuit.
The training for a run like the Arizona Monster is individual and complex, Demmings said, and can include a progression of challenges and goals for distance and climbing.
In New Brunswick, Demmings needed grounds similar to conditions of the Monster — "sandy, rocky, hilly and hot" — so he headed to Bald Peak Trail in Welsford for some of his training.
As training continues — and it can last for many months — slower and stronger runs help the ultra runner get used to as much "time on feet" as possible.
Run broken down into chunks
For the Arizona ultra, Demmings broke the run down into segments to mentally handle the journey as he went.
"If you start thinking about the amount of work that's left to do without parcelling it into chunks or segments, then it can become daunting."
He described trail running as "a story that you're writing yourself as you're moving through the landscape. And it's a beautiful place to be. Everywhere you turn is a beautiful view."
He reached the finish line in 143 hours, just shy of six days. And reaching the finish line always feels great.
"There's always somebody at the finish line," he said. "Somebody with a camera and other people who are finished and they cheer you on and clap you in."
With files from Information Morning Saint John