As far as hometown heroes go, Scott Jurek is the kind you
want. He’s humble, he’s genuine, he’s well spoken, but not rehearsed and oh
yeah, he has kicked more ass than any runner who has ever dared to lace up their shoes
and give ultrarunning the old college try.
On Tuesday night the Seattle running community(and beyond) was
treated to an up close and personal look at Jurek as he spent several hours
leading a group run, showing a movie, answering questions and signing his new
book Eat
and Run. Being that Jurek
called Seattle home during his 7 victories at the Western States Endurance Run
from 1999-2005, understandably there were many friends and old running buddies
in the crowd, but more impressive was the mob of runners that gathered on Pine
Street at Fleet Feet Sports to meet and run with the “Jerker”. The scene looked very much like a road race start that had been pushed onto the sidewalk as it was filled with colorful
race t-shirts, every running shoes imaginable, camelbaks and an energy that
was part adrenaline, part curiosity and most definitely Seattle. Passersby, who
craned their necks and stared in curiosity, may have though Eddie Vedder had
donned a pair of Brooks, joined a running club and these were just his
groupies waiting for him.
The run itself was pretty casual as Jurek meandered through
the crowd
of roughly 130 runners to chit chat and connect with as many people as possible. Again, humble and genuine, he wasn’t just zigzagging through the pack, pressing the flesh and moving on to the next person, he was making connections and was very present in the moment. It wouldn't have been Seattle without a little rain, but all in all runners were treated to great experience that allowed us all to scurry home and jot down in our logs “Ran w/ Scott Jurek”. Damn right, I did.
of roughly 130 runners to chit chat and connect with as many people as possible. Again, humble and genuine, he wasn’t just zigzagging through the pack, pressing the flesh and moving on to the next person, he was making connections and was very present in the moment. It wouldn't have been Seattle without a little rain, but all in all runners were treated to great experience that allowed us all to scurry home and jot down in our logs “Ran w/ Scott Jurek”. Damn right, I did.
After the run, the crowd grew and moved into the basement of
the Elliot Bay Book Company to hear Jurek-the author speak about Eat and Run and view a trailer that
gave the audience a better idea about his roots and his journey to
ultrarunning. The journey itself had humble beginnings, moose and rifles,
running as punishment, a questionable mentor named “Dusty”, a major diet u-turn
and lots of running once he discovered his passion for the sport. The lots of
running part, at least in the 11 years he lived in Seattle, was comprised of
running in the city during the week(he noted Discovery Park as his go-to-run)
and tons of running on the East Side in what has become known as Issaquah Alps
during the weekend. Runs with names like Rattlesnake Ridge, Mt. Si, Tiger Mt
and Cougar Mt were sure to have the new trail runners in attendance leaving
with an eagerness for the coming weekend and some time spent googling what
Jurek’s old stomping grounds have to offer.
Though Jurek’s story of grabbing life by the horns while
both literally and figuratively running himself so far from where his life once
stagnated is super, the common theme on the evening seemed to be community and
the people you surround yourself with.
In short, Jurek’s vocabulary contains a lot less I’s and me’s than the
likes of the Ultra Running God/Sideshow/PR Machine Dean Karnazes and a lot more
we’s. In my travels I have found it
pretty rare for the actual speaker or star of an event to shine a brighter
spotlight on others in the audience than on himself, but that is what he did.
Jurek delivered heartfelt thanks to Uli
Stiedl, Brian
Morrison and Glen Tachiyama
for their support and role in his journey. Additionally, he shared running
routes that he and Uli frequented, their bond and the story of how they met
that was delivered in a very endearing and comedic German accent that brought
the very attentive crowd to laughter. In the true spirit of community, Jurek
revealed that he has no running/training secrets any longer and that he passed
them on to Morrison long ago, so we need to see Brian.
Just like Jurek was lured into this thing called
ultrarunning by “Dusty” many years ago in Minnesota, he has now placed before
us a storied career, a memoir and a face to face urging to, as his father would
say, “do things” when the going gets tough and we find ourselves face down on
the ground in the pursuit of what we are passionate about.
-A big thanks is in order for Fleet Feet Sports on Capital Hill, the Elliot Bay Book Company, Brooks Running and Scott Jurek for making the event possible and presenting the running community with such an inspiring evening. For more information about Scott Jurek and his book Eat and Run visit his website. He will be visiting Seattle again on June 22 at the Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon Expo from 12-7pm.
-A big thanks is in order for Fleet Feet Sports on Capital Hill, the Elliot Bay Book Company, Brooks Running and Scott Jurek for making the event possible and presenting the running community with such an inspiring evening. For more information about Scott Jurek and his book Eat and Run visit his website. He will be visiting Seattle again on June 22 at the Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon Expo from 12-7pm.
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