"Each step forward has a sacred meaning of its own"   Sri Chinmoy

Sri Chinmoy Self-Transcendence 2 Mile Race - April 2025 - Jamaica, Queens

In 2024 I had one of my best ever running years, only to see injury and illness stop me in my tracks in the Autumn. I was hoping to kick on from the trip to Turkey (where I raced up to 5k with no hassle) by the time I got to New York, but some kind of calf strain had intervened and made the recovery a bit more challenging. The 2-miler was my only race of a short trip to Jamaica, Queens, so I was crossing my fingers that I'd be able to run at full pace (modest though that is, after so much downtime) and avoid pulling up with any kind of niggle or injury.

It was a chilly but dry morning and I was one of the first out on the road, warming up with slow laps of the 3100 course around Thomas Edison High School. Gradually, others started to join me on the loop and I clocked up a couple of easy miles before meeting up with a decent crowd at the start by Jamaica High. Rupantar read the Race Prayer in his inimitable way and then instinct took over and I went off at a brisk pace with the first dozen or so runners.

I found myself trading places with Ekalabhya, Amur and Jwalanta among others, also Andrea and Nirbhasa as I recall (I'm writing this a fortnight later). As per usual I did well on the hill but often lost ground on the slight downgrade past the park. I was loving the sensation of running flat out, and when the finish finally came - Jwalanta up ahead of me and Ekalabhya just behind - the time called out was 13:31.

Next came a cautious 2 mile cool down, so I'd clocked 6 miles up in total with some pretty good time for my body to adjust to the effort and, thankfully, no injuries. I started to dream about the August marathon and plan my training for that iconic race.

Unfortunately the post-script was that on my first run at home in the UK, just 3 days after the 2-mile race, I pulled up with a calf problem after only 3 miles. Alex the Osteo has diagnosed a small tear in the muscle on the lower medial side - Micro Tear was his phrase (that sounds better to me) and with a bit of massage and rehab I might be back out there soon. For now I'm focussing on the bike and the weather is being kind which makes that a lot easier. As I write this though, I've got yet another nasty chest infection to battle with so Marathon training, the Avon Cycleway, a resumption of 200k Audaxing and even another exploration of Triathlon are all on hold. The thing about constant struggles is that they are constant and a bit of a struggle, so I'll not be giving up. Sooner or later those goals will come into view - just not as soon as I'd like!

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