photo by Emily Vaeth
Running long distances alone, Anthony Balasco loves “experiencing the heat of summer, the coldest winter day, the eyes in the dark, the beauty of dusk and the break of dawn. It is meditative, liberating, restorative, and places the runner closer to whatever higher entity he might believe in.”
Last summer, Balasco completed his first 50-mile race after falling on his face twice due to extreme cramps—once on a gravel road that shredded both his hands and knees—and losing both big toe nails to ill-fitting shoes. The 65-year-old retired father of three and grandfather of one not only finished but won the 60-and-over age group and returned to that same trail this year to attempt the 100-mile event.
When he’s not running, reading, or
babysitting his grandson, Balasco is content with “just a nice meal, some Cabernet, and my wife Alice with me.”
When did you start running?
AB: I started running in 1978 while in the U.S. Army, in the woods of Hemhofen, Germany, while stationed there. [I] was talked into running my first race in 2001, The Lighthouse Half Marathon in Huron, Ohio. That same year I ran my first marathon, The Towpath Marathon.
How did you come to long-distance running?
AB: I was unwittingly introduced to trail running in 2011, [which] opened up a fantastic new world of beautiful locales, unbelievable distances, and heroic feats of endurance. I began to meet some of these super humans and realized that they were human after all, [but] had simply put in the time and effort to build their confidence and physical ability to conquer what would seem impossible to the uninitiated. That is what I have been doing for the past five years, working on building the psychological and physical elements to give me the confidence to take on longer distances and longer, more difficult races.
What are the main differences between marathon running and ultra running?
AB: Ultramarathoning or ultra running is any distance longer than the standard marathon distance of 26.2 miles. The threshold is typically the 50K (31.2 miles), followed by the 50-miler, the 100K (62.2 miles), the 100-miler and above, with some races as far as 1,000 miles over several days. There are also ultra events that are time based, such as 24-hour races where runners cover as many miles as they can manage in that time period.
What are the other ultra-runners like?
AB: Ultra runners come in all shapes, colors, ages and genders. Running is a great equalizer. Once you put on your running shorts, you are no longer what you do in life; you are now a runner. I have run with CEOs, stay-at-home moms and dads, physicians, plumbers, writers, electricians, attorneys, professors, IT professionals, financial advisers, accountants, teachers, sales people, truck drivers, carpet installers, dog groomers, kids in middle school, people in their 70s, and everything in between.
What are some of the differences between marathon runners and ultra runners?
AB: The road runner’s main concern at the start of a marathon is what kind of pace he will be able to sustain to the finish, while the ultra runner’s main concern when starting a long ultra is finishing without dying.
What are some odd things you’ve seen in these races?
AB: Last Halloween, I ran a trail marathon called “Run with Scissors” that started and ended at The Ledges in Virginia Kendall Park. Every runner was given scissors to cut a page of a book placed at the half-way point, as evidence that the runner actually ran the full distance. The real entertainment was the runners dressed [for] Halloween in everything imaginable. It was a blast. Another interesting individual was someone [in] last year’s Burning River Races [who] ran the whole 50 miles covered head to toe by a full-body shark costume—in the heat of August—and survived!
Why do you continue running, even after injuries like those in last year’s race?
AB: The overused bottom line is that we do it because we can. Running is as much a part of our lives as food. It is a necessity, and without it, a runner feels like the quality of his life has been significantly diminished. Running is life!
