The free (no admission) “Xtreme Running Film Series” hosted by Appalachian Outdoors, continues at 8 p.m. on April 9. You won’t want to miss this film, Running On the Sun. Four-time Emmy-winning director Mel Stuart follows 13 runners in the Badwater 135, who compete less against each other than against their own physical and psychological limitations. Many consider this race “the world’s toughest foot race.” Up to 90 of the world’s toughest athletes—runners, triathletes, adventure racers, and mountaineers—cover 135 miles from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F. Here are a few details: The start is at Badwater, Death Valley, which marks the lowest elevation in North America at 280’ below sea level, the finish is at Mt. Whitney Portal at 8360′. The Badwater course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 13,000’ of cumulative vertical ascent and 4,700’ of cumulative descent. Whitney Portal is the trailhead to the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States. Competitors travel through places and landmarks including Mushroom Rock, Furnace Creek, Salt Creek, Devil’s Cornfield, Devil’s Golf Course, Stovepipe Wells, Keeler and Lone Pine.
Where: Appalachian Outdoors, 123 S. Allen Street, State College. Seating will be set up near the back of the store. Refreshments are provided, or bring your own. Tonight’s film lasts 102 minutes. This series is made possible by the Tussey mOUnTaiNBACK and the Nittany Valley Running Club.
Next on the schedule:
May 14 – The Long Run. A Winning Story about Going the Distance. Can an inexperienced runner be transformed into a champion for the toughest race in the world, the Comrades Marathon? 113 minutes.
June 11 – The Runner. Extreme Ultrarunner David Horton’s 2,700-mile run of the Pacific Crest Trail. 77 minutes.
July 16 – Running Brave. American Sioux Indian Billy Mills overcomes racism and takes gold in the 10,000 meters at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. 90 minutes.