Phil McCarthy breaks the record at the “Three Days at the Fair” Running Festival. by Todd Jennings

T© Phil McCarthy

he rural town of Augusta, New Jersey, is one of the stops in the New Jersey Trail Series event schedule, where each May long-distance races are held at the Sussex County Fairgrounds. The event brings out some of the most

avid ultrarunners in the Northeast, but due to its nature, it could be considered more of a running party than a hypercompetitive event. This speaks to the way the good folks of the New Jersey Trail Series put on their events.

As its name indicates, Three Days at the Fair is . . . well . . . a three-day affair, and it comprises races of six, 12, 24, 48, and 72 hours in duration. With these races being of specified times rather than a specified distance, the

winners are those who can cover the greatest number of miles in the allotted time. This, you might suppose, is a different way of being fast, measuring an athlete’s ability to persevere and to keep moving rather than to be the quickest

to the finish line. Among the entrants in the 48-hour race this year was Phil McCarthy of New York City. Although many of the competitors in the festival are accomplished ▲

Phil McCarthy’s goal entering the “Three Days at the Fair” event was to break the American 48-hour record.

distance runners from the New York/New Jersey area, McCarthy is a special runner and had previously distinguished himself, even among the distinguished. In setting an American record, McCarthy covered 257.34 miles over the twoday race period, beating the previous record of 248 miles, held by John Geesler. To put that into perspective, the feat equates to a pace of just over 11 minutes per mile, which, for most runners, seems pedestrian. But imagine trying to maintain that speed hour after countless hour, amid breaks to eat, change clothing, and even nap. Considering that a casual walk is approximately 20 minutes per mile, McCarthy’s speed for 48 hours is almost herculean.

After the event, I asked him a few questions about training for and running these kinds of races. How long have you been an ultramarathoner? What took you over the threshold from marathoning to doing ultras? I ran my first ultra in 2002 but didn’t really get into it until 2004, when I did five or six ultras that year. I had run a few marathons but realized I probably wasn’t going to get too much faster, and I was curious to see how much farther I could go. I don’t remember when I first heard of ultras, but my first race was the Kurt Steiner 50K (held in conjunction with the Metropolitan 50-Mile race) that the New York Road Runners used to put on in Central Park. You’ve previously established yourself as one of the best 24- and 48-hour runners in the country. With that, was the US record something you were aiming for in this race? Definitely. I’ve been aiming for it ever since I was invited to run my first 48 in Surgeres, France, in 2008. I usually keep my big goals to myself, but I made no secret of this one. And I told that to John Geesler, the record holder since 2003. But John’s a good friend of mine, and he was very supportive, even giving me advice. What goes through your mind when you get into the latter stages of a race like this? A big part of the challenge is to keep your focus, to keep your mind from drifting, especially at night when you haven’t slept for two days. I’d never gone that long without sleeping, so I didn’t know how I’d be able to handle it, but I was able to stay awake and mentally present. But being able do that, the focus was always the same through the whole race—constantly monitoring my own stride for efficiency, trying to keep the same pace, and being sure I eat and drink properly, deciding what I’m going to have the next time around. But I had my big goal of breaking the record, so I was also very focused on counting the laps. I knew how many I needed for the record. I knew how many for each 50K split (John’s record was an even 400K), so having that big prize actually helped a lot in keeping me focused.

© Phil McCarthy

▲ McCarthy completing the race lap that made him the new record holder.

Not being a professional runner, how do you balance your day-to-day life with your training and racing? It’s hard to make the time, but most of the year I don’t do superhigh mileage. And traveling to races is how I take my vacations. Aside from visiting my family in Nebraska, I can’t remember the last time I traveled somewhere without racing. But I’m also single, and I have a lot of respect and admiration for runners with spouses and kids who do amazing things out there. What is your schedule for the remainder of the year? And do you have any grand plans for next year or the years ahead? Memorial Day weekend is the Pioneer Memorial Trek three-day, 100-mile stage race here in New York, which has historical significance and personal meaning for me. I might not be able to run the whole thing, but I plan to take part in some way. [Phil won this event in 14:00:19, an hour and 18 minutes ahead of his nearest competitor.] I’m running the Back on My Feet 24-hour race in Philadelphia in July, the North Coast 24-hour national championship in Cleveland in September, possibly JFK in November. Some other races I’m thinking about. I’m going to try to requalify for the national 24-hour team for next year’s world championship in Poland. There are too many races I want to do; it’s very tough to choose. I’m also thinking of putting on a race myself next year, but I don’t really have any details I can provide at this point. To follow

Phil McCarthy on his long-distance voyages, visit his blog: http://longdistancevoyager. blogspot.com. And to learn more about ultrarunning and races of the 24-hour variety or longer, visit the American Ultrarunning Association’s website: www.americanultra.org.