Hi Everyone,
Just noticed the hits on the Planetultramarathon website and blog for the last month and noticed that they have already exceeded 7400 and the month isnt over with!! More than what I ever expected and could have wished for! But guess I must be doing something right. Here's hoping I can keep providing the information for the public to read and enjoy.
Thanks Everyone.
Regards
Phil Essam
PS - Over the coming months, I will be starting to add Marathon News to the site. I will be concentrating on smaller marathons and the special achievements over 42.195km. Hope you enjoy. I will also be putting news from other endurance sports as well. But the number one focus will remain with running and walking events over 42.195km.
Since going out at midnight and watching the "Westfield Runners" trudge along the Princess Highway at Sale, Victoria, I have been hooked into the sport of "UltraMarathon". For those unaware an ultramarathon is running or walking any distance over 42.195km.
I was never graced with an athletic bone in my body, but since that day in 1988/89 have participated in a few ultras and have a personal best of 121km at the 24hr distance and 78kms at the 12hr distance. I have also written a book about the Westfield Run, several other articles, served on the AURA Committee, helped the Colac race over the last five years and have run a couple of websites and blogs.
"Planet Ultramarathon" is my latest creation. Several years ago I use to log on religously to David Blaikie's website "Ultramarathon World" and like most of the community I was dissapointed when David moved on.
My aim is for this site to help fill the void that David's site left. There are a lot of other good World and National Ultra sites in existance now and I hope that we can all network and keep promoting the sport on the Internet. The relationship between myself and Abichal Watkins of multidays.com is an example of this networking. The growth of ultramarathon running and walking depends largely on how we promote ourselves on the WWW!
What do I want this site to do? It's going to report race results and stories from all around the world. It's going to present previews to races and cover solo runners and walkers. I hope that in time it will contain a comprehensive calender of races around the world and be the main collection of ultra links on the world. In time, I hope to expand the medical and training resources available for the ultra sport. I am also willing to create web pages for ultra runners or ultra races that do not have a presence on the web. Yes, Im aiming high and no doubt it will take time to achieve. But Im looking forward to doing this for the sport I love.
I am always looking for people to help with the site on a permanent basis. It could be helping to add entries into the calender, sourcing articles and results from their country or collecting photos to put on the site. There is plenty that can be done and it would be done as a "TEAM" effort.
If you would like further information or would like to contribute some thing for the site, please email me at pessam@bigpond.net.au . All contributions are welcome.
Regards
Phil Essam
Canberra
Australia