Running across India

On January 26, Patrick Farmer, the ultra marathon runner from Australia, set off from Kanyakumari. In about three weeks, he reached Mumbai.

Patrick, popularly known as Pat, is running a distance of 4,600 km in 60 days — right up to Kashmir.

In an effort to build stronger ties between the Australian and Indian government, Pat will be running through 12 states and one Union Territory across India. Pat’s ‘Spirit of India’ run was initiated with a view to encourage tourism in the states and create awareness among Australian travellers. For the last three weeks, he has been starting at as early as 5.30 am and running for about 80 km every day.

Talking about his passion for running, Pat recalled the decisive moment when he had dropped out of school in Australia at the age of 14 and thought of becoming a runner one day. “I was working as a mechanic in a garage and one day I saw a huge fanfare outside my workplace. I went out to see this old man, a 63-year-old, who was planning to run from Sydney to Melbourne, a distance of 1,000 km. I thought to myself, a man at the age of 63 was inspiring an entire nation. That’s where it all began.”

In the years to come, Pat also got the opportunity to enter politics in Australia, where he started his career as a junior minister for science and training.

For his run here, apart from his physical trainers and physiotherapist, Pat is also being accompanied by a television crew which will cover the entire run and prepare a documentary. “This is not about me but about the Spirit of India, and that’s why when I chose my crew with a lot of care,” said Pat. “I didn’t want them to shoot only the beautiful landscapes, but wanted them to shoot the people with whom I would interact everyday.”

“I chose to do this because I wanted people sitting at home to know and understand what’s involved in being on the road and traversing the length of an incredible nation. I figured the best way to do that was to get out there and run so that people can see the road and the landscape of India through my eyes and through my footsteps,” Pat added.

According to the runner, “tenacity” is the word that sums him up. “Nothing worthwhile happens overnight,” he said. “(There was a time) when people weren’t cheering, and dogs were chasing me while I was running for 20 km every day on the Moroubra Beach (Sydney)… When people called me mad, but I kept running anyway. I work hard along with my trainers and physiotherapist, and it’s been a year of hard activity that has prepared me for this feat… However, that’s not much considering athletes work hard for years for a few seconds’ performance.”

Between April 2011 and January 2012, Pat Farmer successfully completed the world’s longest ultra-marathon, a “Pole to Pole Run” from the North Pole to the South Pole, raising AUD 100,000 for Red Cross International.

In India, Pat is raising funds to support girls’ education throughout the country. “In Kerela, I had gone to a school, where I was talking about girls’ education, when a boy stood up and asked me why aren’t we talking about boys’ education,” said Pat. “I thought for a moment and explained to him how mothers are incredible people and every girl will become a mother someday, and they are the first educators of the nation.”