Among athletes, runners are a unique breed. Their sport—really more of a lifestyle to many—is, in a lot of ways, athleticism boiled down to its essence. There are no balls or sticks, no pads or helmets, no courts, fields or rings; in the end, there is only one person and the earth being shoved back beneath their feet.
More than most sports, running is existential, a never-ending exploration of one’s own limitations as a human being. Always there is the question of more: farther, faster, longer.
I am not a runner myself—I’ve found that the bouncing makes typing difficult—but I am close to a few and have come to appreciate the zen-like state that can result from a good run. These people return from their bike trails and back streets soaked through with sweat and flushed of face, but with a serenity that goes beyond mere “runner’s high.” This Tuesday at 8 p.m., a one-night-only event at Hadley’s Cinemark Theaters shines a light on a unique foot race that embodies some of the best qualities of the sport. (**Please note: as of Monday, Jan. 10, this event no longer appears on Cinemark schedules. Please check with Cinemark for more information.)
Hood to Coast is the title of both the film and the race it documents. Run every year since 1982, the 197-mile relay was founded by runner Bob Foote after he became disenchanted with marathons and other traditional race formats. From a starting point at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, the race snakes through Oregon until it reaches the coast. Runners—in 1982, there were eight teams, though there are now up to a thousand, each of which adopts a “race persona” for the duration of the event—push through the night, with each half of a team covering three legs of the journey.
Running icon Bart Yasso has called Hood to Coast “a must-do in a runner’s life,” but the race has grown beyond that sometimes insular world to include amateurs and thrill-seekers attracted to the carnival atmosphere of the event. And the relay nature of the race, with its focus on teams over individuals, fosters a sense of community that seems to embolden everyday people to join in, whether as a means of working through some personal purgatory or simply as a way to jolt themselves into living a more focused life. The film follows four of the teams from their initial prep through the day of the race, celebrating those who are willing to push their limits.
Following the film, the organizers present a panel discussion about the race that brings Foote and Yasso together with three-time NYC Marathon winner Alberto Salazar and Olympians Mary Decker Slaney and Kenny Moore, among others.
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Also this week: Meet Me at the Movies is an ongoing series presented locally at Northampton’s Academy of Music. After honoring Paul Newman with a retrospective in January of 2010, the series gives the Coen Brothers their shot this month. Beginning Jan. 9 with Raising Arizona, Meet Me at the Movies features four of the filmmaking duo’s works on the hall’s impressive big screen.
Best known of late for their grittier work—though even No Country For Old Men and True Grit contain their own dark comedy—the brothers also have a penchant for a purer kind of absurd humor. That’s the series’ focus: in addition to Raising Arizona (in which an inept couple hilariously botch a kidnapping), coming Sunday installments will bring O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Fargo and The Big Lebowski. Tickets are six dollars, with the fourth movie free if you buy tickets for the first three.
Jack Brown can be reached at cinemadope@gmail.com.
