The 2021 Absurdistan Running Series (ARS)

Running Barefoot for Human Survival

The human body is not designed for our lifestyle. Like our ancestors, we’re born to run barefoot to be happy and healthy, boost our immune systems and ensure the survival of our species. And that’s crucial, since prevention is the free, safe and most effective solution to many diseases and pandemics, including obesity and COVID-19.
Moreover, aggressive prevention would not only save yearly tens of millions lives and a lot of money, but also significantly improve our quality of life and humanness, and drastically reduce global warming and the depletion of natural resources. Find out more in the book. Vous en apprendrez davantage dans ce livre.

I call liberation marathons and liberation ultramarathons the 63 GPS documented non-official races I ran between the first two COVID-19 lockdowns in Absurdistan, aka France, in 2020. The races I did afterwards under the same circumstances in Absurdistan make up the Absurdistan Running Series (ARS): Absurdistan Marathons and Absurdistan Half Marathons (any run between 21.1 km and less than 42 km).

Absurdistan Marathon # 17
Marathon # 294
Date: July 22, 2021
My Time: 6:07:48

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 36

Date: July 25, 2021
My Time: 4:09:10

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 35
The Trojan Phallus Half Marathon
Date: July 20, 2021
My Time: 4:56:29

On July 20, 2021, I did a half marathon in the phallus-shaped Downtown of Troyes, in Eastern France. I inadvertently walked 1 km outside the area (compare the official map with my course).

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 34
Date: July 17, 2021
Time: 3:51:48

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 33
Date: July 1, 2021
Distance: 27 km
Time: 3:41:20

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 32
Date: June 30, 2021
Time: 2:45:54

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 31
Date: June 26, 2021
Time: 2:24:23

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 30
Date: June 24, 2021
Distance: 22 km
Time: 2:35:50

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 29
Date: June 21, 2021
Distance: 30 km
My Time: 4:13:15

Absurdistan Marathon # 15
Date: June 17, 2021
Marathon # 292
My Time: 6:13:59

I ran nearly 30 km on the course of the Eco-trail de Paris (80 km), which will hopefully take place in two weeks and become the first major running event held in Absurdistan since the COVID-19 outbreak.

The 2021 Palace of Versailles Marathon (Absurdistan Marathon # 14)
Marathon # 291

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 28
Date: June 1, 2021
My Time: 2:49:56
I ran in the Paris area in Caribbean-like weather (27 °C or 80.6 °F).

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 27
Date: May 29, 2021
My Time: 2:46:09

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 26
Date: May 27, 2021
My Time: 2:45:59

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 25 (Barefoot)
Date: May 25, 2021
Time: 2:54:19

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 24 (Barefoot)
Date: May 23, 2021
Time: 3:05:44

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 23 (Barefoot)
Date: May 18, 2021
Time: 2:55:57

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 22 (Barefoot)
Date: May 15, 2021
Time: 3:06:46

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 21
Date: May 13, 2021
Time: 4:25:32

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 20 (Barefoot)
Date: May 12, 2021
Time: 3:40:53

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 19
Date: May 9, 2021
Time: 3:54:54

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 18
Date: May 7, 2021
Distance: 25 km
Time: 4:53:34

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 17
Date: April 30, 2021
Time: 3:58:03

My Barefoot Marathon # 90
Absurdistan Marathon # 13/My Marathon # 288
Date: March 24, 2021
Time: 4:56:50
The weather in the Paris area was perfect yesterday to run barefoot, like our valiant ancestors. Although while I was running my face was expressing neither fear nor any pain, but quite the opposite, a lot of people asked me the eternal questions barefoot runners have to face in many places around the world. “Don’t your feet hurt? Aren’t you afraid of stepping on broken glass?”...

There were fortunately a lot of pieces of broken glass on a place of the course. So I stepped on them and took a photo to illustrate what I was saying, to no avail. That’s hardly a surprise to me, as it’s one of the symptoms of the ancestral phobia of bare feet that I explain in my book, “Running Barefoot for Human Survival.”

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 16
Date: March 26, 2021
Time: 3:57:01

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 15
Date: March 19, 2021
Time: 3:23:50

My Barefoot Marathon # 89
Absurdistan Marathon # 12/My Marathon # 287
Date: February 24, 2021
Time: 5:15:40

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 14
Date: February 21, 2021
Time: 2:37:39

Absurdistan Marathon # 11
My Marathon # 286
Date: February 16, 2021
Time: 5:11:23

Absurdistan Marathon # 10
My Marathon # 285
Date: February 5, 2021
Time: 5:17:11

Absurdistan Marathon # 9
My Marathon # 284
Date: February 3, 2021
Time: 5:03:38

Absurdistan Marathon # 8
My Marathon # 283
Date: January 31, 2021
Time: 4:37:50

The dreaded third Absurdistan lockdown was called off (or just postponed?) at the last minute. I could therefore run today my 283rd marathon in the rain and mist.

Absurdistan Marathon # 7
My Marathon # 282
Date: January 20, 2021
Time: 5:01:46

Absurdistan Half Marathon # 13
Date: January 16, 2021
Time: 2:41:40

Whereas during lockdowns in Authoritarian Absurdistan, there has never been any limit for those who want to purchase and enjoy the risk factors for chronic diseases, i.e. the COVID-19 comorbidities, runners are subject to a time and distance limit. Unless you are a member of the Government--the Home Secretary was seen breaking the rules he is ruthlessly enforcing on runners—if you exceed one limit once, you are fined 135 euros; if you exceed three times in a month, you are fined 3,750 euros (over 4,500 dollars) and sentenced to six months in jail.

During the hard lockdowns in Authoritarian Absurdistan, retailers who sell toys and runners who venture beyond 1 km from their homes, or who jog over 60 minutes a day, become offenders, whereas there’s no time or distance limit for people who want to purchase alcohol, tobacco, psychotropic drugs, excess of food, etc., hence the aggravation of chronic diseases, i.e. the COVID-19 comorbidities, including overweight, obesity and especially mental illnesses.

State of play in Authoritarian Absurdistan as of December 15, 2020
There’s a new curfew between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.—including on New Year’s Eve—; I did  on December 15 my first Absurdistan Marathon, as we are temporarily free to run, except during the curfew; the ban on organized running events remains in force; we’ve entered the coldest season; the mental and physical health of the citizens keeps worsening, etc. May rationality and liberty prevail in Absurdistan and throughout the world in 2021.