#74: đđťââď¸ Exploring the Edge: Psychedelics on the Race Track
Endurance runners are using LSD and Psilocybin on their long runs
đŹ In this note:
đđťââď¸ Exploring the Edge: Psychedelics on the Race Track
đ A Winter in New York
âĄď¸ What itâs Like to be a Librarian
đŁď¸ Looking for the read-aloud version of Ninaâs Notes?
đđťââď¸ Exploring the Edge: Psychedelics on the Race Track
In athletics and endurance sports, pushing the limits of human performance often involves innovative training methods, dietary adjustments and daily practice.Â
Although questionable in performance enhancing ability, itâs now not unheard of to run under the influence of psychedelics.
Diplo Running on LSD at the LA Marathon
The conversation around psychedelics in athletics hit the mainstream media when renowned DJ and producer Diplo completed the LA marathon in an impressive time, just shy of 4 hours.
He said that he was untrained and hadnât run more than 11 miles before that point.Â
What made headlines wasnât just his completion of the marathon, but his post on instagram that he had taken LSD prior to the race, with the statement,
âI did what any normal person would do and took LSD.â
Diploâs aim was to surpass Oprah Winfreyâs personal best from the 1994 Marine Corps Marathon, where she completed the race in 4:29.
This bold experiment brought psychedelics into the spotlight as an unconventional, and unconfirmed performance enhancer.
The Burning Man Ultramarathon
The Burning Man Ultramarathon is a grueling 31-mile run, looping around Black Rock City four times.
At least one runner has done the whole thing on LSD.
Sarah Rose Siskind, shared her unique experience with the nonprofit media outlet Psymposia.Â
âI did one training run where I ran 20 miles on LSD, and I found that the main problem was that I ran extraordinarily slowly â I was so distracted by everything. So, I figured it wasnât a performance-enhancing drug, exactly. But, it certainly wasnât increasing my risk profile.â
For Sarah, it wasnât just about pace or completing the Ultramarathon, she was seeking a profound emotional journey.Â
During her run she felt herself deeply connecting with the experiences of others and herself in an unexpectedly moving way.
Michael Versteegâs Psychedelic RunsÂ
Ultramarathoner, Michael Versteeg, has experimented with psilocybin mushrooms during his endurance runs.
He recently won the Cocodona 250, a 250+ mile ultramarathon from Black Canyon City to Flagstaff, Arizona.
He shares his approach on the Big Things Crew podcast. Â
Versteeg microdoses for his long runs, which while not inducing a full psychedelic trip, heightens his sensory experiences, making colors and landscapes appear more vivid.
His method suggests that psychedelics might enhance the mental and emotional resilience required for such extreme endeavors.
New Athletic Performance Supplements
The conversation about psychedelics and athletics doesnât stop at the classic psychedelics, like LSD and Psilocybin.
The emergence of brands like OFFFIELD indicates a growing interest in high-performance sports supplements that incorporate psychoactive compounds.
OFFFIELDâs website states that their high performance sports drink âputs the active in psychoactive.â
Their products aim to activate the endocannabinoid system (ECS), which plays a crucial role in inducing the runnerâs high.
The Endocannabinoid System is the same system activated with cannabinoids like THC, CBD and CBG.
By combining THC, CBD, CBG and various vitamins and minerals, OFFFIELD promises to amplify the benefits of exercise and offer a mind and body high that parallels the effects of endurance running.
The Future of Performance Enhancers
While the physical effects may vary, with some athletes experiencing an enhanced performance and some not, it is clear that psychedelics offer a unique path to explore the limits of both mental and physical performance.
More research is needed as no clinical trials on psychedelics for athletic performance have been done.Â
Right now we only have anecdotal evidence from athletes sharing their experiences.
The intersection of psychedelics and sports will continue to hit headlines, either through experiments to push the physical and mental limits in athletes, or as a way to help athleteâs with sports-related mental health issues.
đ Book of the Week
A Winter in New York by Josie Silver
Rating: â â â ââ
Iris moves to New York, and while walking through a street fair in Little Italy, she recognizes a storefront from one of her motherâs old photos.
The next day, she walks into the gelato shop and meets handsome Gio, who tells her that the shop is in danger of closing because they have lost the secret family recipe for vanilla gelato.
Gio has a sample from the last batch, and when she tastes it, she realizes she has been eating this gelato her whole life.
Her mother taught her how to make gelato and said it was their special secret-recipe.
Iris offers her help to recreate Gioâs family flavor â but is keeping a secret of her own. Had her mother been given this recipe by Gioâs family?
Itâs a quick read with romance and a little family drama.
No major plot twists, just an fun, easy read.
âĄď¸ Check This Out
Libraries are some of the last truly free public spaces.
Anyone is allowed to come in, and stay as long as they like as long as they follow the rules of the library.
However, being a librarian isnât at all what the media or old stories make us think.
Perhaps what you picture in your mindâs eye is a peaceful woman wearing glasses, book in hand, hair in a bun and shushing people for talking.
Turns out that a career as a librarian is nothing of the sort.
In an essay for Longreads, Lisa Bubert, wrote about her life as a librarian in America and how everyday requires her to âmeet humanity face to faceâ.
She says,
âIt wasnât until I started working at the library Iâm at nowâwhere I can have the nonemergency line on speed dial and Narcan in my backpackâthat I felt like I found my place. There is no quiet here, no predictability to the days. There is instead a backdrop of low-grade chaos, funny in its Southern volatility. â
Her story is shocking that as a librarian in Nashville, TN, she has to diffuse crisis situations. Â
There are many unpleasant parts of her job, which are far from the idea of âprotecting knowledgeâ or âgetting children to readâ.Â
There are responsibilities that those of us who are unaware of the realities within public libraries couldnât even think of.
Lisa writes,
âTo be a public servant in America is to contend with a fair amount of trauma. The institutions are collapsing, and public librarians, especially, have a front row seat to the fallout. Every day, the collapse comes to our door and sets up camp. Because when the social safety net fails youâand it will fail youâyou can still come to the library. As a result, we librarians are armored up for a job we didnât expect.â
Lisaâs essay reveals a role of a librarian that is as dynamic and challenging as it is essential to the fabric of public service.
Libraries are far from the serene sanctuaries of popular imagination and nowadays the library and the librarians are the caretakers of their communities, making them indispensable.
Edited by Wright Time Publishing