Year: 2018
Type: article
Abstract: Drawing on reflections from a collaborative autoethnography, this article argues that ultramarathon running is defined by a ‘dark’ ecological sensibility [Morton, Timothy. 2007. Ecology without Nature. London: Harvard University Press; Morton, Timothy. 2010. The Ecological Thought. London: Harvard University Press; Morton, Timothy. 2016. Dark Ecology: For a Logic of Future Coexistence. New York: Columbia University Press], characterized by moments of pain, disgust, and the macabre. In contrast to existing accounts, we problematize the notion that runners ‘use’ nature for escape and/or competition, while questioning the aesthetic-causal relationships often evinced within these accounts. With specific reference to the discursive, embodied, spatial and temporal aspects of the sport, we explore the way in which participants begin to appreciate the immense power of nature, while being humbled by the fragile and unstable foundations of human experience. Accordingly this article contributes novel insights into the human-nature complex that seek to move beyond Romantic analyses towards a more sophisticated understanding of the relationships between (nature) sport, people and place.
Source: Annals of Leisure Research
Authors: Jim Cherrington, Jack Black, Nicholas Tiller
Institution: Sheffield Hallam University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2811390689