Barefoot running in Auroville

Barefoot running has been gaining popularity slowly but surely in Auroville. In the early days, almost every runner was a barefoot runner because sports shoes were simply not available. Things changed in the 1990’s and barefoot runners became rare. Indeed, for competitive sports, shoes offer a protection against small wounds, allowing you to run faster and further.

Nowadays a small group of barefoot runners is active in Auroville. Some like François Gautier have been running barefoot for decades, since their days at the Ashram Sports Ground, while others like me have recently taken to it. When Barefoot Ted (Ted McDonald) visited Auroville in 2012 to run the Auroville Marathon, he gave a talk and I (like many others) was inspired by his charisma and his message (you can find it on Auroville Radio: http://goo.gl/OXemJP). He is one of the real life characters depicted in the book ‘Born to Run’, the reference for every barefoot runner! His message is simple: running barefoot is good; done wisely, it could actually spare you a few injuries in the long run and it will enhance your running experience because your soles will enjoy the contact with the earth! Other benefits are the strengthening of your foot muscles and soles, and of your calf muscles. It will also avoid heel strike and therefore reduce possible knee injury. Minimalist running includes running barefoot, or using sandals similar to those made by the Tarahumara Indians of the Copper Canyons in Mexico, or minimalist running shoes like 5-finger shoes.

The cycle and foot paths crisscrossing the Auroville forests are a paradise for walking or running barefoot. Their mostly soft sandy surface is ideal for your soles and the tree cover prevents the ground from getting heated. As you practice, you learn how to land lightly and avoid impact with an occasional pebble or thorn, and in the process your sole thickens and isn’t anymore bothered by those.

On a December afternoon, François and I crossed while running in opposite directions. As we greeted each other, the idea came to organise a barefoot run in Auroville to raise funds for buying the lands of Auroville. Frederick, François and I finalised the route for a 10k Barefoot Run which would take the runners through the most beautiful stretches of the Greenbelt and also include a round of the oval circling the Park of Unity. On the early morning of April 17, volunteers marked the route with white chalk. They identified intersections where a volunteer would be stationed to prevent runners taking a wrong turn. The run was open to everyone above 12. It turned out to be one of those light-hearted-happy Auroville events, with volunteers pouring in from all sides, eager to help with registration, aid stations, showing the way, cycling along, etc. With 55 runners for the first edition, it was been a success. Half of the participants came from Chennai, Tirupati, and Pondicherry, and the other half from Auroville and the villages around Auroville.

For the fastest runner (our very own Sukrit from Auroville) who completed the run in 46 minutes, to the last one, who took 1 hour and 40 minutes, it was a very joyful event. Later in the evening I called on one of our young runners who had taken up running barefoot for the first time and got huge blisters! As I was telling her that I felt sorry, she cut me off saying “Nooooooo, it was so much fun!”. During the run, we kept meeting runners enchanted by the beauty of running barefoot through the Auroville forests.

We must thank all those who have helped to buy, protect and plant the earth of Auroville over the past 48 years and turn it into this admirable and unique green wonder. To help protect the integrity of Auroville and its Greenbelt which are under threat from developers and real estate agents, three runners were sponsored on the day of the event, thanks to LFAU (Lands for Auroville Unified). The amount raised was modest (Rs 13,000) but it all helps. We hope that with the next edition of the Auroville Barefoot Run, we will raise the bar so all runners are sponsored for this noble cause. Stay tuned for more Barefoot Runs to “land Auroville”!