Fifty-five famously fierce miles. Five punishing climbs. The merciless clock. Blisters, sweat and tears. The Comrades Marathon may be the world's greatest race, but it's not for sissies.

The world's oldest and largest marathon happens to take place in KwaZulu-Natal. The famous 55 mile ultramarathon alternates between an 'up' run or a 'down' run every year. The race is run over an extremely tough course which can be best described as "The Big Five". The Big Five are uphills on the route of the Comrades Marathon and, on the up run they appear in the following order: Cowies Hill, Field's Hill, Botha's Hill, Inchanga, and finally, Polly Shortts. On the down run there are another set of equally challenging hills, and many runners are surprised that a race described as down still has some exceptionally tough hills to climb, including Inchanga, Alverstone, Bothas Hill and Cowies Hill. The 2009 marathon will be a 'down' run so it will start in Pietermaritzburg and come to a blissful end in Durban.

The 2008 Comrades theme is the definition of self.
Because the Comrades Marathon is not just a race, it is a definition of who you are. It dictates your lifestyle, your eating habits, your self esteem. It tests your body, your endurance, your will power. And every year it defines thousands of runners as they cover a 90 kilometre journey which makes or breaks them. This 90 kilometre journey begins here as we define what the Comrades is...
It begins at the break of a new day.
That one day each year, where a special band of people, that select few, of every gender, every race, every creed, every age, and from every walk of life, and from every corner of the earth, come together.
They are here to begin a journey, that, at its conclusion, no matter how far they have travelled, all, every single one, will have been defined.
Whether, we finish the race or not, it is the fact, that we stood, shoulder to shoulder at the starting line, that makes us winners; true winners of this auspicious occasion.
There is not one, who, when the sun sets on that day, will not stand tall, in amongst the fastest and the slowest, and say with pride, that they took part in that day of days, the race of races ……..The Comrades Marathon
It is not just a race. It’s much more than a race. It is a mountain; it’s a giant chasm, which every single participant will attempt to cross, to summit or to conquer.
It’s a life changing event. One, in which everyone will dig deep into their human reserves, in order to overcome some of the biggest obstacles and challenges that each and everyone will ever face in their lives. And on that day, whether they are running against the clock or running to their own beat, each one is a giant, giants among men.
This is more than merely a seething mass of humanity, who come together on that appointed day. This is fourteen thousand champions, fourteen thousand winners; fourteen thousand heroes.
Each and everyone, there to take part, and to realise each and everyone’s dreams, aspirations, their hopes and their goals. All, to become one with one another.
There are those that will make us laugh, and those that’ll make us cry, and some that’ll make us blush and so many that’ll make us proud.
It is here that we learn the meaning of heroism, the meaning of respect for each other and the true understanding of sacrifice. We discover that to help a fellow athlete or friend, is indeed to help ourselves.
Source: comrades.com