Part two in this series devoted to American wild runners, those runners who have a very special relationship with Nature and Space, in which I take a look at a sacred monster of mountain running: Pablo Vigil.

This article is a partial translation of the interview conducted by Joe Grant and published on his blog. The interview is available in its original version and in its entirety HERE.

Awards

• Four-time continuous winner of Sierre-Zinal from 79 to 82
• Three-time winner of the Cleveland Marathon
• Member of the US World Cross Country Championship Team in 82 and the World Mountain Running Championship Team in 80
• Winner of the Hoggar Super Marathon (100 Miles)

Passion

I came to running with the idea that you have to have passion and you have to have love. Whether it's art or dance or whatever. Running happens to be our passion and our love. I was ready to live like a miser. I was ready to live on peanut butter and oatmeal and live in a double-wide mobile home with 13 other smelly, crazy, fun, horny student/runners like I did in Boulder. So, you're willing to sacrifice everything to pursue your passion. That's what I was, and it was a great time. (Editor's note: He also hung out in the '70s with the Beat Allan Ginsberg, no doubt on his trips to Colorado).

Sacrifices

You have to make sacrifices. Without any sacrifice and of course without having the discipline, the hard work and being willing to learn from your mistakes, it won't happen. You have to have the passion, the love, the drive and the courage to keep going at all costs. You can set up in the mountains in a log cabin with no heating or in a mobile home with a group of crazy runners, but if you're really sincere about your passion, you're ready to do this. It's not a job, it's not an effort, and that's what's great about it. I think there are sometimes a lot of young people who start out thinking about money and fame and that's a lure instead of initiative and passion, and the enthusiasm to work hard and evolve gradually.

Passing the torch

I'm 61 years old, I look back on all those wonderful years at Sierre Zinal, Olympic and world cross competitions and traveling around the world, they were wonderful years. You can't put a price on that. It's one of the best moments of my life, and of course all those friendships you forge with people all over the world. It's not just people from the USA, all of a sudden you're global, you're connected and indirectly you inspire a lot of people by passing the torch. People get sick and tired of hearing me say that, but it's about inspiring the next generation, passing the torch. How do you help someone else? How do you keep the sport alive and take it to the next level?

Travel

What did Mark Twain say? Something like if you want to fight ignorance, start traveling. Travelling is one of the best things in the world. I've learned so many languages, like French as a 3rd language, and I've met so many people - it's priceless. I've met you now! Now it's so inspiring to meet the next wave of the sport and keep passing the torch. It's all about keeping the passion alive. That's what I've learned.

Running for your life

For me running is one of the most spiritual things in the world. It's connected to so many other things like the human spirit, purpose, the meaning of life, self-esteem, making the world a better place. I've had some of my best thoughts running, just being alone in the mountains, being able to listen to the silence and meditate. People who don't have this passion don't understand, it's not necessarily with running, but also painting, gardening, music or whatever.

Music is another incredible one. My first passion was music. I never took lessons, I was self-taught, but it gave me a sense of purpose and an escape. We had a lot of problems as kids like poverty and family problems, so music and later sport were something that gave me a vision and a goal. I struggled with a lot of things, being poor, monolingual, being a minority in the 60s and 70s with all the discrimination, so there was a symbiotic relationship between music and athletics that fed off each other. Having that synergy was very important.