Kaiwan's Running Blog: 2010

26 miles? Huh easy breezy man, c'mon.

Kidding!!
Yeah, you bet I'm kidding - not about the doing it, about the "easy" part.
Yes, actually did a full marathon - the SCMM (Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon) -
on Sun 17 Jan 2010!

When I reached Mumbai on Sat 16 Jan, at about 1pm, I was taken aback by the heat. It was really hot! As though I (and am sure others running their first) didn't have enough doubts and those small lurking extremely rational fears inside that say "look, this is crazy..you can't really be expected to last this distance"...; the weather Gods decide to add to the fun.

Sherry (Bharda) was kind enough to pick me up at the airport -- probably had more to do with the fact that her parents (and Bailey) landed up the same day, same time (ok kidding again Sherry).

Met Arvind Bharati at the expo where we picked up our running bib and goodie bag.. Arvind (A2), is the on-the-ground guy for RFL and like virtually every runner in the group, is an extremely helpful and great guy..
I (and in fact several other runners from B'lore) stayed the night at a small decent-enough hotel - Landmark, next to (behind) VT - it's generally known as "Railways Hotel".

Well, up the next morning at about 5.15am. My new 'Race Ready' shorts' pockets quickly filled up: credit card/cash in one, small 'Volini' balm in another, back mesh pockets held a total of 5 gel packs (thanks Mum, Silloo!), mobile phone. Felt quite heavy.

Met with the other runners in the lobby; waiting for Ramesh...finally left only at about 6.20am. Quickly walked down to Azad Maidan (the start area), but of course, it can't go that smoothly right... we found we had to ask directions and take a round-about route (including going down the steps and across the VT/CST station to the other side).

So..we were at the Marathon holding area / start at just about 6.40am. Obviously with the large crowds, I really couldn't see much ahead and just followed along with the crowd moving up to the start. Some gal was shouting something over the sound system...at least I gathered we were about to start and then we did! Exactly on schedule: 0645; hey, not bad! Excited, smiles all around, a large number of people on the sidelines cheering us on. Wow, the Mumbai Marathon's living up to it's name! Reminded myself of my 'race strategy' -- yeah, sure, just finish the damn thing. No, seriously, go out slow, really slow...so i mostly just jogged slow/walked fast that first km..

Of course, when I switched on my trusty Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS watch (at the last minute, too late!), it couldn't lock onto the GPS satellites immediately (this happens if you move a long distance from where you used it last). So, it took more than 5 minutes before i could press Start, and we'd already covered about 600m. So, i thought to myself, when this guy reads 41.6 km you've already covered the 42.2 ! (For you skeptics out there :-) here's the wikipedia entry on the full marathon).

The SCMM 2010 Route Map

Soon hooked up with Ramesh (another RFLer) who had a similar race plan-- go slow now. So yeah, we did, taking photos of the Air India building (Darius, remember how we played there on the escalator as kids!), the Oberoi, etc on Marine Drive, enjoying the cool morning air and thinking 'hey this isn't half bad'.

Before starting (in B'lore itself), I agonized over whether to take my phone on the run or not. If I do, I'll have to carry it in my hand (it bounces too much in the mesh pocket and the front pockets are too small). Finally made a compromise- I carried along my old Motorola Rokr phone and not my (kinda new) Android one; really, the main reason was that my Rokr camera was working and my newer phone's cam was on the blink! Good thing, really enjoy taking some photos on runs.
So, at about 7.40am guess what- I get a call, form none other than my Sheroy!! Was really great to speak with him now, as always.

Soon after, on Pedder Road, caught up with Manjula, another RFLer. Actually, both Ramesh and Manjula are primarily cyclists- who also run marathons. Man! Just a month back, Manjula had completed the really demanding 900km-in-8-days TFN (Tour of Nilgiris) endurance bike race.

The thing about running the Mumbai Marathon- which I heard about and now saw first-hand - the people come out and watch, cheer you on and are really helpful! On Pedder Road, I saw at least 3 people handing out biscuits, snacks, glucose and fruit to any runner who'd like some! In Bangalore we're lucky if we don't get run down..well, it'll happen (the good stuff :).

The elite runners (which included the world's top marathoners --big purse, after all), started at 7.45am, an hour after us. When Manjula and I were at about the 8km mark, just starting on the Worli seaface road and next to Haji Ali, a bus comes up behind us. Was puzzled, until we saw it's a bus for the press. Then, at a pace I can hardly believe - correction- cannot believe - a troupe of about 10 tightly packed Kenyan athletes 'swish' past us! Okay, so the press weren't there for us huh ;-)

Man, it was just awesome to see these guys go. Then an Air Force helicopter carrying a TV crew zooms in low on our left over the sea, following the runners. Wow. Quite a show.

Slowly progressed up North, past the Worli Diary, Shivaji Park, Mahim (see map).. I think it's around here that we hit the halfway point (21.05km). There was no marker, nothing to inform us that we're halfway done (my gps watch did). As of now, I was right on schedule - 3 hours, 9.45am, halfway. So, the plan was to go easy and then, if feeling good, step up the pace a bit to finish in under 6 hours. Ha!

By now of course, I had spoken on the phone with Dilsh, Sheroy and Nads a couple of times..that was nice; it definitely helps. Sherry called; said she'd meet me at the start of the Worli-Bandra Sealink. Great. Told her I'm coming along slowly..Just before the Sealink, there was an aid station that most of us took advantage of -- they really were helpful; I saw guys lying down, seated, most putting on a brave face while a volunteer massaged their sore muscles/applied sprays, ointments and what-not. I got my legs sprayed (the balm stuff); they literally forced me to drink some electrolyte-laced water "your muscles will seize if you don't. Drink it!". Yes, Sir.

Met Sherry within 2 minutes of the aid station at the bridge entry point (it's about the 25km mark here). That was nice. Took a couple of photos there. Sherry goes "how can you stop running yaar? C'mon go now". Interspersed with some choice expletives, I explained that I could, indeed, just walk and talk, even stop a bit and not just keep running, you know! :-)

With Sherry at the beginning of the Sealink

On a more serious note, it's an accepted fact that running a marathon is a fairly difficult undertaking; hence, many, most perhaps, runners do it for a reason: charity, a cause, in memory of someone they hold dear, etc. Giving this some thought, a few days back, I suddenly knew why I'd do this: in memory of my dear friend Burjor Bharda. So, here at the Sealink, I told Sherry. Now of course, I had to complete it!

Photo: Manjula, me and Ramesh.

Feeling good now, we're (Ramesh, Manjula and myself reunited -- see photo) smiling and heading down the sealink. Well, the high doesn't last all that long. It's almost 11am and burning hot. The sun blasts down on us, there's no cover. Worse, there's no water stations! Luckily am carrying the red water bottle from the goodie bag. We took some photos, walked, jogged and tried to keep our spirits up. But that bridge is one long mother man. And hot. At the very end, Ramesh and I find some volunteers - it's about 29k-30km now. We collapse in front of them, lapping up their TLC! Water in two places- mouth and top-of-head (but not much, as they don't have all that much now and need to keep some for others- we understand). Ice packs on top of my thighs, under Ramesh's calves. Yup, we're not looking all that pretty now. By the way, on the bridge I see workers clearing away the marathon-signage, ad hoardings, etc. Hm. Then check this out: a big bus comes trundling along behind me; I can see some runners sitting inside; the guy at the door says 'do you want to get in?' And give up? No no go! I say, sounding braver than I feel, actually. He throws me a water bottle from the moving bus and I really accelerate to catch it! The things we'd do for cold water.

View from the Sealink bridge

Ice aplenty, where's the scotch??

The three of us get over the darn bridge and and are back on the Worli seaface. Somehow, it's not as much fun now. We're happy in the sense that, we're now about 32km down, and essentially know we're going to finish! So we lie to each other saying Yeah, now it's all downhill man. Yeah, right. We calculate that at our current walking pace (everything hurts too much now to keep running), we'll take, Manjula says nonchalantly, "about another 2 hours". That hit me...already out here nearly five hours, I don't want to be out here in the heat another 2 hours damnit.

Soon after, at around 12pm, the brother, Darius, messages me with some inane encouraging statement :-). I call him right away saying "hell, speak to me bro; I need your voice not a damn message!". "Oh, i thought you're running and can't speak". Hmm, people really think we (meaning guys like me) actually run all the time for 26 miles??? Anyway. I break away from Ramesh and
Manjula while speaking with Darius ("go for it bro!")... they've stopped at a water station. Feel a bit guilty but I really want to try and push it now and finish- trust you two understand!

Finally, I pass Haji Ali and am back at Heera Panna, Pedder Road. I clearly remember Burjor showing me around here when I visited, oh-so-many years back (1988 or 1989). Very fond memories (an aside: remember my suitcase being taken off the train at Dadar; I panicked ran out onto the platform, retrieved it, from the guy who kept pleading his innocence (he did not run away with it while he had it, after all)!).

Walked, bone weary, up the Kemp Fort flyover. A guy from Bangalore had a small aid station running somewhere after that...was really thankful for it..tanked up on ice water, and yes, poured it on my head as well, filled up my bottle. He offered me a sandwich, I said no, am not really feeling like eating..did not even feel like having the gel at this point. Suraj called me (in fact, twice) somewhere around here; he was in Mumbai & thought he'd catch me at the finish by now...but nope, I'm slower than that!

The Mumbai Marathon this year, as usual, had many plusses as I've mentioned already. On the negative side, it felt like it's really being organized for the elite athletes, with the "good" runners also being taken care of. Slow-coaches like myself, you're on your own buddy, after around 5 hours. No sign-age, we almost went the wrong way (me and a few others). To be fair, there were a few aid stations still operating but not enough and no med aid station at all now. Also, taxi drivers regularly tried to run us off the road by now.

Back on Marine Drive, and am in no mood to enjoy the scenery. All I think of is how hot it is now and when will the finish line show up! (it's now around 12.30pm and the temperature is about 34-35 degrees Celsius). Chatted with Amar(?), a sardaji from Rajasthan; he's in engineering college there. We jogged and walked, until I told him to just go ahead. At first he said No problem, but then the slow-coach got to him and off he went.

My feet have been burning for several hours now (yup a fairly big blister had formed on each foot).
At the expo, I picked up a few bookmarks from the RFL stall- it's really nice, with a Marathon Checklist on one face! Taking it's advice, I took along my hanky. Thank God!!
Now I would slop water on it and wipe my face...relief for a few seconds at least.

Hitting around the 37km mark, I was basically finished. Yup this was the Wall all right. Those 5km from Marine Drive back to VT felt like forever.
Near the 40th kilometre, I get a call from whom else? Sheroy. They're enjoying a coffee-brunch session at our favourite Sunday watering hole, Raintree. Sheroy says (before I can say anything as usual) "Dad! Diana fell and hurt her lip! Blood's coming!!". Yeah, Mum did fall (she's okay now, some niggling muscle pull still hurts though). Then Dilshad speaks with me. You know, in the movies, men are this macho lot, no pain can move them etc etc. But honestly I wasn't man. Speaking to her, I was virtually in tears now- it just came out.

The last kilometre was not like I had imagined it would be. Indeed, I did put on a brave front and even started to run fairly quickly when I saw (from my gps) that I'm about 500m from the finish. Tehn, somewhere near Churchgate Station I suppose, there were many intersections, circles, traffic lights, traffic. No sign-age on whcih way to go, nor was my mind really all there. At one of these junctions, I stopped to take a photo: no luck, my phone memory was full (and now was not the time to sit and decide what to delete). A foreign couple who had finished waved me on, encouraging me-- I asked them 'whci hway do i go??'. They pointed, and I went. But it got worse. I was reduced to asking directions, and some guys I asked about the finishing point had no idea what I was talking about, nor were they helpful. Of course, I probably looked like a lunatic to them, running around sweat-stained and dirty at 1.40pm in the blazing heat. Another runner waded into view, he seemed to know the way, we briefly mumbled something about no directions and I followed him. Then he slowed citing an injury, and I went ahead. I kept running, on fumes. Very close now and...another wrong turn- no volunteers, no sign-age.
Finally finally I see something- the Marathon flame, a little ahead a table and some volunteers sitting around. As I approach, still struggling along, one of them jumps up and cheers me telling the others to get up. They don't; but that's okay, I thank that guy!! I cross the finish line, throw up my arms. I click the Stop button on my watch. It reads 42.2km. I started it late, by about 600m. So I've actually run 42.8 km, about 600m more than a full marathon, in 6 hours 55 min, or so. Man. An unintentional Ultra :-)

It's peculiar, I thought I'd be elated etc but no there's really no emotion right now, that had drained out...I somehow found the Marathon Holding area and stumbled in. Almost like a hospital, people lying all over the dirty matted floor, but with a key difference: there's joy in the air, a feeling of achievment, wan smiles and good-natured shared pain. Ah, I feel like I belong. A lady at a table gives me a finisher's medal! Cool. Even though many of us did not meet the 6 hour cut-off. Hey very positive, we all really appreciated that! Ramesh and Manjula came in soon after and we were really happy! Took some photos, then took a cab back to the hotel (which was a 10min walk away).

So, yeah. An experience I'll treasure.
Of course, the real reason I was here in Mumbai and finished this (a major goal I wanted to achieve), is because the wife, Dilshad, supported me. Most people would think, yeah sure, and why not. Yes, but most people don't have to juggle a 6 year old, a 4-month old infant!, a successful financial advisory business (where clients call you at all hours) and a home! And that's not mentioning all the long training runs on weekends. Thanks Dilsh! and indeed, the whole family.

Some surprises: I really did not use my ipod as much as I thought I would; I really did find carrying my phone (with camera) and a handkerchief very useful! My typical injury-prone spots, my knees (and a groin injury) were okay- am sure the sprays helped a lot there. In fact, after the race, the back of my right upper calf/back of knee hurts (still does). Yeah, carrying the (somewhat bulky) water bottle and handkerchief also turned out a good thing.

Well, this still pales before what others have done: the winning Kenyan completed the race in 2h12m! Gulp.
A Dr. Ashis Roy was running his 100th Marathon the same day in Mumbai! We actually saw him, walking at a fast pace (he finished before I did). Two weeks later, he runs his 101st Marathon at Chandigarh. Idiot.
:-) yes am just joking and green.

Q. What's the biggest room in the world?
A. The room for improvement.

Couldn't resist - an aerial view of the route taken - see the multi-coloured line toward the top...[might have to click it to zoom in & see it fully]
(courtesy runsaturday.com and google maps).

Kaiwan's Running Blog

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My First Full Marathon !! Mumbai 17Jan2010

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