Auroville Marathon : Feb 14th, 2010

Auroville (City of Dawn) is an “experimental” township in Viluppuram district in the state of Tamil Nadu, India near Puducherry in South India. Auroville was founded as a project of Sri Aurobindo Society on Wednesday 28 February, 1968 by Mirra Alfassa, “The Mother” and designed by architect Roger Anger. Auroville is meant to be a universal town where men and women of all countries are able to live in peace and progressive harmony, above all creeds, all politics and all nationalities. The purpose of Auroville is to realize human unity.
And in this serene township the third edition of Auroville marathon was being held this year.  Auroville marathon is one the last marathons of the season in India. The next one would only happen post summer. So I was very keen to run this one after completing my first full marathon and December and sadly missing the Mumbai one in Jan.

At Auroville

We had registered well in advance.  Kiran for half and Aravind for 10 k. And on 13th Feb we set off in my car. Roy was driving with us to Pondicherry with his wife and daughter. We started at Madiwala and took the elevated road on Hosur at 7 am. 9 km of smooth driving was nice. We took the following route to Pondicherry. It was an awesome drive with very nice roads and music from my iPod.

Route : Bangalore to Pondicherry  via Krishnagiri and Tiruvannamalai
Distance: 320 Kilometers
Average Journey time: 5 to 6 hours
Bangalore-Sarjapur- Hosur(Bangalore to Hosur-40 Km)-Krishnagiri (Hosur to Krishnagiri 55 km on NH 7)- Kannandahalli(NH-66)-Uthangarai-Chengam(Krishnagiri to Chengam is 77 km)-Tiruvannamalai(Chengam to Tiruvannamalai is 35 km)- Gingee(Tiruvannamalai to Gingee 43 km)-Tindivanam (Gingee to Tindivanam 25 km)-Pondicherry(Tindivanam to Pondi 45 km)
This is the standard route. The road to Krishnagiri from Bangalore via Hosur is excellent through NH -7. From Krishnagiri as you leave the toll gate, cross the 1st flyover. Then just before the 2nd flyover take the left sided road which is parallel to the flyover. Remember not to go over the 2nd flyover. Then you have to take a left turn to a road that goes towards Chennai. After proceeding for about half a kilometer on that road, you have take a right turn to NH-66 that eventually takes you to Puducherry.

Stay
The dorms at Auroville were booked so we stayed at a new hotel, called The Neem Tree located on ECR road around 4 km before Pondicherry, while Roy moved onto Pondicherry hotel in Pondicherry (very original as I reminded him later)

Pre-marathon

The registration process was a simple one. We paid online at the website http://marathon.auroville.com. However, for weeks we did not hear from the organizers. Tho’ we called and clarified our doubts. One week before the run we were sent a mail with complete details on the route, the start timings, how to collect bibs and even running etiquette
After a quick lunch we headed over to Auroville in the evening to collect our bibs.  It was a festive atmosphere at the place filled with the marathon participants. I did meet quite a few friends who had come out of town as far as Mumbai. We roamed around at Auroville, took snaps and shopped at the Kalki boutique.  Now Auroville produces a lot of eco friendly organic stuff. Items such as soaps, bathing salts, oil, fragrances etc. will always be a good buy from here.

Kalki Boutique : Inside the window

As the sun set, we also set off to our hotel, not before the boys (Aravind and Kiran)socialized with some of the Aurovillites and tried their Spanish/Mexican skills.  We had early dinner and by 9 we were sleeping.

Marathon day

Temperature at 27 deg Celsius and humidity at 60%

I was the first to wake up at 3:15 am and after waking up the boys, we reached Auroville at 4:30 am the reporting time.  It was dark and we were given small torches which we will use while running till the day breaks.  Kiran and Aravind would wait as their events  half marathon and 10 k would start later at 6 and 7 am respectively. I had couple of bananas before the race.

At the start

Kiran, Me and Aravind at the starting point

The marathon started right on dot at 5 am and I set off with a slow pace following a large group. 1 km down I checked my watch and I had clocked a very slow 7.5 min. I increased my pace till I was on heels of a couple (apparently from Auroville) who were running a very steady pace. 20 min into the run I was sweating profusely. The humidity factor was into the play.  I decided to take regular water and electrolyte breaks and keep on following the couple. Running alone would become demotivating.
As the sun rose at around 6 am I could see the route around me. We were running in the Auroville forest. The route was a mix of dirt trails with little bit of tarred road. There was greenery all around. We passed matrimandir, various residential sections, snack shacks and more. It was a beautiful route.

Along the route

Within no time (actually 2 hours 20 min) I crossed the half way mark (21 kms), one loop i.e. I will have to repeat the same loop of 21 km again. It was so refreshing to see the route around which did not look repetitive at all. And I kept my pace and kept on running behind the couple. At around 30 km mark I stopped at the water station, and took a prolonged break spraying muscle relaxants on my ankles, Gluteus. Pocketed some bananas. Drank extra bit of water. From hereon I slowed my pace. I was way behind the couple and I decided to slow down my pace. Somehow, I crossed the 36 km mark and was feeling the muscular cramps. It had been four hours now, since I have been running and it had become hot. I focused on the music and set small milestones. I walked after each water station for a few meters, stretched and ran. After the 39 km mark the last of the water station, I picked up my pace and it coincided fortunately with some fast paced songs on my iPod’s playlist. I remembered the route and I ran on, overtook quite a few of the marathoners on the way and i finally crossed the finish line.

My time was 4 hours 52 min 25 sec. Slower than my earlier marathon (4 hours and 36 min) but neverthless more enjoyable.

Aravind and Kiran were elated at their own performances. Their firsts. They had breakfast incl. a failed attempt at “Hungarian goulash”. Incidentally, they failed at their attempt at “Mexican Nachos” the evening before. Not quite upto the continental fare, I guess!!

After the run (phew!!)

Kailash, the masseur, my savior !!

The organizing committee had arranged for salt water where one could soak one’s feet and yes, massage as well courtesy the volunteers from Auroville. Thanks to Kailash (from Germany) and two others, I was back on my feet to head back to the hotel.

Later in the evening we went to Pondicherry, walked by the sea and celebrated our run with a dinner at the Lighthouse, The Promenade. And yes, satisfied the huge cravings for ice cream.

Well, the boys were not too happy with the portions and continued their dinner at Mr. Bean. Wow !!

It was a satisfying experience. Milestones in life for all the three of us. A scenic and enjoyable run and of course the post run much needed massage !!
Kudos to the organizing committee at Auroville for a successful marathon.
We will definitely be back next year.  Till then….to more runs and marathons!!

Me, Kiran and Aravind !! cheers !!

As I crossed the finish line in my first full marathon – Bengaluru Midnight Marathon on Saturday, 12th Dec ‘09, with a time of 4 hours 42 min, my immediate emotion was not that of elation or relief.   I wanted to cry but the tears didn’t flow. I wanted to shout and pump my fist in the air but I did not.  I just achieved a goal I had set myself for years, an impossible one (at least in my mind) after I could barely walk post my knee surgery years ago.  All the cliches “mental strength”, “human spirit”, “determination”, “against all odds” etc. did not seem so cynical, anymore.
I felt nothing. But the emotions poured out as I wrote this post. Yes, it had been quite a journey!!

Early days…

I believe I was blessed with some good genes. In my “younger” days in school/college, I was told by my coaches that I was a natural athlete because many sports came naturally to me from Soccer (football), hockey to athletics (100m sprint, long jump).  Be it running the 100m dash in less than 12 sec to scoring goals for my football teams as the lead striker. This just added to overconfidence and yes, arrogance.  I used to excel in sports without much preparation, counting more on my skills and physical abilities.
However, one cannot have it all as I discovered the hard way. I busted my right knee in the final year of college in a football game (which we lost). I had a severe tear in the meniscus and anterior cruciate ligament. Its a common injury among athletes, they told me as if to make me feel good. The doctor told me if I were to walk normally in life, I need to give up sports. It was heartbreaking, and so I diverted (ok, at least tried to ) all my attention to studies as I joined MBA (IIMB) the same year. Well, things didn’t go as planned, I further aggravated my injury in the campus playing football, Tsepak and would you believe it, dancing in the block parties.

After graduating from MBA in 1997, the first thing I did with my sister’s guidance (she is a doctor) was meet a orthopedic surgeon at AIIMS. The doctor recommended a surgery. After multiple scans – MRI to invasive scans, I underwent a 6 hour surgery under general anesthesia (which was pretty trippy, I’d say). The result of the surgery was pain, two months of inactivity and complete wastage of muscle in the right leg.  After years of physiotherapy, building quadriceps, I still have two screws in my right knee(holding the ligaments), two long scars, and little sensation below the right knee.  I was frustrated, became restless and impatient in life.
I forgot about returning to active sports and immersed myself into what every young MBA does (well, after all these year, I still wonder what?? and why??) incl. a draining (yet satisfying) entrepreneurial stint. All of these were stilled marred by my restlessness and impatience from my early days. I tried achieving too much in short time.

The goal…

And then I took a break and moved to Bangalore.  I delved into philosophy (esp. Buddhism). It had a calming effect on my mind, as I started to live in the present (not in the past or in anticipation of the future). I started setting small goals for myself in life – “things to do before I die”.
Running a full marathon was one of them.

Marathons were an alien concept in India, with the population preferring butter chicken in the North and curd rice in the South to running.  The Mumbai Marathon in 2004 changed all that when it brought to the country the joy of running. And it was hugely welcomed by a large number of participants – young, old, across class, caste, creed or sex. It was a huge success. It opened the door for marathons across various cities in India incl. Bangalore where I was. And when it was announced that the Bangalore Marathon is to be held in May 2005, I had one month to prepare after eight years of inactivity.  I decided to go for the half-marathon.
I killed myself training for it – speed running and a reduced diet high on proteins & low on carbs. I ran the half marathon in 2:05 hours which many (incl. me) thought was a good time.  After the race, my knees hurt, my muscles cramped, I was dead tired and exhausted.  However, I felt great completing the 21 km distance after years of inactivity and 2 screws in the knee.  For four years and many half marathons later, I was still not ready for the full one.  Mentally, I was still impatient and restless. A bit calmer, but still not there yet.

Its all about the mind…

My restlessness and indiscipline took my mind off running. And I shifted my energies to cycling, and I loved it. As I started reading more about cycling, I came to know about the grueling races in various tours esp. Tour de France ( 3500 km in 3 weeks of cycling across terrains, weather and countries). As I started following the sport, I read more about the various bikers and esp. Lance Armstrong.  Here was one man who was brash and arrogant and won shorter distance races just because of his natural athleticism. His fight with cancer changed all that and he won Tour de France a record seven times. (Please read his book “Its not about the bike“).  I just gifted this book to my nephew, a young rebel, with gyan saying that in sports, at work, in life whatever we do “its all about the mind”. “Easier said than done, Hemant”, I told myself later.
Well over years I have tried to use these pearls of wisdom subconsciously, however what if one were to use these consciously. This has been the way of life in India for centuries esp. with Buddhism, the teachings which I have been trying to follow (not very successfully).  His Holiness The Dalai Lama’s book “The Way to Freedom” is an enlightening read.
So with these weapons of inspiration, I set off to pursue my goal of completing full marathon in Mumbai in Jan 2010.

The preparation…

I had 2.5 months to prepare and I started off my prep in a scientific and disciplined way. Mainly taking cues from www.marathontraining.com :
(1) Training schedule – with distance/speed/Heart rate targets,
(2) Balanced diet (with much reduced liquor intake),
(3) Warm ups, stretches and building of specific muscles in the gym,
(4) Strategies to delay the process of depleting glycogen “stores”,
(5) Focusing on rhythm and pace during long practice runs,
(6) Choosing the right music on my iPod and more…
After 1.5 months and two long distance practice runs (upto 28 km ), I was feeling good about my prep for the marathon in Jan till the impatient part of me woke up and pushed me to register for the full 42 km in the  Bangalore Midnight Marathon instead of the half one which I was planning to do earlier. And I succumbed, justifying that I need not complete it and it would be a good practice run. With that in mind I started preparing myself, but mentally this time the week before. I slowed down on my practice runs and focused on the diet, working on the niggles (esp. at gluteus maximus) and on specific muscles.

Bangalore Midnight Marathon 2009 : The race night

The race was scheduled to start at 12 midnight on Saturday 12th Dec ‘09. This was the third edition of the midnight marathon in Bangalore. and was held at Whitefield. One lap was around 4.2 km, and so for a full marathon, one had to complete 10 laps. I thought of this as repetitive and boring, however, for me it was the distance which was a challenge. Fortunately, Viji Philip a friend from MBA days was there running the half marathon. I will have company for at least half the distance. The route was well lit up with water stalls along the way and the unforgettable registration counter blaring away hard rock with the likes of Green Day, AC/DC and others. There were close to 500 + runners participating in different races from 5 km to half to the full marathon.

Earlier in the day, I ensured that I had a diet high on carbs (rice, boiled potatos etc.). I slept well in the day and was fully hydrated. For the race, I filled my pockets with glucose biscuits, 1 bar of snickers and held a gatorade.  Performed the mandatory rituals of applying cold cream to avoid nipple bleeding, iodex on certain niggling parts (gluteus maximus in this case) and the usual round of warm ups & stretches.

The race started on dot at 12 midnight. I put on my iPod with the new playlists I had created just for this and we (Viji and I) started off with slow pace and we increased as we went along. We averaged a pace of around 9-10 kmph. The first 21 km was a smooth ride as we ran together matching each other’s pace. I took 2:14 hours to complete the half way mark. However, as Viji finished his half marathon and so did many of the full marathon runners (from Africa).
And from thereon I was on my own.
I had to cover the same distance all over again. The “impatient me” suddenly woke up and advised me that its just another practice run and I could quit midway. I ignored. But my body couldn’t.
As I crossed the 25 km mark, I started feeling it. My glycogen reserves were rapidly getting depleted. I had finished my Gatorade and was now on water and biscuits & the snickers bar.  After 7 laps (around 30 km), I felt my legs becoming as heavy as lead. At that stage, I started setting myself shorter goals for the rest of distance (as I have tried to do so in life) . In the lap I identified milestones – where I will take water, stretch for few seconds while running, increase my pace.  I started overshooting these milestones.
After 34  km, it was just becoming difficult. I had 10 km and two more laps to go. The number of runners had thinned out, tho’ there were still many familiar faces from Runners for Life. I could see many runners walking or dropping off. I was so tempted. I focused on the milestones and continued running. At each milestone I checked my time, I was averaging pretty good and with this pace I could complete under 4:30 hours, if I complete.
After 37 km, I stopped at a water stall and started to do stretches and started to do walk briskly till a runner passed me by on his way to the finishing line and advised me that I am doing more damage to my muscle stiffness by walking and not running at a pace. And I started off again. Passed the Domino’s pizza milestone without getting tempted with the pizza, passed the registration counter which was now playing Green Day’s “Jesus of Suburbia” and then reached the finishing line.
One more lap (4.2 km) more to go. My ankles were hurting bad, my knee too. My calf and thigh muscles were getting stiff.  My hip muscle (gluteus maximus) started acting again. My shoulder and neck muscles ached after continuous running for hours. And my body wanted to give up.
But I just cannot let this go after years of waiting. I was determined.  With that thought and at that very moment, I picked up my pace. And something strange happened. My pain started to disappear. I started passing all the milestones with a brisk 10 kmph till I crossed the finishing line. I checked my time. I took  4 hours 42 minutes and 33 seconds. I had finally done it.

Coincidentally, as I approached the finishing line my iPod played “Amazing” by Aerosmith and as I completed the race with the following lines of the song, which I thought was symbolic at least to me.

“Life’s a journey not a destination
And I just can’t tell just what tomorrow brings
You have to learn to crawl
Before you learn to walk”

I think I learned much more through the entire experience more than just learning academically the art  & science of running.
This was a great milestone (and a mental block) for me and without the support of my family, friends and my doctor, this wouldn’t have been possible.

If you are still here after reading the “marathon” post above, thank you for your patience.  I hope you have a good run, in life as well.

As for me, now to the next goal..!! cheers..!!

With the knee injury, many years back

This was  the 3rd edition of Kaveri Trail Marathon. Last year some 200 odd participated and this year 700+.
Venue was at Srirangapatnam, near Mysore, next to Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary.

Since this was some 120 km from Bangalore we  started off from Bangalore at 4 am in pitch darkness. But the drive was pretty fast and we reached well before time with a coffee thrown in between.

And what a spectacle it was with runners, volunteers and supporters at the starting line. The run started at 7 am (I participated in the half-marathon).  The trail was 10.5 km long alongside the green fields and accompanied by Kaveri, the river. It was a true cross country race, very scenic, unpolluted and e
Full marathoners started off first followed by the half marathoners. The 10 km was at 9 am.
While I did the first 10.5 km within 55 min, but in while returning during the last 5 km struggled with the Sun now beating down in full glory. My timing was below my best, but it was the memorable experience I took back and not my race standing, so did all the runners.
Hoping to have more such runs.

cheers