Balaji's Mumbai Marathon 2009

8/14/2019 Balaji's Mumbai Marathon 2009

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And it was attat age...Poey arrivedin search of me. I dont know, I don

know whereit camefom,fom winr or a river.

I dont know how or when,no, tey were not voices, tey were no

words, nor silence,butfom a seet I was summoned,fomte branches of night,

abruptlyfomte oters,

among violentfiresor returning alone,

ere I was witout a faceand ituched me.

- Pablo Neruuda

Most amateur runners experience a similar feeling like that of Pablo Neruda when it comes torunning. They do not know where it comes from or why it comes to them. But when it comes to them,one can be sure that it will change their lives and they will become a different breed of species.Running came to me at a time when I realised that I have got very long legs and they werent put intoany meaningful use. I tried playing football but realised that my reflexes did not give me much room

to make any decent impact on the field. Running, on the other hand, was simple, plain and did notrequire any special skills. Just 2 legs and a big heart and I wasnt missing either of them. The journeyfrom finishing the first one mile to finishing a marathon has been a long one with its fair share of ups


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largely based on my regular long weekend runs and occasional short midweek runs. This helped toimprove my endurance as well as keep my legs fresh for the event.

The Missing Lipstick

The organisers of Mumbai marathon have often come under criticism from running communities fortheir ignorance about running andanyone visiting the race expo can

sense the reasons behind it. Atypical running expo would havestalls pertaining to productssomewhat connected to running.Mumbai expo at the WTC wasdifferent in its own way with stallson instant soups and jewelry! Thegoodies bag was a further

revelation that the organisers hadno clue about running. It had a richcollection of either expired or soonto be expiring cosmetics andmedicines. Items include soaps, hand wash, face wash, shampoos, cough syrup, throat drops,shower gel, Instant coffee and moisturising creams. It was difficult to comprehend why these itemswere given to runners! The only items of any use were a water bottle and the bag containing these

items. Sources indicate that they were planning to add a lipstick in the goodies bag but was sincewithdrawn following the comments by a certain politician!


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In a Good Company with the Rajus

The trip to Mumbai brought me back in touch with the two important Rajus - Panduranga Raju(Pandu) and Haresh Raju, friends from my college days. Pandu received me at the Bandra stationon Saturday and helped to me settle down comfortably for the next mornings run. He alsovolunteered to accompany me to the starting point. In addition to that, he provided valuable

photographs for this article. Haresh, a good football player during college days, shocked us byannouncing that he is running the half marathon. He along with another friend of his attempted torun as a part of their efforts to raise funds for a NGO called CHIP. It was really nice to hear that heproved his doubters wrong and made it to the finish line despite walking towards the end, especiallywhen he was photographed! Hope to see him next year as a full marathon runner!

The race day morning started at 4:30 AM from Bandra station. Haresh and I temporarily appointedPandu as the head coach of our contingent (three of us, to be precise)! We reached the

Churchgate station and proceeded to the Azad Maidan where all the runners were expected toassemble before the run. Security checks have become part of Mumbaikars life and Azad Maidanwas no exception. Though two security officials insisted on seeing my running bib before letting mein, no one seems to be bothered about Pandu entering the Maidan. In fact, he was asked for his bibwhen he left the Maidan which was equally bizarre! It also made me wonder if there will be anysecurity check posts in the marathon route which would be still accepted in the current situation.

Back on its feet, but still in Dark!

As we entered the Maidan, we could hear Harsha Bhogle rattle on the microphone with plenty ofemotional words! The one that stood out was the clique We thank you for getting Mumbai back on


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its feet. This one was strange as it was said at 5:30 AM when more than 99% of the Mumbaikarsincluding Sharmila Tagore were still in their bed! Think Harsha Bhogle needs to contemplate onretirement akin to a commercial endorsement in which he appears. The striking feature of the Azad

Maidan was its poor lighting. An event of such

magnitude with added security concerns must havebeen better lit. As I proceeded to the start area, thelighting was getting dimmer and at the holding area, itwas nearly dark.

My first meeting with a known fellow runner was thatof Rahul Verghese of the RunningandLiving fame atthe entrance of the Maidan. He was there fully

equipped with his banner and may be his famed fuelbelts and T-shirts! Further inside the Maidan, I met up with Shyam of Chennai runners and near theholding area, I managed to meet Anupama, another Chennai runner who was running her first half-marathon. We were surrounded by the RFL and RGI groups from Bangalore who made a last ditcheffort to gather some attention with their shouts of Go RFL and Go RGI.' Anupama and I lookedat each other and wondered if we could make some noise on Chennai runners but sensiblyrefrained from doing so! The walk from the holding area to the start point was a long one, probably

to distance us from the likes of Anil Ambani and co.The early miles...

The cheering from the crowd supported by local bands in the initial phase was exemplary andprovided the gloss for the event. I started the run slowly which was well according to my plans. Anexcellent weather helped runners a lot in the initial phase. The organisers did a sensible job (the

only progressive change in the event since the last time) of allowingslow runners (Finishing beyond 3 hours 30 mins) to start with thehalf-marathon runners at 6:45 AM instead of the usual start at7:45 AM. I am sure it will be even better if they can start at 6:00 AMthough commercial sponsors might object to it. I also had anopportunity to meet the Indias Marathon Man Dr. Ashish Roywho was going strong at the age of 76 years! It was remarkable that

he maintained the same pace when I saw him again at the 27 Kmmark (he was finishing 21 Kms then). As route approached the Peddar bridge, it was surprising to

see a large number of people had actually turned out to cheer runners in Half and Full marathon. Itwould be normal to expect such crowd for the celebrity or the Jil-Jil runs but was pleasantlysurprised to see the crowd cheering ordinary runners for a full marathon. Apparently, the full


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marathon contingent had a celebrity runner in Milind Soman whom I could not find. I was actuallyeager to see if he was wearing Tuff Shoes (Not ONLY the shoes!) for the run! I kept my paceroughly about 8-9 Kms per hour and wanted to assess my situation at the 10 Km mark beforedeciding on improving the speed. The initial run did not give me much confidence of a strong finish.

The soreness in my left leg was still around and the weariness had already crept into my both legs.At this stage my mind was only on finishing 30 Km by running and walking the rest.

Worli sea-face till Bandra

As I running the 15th Km, I could see the early pack amongst the elite group running on the otherside. It was a delightful sight for any runner to watch them at such close quarters. It also gives a

sense of pride that they are competing with us! They were aided

by a rich support cast including a timing vehicle ahead of them,the press bus and cameras anchored in a helicopter. It was niceto take some space in such luxuries. However, it did not last for avery long time as they ran past me like a feather in a storm. Thetiming vehicle at the 16Km mark indicated about 46 minutes (Eliterunners start about an hour later than us) which gave me someconfidence that I was not too slow. The next time, I had the

opportunity to look at the timing vehicle was in the 21st Km when

the elite pack was returning. The time was 1 hour and 20 minutes and I could console myself bysaying that I could still try for a sub-5 hourfinish! A big thanks here to my friend AruniMahapatra who managed to get up soearly on a Sunday morning to cheer me atthe 22 Km mark. In the true spirit of A.R.Rahmans Jiya se Jiya, I was offered a free

hug and most importantly, the joy ofhearing someone cheer me by my name!

The Twenties

I finished the half marathon mark with a mix of happiness and caution. I was happy to finish itreasonably well but reminded myself that the race has just began now. I could feel some pain on myleft ankle and both the thighs have started developing the usual soreness. I decided to stick to my

usual walk breaks after every 3 Kilometeres until I reach the thirties. The turning point at the 23 Kmmark gives a great deal of psychological support - The route becomes familiar and also that thereis only one way back, i.e. To the finish!


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The Thirties

Marathon runners usually hit the proverbial wall during the thirties. I was not sure if I was headingfor one such wall. I was happy to see the 30 Km mark and hoped to keep going for at least another

5 kms before heading for a walk. The heat was on the rise and therun started becoming more challenging. In one scene in the movieChariots of Fire,' Eric Liddel would be asked where does hisstrength comes to see him through the race. His answer wasFROM WITHIN. These words echoed in my mind as pushedthrough the next 5 Kms. The external factors except the weatherseems to be in my favour. When I felt hungry, there was someone

offering me a biscuit and when I felt thirsty, there was someone to

offer me a fruit drink. A runner in front of me was undergoing a tough time and his family wasaround to support him. His daughter ran a few metres encouraging him, Papa, you are thegreatest and thus providing a great emotional boost to him. Running a marathon isnt just aboutrunning at that stage! It started translating into a more mental exercise. The anonymous people whocame forward to help did a great deal to boost my mental confidence to see through the run.

I usually run without a watch or training assistant and hence clueless about the time that I am takingto cover the distance. After crossing the 35 Km mark, I asked someone for time and I heard that it

was 11:00 AM. Did a quick calculation and I realised that I can go under 5 hours if I run the remainingdistance with less walk breaks henceforth. Boosted by few biscuits and fruit juice, I increased myrhythm and found some wonderful results. The run from the 36Km to the 38Km was undoubtedlythe best performance of my whole race. I could not believe the strength and stamina that I was ableto draw during that stretch. In my opinion, that was the defining moment of the run. The last phaseof the run is undoubtedly the most difficult as the route is exposed to direct sunlight and at 11:00AM, it can only get worse! I eventually chose the 900-100 method of running 900m and walking

100m for every Km. My taskwas made easier with theroad being a straight oneas I see the next markerboard from distance andcomfort myself.

Pandu reappeared at the

39 Km with his camera andtook some wonderfulpictures which I am proud


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to include in this article. The official photographers have their copyrights stamped all over myphotographs. Strange are the copyright laws which offer someone else the copyrights for myphotograph taken without any explicit permission! He also offered his words of encouragementand things seem to look good as I head for the final 3 Kms. The pain seems to out of my mind and

finishing was the top priority. The heat was rising and so are my spirits and the joy of getting soclose to the finish.

The finish and the missing one-second

As I headed for the finish, I could see about 4-5 people 50m ahead of me. My first thought was topick up and overtake them at the finish. However, I decided against it as I felt that their joy offinishing must not be dampened by someone overtaking them. At the end of the day, its one own

race and who cares what the position is. As the finish line got closer, Idecided to keep my head cool and finish calmly. In Singapore, Icould not hold myself and the joyful expression by throwingmy hands which resulted in a sprain in my shoulder. Thefinish line was a bit crowded and I managed to find myway out to the medal counter to collect my medal andsome refreshments. It was strange that there was notany place alloted for the full marathon finishers to

recover from the run. Such is the bad state ofarrangements. I had a chance to meet Bhaskar who isrunning his sixth marathon in as many months and intends tofinish 12 in as many months. He made my effort of running 3marathons in as many months look trivial.

Later, I found out my official time to be 4 Hours 53 minutes and 9 seconds, exactly a second slowerthan my Singapore marathon timing! Had I been a professional athlete, the missing one-secondwould have generated adequate material for the media to write and speak for at least a day! I wasstill surprised at the similar timing and would leave it to others for analysing. I am yet to see analysislike those of Singapore marathon and I doubt it would help in anyway!

Spirit of Mumbai

A lot has been spoken and written about the Spirit of Mumbai and any additions might not addmuch value. However, my piece on Mumbai marathon would not be complete if I fail acknowledge

the support offered by thousands of anonymous people in the streets of Mumbai. People of allages came out to cheer the hundreds of runners as if they are related to them for years! Fromyoung kids offering handshakes to toothless old women offering smiles of encouragement, it


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surpassed my expectations from the event. The anonymous people who came out from nowhere togive me a banana or biscuits or my favourite brand of fruit juice tetra pack exactly at the time when Ineeded them will remain in my minds for ever. I recall thewords of Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar, the translation of

which goes like this A timely help, however small, isbigger than the Universe itself. The shortcomings ofthe organisers was more than adequately compensatedby the cheerful crowd. Runners finishing beyond 6hours might not have the benefit of crowd support inthe last 1 hour which is again the fault of organisers fortheir inability to keep the traffic closed beyond 5

hours. If there is any hope that this marathon wouldrank amongst the best in the world, it rests with theaudience. I dont see much hope with Procam, theorganisers of the event. I could hardly see anyimprovements in the arrangements from the 2006 event. Their focus seems to be completely on thecelebrity run which is more lucrative!

The Road ahead

It is really sad that a country of our size has just one internationally recognised marathon. Thesuccess of this event rests with the number of participants for the full marathon. The currentnumber hovers just over 1000 which is really less compared to the 10,000+ at Singapore. Twochanges in the event can generate more participation - change in the timings and keeping trafficclosed for at least 6 hours from the start time.

At personal level, I hope to continue my tryst with marathons for a long time into future and hope tobreak Fauja Singhs record when I turn 90 years (If it is still unbroken!). Running two marathons atalmost same time motivates me a lot to try more. My present adventure would reach its third phaseon February 15th at Auroville, Pondicherry. Hope to maintain or improve the time of 4 hours 53minutes.


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AcknowledgementsThanks to my Parents for putting up with this insane obsession of mine and a special thanks to mymother for helping me in my carb-loading during the Pongal festival

Thanks to my Alma-Mater for sowing the seeds to this endeavour of mine. They are largelyresponsible for introducing the concept of sports to someone who could not finish a 100m run untilthe age of 17.

Thanks to Chennai Runners for shaping me into a marathon runner from just any other longdistance runner. Visit them atwww.chennairunners.com

Thanks to Prashanth (VP) for accommodating me in his house in Mumbai or in professional termsbeing a hospitality partner! Hope to see him back in his running gear soon!

Thanks to Panduranga Raju for his precious photographs. He is a budding photographer and ifanyone is interested in availing his services, do so [email protected]. Another potentialrunner, I hope to see him in action soon!

Thanks to all my friends and relatives for their support at different times.

Thanks to Team ASHA whose members gave me wonderful company during some of my runs atBangalore. Visit them athttp://www.ashanet.org/bangalore/marathon/

Thanks to Pooja, Sayali, Datar Uncle and NBD for their post-run felicitation at Pune.

Thanks to the Global recession forgiving me to time to write and hopefully more people to readthis!

And finally to the One unto Whom I always look up for strength ad determination. Call Him whateveryou like, the inner conscience, Mystic power, Miracle-Man, unseen force or in simple plain terms,GOD.

Uncensored comments welcome. Those interested can mail me those to [email protected].
mailto:[email protected]://www.ashanet.org/bangalore/marathon/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.ashanet.org/bangalore/marathon/http://www.ashanet.org/bangalore/marathon/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.chennairunners.com/http://www.chennairunners.com/

Balaji's Mumbai Marathon 2009

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