Running the Inclines

No matter how many races you’ve run, you can’t help get those butterflies in your stomach before any race. That nervous feeling that creeps within, sowing the seeds of doubts in your mind, no matter how well you’ve trained for it. Add to the stress level of staying almost a Half Marathon from the starting line and you’re unable to find a cab at the unGodly hour. But then you’ve got to thank your stars of getting a lift from runners heading to the start line. Strangely enough you can pick up their conversation though you don’t speak the language making you wonder are you turning into a linguistic (if I am even using the term right here). 

And as the cab speeds through the deserted streets you wonder would you be able to say that you did a Full since you’re traveling 21 to the start point and then running 21 to the finish point. So technically I am completing 42, though officially I am not. Anyway, you marvel at the fact that the cab (not your cab since you were unsuccessful in getting one) stops at every red light, even at this hour. Damn Hyderabadi really do follow all the traffic rules at any hour, and here we Mumbaikar love to jump signals even during the peak hours.

Finally you reach the starting point, get off the cab, thank your saviours for their generosity and you head to the holding area. The weather is chilly, thanks to the overnight rains and you wonder if you should have worn your compressions, but first you should have carried them! So you greet your friends and cheer them as they begin their full (cause you’re too chicken to do one on this route), and then head to your Corral (kind of annoyed by how the host pronounced it, though I think he did it right), and try to warm up (if I even do that). Sometimes I wonder why the hell fo they do Zumba before a run, considering Zumba is a cardio exercise and not a warm up and you would be expending more energy instead of conserving it. What you need is a dynamic warm up.

Anyway, you head to the flag off point but not before waiting to cheer the full marathon runners, who have now run 10km and are returning back, but then you also feel sorry for them as they will be running right into the 21 km runners (strange things of the organisers).

By doing so you miss the start of your race so starting almost a good 6 minutes after the gun time, at the backend of the pack, but then who care, to be honest, you just run and do your thing, no matter where you start from, just that you need to weave your way through slow runners.

And just as you begin you have your first flyover, the first incline, damn they come so soon, your frienemy, your bette noire. You may love-hate them but can’t escape them, and on this route there are many, and some that goes on and on, almost contradicting the statement what goes up and must come down, which doesn’t quite frequently happen. 

So you continue to run and cheer your friend as you pass them, not because you’re blazing through the route, in fact you’re far from it, but you’re actually running at a good steady pace, but because they are doing a full and you’re doing a half. Since you run with no concrete strategy in mind (yeah one of those lazy ass runners), there’s nothing that panics you, except every time  the Garmin buzzes after a km to show you’ve slow down (thanks to my love-hate relationship with the inclines). You continue to go at a steady pace, trying to smile for the shutterbug and not look like a t-Rex having an orgasm. Thanks to a fellow runner, you are able to zone in on a pace and hold that as long as possible. 

As usual the weather Gods seem to be confused, to start with it was cold and chilly (thanks to the overnight rains), then it was breezy, and finally you had to deal with the sun and the heat, in addition to the 10k runners crossing over to half and full runners side (made feel for the poor full people). I thank God I chose to wear a cap instead of headband (comfort over the style though I think I do have that angle already locked up) and try and run under the shade of the metro, where possible. And thanks to the energy of the kids gathered to cheer and give high five, the enthusiastic volunteers and the Caffeinated Reload Cola flavoured Fast and Up (ok I am shamelessly product placing) was able to run cramp free and without much soreness and fatigue (much to my surprise and delight).

And then you have the Stadium in sight, time for that final push, for that adrenaline to kick in, and yes there will be the shutterbugs at the finish line and you want a good pic. So you cross that line, stop your Garmin (the post important thing), and any Running app that’s running (isn’t it ironic). And then it comes the time to collect your medal, click pics with it (no I am not hungry so never will I bite on it, no intention of chipping my teeth on it), and meeting friend and clicking more pics. 

I am a big hugger and believe in the power of that good hug and its ability to transfer positivity and energy. So got to thank my buddy Dipak to help me get started and then Kevin and the beautiful Shibani for their warm hugs at the end. Thanks to the organisers and all the noble volunteers for their able support in running an almost smooth race with the only blimp being the baggage which was a blessed chaos with no one having any clue and runners having no patient.

To end with, needed to have a good run here, with this being only my second run of the year, after TMM, and needed that boost of confidence with all the physical and mental issues that I’ve been through. So it was good to know that I am on my back towards fitness levels and personal goals. The mind has been occupied but now it’s time to de clutter and work toward s my goals. 

So to end, after running on this challenging route for 1:56:11 (as per my Garmin, 1:56:09, officially), would love to quote Miss Kelly Clarkson... 

“What doesn’t kill you

Makes you stronger!!!”