An unforgettable marathon in incredible India

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Dr. Potenciano Larazabal III
Contributor

A MONTH before I learned I had to go to India for additional Eye Laser Training, I immediately checked whether I could still register in India’s Biggest Marathon, the Mumbai International Marathon. This time, I decided to run for charity by supporting Mumbai’s United Way.

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I luckily got in and had the opportunity to accomplish my 25th marathon on Jan. 15, 2012. There was no mailing of race bibs/timing chips this time. Foreign runners had to pick it up on Jan. 14 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. since there would be no distribution on race day. My Eye Laser training was in Pune, which is about 200 kilometers from Mumbai. I would be free to leave for Mumbai at noon of Jan. 14.

The estimated travel time by car would take around two and a half hours but what we did not expect was the horrendous traffic in downtown Mumbai. I was so nervous that we would not make it on time but we finally arrived at the expo at 4:44 p.m. There were very few claimants left as it was ready to close and I felt so relieved as this would have been the first 42k that I would have forfeited before the race.

India’s population now stands at 1.21 billion and will soon overtake China (1.3 billion) in the next few years. With the widening middle class there and no restrictions in car ownership, traffic is indeed one of their major problems.

When I registered online, they made me submit previous marathon certificates to ensure I would start at the wave appropriate for me. I later learned at the holding area at 5:30 a.m. that my race bib indicated that I was to be designated at the end of the pack with the not so fast runners. Instead of getting furious, I just accepted the fact that I registered late and just be happy that I get to participate in a race in such an exotic location.

Running at the tail end in a major marathon makes it very difficult to run at a fast pace as you have to zigzag past runners accustomed to their speed. By doing this, not only will you waste your energy, you’d be also exposing yourself to an unnecessary injury. I thus decided to just enjoy the race.

When the race started, I was surprised to see how wide the roads were. This gave me the opportunity to run at the side of the road at my pace, passing runners without having to weave through them. The weather was perfect at nine degrees, making it possible for me to pass by the water station for the first time at the 10-kilometer mark. The route was totally closed and was very lively with bands and Indian traditional dancers present along it. We passed through some Mumbai landmarks as well.

But for me, running through the 5.6-kilometer (eight-lane bridge and gently sloped) Bandr-Worli SeaLink Bridge was the most enjoyable. This is a beautiful new structure in Mumbai linking the Western Suburbs to the Island City of Mumbai, decongesting traffic. Imagine closing the entire bridge for the duration of the run!

Everything was going fine (I even had thoughts of a possible PR even if my plan was just to enjoy the marathon) until the 28.5 kilometer mark. My time was two hours and 30 minutes when my GPS watch conked out. This was such a disappointment!

The watch was like my trainer/pacer. I knew whenever I needed to push myself to run faster and pick up the pace whenever I would slow down. Being so dependent on it (pacing and timing), just imagine how frustrated I was to run when I had no idea what my pace was and I could not calculate or estimate around what time I’d cross the finish line. I was like a soldier going to war and going low on ammunitions.

So, I just decided to again run for fun, acknowledging the encouragement and cheers of the spectators lined along the route.

But at the 32K mark, things got worse when the 42k runners caught up with the tail end of the 21k runners, who outnumbered us 10 to one.

Most of them were walking making it difficult for runners at times to get through. I started to lose hope... until the elite runners (they started later than the general runners) caught up with me at 39K.

This was the highlight of the race for me, running alongside (for a few precious seconds) with some of the fastest long distance runners in the planet for the first time. The feeling was phenomenal! It gave me the second wind that I needed. I sprinted the last 3K to the finish line and was able to conquer my 25th marathon with a time of three hours and 58 minutes and one second. My fifth consecutive sub-four marathon!

Others were: Quezon City International Marathon (3:53, December, 2011), Gyeongju, Korea (3:45), November, 2011), Berlin (3:59), September, 2011, and Kawasan (3:49), July, 2011

Like every race, each marathon has a different story to tell. That’s why I like joining them, you never know what to expect.

See you on the road!