“Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional”
Scene 1:
One wintery morning of Oct 2008 I woke with pain in my stomach, thinking its
natural as had slept last night after a big birthday bash. I rolled over to get
up, I couldn’t my legs were hurting, back was stiff and my ever expanding
midriff was giving trouble in. Opened my eyes and everything was blurred. I
thought ‘Ah I am not wearing my specs that’s why, picked my specs and oh shoot
I can’t see’. Woke up my wife told her my agony she just turned and angrily
said ‘you are hell bent on killing yourself what do you want from me, look at
yourself you can’t even walk properly. Take an appointment with the doc and get
yourself checked’.
Scene 2: Doc ‘you look seriously ill, get your Lipid
profile checked and come back tom with your reports’. I picked myself up, took
a walking stick and walked outside. (Walking stick ??? my knees were swollen I
couldn’t walk). Next day my medical report just spewed fire …..Everything
crossing the border line…..cholesterol, uric acid etc etc…..bad bad bad said my
doc…..
Everyone in family was very upset with my state of
affairs….. I had to do something really fast to get back in shape before
getting dumped by my family…..’What’? was the question…..What could I do to
change my sorry state….. I was 90+ kg,
waist line or should I say WASTE LINE was a shade less than 38inches, wobbly
knees…. Complete garbage….
Phew after long deliberation I decided that at least I
should get up and walk a bit….
I started with walking within my compound 200 meters 2 round
move up to 3, took courage and started moving out of the compound circling the
whole society.. 1 round of 1.5km…..it took me some 3 months to get to that 1
round of 1.5km.. kept on and was able to run-walk 4 km
In May 2009 one of my colleague and great friend Hygreev
suggested that I register for ADHM 21km …can you imagine the guts or should I
say confidence or vice versa of him to even think I would graduate from 4km
straight to 21km…Was he mad…I just fainted by the thought of doing a Half
marathon…21 freaking Km…..God damn…
He may be right, he has confidence in me which speaks of the
trust he has that I could do such a super human feat….running 21 freaking km my
God….thought of that gives me goose bumps even today…. I had not reduced a
single ‘mm’ or ‘gm’ from my body even after 6 months of walk-run exercise…
“Lifestyle change
begins with a vision and a single step” I just caught hold of this line I
saw in some magazine and I REGISTERED
for ADHM 2009….yeah.
Started practicing to run…..I had no clue how I would run
21km, small steps at a time may be. I started running 5km at a stretch; had no
training plan, no coach or mentor just my resolve that I have to change myself.
My resolve and passion to complete my 1st half marathon was
shattered when my company decided to have an international audit for 3 days
before the ADHM ending the audit on race day…Ah what a miserable feeling I
had….I was so crest fallen….so sad, not really I was sort of feeling relieved
with 21km not happening to me…I was not prepared ………Well I had a job I needed
to feed my family so I couldn’t say no to the audit….with ADHM dream fallen
apart I still had the resolve to change myself……
Hygreev came up with another brilliant idea…Half marathon at
Running and Living in Dec 2009…. Well hmmm another 21km… God….I went on the
R&L website checked out the option and found 5km & 10km run. 21km and
my office audit seemed to me like long lost lovers, fearing my tryst with 21km
will again go waste I decided to register for 10km…
Misty morning of Dec 5th 2009, I was all ready
with my new shorts, tshirt and shoes & socks by Adidas, A bottle of
Gatorade orange flavor. I drove to the Golf course extension road to Club
Florence for the start of the race. Parked my car and walked up to the start
line. I met Rahul Verghese the Chief mentor and the race director for Running
and living Gurgaon marathon and introduced myself. I was trembling, was it
excitement or fear of not being able to complete. I spoke to Rahul and he just
said “go with the flow and you will do it”.
After 10 mins of stretching the gun went off…. Started
running as if the world is gonna end….huffing and puffing taking my 90kg frame
to the 5 km turn around point…..I reached the turn point walked to catch my
breath and starting running …pushed pushed and pushed myself to the finish line
crossing 10km mark in 59 mins…….stopped and looked around…. Rahul came put the
medal around my neck and said well done you have run a sub 1hr- 10km which is
fantastic for your 1st run. Didn’t know how to react….sub 1hr 10km
what is that lingo….no clue…was just happy that I finished 10km run without
dying…..Rahul met me again and called me the next day to support and witness
the half and full marathon….I promised to come and crew on the cycle and rushed
home to show my medal & certificate to my family…..I was acting like a kid
jumping around with my boys showing them my achievement ….they were a little
zapped but went along with the Flow….you know the flow…everyone talked about…I
guess my boys understood that language better…they just were in the flow……I
gorged on the food as I was famished ……
Dec 6th 2009 I cycled to witness the half and
full marathon and that’s when I spent valuable time with Rahul who invited me
to be his training partner for Comrades ultra marathon. I met another stalwart
Randeep Singh Arora, a tall lanky sardar and the man who changed my life
forever…..
“Lifestyle change
begins with a vision and a single step”. The single step was to meet Randy
Paaji and Rahul sir and vision was to train along with them for Rahul’s
Comrades and my lifestyle changed…..
I started training with Rahul from 15th Dec 2009
and then as they say is history….I have completed 21 full and half marathons, 8 Ultras since I first started training.
The credit for all this goes to Hygreev
who pushed me into running, Randy Paaji for training me and mentoring me for my
runs and Rahul sir for giving me various platforms to perform.
We have trained at unearthly hours sometime starting at 2.30
am in the morning and running till 8.30-9am covering 35-40km during that
time….we have trained together through rain, humidity and heat. We have covered
almost all new Gurgaon roads, Aravali trails, Gurgaon to Nehru Park in Delhi
etc etc….
My life changing
years
Year 2010
My 1st
half marathon was R&L leisure valley half marathon in 2.25hrs followed
by 50km Bangalore Ultra in 7 hrs and
then half at ADHM in 1.58hrs finishing the year with R&L full marathon in 4.26Hrs.
“Motivation is
what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going”
2010 was a life changing year for me as I did variety of
races and discovered my strengths in running. I reduced my weight to 83kg and
waist to 35inches since 2008. I was feeling much healthier, my cholesterol
started behaving, uric acid problem vanished and knees became strong. I have
since then been running constantly, 5 days a week with back to back runs on
weekend.
I have always believed in what George Sheehan has written
“It’s very hard to understand in the
beginning that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners… eventually you
learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants to
quit”. I have fought with that little voice and that has helped me in
breaking my own record in every ADHM and SCMM runs that I participated since
then. I am in competition with myself. “The
reason we race isn’t so much to beat each other …..but to be with each other”….this
is the fun of running….
Year 2013 - 2014
Another life changing year for me started off with
disappointing SCMM with 4.03hrs finish. I trained hard for R&L town and
country and ADHM. I finished ADHM with 1.37.37 shaving off 6minutes from 2012
timing that was a big high. I then participated in R&L Dec 63km ultra where
I finished the run in 6.43hrs and came 1st. Started on a low note 2013
ended in a high.
Went to 2014 SCMM with a high and trashed it in 3.50hrs
shaving off 13 mins from 2013 time…. Oh
the feeling was awesome and we partied at Leopald café till late celebrating
the victory at SCMM……what a day……
I wanted to do more, some tough runs as was not getting
the high of running. To break the monotony and train myself better for future
run I joined Boot Camp Yellow run by
a dear friend and Coach Jatin Arora.
We went into some serious bit of training the boot camp style, did some fun
activities like Devils Circuit together…all in all a wonderful time training
your body and running small distances on weekends.
One day Jatin talked about a half marathon that the BCY
group was going to. It was in LEH and some of the guys were doing their 1st
half. Unimaginable …in Leh …Oh My God….what a place to do half marathon – low
on oxygen, cold …Phew….Jatin told me to visit their website and see if I want
to do some run as I was looking at a toughie myself…viola I found the magic
number 100km Zen Endurance Ultra in Leh…..Yes that’s what I wanted to do…..
Zen Endurance
Leh Ultra 100km – July 2014
Route: start
point - At 16000ft(5km before
Khardungla), U-turn at Khardungla 18380ft, run to Leh at total of 40km – 1st
Check Point , Spituk monastery – 50km check point and crossing over river indus
to Spituk-zinchen road, balance 50 km on spituk-zinchen road towards Choglamsur-Stakna
road, Druk white lotus school and back.
Yes that what it is called. Registered for the race and
realized I had only 40 days left to train and run, last 10 days would be
acclimatization in Leh so effectively 30 days to run a 100km in Leh…..I tend to
attract trouble it seemed always….
Training started off with Jatin’s Boot Camp on Tues,
Thurs & Sat, 3 days running with weekend back to back long runs keeping Mon
as rest day. In between the training I decided to do a night run on one weekend,
80km through the night and that should set me up for Leh Ultra…. Started off on
Friday night at 10pm it was 41oC and as the night progressed temp
rose to 43oC …it was hot humid energy sapping. By 4am I decided that
cannot go any further as I was cramping, puking due to heat….. Had completed
50km in 6 hrs, just dropped the idea of doing balance 30km…. it was bad day,
came back home collapsed and then couldn’t run for a week due to severe
de-hydration…. My dream for running 100km was again under pressure…..kept
thinking why I do what I do…..”Pain is inevitable…but suffering is optional” …why
was the question in my head all the time….after a week of rest did few shorter runs
and the day arrived when had to leave for Leh…total 800km training done in 2
months, 300 in last 30 days……sort of there but still under trained…
5.30am flight to Leh…eight of us embarked on the
journey…..1.30hrs flight breath taking scenery ….picture perfect location…night
before the flight I had diamox so I could ease into the low oxygen atmosphere
in Leh…that’s what I was told and made to do by all my friends and well
wishers…..
Well we landed got off the plane and what a beauty that
place is…mind boggling….no words …I was awestricken by the beauty of Leh
landscape….Our whole gang led by our leader Jatin walked out of the airport
boarded the taxi and off to our destination Chow Guest house in Changspa…..
Slept through the day ….wandered off to the bustling
market of Leh in evening, followed by hearty meal of Thupka and apple juice in
beer bottle…. Walking was making you breathless but nothing serious or
drastic….
3rd day of my stay in Leh I decided to go for
a long walk…..walking was still making you breathless….I started off in the
morning at 5 am walked for about 3km and came back breathless and not a happy
scenario……as group we decided to hire bikes that day and go out to visit some
monasteries …..the trip to Gurdwara Pathar Sahib and Magnetic hill, Alchi
Monastery and beyond was a good acclimatization …We all came back in the
evening went straight to pick up our bibs and then Jatin & I decided to run
back to the Guest house about 3.5km uphill from the bib collection centre…..Oh
man what a climb and both of us were sapped, dry throat almost dead…..went
straight to a restaurant had a bottle of water and fresh juice….sat there for
45 mins and dragged ourself to the guest house. Had to overcome this breathing
issue….Decided to go out for a long run the following morning come what may…..
5am morning slight nip in air 7 of us set out for a 10km
run, which eventually turned out to 13km….We ran from Guest house to Shanti
Stupa down to airport towards Neema village…..6.5km of all downhill…we were
running pacing happy at our speed, not realizing we had to run back up 6.5km
….oh boy when we turned around and saw the uphill my head started
spinning….phew…all the way up….and imagine I am running 100km there ..ha ha
ha…6.5km uphill was looking like climbing Everest……gathered by breath and
started running back…it took 1 hour to complete 6.5km uphill where in we ran
down the whole length in 28mins……walked my way up to a stream dipped my legs in
icy water and what a healing effect…all the aches and pain vanished…..that was
my last run before my ultra….
Next day we went to Nubra valley for another
acclimatization trip….. 10400ft Leh town drive up to Khardung La 18380ft and
down to Nubra Valley 10500ft……woho….. I
just flipped on that trip…started with a headache, puked at south pullu, walked
like zombie at Khardungla, ate Maggie at north pullu, had fist full of pain
killer on the way…..round round we went like marry-go-round … had a terrible
acclimatization trip and by the time I came back was in 2 minds about the 100km
run….
Blessing in disguise, my wifey joined me 3 days prior to
the run, strengthening my resolve to run the 100km. We had some good time
walking around eating some mouthwatering delicacies …..
1 day to Leh Ultra:- The gang was going in
for half marathon, Roma(wife) and I volunteered to crew the gang for their half
marathon. We hired a bullet 500cc (mean machine) and off we went early morning
4.15am towards Rancho school the start point of the half marathon….it was so
much fun and a wonderful experience supporting the half marathon… saw amazing
run by some local kids and also a specially able kid doing the half marathon
really inspiring stuff …..Mind all set for the 100km next day…..
Came back to the guest house slept for 4 hours…had my
dinner and anxiously waited for the race to start…..checked the weather,
everything clear, bright and shiny…means I would have a clear weather running
up to Khardungla and the day would be warm and sunny….good start….
Our Leader Jatin along with Gaurav were at the vehicle
loading point waiting for jeeps to arrive to take us upto the start point. I am
grateful to these 2 guys as they were up and ready at 11pm after doing their
half marathon that day morning, amazing team.
Jhatka…got a call at 12.45am from Jatin the pickup
vehicle nowhere to be seen,(they were suppose to pick us up at 1am from
Changspa…..) means we will be delayed…phew the wait was killing me ……I just
wanted to start and finish and get over with it…oh there was too much anxiety.
Finally the Jeeps reached our pick up point at 2am we quickly boarded and off
we went towards the start point…..
The drive in night on those narrow road towards
khardungla was scary…holding on to my dear life eyes glued to the road.
Slightly ahead of south pullu it starting drizzling …I asked the driver and he
replied “Sirji yeh rain nahi snow hai” Hain snow …..oh teri…ab….
Reached the start point exactly at 3am - 16000ft above
sea level….got out of the car …it was totally white ….snowing couldn’t see
nothing as it was snowing heavily….mind stopped thinking…I zoned myself in the
run and ready to start. Jatin offered his Poncho so as to safe my cloths from
getting wet.
3 of us started at exactly 3.05am and 2oC temp towards the u turn
point “Khardungla” at 18380ft highest motorable pass in the
world ….slowly walking up as 5km climb to khardungla was slushy due to snow.
It took me about 1 hr to reach the U turn point….I prayed at the temple at
Khardungla, clicked photos to prove I was there(ha ha ha) and started walking
back….walked for 10km downhill and closer to south pullu it stopped snowing and
started raining….I slowly picked up pace as my feet were finding the ground and
ran up to south pullu…I met my crew, wifey, Jatin & Gaurav, I gave my
poncho to them, had a sip of tea to warm myself and started running down….the
crew was amazing as every 5km they were there to offer food, water, enerzal,
tea….I picked up pace and by 9 am I reached my 1st stopover in Leh.
I quickly changed my shoes and wet clothes, Roma, Gaurav and Jatin helped in
changing my shoes and feeding me hot soup. I was induced with fresh energy and
within 10mins I was back on road… The sky cleared bright sun was out of the
shadows of darkness; I was running well and reached the airport road at 10am. I
realized I had 3 layers of clothing and was feeling suffocated. I stopped at
the petrol pump right before Spituk monastery and removed the layers. I reached
the 50km mark at 10.15am…I stopped for few seconds to understand the route from
the support crew and went in for a lap of 13km on spituk-zinchen road….it was
tough running with sun screaming on your head spewing fire …even elevation of
10o was killing due to
heat…I walked run for 13km ably supported by Roma & Ashish & came back
to the 63km mark by 12.30pm…..had 6.30hrs to finish another 37km…seemed a lot
of time …I rested for 10 mins fed myself with aloo paratha, coconut water and
energy bombs(special ladoos prepared by my wife-instant energy boosters) got up
and started running…towards Choglumsar-Stakna road and the turn point on
Manali-Leh highway. It took me good 2.30hrs to cover the 18.5km mark …my
support team member Nitin, Ashish and Roma kept me company throughout with
Nitin pacing me for 15km…..
At 83km I felt a sharp pain in my knees…I stopped…uff I
couldn’t walk…man… had another 17km to go…this can’t happen know…I stopped bent
over told Roma I can’t walk…… she caught hold of my arm and said get up lets
walk you can’t stop now… marta kya na karta…biwi ki maar sey acha bhaag lo…..Parul and Nitin came along and pushed
me ….at 90km I had to stop to get my knees massaged …….i got up again and
started running….Parul, Nitin & Roma
were blessing in disguise……they kept me pushing…uphill, downhill and 5 km
before the finish line Roma also joined in the run …..rest of the gang Ashish,
Migma, Sanky, Gaurav were on the bike cheering and pushing all the way….I broke
into a run 1 km before the finish line and sprinted & crossed the finish
line in 15.45hrs ……
This was one epic race -running in snow, rain and harsh
sun. Taught me very crucial lesson – respect the terrain you are running,
respect mother nature and have belief in you… “Run When You Can, Walk If You Have To, Crawl if You Must; Just Never
Give Up”
Bhatti Lake
Ultra 220km – Oct 2014 by Globeracers
“Pain is
inevitable, suffering is optional”
2012, year I first attempted this tough trail run….had to
drop it after 90km due to severe back spasm……Since that time I wanted to crack
this race…. couldn’t do it the following year due to a personal tragedy…
2014 – I happened to call Kavitha, a dear friend, Chief
and Race Director of Globeracers asking about the race, she gave me a big
surprise by rolling over the 2013 fee money to 2014 registration, I just had to
pay the difference amount…..blessing in disguise ……..chalo naye shoes key liya
money mil gaya…..
I already had done 100km in July in Leh so effectively
had some long distance training under my belt, I just had to get back into
shape for running 220km. After resting for 2 weeks I rejoined Boot Camp to
train my legs and started my weekend long runs…I had 50 days to train for
Bhatti….
Training was going strong with Boot Camp and weekend
run……Phatak I got a big Jhatka. After a workout I felt a slight niggle in my
lower back, jeez by the time I came back home I couldn’t move…….ah there it
goes again damn my tryst with trouble continues…….rest rest rest….suggestion
pouring from all round the globe(friend circle in gurgaon is my globe)…don’t
run…you are stupid….you mad….chal rest karley phir decide karna….Yoga kar
ley….kari yoga aur waat lag gayi…back sey no back ho gayi….total jhakaas ….
2 weeks of complete rest with no running before the
race….taper week did 15km and that was it as far as training for 220km goes.
Total mileage 400km before the Bhatti Ultra including 100km in Leh……..
Race day arrived. I packed my bag for the run, extra
shoes, clothes, pain killer, energy ladoos by my wifey, ice box, energy drinks
and a case of water. Tossing and turning through the night couldn’t sleep… very
tense scenario……Got up early, got the kids ready, dropped them to school.
Breakfast time followed by quick nap in the morning, went to work, came back
home…Changed had my lunch and waiting to start when I suddenly realized I have
overshot my start time from home, I panicked, as it is 220km was giving me
jitters on top of that delay, I quickly picked my stuff, into my wifey’s car
and off we went, speeding towards Kant Enclave the start point for the race. We
reached 10 minutes before the start time. Kavitha gave me that dirty look “you
were suppose to come 2 hrs early”.
I quickly got ready; tagged my bags for Aid station 1;
went in for a quick interview with Globeracers team.
Start of the epic
220km Bhatti Ultra – 8th Oct – cutoff time 45hrs
4 pm:- 2 out
of 5 participants were lined up for the start. Bhupindersingh Rajput a veteran
in Ultras and me wait for the start of the race.
4.08pm:- after
customary photo ops and a big hug from my wifey and Kavitha the gun went off
for the race and started my epic journey to cover 220km in the tough trail of
Bhatti village.
The route is 20km
loop covering 2 hidden lakes in Bhatti forest. Night time loops were 10km to
avoid going deep in forest and getting lost.
My strategy was to
cover 1st 100km in 17hrs and 2nd 100km in 20hrs and last
20km 3hrs.
I started 1st loop with a decent pace so as to
cover 20km in 2.30hrs and be back at Aid station(AS)1 before sunset. I was
pacing accordingly and crossed the AS 2 …. suddenly I
realized I have taken a wrong turn reached a dead end…..oop…...set my garmin to
check the route map….walked back to the turning where I lost my way and started
running to the obvious looking trail…..on and on I went… realized that the
route markers are still getting fixed….reached the 10km mark - turning point
for the loop…on my way back I lost my way again….ah…precious time
lost…..reached the AS1 in 2.45hrs, 15mins delay to my original plan…..
Loop 2 - started running back after a quick break of 5
mins….it was dark …head lights on, slow and calculative steps to avoid twisting
my ankle or a bad fall……at 4.5km mark I again strayed away from the route and
ran 1 km in wrong direction….realizing I goofed up again…garmin to my rescue
came back to 4.5km mark and walked to AS2 the 5km turn point…..
The loops continued ……wifey called and asked me to inform
her when I finish 40km…..
Loop 3 – started back towards AS2 …after 2km I started
feeling giddy, sleepy and wanted to vomit…. I tried but in vain…I kept running
….near the AS2 I dropped and vomited ……..oh spent good 5mins clearing my stomach……I
was fresh again…..got up washed my face…walked upto AS2….had lemon water,
salt…and started back towards AS1…
9.45pm day 1, I called home to inform I have done 40 km.
I was feeling hungry….rested for 10mins…BP and weight check done…all normal….stuffed
myself with banana and energy ladoo …… my buddies Vineet (a tough Ultra Runner)
and Puneeta were suppose to come and run with me and bring me food….no sight of
them…..after 10 mins got up and headed back for next loop….started walking and
voila came my buddies running towards me…. Round 4 & 5 went smooth with
both of them…they were blessing in disguise…after every round Vineet was there
to massage my legs and Puneeta feeding me yummy paratha…..Vineet went back at
3.30am as he had to catch a flight….Feeling fresh and rejuvenated I continued
till sunrise finishing 80km.
Roma joined at 7am and I finished 100km at 11am after
18hrs…120km to go….the sun was shining bright….the next 6 hrs I could manage
40km as it was hot and killing, it was mix of slow running and brisk walking. The
good part was that I was joined by 24hrs, 160km & 100km runners so the
battle field was full of soldiers ….i was not alone.
At round 5pm I stopped for a 15min break. Princy was
there at AS1, massaged my leg, gave me good stretch……Trips was constantly on
the phone instructing me, cheering me and talking to keep me focused. 7pm wifey
with kids and Anjali joined me for a loop….It was dark they were ahead in the
car lighting the trail and my kids were walking and running with me …they had a
ball of a time…eerie silence…howl of jackal, dogs barking…Spooky…..it was like
walking in a haunted movie…..by 10 pm I was dead, tired, sleepy…30 hrs into my
run…not a wink of sleep….now I was feeling the pressure……
They say when you don’t except something, miracle happens…….I saw Coach Ravinder and Niraj at AS1, …I reached and was walking like a zombie…..70km to go….Niraj fed me with hot meatball and coach massaged my legs, picked up extra light after a quick nap of 15mins we were off to another loop….i was almost sleep walking it was taking us 2 hrs to complete 10km loop…..around 2pm I told coach I can’t walk need to rest for 30mins……we reached AS1 I moved in Niraj’s car and I slept off….suddenly heard knock on the door, Niraj woke me up….it is time to go he said….Ah I had just slept and it was already half hr….can’t believe……coach was ready with food & water…Off we went……this was the toughest loop I did…I had to literally hold on to coach to avoid falling off due to sleep. Coach kept pushing and talking to me to keep me awake it took me 2.15hrs to finish this loop…5.15am I reached the AS1, 180km done, 40km more to go, just crashed on the chair….i was slurring while talking to my wife…..i couldn't get up, I was tired, very sleepy…..37hrs into the run with only 30 mins of sleep…damn it is tough…..Kavitha came to me massaged my back, my shoulders and pushed me out of the chair….Get up and finish the run she said…. 7 hrs and 40km, I needed the 1st loop to be quick one so as to have enough time for last 20km, Coach and I discussed – this loop has to be nonstop running, off we went….running at a good pace, didn't stop at the AS2, pit stop at AS3 for a quick refueling and and off went ….loop 10 of 11 done in 2.30hrs…200km up ….wah I was just 20km shy of my first 220km still had 4.30hrs to finish last 20km, I reached AS1 and was joined by my wife Roma, had a quick bite and was now in a hurry to finish the run.
Loop 11 – last one, 3 of us, Coach, Roma and I started
off slowly and steadily towards our goal, i.e. to reach AS3 without tripping,
at 5km mark I met Amit Ojha another great runner, he asked coach to rest at AS2
and he would crew me for 10km, what a pleasure to run with Amit, he would ask
me to walk where he felt danger of me tripping on rock and made me run on
flatter portion of the trail, at AS3 he made fabulous Nimboo Paani, I had chips
and turned back for last 10km…I was feeling so light and happy that I am about
to finish the tough Bhatti Lake Ultra 220km…….at about 214km mark I met the
speed king Umesh and Rashmi, Umesh came to pace me after finishing his CRPF run
and Rashmi was doing 50km run at Bhatti. Reached AS2, 215km done…what a relief.
Coach was back with renewed energy and we started running for our last 5km ….Coach
told Umesh to keep the pace as we wanted to finish before cut off time, kept
running …..Finish line was in front of me…gathered all my strength and reached
finish line… 220km done and dusted with, in 43hrs52min…..what a feeling…..
I lost 3kg but the best part was that my BP was under
control throughout the run.
I give all the credit to my Wife Roma who had been a
pillar of strength throughout, my kids who always look forward for to my
adventure, Coach Ravinder who sacrificed his CRPF run to be with me – what a noble soul he is, blessing to have such
friends, Trips who
was constantly on phone from Jaisalmer, Vineet and Puneeta for pushing me on 1st
night, Princy and Niraj who were there at right time and right place, Umesh for
the last 6km pace and all my friend who have supported me in my training and Kavitha for organizing
such amazing runs. Perfect to the T, volunteers always eager to help, food,
tea/coffee, energy drink you name it and it was there cant ask for more. Thank you Globeracer and my friend Kavitha.
From a guy who was fat, swollen knees, medically unfit
5years back to finishing 2 grueling ultras in 2 months.
The secret is that ,I train my mind before every race,
the route, the time I want to achieve, the breaks I want to take, what I want
to eat etc etc. and then stick to it I don’t change my strategy in middle of
the race.
I am off to Bangalore for Bangalore Ultra 24hrs challenge….wait
for more to come……
