Tata Mumbai Marathon 2020

Vasanth and I were in the holding area, along with thousands more. At 5:15am, our limbs stretched and awake, we were waiting to get started. This was to be my first Mumbai marathon, and the first time I’d attempted running 42.2km without shoes. Anticipation was dripping in the chill air when a familiar song played on the loudspeakers.

Sound of the drums, beating in my heart, the thunder of guns yeah, tore me apart. You've been thunderstruck.

The lyrics and the powerful guitars of Thunderstruck (by AC/DC) put me in a state of unreal excitement! I’d run marathons before. I’d taken a grueling 5 hours 45 minutes the first two times I ran. With much training, I’d saved 35 minutes the next time. At Mumbai marathon 2020, my target was to finish within 5 hours. My training, which commenced in late August, saw me take my December and yearly mileage to 101km and 502km respectively. I’d completed my best running year with my best running month. This training was complemented with a protein high diet designed by Aishwarya. Apart from goading me to run on my lazy days, tempting me with small but effective incentives, she’d also gotten me into doing yoga regularly. The disciplined training and diet over the last few months was primarily to ensure that the upcoming struggle would be on my own terms.

I went over my strategy one last time with Vasanth: run at a steady pace of 6:30 minutes/km until 30km, which meant that I’d take 3 hours and 15 minutes to complete 30km. Then push through as much as I can, and make sure I finish within 5 hours. With preparation like this, and with the weather so good, I was determined to break the 5 hour barrier. It was time for us to move towards the start line.

Right from the people behind me on the flight to just about everywhere in the city, Mumbai marathon was heard and seen. The radio spoke about it. All the Mumbaikars knew about it. The bib collection expo was buzzing. On the evening before the run, I saw people putting up aid-stations and portable toilets. There was an unmistakable energy pulsing through the city, and now walking towards the start line at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, I couldn’t wait to channel it! Wishing each other luck, starting a gentle trot, hitting start on our watches, we were past the first timing mats, and our marathon was underway!

The first quarter

Early on, we settled into a pace that was just faster than 6:30 minutes/km. Running through the gorgeous Old Bombay streets, we felt comfortable. After 3km, we were running right next to the sea on Marine Drive. The quiet run that it was until then, changed when the fanfare started along the Marine Drive. NGOs, sports companies and the like had vibrant and loud stalls with a lot of people cheering us on.

The route map with elevation. The steep incline in the last quarter is the Pedder road stretch.

We were still running with a big crowd, as we took a right at Chowpatty, leaving behind the sea. I had gone through the route map enough to know that there was an incline coming after 9km. When the crowd slowed down a bit on this incline, I peeled away and I lost Vasanth in the crowd.

Children with plates of salt, an old man playing an organ connected to a speaker were among the first signs of the Mumbai public on the roads, cheering us runners on. I raced down the road which led us to Haji Ali, back next to the sea. The half marathon runners were seen in plenty on the other side of the road. More than a fourth of the run through, the pleasant weather continued to last as I comfortably maintained my pace.

Sea-link and beyond

The route took us past the half marathon start point in Worli, where many speakers played different music. Whatever the music, I had a brief burst of speed! I ran past The Common Man statue on the Worli sea face. The iconic Bandra-Worli sea link was in sight already and from a distance, the swarm of runners running up the road looked like ants scurrying up a molehill. Soon, I was on the sea link myself.

I often looked to the right while I ran the 3km+ distance on the sea link as it offered magnificent views of the Mumbai skyline. Midway through the sea link when I turned back, I realized how flooded the sea link was with runners. It was 7am, and the sun rose behind the buildings on my right. By the time I was off the sea link, the sun had grown from a small arc to a kindly red ball, its light reflected off of the buildings and the sea below. The road curved right in a descent, and I was off the sea link, having completed 19km.

The spirit of Mumbai

Until then, I’d managed to run with barely any stops. I didn’t have to stop at water stations as water bottles were handed out. I had to only slow down a bit to drink electrolyte. Wherever I’d seen oranges, I’d grabbed a few and continued running, treating myself to the oranges at different milestones. This was when I realized that I didn’t have to stop if I didn’t want to. After 20km, I gave myself a short breather when I stretched my soleus, calves, and back in particular. The sun was up and was brighter now, as I completed 21km with a worrying hint of fatigue. As my watch chimed to tell me 22km were up, I saw that the last 2km split had taken over 13 minutes. Over halfway through, I was faltering.

The run took us through residential areas now, and the light had brought the people of Mumbai to the streets. Many stood with plates filled with bananas or oranges, people were handing out lemonade, some even held out volini spray. I ran past a petrol-bunk who had their own electrolyte stand! The people of Mumbai were putting a smile on my face. My focus now was entirely on acknowledging anyone who cheered us on. Even if there was one lone person clapping so softly that nobody heard them, I made sure that to show in some way that they made a difference. I waved at an old woman in a hat, who was beating a drum with one hand and high-fiving the runners with the other. I put my thumbs up for many, flashed a smile often, high-fived kids. Before I knew it, my watch beeped after 24km, telling me that I’d covered the last 2km within 13 minutes again. I was back on track, and was feeling invigorated by the affection of the public!

Approaching the wall

My spirits were lifted and running was a pleasure again. But I had to remind myself to stay humble. I reminded myself to stay grounded to achieve my first target of finishing 30km in 3 hours 15 minutes. After 26km, I saw that I had about 28 minutes for my 30km target and was then confident that I'd make it. The road got a little prickly around then, with construction work going on. Then came a small stretch where the tar really stung my feet. But on my 29^th kilometer, I was out in front of Worli again, the sea link back in view, and I didn't have to worry about my feet anymore. My watch chimed to tell me that I was done with 30km, but the official 30km board wasn’t in sight. After about 400m, I saw the 30km board on the right. I glanced down at my watch. 3 hours, 15 minutes, 30 seconds! The easy part of running the first 30km was done. Things were about to get tough.

I did a few more stretches and turned on my music. The music was a welcome distraction and spurred me on. But soon I found myself walking often. It was difficult to maintain my pace, and the heat was getting to me. The elite full marathon runners, who’d started much after us, blazed past. But it did nothing to motivate me. I was hitting the physical and mental wall. I had to make some changes to keep going. After 32km, I changed my watch face to display just the time of the day, instead of distance, duration, and pace. A suggestion from Vasisht, it took my mind off the numbers. I decided to look sparingly at my watch until I reached 38km, by when I’d have just 10% of the run left. The people were still out on the streets and I took biscuits from them. But no amount of their cheering or kindness got me going. I tried to follow someone ahead of me, but everyone seemed much faster than me. My pace was dreadfully slow. I put my head down, distracted myself with the music, and just kept plodding on.

The music effect

During the 36^th kilometer came the dreaded Pedder road, a stretch of rather steep climb. I forced myself to not walk during the climb, but to no avail. I tried to feed off of the crowd, but it still had no impact. I trudged along to the top of the road. But now, I was looking at a favourable descent ahead. Through my earphones, I heard the heavy guitar riffing as Evolution (by Skyharbor) started playing. I had a surge in energy, mental and physical. I raced past people, down the road. I was once again looking at the people cheering us on. I read the many placards that were held. I was acknowledging the crowd again. The people of Mumbai had me smiling again. I was running faster, and I’d found my rhythm!

I was going through a phase of heightened emotions, and was aware that it would not last long. The crowd and the music – a Scarlet Stories song now playing -  kept me running like I did at the start. Seeing that I’d taken a few seconds over 13 minutes for the 37-38km split gave me further impetus. Into the last 10% of the run, I was overwhelmed by emotions when Lost (by Riverside) came on and I ran another fast kilometer. Now only 3km left, I saw that I’d taken 4 hours and 22 minutes or so. That was when I knew that I’d finish my run within my target of 5 hours.

The last stretch

Maybe I felt complacent with my finish time, as the effect of music wore away, and I couldn’t keep up my pace. More fatigue set in under the hot sun. I was so close to the finish, back near Marine Drive for the 40^th kilometer, but every next step took more effort. Runners now raced past me. In my 41^st kilometer, I saw someone in the crowd looking right at me, gesticulating to go faster. But nothing spurred me on anymore. The fact that the end was near was comforting, but far from motivating.

Finally, I saw the board that said I had 500m left. I pushed on. Now 300m left, I removed my earphones. The finish in sight, I tried to speed up. My focus then was only on finding Aishwarya. I knew she would be waiting at the finish, having finished her 10km run. A red carpet was laid out for the final few meters. Then ahead to my left, I saw Aishwarya! I found one final burst of energy. I raised my hands, sped on. Looking right at Aishwarya, I let out a triumphant scream. Both of us screamed, in unison. I raced past the people ahead of me. I gave it my all in one last lung-bursting sprint. I crossed the last timing mat, stopped my watch, and let out a sigh with a murmured expletive. In 4 hours 50 minutes and 19 seconds, I’d run my best marathon.

I walked on just a bit before I found a small space on the footpath where I slumped down, exhausted and exhilarated beyond belief. A beaming Aishwarya came to where I was sat. We didn't have to wait for long before Vasanth joined us. We tried to do some stretches. My muscles were really tight and I could barely move around. With great difficulty, we made our way to get our medals. The full marathon finishers were given one finisher medal and one inspiration medal, the latter to be given to the person who inspired them to run the marathon. I’d already decided to give that to Ragha.

The full marathon is a challenge like no other. The training for it often made me wonder if all this would be worth it. But the rewards of a marathon, primarily the upsurge of emotions during the run and the supreme runners high at the end of it, are also like no other. The full marathon distance is scary and tempting at the same time. You know your body and mind will fail you, but you want to try to keep pushing them anyway. What was different this time was that the Mumbaikars also played a part in keeping me going. Talking to Aishwarya about how incredible an experience this was, especially how wonderful the Mumbai folks on the streets were, I was almost moved to tears. All my training for many months was for those 5 hours. But those 5 hours will last a lifetime as cherished memories.

PS: With this run, I raised funds for CMCA, the NGO where Aishwarya works. Twenty donors contributed a total of Rs.54,988. I cannot thank them enough for their generosity. Do have a look at the great work CMCA do in the field of educating children.