Are you Participating in the Mumbai Marathon?

As you know Mumbai marathon is just a few weeks away and many of the Chennai Runners will be going.. If you are one of them.. Please do take a few moments to complete this simple.. It will help us collaborate and synch up on travel plans..

Please do complete this form by Dec 31, 2009.. before the new year.. !!!

Happy Running..

Hong Kong Marathon - Venkatesh Update

Team
Just heard from Venkatesh, One of our own who participated in the Hong Kong Marathon yesterday.

Venkatesh mentioned that the route was a killer with many fly overs to tackle and certainly wasn't a easy course. In spite of the 'obstacle course' like route, I am glad to report that Venkatesh finished with a solid timing of 4:15:00.

Venkatesh.. Congratulations and we are proud of you here at Chennai Runners. Enjoy the well deserved break..

When you have a moment, I welcome you to write your impressions on your first international marathon in our blog..

நம்ம சென்னை - Chennai Marathon

நம்ம சென்னை marathon is upon us tomorrow.. I am confident we would show up in full strength tomorrow. If you are looking to car pool, please do assemble at Dimensions by 5:15 AM, we would do our little to reduce congestion at the starting point.

Also, we would like all of our fraternity to wear the special chennairunners bib in addition to the BIB (chest number) given out by the organizers. Karthik & KK would be distributing it at the starting point from around 6:00 AM.

Be there or be square.. See you tomorrow..

Let us do our part for the love of Chennai... after all it is நம்ம சென்னை.

Happy Running

Are you participating in Hyderabad Marathon?

Chennai Runners..
You must have seen mails on Hyderabad Marathon happening in 12 days.. (August 16, 2008) and several of you registered as well. Can we get a quick headcount on final numbers please?

If you are going, can you please respond to this post? We will get a final headcount and a separate mail thread going for logistics.

Rajesh Vetcha: Good luck with the marathon.. having organized smaller runs, we know what it takes to get something of this size going.. Good luck to your team and thanks for making it happen.

Go Tiger.. God Speed..

In less than 24 hours from now, our Tiger would be hitting the road in Brisbane.. It feels good to see Chennai Runners hitting the marathon circuit across the world. Last week, our Shahid did the difficult Turin Marathon in Europe and now Tiger is doing Brisbane marathon in Australia. Feels Good.. feels really good..

Tiger.. Good Luck and God Speed..

Extreme Marathons

Check this out.. Some of the most challenging marathons in the world.. I didn't see Great Wall marathon in it.. which is kind of surprising.. (via Sathyaraj)

Spirit of Marathon - Out in Theaters Tomorrow

Wait.. wait.. there is catch.. Spirit of Marathon is being released in US and NOT in India..

Spirit of Marathon is slated general release tomorrow in US. I am not sure when it would find its way to India, but I am going to Beijing in a couple of weeks and looking forward to see it there..

Interestingly, they had one show across US on Jan 24, 7:30 which seem to have generated lot of interest in the movie. can't wait..

Auroville Marathon: Critical Information in a Nutshell

Dear Runners,

Hope you are all set to run the Auroville Marathon this Sunday, the 17th February 2008. I know you've been waiting for this run for quiet sometime now. The D-Day is close and we've just frozen the list of runners from Chennai.

In this mail, I've attempted to put together all the necessary details one would need for this travel. Please make sure you take a look at the mail in full. You can also take a print of this email so that you can refer whenever you need to.

The final list of runners who are going to be sharing the bus/car is as follows-

01.) Kiruba - kiruba@kiruba.com
02.) Suresh KP - kpsuresh1746@gmail.com
03.) Ram Viswanathan - ram@viswanathan.in
04.) Balaji S - sbalaji1@gmail.com
05.) Guna Sekaran - gunasekaran.sj@gmail.com
06.) Vignesh Raja - vignesh.raja@gmail.com
07.) Sriram Srinivasan - ssriram0@gmail.com
08.) Mohan - mohank2002@gmail.com
09.) Narayanan - narayananmswamy@gmail.com
10.) Abhijit Shome - shome2000@gmail.com
11.) Siva - sivaramsk@gmail.com
12.) Karthik Vijayakumar - karthik@karthikvijayakumar.com
13.) Ashwin Prabhu - ashwin.prabhu@gmail.com
14.) Ravi Kumar - pravikumar77@yahoo.com
15.) Rajesh Subramanian - rajesh.postbox@gmail.com
16.) Atul Dhere
17.) Anand Takale - atakale@gmail.com
18.) Madhavan
19.) Shivank Nayak
20.) Pradeep Kodali
21.) Rajesh Vetcha - rvetcha@gmail.com
22.) Rajni Singh - rajnisingh@gmail.com
23.) Elka Sinha - elkasinha@rediffmail.com

The following list of runners are riding their own cars-

24.) Shahid - skandrikar@gmail.com
25.) George - geprabhu@gmail.com
26.) Vijaykumar Muthian - vijaykumar.muthian@gmail.com
27.) Shahul Hameed - hameeds@gmail.com
28.) Shumit Vatsal - shumit.vatsal@gmail.com
29.) Sandilya Venkatesh - svenkatesh@cepios.com
30.) Dave Wallack - davewallack@gmail.com
31.) Karthikeyan Vijayakumar - karthikeyan.vijayakumar@gmail.com
32.) CDR ASHVINI KUMAR - ashvini6106@gmail.com
33.) Ramesh - tigerswami@gmail.com

:In the sections below, you will find some useful and important information pertaining to this travel:

IMPORTANT NOTE:
Please take a PRINT of the attached document "AVRunners Registration Form.doc", fill in the details and bring it along. IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE THIS TO REGISTER YOURSELF FOR THE MARATHON.

TRAVEL RELATED INFORMATION:

• Cost per-head for the bus ride (Chennai-Auroville-Chennai) - INR 400 (This will be collected during the time of boarding in Chennai)
• Boarding Point - Hotel Woodlands Drive-in
• Boarding Date & Time (From Chennai) - 16th February @ 02:00PM
• Departure Time on 16th February - 02:30PM
• PLEASE NOTE: You can park your vehicles at Woodlands Drive-in hotel AT YOUR OWN RISK. Chennai Runners DOES NOT bear any liability on your vehicle or ANY BELONGINGS left inside or outside of your vehicle.
  

TRAVEL & ACCOMMODATION VENUE/ COSTING:

• Bus Ride - INR 400 per head
• Car Pooling - Fuel cost/Number of people
• Accommodation @ Sports Center/Ladies Dorm - INR 200 per head
• Carbo Dinner @ Auroville Visitor Center from 6PM to 8PM on Saturday 16th - INR 75 per head
• Race Pack distribution @ Auroville Visitor Center from 6PM to 8PM on Saturday, the 16th

IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS TO CARRY:

• Driving License - For those who are driving down
• Photo Identity Card - Copy of your driving license/ voter id
• CASH - Its always good to have some extra cash in hand (Do not just rely on your Credit/Debit cards)
• Emergency Contact Information (Name, Address and Contact Phone)
  

SUGGESTED ITEMS FOR YOUR BACKPACK:

• Pillow and Sleeping bag
• Odomos/ Any mosquito repellent
• Water and Energy Drinks
• Alarm Clock (To avoid doing just a 'dream' marathon)
• Small Torch
• Pillow Case
• Cap/Sun Glasses
• iPod/ portable music player
• Head/wrist band
  
• Towel
• Sun Screen
• Vaseline
• Band-Aid/plaster
• Soap and Shampoo
• Change clothes

RUN TIMINGS

• Full-Marathon starts @ 5AM
• Half-Marathon starts @ 7AM
• 10-K Run starts @ 7:30AM
• 5-K Run starts @ 8:30AM

PREPARATION/ RUN TIPS:

• Drink lots of water before the race day
• Do a warm-up run prior to the race day
• Do a lot of stretching atleast 3-4 days prior to the race day - This is to avoid injuries
• Take a lot of carbohydrates prior to the race day (the carbo dinner should help here)
• Do not drink too much of water (over-hydration). Do not drink too less of water either (dehydration)
• Energy fluids are better alternatives to water during the run - Gatorade and Electral helps here
• Run to better your own past records
• If you sense any discomfort during the run, please stop and seek help. Do not exert...you might aggravate the injury
• Enjoy the run! After all, its just another way to have fun!
  

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Karthik Vijayakumar - +91 9840048046
• Ram Viswanathan - +91 9840430400

PLEASE PRINT THE REGISTRATION FORM (attached with this email) AND GET THEM WHEN YOU COME.

The Auroville Marathon REGISTRATION HAS BEEN CLOSED. So, we will not be able to accept more runners from Chennai. The above list is FINAL.

I hope to have covered all critical information in this email. Should you have ANY questions regarding the arrangements and the run, please feel more than free to call either me or Ram (numbers furnished above). I look forward to meeting and running with you all. Catch you on 16th!

Happy Running!
--
Karthik Vijayakumar
http://blog.karthikvijayakumar.com/
http://www.karthikvijayakumar.com/

Warm Welcome to all our New Members!

Dear Runners,

We've had more than a dozen new member registrations since the last two days. We'd like to take this opportunity to welcome all our new members!

We'd like to quickly brief on some of the key activities and facts @ Chennai Runners:

• We've been actively participating in many marathons, which has got us a lot of media attention from both, news chronicles and magazine sections of the media world. This has also resulted in the team growing from about 53 members in 2006 to about 330 members as on date. We've been one of the fastest growing running groups in the region.

• As a team we participated in our first international marathon @ Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon in 2007.

• We successfully conducted five 30 kilometer (about 18.5miles) ECR Runs!

• Participated as a team in the Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon held in January 2008.

• A team participation at the Hero Ultra Chennai Marathon held on 10th February 2008.

• Covered by the media in more than an occasion - The Hindu, India Today, Deccan Chronicle, Mylapore Times, to mention a few.

We believe in the fact that Running is all about Having Fun! Thats our mantra. We just hope that our new members will derive benefit from joining us. We invite our new members to mail and introduce yourselves to the team, and we look forward to running with you in the days to come.

Feel free to shoot any question you may have in the context of running and Chennai Runners. There is a whole bunch of enthusiastic runners waiting to help you with the right answers!

Happy Running!

Best,
--
Karthik Vijayakumar
http://blog.karthikvijayakumar.com/

Chennai Marathon 2008 - A Report

Dear Readers,
We've observed a lot of comments on this article recently. This article is on the Hero Ultra Chennai Marathon that was held in Feb 2008. This is NOT the Marg Chennai Marathon!
The pictures of the Marg Chennai Marathon can be found at http://photos.chennairunners.com

Thanks,
Karthik

Chennai Marathon did finally happen and here are some photos from that forgettable event..


About 18 from our group participated including Mrs. Mahesh who I saw about a km from the finish line walking but determined to finish..


Registration was still open few minutes to the start of the run.. People were milling around to register and get their bibs and TShirts.


Hero Ulta, electric scooter makers were the main sponsor for the event. These guys were cruising around without helmets and were quiet a hindrance to the runners.


Sports Minister of Tamil Nadu & Mayor of Chennai about to flag off the marathon.....


Less than 50 runners participated in the full marathon.. not sure how many completed. Abhijit, Vittal & Venkatesh from our group were at the starting line.


Karthik @ the finish line


Senthil @ the finish line..


Shahul @ the finish line


Balaji @ the finish line

In all, I am glad there was a run. I hope they continue this trend in the years to come but with lot more preparation and professional help.

Personally, It wasn't a good run for me.. I did only half of half marathon..








More Photos in flickr

Run Tomorrow - Chennai Marathon

Believe IT.. Chennai Marathon is happening tomorrow (Feb 10, 2008). No information is available about the start location, time, route etc,, but don't despair the organizers have time till tomorrow to sort it out. They have organized a marathon in 5 days.. and wouldn't need more than just 5 minutes to sort out minor details like route, start time, information dissemination etc.,

But.. we Chennai Runners won't let our city down.... we will participate and will do so in numbers. We might not know the definitive start time and location but will assemble near Anna Square @ 6:00 AM. Thanks to Karthik, I took care of my registration without much hassle and I suggest you guys do the same. Depending on who you encounter at the registration desk, might be asked for medical certificate etc.,

So friends, our scheduled run tomorrow will be the 'Chennai Marathon'.. keep your fingers crossed.. and camera ready..

My First Marathon - KP Suresh

by KP Suresh

Hi, Friends, and Fellow Runners, this is my modest two penny attempt at writing a report on how I fared at the Mumbai Half marathon.

My preparations were basically a long streak of daily running from Gopalapuram to Marina and back (8kms) and joined the group in running the ECR on 06.01.08 and the different route on 13.01.08. On Friday we left, we here meaning myself and Guna, by the Chennai-Mumbai mail departing at 2250hrs,it was a big risk to reach the venue of the run 3 hrs before but the alternatives were, well, lets' say more expensive!! This particular method was easy on the purse albeit risky. Guna and myself met on the train and we discussed the run strategies, my strategy or plan was to run at a pace of 9-10kms/hr till 18-19kms and make a bid to cross the last 2-3kms in a dash if there is any energy left. On the day journey we took rest, then slept, rest, sleep, polished a dozen bananas between us, ate the plain thalis, other foodstuffs like samosas were avoided. The bananas were for potassium, energy and fibre to clear bowels. Fellow veteran passengers on this train assured us that the train has a knack of arriving on time in spite of being more 3 hrs late, that was reassuring because it was running late by an hour or so. The prediction was true and the indeed the train arrived at CST dot at 3.30am,we moved to the waiting room, did our ablutions, my friend in Mumbai came at 5am with the bib no.and the goody bag at CST. Vignesh was carrying Guna's bib no. and was to meet at the venue only at 5.30am.

After changing into running kit, we gingerly stepped out of Mumbai CST an imposing landmark as anybody would tell you, there was a buzz in the air and we could see some of our fellow runners also coming our way. As usual there was this confusion between the map and the gate nos, the security was allowing only people with bib nos in the ground which was quite large and spacious, facilities for VIPs, elite runners (read invited runners like the Kenyans) had shamianas, while the aam runners had the sky as roof. A volunteer looked sour and unhappy at being enquired as to where the baggage area, dunces, they must have thought of us, can't they see with their eyes.

Well, the baggage counters were well manned, I took out the two 200ml bottles which contained the mixture (2 teaspoons of glucose, a pinch of salt and a teaspoon of sugar) mixed half a lemon in each and topped it with water, so my rehydration, salt, energy replenishment kit was ready, the baggage was deposited. The ground was now swelling and filling with people and the public toilets had long queues they were some kind of wagons that could be towed away, so you can realize what a messy affair it was and the area had a stench. We had met Vignesh by then and Vignesh introduced us to a lady who only 54, was coming from Gurgaon and was aiming for 2hr finish. She had done quite a few marathons in Macao, Korea etc, that was enough to give me a complex. There was another person who was wearing a veteran tag who was also aiming for 2:05 finish, gulp, these golden oldies. It was pitch dark still, the sun in Chennai rises these days at 6.36 am or so but in Mumbai it is much later. The announcement came for the runners to go into the holding area which seemed to be the same for everyone though they had mentioned chip/transponder holders will be given preference. Our plan, that is three of us, was to run in a file and lock our legs in a rhythm and the distance is covered more easily.

It was very crowded and the collective action of people on the march gave rise to dust. Soon the group of people started moving and we realized that the run had started on dot and it was another 100mts or so before we reached the starting point where I espied Tina Ambani in the VIP gallery waving to the crowd, that meant hubby Anil was running the half. The time in the watch was still 6.42 am, that's pretty good, an on dot start. The crowds were there cheering, the drums were on and it was a carnival atmosphere. The run was pretty good; we veered to the left of the road to the margins where the TV/news cameras were positioned, in the hope of being captured by the cameras as proof of our run to convince skeptics. The speed was 9kms per hour as per my calculation, Vignesh, myself and Guna sticking to each other. We passed the famous Hutatma Chowk and Flora Mountain without seeing the landmarks because of barricades and the crowds. After Churchgate the run turned to left on Marine drive and in front of the Air India building the hoarding said -For Once, don't fly, in fact all the hoarding along the route were tuned into the spirit of running. Water points while going were more than while coming back. The run was smooth, we could talk and even do a jig at the music which was being played at certain places on Marine drive, at the 5^th km mark, Guna found the pace too fast for his liking and waved us ahead, so Vignesh and I stuck together, as part of sightseeing I pointed out the famous Chowpatty beach on the left, at the end of Marine drive we turned inwards towards Pedder road, by now the sun was well up and about, at the turn it was about 9 kms or so and the hour mark on the watch was coming up, the sound of sirens and the car opposite with the timer watch on top meant the 1 hour finishers were on the way back and soon enough they were there, a Finn and an Indian in hot pursuit, who eventually won the half. For want of a better word, I can say they really whizzed past, I thought they were sprinting to the finish. Meanwhile we were still just about reaching the halfway mark. The Pedder road uphill flyover was the first break on the speed, still the run was comfortable, we could talk to each other, acknowledge the cheers of the crowd. I also saw we had a downward slope which could prove treacherous on the way back, very prophetic, it turned out to be. I had starting sipping the 1^st bottle from the 5km mark and repeated that every km. Meanwhile the first group of hobby runners (Sunita Godara would call us that) after the pros had gone had started coming from the opposite side, I could spot Milind Soman, Guna saw Anil Ambani on the opposite all finished under 2 hrs, I think.

Meanwhile the Worli sea face opened up and we could spot Haji Ali shrine to our left, it seemed very comfortable, the glucose was taking its effect. Vignesh too seemed ok, under the flyover we turned back that was 12^th km jus 9kms to go, this is good going. As we approached 13^th km, Vignesh too asked me to go ahead, that left me alone to pace on my own. I think it slowed me and I couldn't find anybody into whose stride length I could slide into a rhythm.

The drone of the helicopter meant that the full Monty was on and we could catch a glimpse of the Kenyans and the Ethiopians, soon, the car with the timer on top came with the lead group of runners all Africans, no Indian in sight, boy, they just seemed to glide on the road, smooth long strides, seemingly effortless.14^th came, going good, the 1^st bottle was over and the second one came on, then the Pedder road uphill climb came, that was really energy sapping, now I was crawling at 6kms per hour, the end of the uphill and the another on the flyover was a big relief, I didn't want to charge downhill for fear of hurting the knees. The sun was up and shining bright, thankfully due to the high-rises which cast shadows the effect of the sun was mitigated. I also saw and waved to Narayan and Rajesh going for the full on the opposite, I saw Abhijit also busy in his strides. The Pedder road climb had a telling effect on energy sources, now the km marks were longer in coming, at this juncture I missed familiar company to talk and get over the mental aspect.

Since it was tiring it was difficult to concentrate on the fun aspect, the mind as usual started playing games, come on walk, take it easy, said one part, the other part was singing an old Hindi song, which is my mantra on such runs…which goes somewhat like this……. ruk jana nahi tu kahi haar ke, kaaton pe chalke milenge saaye baharon ke…meaning. Don't stop now feeling defeated; the road to flower beds is strewn with thorns…

As I turned onto Marine Drive on the home stretch, still 4 kms away, the sun was now full onto the face, that was another killer application especially on the return stretch. The momentum was lost, time 8.30am,still 5 kms to go, now I had to virtually drag my feet off the ground, the sun beating mercilessly, longed for the comfort of the shadows of tall buildings which came at about 19^th kms. The run had become a jog, the jog was becoming a shuffle, and to my dismay a tall guy who was walking very fast was going past me.8.45am, 2hrs gone, still 3 kms to go. I also did a thing which I had never done before, I doused my face and my head with water to see whether it had any effect, then it seemed it hadn't worked, but in retrospect I feel the sprint/dash to the finish was because of that. I decided to wait till the bend at which you turn inside the road going to Churchgate from Marine Drive, the last 1.5kms to go for a surge, come what may. Humming the Hindi film song, I shuffled till the bend and then made a lung bursting dash for the end, 1.5kms to go, the dash ended at 500mts,when it seemed my lungs would really go bust, 1st time I walked for a few meters, then sprinted another 100mts,walked, sprinted, walked, sprinted till I saw the finish gate which was about 200mts,the last 200mts were completed in a delirium, to the extent I even could not read the time properly, I read it as 2:44,later on, I came to know the time was 2:36:31.

At the finish, if I closed my eyes I was seeing stars, open your eyes, you were seeing dark images, the legs seemed very heavy and the plantar fascitis in the heel was paining like hell. The counters where you went to collect your refund back were chaotic to say the least, the lucky guys were the ones who didn't wear the ankle chips, they got their certificates on time. The transponder guys had to stand in long queues till Sunita Godara the former women's marathon champ, now 48 ran the half marathon took charge, she made a plea for outstation runners to form a separate queue and gave some running tips to hobby runners, as she called us. Her first tips, not to run in new clothes, according to her, new clothes don't absorb sweat well and can increase your time by few minutes. Next tip, to wear sleeveless vest/shirt/garment for both men and women, wearing turtle necked,half sleeved tishirts can also increase your time by some more minutes. Lastly, to tie your laces in double knots, tuck the loose ends inside the shoe, so that you don't waste time and rhythm tying shoelaces during running. Thanks to her intervention we got our money back, but no certificate because the software had developed a glitch, the certificate would be posted a week later.

Since the ordinary non-VVIP runners were not provided with shamianas we had to relax on the bare grounds in hot sun, though it didn't seem as hot it was during the run. The refreshment coupon had 2 bananas, one apple and a packet of biscuits, the volunteers were however free with water bottles.

At the end of it but for the chaos to redeem the transponder the arrangements were, let's say, quite un-Indian. The streets were scrubbed clean, I was told later by residents, that the BMC used water tankers to clean the streets, the Mumbai public, God bless them, was out on the streets, cheering the runners, made a carnival atmosphere. The entire roads up and down were closed for traffic, not even a stray dog could be spotted.

My recommendation, half Mary's the best for Mumbai, the full can be very taxing, I met Mahesh, Rajesh trooping back amidst traffic at 1330-1345hrs.if the run doesn't get you, the heat will. The half Mary can be started at 5.45 or 6am.Since the leading newspaper went to town with run, it has been made into an event. With glamour businessmen like Anil, Doug Baillie and the Hiranandanis running nothing beats the Mumbai Marathon as the marathon to be in India.

This run is dedicated to Chennai runners,without whom I coudn't have dreamt of doing till June last year,3 cheers to the group, hip-hip-hurray.I also wish to express my thanks to Vignesh,and Guna and to Ramesh(Tiger) for inspiring me to write this piece.

How do you choose a training plan?

1. Can you keep up with the chosen training plan?

Ideally for running a marathon within 4 hours, a runner needs to put in a minimum of 50 miles a week for about 8 weeks, and approximately 40 miles a week for the another 8 weeks. You must have sufficient upper body strength to maintain your posture and this requires about 3 hours/week on your upper body. Are you mentally ready to keep up with the training plan? Can you comply to a minimum of 95% of the training plan is a question you must ask yourself before choosing to run a marathon

2. How much time a week can you devote towards training?

Running 50 miles a week requires you to devote an average of 2 hours a day of running which translates to 14 hours a week.

3. How many weeks can you devote for training?

Typically marathon training programs are for 16 weeks.

4. What are your strengths and weaknesses – in terms of speed, endurance, body reaction to increases in mileage?

Before you start training, measure your 5k speed, 10k speed, calculate your Vo2 max (there are formulas to do that on the internet) and have a fair understanding of how your body reacts to different speeds and mileage.

5. What types of training would you like to do - circuit training, strength plus running?

Personally for me, circuit training works wonders. I come out of every circuit training feeling more powerful than before and these sessions make me fast. However, different people react to different methods of training differently. In other words, know what turns you on.

6. What are the environmental conditions? Are the training conditions similar to race conditions? What are the facilities and opportunities available for training?

Train in months that are relatively cooler than the summers. In Chennai, your training should start in August and end in December. Check local gyms and get assistance of a professional coach if you are running your first marathon. Read up on running as much as you can. Reading not only motivates you but also teaches you a lot about what you should not do.

My First Marathon - Mahesh Krishnamurthy

by Mahesh Krishnamurthy

Someone has rightly said that it is all in the mind and attitude. Well After running the mid night marathon in Bangalore in May 2007 I decided that it is time for me to attempt a full marathon. By May I had completed three half marathons of 21 km. All averaged between 2 hr 15 min and 2 hr and 25 min. It was a decision carefully taken by self and of course as usual letting to know one and all about my aspiration. I set out to plan my running schedule.

In June averaging about 30 km a week had to plan to increase it to 55 km a week; my max distance in a week was 16 km which needs to be doubled and that was a challenge. I had been running four days a week and needed to continue.

Nothing like hitting the road at 5 am with dark sky around, watching the first milk man cycling to deliver your daily milk, regular morning walkers slowing setting the streets with people and then the amazing scene of the sky becoming white/blue and then orange until the first rays of sun hits you. As one runs through streets of Chennai it is a wonderful experience to run when all is silent and you have the whole road literally to oneself.

Well by august my longest single runs where coming closer to 21 km but that was not the target. One fine day I read a mail from Chennai runners mentioning about a 26 km run in ECR. I participated but failed miserably after 22 km took an auto to the finish point. Learning had run my first 16 km in one and half hours, too fast by my standards. The second chance came again two months later a 30km run in ECR, courtesy Chennai runners. The same I completed in 3 hrs and 45 minutes. It was in Oct and that week overall did a 55km of running. Two weeks later did a 28km single run and overall hit 48 km. This was followed by 26km ultra in Bangalore on 16^th Dec and started the New Year with another 32km run in ECR with Chennai runners.

Well by 1^st week of Jan wasn’t sure about a full 42.2 km. My Brother Bhaskar kept saying one 32km is good enough, pace yourself though it is preferred to do couple of 32km-35km prior to the big event but it will take your through. My wife kept saying plan to finish, don’t look at the time and she seemed to be more confident than me about the finish (some also say the better half knows more about you than yourself!).

Well the big day arrived, reached Mumbai and had a pasta lunch with RFL friends. With who so ever I discussed the only comment was go slow the first half, it will be very warm, drink plenty of water and aim to finish. Quite a few well wishers had already sent an SMS wishing me all the best (which I needed most). I took off on time at 7.40 am and was among the last 100 runners. Keeping a slow steady pace, Mr Rajesh from RFL kept slowing down for me but eventually gave up and went ahead at around 3km mark. At around 14 km which took me 1 hr 55 min felt ok and was going strong. At around 23km the heat was taking its toll, it had taken me 3 hrs. Took a spray in my calf muscle which was beginning to hurt and a pain killer for my arms which I learnt later that once in a while need to swing my hands, keeping hands in one position could lead you to severe pain in your hands. I touched 30 km in 4 hr and 20 min, I passed Rajesh at 32 km by then I had slowed down quite a bit but doing fine. The flyover at around 36 km put breaks on me. Coming down the slope tried to speed up and paid for it as I pulled up my calf muscle. I slowed down my pace further and completed the marathon in 6 hrs and 1 minute. I was all along targeting a sub 6 hr run since I had run only a few 30 plus runs. Overall a great experience and enjoyed every bit of it. My special thanks to my brother and my mentor. It has been a great experience running with the Chennai runners, though I wish it could be more often. Definite thanks to my wife lakshmi and my daughters who have always stood beside me. Well have set my next goal to be sub 5 hr 45 min my next marathon. Plan to take few weeks lightly before I set my eyes to the next big event.

Hope all will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!!

Mahesh: Congratulations.. We are all proud of you.. you stuck to your dream and got there..

Good Luck to Chennai Runners Participating in Mumabai Marathon

By the time we would have finished our weekly long run tomorrow, some of the Chennai Runners would be just warming up. They are off to Mumbai chasing their dreams.

The largest contingent from Chennai Runners is off to Mumbai to participate in the Standard Charted Mumbai Marathon. I wish them all the very best in endeavor and may their dreams come true.



Chennai Runners participating in Mumbai Marathon 2008

1. Narayanan
   
2. KP Suresh
3. Mahesh
4. Guna
5. Abhijit
6. ???

Good Luck Chennai Runners and God Speed.

A side note: Mumbai Marathon seems to be getting better year after year. Though I still don't like the start time of the full marathon which is later than the half marathon. I am serioiusly thinking of participating in the full marathon next year.