Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon 2016 - an experience of a first Marathon

There are so many reasons that I started running, so many reasons that I wouldn’t have continued but only one reason that kept me going. Yeah, I wanted to complete a Marathon before I turned 30 and it was high on my bucket list.

Someone told me that if its your first marathon, its got to be Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon. And here I was standing at the line up section at the start of the race at CST. There was a feeling of apprehension and excitement, standing among the crowd in the dark and cold morning, waiting for the gun to fire.

I was apprehensive because, I felt I didn’t do much justice to my already under prepared training since I landed at Mumbai yesterday morning.

Besides having a stomach upset because of the spicy food at yesterdays lunch, I could barely get a sleep of 2 and a half hours at night. Earlier this morning, I boarded the local train from Thane station at 3:30 which was full of SCMM participants. I met this runner on the train, who also came from Delhi for his first marathon and, oh boy, was he prepared. He had ticked the entire array of checklist right from following a dedicated running plan, Carbo loading for the entire week to carrying gel bars for the race. Forget sticking to a training plan, my longest run in the past month hadn’t exceeded 10k. Forget Carbo loading, the breakfast that I had this morning was just 2 slices of bread and a banana. I was afraid whether it was too soon that I am attempting my Full Marathon. After all I was just 1.5 years into running and mere 2 half marathon old.

Well it was not that I was less informed. I had read tons of articles on running diet, exercise and training schedules. However, you just don’t get enough time out of the work schedule, parties and the drinking. I remember how I used to sometimes change into my running attire in my car at the traffic light just to save some precious time for running.

The race begins [pic courtesy SCMM 2016]

The countdown ended and the race started. It was exactly 5:40 by the clock. The historic Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus at the starting of the race looked stunning. The feeling of running on the dark streets of Mumbai under the street lights was incomparable to anything. I was surprised to see a lot of supporting crowd early at this hour.

In the initial stretch of 4 kms till Nariman Point, I found myself to be running rather slow owing to the packed runners on the road.  There were slow runners blocking your way and there were fast runners zipping past you. Although, I didn’t have a pacing strategy, the idea was to run by feel and target a finish time of a respectable 4 hours: 15 minute. However, as the race progressed till marine drive, the roads were wide open and I adjusted to my own comfortable pace. Running along the sea side amid the electrifying crowd and the Indian Navy band playing out just for you, felt like a deep privilege.

After crossing Chowpathy, at 10 km there was the dreaded Peddar road flyover which posed a real challenge as I felt slightly drained out of energy. And then, when there are volunteers handing out Energal and the crowd offering you bananas, you couldn’t feel much better.

The Worli- Bandra sea link at km 16 looked calm and poised. Today is the only day of the year when this bridge is thrown open to runners; a special privilege only for the SCMM participants. The sun rising precisely at that moment with sea on both sides of the bridge made for a good scenic view. A good occasion for the runners to pause and click pictures. Running the 6 kms stretch and inhaling the best possible air in Mumbai was a bliss.

Runners at the Worli-Bandra Sea link [pic courtesy SCMM 2016]

At the 21k timing mat, I registered a 2 hr 9 mins time which seemed acceptable and I continued at the same pace till  26k. That’s when I felt a mild headache and dizziness. Hitting the wall was the last thing I wanted today and I started walking for the first time in the race. That was when I learnt that it was damn difficult to start running again after a walk break.

At 30k, the elite Kenyan runners had started overtaking me with their long strides at cruising speed. I could feel the wind gushing at me as the other runners made way for them. The Indian elite runners were behind them by around 5 mins and I did recognize Nitendra Singh Rawat who was leading the pack.

At this point, my innermost toe which was rubbing against the shoe became worse. I knew that there was definitely a painful blister waiting to burst at any moment. The shoe that I was wearing was just a week old and was bought online at a highly discounted price. The price difference came with the ill fit and probably a damaged product which I realized just during the race.  It was a learning, the hardest way, for not trying anything new on race day.

My mind told me that It was impossible to carry on, while the pain in my legs supported that argument. My marathon had precisely begun at this time. I reminded myself that it was a mind over matter game. I just had to divert my mind away from the pain; which was easier said then done.The race from here on was a walk and run routine with the walk breaks getting larger and larger towards the end.

While a lot of beautiful girls in the crowd at Peddar road, 36k mark, did divert my mind for few seconds; a placard reading” Pain is temporary, Pride is Permanent” did really boost me up for the remaining race.

And in the end when the hours and hours of pounding on the asphalt exhausted me of all the energy, you had the crowd offering you salted oranges, bananas, chocolate bars, energy drinks, Parle G biscuits, home made cakes, candies to name a few.

And who could forget the strategically placed mist zones in the final kms. These water sprinkled mist zone tunnels would act like oasis in the desert taking away all the body heat and leaving you refreshed.

In the final 4 kms, when I was walking like the dead, it seemed that the whole of Mumbai had come out to cheer and resurrect me. I still remember the pretty girl in red top who literally came to my face and told me not to give up. I really thought that I was getting lucky but that’s a different story. I couldn’t have disappointed such a pretty lady and started running again.

Finally, I saw the last km mark. I couldn’t believe that I was so near but still far. That is when I told myself and every inch of my aching body, that I wouldn’t be walking this part. I pulled myself up, and started running with my head looking straight towards the finish line. The next moment, I found myself sprinting the last 100 meters and then, I took my final step across the finish line, 4hrs and 35 mins after I began.

Final yards to the finish line

The feeling of defying all odds, competing against myself and completing my first full marathon cant be described. It was the best feeling in the whole world. The pain, the exhaustion, the breathlessness and everything else sunk in the background; what was left was the divine feeling of pure bliss and accomplishment. I felt like a different person, more like a superhuman, invincible till the end. And yes this was an achievement, I proudly ticked off my bucket list.