Singapore Marathon will always have special place, as it all started from this event, my first attempt at 42km. This was the third consecutive year that I was participating in this event. As I stood at the starting point of the Marathon, with tall scrapers of May Bank, OCBC, and other big names, at the back drop, famous Fullerton Hotel on your right, Singapore Flyer on your left, it took me back to the feelings I experienced before the beginning of the first run. Now almost 6 marathons and some 10 half marathon old, preparatory steps are mechanical affair. This event has really grown in size. While some 6000 runners participated in first run in 2002, 50,000 runners participated in the 2009 edition!! This was one of the biggest participation count in the world. Of these 50,000 runners, 17,000 were doing the 42km. Around this time of year, Singapore is all lit up. Even at 5:30am, the lights were dangling on the trees across both sides the road.
6th Dec 2009: 5:30 am, Esplanade: Be it Delhi, Amsterdam, Singapore, MJ’s music has been omnipresent everywhere, after his demise. Theoretically I should have been really prepared for this run as two times in last six weeks I had trained for 30+km. But somewhere, somehow, 8-10 days prior to the run I lost the focus. As I stood at the starting point just a minute prior to the run, I realized that I have never ever felt so burdened with the distance of the run. The first few kilometers we ran across the Business District. The humidity level was very high and runners were profusely sweating. To top it, even at 3km, my mind was already playing games. I was actually counting 39km to go!! I knew I would not last long with this approach. I had to have a strategy. I just waited for completion of 10km, which I did in 1hr 9mts. It was way slower than my Amsterdam timing, where I had taken 55mts.
11k-20k: 1hr 4mts: At around 10k I decided that I would take a two minute walk break after every 5km thereon. At around 12 km we reached the Kailang area and from there we entered the East Coast Park, as always, my favorite part. Almost a 10km stretch across the sea, adorned with lots of trees, well marked path the cyclists, roller blade runners, joggers, camping families. Around 14km, I saw one handicapped runner, with one leg having an artificial running blade. Well it was great to see that there are souls floating at much higher levels of insanity. This stretch took us almost to the Changi district, from where we turned back. With the new found strategy I was looking forward for the next 5km, rather than the 42k mark. I just kept myself well hydrated. In no time I was past the half way mark. Well ‘no time’ technically was equal to 2hr 13mts, but mentally it was one milestone.
21k-30k:1hr 20mts. One of the prerequisite of distance running is to get used to you. In the times of wireless world, even the time spent alone is not our own. While doing sessions with his writer, for the controversial autobiography 'Open', Andre Agassi has famously quoted that it was very difficult as he was asked to talk on the subject he hardly knew about: me. Consider this, in the darkness of early mornings, for hours the only company you have is of 'me', the only thing that your ears can hear is the rhythmic sound of your shoes and your breath. If the mind is managed well, they can be 'thought altering' experiences, else these moment can drive you insane, only to ensure you never get off your bed the next time. I see a lot of runners practicing with headphones on. They claim that it helps them focus; I classify it as an act of escapism. On the way back on East Coast Park, it was a sight watching scores of ship docked. At a few junctions where was lot of music but my ability to enjoy was diminishing and ankle was becoming stiffer. I saw one runner with caption on his singlet, “3 months back it was a great idea “and I could not help but laughing at myself.
310k-42k; 1hr 57mts; In the last leg of the run, we were heading back towards the City Hall. The sun was very strong by now and it was very a difficult situation by any standards. I was almost tempted to hitch a ride with the cyclists who were passing by. During this course I got to pass by some scenic places like the Kailang Cricket Ground, Kailang Riverside Park. I just kept on moving at a snail’s pace, watching a lot of runners pulling aside due to cramps. This race was turning out to be one big lesson that so important it is to keep oneself extremely focused and fit to the last hour to ensure that you finish the event as strong as you started it. I finally crossed the line at 5hr 30mts, definitely not the best of my timings. Nevertheless, this race was a small tribute to the two superwomen back home, who ensure that I always get the right feed and the right mental makeup to get back on the track time and again. It is said that every sportsperson gets one chance to run the race of his or her lifetime, when everything falls in place; as though the universal forces have set the stage...…I will strive for that moment.
