The journey that started innocuously in 2009 in Hyderabad is about to cross an interesting milestone. It would be my 42nd Marathon, if I cross the finish line tomorrow in Bengaluru Marathon within the time set by the organisers.
I don't have any such grand plans around it. But, I won't be as harsh as Dilbert, and would still take out some time to travel back and forth in time, to relive and cherish the journey.
Why is 42nd significant? Isn't it just a random number? Apparently, it's not so random for distance runners. 42 KM is roughly the distance between Marathónas and Athens in Greece. The legend has it that, it's the distance run by Pheidippides in 490 BC to convey the news of Greek victory over Persians at the Battle of Marathon. And, after a few corrections over a period of time, 42.195 KM has become the official Marathon distance.
I have come across a few runners with some grand plans around 42. One runner is running 42 KM every weekend for 42 consecutive weekends to celebrate his 42nd birthday and also to spread a message about safe and healthy living. Another runner has plans to bring down his 10 KM run time to 42 minutes, when he turns 42.
I don't have any such grand plans around it. But, I won't be as harsh as Dilbert, and would still take out some time to travel back and forth in time, to relive and cherish the journey.
The first few years of my Marathon life, I was mostly on my own, in all my training runs and also in most of the events. Not that I didn't get a chance to socialise and network with all those amazing runners at running events, but, I was inherently antisocial. May be, I still am, though may not be in it's true sense.
While I was on one of those solo overseas ventures, I ended up meeting a couple of runners, who are at the other end of the spectrum, when it comes to being social. That led to the genesis of Runners For Ever, an amateur runners club that comprises of people in early 20s to early 50s from various walks of life, with a common thread being their love for distance running.
There was no looking back after that. Though I still was mostly on my own during overseas runs, almost all the domestic runs have become celebrations to look forward to. Some of the unforgettable things in this journey would be, One of the Auroville runs where our entire group ran together from the start to the finish; A midnight marathon when a bunch of them came to run with, otherwise solo, me for the last 10 KM at 3 AM in the morning; 100 KM Bangalore Ultra where the most knowledgeable runner in our group traveled for a couple of hours to get to the venue, while suffering from high fever, just to ensure that we, the kids, are doing well; Every single training run that led to the enviable Comrades Finish in South Africa; The run at Chiang Mai, Thailand to which my cute little niece accompanied me.
During this journey, I got to touch far west San Francisco, US and far east Mount Fuji, Japan, retraced the steps of Pheidippides between Marathonas and Athens, ran in the unspoilt border mountains between Vietnam and China, ran across US/Canada border at Niagara Falls, experienced torrential rains at Cherrapunjee, got fried in the extreme heat of Phuket, Thailand, was part of the world's largest ultra-marathon where around 20,000 people attempt to run 90 KM in 12 hours in South Africa, got to meet some friends after 20+ years who are living on the other side of the world, made some friends in just one meeting. I don't think I could ask for more!
My non-running friends often ask me, why do I run Marathons? There is always this badass answer - Because, I can! Beyond that, in retrospect, I have many more now. It took me places. It gave me some friends whom I can call at 2 AM, not just to go for a run.
In the grand scheme of things, 42 is, of course, just a random number. But, when one gets a chance to go down the memory lane, that's full of beautiful memories, why miss it! :-)
There was no looking back after that. Though I still was mostly on my own during overseas runs, almost all the domestic runs have become celebrations to look forward to. Some of the unforgettable things in this journey would be, One of the Auroville runs where our entire group ran together from the start to the finish; A midnight marathon when a bunch of them came to run with, otherwise solo, me for the last 10 KM at 3 AM in the morning; 100 KM Bangalore Ultra where the most knowledgeable runner in our group traveled for a couple of hours to get to the venue, while suffering from high fever, just to ensure that we, the kids, are doing well; Every single training run that led to the enviable Comrades Finish in South Africa; The run at Chiang Mai, Thailand to which my cute little niece accompanied me.
During this journey, I got to touch far west San Francisco, US and far east Mount Fuji, Japan, retraced the steps of Pheidippides between Marathonas and Athens, ran in the unspoilt border mountains between Vietnam and China, ran across US/Canada border at Niagara Falls, experienced torrential rains at Cherrapunjee, got fried in the extreme heat of Phuket, Thailand, was part of the world's largest ultra-marathon where around 20,000 people attempt to run 90 KM in 12 hours in South Africa, got to meet some friends after 20+ years who are living on the other side of the world, made some friends in just one meeting. I don't think I could ask for more!
My non-running friends often ask me, why do I run Marathons? There is always this badass answer - Because, I can! Beyond that, in retrospect, I have many more now. It took me places. It gave me some friends whom I can call at 2 AM, not just to go for a run.
In the grand scheme of things, 42 is, of course, just a random number. But, when one gets a chance to go down the memory lane, that's full of beautiful memories, why miss it! :-)
