What can I say? October 29th 2006 is one of the biggest days of my life so far.
It started with a not-so-cold Fall morning, when we rose early to run the 31st Marine Corps Marathon ( the first one for most of us) in Washington D.C. This marathon is called as the ‘People’s Marathon’ because it is famous for drawing runners from various parts of the world.
Whenever there’s a marathon in a city, it dynamically transforms into a mecca of spirit and energy. Almost infectious, the enthusiasm of the runners and even more so of their supporters is what really pulled me through the 26.20 mi distance.
The first gun shot at 8:25 am, set off the Wheelchair and Hand Crank Marathoners; a category that only had 4 participants, out of the 35,000 total in number. The Scarlet Wave Runners (bib no.s from 1 – 15999) were to start off at 8:25 am, which later moved to 8:35 am and the Gold Wave runners (bib no.s 16000 - 35,000) would follow 20 minutes later. I was in the Scarlet Wave (bib no. 10343) and maneuvered my way through the crowd, to position myself right at the Start Line. Until of course, out of nowhere appeared this pack of Kenyan/ Ethiopian runners who all lined up at the start and Coach Jane’s email resounded in my head “Don’t start off too fast with those runners”. John, another runner from D.C, struck up a conversation with me and we chatted away, till the race began. Talking to him, sort of prepared me for the course that lay ahead of us, as he warned me to go slow, up the hill after Mile 2.
A gun shot released the mob of runners and our 26.20 mile long journey began. The spectator support was marvelous; not just ASHA mentors and friends/ spouses, but the crowd in general, really lent energy to the air. The first few miles were a breeze, running through Arlington’s buildings until we reached the hill where the ascent began. I found myself picking up a glass of Powerade and water at almost all water-points, to quench my palate. The Key Bridge was an important milestone for me personally, because it sort of declared getting out of VA and into D.C. I have always heard of Georgetown, but now can say I’ve run through it too. Having written our names on our ASHA T-shirts really helped, although I did know that by the time people manage to read and pronounce my name, I would probably have already whizzed past them. Still I did get a lot of “Go Asha”s and a few “C’mon Shweyta”s, which really helped quicken the pace. A literal display of how encouragement boosts performance!
From Georgetown, we moved on to Rock Creek Park, where the beautiful fall foliage and light breeze provided for easy distractions, while running. In my head, I kept looking out for the D.C Monuments, because I knew somewhere around there, would mean the half-marker of the race. Running through the monuments on Constitution Ave. brought back memories of the time I visited here, the previous two years. The stretch leading towards and back from the Capitol Hill is completely dedicated to my parents, for the adorable wish my Dad sent to me in his email “Unfurl our flag atop the Capitol Hill” with a picture of him and my Mom standing in front of it, from their trip here, last year. (Turns out coincidentally enough that MarathonFoto decided to take a shot of me, right in front of the Capitol Hill.)
It was always mind-talk, conversations with my self and looking around while on the run, that helped me throughout the race. If you are running for 4 ½ hours, you may as well put that time to best use, mentally too. Random thoughts in my head ranged from: How proud my friends and parents would be of me; Are they getting the text messages of my mileage as I run?; What would it feel like to cross the Finish line; What in the world is that woman wearing; Oooh he’s good-looking; Don’t cross the street before me, you doofus; Any familiar faces in the crowd?; Why are my knees red, are they going to break open?; That downhill slope will certainly speed up my mileage; Did you know last year today, you would be doing this next year today?; All this for those little kids; they better study hard:); What was that trick someone suggested to keep your mind occupied while running – Divide 129/17 upto 3 decimals (Did’nt work for me by the way, I forgot the numbers before the decimals until I reached the end); My legs must be looking really toned right now; How are we going to celebrate tonight?…etc etc…
Spectator support near the monuments was largely tourists, who didn’t spare a moment without shouting out to the runners. Little kids who held out their hands, to give high-five’s to the runners, provided for the support with a ‘personal touch’.
East Potomac Park was next; another mental note to self, that this is the end of the D.C part of the race. This part of the course also felt really long inspite of its scenic route, as my sole search while running through here, was for the foot of the bridge. The Freeway Bridge was the 20 mile marker; an important mile in every marathoner’s books, because from here on, as we are told, “It’s all going to be in the head”. (Most, if not all Marathon training programs, train you to run till the 20 mile distance, as the last 6.20 miles of a marathon are really meant to be “in your head”.) Sounds like a lot for the head, but it’s true as I saw for myself, on race day. Since I had run 21 miles as my longest run distance, twice before; at the 21 mile mark, I knew until now was distance-travelled. From here on would be the real challenge. I do recollect asking myself at that point, why does a Marathon have to be 26.20 mile long and not just end at 21, till where I ve run before?
The Freeway Bridge seemed to be a never-ending one. I remember looking around at the other runners to see when people had started walking instead of running, sort of trying to tell myself that it’s ok to walk now. I had always heard about runners with unearthly energy levels whom I might see talking/ sprinting in the last few miles of the race and actually got to see some such during the race as well. That sort of energy conservation tactic towards the end of the race, I have yet to learn. Somewhere around now, there came a Music Tent put up by Target, where I remember stopping for a quick jig and a twirl, much to the amusement of a little girl in the audience, before I moved on to finish my race. Throughout the entire race, I posed for the cameras at the important mile-markers, knowing a little make-belief and pretence would go a long way in making memorable pictures and videos for life. (I cannot wait for the DVD that will have personalized shots of me throughout the race, hopefully one’s in which I am smiling away:)
At the 25th mile marker, I had personal ASHA supporters cheering me as I passed them. Crowd support throughout the last mile was incredible. Finally, as I reached the 26 mile marker, I knew this was soon going to be over. Drawing into the Finish Line, was one of the most overwhelming experiences ever; I must confess, my hands automatically raised themselves to mark the end of a spectacular journey, in proud declaration, that I had done it. A handsome Marine wrapped a foil blanket around me and another one put my ‘Finisher’ Medal around my neck. My eyes were a little moist from the overwhelming conversations I had had with myself in the last few hours. There was pain that I could feel in my body but it was a ‘happy’ pain. One totally-worth it and would-do-it-all-over-again sort of pain. I thanked myself, (I think I heard an inner voice say “I am so proud of you”) and all those whom I think are the reason, why I ran this marathon.
Some stretching later, I was ready to line up for my Marathon Finisher Photo, followed by two really good massages. Apparently I blurted out “God is blessing you right now” to the masseuse, more than a couple of times, as I recollected later, while recounting to my friends. There was pampering galore, after the race, as someone offered us ‘samosas’ and ‘idlis’, while random people came up to chat and take pictures. I even gave a full-fledged interview; (felt like such a celebrity, while at it); one that I am really looking forward to see.
Note of Thanks:
At the risk of sounding clichéd, I want to thank my parents who’ve handled every new insanity of mine (including this one) in the sanest of ways; my closest friends, who convinced me that fund-raising (which was the biggest reason I was hesitant to sign-up) would fall in place, my co-runners who trained with me and provided for the much-needed camaraderie and spirit, the ASHA mentors and Coach for urging me to go all the way and of course the countless donors, (some of whom I don’t know or have never met), but who donated selflessly to my Marathon’s cause and brought me so close to my target. (Feel free to make your donations at: http://www.ashanet.org/nycnj/lib/marathon/publicmypage.php?1647)
Here is my official result from Race Day.
At the end of this 24-week journey, where I‘ve trained diligently towards a smaller goal (the Half-Marathon) at first, that grew into a larger one, (the Marathon) eventually, I have learnt a lot about myself, my body and of course running, in general. Be it the conversations I’ve had with myself while running, (after the time I decided that my Ipod was an additional hindrance) or the amount of time I’ve spent outdoors, appreciating parks, water bodies, skylines, sights, smells and sounds of the outside, or the wonderful people I’ve run with in the park, from the blind guy full of energy, running with his aide; the pregnant woman who ran at my pace in a NYRR race or the fragile grandma who runs religiously every Saturday morning, this training experience has enriched me in more ways than one. Among others, it has shown me that lines drawn earlier can always be extended and a lot of our reservations (mental or physical) really lie in our head and can easily be overcome. As I type, I am waiting to sign up for my next Half-Marathon to be held in Mumbai on Jan 21st, 2007, so as you can see, I am officially addicted to running now.
There used to be times when at the end of a 3 mile run on the treadmill, I would applaud myself and think that running anymore, will only make me tired. But now after having been past several Saturday mornings spent well, training in the park, from 10, 14, 16, 18 to 21 miles and being able to party the same night, like there’s no tomorrow, I ‘ve learnt that our bodies are capable of way more than what we give them credit for.
And that once taken good care of, they make us breeze through some of our toughest journeys:)!