The Malnad Ultra

The Malnad Ultra Event Tagline: "If it seems impossible, it just might be worth doing" - Eric Orton

It all started on Thursday. The initial plan of leaving on Friday goes out of the window. I have time on my hand, I'm travelling general, so might as well leave after work - Thursday evening. Packed up my stuff in 1 stroller, picked up my sleeping bag and off I left. Metro. Reached office. Finished work and prepared to leave. Took an auto to metro station but got into an altercation regarding the meter fare. Bloody charlatans! Ended up walking all the way. Heck, reached the railway station and see that the train had already arrived. Rani Channama express has this notorious reputation of being a crowded train and I could see it first hand in the general coach. Decide that my best option would be the footboard, so thats where I sat. Time passes uncomfortably with me shifting and adjusting my posture. Finally reach Birur past midnight and I roam the platform scouting for a place to sleep. Went upstairs and opened my sleeping bag on a bench beside the RPF office. Crept in and slept assuming nobody was around and in walks this hefty policeman wielding a lathi. Just as he was about to let one rip, I woke up pleading mercy. Told him I was just looking for a place to lie down for which he sternly ordered - vacate the premises. Searched around and decided to crash in the 2nd class waiting room amidst an abhorrent stench, mosquitoes and a few snoring men.

Somehow the night passes and I wake up at the crack of dawn. Walked outside hoping for a bus to the venue. Was informed that there were none shortly. Had idlis for breakfast and decided to take a mini bus to Lingadahalli. Let me get as close to the destination as possible and decide as it goes. Typical ultra-marathon mentality. Got off there and waited. Bought some fresh veggies and fruits from the farmers market which would prove handy during the run. A share-auto driver told me he would drop me to Ballavara hand post. So, I sit in front sharing his seat and we travel further. No transport there for a while so I lie on a bench. After a while the only bus to my destination Kemmanagundi arrives. I sit inside and brace myself for a rickety journey up the ghats. Reach there by mid-day and was greeted by the friendly team of organizers. Jagadish Sir and the bubbly kid - Kabir, I remember. Turns out that I'm the first one to arrive. Tell them sheepishly that I do not have a booked accommodating and I'll find a place somewhere to crash for the night. Feeling bored and out of place, I decide to head out for a run. A pre-race shake up run. Did about 20K and returned. Feel the conditions are good and body feels strong. Relaxed there behind the help-desk and passed time. By evening we all traveled to the coffee estate where there was a pre-race get together organised. Spoke to Shyam sir and met Kieren for the first time in the bus. Then, we sat and listened to the RD - Anand talk about the race which seemed to take forever. Especially with hot food being readied in front of you, everything else seems insignificant. Carb-loaded myself and headed back in the bus for an early night shut-eye. Just as I sorted out my drop bags, Gauri from active holiday company tells me that a dorm has two vacancies as those two did not turn up and suggested I should sleep there. How magnanimous. Went there and was surprised to see Subash - my old running buddy there. Along with Arvind, Hari and others. Slept anxiously through the night. Surprisingly, I managed to catch some sleep. 

Woke up at 4 and went through my routine. Reached the start point early to find hot breakfast in boxes. Shira :) How sweet of them. Grabbed a bite and warmed up a little. Mentally psyched myself up and reached the start line. Started off slowly. It was downhill on road for about 10 K. Saw Bipul. He shot off like a bullet from a gun and I wondered if he would kill it again as he did CTM'16. 

Was running alongside Athreya Chidambi. Pleasantries exchanged. He was one guy I thought of as a competitor, was in awe of (considering his mileage) and had so many questions for. Like a debutant looking upto Sachin. Certainly, there was a lot I could learn from him. I had seen him smash the Javadhu hill 50K course in 2015. He did the recce for this course so he was probably the only one to have run this neck of the woods prior. Still, there was nothing cocky about him. Turns out that he had been running since 10 years. India and abroad. Someone with a professional mindset going about his run in a business-like manner. He did 50 mile training runs in Nandi hills. Seriously?? What do you eat? I asked. Mostly gels and liquids he said. Very professional i realized. Was with him almost till the 30k mark after which he gradually took the lead.

I changed into my sleeveless tee and grabbed a bite at that aid station at around 30K which took some time. After this, I see the 50k guys. Some fast, some surprisingly slow and walking in the beginning stage. Regardless, I greeted them and egged them on as I passed. Even came across Arpita Maitra- one of India's leading female runners. As I chatted with her I was surprised that she was doing 50K. For her probably this was just a stroll in the woods. Just to experience nature leisurely. Considering the insane distances she's run earlier, she was so humble. Past her and upped the tempo after a  quick gulp. Felt my pace returning as the ascent continued. Before the half-way stage (the switch-back) was crazy elevation and insane climbing. Some steps were cut out there. Athreya on his way down told me "You are going good". "Not as good as you" I replied honestly. I knew I was not far behind so decided not to dwell too much in the scenery. I could see it from the corner of my eye. It was mind-blowingly scenic - the Bhadra wildlife scantuary with this huge reservoir below. Felt as if I was at cloud level.

Not looking around, I reached the summit. Had to sign there (seriously?) and some were taking selfies. Uninterested, I belted my way down. Was really fast there upto the point of being dangerous. It was a narrow trail and I was hurling down making a tss-tss noise to alert the slow climbers coming opposite direction. Luckily I past them without any incident and was on my own again for a while. Reached the aid station where I had planned to have some food. Met Race Manager Kieren there as I gulped down some curd rice. Was told that the leader is about 15 mins ahead along with another guy. Unfazed, I took off. Somehow I hoped that one of them might bonk later (wishful thinking). Met Rajnish, the guy wearing Brooks Cascadia. Guess what he was chomping on the run.. a boiled egg ! Told me he ran in Spain earlier where the running scene is huge. Its part of their culture. Kept trudging along at a decent pace.

Was alone for most of the time as this was entirely in the trails. Up-down-up-down and repeat. A flat section was virtually non existent. So, different muscle sets are used for very short intervals. You cant really settle into a rhythm. This was something that I was not used to. 

So here comes a slim lanky chap with specs wearing skins as lowers. Thought I must be slowing down. Manoj he told me his name and we just chatted generally for a while. But he maintained consistent pace. Probably I was struggling. Tried to pull a fast one on him. As he was having some water, I told him I'll be walking along and actually I upped my pace. Buy then we had reached a tar road section and he caught up with me eventually. And overtook me. Boy, was he strong. I later came to know that he trained in the US and a fast runner who emphasized on pace not just mileage-based training. Crossed the timing mat again and changed to road running shoes. I realized there was about 30K to go. All uphill. Here things went awry. It was dusk and I was entering the forest again. Planned to crossed this section before dark. But shucks, felt energy sapped - like I had hit the wall. Had to switch on my headlights. And negotiating a tricky uphill section in dark is not easy. Walked for a while. Frustrating! My mind was drifting. Saw something like a woman in a burqa in the woods. Oh Oh! Clear signs of hallucination. Shook myself up and trudged up the hill, hands pushing my knees. light beam ahead. Where is the road? Where is the road? Reached the road and sat for a while while i removed my shoe, socks and took out pebbles and massaged my soles. Much better. All that pounding downhill had taken its toll on my soles and quads which were literally burning. Although I lost time, I was determined to run up this tarred section. Pushed hard. Intermittently. The last aid station had nothing. Even water was not ready as men huddled by a fire. This infuriated me as I drew reserves of energy from I dont know where. Kept looking at my GPS and resolved not to drop the pace. The final stretch loomed in front of me. Pushed all the way till the organizers saw me and held the finish ribbon. Went through it and let out my yell in anguish. It was over. I had given it everything. And finished fourth. 

Hung around the finish area and had my pic clicked. Somewhat satisfied.No, mostly satisfied. Slight disappointment - or scope for improvement. Its not everyday that I get to do this - I reminded myself. Yep, it was over and my cold rusty body trudged up to sleep. And I rusted there. Simply immobile. Like liquid mercury which had frozen and solidified. Crashed for the night. Lights out. Good night.