The road to Chiang Mai went through exotic Bangkok, its labyrinth of subways, ending finally after 2 days of underground city exploration – at the Hua Lamphong MRT station, right next to the Bangkok main terminal of the State Railways of Thailand.
I had flown to, through, and within Thailand literally dozens of times before, have been a Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus Gold Member for over 10 years now, but for this second trip to Chiang Mai, I was taking a train!
Running in this moated city Chiang Mai I had blogged before - among my 10 most popular posts. I was returning to run the city's only marathon and to spend time with family, on perhaps the most important family season of all- Christmas.
The trip from Bangkok took 12 hours to complete. Sitting in an air-conditioned coach roomier than an economy fare plane ticket could buy, the idle time was perfect for finishing a favourite best-seller or, as I did, a marathon blogpost.
Hotels abound in Chiang Mai for all sorts of tastes and budgets. Ours was near the Three Kings Monument- the start and finish area of the marathon event. The cozy atmosphere and personal touch of the family-owned hotel Baan Nam Sai surely gives the best bang for the buck!
In this simplest of all marathons I have done thus far, registration and race packet redemption were pretty much straightforward- you download a form online, email back the completed registration form, and pay as you claim the race packet on site 1-2 days before the race!
But only in this marathon were runners treated to a free eat-all-you-can pre-marathon dinner, Asian style- Thai jasmine rice, fried chicken with basil leaves and almonds, stewed beef cooked in spicy coconut milk, stir-fried mixed vegetables, and an assortment of carbo-adding dessert.
Only in this marathon were runners treated to a cultural show- featuring an exotic mix of song and dance- celebrating the years when Chang Mai, Thailand's 'Rose of the North' founded in 1296 AD, was the capital city of the Lanna kingdom.
Except for a new energy/recovery drink, courtesy of a close relation, the selected marathon gear and race supplies were worn and/or tried before. All were battle-tested and scarred, with some even qualifying for a well-deserved retirement after the run.
The 42K runners lined up for a 4 AM gun start the morning of the marathon. There were no color-coded corrals, no big names, no elite pack. But one could tell that these were seasoned runners all. Many also came from far-way lands. I even met a couple of fellow Marathon Maniacs from Singapore!
The temperature that morning was so cold it was equally perfect for running as it was for sleeping. The first few kilometers took us by the city's moat, passing by the famous walking street near Thapae Gate that every Sunday hosted an equally famous night market.
On Christmas night, the city started the ‘Chiang Mai Countdown 2011’. As part of this celebration, two of the four main gates of the city were bedecked with lights featuring wonder structures of the world- Taj Majal, Giza Pyramids, Eiffel Tower, Golden Gate Bridge, and, yes, the Christmas tree.
Then we headed out of the old city. From the 9th to the 38thK, we ran a loop on the city’s major highway, passing by the international airport then heading to the various suburbs. Pink signs and roving car- and bike-riding race marshals guided our way.
It was still dark by the time I reached 21K. I had been running for 2 hrs and 20 min, a good 25 minutes off my personal best for this distance. The two otherwise unneeded full stops to fix an easy-to-tear race bib that got detached twice from my bib holder cost me big time!
As there was no timing device used, no split times were recorded. Colourful strings on red rubber bands, handed out by volunteers waiting in the dark until the light of dawn broke at 23K, served as evidence that we had indeed reached critical junctures of the race course.
Water stations were aplenty- ably manned by what probably were high school youth in blue uniforms. Thanks to the cold weather, a pre-race electrolyte drink, frequent hydration, plus 8 electrolyte capsules, for the first time, I had a cramp sign-free marathon.
Though there was not much to see during the highway run, at 30K the beautiful landscape of Royal Flora 2006 Park, home of the Chiang Mai Night Safari, came in sight. Also, the morning view of the mountains surrounding Chiang Mai was equally pleasing to the eyes.
There were at least two stops where sports drinks and bananas were served. At the 35K stop, I caught up with a lady runner from Malaysia who was running strong but, like me, was having her run interrupted by frequent stops to take pictures. She would overtake me for good at around 36K!
The last distance marker I noticed was overturned but based on my Garmin FR405, it was most likely the one for 36K. The race route for the last 6K was thus guided only by hand signals from military and civilian race marshals. Strange to have no signs when you need them most.
Moreover, as I approached the old city, the run had become lonely. No runners could be seen for long stretches, both ahead and behind. Seeing two monks begging for alms pushed me deeper into solitude and meditation in this city of 200 temples.
After 4.5 hours of running, I finally re-entered the old city via the Saun Dok Gate. Though the advertised race cut-off time was 7 hours, the dedicated running lane appeared to have folded up early and the race marshals had become few.
With no runner ahead to follow, no runner behind to run with, and only a language barrier in between, I felt lost but, thanks to sign language, eventually found my way. And as my run ended at 4:56:20, I just had to look back and take a photo of that lonely road to the carpeted finish line.
There were lots of medals and cash prizes to award that day for the winners of various age groups and categories. But as there was no major sponsor, the top prizes for most categories did not exceed $200. No wonder, the elite competitive runners stayed away.
But to me this marathon was never about winning anything tangible. It mattered not that not a single cheer was heard along the way. The finish capped a 777 year- 7 marathons in 7 months in 7 different US states or countries. With only 1 in 10,000 able to run a marathon in their lifetime, I wonder how many have done this type of Triple Seven?
Or run a marathon a day after Christmas, with family, for that matter. Yes, the title of the post is a bit misleading, but not entirely. Next year, this unique end-of-the-year marathon in Chiang Mai is going to be held right on the big day itself- December 25.
That day, everybody in heaven and nirvana will be cheering!
0 comments:
Post a Comment