Having
gone barefoot for a little over one year, the only regret is to give a go by to
trail runs. So when Globe racers announced the Nilgiris 100, a road event, I
was tempted. My friend from Gandhiland, Piyushbhai, assured me that Kavita’s
events are no frills and affordable. Anyway, my purse strings were already
loosened after the flight ticket for the Navagraha Ottam, I registered for the
Nilgiris Ultra. We were happy that we go back to our honeymoon site after 22 years
and to be able to participate in an Ultra, a bonus!
Self
doubts kept assailing me since I registered for the event, the gradients,
whether the khadi wear will keep out the cold! New pair of shorts and tops
arrived on the day of the departure, with the shorts not having pockets! Kept
debating whether I should run in full pajama-kurtas. Finally, decided to run in
double shorts and tops. Bala stepped in with a reflector suit and wife was
saved the bother of stiching reflector tape on my top. I had equipped myself
with a night headlamp during the last Ahmedabad visit. After having lost one headgear during Navagraha
ottam and another one with the weavers in Madurai as sample, have been running
bareheaded. Decided to take daughter’s monkey cap (for the night portion) and
Neville’s Dawn to Dusk cap (for the day portion) for headgear during the run.
As for the eventuality of stretches of bad roads, decided to carry slippers
tucked in at the back as a backup.
Left
Hubli on Thursday night, ironically, daughter returned at the same time from
her visit to the Northeast. Breakfast of Bun and Jam washed down with green tea.
Wife fasted to avoid motion sickness troubles on the bus ride later. My
colleague came and dropped us at the bus stop. The bus stop is very spacious
and modern, but, lacks a chemists shop. The bus left on time and we snuggled
into our two-seater, wife taking the window seat. We passed herds of spotted
dear and my Sita did not crave for a golden one, she was sure of my running
limitations! Beautiful weather, scenery and carbo loading, if this is not
heaven show me one!
My
eyes were constantly eyeing the quality of the road sizing up if it was bare
sole friendly. Kavita had assured me that the road was bare foot friendly. The
bus had two stops at non-descript hotels for snack breaks. I got down for the
sun bath and bio-break and not for any snacking. The bus entered Ooty at 1:45
PM. I had bargained for the rest house suite at the Ooty station (giving up the
more popular one at Fernhill!) since it was closer to the start point. If the
climb to the rest house suite was any indication, I was forewarned of the
gradients for the night’s run!
We
quickly changed our dress and set out to find a place to have our lunch. Our
mission was to locate ‘Vijay vilas’ a vegetarian hotel next to the station
which the then station master Radhakrishnan Sir (said to have retired and
settled at Coonoor/Chennai!) had introduced the young couple to 22 years
earlier for good south Indian meal. Our last visit we had most of our meals
there, walking the distance from Fernhill rest house to Ooty and back. This is
a good time as any for a small diversion. I remember during our walks back to
Fernhill late at night my wife of a few days then had asked me what I would do
if someone waylaid us. I used to wear hawaai slippers then (trademark of IITK
students!), I had told her I would remove my slippers, wear it on my hand and
make a run for it and suggested that she also do the same. How unromantic it
must have been! Little did I know then that my passion later in life would be
barefoot running! The caretaker and the station master stated that the place we
were referring to has shut down and is now called Komala Vilas, but, it does
not serve lunch. The lady at the counter of Komala vilas did own to be the
descendant of Vijaya vilas, but, offered only biryani for the hungry souls. We
settled for food at Shiv Shanti, an Andhra joint standing at the same place as
Vijay vilas. The food was a disappointment. Maybe, we should have listened to
the persistent VRR bearer who was calling us for lunch.
We
took an auto for the venue of bib-collection and after my purse becoming
lighter by Rs. 60/- we were deposited at Sai palace (we later realized that
that the place was less than a kilometer by walk from the station!). Met Priya,
Kavita, Dharmendra, Bala and many other running legends. Photo shoots ensued
and we were on facebook even before a step of the Ultra was run! I was
overwhelmed by the affection and respect shown by the fellow runners. Pavitra’s
article in Mint seems to have done the trick! There were inevitable questions
about the target time for the run. I was already under pressure by Piyush bhai
repeatedly coaxing me to go for the 12 hour mark. In my heart of hearts I knew
that the course was hilly, the cold weather added and the fact that I had not
run this distance since last two years, hazarding any target would be foolish.
I maintained that I would like to enjoy the run and would like to finish on two
feet and smiling!
After
having fixed up with Bala for the reflective jacket and plan for rations to be
left at aid stations, we returned to the rest house by 5 PM. Plan was to get a
few hours sleep before wake up call at 9 PM for the pre-run rituals! Idea was
not to have any major meal now and to stay light for the run. My wife was
feeling restless for not being able to crew for me or cheer me as this was an
out and back run and that too starting at midnight from a place about one km
from our place of stay. Knowing my Columbusian skills she was apprehensive
about letting me walk to the Sai palace at night. I assured her and tucking a
hundered rupee note in the pocket as insurance, set off to find Sai Palace.
Reached the place after an interesting conversation with a hotel employee
returning after his day’s toil (his was a Non Veg joint, of no help to our
culinary adventure!). To be honest, I did go off in the wrong direction and had
to seek help from policemen, I am not sure if they were covinced that I was
sober when I told them of my intended purpose (running 100K from midnight).
Spent the next one hour soothing Bala’s nerves and trying to convince Srikumar
to go for the 100K. Between me and Ashok we were able to convince Sri to dress
up for the vent, the lady however, was very severe on Sri’s flip flops of
distance to be run and he had to retire to start with the 50K group next day
morning. After tucking in my slippers, tea and curry leaves in the mouth,
reached the foyer for the warm ups with the group. My feet were going cold and
I kept jumping on my toes to keep them warm. Kavita gave a Seargent Major’s
speech and woke us up with her descriptions of getting lost on the way. I
decided to stay with some other runner all through the run. The part about
carrying one’s own bottle or using smaller bottle from the aid station and
refilling it and not leaving plastic waste gave me a warm feeling. I took a
300ml bottle of water.
All
my promises fell apart as usual once my feet found rhythm on the smooth road. I
zipped off and I remember Bala mentioning this with relish the next day to my
wife! Luckily, Dharmendra and another
youngster (I came to know later as Keiren) were running at about my pace or a
little faster. The fist few kilometers in the city were quite confusing and I
kept following the lights on Dharmendra’s shoes mechanically. We got quite a
gap among the three of us, Keiren always in the front, Dharmendra lagging me
initially and later led me after taking off at a down gradient. I crossed the
fisrt aid station where Aparna was just setting it up, she egged me on and
asked me to go on. I had set my mobile on hourly alarms, the first hour just
having chimed, 12.5K in little over an hour was good progress! Keiren and
Dharmendra were simply flying. I had been running all the up gradients till
then and seem to be going for the broke without a care for the balace run to be
done!
After
the first aid station and having had one 300ml of water, I was looking for a
place to relieve myself. I chanced upon what looked like a statue of a large
Bison. I went near and was in for a shock when its eyes twinkled in my
headlights reflection. I quietly witched off my headlamp and proceeded on
without looking back. It looked like Yama having decided to take a break had
left his steed to rest while he did a few stretching exercises after his
notorious nightly duties. I did not think of the Bison till I met Dharmendra
and asked him if hed had seen the Bison, I thought I must be hallucinating when
he said he hadn’t seen one (My sanity and sobriety were later vouched for by
Bala’s not so friendly encounters with this very Yama-steed!). I caught up with
Dharmendra at around kilometer 15 and we ran together till the half way mark
and the experience was sublime. He taking care of the route and frequently
egging me on, the journey was perfect. He also taught me to adopt the walking
uphill and running downhill strategy. The roads were virtually free but for a
rare vehicle. The aid vehicles were frequently criss crossing us. It would have
have been great if they had said a few words to cheer us. I remember Dharmendra
also mentioned this. Another important lesson I learnt running with Dharmendra
was not to look too far ahead, he famously said that if we go one step at a
time, there is no gradient! This I consciously tried to follow all through the
run. The scenery was bathed in moonlight and we could switch off our lights and
savour the nature as we ran. Few dogs kept trying to get introduced to us, but,
having been locked up they couldn’t meet us. I remember hoping that I have the
energy to chat them up on my way back the next day!
The
road got a little worse after KM 30, but, I persisted with my bare feet. After
many a pokes and soles little raising their hands, I finally took off my
slippers and used them from KM43. I was now ahead of Dharmendra and around this
time i came across the crossroad saying Upper Bhavani on the side road and the
red tape of Kavita showing the other road. I decided to trust Kavita’s marking
over my knowledge of Tamil. I remember calling out to Dharmendra about this. It
had markedly become cold now with very cold winds tearing into my two layers of
Khadi. There were no kilometer stones now and the road was very bad. I got a
doubt about whether I had made a right choice at the crossroads earlier. I tried
calling Kavita on my mobile as best as my icy and numb fingers could manage
only to find that there was no network coverage. I started walking back to find
Dharmendra. After about half a KM I saw the headlights of Dharmendra and was I
relieved. He confirmed having seen the red mark and we walked together. After
what looked like zillions of kilometers, we saw this lady (who has been crewing
for one of the colleague runners and who really cheered and supported all of us
during the entire run). We heard the sweetest words from her then when she said
that the half way mark is 200m ahead. We both reached the half way mark and
crashed on the mats. We spotted Keiren who had reached much ahead of us. The
time was 6.01 AM. The volunteers had to peel the orange and banana for me, my
fingers were frozen. I also quickly gobbled up two buns with jam which I had
kept in my drop bag.I left the headlamp in the bag. I don’t know if I could
have refused Tea/Coffee saying that I am Vegan if I was offered it then! Final
act of mercy, volunteer Shashi Gowda (hope I got his first name right) offered
and stretched my legs which I am sure would have wanted to stay back.
We
three, Keiren, Dharmendra and me started back at 6.30 AM. Within half a
kilometer, Ashok Daniel and two runners met me. Following them closely was
Bib-Bala. I stopped and gave him a big hug. I was really worried about him
after seeing the course and was feeling guilty about not running with him. He
was very emotional. I was really impressed with his effort and told him to have
something to eat and rest before the return run. He really did very well
considering the course and the weather, his training for the run seems to have
really paid off.
My
slippers were now bothering me. Small pebbles getting in were very painful.
Also, the slippers were hitting the other foot while running. I tripped very
hard and thankfully was able to balance myself. A fall then in that cold would
have cooked my goose. I seem to have forgotten running with footwear.
Dharmendra now seemed to be slowing down. He graciously told us both to carry
on. The run got a little better when the Sun came out. I never thought that I
would welcome this guy. The tea estates and the downhill run seemed to suit us
and we made quick time. Keiren kept reminding me of the clims between KM 25 to
15. I was looking forward to KM 58 as after that psychologically, it was just
another marathon. I was also looking forward to KM 35 where I could take off my
slippers.
In
my exchanges with Keiren, I was impressed with his dedication and maturity. For
a boy of 20 to have the temperament to run 100K (he seemed to have run BU100 in
under 12 hours last year) was impressive. We kept talking about running and the
distance melted. I had taken off my cap and tucked it in my back. After some
time I felt lighter and realized that I had dropped my daughter’s cap. I had no
plans of returning for them! I was running ahead of Keiren and was disappointed
when said that he had not seen the cap when he joined me. After a while, I could
hear Dharmendra catch up with us wildly waving my cap in hand. We three kept up
together for the next few kilometers after which Dharmendra stayed back
pointing to his knee.
After
KM 35, when I was running with my headgear, reflective suit and slippers in
hand, met Kavita who offered me to drop the extra things in the car. I felt
much lighter after this, but, having dropped my slippers I was committed to 35K
of barefoot running even if the course was tasted earlier by my soles. I
mention this incident of dropping my extra baggage for one more reason, when I
asked Keiren why he did not drop his back pack in the car, his answer impressed
me no end. He said that it would be cheating as he should carry whatever he
started off with! Such honesty and dedication, in this day and age of doping
and other short cuts, this kid would sure go far!
Rest
of the run was a flurry of walking breaks on the uphill and run on the
downhill. We met the 50K runners and seeing them energized us with the high
fives all around.We had considerably slowed down and the 12 hour target was out
of the window. I got quite a few stares for my attire and bare feet. Keiren and
I had to stop at one place to help an old man who wanted help to put his
firewood bundle on his head. Without our knowing, Kavita was at hand to take
the picture of us taking a break to help theold man. I remember both of us had
commented that it would appear we performed for the camera. We definitely
needed the break!
About
15K from the finish, Keiren’s friends joined us. His warden, his biggest
support, and two of his friends from college, cheered us all the way for the
rest of the run. At about 3 kilometers from the finish when we were mostly
walking, I saw my wife behind her camera at a distance. I asked Keiren to run
as I did not want us to be snapped walking. We ran a good stretch and
continued, Now, finish point could not be far! We, Keiren and I had discussed
earlier when he had said that both of us would finish the race together, that
he should go first as he drserved the win, he having led all through the race.
Keiren then just took off, while I struggled with pebbly roads and traffic.
Once into the city, the red tapes whish could be seen in the night without the
traffic were a struggle to be spotted. I had to ask every person for the Sai
Palace, soon I spotted a small buch of people cheering aoutside the hotel, our
start point. I had finished in 13 hours and 15 minutes by my watch (Official
time, 13:17), Keiren having come in at 13:11.
Next
few hours were spent basking in the glory of the finish. Had lunch with Sri and
wife at a local South Indian restaurant. The Sun was setting and the winds were
getting chill, was worried about Bala who was said to have been last sighted at
KM 12.5. Bala came in at 3.30 PM relatively unscathed considering the course
and the weather. He was over the moon, but, really cut up at losing precious
time inside the city. Dharmendra came in about an hour and a half after us, he
seemed to have taken some phsio exercises before he could continue. Wife and
self returned to the rest house with Bala promising to join us later after his
PR exercise.
I
must have been overly ambitious in having promised wife a trip to Fernhill
hotel (was it 5 star, it was sure much beyond my purse during honeymoon at Rs.
65/- for a cup of coffee and cutlet) on Sunday. Dinner was on some Idlies,
Parotha from the VRR at Ooty station where the boy had agreed to home deliver.
Bala kept us waiting and dinner was had at around 7PM and we turned in early
for the night. Bala had a bad night with the Bison and the cold tormenting him.
We woke up relatively stronger and able to negotiate the climb down (and the
climb up on the return) to the VRR, the Pongal (I had to forego for the ghee,
said to be good), Idli and Rava Upma. We promised the Manager three tickets for
lunch. My wife backed out and it was Bala and me. The rice quality was not good
and variety very less, but, it was bland and filling. My wife skipped the meal
as a mark of respect to the bus journey down the hill! The journey through
Mudumalai and Bandipur was as exciting on the way back, with sightings of wild
boar and stags in addition to the ubiquitous monkeys and deer. We had a sumptuous
dinner at my colleagues place in Mysore and felt good impressing his young
nephew and his wife of my exploits in the nilgiris.
The
run was an experience particularly coming to know two great persons, Dharmendra
and Keiren during the run and finally being able to meet Kavita and Priya in
person. Bala and self seemed to agree on more informal runs like the Navagraha
Ottam in the coming year than paid events in the coming year. But, SCMM is on a
different footing altogether, Mubai here I come for our annual tryst!
