Five weeks to go. . . and a small diversion.
I ran the Mumbai marathon last Sunday and completed it in a time of 5.20. Very happy as this was my first 40km plus run in a week that averaged close a little over 90 km. The temperature was a mild 32-33C albeit accompanied by a sharp sun setting the tone for what I should expect. I have been pampered these lst two months by the sub-20s temperature while training in Hyderabad. Probably, I should start my weekend back-pack runs a little late when the sun is fully up, to get a truer measure of “fatigue quotient”, what? Better late than never, as the maxim goes.
Took off late Sunday evening to HK with Nandita and Atri, for a short holiday and some work. While there we went sightseeing to the Peak, DisneyWorld (for Atri), Po-Lin monastery (an oasis of calm near the hustle and bustle of HK) and a few other places. We also caught up with Neha and Gaurav for dinner at this awesome restaurant called the Mask of Sichuan. Can’t thank you both enough for a fantastic choice of place and your wonderful hospitality. Thank you so much guys, it was wonderful to have met you, god bless.
I also went to the RTP store and kitted myself out with lots of food (Hammer, Nuun, Expedition foods), some clothing accesories and a new pair of shoes, Inov-8’s Roclite 318 GTX. These will be the shoes I wear on the main run, so a one-month break in period seemed reasonable. Also, picked up a few pairs of Injinji moisture wicking socks to run in.
I plan to run/walk/train to about 110-120km a week for the next three weeks before I begin to taper down. Training will be interspersed with cross training and some strength training for the back and shoulders as well as the mandatory pranayama/yoga.
Lots of final formalities as well to be undertaken – medical tests to be completed and sent, travel arrangements to be completed, visas to be obtained, et al. The next fortnight promises to be busy busy indeed. Good stuff!
I also intend to fill the back pack with the actual stuff I will be carrying during the race and do 3-4 dry runs over the next 2-3 weeks. That should hopefully help me have a near accurate idea of the weight count under different combos and experiment a bit. Will let you readers know how that stacks up as well
As you may know, I am running the AC2011 supporting the Nethaji Mercy Home in Chennai (see earlier post below). Any contributions are gratefully acknowledged.
Closing this post with a verse from Dreamline, by Rush, one of my all time fave bands, “. . . they travel in the time of the prophets, on a desert highway straight to the heart of the sun. Like lovers and heroes and the restless part of everyone, we’re only at home when we’re on the run, on the run. . . “
Best
S