Tata Mumbai Marathon Race Report

Redemption!

That’s the word I’d use to sum up this race! In 2020, when I ran the last in Mumbai, I was broken and crushed! I was injured and still completed the course just under 4 hours for the prestigious Procam slam – where one needs to complete Procam’s race 4 categories in a season: TCS World 10K Bengaluru, Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, Tata Steel Kolkata 25K and Tata Mumbai Marathon. Back when I was finishing the slam in 2019-20, i was not 100% fit. I had an injury from a trail race and I ran the 3/4 including Mumbai Marathon with a bad knee.

Going back to Mumbai, after the tough 33km Vagamon ULTrail was tough. I got a cold in Vagamon and I had felt the knee pain coming during the downhill sections of the race which made me slow down a bit. The continued cold and the fatigue from the race were there for whole week after Vagamon.

I got to go to Mumbai 6 days before the race for a work trip. This was such a relief because the Delhi winters were driving me crazy and I have a huge intolerance to cold. I felt good the first couple of days in Mumbai, but felt my knee was not 100%. This was going to be a problem because Mumbai Marathon course if not flat. There are ascents and descents and the knee need to work.

Unfortunately to add to these my PMS symptoms started showing up few days before the race and I felt so bloated in the last couple of days I had less enthusiasm for the race. I am a person who plans a goal race well with lists and schedules. The day before the race felt more like me forcing things to do than coming from an excitement for the race.

I woke up on race day not so feeling great. I got ready as per ‘my checklist’, did everything as per ‘the plan’; still that feeling of ‘ready to attack’ was missing. I told myself, just go with flow and may be… may be it could be a good day.

With the Vagamon 33km on the calendar, I had a 5 week taper. That means I did not have a hard workout in 5 weeks. Before the race, I wondered, do my legs remember how to run fast.

After the start gun and navigating through the ‘front line walkers and joggers’, I managed to push ahead and started running consistently around 4:50min/km pace. I was like, ‘oh, legs got it’.

The first half of the race went as per plan, crossing the halfway at 1:41. I thought I can finish this under 3:30 for a massive PB.

But, things started slowing down from there. My knee creaked a bit and may be that scared me. The 21-25 km stretch was ‘boring’ with no spectators and local support and all I was trying to was maintain a decent pace so the slowing down is not much.

Along 26-30km, people started passing me and was trying to keep up with some and also counting to the 30s thinking ‘30s should be closer to 42′. Once I hit the 30km mark, my brain started all the calculations on pace and how many minutes over 60 I can take to finish. Doing math during marathons – that’s always my thing .

The whole mood shifted to attack mode when I reached the much over-rated Peddar Road. It was just a 25-40 m elevated 1km segment and for many road runners, that’s a huge bump! All those people who passed me before seem to be walking or taking walk breaks. Being a trail runner and having trained around the Vasant Kunj area, that was any other hill. With some renewed energy and more motivation, it was just the last 5km for me which I completed in moderate pace. There was a cramp trying to poke its way in the last mile and it just lasted for like a minute or two! That was the last scare.

A PB and a BQ and a podium (3rd) in age category with a 3:33:23 hrs finish! Yes, it was a comeback and a sweet redemption! Though things didn’t go as per plan 100%, I am extremely thrilled and not complaining about the timing!

There were people who has asked me ‘why Mumbai and why not new Delhi marathon which has a flatter course’! There is something about Mumbai and the Mumbai Marathon even a slower finish is more satisfying. It could be city, the support and the fact that most of my Marathon milestones came from the city! I love this place and I’d go back again for more experiences and stories!

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