Napa marathon Expo and other fun stuff!

Well, the big day was almost here. Satish, Mona, Senthil, and myself (henceforth referred to as the 'Gang') had planned to leave around 12:30 p.m. so we could get to the expo by 2 p.m. in order to score the really nice duffel bags (which usually ran out and would cause one to settle for the backpack - blech...). Senthil drove over to Satish's place and they then swung by to pick me up. We then drove over to Mona's place and after a brief intro to Mona's husband, kids, and dog, we set out on the drive to Napa. I had printed out clear directions and maps but Satish decided to pull out the secret weapon - 'Chechi'!! (means elder sister in Malayalam) - his trusted Crackberry :-) (so named because of the woman's voice which announces the GPS directions!!).

The weather was nice and we were fervently wishing for similar weather the next morning for the race (though the forecast called for showers pretty much throughout the day Sunday).

After an uneventful trip with minimal traffic, we arrive at the Marriott in downtown Napa where the Expo was being held. We parked the car and headed into the hotel. We then walked to the ballroom and headed over to the bib pick-up area. The area was kind of a mess even though they had clear signs listing the starting letter of your last name (A-F, G-L etc.). The problem was that there wasn't enough space for multiple lines and people got in the back assuming there was only one line. Anyhoo, Satish and I stood in the M-R line and of course, that turned out to be the longest line (I guess lots of last names in that range!) After picking up our bibs (with attached D-tag), we walked over to get the T-Shirt (light blue and pretty nice) and most importantly, the duffel bag. We then walked around the expo and Satish suggested I pick up a rain poncho (which I duly did). Mona (who had wanted to stop by the Outlet Mall but had been overruled!) saw her chance to do some shopping and was browsing the skirts on display (and eventually ended up buying one). After a quick walk around the various stalls (not a huge expo by any means), we decided to head out and get some coffee.

It was only just past 3 p.m. and we still had the whole evening ahead. After debating on what to do next, we decided to go catch a movie (and stay off our feet). After consulting Chechi, we decided to go to a movie theater in downtown Napa. We arrived there and after looking at showtimes decided to watch 'Milk' (that won Sean Penn a best actor Oscar!). Left to herself, Mona would probably have watched 'He's Just Not That into You', but luckily, we outnumbered her 3 to 1 :-)

Since we had a little while before the show started, we headed out to find a coffee place. After walking a couple of blocks, Mona sighted a Cupcake place - woohoo - guilt-free carbo loading glee ensued! We then picked up coffee next door and decided to eat and drink by the river.

Sufficiently recharged, we headed back to the theater where we picked up a large tub of popcorn (more guilt-free snacking!) and settled down to watch the movie. It was decent though more of a docu-drama chronicling the life and times of Harvey Milk (though Sean Penn did give a bravura performance). We then walked around looking for a place to eat. We saw a couple of Italian places but they were packed with 'pasta-loading' runners. After some walking and driving around, we finally settled on a Chinese restaurant (hey - rice contains Carbs too :-)). After some springrolls and fried rice, we headed back to the motel. Satish and I were roomies - we both pinned the bibs on our race shirts and attached the D-tag to the shoes. After watching Bill Maher for some time (quite hilarious), I called it a night after setting the alarm for 3:45 am (to get ready and get to the finish line/school before 5 am for the shuttles to the start in Calistoga).

Napa + Taper = Naper?!

After the Kaiser half, discovered that somehow I had strained my right calf. So, took a few days off with the good ol' RICE therapy and decided to test it out on the following Saturday. We met at Los Gatos and did an 18 miler without too much trouble (at 10 min pace). There - the last long run out of the way.

The following 2 weeks had rain playing havoc with our running plans (though God knows we do need the rain in the Bay Area to alleviate the drought like conditions). Had to make do with a 9 mile run on the treadmill (instead of 13) - running on treadmill is really boring after running outside!

Followed that up with a 6x800 track session in pouring rain (at 3:40-3:45 per 800); wanted to do the Yasso (10x800 with jog) but again rain had the last laugh. Coach Raman proposed an interesting workout for the 6 miler on Feb 21 - 1 mile at 8:55 pace, 1 mile at 8:45, 1 mile at 8:35, 1 mile of sprints (run at 5K pace for 1 min folllowed by 1 min jog) followed by a 1 mile cool down.
Something about engaging the fast twitch fibers!!

Had a track session on Tuesday (4x400 at goal pace - 2:10 per 400) and a short easy run on Friday.

Plan to head out to Napa with the gang - Satish, Mona, and Senthil on Saturday afternoon to get to the expo/bib pick up. The weather forecast calls for rain on Sunday; I guess the rain has decided to follow me since Portland. Well, I hope that at least we don't have the hail and 40 mile headwinds that they had in 2001!

No major time goals as such; a new PR would be nice but it really depends on the weather. Supposed to be a fairly easy course - let's see what Sunday brings!

Kaiser Half Marathon - Feb 1, 2009

I had fond memories of the Kaiser half. This was the race where I broke the 2 hour barrier in 2008 and had decided to use it as a checkpoint/pace run with a month to go for Napa. I was also experimenting with a different taper strategy this time. I had run a 24 miler on Jan 24th (5 weeks to Napa), and would do 13.1 at Kaiser on Feb 1. This would be followed by a 18 miler on Feb 7th and then 13 and 6.

I had decided not to run Kaiser too hard (i.e. go for a PR) but instead run a consistent pace at marathon goal pace. Ram from the Rancho Rockers was also running this race (after his on-off hibernation in the winter). So, the three of us (Ram, Shyamala his wife, and me) left around 6 am to get to the start.

After a fairly uneventful ride up, we arrived at Great Highway (having decided to park near the finish line). We took the shuttle bus to the start and arrived around 7:15 or so (start was at 8 am). Ran into some other Asha runners there including Coach Tony who gave us a quick pep talk. It was pretty chilly and I had decided to keep 2 layers on and also thankfully had my gloves. We did a short warm up run and some quick stretching. Then we moved towards the start and I lined up between the 8 min/mile and 9 min/mile groups. After the national anthem, the gun sounded and we were off.

This was my first race with the Garmin 305 and I had set it on auto-lap every 1 mile (and also to show current, last lap, and average lap pace). I tried my best to rein in the adrenaline and kept to a 8:30 pace the first few miles. It took a while to get warmed up so I made sure I did not run too fast. After a few miles, Rajeev and Raj passed me and were looking strong (and turns out had really good runs). We went around the Golden Gate park and looped back to the start. Legs felt ok but a little tired.

We crossed the start area again around mile 6 or so and then ran towards the Great highway (which we reached around mile 7/8). I was still keeping an 8:35ish pace overall. We reached the Great Highway and I remembered last year's race where the rain and wind played havoc. Thankfully, this year had sunny skies and it was warming up nicely. I was making sure I took electrolytes at most water stops but I could feel myself starting to tire a bit. The 24 miler the previous weekend (Jan 24) had taken a toll, and I decided to pull back to around a 8:40-8:45 pace.

Reached the turnaround point on the Great Highway and headed back - 3 miles or so to go. The one thing I had noticed consistently was that the Garmin was off by around 0.1-0.2 miles by now (10.2 instead of 10 at the 10 mile marker). I kept plugging along, passing some people, and being passed by others :-) Finally passed mile 12 and tried to pick up the pace a bit. I was still averaging around 8:38 or so per mile.

We turned onto Fulton and up the small hill and finally within sight of the finish. Picked up the pace to around 7:30 and went past the finish line in 1:53:02 (PR was 1:51:30). The Garmin showed 13.32 miles! (off by 0.22 miles!). Turns out that several other people observed the same thing. So, this was either a mass co-ordinated Garmin malfunction, or the race organizers messing up!

Anyhoo, kept walking to the food area and picked up some Cliff Bars and water. Met up with Rajeev, Raj and others and chatted for a bit. Waited for Ram to finish and he did so in a new personal best! Picked up our sweat bags and walked back towards the parking area where Shyamala was waitng patiently - many thanks to her!

All in all, a good race and met my goal of treating this as a fast long run. The T-shirt this year was black (better than last year), but I guess the medal fell victim to the recession (no medal this year!).

Que Sera Sera (AKA the CIM relay)

Having skipped the CIM relay in 2007 due to the birth of our son (now that would have been quite a scene - me running CIM when my wife went into labor; would have led to my permanent banishment to the garage :-)), I thought I would run it this year. Adding to the motivation was my dad and brother visiting us during that time. Since my dad had never seen me run a race before, I thought it would be good idea. So, I decided to team up with Navneet and run the relay as a 2 person race (half-marathon each).

We left for Sacramento on Saturday morning with Vikranth and Ram (who had kindly offered us a ride). It was a fun trip though Ram was feeling a little under the weather (no doubt due to a Friday night party and subsequent lack of sleep). We reached the expo, picked up our stuff, and were then met there by my brother (who had arrived earlier to visit some of his wife's relatives). My dad and I went along with my brother having made plans to meet the others for dinner that night. Only Ram and Vikranth showed up and my dad and I had dinner with them at an Indian restaurant. I then chatted with Navneet and made plans to pass the chip on to him through Ram (since Navneet was running the first 2 legs and I would run the last 2).

The next morning dawned bright and clear - little did I know what was in store :-) We had arranged to have my brother pick us up at 7 am and drive us to the halfway exchange point. As we got closer, we discovered that they had shut down all of the streets leading to the exchange point. As we drove around in circles (aided by a dysfunctional GPS system that kept telling us to take the same route back again and again), my blood pressure started to rise significantly. Some frantic phone conversations ensued with Kanaka (Navneet's wife), and she mentioned he was getting closer to the exchange point.

After driving around and taking the freeway and getting off a couple of exits later, I decided enough was enough. Navneet had already reached the halfway point. I got off and told my dad and brother to wait at the finish. I asked around and discovered (much to my chagrin) that I was at the 18 mile marker!!! So, I decided to start running against the flow of runner traffic back to the 13 mile marker. Of course, this meant that I undertook some good natured ribbing from the other runners - 'Dude, you're going the wrong way!!', and 'Hey Man - lost your bearings' etc. etc.
I had my cell phone with me and was in constant conversation with Navneet. Finally managed to meet and get a hold of the timing chip. Stopped for a second to put it on - by now, we had lost over 40 minutes and I was pretty steamed. Navneet had run his 13.1 in just under 2 hours and this fiasco had cost us.

I took out my frustration on the pavement - I ran as hard as I could. Shortly after I started, I saw that I had caught up with the 5 hour pace group. I kept pounding the turf into submission and passed wave after wave of runners. The 4:50 pace group, 4:40, then 4:30. I was tiring a little but I kept going (fueled mostly by frustration at this point :-)). I finally rounded the bend and crossed the finish line in 4 hrs 25 mins and change. This meant I had run my 13 miles in 1 hr 45 mins or so (not counting the 5 miles that I ran in the other direction :-)). I looked around for my dad and brother and finally found them a bit further along with the crowd. If not for the delays, we would have finished in around 3:45!

Anyway, a lesson learned the hard way. Next time, I plan to stay in Sacramento (we stayed in Folsom near the start this time) as they have shuttles from Sacramento to the relay interchange points and the start. We had a nice lunch and then headed back that evening.

All in all a fun race - just need to be more aware of road closures next time. It turns out that most of the other Asha teams also had similar problems....

Hibernation is for Bears!

Well another off-season after Team Asha disbands and everyone goes into hibernation mode!

After Portland, I had some hamstring issues and had to lay low for a few weeks. The smart thing I did was to make a trip to SMI for some massage sessions with Greg. Now Greg had this reputation for making grown men scream like little girls (not that there's anything wrong with that :-)) and I went in full of trepidation. He didn't look all that intimidating as a person and I thought things would go fine! And then I took a look at those hands and that giant thumb on one of them. The violins from the Psycho theme song started playing in my head as I got onto the massage table.

After a gruelling 1 hour session (where I am proud to say that through a combination of gritting, gnashing, and finally biting into towels, I did not scream like a little girl!), I was glad to note that I wa still able to get off the table. And being the glutton for punishment that I am, I actually went back for a couple more sessions. At the end of it all, voila - no hamstring issues any more!

Anyhoo - as the title of this post says, Hibernation is for Bears! I don't like the idea of training for 6 months and then losing all the fitness gained by hibernting through the winter. So, I resumed training at Rancho with a band of die-hard merrymen (and women) led by Coach Raman. And of course, given that it's good to set some goals to carry one through the cold months of winter, I decided to run the CIM relay and then the Napa marathon on March 1st.

Portland Marathon - Wet, humid, and still a blast!

So after a successful SF half and continued training with Team Asha putting in the miles and time, it was time to head on to the first Asha marathon of the season - Portland on Oct 5, 2008.

Portland - the name conjures up images of a beautiful green city in the Pacific Northwest replete with dreary skies and rains throughout the year. We had been tracking the weather forecast anxiously and the predicted probability percentage for rain on Sunday had been changing more often than the McCain economic plan :-) Well, we were trained to run in all kinds of conditions except rain this season - so, should make for an interesting time...

Oct 3, 2008 (Friday)
After having tapered, rested, and loaded up on carbs for a few weeks now, I was raring to go. The initial plan had been to drive to Portland with the family so they could come and watch me run. However, the wife had deep-sixed that plan and in any case, the kids had a bit of a cold. So, I had decided to fly out to Portland on an evening flight from San Jose.

Arrived at the airport and was sitting at the gate when I ran into Parag, who was on the same Southwest flight. We chatted for a while and discussed plans and strategies. The flight was fairly uneventful and they even served peanuts :-) Landed in Portland and picked up my bags etc. My friend Srikanth (from college) was waiting for me at the airport (with his two lovely kids, Anagha, and Krishna in tow) and took me over to his house to stay Friday night. His wife Priya had made a nice South Indian dinner rich in carbs for my benefit, and after feasting on it, and chatting and catching up for a while, decided to hit the hay to get a good night's rest. Oh and BTW, it rained pretty much all night!!

Oct 4, 2008 (Saturday)
The carbo-load dinner had been scheduled for 7 p.m. in downtown Portland (close to the Team Asha hotel). So, I decided to go to the expo right before then and pick up my bib and then head to the carbo-load dinner. The morning was spent with Srikanth and the kids at a science museum (which was quite interesting). The weather was wacky with bouts of rain followed by periods of some blue sky. After a nice lunch at home, spent some time on the Nintendo Wii with Srikanth playing golf! I then packed my bags and got things together to head downtown.

Around 5 p.m., Srikanth and I headed to the city and arrived at the expo. The expo was not much to write home about :-) (though definitely a step up from the SV marathon!). After picking up my bib (with D-tag) and walking around for a bit, we decided to head to Hotel 50 to meet the team. The funny thing with this marathon was that the T-shirts were not given out at the expo; they had to be collected at the finish!!

Reached the hotel at 6:30 p.m. and left my stuff with Vinay. Then, after saying goodbye to Srikanth, we headed out to Alessandro's for the carbo-load dinner. We met up with the rest of the group outside, and had to loiter around for a while till the tables were ready.

The restaurant had one thing going for it - ambiance! Too bad, the quality of food and the service did not match it :-) There was an interminable wait to even get the bread initially, and then the food orders were further delayed/mixed-up (Coach Tony got his soup after he finished his main course!!). Of course, the travel team picked the restaurant due to its proximity to the hotel and are not responsible for the service etc. Anyhoo, Coach Tony gave us a nice pep-talk and after finishing our dinners, we headed back to the hotel around 9 p.m. or so to get some shut-eye in. Oh, and it was not raining then :-)

Reached the hotel, and after pinning the bib on and fitting the D-tag on the shoe, said good night to Navneet and went to bed by 10 p.m. or so.

Oct 5, 2008 (Sunday) - the Race
It's funny how even if this was my 3rd marathon, I still had butterflies in my stomach, and the anxiety caused me to wake up at 3 a.m. (and then not be able to get back to sleep). Stayed in bed till about 4:30 in order to let Navneet rest, and finally got up to get ready. After the glide/nip-guard and other checks, was ready to go and had an energy bar and half a bagel around 5:30 a.m. (thanks Gurpreet and the co-ords team for the bagels and bananas - awesome work as always!).

The plan was to meet up with the group in the lobby at 6 a.m. and walk/jog the 4 blocks to the start line. Navneet and I got to the lobby, and of course, found no one there :-) We decided to wait a bit longer in order to stay out of the cold. It was pretty nippy outside and cloudy - but no rain! Finally, people started trickling in, and by about 6:20, we decided to head out.
Got to the start line, and picked up the sweats bag. Also stood in line for the port-a-potty and just about managed to get out by 6:45 a.m. There was a long line for the sweats check as well, but somehow snuck in and dropped it off. Started pushing through the crowds (6 hr finish, 5.5 hr finish etc.) to reach the 4 hours and below corral. I had planned to start with the 3 hr 50 min pace group and found the pacers with the sign and got to the back of the group there.

The announcer made some announcements and also noted that it had never rained during the marathon for the past 30+ years - should have known what was in store then :-) After the national anthem, the starting gun went off, and we were off. The elites and faster runners took off, and soon, we were moving as well and crossed the start mat (and I started my watch).

Miles 0- 5
Kept telling myself to start slow till I was warmed up. The crowd was moving and everyone looked like they were sprinting out of the blocks. Kept a 9:11 pace for the first mile and just about managed to keep sight of the 3:50 pacers. The next few miles were quicker (8:25-8:30 pace) and every time I looked up, I was still falling further behind the pace group! I had the 3:50 pace band on, and kept looking at the times. Something was definitely up with the pace group. Oh and it started drizzling around mile 2! So much for not raining during the marathon:-) And the humidity was around 95% (we found out later) - conditions were definitely going to play a part.

Miles 6-13.1
The rain kept getting steadier and was quite annoying to say the least. The roads were getting slick and some puddles were forming (had to focus to make sure I did not step in one). The 3:50 pacers were definitely off and going much faster (and as a result, I was going faster than planned/needed to keep up!). Hit 10K in 52:55, 8.9 miles in 1:15:48, and the halfway point in 1:52:50 (8:37 pace).

Just to put things in context - according to the pace band, the 3:50 group should have hit the half in 1:56:58; I was there in 1:52:50, and was at least a minute (if not more) behind the 3:50 pacers! So, they were off by a full 5 minutes or more! So much for them knowing how to pace us :-)

The humidity was definitely sapping, and despite the rain, I could feel that I was sweating a lot more. I made sure to drink electrolytes at every water stop. Compounding things, the marathon had 2 kinds of electrolyte drinks - Ultima, which provided mineral replenishment only, and Gleukos, which had sugar and electrolytes. I took them alternately, and sometimes grabbed both at a water stop. One of the things I had told myself was to be very careful with my nutrition during my race (having tailed off badly towards the end in my earlier races) - so, had an energy bar around mile 8, and some Liquid Gold (which was the honey based gel type thing that they offered - quite delicious I must add) at the next couple of water stops. I also looked around to see if I could spot my brother and his wife (who had flown in to see me race) but no luck. I did spot the Asha folks, and they cheered me on (thanks folks!).

Overall, I felt pretty good and seemed to be on track to hit my sub 4 hr goal.

Miles 13.1 - 20
What's that old saying about the best laid plans :-) I was moving pretty smoothly, when suddenly around Mile 15, I felt a twinge in my right hamstring and it started sending out signals of discomfort. I was keeping a good pace but decided to slow down to avoid further damage that might prevent me from finishing! 8:30-8:40 miles soon became 9+ minute miles. Still, I had over 7 mins in the bank, and I hoped that would see me through.

After looping through downtown stretches initially, we had moved on towards St.John's bridge at mile 17. This presented the only significant hill on the course - about a 150 foot climb but not too bad in itself - it was just the positioning in the race when people were close to the proverbial wall! I was now doing about 9:15-9:20 min miles and decided to be conservative on the hill. I took it nice and easy (I guess my quads still had some residual memory from Big Sur in April and SF half in August) and despite recording my slowest mile of the day (9:54), I made it to the top and across the bridge fairly comfortably.

The rain was falling harder, and the chill was also causing my sore hamstring to keep announcing itself! I had continued consuming liquid gold and also had a packet of Gu around mile 14 onwards. I reached mile 18 and felt a little tired, but knew that this was the 'wall' and I had to fight past it. I took another shot of Gu, put my head down and kept charging forward - the words of Coach Harry were fresh in my mind - 'As long as you keep moving forward, you will finish!' Reached mile 20 in 2:56:40 (now at 8:50 pace). Oh, and I had lost sight of the 3:50 pace group a while back, and was relying on the timing bracelet for guidance!

Miles 21-26.2
It was now pouring pretty badly and I was tiring a bit as well. I decided to unleash the secret weapon - 'Chocolate Gu with Caffeine' that I had picked up just for this occasion! Took the first shot of it, and soon felt it work its magic. Started keeping a steady 9:20-9:30 pace and waited for the downhill that was soon coming. I knew that if I could do better than 11 minute miles or so for the remaining distance, I would be home in less than 4 hrs!!

The crowds and bands (which really helped get the spirits up on a few occasions) had been awesome from the start and kept cheering us on as we made our way to cross the bridge back to the downtown side of the river. Soon, the downhill arrived at mile 22, and I decided to pick up the pace a little (as much as I could). After a 9 minute mile, reached mile 23 or so when I spied the folks handing out beer in the little plastic cups! Despite being a teetotaler, I was in half-a-mind to throw away that label, and imbibe the nectar. However, I decided that this was probably not the best time to experiment with alcohol (now drugs would have been a whole other story - one is definitely high on something when one decides to run marathons!).

I could now see folks starting to struggle/cramp up/walk. There were several folks doubled up on the side of the road as well. I decided to focus and concentrated harder on keeping the back straight and the strides smooth (well at least I thought so - others may have seen me as the guy with the flailing arms and staggering feet!!!). The mile 24 and 25 markers soon passed by - and I had over 14 minutes to finish the last 1.2 miles. I decided to save the 'kick' for the last .2 miles just in case I ran out of gas (if I started sprinting at mile 25). Started hearing the cheering crowds and rounded the bend for the final .2 - picked up the pace as best I could and soon sighted the finish arch with the balloons - trust me - there is no sweeter sight for any runner than those damn balloons at the finish line :-) I passed a few people and finally crossed the mat and immediately stopped my watch - it read 3:57:02 - mission accomplished!!! I was drenched, soaking wet, but ecstatic and relieved! I had broken the elusive (well, for me anyways) 4 hour barrier, and shattered my PR by over 35 mins (previous best, 4:32:31 at Big Sur).

It turns out that for the first time ever, the time according to my watch and the official chip time, matched! Of course, the consequence of this is that my official finish line picture has me bent down stopping my watch:-)

I walked gingerly through the finish area and picked up my medal - they gave us a rose along with it - a nice touch! Then headed straight for the food and refreshments - they gave us cold Nesquik Chocolate milk - never had anything tasted sweeter! They also had quite a good spread of food, and I picked up a few things to eat in a bit (as I did not feel like eating right away). Finally spotted Ram (my brother) and Bindu (his wife) and went and accepted their congratulations. Headed down to the Asha tent where I was greeted by an ecstatic Gurpreet, and Coach Tony, and Raj (who had both finished ahead of me). The co-ords and volunteers had excelled as always, and in true Asha tradition, there were Samosas and also Lassi waiting for us in the tent.
After chatting for a bit and wolfing down a Samosa, I decided to go pick up my sweats bag - only to discover that we had to walk 5 blocks to get it! Limped down the streets with Raj for company and got our bags. Raj decided to head back to the hotel and I started walking back to the finish area to meet my brother. My friend Srikanth had also arrived in the meanwhile, and we decided to wait for a little bit - Vinay, Kiron, and Navneet finished in the meanwhile (and had all run awesome races given the conditions). Then, after congratulating the finishers and planning to meet at the dinner that evening, decided to head back to Srikanth's place (so as not to keep them all waiting) - went back to the hotel, picked up my stuff, and headed back.
Got to Srikanth's place, and after a nice warm shower (I know, I know - I am not a huge fan of ice baths :-)), and some ice-packs on sore knees and ankles, went out to a nice South Indian restaurant for a lunch buffet!

Oct 5, 2008 (Sunday) - evening
Arrived at the planned rendezvous (at Taj India/India Palace) after several phone calls and updates from Gurpreet (that included name changes, address changes etc. - they had apparently relocated the restaurant recently!). Had come along with Ram and Bindu and there were already some folks there at the restaurant (Chandrika, Shailesh, and others). Started on the pakoras while we waited for the rest of the crew to arrive in the shuttle from the hotel. They finally showed up, and we celebrated over drinks and dinner. Coach Tony congratulated us all, and we were also happy to receive a phone call from Coach Raman (who congratulated the team on speaker phone). Coach Martina had already called me in the afternoon (as had Rajeev Shankar, and a few others) - though Martina probably had mixed feelings as she now owed various people lunch and dinner (or worse - money :-)) - details not supplied in order to avoid corruption/betting charges :-)


We shared the victory stories, and it was especially gratifying to see the smiles on the faces of the first time finishers. Despite the weather, and various other injuries/inconveniences, Team Asha runners had braved the odds, and had all finished strong with a smile on their faces! The spirit of Team Asha shone through on that bleak, cloudy, rainy day in Portland - and we had all indeed conquered the beast and had tales of valour and courage to tell.

I am extremely grateful to all the Coaches for the training, advice, and support:

Tony - for pushing me hard at tracks and prepping me on race day.
Martina - for all her support last year (running with me at SV marathon, off-season Rancho runs etc.) and her advice this year.
Raman - for running with me at Rancho and introducing me to the joys of Black Mountain and other assorted hill trails.
Harry - for his injury analysis and input.
and last but not the least - Rajeev Char - for all the advice, injury prevention/recovery tips (when I had the ITB issues), for running with me and encouraging me at the long runs (Los Gatos etc.), helping me plan out a race strategy (pace groups).
Raj (asst.coach) - for the pep talks, and making me believe that I could crack the 4 hour barrier.

I also owe the Rancho group a vote of thanks! Being their mentor, and being responsible for their progress, and to get them to their marathon goals, has instilled a sense of discipline in me (and caused me not to miss any runs this season); well that, and the fact that I am the only mentor for that group with no back-up :-) I have also enjoyed the fun and camaraderie - thanks a bunch guys and gals!

Epilogue:
Oct 6, 2008 (Monday)
Flew back home on Monday morning (after thanking Srikanth and his family for their excellent hospitality and saying goodbye to Ram and Bindhu - it was excellent to have them all share the experience). Was really glad to get back to the wife and kids and they were all thrilled with my achievement and to have me back (well, even little 9 month old Rohan gave me a high-five (or so I thought - he was probably just waving his hands:-))).

Oct 7, 2008 (Tuesday) - track workout
Some of us Portland finishers showed up at tracks on Tuesday evening. We wore our Finisher T-Shirts (awesome BTW - Nike, full-sleeve, wicking shirt) and medals in order to inspire the Chicago and SV runners. A couple of us gluttons for punishment even ran a few laps (to get in a recovery run I guess).

Oct 9, 2008 (Thursday) - weekday Rancho run
Back in action to fulfil my duties as mentor. Ran with the guys - some things never change :-)

Running is not a chore anymore - it's a lifestyle choice, and I am proud to be a card-carrying member of this Marathoner's club! And, the fact that I am where I am (being able to make the above statement) - I owe it all to the family called 'Team Asha'! And for this, I will keep coming back year after year to share new experiences and forge new bonds and friendships!

SF Half Marathon – Part Deux – The Revenge of the Geek Runners!

Starring: Team Asha 2008 runners, Coaches, Ops folks, cheerleaders

Also Starring: City of San Francisco, Golden Gate Bridge, Weather

Co-Starring: Malati Gadgil

Also Ran: Bharath Prabhakaran

Logline (for the busy moguls, those with ADD etc.):

Team Asha 2008 with its army of geek runners descends on the City of San Francisco during the early dawn hours. After several hours of ferocious battle, pavement pounded by feet, bridges trespassed, hills captured and surpassed, paper cups being flung about, and general mayhem, the city proves no match as Team Asha 2008 returns victorious after having captured the dangling gold (like) medallions J

Rating:

Karnazes and Galloway give this film ‘Two ITBs up’ !!!

Details:

Aug 3 2008 dawned like any other day in the San Francisco Bay area. The weather was not as cold as usual, the fog mostly dissipated – there was an aura of calmness – almost like the calm preceding a storm! Little did the City of San Francisco know what was about to hit it. For unbeknownst to the city by the bay, a band of finely trained men and women (pretending to be engineers and accountants as their cover) was about to descend on it with the goal of conquering its hills and bridges and returning to their homes with the gold(plated!) medallions as loot. And this band of warriors was unlike any the city had seen – they were finely trained (by a group of excellent coaches and trainers with a great supporting staff) running machines (well with a few rickety parts J) - committed and driven by the noble desire to make a difference to the lives of underprivileged children. It was a heated battle between two worthy adversaries and like with any story, multiple accounts exist (without this concept, Bollywood would have to stop releasing films with the same storyline over and over again!). The following is the narrative in the words Geek Runner 10126 – an also ran called Bharath Prabhakaran (who only managed to get into the movie because he was able to survive weeks of rigor at Sergeant Tony Patel’s Tracks Group 1 boot camp, bribe Coach Raman with Samosas and Lassis, hold Coach Martina’s bib at ransom, and dutifully following Coach Char’s injury rehab strategies!). No names have been changed to protect the guilty parties – any resemblance to characters living or otherwise is purely intentional (who cares about litigation - lawsuits filed against the zero overhead non-profit Team Asha will yield absolutely nothing J)

Geek Runner (GR)10126’s log on that fateful day:

Aug 2, 2008 – 2000 hours

• Military rations consumed (a concoction consisting of gruel, beans, rice)

Aug 2, 2008 – 2130 hours

• Combat fatigues neatly laid out
• Location sensor detached from number-tag and attached to combat boots
• Number tag (for GR 10126) attached to Team Asha uniform with clasping devices
• Hit the Hay early to get 5 hours of shut-eye
• Failover mechanisms in place – alarm on cell phone, clock radio, electrodes strapped to temple wired to deliver stimulus at precisely 0230 hours!

Aug 2, 2008 – 2230 hours

• Sheep counting currently stalled at 22,264
• Sandman visit awaited
• Neurons still firing contemplating attack strategies

Aug 2, 2008 – some point later

• System shutdown

Aug 3, 2008 – 0228 hours

• Ocular systems fired up and open
• Electro-shock stimulus not needed J
• Preparation rituals completed (further details censored to avoid court-martial J)

Aug 3, 2008 – 0315 hours

• Frantic cellular communication with Comrade Venu regarding delayed arrival at pre-arranged meeting point for transportation to base camp

Aug 3, 2008 – 0325 hours

• Comrade Venu arrives – finally! Has been engaged in own pre-race preparation (some obscure technique called Yoga – note to self – needs further research – is it a performance enhancing drug?!)
• Rapid (and I mean rapid – 60 mph on city streets!) progress to pick up Comrade Preeti from her quarters

Aug 3, 2008 – 0340 hours

• Arrive at base camp (aka Sunnyvale Caltrain station) – brilliant strategy I might add – launch an attack from a location 40 miles away!
• Commander Gurpreet is standing on steps of transport (looks remarkably like a bus) screening the recruits (apparently entry into the transport vehicle required some sort of pre-payment of $15 J)
• Commander spots me and assigns my chores – pick-up Bananas, bagels, and nutrition sachet (aka formula – GU) from his luxury vehicle and lug them over to the bus for distribution to the troops
• Excellent arrangements as always by Operations Commanders (Esther, Srini, Asif, Jaya and others) to ensure ideal preparation
• Have also been assigned duties to distribute rations to troops on board the bus – need to lead them well fed to battle!

Aug 3, 2008 – 0400 hours

• Screeching tires shatter the deafening silence as several GRs scramble to reach base camp.
• First busload of soldiers dispatched (with a planned pit-stop to pick up several more at Camp Belmont).

Aug 3, 2008 – 0415 hours

• Second bus-load (with self on board) leaves for battle

Aug 3, 2008 – 0415 hours to 0510 hours

• Atmosphere aboard bus strangely subdued (compared to expedition in 2007) – I guess we need a shot of Comrade Mehul singing the battle cry ‘Ek Chatur Naar’ to rally the troops!
• Nervous energy abounds though. Hushed conversations taking place discussing strategy, offering reassurance and motivation; several catching a few extra winks to recharge.
• Proceed with assigned task along with Comrade Vivek for assistance (having interrupted his secret routine of placing bullet-proof armor on chest to avoid chafing of chest protrusions which can result in the ‘shot-in-the-chest’ look post combat!).
• Distribute bagels, bananas, and nutrition sachet. Receive mumbled words of thanks.
• Warriors appear well fed and ready.
• Sit with Rancho training division for last minute strategy briefings.

Aug 3, 2008 – 0510 hours

• Arrive at destination
• Team Asha 2008 Army congregates at Start area
• Shout words of encouragement to rally the troops
• Amazed at number of warriors from other divisions who have apparently descended on the City on the same mission!
• Take a quick survey of the location – great views of the Bay, weather appears warmer than expected. Decide to discard outer-covering Kevlar jacket.

Aug 3, 2008 – 0515 hours

• Troops start walking to Location C – ‘Sweats Check’ – to deposit protective equipment to be claimed after combat has ceased.
• On the way, see large lines waiting to jump into large green objects (codenamed Port-a-Potty - some of these appear to be shaking – what’s up with that?!)
• Get into one of these lines to avoid delays during mission

Aug 3, 2008 – 0535 hours

• Still in line to attack the large Green monsters
• Pre-mission plans going awry – inadequate time to warm-up and stretch; Team Asha soldiers going in all different directions! Chaos already!!

Aug 3, 2008 – 0545 hours

• Two waves of combatants have already set off on their odyssey
• Get into pre-assigned ‘Wave 3’ to begin combat
• Frantically look for Comrades Kiron, Saumil, and Malati (who were supposed to be in my platoon!) Finally sight Comrade Malati just as the gun goes off

Aug 3, 2008 – 0545 hours to 0737 hours

• Initial foray – the thundering herd charges onto the streets – pounding pavement into submission
• Try not to get caught up in the initial excitement – keep to a 9 minute pace over the first mile
• Resistance is futile – miles 2 and 3 are around 8:20 pace (pre-mission target it 8:30 pace)
• Take in scenic views along Fishermen’s wharf and other landmarks
• Start to turn into East Beach en-route to first hill capture. Pace remains consistent.
• Arrive at first hill-test – months of hill training over previous winter with Coaches Raman and Martina have been mostly forgotten J - ITB issues and reduced hill running have made this a worthy challenge.
• Push up the slopes – amazed to watch Comrade Malati glide over the hill as if non-existent. Comrade Malati is a finely tuned running machine! (note to self – need to get rid of a further 10-20 lbs of excess baggage – mostly around abdominal region in order to attain optimal performance).
• Slightly labored breathing as this hill is conquered. The good thing about up hills – there is usually a downhill following it (well except at Big Sur where it seems to be all uphill!).
• Arrive at familiar surroundings in Crissy field – pre-mission war-games there have left us perfectly prepared.
• Breeze past laboring combatants (who were not as well coached!) – approaching obstacle 2 – big hill before Golden Gate – drop the pace a bit and make the climb – Comrade Malati as usual gets ahead and I work to catch up.
• Arrive at base of Golden Gate bridge – last year’s recon did not yield anything due to the fog cover. Marvel in beauty of the bridge with the clearer weather! Glad to see Comrades Arun and Anu on photo-recon mission and wave to them as they cheer us on!
• Run across the bridge taking in the views and keeping good pace.
• Arrive at turn-around point and pick up refreshments (have been partaking of liquid refreshments at all re-fueling stations – liquid called Cytomax not as palatable as Team Asha offering ‘Gatorade’!)
• Cross mat and hear beeping noises all over the place – aha – the enemies are tracking our every move – attempts to short-circuit the course will be rendered futile!
• Head back across the bridge and left hamstring starts acting up again – this is what happens when pre-mission routines are not adhered to.
• Keep motoring along despite discomfort – meanwhile Comrade Malati is striding along smoothly like a gazelle!
• Pass the bridge and accomplish second objective.
• Having been part of prior year’s mission, know that battle is not complete and there is more danger in store. Warn Comrade Malati to slow down a bit.
• Reach Mile 10 marker at about 8:40 pace. Need to pick it up a bit to reach target.
• Speed up a bit on downhill leg but have to back off almost immediately due to the rolling hills – a worthy adversary indeed!
• Somehow make it through miles 11 and 12 – hamstring tissue sending stronger signals – need to pay close attention post-mission!
• Finally the last half-mile – really pick up the pace here – goal in sight – pumping arms, furious feet fly all over the place – notice that fellow warriors also doing the same (with varying degrees of success).
• Finally arrive at destination side-by-side with Comrade Malati! Timing device on hand that says ‘1:51:31’ – Mission Accomplished! (for real this time J)

Aug 3, 2008 – 0740 hours to 0940 hours

• To the victors go the spoils – pillage for loot and pick up shiny round object, and raid the refreshment area – already long lines here!
• Meet Comrades ‘Fly-Boy’ Sandeep Borle, and ‘Running Machine’ Raj to exchange congratulations.
• Comrade Malati decides to step away to share news of conquest with significant other.
• Spend next 2 hours close to finish line cheering and watching Team Asha combatants arriving at goal after having vanquished the demons (both physical and mental).
• See Rancho gang – Anup, Vikranth, Ram, Venu, Arvind, Narinder, Preeti, Ruchi come in and finish – the expressions of joy, relief, and excitement fill me with joy and pride and make the 3 month journey training hard at Rancho worth all the effort!
• Would like to linger on and await the few remaining Rancho ‘mentees’ but the last shuttle to the starting point where Team Asha has set up a victory camp and party is to leave shortly – so trudge off.

Aug 3, 2008 – 1030 hours to 1215 hours

• Reach Asha victory camp with Comrades Venu and Preeti who sight the tent where the victors are enjoying massages from the vanquished –they immediately decide to partake in the festivities
• Reach Asha tent and sight Coach Tony and several others who have come earlier after finishing – high-fives are exchanged and stories shared.
• As always, the excellent Team Asha Ops squadron has arranged a lavish spread (including the secret weapon codenamed ‘Samosa’). Wolf down some nourishment – ahh the sweet (or should it be spicy and tangy J)taste of victory!
• Talk to several fresh recruits on their first missions and share in their excitement and offer words of congratulations! Lots of hooting, whooping, and hollering happening!
• Official photographers (and several unofficial ones) come by and several group pictures are taken to record the victory for posterity
• Finally all the Rancho crowd (including Sumita, Aditi, Commander Gurpreet, and Kiran) come in and we all huddle together for a mini-victory huddle and group picture!
• Stand by, watch, and enjoy the looks on the faces of the first-timers, and the expressions of pride on the faces of the Coaches (Tony, Martina, and Raman).
• Congratulate the heroes who undertook the 26.2 mile mission – Coach Raman, Rajeev, Reshu, Vivek etc. – they have truly slain the beast!
• Think about leaving for transportation back to base (Caltrain) – but kindly Rancho group family members (Saket, Mahalakshmi, Payal etc.) and injured comrade Arjun offer to provide transport for us (no doubt moved by the sight of the walking wounded J).
• Make our ways back to base with plans for further celebration at Comrade Anup’s house at 1900 hours)

Epilogue:

Aug 3, 2008 – 1900 hours onwards

• Wild scenes of celebration at Comrade Anup’s house
• Traditional Marathi cuisine is served up thanks to Anup’s mom!
• The wine and beer are flowing freely (and for once I sit back and abstain from stopping them in my role as Gestapo!).
• Stories are shared, a few tears shed, friendships formed and bonds forged and strengthened by fire!

This in a microcosm defines Team Asha – where the spirit is strong with further conquests to follow!

Coming soon this fall (straight to DVD J):

• Team Asha conquers Portland!
• Team Asha does Chicago!
• Team Asha decimates Silicon Valley!