Pre-race Relaxation

Saturday 15^th Oct

On arrival at the rather unconventional Bagdogra airport we were hurried into an awaiting jeep by the race organisers.  As I was the tallest I had the privilege to ride in the passenger’s seat.  As I attempted a few times to grab my seat belt, I turned round to discover there was none!  The local driver then hopped on board to take us to our destination.  I couldn’t help but notice that the driver looked about 14.  When I asked him how old he was and how long he had been driving, his response was “18 and still learning”.  That answer filled me with confidence.  To say the driving was different would be an understatement.

Not only did the driver have pedestrians, bicycles and cars to contend with, he also had to navigate past wild dogs and through herds of cattle.  This was the start of a long 2 hour journey to Mirik.  On route we passed tea plantations and various local shops that combined a mixture of new technology and some extremely old technology – the wheel.  In one shop they were selling mobile phones and in the other they were mending wooden cart wheels.  The ride up to Mirik at 5000ft was hair raising.  Endless switch back roads like the type you see in the Italian Job went on for 30 miles, up and up and up, with sheer drops on either side.  We were driving up a ridge line on a single track road with oncoming traffic.  Only the constant tooting of the horn prevents any accident occurring, with cars and trucks passing with millimetres to spare between vehicles.

After a nail biting journey we arrived at the Mirik Lake Resort.  Sounds luxurious - it wasn’t.  It was basic to say the least but the staff were extremely helpful and offered as tea and food on our arrival.  After only 5 minutes of arriving, the power went out.  What had we let ourselves in for? The candles were soon lit, it’s like this was a common occurrence and they were expecting it. 

Our hotel for 3 nights

We were soon taken to our rooms and I was introduced to my room mate.  I was to be sharing with a 56 year old Australian named Greg.  After some introductions we started talking about out running experiences – this conversation didn’t last too long for me due to my complete lack of experience.  However Greg had plenty to share, he was a regular at these sorts of challenges and he went on to tell me about his last race; a 250km run through the desert where you have to carry your own food and equipment for the week.  Hearing this I wondered what I had let myself in for.  Each person I spoke to seemed to have completed some sort of ultra marathon.  Was I under prepared?  Would I come last? Would I finish? These were the questions running through my head and the great unknown was beginning to make me nervous.

Sunday 16^th Oct

After a decent nights kip, Sunday was at my own leisure.  I decided to pack my forwarding bag for the coming days ahead, before a leisurely walk around the lake.  As we walked, we were stared at by many of the locals.  I guess it’s not every day they see westerners on their door step.  One group even asked for our photos with them – famous at last!  After the walk Aaron and I decided that it would be a good idea to run round the lake to see how we would cope running at altitude.  We were only at 5000ft so we didn’t expect to be too out of breath.  After a gentle start we soon settled into a steady pace, running along the uneven cobble stones (boulder path).  One and a half miles past and then disaster struck.  I went over my left ankle.  I tried to run but could only hobble.  This ankle was particularly weak already, as I had gone over it a month previous.  Luckily for me, I had purchased some ankle straps just in case, and had packed them in my running bag.  After strapping the ankle nice and tight and having taken some man-up pills I managed to run back to the hotel, albeit 4 minutes slower per mile than normal.  I quickly applied some ice to the ankle and hoped that it would be better in time for the race in 2 days.  This was not a good start.

On Sunday afternoon the rest of the participants arrived.  This year there were only 41 nutters that fancied the challenge.  We all sat down and had dinner before the race brief at 7pm from Mr Pandey – the race director.  The brief was delivered in a no nonsense approach as there was a lot of detail and timings to take on board.  Bags had to be packed by a certain time, different bags were to be packed for different days and these were to be labelled and ready for collection on different days – it was all very confusing.  Somehow we all managed to eventually sort everything out, but there were a few mishaps; like packing your running number in the bag that will be positioned at the top of the mountain at the end of day 1, or even sending your passport up there.  Now who could this be?  All I’m saying is – it wasn’t me.

Monday 17^th Oct

On Monday morning we woke at 6am for a 7am departure to Darjeeling for a day trip.  It was a 3 hour bus ride for a 30 mile journey.  The roads were a nightmare.  We were dropped off at the famous Darjeeling Himalayan railway, in which we took a 30 minute ride through the town.  Next we took a visit to the zoo where we saw panthers and Bengal Tigers.  It was only at this point that Aaron and I realised that we would be running through a national park that had these creatures roaming free.  Why had we not thought about this before?  If the run doesn’t kill us then these animals probably would.  This was yet another worry to add to our list of anxieties’.

The day had passed quickly and before we knew it, dinner was upon us and it would be time for bed.  We were due to be up at 0430 in order to be transported to the start of the race, 2 hours away from our current location.  With this in mind, an early night was called for and I was tucked up in bed by 8pm.  The ankle was still sore, but definitely better than yesterday.