My Odyssey with La Ultra (55km Journey)

The experience of a lifetime!

The irony of life is that you get the best high after an ultimate low. This journey to the mountain makes you respect life and humbles you down. I have always wondered the purpose of life, sometimes it makes you wander places, other times it comes to your place.

So far, I have deduced the purpose of life to satisfaction in our tasks and calmness irrespective of the situation. A bad thought can take life out of a human being while a good thought can protect one. This reminds me of a verse from Bhagavad Gita.

2.62 “While contemplating the objective of senses, a person develops attachment to them, from such attachment lust develops, from lust anger arises”

2.63 “From anger complete delusion arises and from delusion, confusion in memory occurs, with this intelligence is lost and man becomes immoral”

My tryst with running is since 4~5 years. Of late having prioritized other things, I have been running without targets, just going with the flow. Running long and slow has helped ditch PB’s and injuries. Most of the runs are with the groups practicing for ultra-marathons. We have developed a good camaraderie and hang out often.

During these hangouts, they constantly discussed about La Ultra. I wasn't interested in these conversations and remained aloof. This continued for few months. However a month ago, I’m not sure what bit me or if it was the subconscious mind which woke me up. I remember the day; it was a Sunday evening and they were discussing about the hotel stay. I suddenly decided to register! I checked with the organizer and he said he can allot a slot to me. My wife felt I was insane.

Once a thought is planted in your mind, nothing can stop you from converting it into action. We decided in the next few days to go ahead with the plan. This is when I started researching about the La Ultra and its history. It felt like digging your own grave, at the same time there was a bit of excitement about running in the hills. I discussed with the group about gear required and did the necessary shopping.  Having done a few long runs, we decided to pace our friends at the TRORT 50K ultra for 6.5Hrs, this went as per plan.

If you want to listen from an amateur on how to train for an ultra, my answer is there’s no good training plan as such. It’s all about how long you can stand on your legs. If you can run for 3hrs, spending 4hrs on the road. It’s good. Irrespective of the distance or speed, more the time you spend on the road doing easy Zone 2- Zone 3 runs, better it makes you prepare for an ultra.

All that we did during training was hold a water bottle in hand, stop at the roadside shops to eat and just do the walk-run till we reach our destination. My body has adopted well to both speed and slow runs, thanks to Maffetone’s method.   

We were six of us from RunAddicts going to Ladakh. Unfortunately, my wife (Divya) had injured her leg in an accident and is still recovering, so she would be crewing with us. Rest of them are Srini, Ravi, Mahesh and Saritha who will be running alongside me.

Srini and Ravi had traveled to high altitude regions multiple times, their experience came handy to us. We just listened and followed their acclimatization plan.

Having spent all my life in low altitude, I had no idea how less oxygen would impact my body. Acclimatization might sound funny for many of us but dying isn’t funny. 
Respect the hills, Always!

Race day – 7 days

We landed in Leh on 12^th Aug’19. Our stay was just 20min travel from the airport. It was quite chilly but nothing else. Don’t fall for the bait, it’s a trap. Bangalore is at 3000 feet above sea level while Leh is at 10500 feet above sea level. In simple words, the higher you go- lower is the oxygen and humidity. Therefore, it will be difficult to breath and you are directly exposed to UV rays of sun. We stayed in the hotel all day and strolled in the market in the evening. I could feel my nose acting cranky already.  

Race day – 6 days

My team decided to go to South Pullu, which is at a little higher altitude and is on the way to Kardungla. We had planned for a walk-run of 8km. 1km uphill walk and 3km downhill, again a repeat of this. It felt good during the practice. As the day progressed, my head literally burst. Had a terrible headache, maybe I should have just skipped this. I underestimated the hills, even a walk wasn’t necessary. Remember, each of our bodies behave differently to nature. Kindly rest even if you’re comfortable, you won’t lose anything but if you risk it, you’ll lose everything. I took a tablet and slept, having decided not to run the next day.

Race day – 5 days

I had a good sleep however when I woke up, my nose had bled in the night and this continued everyday till I was back in Bangalore. Today was drive to Kardungla (17,582 feet). The scene had completely changed to what we saw yesterday. Warm weather gave way to rain and then snow. I saw snow for the first time in my life, it was crazy!! Few of them who had earlier planned to run had to skip and all of us were flabbergasted by the turn of events and were confused of the gear to choose for race day. We had a briefing by the race director in the evening and we also met our fellow runners. It was a good day of recovery with sumptuous lunch and dinner.

Race day – 4&3 days

We recced the race route. It was worse than what we had anticipated. A climb of 31Km and a big drop of 24K. So, it is tough either way. Weather was good in Wari La; there was no snow, just chilliness in the air. Thereafter we traveled to the beautiful Pangong lake. The journey was rough, however huge respect to our Border Road Organization. They have done a marvelous job in these inhabitable conditions. It was a delight to see so many bullet riders.

          

We crossed the Chang La pass (17,590 feet) en route; I could feel the dizziness in my head. The evening was very cold, I had to wear 4 layers and sleep. Next day was again strolling around the lake. We returned to Leh by evening.

Race day- 2 days

It rained and rained and rained! That's the day’s summary. We couldn’t venture out at all. I learnt how to play rummy and of course, lose money too.

Race day- 1 day

Nervousness finally kicked in and our faces conveyed a million stories. The 111K runners would finish at the Shanti Stupa soon. We went and cheered for the runners. Some of them could finish while others couldn’t. Each of them is a winner.

We received some useful tips from Taher and other runners. We were eager to know what to do but they explained more about what not to do. It was good to learn what to avoid. Most important of all was to respect the cut offs, they are set technically and to plan our runs as easy as possible and not seize the engine revving up in the initial few km’s. We made a few changes to our earlier strategy. Deciding the race gear drained our brains, we concluded to carry everything.

We had a drop bag facility, that could be accessed at 18K and 45K.  My plan was simple, not over burden myself by carrying a lot. I decided to run with my barefoot decathlon aqua shoes till the 18^th Km mark, even in case of rain, I wouldn’t have to worry about the wet socks. Thereafter I will change to Merrell Vibram shoes, as I will have to walk a lot and snow would be my company.

I carried 2 pair of socks; I wanted to change back to aqua shoes for the last 10Km. I chose top and bottom full-length inners, shorts, Full arm tee and my group tee on top of that. A windshield cum light weight raincoat on standby. Gloves, Goggles, Bandana, Cap, 500ml water bottle and a mask (I got this from market yesterday to avoid the cold hitting my nose as bandana was rendering me breathless) and a hanky (Of course, to wipe my running nose!).

A Pant, few tees, socks, Shoes, Jacket will be in my drop bag. Divya helped me with all the packing, without her I would’ve needed 2 bags to carry the same number of items. 

 I was all set!!

Race day

I woke up at 3:30am instead of 4:30am and found it hard to sleep thereafter. We had bread toast for breakfast and reached the venue at 7am, an hour’s drive from our hotel. The race would begin at 8am. We were having fun, deep down we knew we had to do this no matter what.

 

We had 4 cut offs. First one at the 8^th km (1hr 45min), 2^nd one at the 18^th km (3hr 45min), 3^rd one at the 31.5km (6hr 30min), 4^th one at the 44.75km (9hrs) and finally complete the 55km race within 11hrs.

0-8Km: (All that starts well….)

The race started at 12,514 feet and Ravi moved ahead as usual. I was with Srini and Mahesh. We did the run-walk as per terrain condition, It went smooth. It was in fact warm, I had to remove my jacket. We covered 8km in 1hr (45min before cut off). Divya was at the aid station, helped us with our need. Ravi was waiting and joined us now.

8-18Km: (A Bumpy ride)

It got cold and windy. Snow fell for a while. Ravi and Srini were in the front doing walk-run, followed by Mahesh steadily walking at a good pace. I was occasionally running and walking at an easy pace. I wasn’t interested in walking at brisk pace to conserve energy. I was behind them by 50mts. The distance became 100-200mts as we started moving up. I was feeling dizzy and a mild headache cropped up which increased as we moved up however it wasn’t bad. We reached the aid station at 18^th km (15,371 feet) in 3hrs, was surprised to see Divya here too.

She knew what I needed and helped me. I changed to shoes and wore a pant assuming things won’t be same moving up. All along I was sipping water every 2-3min and refilling at the aid stations. I complained of headache and took tea to make myself better. We started the Journey UPwards....

18-27Km: (Say Jullay to God!)

Jullay is a Ladakhi word. An all-purpose word for Hello, Please, Goodbye, Thank You. It is pronounced as Joo-Ley. We started together now. 0.5km into the run, I felt breathless, I ran again, and felt the same. This problem was unique, my legs and body felt fresh however there was no fuel (Oxygen) to move me. I looked behind, the aid station was in my sight. I informed Srini to move ahead and that I didn’t have any hope of continuing. He was surprised and didn’t tell anything. Maybe he thought I was joking. I had to tell him again, I will STOP now. He said walk and you will be better.

I walked and I wasn’t better, it only got worse. They moved ahead.

I looked back again, contemplating jogging down a few meters, meeting Divya and support the runners. It’s hard to determine the breaking threshold of a runner. Am I underestimating myself and stopping now? Or is it an excuse to escape from this ordeal? What if this was MY threshold and something adverse may happen if I continue? I was looking for a medic vehicle just to check on myself. There were none. I walked ahead, lost like a kid and sat on a stone pavement. I looked in the front and my friends were quite a distance ahead. I looked behind, another runner came and sat beside me. He was panting!

He complained of less oxygen; I realized the problem wasn’t only with me. If the problem is not unique to me and faced by many, I’m still normal and just had to overcome this. We started walking together now. It was difficult but we stopped every few meters, breathed and moved ahead. It felt like recharging dead phone, make a call and recharge again. This was bad and we were badass!

 I was chanting my prayers and moving at a snail’s pace. The snow fall was increasing. It’s fun to play in snow, not run.

By now, there were many runners around us. Most were facing the same difficulty while a few went ahead of us. The road was like zigzag drawing. For every two lines, third line was slightly flat or downhill and curve to next line was too steep. I kind of understood the game plan and walked with breaks on this uphill stretch and relaxed while I was on the third line.It was too tempting to run on this downhill stretch. I did not fall for the bait and just walked.

Well, this stretch was killing me and then giving me some life and killing me again. This went on and on as if there was no end.

What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Really?

I had 1.5hrs for the next cutoff and 6km to go. My mind was working on the arithmetic. 15min per km would do. I was oscillating around 13min/km to 19min/km. I knew I can make it somehow in time to the cut off, just that I should HOLD ON for few more minutes with patience. As I was nearing the ‘4km to go’ mark and meanwhile, having saved 5-8 crucial minutes, they had blocked the route further due to heavy snow. We had to take a U turn here (and complete the remaining distance near the start point). So, the last 4K will be an uphill finish. I wasn’t sure if this is a blessing in disguise or another attempt for a kill in the end. I met my friends who were returning from the U turn, it was a happy sight to see them going strong.
5hr 15min had elapsed and I was at 27^th km (16200 feet). I took a mountain dew and could feel my taste buds waking up. I refilled my bottle with dew. The gas and sugar would help me deceive my mind.

27-36Km: (Purpose of this run?)

I started the downhill; it was nice to see a few 222K runners. They’re a different class apart. I was walking down, too steep to run. A few ahead of me, a few behind and some of them coming in the opposite direction. After a while, it was just me and the hills.

Breathing was better however sight of a slight uphill sent shivers. I would again lose breathe and slowdown. This was way better than the earlier trauma. Many questions ran in my mind, is this run worth it? What am I doing here, in the middle of nowhere? Lost in thoughts, I was still covering distance at a steady walk pace. After a while I jogged, I didn’t have the energy to continue. So, I walked and walked and then jogged and walked again to reach the camp at 15,371 feet.

Divya was happy to see me. I was shocked to see Srini there. He had completed the devilish part of the run and had decided to quit. He had a neck and shoulder pain. Knowing him quite well, he wouldn’t take this decision without thinking. I still persuaded him to join me till the next aid station. He didn’t want to risk. I respected his decision and decided to move.  I refilled mountain dew in my bottle, this was helping. I didn’t want to change any clothes or shoes. I had very less time. All that I had done so far was 36K in 7hrs. I had 4 Hrs to complete the remaining 20Km. Approx. 12min/km, same pace I had taken to cover the current distance.

36-55Km: (REDEMPTION)

I started to jog; I had to save time which is crucial in case of any cramps towards the end. This is the longest time on my feet; otherwise it was on my bike. There was no snow now but it started drizzling, I wondered what else I will have to experience today.

2km into the run, I bumped into a student volunteer.  He asked if he could pace me, I said sure. He was 16yrs old, Pattrick from Spain. We introduced and hit a conversation. I apprised him of the stats and time left to accomplish my task. He was more than happy to accompany me in this journey. This was his longest run; he had already covered 20 odd km and now here with me to run 18 more. He was running with his trekking shoes and it was hard. 

 I felt better now, so we increased the pace. We ran faster and walked every 600mts. We spoke during our walk and understood each other’s interests. Sailing and football were his hobbies. I was getting better and better now, without any breathing issues.

As we ran close to 8km together, he developed cramps. I requested him to rest and walk slowly. A km ahead and I saw him behind again. He wanted to run with me. We ran for a while and I forced him to stop. I assured him that I will meet at the finish line and continued my last part of the run. I reached the start line having covered 47km. We had to run 4km ahead and return to make up for the lost distance at the top.

It did start well; it didn’t kill me, and I was running strong now. I reached the 4km U turn and was continuing ahead; I was in a different high. The volunteer stationed there stopped me and guided to turn around.

I returned but there were a few uphills, last km was a killer, too steep. I was wondering if I was in the same route, doubts were cleared when I saw the finish line around 300mts away. I met Pattrick again, thanked him for his selfless support.

 I sprinted to the finish line. 
I completed the La Ultra 55K, toughest run of my life in 9:22Hrs. It was good to see Divya and my group, without whom I wouldn’t be here.

I want to congratulate all the participants of 55K, 111K, 222K, 333K and 555K categories. Each of you are very brave.

Big kudos to the volunteers, support crew and organizers for your selfless service.

Alone, one can achieve a little. Together, we can achieve a lot.

I would like to thank Divya for being my pillar and supporting in all my endeavors,

thank RunAddicts: The group is big and so are your hearts,

also thank Burners: The mother who teaches a kid to walk, always remains special.

finally Lord Krishna: For letting me serve him this way.