Crewing for 24-hour run

Have you ever been chased by a bull during a run?  It can be quite hilarious if you weren’t in the woods in the middle of the night with two runners running single file and a cyclist for company, only to find a bull steadily charging at you from behind! This was the scene during the third of many laps of a 24-hour run. The first two laps went on smoothly while Manjula and I paced Santosh, our 24-hour runner. We did see a few cows, and bulls along the route but didn’t seem as though they minded us being there.  Darkness, and three headlamps bobbing, however, seemed to have changed their view.

Santosh had earlier set a record of 156km in 24 hours, and was aiming to break his PR. My endurance running journey had me crossing paths with Santosh 6 months before this event. I trained under him to better my pace, and though my own races kept me from regular training, our association continued in our pursuit to change the running culture in India, and delivering on our social responsibilities. Besides Arun Bharadwaj, whom I immensely respect, Santosh Padmanabhan is an ultra runner who inspires many to run ‘for’ their lives, figuratively speaking.

24Hour Run: Setting up aid-station

24Hour Run: Waiting for the clock. Manjula, Stevel, Santosh, and Kavitha.

24Hour Run: Crew had their own demons to conquer in the morning, each running a distance of atleast 25k during Bangalore Ultra. Seen here are Murthy, and Preeti, part of the crew, and showing of their Ultra bibs.

24Hour Run: Bala, water police 🙂

As the bull chased Santosh, Steve and Ajay scattered, and fled for their lives. They found their way back to the aid-station through different routes. We devised a rescue plan to distract the bull from charging runners on the next lap. A motorcycle headlight luring it away from the runners, worked like a charm. It was all excitement and fun but as the rain poured down on us for the next two hours a soaked was finding it difficult to sustain his pace.

24Hour Run: Bull chase victims 🙂

24Hour Run: Crewing is just as daunting!

As the day broke, it became apparent that his initial pace, bull chase, and rain wore him out considerably.  Starting at 5am, he had more runners on the route for company as this was the day of Bangalore Ultra Run, and runners were being let out in waves based on their distance. I had my own 25km to finish, and by the time we returned to the aid-station, Santosh looked beat and showing signs of fever. Our physio, and his med support Preeti, took a call to suspend his run. After 20 hours, and, Santosh, being the humble man that he is, felt the need to apologize to his support crew for a failed attempt at breaking his PR. We, on the other hand, felt the need to apologize in return for not monitoring his initial pace. As pacers, we felt we hadn’t done our job right. Being the strong runner he is, we knew he would bounce right back to conquer his demons another day and sure did with a 48-hour attempt!