Bangalore: Are you ready to go the distance?

Yes, it is the holiday season. But while most of us are taking it easy, stuffing down sweetmeats or doing pandal-hopping at Durga pujo congregations, some Bangaloreans are training, that too quite hard, for the seventh edition of the Bangalore Ultra. With just a month to go and registration slots fast filling up, many have found new running goals. Besides 12.5 km, 25 km, 50 km, 75 km and 100 km footraces, there is also a 24-hour challenge for the intrepid souls who crave for more.

Bangalore Ultra, which started in 2007, is rated among the top 100 footraces in the world, the organisers are proud to say. The first edition, held at ONV in Hessaraghatta, had 247 runners making it across 26 km to 100 km. Not many of them were the regular marathon runners. They were setting personal records, finishing distances they had never run before. Over the years, the organisers included a dream run of 12 km for those who prefer not to grit teeth and trudge along a long, old slog.

Last year, more than 1,500 runners ran through a forest trail in Hennur and 15 of them tried out the 24-hour challenge, which was introduced for the first time. Udaya Kumar, who topped it, covering 146 km in 23:45:59, says the toughest thing about it was to fight sleep during the night.

“About 1,000 runners have registered so far, some of them for the 24-hour challenge as well. Registrations are open till this month end, so this year, we expect a much bigger participation,” Arvind Bharathi, one of the organisers, says.

Eyes on prize
Like Udaya Kumar, most of the runners who took part in the 24-hour challenge last time are returning to better their records, says Ashwin Bala, one of the organisers. “Twenty-five-year-old Manoranjan Mridha from West Bengal, who had run 130 km last year, is training to break the Indian record in the 24-hour challenge this time,” he says.

Chandra Gopalan, who will be attempting the 100-km run for the first time, has been doing hill runs, night runs, long and short runs with a gang of friends. In May, she started training and eating right—more greens, fruits and proteins, steering clear of processed, fried food and empty carbs.

“Training itself is great. We have been doing four- to ten-hour runs. And also speed runs, interval and strength training. Now we are ramping down,” she says. They have run in Nandi Hills, Antargange, and even Dharmapuri, where the is very hot. 

Addiction called running
Like Haruki Murakami, who had famously said: “When I’m running, I don’t have to talk to anybody and don’t have to listen to anybody. This is a part of my day I can’t do without,” most of these runners too are hooked to it.

Randeep Arora, who ran 126 km last year, swears by it. “If I don’t run, I am grouchy,” he says.

This 48-year-old gets a thrill out of outrunning runners half his age and has signed up for the 24-hour challenge this time as well. “I started running late at 44. I tried a 10k run and since then, have been addicted,” he says.

Last three months, he ran about 160 kilometres every week to train. He has marked out routes in city—”by the edge of Bangalore roads, from Yeswantpur to Mekhri Circle, and other roads”.

If there’s one thing all of them swear by is that whether it’s short or long, the joy of running knows no bounds.

Registrations open
Registrations for the Bangalore Ultra 2013 are now open. The Ultra distances (24-hour challenge, 100k, 75k and 50k) will be held on November 9 and the non-ultra distances (25k and 12.5k) will be held on November 10.

To register, log on to www.bangaloreultra.com

Race-day Tips
Hydrate well the day before the race

Have a high carbohydrate diet the night before the race

Run the race at a pace you’re comfortable with

Sip (don’t gulp) on water/electrolyte through the race

Arrive early on the day of the race.