10K Run...Whatta Fun!

Sunday Morning 4:30 .

I woke up with the sudden alarm with a start. Hardly 3 hours back I had got into bed after going for an impulse movie last night..& now I am awakened by the mind clock ticking off earlier than it was supposed to. Uggghh! why can't it let me sleep!!

For more than 3 years now I had been wanting to go to the 10K run which happens annually on a November Sunday in my city. & for more than 3 years I had failed to make it...mostly due to lack of good company, [Such lazy friends I have.. & the active ones aren't in town! :O]

However, this year I decided, company or no company, I am going to be there. I will have loads of company once I get there.

Also, importantly I wanted to participate before the enthusiasm ran out of me. Next year is again far away...& killing procrastination was one of my this years resolutions!

For the nescient, The Hyderabad 10K Run is a 10 km run that goes around the Hussainsagar Lake. It is divided in 3 categories. 10k[regular], 5k [for beginners..] & half marathon [21.1 kms]

I was a beginner..but a confident one! If I run, it has to be for the 10k..however long I can make it.

So, here I was, at 4:30am, contemplating my decided options... I decided to wait till a lil dawn descends, so that I could start.

Hmm..so at 4:30Am, I was trying to get back to some more sleep, obviously very tired with the shindig of the previous night's impulse as well as my current erratic work timings.
Since I was already up & 6:30 was not far away, for the briefest of moment I thought I should straightaway attempt the half marathon! Thankfully, that thought flew out of the window with the cool breeze as immediately as it arrived!

Indeed half marathon!

I was apprehensive on how much I would make it in the regular 10k itself..half marathon looked like a sudden horrific nightmare. Reminded me of a scene in some movie made on a novel, 'Do Biga Zameen', how the hero suffers to reach the end point..& finally loses his breadth. I had similar filmy images of me trying to complete that Half marathon & desperately trying to reach the finish line & die on it!
Thankfully such nightmares don't become a reality.

5:40Am.

I was ready & waiting for a li'l Sun to be up. While waiting, I suddenly fell into a cat's nap! Now this NEVER happens...so before I realised, it was already 6:00 & I was in a panic mode. I was sure that I wouldn't be there on time..& that was so disappointing!

Yet, I did start. Unfortunately the road was cordoned off for 2/4 wheelers to quite a far off place & I had to walk quite a mile before reaching People's plaza. the destination for the start of the run.

On walking I realised I had almost 5kms to reach People's plaza! &*%$#@!!! I had to fall of that nap today of all days?? I would never be on time. :(

Anyways, I walked upto 3.5 kms & then stopped as I saw the Hyderabadis in full flow towards my direction. The run had started!

I caught up with quite a few known faces as well as friends & turned around to continue the run, which, at that moment seemed like trying to cross The great wall of China!

In the expanse of 10kms., I saw a varied mix of very interesting people. People propagating causes, people running with their families, a couple of celebrities, kids, many corporate employees displaying their company logos, quite a few number of foreigners, photographers, bands playing to entertain, beggars on the roads looking strangely at this Sunday morning hulla, few residents from their balconies... totally enjoyed it. In our daily lives, very few times one gets to actually watch & register the happenings around us.

As I took the 10k run, here is the route that was charted for this one:
People's Plaza, Necklace Road, as the start & end point. - Sanjeeviah park -Sailing Club [Here I resisted the biggest temptation to run away home...as home comes in between these 2 points! :)] - Tank Bund - Ambedkar Statue -Secretariat -Lumbini Park road- & then back to People's Plaza.

Though I totally exhausted myself even less than 5Km into the run, somehow I kept going, also with good timely help of a quite younger cousin, whom I accidentally met there. God Bless him.

Finally, when I did reach the finish point, the joy & exhilaration were indeed most fulfilling. The pains of the long run... jog & the eventual walk all suddenly gave meaning to the effort. Like some rewarding experience we gain after doing some worthwhile work.

All in All, 10K run was a lot more than 10K fun!!!

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