Leaving mid-way after a morning of seeing patients came as both excitement and a tinge of nervousness about forgetting to pack something for the trip.
After all, The Khardung La Challenge was not something to be trifled with. Spanning a distance of 72km, this race took us across various altitudes from 11000 feet to 17,600 feet above sea – level.
It has now been six years since my last race/21k at Ladakh. 6 years, 8kg and several ‘Personal Bests’ later, I decided to sign up on impulse since I had completed the Ooty 90km ultra in around just 10 hours 35 minutes. Maybe the Khardung La Challenge would take the same effort?
Stepping into the airport after wishing my relatives goodbye, I dragged two trolleys and slung a bag over my shoulder. Sanju was to come with me to Chennai where I would drop her off at her parents’. One of the trolley – suitcases had thermal wear and my hydration bag. The other one had my casual wear which I was planning to use in my room and when going out for shopping or to eat. The bag had all my running clothes, socks et al. Medications such as antibiotics, pain killers, anti – diarrhoeals, ulcer meds and bandages were carefully packed and stashed into one of the trolley suitcases. After an uneventful check – in and security wave – through, I soon got on the flight to Chennai.
Once the flight reached Chennai, we got off, took a taxi home, where Aunty and Uncle were waiting. After tea and early dinner, I wished all three of them goodbye and got a taxi back to the airport at 630PM. Checking in again with all three luggages was a little cumbersome but it had to be done. Once I got through security, I just had to wait 20 minutes for boarding to start. Soon, I was on the flight to Delhi.
“The temperature outside is 30 deg C” the pilot’s voice came through crisply through the speakers as the flight taxied through the runway. After confirming the belt for my check – in luggage, I walked briskly to ahead of the other passengers and managed to get both my suitcases with just a five minute wait. Now came the 7 hour long wait to catch the flight to Leh.
I tried to pass time at Starbucks but felt sleepy even after having coffee and cheesecake at midnight. The “Encalm” Lounge was my next stop, where I paid 2000 to use their facilities over two hours. After another cake and coffee for breakfast, I headed over to the departure gate half hour ahead of time. The flight was exactly on time and I boarded it along with several others. I was surprised to see so many travellers compared to my last visit!
The plane was soon soaring over snow peaked mountains and brown valleys shrouded with clouds. It was a beautiful sight. We subsequently landed on the same runway we arrived on 6 years ago amidst clear skies and bright sunshine. Nothing much had changed. Catching a taxi to “Glacier Guest House” I arrived by 1pm just in time for lunch. Checking into my room (101) at D – block, I was happy that the staff spoke fluent English. Room service was good and lunch arrived within an hour. There were two other athletes in the D block who I would soon come to be close to. I contacted another runner using the WiFi at the hotel regarding bib collection (Vodafone was not working) and I proceeded to the market. We got a temporary Airtel sim card, contacted my folks and after conveying all was well, me and veteran runner Janaki Venkat caught a bus to NDS Memorial Stadium where we got our race kits.
We met several people there, and it was refreshing to see so many people who had signed up for such a challenging run.
After taking a few photos, we caught a bus back to near the market. Walking to the market was only a kilometer but a steep uphill. My room mate Jinesh had contacted me and I proceeded at a brisk walk back to the hotel while Janaki and her friend proceeded to go shopping.
By the time I arrived back at the hotel, Jinesh had left for the bib distribution, having left his bags outside in the lounge. I opened the room and kept his luggage inside.
Tea time awaited, and I sipped honey – lemon- ginger tea, which was a welcome experience, after having walked awhile. A mild discomfort was creeping up my neck and back of my skull – I just hoped it wasn’t because I hadn’t taken my diamox tablet to acclimatize – but it was unfortunately so. After the pain rose even further, I decided to take the diamox tablet. Jinesh had arrived by now and we soon ordered dinner.
Strava data for the day:
The headache dulled down as I slept, savouring all the lost sleep during travel. Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day.
Dr. Vinod Nathaniel 