LAULTRA 2022 - Don't be a GAMA in the land of LAMA

Cannot thank enough to have been assigned a BIB number that in itself gives a the vibe of being special at this LAULTRA edition. Thankyou Rajath – The doctor of pain!

Hitting an ultra, infact a shorter ultra every month in 2022 was to keep the feet moving and belting those mileage for a single and only single purpose and that was for the World Cruelest Ultramarathon – LAULTRA.

This event has been very close to my heart since Edition X (55kms at Wari la pass) and having run the qualifier run of 74kms at Garhwal to bag a place in 111kms is a journey in itself. COVID played spoilt sport and the 111kms had to be postponed to year 2022 and have been so glad to keep up with my ultras in 2021 that helped me qualify again for this 111km edition. The Solang Sky Ultra 100kms and The Border Ultra 100 Miles ( 161kms) were of tremendous experience.

The wait to hit the roads of Leh began as soon as I landed in the Land of High passes. And oh boy, it is cold and couldn’t hold back from fastening the warmers all over my body to breathe off the cold.

Returning to Gotal Guest house is a homecoming. Having spent months here in 2021 was indeed a bliss.

In Pic – Rinchen Dolma (The host at Gotal Guest house)

And that view from the room is just mesmerizing and haunting at the same time because down the time, Iam to climb one of these peaks in the gruelling attempt at LAULTRA event.

Day 1 was absolute rest and hanging around or walking around business. Sleep well, eat well, hydrate well. Day 2 took a stroll down the market which led to a nostalgic feeling.

A few milers had to be done to get a hang of the jittery cold out here at Leh and so was on it and yes, it was cold indeed. The winds were just adding to its misery and thoughts of run day had started giving bone chillers already.

Day 3 had me do easy run , Leh to Hall of fame to Shanti Stupa and back. It was definitely worth all the effort and helped in getting to know the conditions better.

This was a nice descent followed by a gradual ascent and the much needed start to warm up you training.

A nice hot water shower followed by breakfast and some rest and sleep was gained too. Plans to do yet another run on Day 4 were building up and the feeling of getting out of the blanket on yet another wee morning was quite stressful. Could not catch up on the late night IPL matches either. Sacrifices you see :).

Day 4, plan was to run towards Khardungla to gain some altitude and definitely acclimatise more. The 10 km uphill was indeed killing and hunger pranks had already started playing the games. A 250ml of water and another 250ml of electrolyte along with a peanut chikki and a protein bar is all I was carrying but never felt the need of eating the bars and just water made me feel so good and such a thirst buster. Sip sip sip, run run run. Did a good 20km on a Sunday and hoggeed a heavy breakfast at the guest house, the much needed one.

The rest of the day was spent tucked in the bed, eating, sleeping and doing some chores. The calves were acting up for a while and some stretches helped me relax them a bit.

The next four days were spent on resting, some strength and conditioning and offcourse Yoga for the mobility. Plans of a night run of 30km was doing rounds in my mind and had to be executed as this was the first time ever the race start time would be 6pm and not the usual morning hours. I considered this as the dress rehearsal to check on how I can cope up with the cold conditions in night and can be a good recce.

Time had to be killed till the d day now.

A short walk to the famous Mettacafe caught me by surprise. This being not only one of the mutual connection but also gave me the vibes of the master athletes Jason and Aashish who have finished the LAULTRA 555kms in the tenth edition.

It’s 21st April, and was the day for BIB collection, the orientation was organised on 23rd for 111kms. Met handful of runners in the 111kms category this time. We had a total of 11 runners who planned to attempt this feat.

It was about time for that one last long run to be planned during late evening to get used to the conditions worst known. Ran from Gotal Guest house to Grand Dragon to meet some peeps and tagged along with Harsheath to run the rest of the 30kms. The idea was to Dress Rehearse and also see how you feel since it was close to my dinner time. I felt hungry like never before and just could not wait to head back home and have a handsome meal. The run was tuff as the last 12-13kms was a uphill. The dogs are indeed a menace and the idea was to walk it out when they are around. A good 4+ hours run gave the much needed learning experience on what to expect on the day of run. Phew!!

A days rest post run and I was all set to visit Khardungla for yet another acclimatisation but this time it wasn’t a run. Met Shikha at the top, an inspiration that belted 111kms and 222kms at LAULTRA and she was taking on this challenge again.

The week was now followed by mixed feelings of how the weather conditions would be, will I be able to make it to the finish line or no, what will happen if it snows or rains. This made me pack my drop bags well in advance to avoid the last minute rush.

On D day, LAULTRA got us medically checked to ensure the fitness is in place before we face the mighty mountains.

The medical and rescue card by all means would cover your insurance when in need.

It was time to head back home and get some rest and be ready by 4pm as the race was scheduled to begin by 6pm. Nervousness has skyrocketed considering the fact this was the first ever night run in Leh at LAULTRA. The drop bags had to be dealt with again before leaving towards The Grand Dragon – The start point of the event.

The select 10 made it to the start line for the 111km category. A orientation of the route by Doctor Rajat was followed by meets and greets with fellow runners.

The feeling of paparazzis around was quite overwhelming with lots of spectators around capturing the epic moments of the run. Ladakh Today News broadcast reeled us as well.

Post the start time, the only fear on my mind was whether I could cross the finish line under the cutoff time. The initial 21kms were easy on the legs and we continued with an easy pace towards Kharu. The inclines hit every now and then making it difficult to maintain a steady pace. The idea was indeed not to burn yourself out till Kharu, rather make use of your energy reserves wisely because the uphills post Kharu check point was yet another ball game.

Rajat and fellow crew members in their respective cars were supportive and advised at regular intervals to take it easy as we had a long way to go and night was yet to get colder.

A bowl of dry fruit muesli prior to the start and sipping in electrolytes and energy gels at regular intervals lead me to the first checkpoint at Kharu (44kms). I was well within the cutoff and tagging along Harsheath, Shikha and Prikshit made it feel like a team work. The drop bags at this checkpoint were used for refills. A hot bowl of soup soothened the hungry tummy and some media bytes with Rajat took off some burden off the shoulders.

The next goal was the second checkpoint at Sakti (55kms) and the idea was to walk it over briskly in the night. This checkpoint also hosted changing rooms in a guest house and this was right at the bottom of the Wari La pass climb. The dog menace had to be contained and the crew vehicle with a doctor in it were just doing it right. The doctor patrolled me till Sakti checkpoint and was fortunate to have Shikha alongside for another 2.5kms that had to be covered to reach the guest house. I answered the much awaited nature’s call here and yet another bowl of soup by the hosts served the purpose to keep the hunger in check. A glass of hot water and off we go towards yet another checkpoint – The High Camp (71kms).

The number of gels gulped down the throat had left a strain in the food pipe. Eating any more of these was surely going to make me throw up. Nevertheless, I tried to gulp another one and so it happened, I felt like puking my guy out. I definitely need a alternative for gels and don’t mind it having no taste at all as long as Iam able to replenish the lost sugar and salts.

On our way up, running the distance seem to have been out of question but making it to the checkpoint within the cutoff time was adding to the worries. A while later, I felt quite thirsty and to my respite, Shikha made the much needed call to have the crew vehicle reach us for water. Prikshit had joined on the climbs as we continued post the water break. Shikha took off as she mentioned of not making it to the cutoff if we slow down anymore. With her past experience, I beleived her words and without applying second thoughts, I brisk walked it ahead and it indeed helped me making it to the cutoff just in time and I had only four minutes to spare. What a relief, phew!

The shooting stars ⭐, what a site in the night. I managed to catch a glimpse of two of these and all I had wished for is to see the finish line at the 111th km.

I was happy to make it to The High Camp, but the happiness was short lived when we found out that the drop bag number 2 never made it this checkpoint. It was really getting cold and we took shelter in one of the Nomads Hut. We were offered tea to keep us warm. With no more gear to replace, Guru came to my rescue as an angel. He offer me his down jacket and I could not say no, as the weather had really started to give my bones a chill that I wanted to avoid fu korther up.

Shikha stepped out of the hut and started her onward journey. Again, keeping the cutoff time of 9am to the next checkpoint, it was a no brainer for me and I started marching after her towards Wari la. Owing to the kms covered earlier, we were asked to cut short our climb by 2kms and head back to base at Sakti.

As I headed higher and higher, the exposure to sun had gotten worse. This was heating up the insides and I had to my hydration bag and reflectors and all that was not needed for the rest of the journey up. By now, we had gotten the news that only 3 runners are gunning for the finish line – Sanchit, Shikha and I.

Sanchit had starter his return and followed by Shikha, which made me feel the U turn isn’t that far now. I had to gather myself again and push as much isas I could. I met Shikha on her way down and she patted and motivated with her words of wisdom “Ho Jaayega” stating that It isn’t far and I could do it.

The crew vehicles were at our disposal and I made good use of it in supporting myself for hydration and food. Guru, Chandan and his team did not leave any stone unturned to support me in all possible ways. They were the pillars I could rely on. With slow and steady, taking frequent water and munch breaks lead me to the checkpoint in time. It was time to sit some and relax some. A sip and a bite here and there while the photographer and cinematographers were doing what they are good at while I was at peace and with only aim of dragging my self to the base towards the finish point.

With some quick rest on the milestone , I lead my way down. 28kms more and I will be at Sakti. The down hill was equally demanding as the fatigue level was reaching its limits. I again dumped all my excess baggage in to the crew vehicle and started approaching the winding roads. The ice patches on the road needs to be carefully dodged to avoid and slippage, I missed my trail shoe here. The heat was increasing and I targeted the High Camp again to shed some layers off me including the jacket given by Guru on the onward journey.

Counting 1km at a time, brisk walks, slow runs and sips of water whenever required and the bread with jam and chocolate in it is all I felt like having and was offered meticulously without a hustle. The journey continued till High Camp with a hope to find the drop bag at this point again. Fortunately, I got hold of it and grabbed my sun glasses as it was getting difficult to face the sun and run.

It was about time when I was able to witness the 55km category runners doing their way up and as I getting closer to the finish line, I also got the apportunity to wave at 33km category runners. I slowly moved but made sure I do not halt at any more on the road. Kept myself moving till the end and when I had the last km to cover, I was elated and could not help myself from the willingness to run the last stretches.

And so did I, the sense of relief combined by the cheers of fellow runners and bystanders with the local band playing the trumpets and drum released all the pain and stress developed in this never ending battle between mind and body.

Standing among the 3 finishers was an achievement in itself and crossing over the finish line without any physical injury is yet another head held high moment.

A pic with Shikha who was a source of motivation during the ups and downs of constant fluctuating momentum:

Guru and Chandan (to my left in the pic below)crewed well and were very helpful and dedicated towards my success. I owe them one.

This is where and I would always like to reiterate the importance of strength and conditioning and mobility exercises, because this will definitely help you in the long run complimented by adequate hydration and consumption of electrolytes to refill your lost salts.

Phew! LAULTRA 111kms done well and it was time to relish in some good meal. Mettacafe has been the place so far to vibe in with like minded enthusiasts who dare to go that extra mile and do the undone. You will meet runners, cyclists, trekkers and other budding adventure explorer and conversing with the beings makes you raise your own bar. Stories of true grit and determination are shared and the audience just gels in to admire all the achievements one potray.

The cafe is known for some good food, coffee and the not to miss Hot Chocolate for non caffeine drinkers. The pan cakes and waffles are out of the world too!

The ritual of being tagged post LAULTRA at this cafe was a must and so did it. I stand nailed at Mettacafe for 111kms with a coffee on the house by Tanvi.

The only thought on the mind was the next challenge at LAULTRA i.e 222kms. This is going to be a different ball game and I plan to take on with immense respect to the intimidating mountains who ring in the mantra – Don’t be a GAMA in the land of LAMA! Julley.

A special ceremony to medal all the participants were held that very evening and was nice meeting and sharing experiences with fellow runners. The level of admiration had gone many fold. The entire journey to LAULTRA was also accompanied by my fundraiser for K Blooming Center of learning and experience. I had reached the goal of 1,11,000/- and this was a perfect icing on the cake.