21 Thoughts for the 42 .2 km Race! A virtual Tour

Many a joke has been made about how a runner feels during a marathon. Cartoons galore… as to how we put ourselves through this misery…the thought process. Here is a curated list of my favourite running quotes, depicting the progression of the marathon. Find your mantra here…

Km 1: CST…5.40 am…the national anthem…2585873311_d40373ce38

Have a dream, make a plan, go for it. You’ll get there I promise. ~ Zoe Koplowitz


Km 3: Passing Nariman Point…we have run here so many times before…but today is a different day…

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning in Africa, a lion wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve. It doesn’t matter whether you’re the lion or a gazelle— when the sun comes up, you’d better be running. ~ Born to Run


 

Km 5: Enjoy the sea breeze and the high spirit of the runners…

Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there. ~  Bo Jackson


 

Km 7: Take the turn at chowpatty…the sea…the beach…so beautiful!

There’s not a better feeling than when you have found that moment of balance and harmony when both running and life come together. Then you know why you run and that you couldn’t live without it. ~ Joan Benoit Samuelson


 

Km 9: The small climb of Kemps corner and fly down Peddar road… remember to remain strong on the return!

Mind is everything: muscle – pieces of rubber. All that I am, I am because of my mind. ~ Paavo Nurmi


 

Km 11: Haji Ali and the sea again…feel the cool breeze from the Race Course! Approaching Mela…and the half marathon runners will be streaming towards us…and we will inspire many…to be on our side the next year!

Run hard, be strong, think big! ~ Percy Cerutty


 

Km 13: At the beautiful Sealink…dawn!The most amazing sunrise is here…worli

We are different, in essence from other men. If you want to win something, run 100 meters. If you want to experience something, run a marathon. ~ Emil Zatopek


 

Km 15: Look at the city and see how the skyline has transformed! At the peak of the uphill there will be photographers waiting for you- the star…SMILE!

The more difficulties one has to encounter, within and without, the more significant and the higher in inspiration his life will be. ~ Horace Bushnell


 

Km 18: This is the downhill of the sea link…enjoy it…fly…and believe!

Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re probably right. ~ Henry Ford


 

Km 21: And half the race is done…go for it!

If you want to become the best runner you can be, start now. Don’t spend the rest of your life wondering if you can do it. ~ Priscilla Welch


 

Km 24: Shivaji Park…Enthusiastic crowd support and refreshing tree cover…happy times! By now you know pretty much who your running companions are going to be for the next 15 km.

The marathon is not really about the marathon, it’s about the shared struggle. And it’s not only the marathon, but the training. ~ Bill Buffum


 

Km 26: And the wretched loop at Worli sea face. Keep the focus!

Racing teaches us to challenge ourselves. It teaches us to push beyond where we thought we could go. It helps us to find out what we are made of. This is what we do. This is what it’s all about. ~ PattiSue Plumer, U.S. Olympian


 

 

Km 28: The slog miles are about to begin. Keep the spirit high. Deep breaths and rhythmic action.

I tell our runners to divide the race into thirds. Run the first part with your head, the middle part with your personality, and the last part with your heart. ~  Mike Fanelli


 

Km 30: The mood is sombre. And the mind may begin its mischief

There will come a point in the race, when you alone will need to decide. You will need to make a choice. Do you really want it? You will need to decide. ~ Rolf Arands


 

Km 32: The marathon begins here…

The marathon’s about being in contention over the last 10K. That’s when it’s about what you have in your core. You have run all the strength, all the superficial fitness out of yourself, and it really comes down to what’s left inside you. To be able to draw deep and pull something out of yourself is one of the most tremendous things about the marathon. ~ Rob de Castella


 

Km 34: Feel the sun at Haji ali now… its all coming to an end…

Pain is temporary, Pride is forever.

Pain is inevitable, Suffering is optional. ~ Haruki Murakami


 

Km 36: The dreaded Peddar Road!

You’re running on guts. On fumes. Your muscles twitch. You throw up. You’re delirious. But you keep running because there’s no way out of this hell you’re in, because there’s no way you’re not crossing the finish line. It’s a misery that non-runners don’t understand. ~ Martine Costello


 

Km 38: keep the momentum of the downhill high…and get strength from the adulation of the crowd!IMG_4916-1

You also need to look back, not just at the people who are running behind you but especially at those who don’t run and never will… those who run but don’t race…those who started training for a race but didn’t carry through…those who got to the starting line but didn’t in the finish line…those who once raced better than you but no longer run at all. You’re still here. Take pride in wherever you finish. Look at all the people you’ve outlasted. ~ Joe Henderson


 

Km 40: You are on the last legs literally and figuratively! Fly past the historic buildings. Let them stand witness as you create your own!

The body does not want you to do this. As you run, it tells you to stop, but the mind must be strong. You always go too far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy… It is not age; it is not diet. It is the will to succeed. – Jacqueline Gareau


 

Km 42.1: Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired. When you were younger the mind could make you dance all night, and the body was never tired…You’ve always got to make the mind take over and keep going. ~ George S. Patton, U.S. Army General and 1912 Olympian


 

Km 42.2: It’s over! You’ve done it! You can stop nowYOU ARE SUPER AWESOME! 🙂

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