Hungry for more , I trawled the Internet and found another race in Bangkok called the Suanpruek99 10-hour Ultra Marathon . All I could make out from the race was something about a 10-hour ultra , because the rest was all described in Thai . I mailed the organisers , who replied a couple of days later with sorry , they ’ re sold out , so I contacted a friend residing in Thailand , who is also a fellow runner / cyclist , and asked if he could assist in possibly securing me a late entry into the race . He came back 20 minutes later with a number for a wonderfully

helpful lady called Sam , who could indeed assist me with a late entry .

I duly spoke to Sam and she said if I was willing , they could help me with a VIP entry , which would mean that I wouldn ’ t officially be part of the field of competitors , and that my entry fee would go towards their local charity of choice . I loved the idea from the word go , because all I wanted to do is run – I don ’ t really care for any medal , and if my racing fee goes to a good cause , even better !

Ready to Run

Race day arrived , and I had to be at the race venue at 5am to meet Sam at her gazebo , which I shared with a couple of other solo entries for the day . The race was scheduled to start at 6am sharp and finish at 4pm , with 10 hours of running a 2.1km loop . Seems easy enough , I thought . With some 1000 entrants taking part , the majority apparently solo entries , the race kicked off at a pace of note , and even I got caught up in the music , festivities and all the attractions next to the track . I saw myself finish 42km in around four hours , but I knew from here onwards that I had to start slowing down , as there were another six hours of abuse out there waiting for me .

On the back stretch there was an elderly man who cheered along all the competitors for the whole duration of the 10 hours , always with a smile on his face . His encouragement for each

competitor was so genuine , and was just one of the many memorable things we experienced during this day .

That said , it ’ s hard to gauge where you are in the field of competitors in an event such as this , as there are teams with fresh runners flying past you every lap . Then there are some competitors that take a break after a couple of laps , who then return with their energy levels restored , flying around the track again . I went with the approach of taking breaks when I changed my socks , or shorts . Why the regular changes , you may ask ? Well , with the heat and humidity there , it doesn ’ t take a lot to be drenched in sweat , so my first change of shorts was three hours into the race . Then a sock change at 42km , and so my race strategy continued , with further sock changes every three hours .

A Feast of Running

The 10-hour ultra is hosted in Nawamin Phirom Park , with all the teams and their supporters erecting tents around the park . At each of the 2.1km track corners there were official water and snack tables , and in between these there were numerous other tables with all kinds of snacks and hydration supplements . There was a medical tent with loads of medics on standby , energy drink suppliers handing out their products , and the one turn even had electric fans blowing cool air over the tired runners . There were even water points where they would pour buckets of cooling water over

Images : Courtesy Willem Richards & Suanpruek99 Club