Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Race Report: 2019 Bangkok Marathon


On November 17, I ran the Bangkok Marathon.  This was the first half of a two-part Asian trip.  I’ve been interested in running a marathon in Thailand ever since my friend Maricar traveled there.  I didn’t get serious about going there this year until I noticed that this race and the Bagan Temple Marathon in Myanmar were six days apart.

A few years ago, some of my friends did the Bagan Temple Marathon with Marathon Tours & Travel, and they loved it.  The itinerary for that trip required arriving in Yangon, Myanmar on November 20.  That’s three days after the Bangkok Marathon, which was convenient timing.  There are multiple airlines with non-stop flights between Bangkok and Yangon.

The Bangkok Marathon has a midnight start.  Technically, the race is on Sunday, but it seemed more like a Saturday night race.  That meant my last opportunity to get a full night’s sleep was Friday night.  For that reason, I wasn’t comfortable arriving any later than Thursday.

That was problematic.  I ran a marathon in Havana the previous weekend, and I didn’t get home until late Monday night.  The only way to get to Bangkok by Thursday was to leave early Wednesday morning.  Even then, I wouldn’t get there until after 11:00 PM on Thursday night.

I couldn’t get there in less than three flight segments.  Delta recently added flights from Minneapolis/St. Paul to Seoul/Incheon, but they don’t fly that route every day.  Wednesday, unfortunately, was the wrong day.  I had to change planes in Seattle and again in Seoul/Incheon.  To ensure safe connections, I had to leave Minneapolis at 6:55 AM.  That meant leaving home by 4:30.  I’ve rarely been able to sleep on airplanes, and this was a long trip, so starting the trip tired wasn’t ideal.

The day before I left, I started having symptoms of a cold.  For almost a week, I was averaging between three and four hours of sleep.  That eventually caught up to me.  All day Tuesday, I had a mild case of post-nasal drip.  During the night, I started to feel a sore throat.  I didn’t have any other symptoms yet, but it wasn’t the best way to start the trip.

My longest flight segment was a 12 hour flight from Seattle to Seoul/Incheon.  I was originally booked in a Premium Select seat.  That’s something new.  It’s not first class, but it’s more comfortable than economy.  The day before the trip, I called Delta to ask if I could use miles to upgrade to a first class seat.  I could, and it only cost me 45,000 miles. That’s a bargain to have a seat that reclines completely flat for a 12 hour flight.  That gave me a realistic chance of getting some sleep on the flight.

Wednesday, November 13

During the night, I started to have a sore throat.  After getting up, I was back to just having post-nasal drip.  At this point, I was still clinging to hope that I could fight off the cold.

My flight to Seattle arrived about 30 minutes early.  That gave me a three hour layover before the long flight to Seoul/Incheon.

About halfway through my flight to Seoul/Incheon, I felt sleepy, so I took a nap.  Being able to recline completely flat is a game-changer.  I’ve never been more relaxed or more comfortable on an airplane.  It took a long time to fall asleep, but then I slept for at least an hour.  That was enough sleep to tide me over, but not so much that it would be more difficult to adjust to the time zone in Bangkok.

When I woke up, I felt slightly congested.  I was no longer optimistic about beating the cold.  I assumed at this point that I would gradually develop all the other symptoms.

Thursday, November 14

Toward the end of my second flight, we crossed the International Date Line.  Now instead of Wednesday afternoon it was Thursday afternoon.

As we began descending, I felt some discomfort in my ears.  I feared they would get more painful as we continued to descend, but they didn’t.  They gradually adjusted to the change in air pressure.  I was still only partially congested.

I arrived at the Seoul/Incheon airport in the late afternoon.  After another two and a half hour layover, I finally flew to Bangkok.  The last flight was only five and a half hours, but boarding was delayed, because of a last minute change in aircraft.  Everyone needed to get new seat assignments.  By the time we took off, we were already 40 minutes behind schedule.

To save time on arrival, I didn’t check a bag.  I’ve never been good at packing light.  Fitting everything I needed for a two week trip into a carry-on bag wasn’t easy, but I managed to do it.  After getting off the plane, I went straight to the long line for passport control.

Because I arrived so late, I spent my first night at an airport hotel.  The Novotel Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport is connected to the airport terminal by a tunnel.  By the time I got there and checked in, it was already after midnight.  I wanted to get to sleep as quickly as I could.  When I got to the room, the AC wasn’t on.  It took me a while to find the climate control.  It was set to 23 degrees Celsius.  When I turned it down, I could feel cool air coming out of the vents, but it would take time to get the room cooled down.

Friday, November 15

At 1:30 AM, I finally tried to go to sleep.  I set my alarm for 9:30.  In theory, I could get eight hours sleep.  It didn’t work out that way.

As I tried to figure out how to turn off all the lights, I inadvertently turned off power to the climate control.  I turned it on again, but it reset to 23 C.  I didn’t notice that.  I went to bed thinking the room was cooling off, but it was actually starting to warm up again.  I tossed and turned for hours before realizing the room was getting warmer.

At 5:00 AM, I noticed the climate control was set to 23 C.  I got up and changed it, but it took time for the room to get cool.  I eventually fell asleep, but I only slept for about two hours.  That was a lost opportunity.

When I woke up, my congestion was worse.  Did I mention this wasn’t the best way to start a trip?

I lost both Wednesday and Thursday to air travel, so I was overdue for a run.  When I got up, I went to the hotel’s fitness center and ran for an hour on one of their treadmills.  That workout seemed like a turning point.  Despite my cold and my lack of sleep, I felt OK for the rest of the day.

My room rate included my choice of breakfast or lunch.  By the time I was dressed, it was time for lunch.  I had the lunch buffet in the hotel’s Japanese restaurant.  The buffet was a fusion of different styles.  I had an eclectic selection that included sushi, pumpkin curry stir fry, pizza, and crème brulée for dessert.

I was able to get around Bangkok using public transportation.  There’s a train into the city from the Suvarnabhumi airport.  In the city, I used a combination of sky trains and MRT (subway).  One of the MRT lines was recently extended through the “old city,” making it easier to get to my hotel.

For the next five nights, I stayed at Riva Arun Bangkok.  This hotel was located on the Chao Phraya River, directly across from Wat Arun (the Temple of Dawn).  My room had a balcony with this view.


I was impressed with the service at this hotel.  They brought me a small pot of green tea to drink while they were filling out my paperwork and checking to see if my room was ready.  They escorted me to my room and one of the employees gave me a tour of the room.

After unpacking and making sure the AC was on, I took the trains to the Marriott, where my friends Shannon and Eric were staying.  We spent the evening at the Octave Sky Bar on the roof.  We stayed long enough to see the city at night.  Then we went down to the 45th floor to eat dinner.


By the time I got back to Riva Arun, my room was nice and cool, and I was ready to get some sleep.  Before bed, I stepped out onto the balcony to see the view of Wat Arun at night.


I had no trouble getting to sleep that night, and I slept for most of the night.

Saturday, November 16

I had breakfast at the hotel’s rooftop restaurant.  From there, you not only have views of the river and Wat Arun, but you can also see Wat Pho.


After breakfast, I took a tour of the Jim Thompson House Museum.  Jim Thompson was an architect, designer, and textile colorist who revived the silk weaving industry in Thailand.  He designed his home, which consists of six teak buildings of traditional Thai architecture.  His home is furnished with an extensive collection of paintings, sculptures, and porcelain.  Some of the pieces are as much as a thousand years old.

In 1967, Jim Thompson went missing while hiking in the jungle in Malaysia.  To this day, nobody knows what happened to him.  His home is now a museum.


From the Jim Thomson House Museum, it was a short walk to the National Stadium, where packet pickup for the race was being held.  With my race packet, I got both a T-shirt and a singlet.  On my way back, I saw someone grilling chicken and pork kebabs, so I had street food for lunch.

After dropping off my race packet at the hotel, I went out to explore the neighborhood.  I walked past Wat Pho, the Grand Palace, and Wat Mahathat.  Along the way, I passed numerous small shops and street vendors.  Then I stopped to explore the amulet market.  This is a narrow alley lined with dozens of vendor selling amulets and other souvenirs.




On my way back to the hotel, I explored some of the small shops near Chang Pier.  Wherever I went in the old city, I saw tributes to the royal family.


Shannon was also doing the marathon, so she and Eric stayed at Riva Arun Bangkok the night of the race.  I got back to the hotel just as they were checking in.  Shannon still needed to pick up her race packet.  While they were going to the expo, I explored a different part of the old city.

This temple is called Wat Suthat.  The large red structure next to it used to be the support for a giant swing.  The giant swing was used as part of religious ceremonies, but the practice was stopped after several fatal injuries.



I had dinner with Shannon and Eric at an Italian restaurant near Khau San Road.  The restaurant was on such a narrow alleyway, that we would have missed it if not for using my phone for directions.  We all had pizza, and it was excellent.

As we were walking back from dinner, all the temples and government buildings were lit up.  This is the Supreme Court and the Grand Palace,



Here’s Wat Pho at night, viewed from the roof of our hotel.  In the distance, you can also see parts of the Grand Palace and the Rama VIII Bridge.


I still had four and a half hours before the race, so I decided to try taking a nap.  I never take naps, but this was an unusual circumstance.  It was already well after dark, I had a huge sleep deficit, and I was going to be running through the night.

I set an alarm and went to bed.  Before long, I fell asleep.  Before I knew it, I woke up from a two hour nap.  I can think of plenty of races with normal start times where I got less sleep than that.

I was feeling pretty good.  The nap energized me. It even seemed like my cold was breaking up.  I didn’t have any new symptoms, the post nasal drip was gone, and I didn’t have as much congestion.  I took a shower and started getting dressed.

I hadn’t noticed any mosquitoes since arriving in Bangkok, but Eric noticed one at dinner.  I was going to have a lot of exposed skin during dinner, so I used lots of insect repellant.  I didn’t have to worry about sunblock.

At 11:30, I met Shannon in the lobby, and we walked to the start.  It was a 10 minute walk.  I’m glad I used the bathroom before leaving the hotel, because I didn’t see any port-o-potties anywhere in the start area.

Before the race, there was a brief drum ceremony.  Shannon took this video of part of it.


Then they led us through a 10 minute warm-up routine.  I’ve seen similar things in a few European races, but this had an Asian flavor.  It was energetic.

Sunday, November 17

One might assume they hold the race at night so we don’t have to endure the radiant heat of the sun.  That might be the case, but I suspect it was for another reason.  Between midnight and 6 AM, it’s easier to close down the roads.  A majority of the course was on a major highway and the highway was completely closed to traffic.

The course is mostly out-and-back, starting and finishing in front of the Grand Palace. 
I assumed the course would be lit, but I had a small flashlight with me, just in case.

Shannon and I ran together for the whole race.  Neither of us was planning to go all out for a fast time.  We paced ourselves conservatively, respecting the heat.  We just wanted to finish.

For the first kilometer or so, we were running along the same street that we had walked going to and from dinner on Saturday.  We once again got to see familiar landmarks like the Ministry of Defense and the Supreme Court.  We continued through busy streets for another kilometer and a half.  We ran past the Democracy Monument, which was lit up beautifully, but I didn’t have a camera with me.  It didn’t want to get my camera saturated with sweat.

At the start of the race, the temperature was in the low 80s, with stifling humidity.  The temperature gradually dropped during the race, but the humidity never got any better.

They had water stations every two kilometers.  That was very consistent.  I don’t recall seeing any odd numbered kilometer markers, but the even ones were always right at an aid station.

After two and a half kilometers, we went up a ramp that took us onto Rama VIII Road, named after the eighth king of Siam.  After about four kilometers, we crossed the Rama VIII Bridge over the Chao Phraya River.  The bridge supports were lit up.  That’s a photo I would have taken if I had a camera.  As we crossed the bridge, I took in the views of the river.

Shortly after crossing the bridge, we turned onto a highway.  We were on that same highway for most of the race.

Most of the course was well-lit, but there were a few brief sections where the street lamps weren’t on.  I never needed to use my flashlight, but I did need to pay more attention, so Shannon and I didn’t get separated.

As we were nearing the end of the eighth kilometer, Shannon said she needed to slow down.  I didn’t realize it, but she was really struggling with the conditions in the early kilometers.  Around the same time, a runner from Ireland asked me if I spoke English.  He wanted to know how far we had gone.  I could see the next aid station just ahead.  I told him this aid station was 8K.  He ran with us for several kilometers and we had a nice conversation.

We slowed down a bit, and before long, Shannon was feeling better.  The highway wasn’t very exciting as far as scenery goes, but it was usually at least 50 feet above ground level.  Before we got onto the highway, there wasn’t any breeze.  Now that we were up higher, we had just enough of a breeze to help with the humidity.  That really made a difference.  It’s the reason Shannon started feeling better.

The 8K aid station was the first one to have Gatorade.  Before that, we could only drink water.  After that, we saw Gatorade at about one third of the aid stations.  Later in the race, we started to get excited if we approached an aid station and saw Gatorade banners.

Even though the aid stations were frequent, I found myself needing to drink two cups at each aid station.  I was sweating like crazy.

I think we were about 15K into the race when we started to see elite runners already coming back.  There was a lead pack of about eight runners who were all still together.  I’m sure the race for first place got exciting later.

For most of the race we were running in the westbound lanes of the highway.  Around 19K, we made a U-turn into the eastbound lanes.  We continued east for about two kilometers before turning around to retrace our route back toward the city center.

I rarely looked at my watch, but we reached the halfway mark in about 2:05.  Before the race, Shannon was guessing we might run the marathon in 4:15.  Now that we were half done, she said she was hoping to finish somewhere between 4:15 and 4:30.  She didn’t seem confident that we would break 4:30.  I assumed we would slow down, but I didn’t think we would slow down that much.

Coming back, we spent longer at the aid stations.  Shannon was drinking two cups, pouring one over her head and putting ice in her shirt.  We walked through the aid stations, but between them, I think we still ran at the same pace.  I was hot enough to feel sweaty, but I never felt the need to pour water over my head.  The pace we were running usually felt somewhat comfortable, so I wasn’t overheating.

There weren’t any port-o-potties anywhere on the course.  About two thirds of the way through the race, I cut back to only drinking one cup at each aid station.  At this point, I knew I wouldn’t get dehydrated.  I wanted to make sure I didn’t need a bathroom stop.

There was a half marathon that started later than the marathon.  With a little over 10K to go, we passed their turnaround point.  Suddenly the road got much more crowded.  Shannon and I had to pay close attention to keep from getting separated, particularly at the aid stations and on the few sections of the course that were dark.

For the rest of the race, we just needed to grind it out.  We were hot and tired, but the remaining distance gradually got more manageable.  With about 5K to go, I saw something in the distance that was lit up, but it was high in the air.  I assumed it was the top of a building, but I couldn’t see anything underneath it.  When I mentioned it to Shannon, she recognized it.  It was the top of the Rama VIII Bridge.  As we went around a corner and saw it form a different angle, I could make out the entire bridge support.

When we crossed the bridge again, we had about 4K to go.  The last 4K wasn’t the same as the first 4K.  We took a different route through the old city.

With about 2K to go, I looked at my watch.  Shannon didn’t want to know if she was going to break 4:30 or not.  I could see we easily would, but I kept that to myself.

We passed Sanam Luang.  This is a large park where prominent events are held.  We ran past it earlier in the race, but this time we were on the opposite side.  I didn’t know exactly what our route to the finish was, but I knew where we were.  In the distance, we could see the tops of some of the temples.

We turned left just before the Grand Palace.  Then we turned right to make our final approach to the finish line. We crossed the line in 4:20:42.

At first, I didn’t see where we were supposed to get our medals.  Then I remembered a tent we walked by before the race.  It had a sign that said something like, “Hand out finisher coin.”  We assumed that meant medal.  We looked for the tent.  In front of it, there were volunteers handing out the medals.


As we continued through the finish area, I started to see other runners carrying T-shirts in sealed bags.  We already got a T-shirt and a singlet at packet pickup.  Were we really going to get another shirt?  Shannon was skeptical, but I also remembered passing a tent with a sign that said, “Hand out finisher shirt.”  Sure enough, we found the tent and got our finisher T-shirts.

Out last stop before leaving the finish area was the food line.  Our post-race food included giant prawns and a large bowl of tasty soup.  We also got bags with other post-race snacks.

As we left the finish area, we saw Eric.  He had just walked over from the hotel.  He arrived at the same time we were leaving the finish area.  That was amazing timing.

We sat down on the curb to eat our post-race food.  Then we walked back to the hotel.  My first priority was to get out of my wet running clothes.  I didn’t want to put my wet clothes on the hardwood floor of my room, so I put them out on the balcony.  Then I took a shower.  I had to wait for my hair to dry before going to bed.  By the time I was ready, it was more than an hour since we had finished the race.  It was still dark outside, so I was hopeful I could get to sleep.  I didn’t need a full-night’s sleep.  I just needed a nap.  I was awake for a long time.  Eventually, I noticed light filtering in from outside.  I kept trying to sleep, but eventually I had to go to the bathroom.

When I looked at the time, it was two hours after going to bed.  It’s possible I fell asleep without realizing it.  It didn’t seem like I had been awake in bed for two hours.

I got dressed and met Shannon and Eric in the lobby.  They were flying to Chiang Mai, but they had time to tour the Grand Palace before heading to the airport.

The Grand Palace is large and incredibly ornate.  I took dozens of photos.  It was tough to select just a few, but here are some of my favorites.  The highlight of the palace was Wat Phra Kaew (the Temple of the Emerald Buddha), but we couldn’t take pictures inside the temple.








Inside the temples, your knees and elbows need to be covered, so I was wearing a long sleeved shirt the whole time we were at the Grand Palace.  In long sleeves, you get sweaty fast.  When I got back to the hotel, I had to take another shower.

After cooling down, I had lunch at a restaurant a few blocks from the hotel.  After lunch, I explored Chinatown.  At first, I wandered somewhat randomly through the narrow streets, past food vendors and narrow shops selling just about everything.




It’s a shame I went there so soon after lunch.  Some of the food looked good, but I wasn’t hungry.  The only thing I bought was some fresh pineapple.  My last stop before leaving Chinatown was Wat Mangkon, a Chinese Buddhist temple.


I had time to do more sightseeing, but I was too tired.  It was a sunny afternoon, with temperatures in the low 90s.  Spending so much time walking around outside wore me out.  It didn’t help that I spent most of the previous night running instead of sleeping.  I went back to the hotel and relaxed in the shade on my balcony, watching boats on the river.  I waited to see the sunset behind Wat Arun.


There are plenty of good restaurants in the neighborhood of my hotel, but as I started walking to dinner, I noticed that most of them were already closed.  The one I went to was still open, but I had to order quickly.  I ended up ordering more food than I really needed.  Their prawn spring roll was listed as an appetizer, but it was a whole plate of spring rolls.  After eating that, I struggled to find room for my entrée.

I went to bed shortly after dinner.  That night, I crashed hard and slept for nine hours.  I really needed that.

Monday, November 18

After breakfast, I went to Wat Pho.  As with the Grand Palace, it’s hard to capture the grandeur if this place with just a few photos.





Within Wat Pho, there are several temples.  In one of them, I had the opportunity to sit on the floor and relax for several minutes while listening to a dozen monks chanting in unison.  The best known temple at Wat Pho holds the world’s largest reclining Buddha.  You have to see it with your own eyes to appreciate how big it is.


Next, I took a ferry to the other side of the river to see Wat Arun.


From in front of Wat Arun, I could see my hotel across the river.


When I checked in at Riva Arun on Friday, they gave me a voucher for a 24-hour unlimited ride pass on one of the hop-on, hop off tourist boats on the Chao Phraya River.  One of the stops was a pier next to Wat Arun.

There were nine different piers where you could get on or get off.  I mostly just wanted to ride along the river and enjoy the views.





I ended up getting off in three places.  Everyone had to get off at the Sathorn, which was the southernmost pier.  While I was waiting to board the next boat going north, I visited this Hainanese temple.



We also had to get off at the northernmost pier.  From there, I could see the Rama VIII Bridge, which we ran across during the marathon.


I was planning to get off at this pier anyway, as I hadn’t had any lunch yet, and there were several restaurants nearby.  I found one called Mango House, where I had this fruit and waffle concoction called Mango Paradise.


My last stop was near the Pat Klong Flower Market.  Like other marketplaces I visited, this one had narrow alleys and small shops.  Here, all the shops were selling flowers.




I was done with the hop-on, hop-off boat, but I wasn’t done visiting temples.  From the flower market, I took the MRT to Wat Traimit (the Temple of the Golden Buddha).  This temple holds the world’s largest solid gold Buddha.



It started raining just before I got to Wat Traimit.  All morning and afternoon, the heat index was above 100 degrees, so the rain felt good at first.  To enter any temple, however, you have to leave your shoes outside, and the shoe racks were a good distance from the entrance to the temple.  By the time I left, my shoes and socks were fairly wet.  When I got back to the hotel, I had to change into dry clothes and shoes.

I was hoping to get up early on Tuesday, so I wanted to stay close to the hotel for dinner.  You can’t get much closer than the hotel’s rooftop restaurant.  After dinner, I got to bed as early as I could.

Tuesday, November 19

It’s tough to find a good place to run in the old city.  The streets are busy, and the sidewalks are crowded.  The only time you can run on the sidewalks is during the pre-dawn hours.  I got up early, so I could go for a run while I had the chance.

By now, I knew which streets had wide sidewalks and were well lit at night.  I mostly stuck to streets I had run or walked along before, but at one point I crossed a bridge over a canal with the intent of running back on the opposite bank.

A security guard immediately said something to me.  I stopped and turned toward him.  I was nervous, because foreign visitors are supposed to have their passports with them at all times.  I didn’t have mine with me while I was running.  That wasn’t his concern.  He was just telling me I couldn’t go that way.  His tone wasn’t at all menacing.  In fact, he was smiling and apologized for having to stop me.  That’s Thailand in a nutshell.  It’s the land of smiles.

As I finished my run, there was more traffic in the streets, but the sidewalks still weren’t crowded.  In all, I ran a little over seven miles, finishing a few minutes after sunrise.

While I was up on the roof eating breakfast, I noticed it was really hazy.  Buildings that were only five miles away were barely visible.  By the time I was done eating, the smog was beginning to bother my eyes.  This was the first day it was like that.

It seemed like a day for indoor activities.  As soon as it opened, I went to Museum Siam, which was only a few blocks from my hotel.  Museum Siam is a cultural museum, that attempts to define “Thai-ness” and how it has changed over time.  It has 14 exhibits.  I found the first several exhibits easy to understand.  That last few made me realize how little I still understand Thai culture.  It would be interesting to come back to this museum after an extended stay in the country.

I had lunch at one of the many small restaurants near the hotel.  Their menu struck me as a mixture of Thai food and entrées I think of as Chinese.  I saw the same thing at other restaurants.  That reminded me of one of the exhibits at Museum Siam.  Even people from Thailand can’t always agree on which foods are genuinely Thai and which foods are Thai versions of foods from neighboring countries.

By now, the air quality had improved, so I was no longer limited to indoor activities.  I reluctantly changed into a long-sleeved shirt and went out to see one more major temple.  I could have walked the whole way, but I rode the MRT for one stop so I wouldn’t have to spend as much time in the afternoon heat.  This is Wat Saket (the Temple of the Golden Mount).

 



When I got back to the hotel, I found out there was going to be a rehearsal later in the afternoon for a royal barge procession that’s going to take place in December.  Most people were watching from the roof, but I could watch it from my balcony.


In the evening, I walked up to Khao San Road.  This is the shopping and nightlife spot for young people backpacking across Asia.  I had to at least check it out, so I found a place to eat dinner there.


Wednesday, November 20

Today I fly to Myanmar to begin part two of my Asian adventure.

To be continued…


Race Statistics
Distance:  42.2 kilometers
Time:  4:20:42
Average Pace:  6:11 per kilometer (9:57 per mile)
Lifetime Marathons/Ultras:  392
Countries:  40

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