February - 2016

Day 35: Legendary Riders

Udaipur to Rajsamand, 80km There are some situations which are so absurd and surreal, that it’s difficult to talk about; not because no one will believe us, but because when we look back even we would question our own perception of the events. But if the film crew didn’t capture it on video, we would never get to say we rode on the back of Harley Davidsons through an old city at 5 in the morning, blasting Another One Bites the Dust at full volume while the police escorted us

Day 31: Gandhi

Nadiad to Ahmedabad, 60km Everyone can make a difference. We’re all pebbles in a pond, invariably creating ripples which become waves and eventually tsunamis. Pat makes a difference every day, but he may not know it yet and he may never live to see it. But he and the crew are already on hundreds of thousands of phones immortalised as warm memories. For some people, we will be nothing more than a fleeting thought – like a loud plane, flying overhead. For others, when a challen

Day 30: Respite

Por to Nadiad, 57.2km Today was the first time Pat had ever had lunch outside the car. We were in sitting in the restaurant of Boulevard9, a luxury resort in Nadiad. Pat had ordered about four fruit smoothies and downed them all in a row. Usually, around this time of the day he’d be eating whatever he could get his hands on – that went for the crew as well. It felt strangely like a holiday. We had so much free time and we weren’t sure what to do with it. “Enjoy it while you c

Day 21: Wildlife

Pen to Mumbai, 76.1km India can change by the kilometre. One moment you’re running through a tropical jungle with monkeys swinging from the trees, the next you’re encountering a herd of camels walking along the side of the road. Before you realise it you’ll be passing by fertile farmlands and major agricultural hubs before being harassed by monkeys again. It’s literally a jungle outside our vehicles sometimes, but what we find more curious than the elephants, the camels, the

Day 19: Third Eye

Ratnagiri to Velneshwar, 80km Since our arrival, we’ve been blessed with the Sindoor – a red and sometimes yellow dot on the forehead – at almost every reception we’ve stopped at. The mark itself looks fine when it’s first applied, but the funny thing about ultra-marathoners is they have a tendency to sweat. When you sweat your pores open right up and everything from dirt, dust to paint carves a home in the cracks between your skin. Pat was told it was a “third eye” and w

Day 7: Opportunities

Engandiyoor to Chaliyam, 80.3km “It was like walking into a gladiator stadium,” one of our crew members said. Pat and the Spirit of India team were ushered into the school grounds at Umbichy Hajee, a secondary school in Chaliyam. A marching band led Pat into what was essentially a football-field sized sandbox, where almost three thousand students and teachers gathered to meet us. In rows of twenty or more, they lined against the wall cheering and waving. Others watched from t