Mussoorie Half Marathon

17 Nov Mussoorie Half Marathon

“For me, running isn’t competition. Running is a space to breathe, or more than breathe, pant in air and be real. I want to be real more than anything else, and in days encased in concrete and screens, that realness keeps me grounded.” Shanti Mathias, Woodstock student

Early on the morning of Sunday 6 November, a group of over a hundred eager runners took off from the Hanifl Centre with the aim of completing the 5k, 10k or half-marathon. The annual race winds through the eastern part of Mussoorie and towards Dhanaulti, taking the runners East along Tehri Road. Throughout the course, runners catch beautiful and breathtaking glimpses of the Himalayan mountain range, which is hopefully enough to distract them from their cramping calves and burning lungs.

“Because Mussoorie is a far-flung outpost of the running world the race feels like an event held by and for a small community, but on the racecourse, it is actually a mix of people from all over northern India,” says Tobias Tillemans, Woodstock teacher and Mussoorie Half Marathon runner. “The course befits a race in the Himalayas: cold in the shadows and hot in the sun, stone quiet, with breath-taking views and suffocating hill climbs through thin air. With an elevation gain of more than 800m the course website appropriately advises participants to leave their hopes of setting a personal best down in Dehradun.”

Results

Women’s Half-Marathon

Men’s Half-Marathon

Women’s 10k

Men’s 10k

Women’s 5k

Men’s 5k

Visit www.runizen.com for full times for all runners over the three distances.

Visit www.mussoorierunners.com for more information on the Mussoorie Half Marathon.