The fall and the double run
Every seasoned marathoner finally falls, and my day for the fall came to pass today, Wednesday. And it came and passed so fast that I did not even have time to enjoy it! I would have loved a more dramatic incident, with some preparation and a long time on the ground. But that did not happen….
I should have technically suspended all runs until 2023 after the Christmas run, but the urge to do one ‘last run’ was just so strong to resist. I therefore left for the run at eight, against my better judgment, and would soon regret this decision. I should have instead stayed in bed and enjoyed another hour of sleep on this cold morning. However, I left the warmth of the bed at on my own volition and stirred trouble in the face.
The rains had started falling almost daily after a long dry spell. The first serious rain fell on Christmas eve. It has generally rained daily since then. Yesterday, Tuesday was no different. It had rained most night. I had hoped that the running trail would not be very muddy. Instinct told me otherwise. The road was already slippery during the Christmas day run, with hardly a day or rain. How about the road after four days of rain!
Anyway, I was out for the run and knew from the start that the run would be muddy. I was still aiming for the four full circuits on the trail on the south side of Sosiani river, facing Eldoret town on the other side of the river. I hardly started the run before I encountered the muddy puddles on the mostly dry weather earthen road. It was slippery and called for running at a reduced speed so as to tread carefully with every step hitting the ground. I almost fell at a road section near the river. I marked that section mentally and reminded myself to be careful at that section when I faced it on the second circuit.
The second circuit exposed yet another slippery section on the section before heading to the riverbed. My slow careful run had made me survive this section, even as I learnt to note its existence in readiness for the third circuit. The third circuit could have been smooth with muddy sections now well memorized, but a new section towards the main road to Kipkenyo would remind me that this 5km circuit was just a muddy maze and there was no safe road on this day.
Finally, when I was sure that I had mastered my run on the mud, and this happens. I was carefully running through a section that I had encountered three times already and did not even seem any muddy. This comes after a sharp turn to the left after going downhill. This turn should enable me to then run about one kilometre then get to the riverbed section. It is a turn that I had already done three times thing morning and had been as smooth as butter.
I was not even going fast, as I struggled to get a grip onto the mostly muddy road. I made the turn alright and just made about five steps before I found myself sprawled onto the mud. It was the knees that took most of the brunt of the fall as I went down on all four. My hands had done well in preventing my thoracic area from falling flat onto the mud. The palms of the hand near the wrists were full of mud. But the shock of the fall was coming from my knees.
I stood up almost immediately and assessed the situation. I once-upon-a-time had a cellphone on the left hand, timing my run. I had been alternating it between left and right hands with every circuit. It was on the left on this fourth round. It was now missing. I had involuntarily released it in reaction to the fall and left on its own device. I examined the ground and saw it lying about two metres ahead, on the muddy path. I picked it up only to realize that it had gone off.
Many things were now happening at the same time. Recovering from a fall. Dealing with a switched off phone, that was muddy. Dealing with muddy hands. Trying to resume my run! I did not know how to proceed!
I decided to switch on the phone first. I already knew that the run timing was already disrupted, and it was not possible to continue my timing on the initial record. I just had to start timing a new run. A second run on the same run. At least the phone was still working. I wiped some mud out of it, but it remained fairly muddy. I then attempted to run, only to be stopped by the pain coming from my knees.
I stopped on my tracks, paused the timer that had hardly timed for more than five seconds, and decided to take a look at the knees that was causing so much pain.
“Oh, em gee!,” I shouted out, subconsciously.
I could see an area that was bruised and red on both knees. Some blood was trickling down both legs towards the socks.
“Oh, em gee!,” I shouted out a second time. I do not like the sight of blood, despite being a certified first aid, hence this second reaction.
The road where I was was deserted. It had been deserted through the run. I knew that I could meet a group of motorbike riders waiting for passengers some one hundred metres ahead, but for now, I had to deal with this alone.
The knees were muddy, dirty and now showing red streaks of blood. The pain was deafening! I tried to resume the run but folding any of the knees was just a pain in the, in the, in the a… knee. Anyway, I re-examined the wounds and realized that they were mainly affecting the outer part of the skin. I was convinced that neither the flesh nor muscles of the knee had been affected. The pain was however another thing, despite my self-triage assessment.
I left the status as is, muddy, bloody knees and all, and restarted my run. The pain especially when folding the knees for the run was sharp but manageable. I just had to do the run as initially planned. I was going to struggle through the new circumstances. The pain got better with time. However, my run speed had now been reduced to a much lower pace than before the fall. I was now being over careful with the road and also reducing the pace due to the pain on the knees.
In a few moments I reached the vicinity of Sosiani river. Though the run route was about one-hundred metres from the running river, I could see the many little water streams that run from the hilly side on my left towards the river. I stopped by one of these streams and washed my hands and attempted to wash my knees. The pain of the water on the wounds was just unbearable. I however knew that I had to clean my wounds if I wanted to prevent further complications from the bruises. I washed away and was soon looking clean. I resumed my run.
I finally cleared the fourth circuit and did the final finisher circuit that is not the full route. This finisher is a maximum of three kilometres, and can be cut short by taking any of the many alternate routes back to the finish point. I like this finisher since it gives me the option to run the full length or drop off and end the run at any time, depending on my energy levels. I re-examined the place where I had fallen hardly thirty minutes prior.
It is a place that I should not have fallen at. However, I still almost fell even on this final round. There was a small stone protruding about two centimetres from the generally flat ground. That small stone could cause a tumble if you are not observant. I had evaded it in the first three rounds, but it had caught up with me on the fourth. It almost caused another fall on the final. How small things can be the most damaging!
I do not know whether I did one or two runs on this day. I had a timer reading 16.72km in 1:30:44, and another second one reading 9.00 in 49:03. My knees remained painful through the day. I could hardly fold my knees while walking or seating. That did not prevent me from doing a 6km leisure walk around the town. I was almost back to normal by nighttime. I hope to be fully recovered by the next run… when it comes.
WWB, the Coach, Eldoret, Kenya, December 28, 2022
