I’m excited to introduce Ganesh Kumar, the 5th 90k runner of the GavaTeaOotyultra. Ganesh is not new to OOTYULTRA, and he will be a returning #ultramalaivasi.
As announced before, the OOTYULTRA 2020 will feature a brand new 90k category (only by invitation) with ~3800 m elevation gain and ~3620 m elevation drop and comes with a 12 hr cut-off time.
Ganesh loves endurance cycling as well as cycling and seeks a lot of happiness from running in the trails.
Hi Ganesh, welcome back to OOTYULTRA, you ran the OOTYULTRA 60k in 2019 with a 4th place finish time of 07:19:15., can you describe your experience?
I always enjoyed climbing and trail running. I find immense joy in taking up challenging mountains and pushing the limits of my body. I enjoy the fresh air and the long “me-time” that I got in Ooty. I heard about OOTYULTRA from a couple of running groups in my area and also from multiple aggregator websites like as a running, ITRA, etc. and decided to run.OOTYULTRA was tough due to the hot weather during the midday. The support that I received was excellent, and I kept myself hydrated well during the run to survive the climbs and heat.
Why does running in the mountains excite you?
I enjoy doing a variety of activities and want a regular dose of tough challenges. I can’t see myself sitting in a place, watching TV. I like to be involved in some activities.
When did you realize you loved running?
I was not into athletics in my childhood, but during my high school, I started enjoying cycling long distances, again solo or maybe one person as a company. In 2004 I ran my first marathon because my friends were running the Portland city marathon. In 2017 I met an Indian friend who wanted to cycle, and I guided him to buy a good cycle, and we cycled regularly. Once he asked me to try trail running with him, and I agreed. I enjoyed it a lot and eventually got hooked into running. I especially enjoy trail runs.
What are your notable endurance, cycling, and running accomplishments?
I’ve always loved cycling. I have had a mountain bike since 1998. I bought my first road bike in 2006 to bike the California coast. But, I have been regularly biking, with gear, metrics, and tracking since 2014. I love being on the cycle, and I love to travel and see new places and people. I have done multi-day organized tours like The Tour of Nilgiris, The Tour of Tamilnadu, The Tour of Goa, and Kashmir to Kanyakumari, Self-supported multi-day tours like Tour of Baja California in Mexico, TransAmerica Tour, and Tour from India to Singapore. I ran my first marathon without much running in 2004, but didn’t go back to running after that till 2017. I picked up running again in 2017 after a friend took me trail running. I realized I love running trails in the mountains outside traffic and entirely in nature. Since then, I have run a couple of 100k runs and two 100 mile races. I had a cycling accident and a hip socket fracture last year, which kept me from running as much as I wanted last year.
What events are you doing after OOTYULTRA?
I am registered to run Tahoe Rim Trail 100 and UTMB Mont Blanc later this year.
Now that you laid your eye on the OOTYULTRA 90k, what will be your training strategy complete the distance within the 12 hrs cut-off?
I like to run solo. I am planning to build up miles gradually. I am planning to build up my running to a minimum of 100 to 150K per week. I don’t believe in a lot of speed training. I am also planning to walk through some parts of the course. I am looking forward to this year’s edition to get my running legs back on.
Please join me in wishing Ganesh a fabulous OOTYULTRA 90k finish.
#coachkay, Race Director, OOTYULTRA
