The Cross Country Race at NIT Calicut

There was a cross country race and the only one during my stay at NIT in early 1984. I was party to it trying to explore my running skills and stamina. Nityananda Kamath who now owns a hero honda show-room at calicut and a senior at NIT was one of the organisers.

The track for the cross country race was as follows. Starting from the main building the track would exit into the main road from D hostel gate into Kettangal from where you take a left turn to papachan and left again at papachan straight into the main road to the temple to the LH (ladies hostel) to the guest house to the farther end of the mini valley down through the valley and back to the Main building through the canteen gate. Should be some 5 kilometers in all.

I was dressed in a shorts and T-shirt and there must have been some 100 runners in all and behold the race began and I ran as fast as I could only to realise before long that I have embarked on a difficult venture. At papachan I had a small stop over for few glasses of water. Many of the more spirited runners were already much ahead in the race. I realized early that even getting the tenth position would be a distant dream. The reality drew on me quite early and the focus shifted to completing the race in right earnest. There were few others who had resigned like myself to this reality and we had almost formed a truce and were running in unison and one of them to my consolation was the deputy to the physical instruction director.

I did complete the race walking sometimes to gather steam and bolting in front of the Ladies Hostel to show that I was something and slowing down again into a walk. Nithyananda kamath who was supervising the race on a motor-bike offered me a lift but I politely refused. Nityananda kamath was a gentle man and met him once in his office at Calicut much later. The best part of the race was descending into the mini valley from the faculty quarters through ferns and bushes and ascending again into the main road in a quick sprint but behold when I finished the race I was one of the last few but I was happy that I completed it.

One of my juniors Binod Ramakrishnan Nair was one of the victors and i dont remember the names of the other winners. I have always tried to follow the philosophy of completing things even though it takes extra time and may be that is what being persistent is all about.