Differences on running in Vietnam to other countries

Last week I had the privilege of going to the Sunshine Coast in Queensland/ Australia. I took my training schedule there and didn’t miss a single run, actually, I ran much better than I have in a while, on average dropping as much as 15-20 seconds per kilometer. This got me thinking about the main differences between running in Saigon and running in other countries, for this comparison I will base my assumptions on Australia, but they are applicable to other countries as well.

  Air Quality

 You don’t need to be a runner to know that the air quality in Saigon isn’t great, there is sadly still no website that consistently tracks the air quality here but some people have started comparing it to Beijing and other infamous air quality cities. The moment I stepped of the plane in Australia I just took a massive breath, what a revelation. During runs this of course translated to getting more oxygen with each breath, which helped me not take as many breaths, keep the heart rate down and generally feeling fresher while running quicker.

  Temperature

Another general one and I won’t go into too much detail here but it is naturally easier to run in 20-25 degrees, with almost no humidity, then it is to run in 30-35 degrees with 90+% humidity. So once again that helped me keep the pace down.

  Sidewalks and running tracks

 This one is not as common, everyone that has run in Saigon will understand that sidewalks (in the off chance they exist) are not meant to be run on, they are a marketplace, external café terrace, motorbike parking, garbage dump and you have to constantly dodge something when running on them. For most of my runs here I run on the shoulder of the road, I know that’s not totally safe, but at least the under-foot conditions are fairly stable, so I can concentrate on traffic without constantly having to look down. This was a major change to Australia where all my running was done on sidewalks and specifically designed running tracks meaning that I could really focus on my form and run freely, knowing I won’t get struck by a car, or have to dodge freshly caught fish on display for sale when I turn a corner.

  Dogs

 During my week running in Australia I did not encounter a single stray dog or dog that wasn’t on a leash, this sadly is different from the experience I have running in Vietnam. On average during my daily run I will pass about 10-15 dogs, with maybe 1 or 2 of them being on leashes. Now I am by no means saying that all of these are aggressive or that you should be scared that any of these dogs will do anything. It is just an observation that there are a lot of dogs around and there is a potential that some of them might be aggressive.

  Other runners

 Having designated running tracks also means that you get to see and meet a lot more other runners, that’s something that I really like, as that gives you the chance to tag along with someone who might be a little quicker than you and pushes you harder, in turn someone else might see the same opportunity in you. I usually run around D2 so there are some runners, however still not a huge number. I am still working on sorting out a running group in D2 which would be a great way to solve this “annoyance” and get to meet some new people.

  Scenery

 Scenery (Parks/ beach/ ocean) was also a major change, while Saigon has many things to offer, scenery for runners isn’t normally what people think of. Sure I do love running through the street life here, especially in the early mornings and watching people do their morning sport, set up the food stalls, shopping at roadside markets etc. It is different though when you get the chance to run through a forest right at your door step or go for a 5K run that brings you to the beach and a national park. This isn’t really a complaint or anything; it’s just an observation that running in Saigon is often a very urban experience rather than going out into nature.

  Water stops

 This last one, I am not really fuzzed about but I know that some people are so I have put it in here, Vietnam doesn’t (to my knowledge) have any water fountains where runners and other people can stop to get a mouthful of water and continue running. This has never been a problem for me, even on longer runs, I usually just keep 20,000 ($1) in my pocket and if I do end up needing water there is usually a 24 hour market somewhere, with a small (500ml) bottle of water being around 4-5,000 (25 cents).

 This post is not in any way meant to be a critique, I absolutely love living and running here, sure there are some minor annoyances, but If you can manage to get your training runs in here it is just bound to make you a little tougher.

 Please leave a comment below if you think I forgot anything or if you agree / disagree with any points.

 Happy and safe running

Danang Marathon 2015

Preface of the race: my last marathon was in 2013, in Melbourne Australia, this year I wanted to get back into running and decided to sign up to the Danang Marathon in Vietnam. This was my first "destination marathon" which was cool in it self as it was like a mini holiday, leaving from work on Friday evening and coming back Monday morning. Flight was good, Hotel was great, Danang is beautiful, so no excuses. The Danang Marathon is a two loop marathon, meaning that you have to complete the 21.1KM loop twice, which is tough from a mental aspect. The Marathon also features 3 Bridges, 2 of which are quite tame, 1 is a massive bridge, more on that later.

We had a nice Carbo-load dinner the night before

The race itself, Race start was at 4am, which meant a 2:55am wake up, which was different but not a problem at all, nerves kick in at that time and the usual preparations for a marathon (water, vaseline, laid out clothes) all took place. Our hotel was 250 meters from the start line which made commuting completely hassle free. The marathon lets the 42.2K runners start with the 21.1K runners, which I wasn't a massive fan of but to be honest it didn't really bother me once the race started.

The first 5KM

I was running with my dad and another friend of mine, we were chatting, running around 5:30 min/KM pace, Heart rate was around 170 so that was great, i was feeling fantastic, the adrenaline was taking over a little bit and I could see myself, in my inexperienced madness pushing forward a little bit and trying to keep up with runners which had a better base than me.

KM 5 -10

5:45 average pace for these 5KM, first bridge down with no trouble, at this point I realised that my dad was right behind me which was great, because I wanted to run with him anyways, he thought he would hold me back, i knew it would be the other way around ;) I pretty much followed him for the next few KM as we were approaching the big bridge. HR was still stable, I was taking on water well and also having a gel ever 45 minutes (just what the package says to do, not really a strategy behind it, will have to improve that next time as well)

KM 10-15

Here comes the big one, KM 11 saw us approaching the afformentioned "big bridge" (taken from wikipedia) The Thuận Phước Bridge (Vietnamese: Cầu Thuận Phước) is a suspension bridge that crosses the lower Han River at Da Nang, Vietnam.The four-lane, three-span, bridge is 1,850 meters long and 18 meters wide,^[1] and has a main span of 405 meters. Its two major pillars are 80m in height. It is the longest suspension bridge in Vietnam

The way up was quite tough, especially because once again I did not train for this scenario enough, I should have run more bridges in training especially late into the long runs, this would have prepared me for this scenario more, we went up the bridge in 5:45 and then 5:55 to reach the top, on the way down we reached 5:09, taking advantage of gravity and probably shooting through the legs a little quicker than I should have. HR went up to 190+ and stayed there for the next 4K's which was beginning to take a real toll on me.

KM 15 -21

Somewhere around KM 18, I had to let my dad go, as I could see he was running better than me and I was struggling to keep up. I needed a walking break badly, this is before I even completed one loop, so at this point I am struggling mentally more than anything because I start doubting myself and more and more runners are starting to pass me. However during this quick walking break I decided to draft off a local runner by the name of Dung Pham, he was running his first ever Half marathon, and needed a little push and I was needing a little push just to make it to the halfway mark, so we started chatting and miraculously we both started running faster again and he made it to the finish as I turned right to continue, congratulations Dung!! According to Garmin and Strava, I made it to the 21.1K halfway mark at about 2:03/ 2:04, not the best time but not terrible either. I got to see Sarah at the halfway mark, which was great and I ran/ hobbled/ walked with her for about 250/ 300 meters which was awesome.

The second loop

I am just going to summarise the second loop in one big bloop because there isn't really roo much too say, I crashed hard, my heart was not ready to run much further so I had to take frequent walking breaks and as soon as I would run my HR would shoot up to 190+ again to try to get me to stop. at every aid station I got ice to put into my hat to keep me cool as well as water to pour over me. with the walking breaks my pace deteriorated, however I kept moving forward, that was the main focus. The aid station volunteers were fantastic, everyone of them was super enthusiastic, except the 1 guy on the last one who was sleeping on the table ;) but me and the other volunteers made fun of him so its all good. Towards the end of the second loop adrenaline kicked in that this finish was actually going to happen, however at that point I had massive stomach cramps which made running difficult. I met Sarah and my parents about 100 meters before the finish, Sarah gave me my German flag, which I didn't even manage to hold up correctly as I crossed the finish line, however finishing was overwhelming. A massive congratulations to my dad who beat me by an estimated 5 - 7 minutes ( Official results pending) and a massive thanks to Sarah for getting up to see the start, the halfway and the finish and also a massive thanks to my mum for being there at the finish. Thanks to Very for the photos, and Hajo for the training tipps and runs, keep them coming.

Quick mention to the organisers: the race was fantastically run, the police blocked off almost all of the roads (not a common thing in Vietnam) the aid stations were great. Danang is a beautiful city and the finisher area was great as well. The sunset party had all the makings of a fantastic party, however exactly as we rocked up, as one of the first guests, a torrential downpour started which meant we stood under an umbrella with some really nice Japanese guys and shared a corona but then decided to make a dash for a taxi ;) If you are looking to run a destination marathon next to a beautiful beach, I highly recommend the Danang Marathon, I will be back and better prepared in 2016.