Leh: At 55, it is his willingness to test his limits and break the barriers that drives Bengaluru’s Vinod Krishna to take up challenges that even make the fittest tremble with fear. A seasoned marathon runner, Vinod stands as an inspiration to many as he returns to Ladakh for a fourth time to attempt what may arguably be his most challenging run yet.
Having completed the Khardungla Challenge and the full race at the Ladakh Marathon last year, Vinod is back in the rugged terrain to go one step further, aiming to ace the Silk Route Ultra – the toughest of them all.
A total distance of 164.195km in just 4 days. As audacious as it might sound, for Vinod, it is an opportunity to test himself physically and mentally, and to gain a sense of achievement that helps him tackle other life problems more effectively.
For the uninitiated, the 12th edition of the Ladakh Marathon, which got underway on Thursday, offers six different courses catering to all types of runners, from amateurs to professional athletes. The easiest is a Run for Fun event with a distance of 5km, and the toughest is the Silk Route Ultra – a 122km run at altitudes ranging from 10,700 to 17,618 feet above sea level, making it the highest and one of the most difficult long-distance foot races in the world.
“I think exploring your own abilities is the most important thing in life. And what are your limits? You set them, and those are the limits. Can you break those barriers, or can you move out of your comfort zone and test your limits a little bit more?,” shared Vinod on the motivation behind taking up challenging runs like the Silk Route Ultra at his age.
Vinod Krishna completed the full marathon and the Khardungla Challenge last year.
A former corporate professional, who runs his own venture in Bengaluru now, Vinod was never into running while growing up. It was in college that he first took up running and started with 1500 and 3000 meters. But as life happened, running took a backseat with his professional ambitions taking over. It was not until a trek during a company offsite in Maharashtra’s Lonavala that he rediscovered his love for running.
One trek led to another, and Vinod soon found himself footslogging in the Himalayas. To prepare for his treks, he started running and began with short distances before gradually building up his endurance and stamina. In 2016, he competed in his first half-marathon and did a full marathon a year later. In 2018, Vinod competed in his first ultramarathon, and there has been no looking back.
He attempted his first run at the Ladakh Marathon in 2019 and has since been a regular at the event, thanks to his love for the mountains and the thrill of battling high altitude, along with the constantly changing weather in steep terrains.
No runs, only treks to get into groove
Ask any runner attempting a marathon in Ladakh, and they would stress how important it is to acclimate. There are rules in place for all runners attempting one of the two ultramarathons to reach at least two weeks or 10 days in advance to get used to the high altitude region. And almost every runner has their own way of preparing.
While the majority like to build up their pace and endurance by taking up small runs at various sites in Leh and increasing the distance gradually, Vinod has his own way of getting acclamatised to the tough conditions. Instead of running, which he believes is tiring oneself unnecessarily, the 55-year-old likes to go on hikes and get adequate rest before attempting an ultra or a full marathon.
He revealed how the only running he did in Ladakh last year was when he attempted the full marathon (42.195km) and the Khardungla Challenge (72km), and he only went on a solo trek before the actual races. His preparation routine remains the same this year, as he has avoided running in the build up to the Ladakh Marathon 2025.
“All my running was done back home in Bangalore. I’d finished everything. And when I came here, the only two runs I ran were the ones I had signed up for. 72K and the 42K. I did not do any running. I acclimatised,” Vinod told News9, sharing insights into his preparation.
“I trekked, I went on a solo trek for seven days. I went to high altitudes, two mountain passes. So that really helped me acclimatise well, and especially when you’re on a trek, you’re moving up, you know, you’re going on different kinds of terrain, unlike the road, so that also prepares your whole body. The temperatures are varying. So it really prepares you.
I think that acclimatisation is the most important when you come to a high altitude place like Ladakh and you want to run here. Acclimatisation will help you adapt, and then you can perform,” he added.
Vinod advises runners to avoid the lure of getting into FOMO (fear of missing out) and copy what others in front of them are doing. He believes one should know what works best for them and prepare accordingly. The experienced marathoner feels that keeping legs fresh and getting adequate rest for a long-distance run is as important as getting into the rhythm by doing practice runs.
“I see lot of them (runners) are trying to do very intense workouts, you know, even three, four days before their run, you know, a week prior to their run, and I’m not sure if that is advisable,” said Vinod.
“I would personally not recommend something like that. I would say keep your legs fresh, keep yourself hydrated, rest your body well, let it settle down here so that you’re fresh when you go out, and you want to perform,” he advised.
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Running barefoot in Ladakh
Completing a marathon in Ladakh is a gruelling task in itself, and to do it without shoes makes it even more challenging. However, Vinod is one of the few runners to have completed a full marathon in Ladakh barefoot. He did the 42.195km run last year barefoot despite gravel roads and rocky trails while running at high altitude and in chilly weather.
He also planned to complete the Khardungla Challenge barefoot last year, but had to get his shoes on for half the distance to protect his feet in the snow-laden Khardung La pass. Nonetheless, he managed to complete the full marathon without his shoes and will once again be running barefoot this year. He will also be attempting the 122km Silkroot Challenge partially barefoot.
“I ran 72 km (Khardungla Challenge) last year and the 42 km. So 72, what I used were Aqua shoes because this race starts at three in the morning, and you have to get through Khardungla. And a lot of my friends actually advised me that your feet might get very cold because the weather is super cold. So just to protect my feet up to Khardungla, I used the shoes. And then while getting down, I took off my shoes basically,” revealed Vinod.
“So I did the Khardungla Challenge partially barefoot, but the full marathon I ran completely barefoot,” he added.
The 55-year-old ran the Ladakh full marathon barefoot last year.
The 55-year-old decided to start running barefoot in 2020 after he experienced multiple issues while running with shoes. Despite getting the most comfortable pair and changing his shoes to find out what suited him the best, Vinod realised they didn’t help his form, which led to problems. He thus decided to give up shoes completely.
“I had been using shoes to run, and I saw that after a certain amount of mileage with the shoes, there was either something wrong with my form or something else, but there was some wear and tear inside. And in my long runs, I started getting back pain and sensations which worsened. That’s when I decided to move barefoot,” revealed Vinod.
However, a switch to barefoot running meant he had to start afresh again, getting his feet accustomed to running on roads.
“I built up again, barefoot running meant that I am off shoes completely. And I’m, you know, getting my feet accustomed to, you know, running on roads barefoot. So that required me to sort of start from zero, maybe not on the endurance side, but on getting my feet accustomed to,” said Vinod, who ran his first barefoot marathon in Ladakh.
Having completed the Khardungla Challenge and the full marathon last year, Vinod has the experience and the confidence required to take up Silk Route Ultra this year. However, the various challenges at high altitude and his determination to compete barefoot would keep him on his toes throughout in Ladakh.