Cheongnamdae 100km Ultra Marathon Part 5 — 'Good Morning'

 

Cheongnamdae 100km Ultra Marathon — Part 5

'Good Morning'

I. At the 50km Mark

After eating and changing clothes, I checked the time. It was just before midnight.

That morning, as I left the house, my wife had said,

"This is so annoying. Why do you keep doing something so dangerous,,,"

It stayed with me. She was probably still awake, so I called.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Hwayoung. Are you okay?"

"Just ate. I'm fine except for some blisters on my toes."

"Okay. If something's wrong, just quit."

"I'll call you in the morning."

II. Married? Or Just Running Partners?

After 50km, a couple kept appearing — passing us, then falling behind, then passing us again.

Were they married? Just running partners? Hard to tell.

At some point, we ended up walking together for a bit.

After eating a power gel from my pack,

"Captain, I've got a chocolate bar in here,,, not sure when to eat it."

"Jeong, there's fish cake soup after Pibanryeong. Lighten your pack before the climb. Eat it now."

"But I've got two,,,"

"Let's share one,,,"

That's when I turned to the couple walking behind us,,,

"Would you like a chocolate bar?"

"Oh, thank you!"

"It's not a small one, though,,"

"I'll share it with my husband."

So they were married.

I felt a twinge of envy.

'If both husband and wife run ultras, they probably share almost every hobby through running.'

'To share that brutal journey together,,,'

'To have an all-night date like this,,,'

'To share that pride at the finish line together,,,'

'Could I ever come to Cheongnamdae with my wife someday?'

The pain, the pride, the all-night date — I wished, just for a moment, that we could share it all.

III. Pibanryeong

Around the 77km mark, I reached the base of Pibanryeong and started walking.

After alternating between running and walking for so long, this was the start of a climb so steep that walking was the only option. And honestly, that was a relief.

I kept walking until I saw the 80km sign, and then — at the end of what felt like an endless climb — the Pibanryeong stone marker appeared.

The relief that the highest mountain was behind me, and the thought that I'd soon be eating fish cake soup at the next checkpoint — it made everything feel lighter.

IV. Good Morning

You start running in daylight. You watch the sun set. You run through pitch darkness for what feels like forever. And then, slowly,,, the sky begins to brighten.

To witness all of that while running,,, it's a strange and surreal feeling.

I'm old enough that I first started learning English in middle school.

Looking back after all these years, there's one phrase I still don't understand: "Good Morning."

 

I don't think I've ever experienced a morning that felt genuinely "good."

Every morning, I drag myself out of bed,,, so why "Good"?

Wouldn't "Hard Morning" be more accurate?

Anyway,,, watching the sky brighten, I turned to the captain — the man who had been pacing me through the entire night.

For the first time in my life, the words matched exactly how I felt.

"Captain, Good Morning."

And with that, we arrived at the 85km checkpoint — the fish cake soup stop.

To be continued.