Daniel Varga Photography

16/08/2020

9/24 - Midnight Sun Marathon - June 2014

I've loved 🇳🇴Norway ever since I cycled from Oslo to Narvik in 1996. So, when I saw an ad for the in one day, it was my cue to organize another trip to Nordkapp.

This was the second time I mixed holidays and hiking with a marathon abroad. In Dubai, I did holiday first, marathon at the end, which is hard, as for the entire week you must be careful what you eat, watch every step you take. In Tromso, I switched. Thinking back, I prefer doing race first. You're tired all week, sure, but without any worries at all.

The field of this race, 450 people, in a small town has undeniable charm, but it also means that for most of the race you're by yourself, outside town, no fans. Despite the 9 PM start it wasn't dark, as the sun does not go down this far up north at all in June, but Midnight Sun remained an unkept promise, as it was cloudy. In fact, it rained.

The race was so cold and lonely, that when a 20 something with a blonde pony tail overtook me, I followed her. If you've ever seen a perfect stride, she had one. I knew that her pace will kill me. At 24 km I came to my senses, that a 3:30 marathon pace, while very enjoyable for a while, is not my league and I let her go. She probably has no idea about any of this, as I was always 10 meters behind, never even saw her face. Classic marathon romance. Never ends well. I suffered and I deserved it. Marathons are for grown-ups, not fools.

I was thinking a lot about myself ten years ago, when I was this far north the last time. I realized, that it's not that I don't make mistakes any more, I do, but now I realize it while I'm doing them, rather than being confused for months of why things happened to me. I still have doubts, too, but they don't keep me from doing things any more, I'm taking my chances now, despite my fears.

There was a girl I had one coffee with before getting on the plane to Norway. She sent me a sweet message before the start. When I returned to London, I asked her on a proper date. Tromso was the last marathon I finished alone. She's been at every finish line ever since ❤️💍👶

4:03:14 @ Tromsø Midnight Sun Marathon

22/07/2020

8/24 - Vienna Marathon - Apr 2014

My 8th marathon was the first one in Europe. It was four weeks after climbing Kilimanjaro, for which I trained properly, so I was supposed to be in the best shape of my life. I was barely alive.

When I arrived back from Tanzania I was already sick with something, and it took me four weeks on antibiotics and fever to get rid of it. On race day I was weak. I hadn't run a single meter for more than a month. I was also heart-broken. A really good looking relationship came and went in early 2014. But we've been here before, no reason to cancel a race. At least I'll fail while daring greatly.

I asked for help and the Universe answered. My old friend, Huba, offered me his flat in Vienna to crash for the entire weekend. Koko invited me to have dinner with his family before the race. Vicky promised to be at km #13 at the race with a smile, and she was. I knew all three from my New York and for some reason they all happened to be in Vienna that weekend. We might have drifted apart since then, but these things meant a lot to me in 2014, they still do.

This was the first marathon my parents came to see! They knew that marathons are hard, that they can be dangerous, but I doubt they knew what makes it all worth it. Now they saw how much a hug means at half way point. How every finisher feels like an Olympian. How tired I was at the finish, but at the same time how incredibly in peace with myself. Because I was able to run 42.2 km with a weak body and somehow come out stronger on the other side. Finally, they got it.

I could have done it alone, feeling sorry for myself. Instead, I admitted my vulnerability, asked for help, put my heart on the table, my body on the line, and it worked out. They came. They picked me up. And I finished 🙏

4:26:20 @ Vi̇enna Ci̇ty Marathon

06/06/2020

7/24 - New York City Marathon - 3:59:13

2013 was a year much better than the one before, I was on track to sort out my private life, started to let things go, focus on the ones that mattered, finished my second 100 km race that summer. As I picked up my bib in The Javits Center, the lady said: "I see you were meant to run last year. You should have this."

She handed me, and every other runner returning on last year's entry, the medal of the cancelled 2012 NYC Marathon. I actually ran a marathon that day, in Central Park, just for myself. Getting a medal a year later, out of nowhere, made my eyes fill with water. New York City... you had me at hello

22/05/2020

6/24 - Jan 25, 2013 - Dubai Marathon - 4:05:50

I'd been wanting to go to Dubai for ever and for the first time I asked myself: I wonder if they have a marathon there...? So, my sixth marathon became the first that I combined with an overseas trip.

It was also my first solo trip in a very long time. While I felt sad about it for the first two days, by the end I promised myself to do this more often. Sure, I had no one to share the day with, but I was able to absorb so much more. I also got into a lot of conversations that would never have happened had I not been by myself.

Like the Syrian taxi driver, whom I asked if they'd be happy about a mounting US involvement in their civil war (started in 2011, two years before my Dubai trip)? He said: "Now? When the country's been destroyed? Would have been nice two years ago." We couldn't know that the war would still go on in 2020.

Or the two Palestinian girls talking to me on a desert safari for an hour, about the advantages of wearing a hijab on a bad hair day (they wore jeans and shirt, when we talked). I learned so much about modern day Islam. Dubai was open, welcoming and beautiful. I seriously thought about moving there.

The race was not extremely hot, it was January after all, but the Dubai sun is not gentle, like in the UK When it's up, it burns. So they start the race before sunrise! I only realised at the start, that the 20.000 runners they talked about on the website are not actually running the marathon, less than 2.000 are. Everyone else was here for the 10k race. That's a very small field, and Dubai has huge roads. I mean "bigger than the US" huge.

This was the first race where I accepted that there probably is no perfect marathon. Something will always go wrong! And that's probably the whole point, to throw yourself into the unexpected, at a time when you're running on fumes already anyway. And see what you'll do. When the sun came up after half way point, I thought I'd get a heart attack. It was brutal. I scaled back, but I didn't walk. I pushed, but I watched the instruments. A hard but smart race. 4:05:50 @ Dubai, United Arab Emirates

17/05/2020

5/24 - Nov 4, 2012 - New York City - 4:15:58

This was my first NYC Marathon as a non-resident. There was a move to London earlier that year. Then there was a break-up, then I failed my first 100k race. But come November, I landed in Gotham, in surprisingly great shape, considering this was the worst year of my life. You'd think I was old enough to handle it. Ah, well.

As I arrived to my host and friend, Andi, 36 hours to Start, she told me "How was your flight? You know they just cancelled the race, right?" "Say what...?" Yes, there was a hurricane "Sandy" a week before, The City was in bad shape, but they said on Wednesday we're a GO. And then they cancelled it on Friday while I was in the air.

I was unsure what I'll do on Sunday yet, but if there's no race, we could have one drink, right? Maybe I shouldn't have stayed past midnight. Maybe I should have stopped after the first Jack'n'Coke, but that's not what you do

On Sunday there must have been at least 40.000 runners in Central Park! No organizers, no medics, no medals... Everyone was just jogging, smiling. And New York, while half the city had no power, the other half under water, was shining, too. Locals came out to Central Park with trays of food, fruit and drinks. They handed them to strangers, from all over the world. Because that's what NYC does. Lift you up!

I jogged two loops with my friend, Erika, who is a famous opera singer. How I know her? Through running, of course. During our half-marathon together we were stopped by a dozen fans who were amazed to see us. Well, her, not me, obviously. I continued alone after 21k but when at 30k I almost collapsed, I suddenly remembered: You've run three hours and forgot to eat or drink, you idiot!

So, there I am, in Central Park, queueing at a hot dog stand with the $20 I brought with me for just this case. I was very hungry and very thirsty, so I had a hit dog and two bottled of Gatorade! Now I was so full, like a stuffed penguin and had to sit down... but I did not stop my Garmin. I finished the fourth CP loop and when I reached home my watch said: 41.5 km. Oh FFS... so I ran the block up-n-down three more times. A casual 4:15 💪

26/04/2020

4/24 - Nov 6, 2011 - New York City Marathon - 4:31:10

A week before my 4th marathon it was clear that another PB wasn't in the cards. I didn't take care of my body, calfs were like a block of concrete (learned the importance of stretching). I also had fever and the flu. Cancelling? It crossed my mind, but I thought that this is a challenge worth taking. What if I run slowly? Will it be easy? Is there such a thing, an easy marathon?

A runner-couple from Hungary found me through my blog, they flew in just for the marathon and asked me what to do the day before the race? I threw them a pancake party! It wasn't big, as I didn't want civilians at the party. Non-runners would not understand why there's no alcohol, that we'll be in bed by 9 PM, that we'll only have carbs, or why we're all losing our minds right now.

My pre-marathon pancake party for Hungarian runners in NYC has evolved from my Upper West Side apartment to the Hungarian Consulate over the following years. It grew from six to more than sixty runners, we had an opera singer, an Olympic champion boxer, ambassadors, and other celebrities as guests, but no one cared. Running breaks down barriers; race week we're all scared the same. And pancakes seem to help. I've long moved away from New York now, and am eternally grateful to that she keeps this tradition alive!

I got my answer: I am now strong enough that I can run a marathon without major problems. Even with fever. You actually have time to smile at kids, soak in all the energy, to just enjoy a race in the best city on earth.

I could feel that the perfect marathon was just around the corner now. My life was already going in the perfect direction, tons of friends along the course were cheering for me, many more friends followed my race online; and she was waiting at the Finish line, too. I was wrong, of course. It had to get a lot worse before it got better. My life had to fall apart one more time, before I landed the perfect race, and the perfect girl.

On that Monday, however, I was just happy to see my name printed in the New York Times, along with the first 30.000 finishers. Very far in the back, with small letters, but I was there. @ New York City Marathon

23/04/2020

3/24 - May 1, 2011 - New Jersey Marathon - 3:53:42

In my third year of running I crossed another mental barrier: I signed up for two marathons. I was in the best shape of my life, with 30+ races under my belt, 34 years young, freshly in love. For the first time, I knew that I could finish a marathon, so now I was going for a time; 3:45 had my name written all over it!

Getting to the 8 AM Start was a bigger challenge than I thought. There are no trains or busses to Long Branch this early on a Sunday. They had two special trains, for marathon runners only, leaving Penn Station at 5:00 AM. Meaning another 4 AM alarm, then sitting on a train that literally stopped everywhere, for two hours, for a country-side marathon with just 1,900 runners.

Lessons from this race? One, if the sun is out, take salt! When I told a few ultra-runner friends what happened, they all asked: How much salt did you take? Uhm... none? Why? On a race with strong sun and no shade you'll be drinking more than usual. Without salt your body can't absorb water quickly enough and it will come back out.

Two, never let your guard down! They say the wall will hit around 32 km. I was cruising towards 3:45 with perfectly even splits until 38 km, smiling the whole time. "I guess the wall won't come today", so I started to accelerate for a strong finish. A minute later I cramped. Then I threw up blue Gatorade. I expected fatigue and low sugar at 32k, not cramps and vomiting at 38. It caught me off-guard.

Three, don't panic! This is what I should have done: *expecting* s**t to hit the fan. When you push your body into the red zone, something will break, or almost break. Expect it with a violent attitude. When it hits you, say: "Finally! Is that all you've got biach?" Look at your watch and smile, 'cause this race will be over in fifteen minutes, one way or another. Cramping and vomiting can be dealt with in under two minutes. I panicked, and I lost ten.

The 3:53 from New Jersey was my first sub-4, and is my fastest marathon, still. Yet, I look back at it as a missed opportunity. I couldn't wait to apply my newly gained knowledge in New York City later that November! @ Novo Nordisk New Jersey Marathon

22/04/2020

2/24 - Nov 7, 2010 - New York City - 4:11:16

I qualified for the New York City Marathon with the 9+1 program, where you become a member of the New York Road Runners, run 9 races with them, and volunteer for one. This was the year I met . I was writing a blog about my adventures in the Big Apple, she left a comment, saying that she also runs in Central Park, and one Tuesday we met under the big oak tree at 72nd Street.

A running partner will change your life. When you promise a friend that you will be there at 7 PM, and an hour before you look outside and it's raining like hell, you watch your phone, but your buddy hasn't texted to cancel, damn her! You lace up and go. There she was, soaking wet, under the big oak tree, saying something about that I was late 30 seconds. We pushed a quick 10k loop, didn't talk much, then jogged home, I went West, she went North.

On race day, I made my sandwiches in my kitchen, alone, at 4:30 AM. I was walking to the subway before dawn, but I wasn't alone any more. There were runners everywhere at B'way and 72nd. At my first marathon, in Philly, my hotel was an 8-minute walk from the start line. At the NYC Marathon it was a six hour journey form home to Start!

Lessons? New Yorkers cheer like there's no tomorrow. Nothing compares to this. There are only two quiet places on the entire course, the orthodox Jewish part of Brooklyn, and Queensboro Bridge. You better use this quiet to gather your thoughts before you enter the madness that's called Manhattan's 1st Avenue.

Small details can make a big difference. Most runners were wearing tree layers of thick sweaters in The Race Village. I was standing in my start zone for 90 minutes in shorts and a long sleeve shirt. In zero degrees Celsius. I froze to a brick of ice before the race had even begun.

Have a Plan B. A 3:45 was realistic based on my training, but not with frozen and hurting knees. My second marathon was a long but determined struggle, running on Plan B. Proving that my life was going in the right direction, I had ten people waiting for me at the Finish line. One of them would be there at marathons #3 and #4, too - but we didn't know that yet. @ TCS New York City Marathon

22/04/2020

1/24 Philadelphia

I never told the story, how I got into marathon running. Since I am at 24 marathons right now, which is exactly eight rows on Instagram, seems like a good time for some flashback.

I knew that I will run a marathon right after I finished my first Half, in May 2009. Suddenly, it no longer felt like this is only for super-humans. But during that year the importance of the race changed dramatically.

Going through a devastating break-up just before the race, I knew that there will be no one waiting for me at the Finish. I didn't even want anyone there. I had to do this for myself, to prove... not sure what, but it felt essential to do it. Sounds silly now, so many years later.

What did I learn? Number one, don't overtrain, especially at your first big race. I pulled my achilles on the last training run, a week before the race, and I stepped to the start line hurting.

Two, if you attempt a race injured, which is not very smart for your long-term health, pick an appropriate race strategy. Don't just start your usual pace and hope for the best - it won't end well. I got so tired by half way point, that I tripped and fell, injuring my leg further, catapulting myself into so much pain, that I can't remember much of the second half of the race.

Three, while fighting my daemons, walking right after the fall, I remembered, that this is not the first time I attempted something crazy. A couple of mountain climbs flashed through my mind, a few of my more extreme cycling tours, where s**t has gone horribly wrong, and I made it home anyway. So, I thought, there's really nothing to prove here today; I am already a badass. Even if I finish in six hours, even if I don't finish at all.

Once these thoughts came together, my legs started running again. All I could think of, was a hot shower and a Philly Cheese Steak. Both of these were ahead of me, and running would get me there faster. When all the noise finally leaves your mind, it gets that fu***ng simple.

Nov 22, 2009 - Philadelphia - 4:33:35 @ Philadelphia Marathon

03/03/2019

Photo: Daniel Varga

January 2018 was wet and cold and full of energy. It's funny to post these a year later. So many friends have moved away, moved on, London is like a revolving door, you only get a chapter of someone's life to share before they open a new one. But we stayed in touch no matter where they went and we'll never forget the fun we had :)