2024 Korat Marathon Race Report

Korat is 4 hours from Bangkok by train. We were flying through Bangkok so we thought why not? We are not totally crazy so we signed up for the half marathon not the full. 

We landed in Bangkok after 30 hours of travel at 1:00 am on Friday. We took a taxi to an airport hotel, slept for a few hours and used a Grab, the sky train and the metro to get to the train station. We have been through Bangkok a number of times so it was not as complicated as it sounds. We did not buy tickets for the train in advance. When we arrived at the station we discovered that the only tickets available were 3rd class with no seats. Kind of a drag, but it is what it is. 3rd class has no AC either.

The train ride to Korat was hot but uneventful. We managed to spend at least some of it sitting on the stairs by the doors. We took a grab to our Hotel, Urban Bamboo. Great location about 500m from the race start which is in the centre of the historical city. 

Racekit pick-up was at The Mall which is a huge shopping mall. They were also the presenting sponsor. We walked the 2.3km to the mall and found an efficient race kit pick-up in the centre of the mall. No lines, some giveaways, a large poster with all the runners’ names on it and a mascot. The mascot was a Korat Cat. Korat is famous for the Korat Cat. A breed of cat from Korat city which is now found all over the world.

This is a World Marathons label race. They even had the certification letter on display.  We got some coupons, samples, our bibs and our race shirts. The race was chip timed. 

Race Day

All the races started early. This is normal in SouthEast Asia due to the heat. The marathon started at 3:00 am, the half at 4:00 am, the 10k at 5:00 am and the 5k at 5:30am. Our hotel was only 500m from the start but that still required a 2:45 am wake-up. Luckily? We were so jet lagged we could not really sleep at all so getting up was not really an issue. We had a coffee and a pastry from 7-11 in the room and then headed out for the race. There were other runners in the hotel and they kindly opened the lobby. I think the poor hotel manager stayed up all night.

We headed off to the start. There was an efficient bag check, lots of bathrooms with no long lines and pre-race water available. They had a group pre-race warm up. Something we have also seen before at races here. Lots of runners in the race shirt and some in elaborate costumes.

There was everything else you would expect at a start line. Corals based on time which was on the bib numbers and enforced . The bibs also had your age group on them. You could see the runners checking other runners bibs to see where the competition was. Something you would not expect was the marching band with a dance troupe to lead the runners to the starting mat. At 4:00 am. 

They had the live coverage of the elites in the marathon playing on a big screen as well.

The band got out of the way and the gun went off. There were water stations every 2-2.5km with lots of water. There was also Gatorade at a couple of them and one had watermelon and other fruit and snacks. There was a gel station as well. The gels are different here, more jello-like, similar to morton. I took all the water I could get plus the Gatorade and avoided everything else. The course was well lit. There were only a couple of small sections where you really had to pay attention to your feet.

The course was 13km out to a turn where you doubled back and at 19 km turned off to the finish. Korat City has a large military base and most of the course went through the base. There were three bathrooms on the course. There were several bands and a couple of dance groups plus my favourite, the drummers out on the course. I guess the neighbours don’t mind. 

I started out too fast for the heat and had to slow down. Even at 4:00 am it was mid 20’s and very humid. It was 30C, feels like 34C by 8:00 am. Not sure if it was the heat, the jet lag or even the water but I had to stop at two of the toilets along the course. I was pretty sure I had seen two other F6 (women over 60) in my start coral and I was also pretty sure they passed me the first time I stopped for the bathroom. I felt better after the second stop and although it was not fast the last few km felt better.

The half and full marathon used much of the same course while the 10k and 5k only used a small part of the course. All the distances merged in the last km to the finish line but it was never crowded. There were 6000-7000 runners with about 2500 in the half. 

There was a great set of drummers about 500m from the finish that you could hear from at least 800m away. All finish lines should have drummers! When you  crossed the finish line you received water, gatorade, a chinese herbal drink and an apple wrapped up in netting to prevent bruising. Then you got your medal, a cloth bag, food coupons (two for food and one for dessert) and an ice cream bar! Plus a finishers shirt. 

The bags had been transported from the start and they had my bag waiting for me before I made it to the tent. Like other races we have run here the bibs had a QR code you could scan to see your result instantly. 

The coupons were for use at the long row of food stalls with everything from Asian noodles to McDonalds, Pizza Hut and Dunkin donuts. 

The finish area was in a lovely park with lots of space.Once the sun came up we were able to appreciate it. 

While I was waiting for Harold at the finish I checked the QR code on my bib and was surprised to see that I was 1st in the women 60 plus. I did know there were awards and cash for age group winners so we stuck around. They posted the winners for each category and event on a big board. If your name was there you got into a line and had to show your passport to prove it was you. All the Thais had their ID cards. I did not run the race with my passport and I certainly did not put it in the bag check! Luckily I have a picture of it on my phone and they were OK with that. They gave me an envelope with 1900 Bht (about $85) . I actually won 2000 but they held back 5% for taxes. I guess I will have to declare this on my taxes! They also gave me a lanyard saying 1st w60 plus. I then had to wait for the awards ceremony.

There was a real elite field for this race, mainly Kenyan and Ethiopian. The men’s marathon winner ran a respectable 2:06. The prize money for the winners was not huge so I assume they run races like this because they are World Athletics races and they need them to get into other races. 

The awards ceremony was a little scattered. With awards 5 deep in 10 year age categories for the marathon, the half and the 10K they had lots to give out. All instructions were in Thai so we had no idea what was going on. When I saw other women with blue ½ marathon tags I headed towards the stage area. Three lovely ladies who were the other winners from my age group and obviously knew each other came over and collected me. They were very friendly but they spoke no English and I can only say, hello, thank you and how much in Thai. I felt bad that I could not communicate with them. But there were lots of smiles.

We each received a very nice trophy which I will now have to carry around Asia for 8 weeks. After we left the stage they collected me to take more photos! First time I have ever been the tallest!

As we were leaving we discovered that the top 100 men and women also received a large stuffed Korat Cat! Getting that in our luggage will be more of a challenge. If need be I guess we can unstuff it and re-stuff it once we get home! 

There was transportation provided back to the start and by the time the awards were over the only people left were the winners so we shared a songthaew with a group of elite runners. 

Overall a great race. Very well organised. If you are planning a trip to Thailand add it to your list. Not a PB kind of place for those of us from cooler climates but it has everything a major race should have and more.