2024 Can Tho Heritage Marathon Race Report

The race was held December 22nd in Can Tho, Vietnam which is in the Mekong Delta. Timed to be after the rainy season and before it gets too, too hot. This race is run by the same group who do the Halong Bay Marathon so there are lots of similarities. There is a marathon, a ½ marathon, a 10K and a 5K. There were 9000 runners between the races. 

Race kit pick up was the day before the event in an outdoor tent with a small expo. We got bibs and race shirts with our entry. Timing was by Sportstats. This race is an “international” race and the marathon is certified and included as a qualifier for the World Masters Marathon Championships.

Before you can pick up your race kit you must show ID. We had to use our passports. Harold’s passport got wet ( washing machines will do that) about 3 weeks before we left Canada and he had to replace it. When he went to pick-up his race kit they noticed the passport number had changed and would not give him his bib until he went to corrections and got them to change the passport number on his entry. They also took a picture of every runner with their bib when we picked them up. No bib switching here!

Once we had that worked out we checked out the expo. A race official came over and asked us if they could take a picture. We were rushed to the front of a line of people getting pre-race pictures so they could take ours. A second photographer asked us to pose by the race signs. By the time we got back to our hotel our pictures along with the four other non Vietnamese runners we saw at the pick up were featured on their Facebook page with the message “the international runners have arrived” We felt like Kenyans! Unfortunately, we don’t run like them! 

We picked up a couple of $8 singlets at the expo. They were giving away bags full of various instant noodles. You had to like a Facebook page and show them to get the noodles. We had no idea what we would do with them so we skipped the noodle line.

The marathon started at 3:00 am. I was running the ½ which started at 4:30 am, Harold ran the 10k which had a leisurely 5:30 am start. We walked from our hotel to the start at 3:30 am. It was a 2 km walk. The streets were quiet but not empty and some of the local street stalls were already serving customers.

The race started and finished in a park along the river. We arrived in time for the pre-race group warm-up. They also had pre-race instant noodles and hot water. Good carbo loading I guess but we passed on the noodles.

I picked the ½ over the 10k because it had age groups when we registered, but those had disappeared by race day. I knew that going in so the plan was an easy long run pace. I did not start very close to the front. It was deliberate but I should have started up a bit. There was a U turn about 500m from the start which was so crowded I had to walk to get around it.

As it was 4:30 am it was very dark but there were street lights and the pavement was in good condition. There were aid stations every 2 km or so. Some were even closer. They all had lots of water and electrolytes which were clear and in the same cups. A few had watermelon, durian and other snacks. There were also lots of volunteers at the aid stations and any turns on the course. The only thing missing was bathrooms. I know because I was looking for one from 6 km to 11 km when I finally found one. At around 5:30 am most of the street lights went out which was a bit of a challenge because the sun did not come up until 6:30 am. There were a few spots where we were running in the pitch dark. 

The section from about 16 km to 19 km was interesting. We were running on a big main road which was divided and had one small lane for motorcycles and bikes and two larger lanes for cars. The smaller lane was sort of closed. There were no cones or tape, but there were police at the bigger intersections keeping  the motorcycles out of that lane. There was quite a lot of cross traffic. Mostly motorcycles but a few cars. No one got hit (that we saw) but I found a group of runners and ran that section in a group thinking there was safety in numbers! 

The last 2 km were along the river and out of traffic. It would have been a clear run to the finish . My digestive system felt otherwise so rather than risking disaster I climbed over a 2 foot curb and stopped at a public bathroom 500m before the finish line! Looking back I probably would have made it! 

The finish line was well organized. I got my medal and for reasons I can not explain they wanted my phone number which only works on what’s app. Because I ran the ½ marathon I also got a finisher shirt. Harold was not asked for his phone number at the finish line?

There were snacks and a recovery area which included a massive  ice bath. We walked back to the hotel along the course which was still full of runners. We cheered them on and high fived a few runners. They were all pretty excited to high five us. Everyone was in for a high five. One runner in costume stopped and said ”welcome to Vietnam”. He got a friend to take a picture of us all together. 

Walking back along the main road we watched the motorcycles go through the runners. Again, no one got hit but it looked a bit close.

I am not sure if it was worse than when I was running or if it just appeared worse when you were watching not running.

Overall. The course is flat. The race was well organised. The aid stations were great and the course was well marked. They need more bathrooms on the course. The traffic was a bit concerning for us, but to be fair people and traffic coexist much differently here.  You walk out into traffic to cross the road. I would not plan a vacation around this race but I would do it again if I was in the area.