Singha Songkran Chiang Mai Night Run

How was your Songkran? Many of you probably had a great time splashing water and enjoying the festivities. As for me, I didn’t get to play in the water at all, nor did I get much running or cycling practice. But I did manage to squeeze in one event—the Singha Songkran Chiang Mai Night Run. This race involved running up and down Doi Suthep, and I’m here to share my experience with you!

Registering for the Race

Of course, you can’t race without registering first, right? As usual, I missed the registration deadline. It wasn’t because I was late; I just didn’t plan on running in this event at all since I figured I’d be too drunk during Songkran. But as I was browsing the event website, I started to reconsider. I saw that there was still an opportunity to register on the day of the race, so I decided to head to the Chiang Mai Zoo and sign up for the 21km race. Go big or go home, right?

The zoo was pretty crowded, as it was Songkran and many families were there for a day out. I quickly filled out the registration form, paid the fee, collected my race pack, verified my tracking chip, and picked up my race shirt. All set!

Race Pack

The race pack came in a pink bag that looked quite familiar—it was clearly reused from the “Thailand Marathon 2015” event, as printed on the bag. (I noticed some drama about this online, too.) Here’s what was inside:

• A white running tank top made from lightweight, breathable fabric with a Singha water design on the back. It’s comfortable and stylish, so kudos for that.
• A basic running light, the kind you can find at bicycle shops or markets—pretty standard but useful.
• A race bib belt, which I really appreciated since I don’t like using safety pins to attach my bib.
• The bib with a tracking chip, which was better organized than at the CMU Marathon.

The Start

I arrived at the Chiang Mai Zoo about an hour before the race to give myself enough time to warm up, but I got stuck in traffic. The entrance to the zoo was narrow, and parking was limited, so it took a while to find a spot. Once parked, I headed to the event area to meet up with friends.

On my way, I bought a box of dried bananas because I figured I wouldn’t be able to find any energy gels. As luck would have it, I stumbled upon a vendor selling gels at the event for 100 baht each—a bit pricey, but I bought one to carry along with the dried bananas in my race belt.

With everything ready, I set my goal to finish within 2:30 hours, knowing the course had a long uphill stretch. I planned to maintain a pace of 7:00 during the climb since I had never run up Doi Suthep before. I would reassess my pace on the descent. The race wasn’t too crowded, but I could spot some strong contenders, likely the African runners. At 8:00 pm, the race started!

The First 5km

I managed to maintain a steady pace of around 6:00 for the first 1-2 km, running comfortably. I started overtaking others who had gone out too fast and ended up walking. I kept my pace steady, paying my respects to the statue of Kruba Sriwichai as I passed it, and continued running. As the course became steeper and darker, there were moments when I felt like I was running alone, with only the occasional car passing by. This made me a bit anxious about safety.

I passed the pavilion where people say someone once hanged themselves—spooky! I didn’t dwell on it, though, and kept moving. When I reached the viewpoint, I didn’t stop to admire the scenery but kept my pace consistent. By the 3-4 km mark, my pace had dropped to just under 7:00, but I was still in good shape and hadn’t been overtaken by anyone.

Reaching the 10km turnaround point, I was still feeling good—no injuries, no fatigue. But from here, the crowd thinned out as most runners had registered for the 10km race.

8km

After the 5km mark, the course became steeper, and the wind picked up, which was frustrating because it meant running against the wind uphill. My pace dropped further to around 7:00, and I started to wonder if it would get any steeper. I also knew I needed to save energy for the descent. I kept my pace steady, though some stretches of the road were dark, and I found myself running alone again. I turned on my running light and held it to illuminate the path ahead. Occasionally, cars would drive up or down the mountain, which felt dangerous—it would have been better if they had closed the road to traffic.

Around this time, I started seeing runners heading back down the mountain. The leader was an African runner, followed by others. The wind was getting stronger, and I had to lean forward to reduce drag and make running easier. The wind resistance was draining a lot of my energy, but with only 2.5km to go before I could start the descent, I kept pushing.

11km Turnaround

I kept running against the wind, dodging fallen branches and leaves on the road. I started to worry that something might fall on me because the wind was so strong. Approaching the steepest section before Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, I decided to walk the final 100 meters to conserve energy, knowing I’d need it for the descent.

As expected, I couldn’t fight the combination of strong winds and the steep incline. I tried to run slowly to conserve energy but ultimately decided to walk. After turning around at the 11km mark, I knew I needed to make up time on the way down because I had lost a lot of time walking.

18km: All Downhill

My breathing was steady, my heart rate was normal, and my muscles weren’t fatigued—everything was fine. I started running immediately after the turnaround, but the steep descent and the high speed were tough on my feet, with each step hitting the ground hard. For the first part of the descent, I was running at a pace of 4:00-5:00, which was fast but dangerous due to the traffic and darkness. I was also running alone, with the occasional car passing by.

From the 15km mark onward, I was mostly running solo. There was a significant gap between me and the runners ahead and behind me, making it feel like I was completely alone on the course. I even started to wonder if someone might be running alongside me—maybe my imagination was playing tricks!

19-21km: Cramping Up

I started feeling fatigue in my legs, but thankfully, there was no knee pain, which made this run more comfortable than usual. My right ankle did hurt occasionally, but I had Unirain spray in my belt and used it whenever needed.

Around the 19km mark, I started cramping in my left leg, which forced me to stop running several times. I didn’t want the cramp to spread to both legs, so I kept using the spray to manage it. I wasn’t the only one cramping up—another runner asked for spray, so I shared mine.

Despite the cramps, I managed to push through and cross the finish line with a time I was okay with, but I wasn’t fully satisfied. I’ll have to do better next time.

Finishing 11th in My Age Group

My final time was 2:14:07, which you can check out on Strava.

Event Summary

• This was my first time running such a steep course.
• Given my lack of experience, I’m happy with the result.
• Water stations were well-placed every 2km, which was commendable.
• I was hoping for more food options besides watermelon at the 13km mark, but there were none.
• Water seemed to disappear on the way down.
• The descent was extremely dark and dangerous, with cars honking as they passed—felt very unsafe.
• The finish line area was confusing, with narrow paths and multiple entry points, making it unclear which path was for which race distance.
• I received a 5km medal despite running 21km—not cool and unforgivable.
• The food ran out.
• I won’t be running this race again next year.