A love letter to my hometown and its marathon

Ivan Pratama
Nov 3 · 3 min read

Jakarta marathon is something special for me. Besides being my hometown marathon and one of the biggest in Indonesia, for me, it represents the true face of Jakarta. I didn’t say I am proud of it, but it’s an honest marathon. Three days before the 2019 event, I got an impromptu call offering me to participate for free in the 10-kilometre race. I am always excited for this annual event. However, my last run was in February, and I have not practised ever since. I say yes anyway and just decided only to do a safe one.

My last Jakarta Marathon was in 2014 before I left Jakarta for university. At that time, the main sponsor was still Mandiri, and the apparel sponsor was still Adidas. It was my first marathon, but I with my friend decided to go for the full marathon. We practise progressively for nine months and skip quite much of the training schedule we made on our own. But we manage to finish the race, followed by a stiff muscle all over our body. Unable to move and skipping school for a day, then using the handicap elevator the day after. We didn’t earn good time, but we do learn a lot from it. It was much more than a healthy lifestyle, athleticism and the sport itself.

Photo by sporlab on Unsplash

This marathon is unlike other city marathons. Jakarta is a tough race. The humidity, the pollution, the heat, and its special component, the public rage. We sweat even before the sunrise, and our skin burns when we are on the flyovers. We run side by side with cars, buses and motorcycles with dust in our eyes and smoke in our lungs. Instead of cheers and claps, we get yelled and honks by the people. It is because we are closing the roads and interrupt others’ activities. You will experience Jakarta at its truest face. The city government and the organiser should socialise smarter and better to give the public notice about the event. But comparing all aspect, the race condition and situation is getting tougher. It is a pain in the ass.

It shows that Jakarta is full of ignorants and has a big ego. The government, the drivers, the law enforcers, the customers. Jakarta is expressive but naive. We don’t backstab we spit in on others’ faces. Jakarta is diverse and filled with compensation. We take turns between cars and runners, and we take turns between right and wrong. Jakarta is filled with tough and high energy people. It is a place for hustlers, independents and people with attitude. We live for certainty and make statements.

Jakarta always taught us something. It never out of lessons to share.

For me, this marathon taught me more compared to the other marathon I have participated. A journey is what makes us grow. Reflection and self-talk are essential at all time. We need bigger self-enrichment, bigger self-motivation, more patience and more persistence. Pain is love, and our true capabilities are always far from what we thought as our limit. We get more familiar with time, and we handle time wiser. No one is full of pride when we experience each other, it is just we tend not to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes. Vibes and energy are infectious as ****. We need a higher dose of everything to handle Jakarta, and we reach another level of everything through Jakarta. All is to survive by always being a better growing version of yourself.

Just like any other things in Jakarta, it’s going to be a love-hate relationship. I always missed you when I am not around. I love to see you grow. I hope you are on the right path. But it is Jakarta after all. I will always be around and see you in a better version of you.

Love one of your citizen.

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