There’s a school in Pune with a synthetic running track that was installed five years ago and still looks close to new. The lane markings are clean, the surface is even, and the drainage moves water off it within twenty minutes of rain stopping. The PE staff run morning sessions on it the day after heavy overnight rain without thinking twice about whether it’s safe.

There’s another school in the same city with a track installed around the same time, similar specification, similar budget. By year three, a section of the back straight had started lifting. By year four, the drainage channel on the eastern side was blocked with compacted sediment, and water was sitting on that side of the track for up to six hours after rain. The surface near the blocked section had developed a faint green tint from algae that had been colonising it through two monsoon seasons.

Read more: monsoon sports court maintenance guide

The track itself wasn’t inferior. The maintenance approach was.

This is the thing about synthetic running tracks that doesn’t get explained at handover: the surface is durable, but it isn’t passive. It needs specific attention before and during the monsoon, and that attention isn’t complicated. It just has to actually happen.

What the monsoon actually does to a synthetic running track

Before talking about what to do, it’s worth being precise about the mechanisms. “Rain damages the track” is too vague to be useful. Understanding what specifically happens helps you prioritise which interventions matter most.

The monsoon creates three distinct stress conditions for an athletic track surface, and they work on different timescales.

The first is surface-level biological growth. Algae and moss colonise synthetic track surfaces faster than almost any other outdoor sport surface because of the track’s texture, its slight moisture-retaining properties, and the warm humid conditions that Indian monsoons create. On a PU or EPDM track, algae looks like a faint darkening or greenish discolouration, usually appearing first in shaded sections or areas near the inner field where grass and organic material are adjacent. The problem isn’t cosmetic. A light algae film on a rubber track surface reduces the coefficient of friction significantly, which on a running surface where athletes are pushing laterally at speed creates genuine injury risk. This is the fastest-developing monsoon issue and the easiest to prevent.

The second is drainage system failure. A synthetic running track is built with a specific drainage gradient, usually 0.5 to 1 percent crossfall directing water toward perimeter channels or perforated sub-base. The drainage system only functions if it’s clear. Leaf debris, sediment, organic material, and dust accumulation can partially or fully block perimeter channels, drain outlets, and in-ground drainage points within a single monsoon season if they aren’t cleared regularly. When drainage is impaired, water sits on the track surface longer. Prolonged standing water accelerates the breakdown of the surface binder and, over multiple seasons, softens the base material below.

The third is sub-surface water ingress. This is the most serious and the slowest to manifest visibly. Water enters the track structure through cracks in the surface layer, through separation at edge joints, or through perimeter drainage failures that allow water to migrate laterally into the sub-base. Once water is in the sub-base, repeated saturation and drying cycles through the monsoon can progressively weaken the bond between the synthetic surface and the base below. The result, visible after one to three seasons of unchecked water ingress, is surface lifting, bubbling, or soft spots that signal sub-surface failure.

Know which problem you’re dealing with, and you know where to focus.

Before the monsoon: the inspection that changes everything

Most monsoon track damage was visible in April. Not the damage itself, but the conditions that would allow it. A pre-monsoon track inspection takes under an hour and identifies almost every vulnerability before the rains arrive.

Surface condition walkthrough

Walk the complete track perimeter slowly, looking at the surface and at the edges rather than at the overall view. You’re not looking for obvious failures. You’re looking for early indicators.

Hairline cracks in the PU or EPDM surface. These are easy to miss when the surface is dry because they’re often barely visible. Crouch down and look along the surface at a low angle in raking light. Hairline cracks that look insignificant in April become water channels by July. A compatible polyurethane crack filler applied to clean, dry surface cracks before the monsoon costs almost nothing compared to the repair job those cracks enable if left open through four months of rain.

Edge joint separation. Where the track surface meets the concrete curb, the aluminium or rubber edge profile, or any transition surface, run your hand along the joint. Any section where the seal has opened, the edge banding has lifted, or there’s a visible gap between track and border needs to be resealed before the monsoon begins. These joints are where sub-surface water ingress typically starts.

Surface softness or hollow sounds. Walk each section of the track and notice whether any area feels slightly different underfoot, either marginally softer or with a very subtle hollow bounce. Tap the surface with your knuckle in areas that feel different. A hollow sound indicates existing sub-surface delamination that needs professional assessment. These areas will worsen through the monsoon if left unaddressed.

Colour fading or binder degradation. A track that was laid with proper UV-stabilised pigment will fade gradually over years, which is normal. What isn’t normal is irregular patchy fading, a chalky surface texture when you run your hand across it, or sections where the EPDM granule layer is visibly worn through the binder to the base below. These sections have reduced water resistance and need either resurfacing or protective coating before the monsoon.

Drainage system inspection

This is the single highest-leverage pre-monsoon action for running track maintenance. Do it last so it’s fresh in your mind when the rains start.

Locate every drainage outlet for the track. On most Indian athletic tracks, this means perimeter channel drains along the inside and outside of the track, possibly with in-ground sump points at the lowest corners of the drainage gradient. Clear every drain of accumulated debris, compacted sediment, and organic material. Use a drain rod or garden hose with pressure to clear any partial blockages in the outlet pipes.

Then test. Pour a significant volume of water onto several sections of the track, enough to create a visible flow, and watch where it goes. It should move toward the drain channels within a few seconds and exit through the outlets within a minute or two. Water that moves in an unexpected direction, pools in a low spot that isn’t over a drain, or drains very slowly indicates either a gradient issue or a blocked sub-surface drainage layer. Both need to be identified and addressed before the monsoon rather than observed through it.

If your track is built with a permeable sub-base design, where water drains vertically through the track rather than laterally, the test is different: pour water and watch whether it disappears into the surface within a reasonable time or sits on top. A permeable base that has become clogged with fine particulate over time may need to be flushed from the drainage points below.

Pay attention to the area immediately surrounding the track as well. If the surrounding field, spectator area, or infield drains toward the track rather than away from it, you may be receiving external water load during heavy rain that your track drainage wasn’t designed to handle. Understanding this before the monsoon starts allows you to either address the surrounding gradient or at least know which sections of the track need extra post-rain attention.

During the monsoon: what a maintenance routine actually looks like

The question most facility managers have is what specifically to do each week, not a general list of principles. Here is a realistic monsoon maintenance routine for a synthetic running track.

After every significant rain event

Clear drainage channels and drain outlets. This takes fifteen minutes with a stiff brush and a hose. Leaf debris and organic material accumulate quickly during the monsoon, particularly if there are trees anywhere near the track. A blocked drain that sits for a week during active monsoon season can cause days of surface pooling per event. This is the maintenance action with the highest return on effort.

Do a visual pass of the track surface for debris accumulation. Leaves and organic material sitting on a synthetic track surface hold moisture against the binder and promote algae growth. A quick sweep with a soft-bristle broom or leaf blower removes debris before it becomes a degradation factor. On a 400m track, a single person can clear the surface in twenty to thirty minutes.

Check for standing water. Note any sections where water is sitting more than an hour after rain has stopped. These are drainage problem indicators. Track them. If the same section consistently holds water through multiple events, the issue is structural and needs to be addressed, not just swept around.

Weekly during the monsoon

Algae and moss inspection. Walk the track and look specifically at the shaded sections, the inner edge of the track closest to the infield, and any areas that are consistently slower to dry after rain. Early algae growth appears as a very slight darkening of the surface texture rather than visible green growth. Finding it early means addressing it with a diluted cleaning solution before it establishes itself enough to create a slip hazard.

A diluted sodium hypochlorite solution (1 part bleach to 10 to 12 parts water) applied with a soft brush and thoroughly rinsed with clean water is effective for algae prevention and early removal on PU and EPDM track surfaces. Apply, let it sit for three to five minutes, scrub lightly, and rinse thoroughly. Don’t let bleach solution dry on the surface. Test on a small inconspicuous section first if you haven’t used this method before.

Surface edge inspection. Once a week, walk the track perimeter specifically looking at the edge joints and border transitions. Any new separation or lifting should be logged. Minor edge lifting during the monsoon that isn’t addressed promptly allows water ingress through that opening for the remainder of the season.

What you shouldn’t do during the monsoon

Don’t use high-pressure washing on PU or EPDM track surfaces. The pressure can dislodge EPDM granules from the binder, damage edge seals, and force water into the surface structure at points that would otherwise be adequately sealed. A garden hose at normal pressure for rinsing after cleaning is appropriate. A pressure washer is not.

Don’t attempt adhesive repairs or crack sealing during active rain periods or when the surface hasn’t been dry for at least 48 hours. Polyurethane adhesives and sealants require a dry, clean substrate and appropriate ambient temperature to achieve their designed bond strength. A repair done on a wet surface will fail within the first few rain events.

Don’t ignore soft spots or hollow sections that appear during the monsoon. They won’t resolve themselves. Sub-surface delamination that begins during the monsoon tends to extend outward as the season progresses. Marking the location and area of any soft spots when you first notice them, then monitoring whether they’re growing, gives you important information for post-monsoon repair planning.

Specific monsoon considerations by track surface type

PU running track maintenance during monsoon

Full-pour polyurethane tracks are the most durable synthetic track surface in India, and they handle the monsoon better than most surfaces when the drainage is functioning correctly. The PU binder is waterproof when intact. The main monsoon vulnerabilities are the seams and edges, surface cracks that allow water to reach the sub-base, and drainage failure that causes prolonged standing water.

For full-pour PU tracks, the pre-monsoon crack inspection is particularly important because the continuous pour nature of the surface means cracks propagate along stress lines from the original pour. A crack that starts as hairline width can follow a line for several metres if it’s being opened and closed repeatedly by thermal cycling. Catching and sealing cracks in April, before the monsoon adds hydraulic pressure to the movement, is significantly easier than managing the extended crack after it’s been through a monsoon.

PU tracks used for competition should be inspected by a specialist before the monsoon if they’re approaching resurfacing age, typically seven to ten years for a well-maintained track. A track that should be resurfaced will deteriorate faster through a monsoon than through the rest of the year.

EPDM rubber running track care during rainy season

EPDM tracks are slightly more vulnerable to monsoon conditions than full-pour PU because the granule-and-binder construction means the surface has more micro-texture that retains moisture and provides colonisation points for algae. The weekly algae inspection and cleaning protocol matters more for EPDM than for PU.

EPDM also shows edge wear more visibly than PU and edge joint sealing is important. The junction between the EPDM surface and the concrete or asphalt border tends to be the first point of water ingress on these tracks, so pre-monsoon edge sealing is worth doing carefully.

The colour retention of EPDM is generally good through the monsoon when properly maintained. Surface discolouration that persists after cleaning usually indicates either binder degradation from UV exposure over years, or a sub-surface moisture issue that is preventing the surface from drying properly between rain events.

School running track maintenance during monsoon

School tracks have a specific challenge that commercial and sports authority tracks don’t: inconsistent supervision. A PE teacher overseeing athletic training notices if the track has drainage problems or developing algae. An empty track during school holidays can go several weeks without anyone looking at it.

For school tracks, two things help significantly. First, assigning specific maintenance responsibility to a named person with a simple checklist is more effective than general instructions to “maintain the track.” Second, a pre-holiday check before the June school closure means problems are identified before a six-week rain season rather than after. A track that goes into June holidays with blocked drains and unsealed cracks will be in noticeably worse condition by July reopening than one that was properly checked and cleared before closure.

After the monsoon: assessment and repair planning

The period after the monsoon, October through November across most of India, is the window when damage becomes fully visible and when the conditions are right for repairs and resurfacing.

Do a full track inspection in dry conditions, specifically looking for:

Any new surface lifting or soft spots that developed during the monsoon. Measure and document these. Small delaminated sections can sometimes be re-bonded with compatible adhesive. Larger sections need professional assessment before any repair attempt.

Drainage performance under test conditions. Repeat the pre-monsoon drainage test. Compare the drainage performance now to what it was before the rains. Drainage that has slowed significantly has a blockage somewhere in the system that needs to be located and cleared.

Edge joint condition around the full perimeter. Any sections where the seal failed during the monsoon should be cleaned, dried, and re-sealed before the next rain season rather than left open.

Track surface condition in sections that had persistent standing water during the monsoon. These sections will have experienced the most binder stress and are the most likely to show surface degradation. If these sections are showing chalking or binder breakdown, planning for resurfacing or surface treatment before the next monsoon is more cost-effective than allowing another season of water damage to compound the degradation.

For tracks that had significant algae growth through the monsoon, a full-track cleaning after the rains end removes residual biological material before it hardens and becomes more difficult to remove. It also gives you a clear picture of the underlying surface condition once the discolouration is gone.

Monsoon running track maintenance checklist

Before the monsoon (April to May):

• Full surface walkthrough for cracks, soft spots, edge separation
• Seal hairline cracks with compatible PU filler
• Re-seal any open edge joints
• Clear and flush all drainage channels and outlets
• Drainage flow test with water pour across multiple sections
• Document any existing soft spots or delaminated areas for monitoring
• Inspect and clear surrounding area drainage

During the monsoon (June to September):

• After every significant rain: clear drains, sweep debris, check for standing water
• Weekly: algae inspection and treatment where needed
• Weekly: edge joint check for new separation
• Monthly: full surface inspection including soft spot monitoring
• Log any new damage with location and approximate area

After the monsoon (October to November):

• Full surface inspection in dry conditions
• Drainage performance retest
• Full-track cleaning to remove monsoon algae and biological residue
• Identify and prioritise repairs before next season
• Professional assessment if any soft spots, significant lifting, or drainage issues found

Frequently asked questions

1. How often should a synthetic running track be cleaned during the monsoon?

Answer: Debris clearance after every significant rain event is the minimum. A proper cleaning with diluted solution for algae prevention or treatment should happen at least monthly during the monsoon, or more frequently for tracks with persistent shade, drainage issues, or adjacent organic material from infield grass. The effort is minimal compared to the cost of allowing algae to establish itself over a full monsoon season.

2. Can athletes use a synthetic running track during the monsoon?

Answer: Yes, with conditions. A track that has been cleared of debris, has no standing water, and has no visible algae film is safe to use. The slip risk comes from algae and leaf debris, not from rain or dampness. A wet but clean PU or EPDM track surface has adequate friction for running. Check the surface before sessions during the monsoon rather than assuming it’s fine.

3. Why does water pool on parts of my running track after rain?

Answer: The most common causes are blocked drainage outlets, accumulated sediment in perimeter channels reducing drainage capacity, or a section of track where the drainage gradient has subsided slightly over time. In some cases, water is entering the track area from surrounding ground that drains toward rather than away from the track. Clear all drainage points first and test. If pooling persists in the same location after confirmed drainage clearing, the gradient may need professional assessment.

4. What causes running tracks to lift or bubble during the monsoon?

Answer: Lifting and bubbling happen when water gets beneath the track surface and cannot escape. Entry points are typically unsealed surface cracks, open edge joints, or drainage failures that allow water to migrate laterally under the surface. The hydraulic pressure of trapped water moving through rain and dry cycles progressively separates the surface from the sub-base. Pre-monsoon crack sealing and edge joint inspection prevent most of these failures. Existing bubbles or soft spots should be assessed by a specialist rather than simply patched, because the sub-surface moisture condition needs to be resolved before any repair will hold.

5. How do I remove algae from a PU or EPDM running track?

Answer: A diluted sodium hypochlorite solution, approximately 1 part bleach to 10 to 12 parts water, applied with a soft-bristle brush and rinsed thoroughly with clean water removes light to moderate algae from PU and EPDM track surfaces. Do not use high-pressure washing. Allow the solution to sit for three to five minutes before brushing. Rinse completely so no chemical residue remains on the surface. For heavy algae accumulation that has been building over multiple seasons, a specialist cleaning treatment may be more effective.

6. How long does a synthetic running track typically last in Indian monsoon conditions?

Answer: A well-installed PU track with proper drainage and regular maintenance should last 10 to 15 years in Indian conditions. EPDM tracks typically last 8 to 12 years. The variance is driven more by maintenance quality than by surface specification. Tracks that fail in five to seven years have almost always had drainage problems that were ignored, or sub-surface moisture issues that went unaddressed through multiple monsoon seasons. The monsoon itself isn’t the problem. It’s the compounding effect of a monsoon meeting a track that wasn’t maintained properly.

7. What should I do if my running track has sustained monsoon damage?

Answer: Document the damage with photos and measurements. Don’t attempt major repairs on a wet surface or during active rain periods. If the damage is limited to edge joint separation or hairline cracks, these can be addressed in a dry window with compatible sealant. For soft spots, sub-surface lifting, or drainage failures, get a professional assessment before attempting repair because the root cause needs to be correctly diagnosed before a repair will hold. Post-monsoon, October through November, is the ideal window for repair work when surface conditions are dry and stable.

Gallant Sports builds and maintains running tracks across more than 20 Indian states. Gallant Track, our World Athletics-standard PU track system, is engineered for Indian climatic conditions with drainage design built into the specification from the ground up. For maintenance consultations or to discuss an upcoming track project, contact the team at gallantsports.in.