Malakoff Penang 17k 2013 Race Report

In every race that I participate in, surely there are some kind of hiccups along the way. Without that, I think I wouldn’t have much to write about. So I guess it’s a good thing in a way. =P On the 17^th Sunday morning, my plan was to get Jason picked me up with his bike from my house as parking would be a scarce at Esplanade. My race starts at 7am so I told him to pick me up at 6.30am. At 6.33am he called me and told me he was outside my house, I went out and I was wondering where he was hiding. Mana budak tu? Bayang pun tak nampak. I called him ask him where he was, he said he was at my apartment. Holy cow, I was at my grandma’s house that morning. I told him sorry sorry sorry for not informing him that I was staying at my grandma’s house. So I asked him to meet me at Esplanade. He was supposed to run in the 7k as a ‘ghost runner’ but I think he was too lazy to do so!

I quickly drove my car to the race venue. Reach around 6.47am and met up with Chiat Fong aka Captain. As we made our way to the starting point, Jason called and we met up and chat a lil before the flag off. We were released at 7am sharp. 2,500 strong participants took part in the 6^th Malakoff edition and this was my first. The route: Esplanade - Gurney – Straits Quay – Gurney – Esplanade = 17km. Since these are major roads, I really kesian those road users on that Sunday. So sorry for the wait.

Captain, Neoh and myself were together for the first 8k, captain was the pace setter and sometimes he was going so fast that I had to accelerate and catch up with him. Being the pace setter is never an easy thing; for me especially. My run strategy is always to mark a person, stick to the person right next to him/her and follow till I feel comfortable enough to overtake him/her and repeat step 1 again. It always works for me, and by doing this I actually feel less tired. 

Captain, I and Neoh

Once we got at the checkpoint, I felt I could go at a faster pace, so I signaled to Captain and Neoh that I was ready to “tekan minyak” but I know I have to be careful because we were only at Straits Quay and the sun is starting to rise. I left them and tried sticking to another faster runner but there was a gap, there were no one in between with a pace which I could follow comfortably. Either they are too slow or they are too fast. So I had to run on my own till somewhere around Sunrise Tower. I was starting to regret my ‘breakaway’.  Anyhow, I manage to find a target with a really good pace, a man probably in his 40s looking good in his 2xu tights and tri top. I tried following him along Gurney drive but I lost him not long after. For me, this part of the race is the hardest. There were no trees or shades, you could feel the sun burning your skin (and I was wearing ALL BLACK!). Saw a Malay chap took off his shirt and I was tempted as well but I did not. I persevered. I wanted to stop running and just walk a little but I told my body, no. Keep running. Motivating me with quotes like, “When your body is too tired to run, run with your heart, etc” those kinda stuff and it helped. 

Photo by Radin =)

 Getting into Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah was the most pleasurable moment in that race, the big old familiar trees providing massive coverage of shades and knowing that I’m about 5k to the finishing line. Here I paced a Chinese man, skinny but he is quite fast. Ran ran ran till we passed KPMG, I over took him and tagged an ‘Ang Moh’. Running besides him makes me feel really tiny. He was running at a good pace too. At this point, my body is pretty numb to any tiredness I have in my legs. I ran with him till the finish line and we did a sprint together as we approach 100meters mark. Of course he beat me and overtook me. He deserves it because he was doing the work for me. For me, the race is about finding your ‘Inner Circle’, the people who will push you, motivate you and inspire you to do better. I believe I’ve achieve all that in 1 hour and 29 minutes. =)

Captain and I after the race

I have to applaud the organizers for doing an excellent job in this race. Water station were well placed, we had 100 plus and Gatorade. =) Now I’m hooked to Gatorade. (I’m drinking one as I’m writing this post) They were being partnered with great sponsors as well, such as PowerBar, Nestle and a few others. Their inner circle paid off. There were some volunteers who set up water station for runners at strategic locations. Some were cheering and motivating runners. These are the things that make sports beautiful. I will definitely be there again next year.

Jason and I

Finisher

As I collect my medal and goodie bag at the end of the race. I saw Jason waiting for me outside the barricade. He was telling me how fast the first runner finishes. By the way his name is Ruburn Kummar, finished first with a blistering time of 57 minutes and 37 seconds. They also gave all finishers ice-cream, nasi lemak and a bottle of Gatorade. I gave Jason the ice-cream and nasi lemak because I was just too tired to eat. As I made my way back to my car, I met Neoh on the way, Paris (his gf) was looking for some isotonic drink, I offered them my Gatorade and went back home empty handed.  I’m blessed to be a blessing. =) Thank God for the beautiful race. 

Brought Shadow for his morning walk after I got back. He made a new friend. =)

Penang Run 2013

I was riding my scooter to my friend's house and as I stopped at the junction near Farlim, a banner caught my attention. Not the 'Home + Care' of course... but the 'listen listen listen'. It has nothing to do with this overly repeated words but what was in the content below. It's a statement asking the organizers to stop Penang Run which will be held on the same day as Thaipusam. Besides this issue, this run was also featured on The Star cover page over a controversy issue on using the word 'Penang'. I may give my opinion on the above issues but I rather stick to real deal, the race. =)

The banner at Farlim

Zoom in

 This is my first run for the year 2013. I did asked a few friends to sign up this race with me and as usual I get disappointing replies. In fact, I do many races alone which is not a good thing because you may feel like pulling out on race day. This happened a few times to me before. =/ Since Jason missed his 10k at the PBIM last year. I asked him to try out the fun run which was only 4k. He agreed and voila, I have a friend with me for this race. Mine starts at 6am and his at 6.30am.

We collected our race bibs right after our Ipoh trip.

My Running bib

Jason stayed over at my apt the night before the race. I told him we have to leave my apt by 5.30am latest. I set my alarm at 4.50am. But we failed to stick to the plan. We left my place at 6am! The reason why we were late is not because I couldn't wake up but I didn't want to wake up. I actually woke up at 5am, I could feel the soreness on both my legs due to Innebandy!Co's physical training at Bukit Dumbar on Saturday morning. Besides adding 3 additional laps, we had 5 uphill sprints. My muscles couldn't recover in time. On top of that, I cycled and went hiking on Thursday. I was pushing my body to the edge.

I started procrastinating in my mind. I told myself to just sleep in and pretend my alarm died on me, since Jason is still asleep. I can blame him when he wakes up. Haha! I tried to sleep but I couldn't, my mind was already up and active. My mind is ready to race but my body is not. At 5.50am, I went over to my parent's room, woke Jason up and start scolding him and rushing him to get ready. There are times your body just don't feel like doing something, that is when your mind comes in and knock some sense into it. You just don't spent RM40 and missed the race. You get out there and start running you lazy bump!

I don't have the best preparation before race. I had no breakfast, no gels, no drinks, nothing. I just put on my shoes and go. Jason rode his bike and I directed him to USM. As we reached the stadium around 6.15am, I don't see anyone. I quickly hopped off his bike, ran to the track to activate the timing chip and started running on my own. It was really lonely when I hit the roads. It was dark without any wind and I never study the route earlier on, so I don't know what road I'll be running on.

10minutes later, I caught on to same of the runners. Not many but a handful of them. I caught them as I turn right into the road heading to INTI. It was hilly. I remembered doing a bike ride there before and it was hardcore but now I had to run up there. I was thirsty by then and it was only 15minutes into the run. I was really tempted to ask water from fellow runners but I just hanged on. Not long after, I reached a water station, I grabbed the whole bottle as I needed water. I needed it to not only quench my thirst but to wet my hair and make it look good. I had a wake up hair do, it's really bad. You can tell I just woke up by the look of it.

The hilly course

Continued picking up pace and I overtook one by one. In fact, I overtook runners till the end of the line which was always my ultimate goal. Based on my last 21k, I knew I had to be discipline with my pace and be consistent. When I see runners sprinting pass through me or overtaking me, I have the urge to follow them as I could pace them but I knew I won't have the legs to follow them till the end. But most of this runners will sprint and walk, so in no time I will be in front of them again. I ran and stayed strong. My breathing was calm and cool, that was a good sign as I did not struggled like my last run.

As I reached the last 5k mark, the race got harder. I started to struggle a little bit. When we passed Tesco, I could picture the route to USM. I knew there was one long slope because we used that road to get to USM that morning. As I approached the last hill, a lady ran beside me, we didn't say a word to one another but I was expecting us to finish strong together. Her pace was strong and consistent, that kinda gave me a last boost to finish it. We climbed together, and our speed maintained, but it wasn't for long till she fall off. I was alone again, I dug deep. I continue meditating. The chinese drums were banging and rolling at the peak of the climb. Alas, downhill and flats till the finishing line.

I was really glad that I did not stop running throughout the entire 17k. It was hilly and it was tough. Unofficial time of 1.46. I targeted 1.40 but I did not factor in the hills. So I guess it's a pretty good timing. One thing I have to add is, if it wasn't because of the physical training we did at Bukit Dumbar, I wouldn't have felt so strong at the climbs. I guess the investment paid off really well. I don't think I would wanna run the Penang Run again. That's my body talking but my mind is still the boss. hehehe.

Jason completing his first 4k

With his certificate of achivement

A 'kiam chai' cert

Yours truly, Jason, Eong Peow & Eong Yet

17K finisher's medal

A comment from a friend who ran that race

I was really glad to met the Lim's brothers. I've got to know this great guys from my club. They are currently playing for team Livestrong and I'm really happy to have committed players like them joining us. Eong Yet who finished the 17k gruesome run, yet still came for training, played his hearts out at out friendly against St.Paul and showed no sign of fatigue Respect! I know I'm not that young anymore. ><

Photo found from a blogger. Running towards the finishing line

PAAA Annual Round the Island Relay 2012

This is my second time running with Run Forrest Run, a team comprising working adults who are passionate about running. I was invited to join them early this year to participate in another relay event which was shorter than the Round Island relay. It was Cheok Teng a.k.a Ronaldo with big balls who introduced me to them and I couldn’t be more blessed to know this awesome people, I will tell you more in a bit.

Me and Cheok Teng

I feel I’ve slacked a lot in my preparation for races, now I just go without training, without proper rest, nutrition and preparation (i.e scouting the running route, etc). And it’s really true, if you fail to plan, you’re only planning to fail. For my case, I got a blister for running without socks! Because I didn’t pack the night before, I woke up super late and I missed out a pair of socks. Fortunately it was only 6.4Km or else, my feet will be full of blisters. It was really embarrassing reaching the race venue an hour late, missed the group photo and almost got left behind by the pickup bus. Even though I was a little wasted from my cousin’s wedding the night before, there shouldn’t be any excuses for being late! Period.

Pre race team photo (I was still sleeping at home)

Quickly grabbed my race bib number from Neoh with the help of Alaga and off I went to the bus. I was really JIT. Any second later, I will be left behind and it’s gonna be a lot of hassle for the team. My drop off point was at Balik Pulau near a playground. It was probably 5.45am when we reached there. Fortunately there was a Mamak just a stone throw away, ordered two pieces of roti and a cup of hot milo. Enjoyed my breakfast and saw some runners warming up and stretching already. Walaueh, even if the fastest runner reached us, it would be at least 7am, 1 more hour to go. I wanted to take a nap but I’m afraid I can’t wake up, so I just plugged in my earphones and try to stay awake. About 6.30am most runners already left the mamak waiting at the transition area. I was sitting there alone, stoning and dreaming away. At 7.30am, I left the mamak and walked to the transition area as my teammates are here to collect my beg. They told me to get ready as the 5th runner is approaching, did some warm up runs and waited at the transition area. Few minutes later, my teammate arrived and I collected the baton from her and started running.

Teluk Bahang Dam with the team

My assignment was a 6.4km flat road with quite a scenic view, I do pass by this area when I do round island rides so I’m familiar with the roads here BUT I don’t know how far is 6.4km. This is a problem when you don’t have enough preparation. I think everyone in the team scouted their running route way earlier and it helps when you know the route. I forgot to wear my watch, so I can’t estimate when I’m nearing the end. Babi! Just run d la, can’t do much. Run run run. Wah… feeling a bit tired. Oh…almost finished, I saw my teammates at the small roundabout at the Balik Pulau town. Tekan minyak a bit, when I approached them, they kept cheering, “Turn left, go go go!!!”. Oh uh, that’s not the end, it’s only half way. Gai liao, don’t know how far more. Run run run. I overtook 2 girls on the way and a guy overtook me after the turn into the kampong area.

Running alone is really different from running in a group, that is why pacing WASN’T allowed in this race but unfortunately some unethical running group still does it despite of the rules. Anyways back to the race, being overtaken by this guy was actually a good thing for me, he was like my pacer, and I tried to stick to him as much as I could and together with the help of the super supportive and encouraging RELA escort, that made my race even sweeter. Towards my last 500M I could see a crowd of people, the guy was about 100M in front of me. I know I still have some legs in me to finish the race strong. I asked the RELA uncle, is that the end? He replied, “Should be.” But he didn’t sound very convincing, so I had to take a gamble, if that’s not the end, that’s it, I will be running on empty. I asked him should I go? He replied, “Yes you should, and you can do it”. Those words really pumped me up and I started sprinting, together with the cheers of my teammates, I ran as fast as I could. I reached them (where my teammates are cheering and clapping), I wanted to stop and walk because I’ve burned up every fuel in me BUT that wasn’t the end. WT… Neoh (7th runner) was about 20 meters away from me, alamak, I tried to push a little more, I feel like I was going to faint but I manage to pass the baton before I stopped running.

Posing with our medal and little trophy

Rested a little, and said hie to some of my teammates that I’ve never met before (because I always ponteng team training and meetings). Someone came up to me and said, “Oh….so you’re Deswyn la.” I was like yayaya it’s me the rebellious indiscipline guy. Haha. So we hopped into the car and continue cheering and supporting all 6 remaining runners. All runners were given a breakfast box special courtesy by Chef Chee Foong, organic home grown banana by Alaga, 1 bottle each drinking water and isotonic drinks sponsored by Neoh and Paris and coconut jelly. I was like feasting after my short run. Really really well prepared and the food was yummy. That's why I said I feel blessed to know this people and run with them.

It was a great experience for me because all this while, a race, marathon is always a solo effort but this race requires team work and my captain really played an important role in strategically and wisely allocating running assignments (route) according to runner’s strength and capabilities. He even had an estimated time schedule and actual time recording. I learned a lot from him. This again, proves the law of victory is inevitable. Yup, first law of victory, leadership is responsible that got us into 2nd runner up and of course every single team member who played their role. This is my first time getting placing in a running race. =)

Unofficial result from captain Chiat Fong

All smiles again

Cheers

The Toughest Day of My Life

SCKL 2012 was my first full marathon and it showed me where my physical and mental strength level was at. My limit was 32km, that’s it. The next 10km was pure torture, mentally and physically. It was like a battlefield in my mind, positive thoughts, negative thoughts, bible verses, vulgar words, motivational quote, negative quotes, etc. It really showed me who I really was, and it’s pretty disappointing. But this marathon showed me which area I have to improve on if I wanna be ‘an influencer and a role model’.

I reached KL by bus at about 3.30pm, walked from Pudu bus stop to Masjid Jamek to take the LRT to KLCC. That was the meeting point for Soongs and I. I had about 3 hours to kill, so I went to Kinokoniyo, not exactly the place you would find me, but the sports section made me spend hours and dollars there. Tough decision to make as there are a lot of sports books that I wanna read to improve myself as an athlete. In the end, I settled for Lance Armstrong’s biography.

I then went to Starbucks and started the book “Lance”. First 50pages of the book already made me go “wow, I didn’t know this.” It is definitely worth my 60 bucks. Soongs was suppose to meet me at 6.30pm but he came at 7.30pm. Was I surprise? The answer is NO. This is a typical trait of Soongs. =p We had quick dinner at the food court and was ready to go home to rest after that.

I bought a knee guard from Watson and Soongs decided to have a 15 minutes hair cut somewhere in KLCC. I went to the hair saloon and waited about 5minutes for him. On our way home, in the LRT, I realized I lost my knee guard! I search high and low, in and out but I still couldn’t find it. Soongs thought I was lying and I was in a delusion because he never actually saw the Watson plastic beg when I was him. But I was very sure I bought it. After reaching Kelana Jaya, I quickly walked into Guardian and bought the same thing, only RM5 more expensive. I told the cashier about the incident and she laughed. I blame Soongs for it!

Got back to his not so Home Sweet Home and unpacked my stuff. Got my race bib number and pin it on my race belt. The house was like an oven, super hot and being me so use to sleeping shirtless with air con, this is gonna be a problem for me. I persuaded him to turn on the air con and finally he did. (Long story about the air con. Funny but nothing interesting) We talked a little in bed, shared bout life and updating one another about our adventure. It was good time and it could be better if Gerard was around. =) Then we can have a real agapean boys reunion.

Slept probably like 3hours then it was go time. Suit up, and took the shuttle bus from KJ to Dataran Merdeka. The crowd was building up but it wasn’t that crowded yet because we were there about 4am. Spotted the 4.5 hour pacer and I was determine to stick with him. My personal target was 4 hours 30 minutes and 2^nd best target was under 5 hours. As the emcee started the countdown, I was extremely nervous and scared. My weekly mileage is less than 10k, how?

The gun went off, and first 1km was like a massive jam with people everywhere. I trail the pacer as near as I could and hoping to stay with him as long as I could. There were a few guys which ran directly behind him and its super hilarious to see the pacer’s balloon bouncing against the guy’s head. At one point the pacer’s balloon burst, not because of the runner behind him but because it struck a pointy tree branch along the way. Fortunately they have 3 4.5hour pacer.

4.5 hour pacer balloon

10K. No problem la. Still going strong.

20K. No problem wor. I even overtook the pacer and went up in front at my own comfortable pace. So proud of myself.

30K. Oh…not bad wor. Still feel strong.

32K. Uh la la!!! Cannot liao, starting to feel cramp on both legs.

32.5K No!!!

33K What?!?!? Only ran 500 meters. Soon the pacer caught up, I tried to stay with them but my legs don’t allow me too anymore. I gave up!

34K What I took almost 8 minutes? Never mind, let’s try something different, run 1 minutes rest 30 seconds. (Something I do at the gym for speed training)

35K Holy sh*t! Cannot liao. Please stop hurting the legs.

36K Uphill?!?!?! Wt…

37K Tears came down, a volunteer shouted 5 more km to go! But this 5K felt like eternity because every step you take hurts to my guts!!! When I reach 37K point, I had 30minutes more before my target time. It looks achievable but he hills, the cramp and the pain was already unbearable. Any kind of motivation and inspiration quote DID NOT WORK from this point onwards.

38K @$(@#$)(@#*$#@(*$@#_)*!@)#(!*#

39K _$#)(_@#)$*)#*@&$)!@#+_!@)$+_!!

40K ($*@#)$(!&@)$(*!@_$)(!@&$)*@!&$)

41K $)(#@*$_)#@($*)@#($*)@#($*@#)($*

42.128K hallelujah!! PTL!

Showing off my medal =)

I tried running my last k but couldn’t at all, I walked jogged walked jogged and finally crossed the line as a full marathon finisher with an official time of 4:48:05. 18minutes 5 seconds behind my target time. But the feeling of finishing the marathon was priceless! A quote by some volunteer on a big board, “Finish the marathon and brag about it for the rest of your life” at the last 1K was really motivating. I can’t imagine myself doing an IronMan race or another full marathon but I know after I recover from my race, I will wanna push myself again and be more prepared for my future race.

Met Deriss at the finishing line and chatted a bit with her before I head back to the Noesis waiting point. Took some pics with Soongs and I went for a sports massage. RM20 for 15minutes, only lower body but I was desperate for it, so RM20 felt small at the time but the massage was fineeeee. Enjoyed it! Even recommended Soongs to get one. His boss laughed at him because he only did a half marathon but still go for such massages. Hahaha! Funny!

Super good massage

Super duper good massage

Hurts like anything

From the moment we left the tent, fatigue, scuffing marks, blisters and muscle sore started to ‘manifest’. It was pure torture. It felt like I just had a knee surgery because I can’t bend my legs due to the tightness in my thigh muscles. Imagine, with all this pain, I had to take the LRT and bus to LCCT before flying back home to Penang. On top of that, I had to pack for Jakarta for a 3 week business trip. Not good. In my future race, I will definitely take leave to recover and not push my body like this. Insane.

I am not in the 1% group of the world population (those that completed a full marathon), and I urge you guys to try this, challenge yourself, I guarantee you, you will learn something about yourself. But please train for it before signing up because it’s NOT easy AT ALL. See you in PBIM 2012.

Soongs and I 2012

Next up 160K century ride.

PAAA Round The Houses Relay

This isn’t the largest relay race in Penang or Malaysia but my first relay race since leaving primary school. I don’t remember doing any relay race in high school because I’m just not good enough. =P I got an invitation from my ex-high school mate, Cheok Teng, as one of his runner pulled out last minute. Since they need an extra runner, why not?. I met a few of them in our training sessions at PISA a few days before the race. Somehow sports people are just generally friendly and easy to mingle with. Our team captain, Chiat Fong even emailed me the race route for me to familiarize with before the race. Memang ada the 1^st LOV, ‘Leadership is Responsible’. Bagus!

2.5km race route

I reached Padang Polo School about 6.45a.m and the crowd was building up, not exactly the largest crowd but the atmosphere was there. Saw many familiar faces as Penang’s sport community is not that big. My captain passed me the race bib numbers to be pin on my jersey and talked a little about the race. It started to drizzle when we were asked to assemble at Padang Polo according to the team’s alphabets and runners in sequential form. Those really made me feel like I was in primary school again. Haha.

Soon, it was go time. Our first runner, Cheok Teng, took his spot at the starting line and BOOM! It began. The rest of us waited at the field for our turn as it is a 2.5km loop per runner. Yea, 2.5k may not be a lot but this is about speed. You’ve to burst yet last long enough to finish the race strong. I didn’t really train for this so the last 400 meters was torturous.

Cheok Teng M1 setting the pace

Being the last runner isn’t an easy task, as you’re the one finishing the race for your team and teammates. I didn’t wanna let my teammates down by finishing with a crappy time, so that was my source of motivation. I waited excitedly for the 7^th runner, Alaga, nice chap. In that moment, when the crowd is loud with cheers, I can’t wait to get hold of the baton and start running. As he got nearer my heart pounded harder and faster, soon the baton was in my hands. As I was running on the main road opposite Disted, a car honk at me at the other side of the road, I turned and I saw another ex-high school friend, Ee Liang and his gf, that motivated me even more. These are the little things which can pump up your adrenaline, support and motivation.

Team Run Forest Run 2 - before race

Team Run Forest Run 2 - after race

After turning into Padang Polo, I could see the finishing line but it felt like I was not moving. My heart was at maximum rate and I was already being fueled by mental strength, nothing else. Every stride I made, I had to keep telling myself why and what those strides are for. As I got nearer to the finishing line, I saw my teammates cheering for me, telling me I’m getting near, keep pushing, come on!, finish it, almost there, etc. I kept up my pace and cross the line the fastest I could. Oh man, my legs were burning, my muscles were stiff, and I just wanna lie down and close my eyes. Nonetheless, it was a good race.

I love this pic! Look at my supportive teammates! =)

The finisher's medal

After race home cooked porridge by one of the teammate's gf I think. yummy.

Even though I’m new to the group, but I felt the bond and support from them. I wanna thank Chiat Fong again for organizing this race so I could experience something new. Another thing that I notice is, most of my sports pics are ugly like sh*t. But I realized the uglier means the more effort you’re putting in. See example below. Have a great week! =)

10:11 (second fastest -ugly)

9:20 (fastest in our team but ugliest. haha)

Moral of the story, don't worry about how you look, performance and result is more important. ^^

Team Run Forest Run 2

Metro Park II

I had the privilege to take over the physical training for the state team yesterday. I had two things behind my head that I wanted to achieve.

#1. To implement the buddy system
#2. To create specific goal. My aim was to set an achievable target for each individual (I believe every one has different capabilities)

But did it work according to plan? Not really. I was late and I could see the players getting pretty restless, so I kinda skip the explanation part. At the debrief, I think everyone was half awake, so I didn't bother explaining as well. So I thought I'd do it here.

Buddy system. I wanted players to run with their partner throughout the 30-minutes. As for me, I believe your buddy/partner/friend is a good benchmark and motivator for you to stay strong and long in the run. The only pair that stick to their instruction was Sarah and Pei Li. They walked together and the ran together. Good job! =)

Specific time target. To get an average time per lap/30 minutes = estimated no. of laps. Then I'll make sure the person reaches the target number of laps. A more achievable target would boost the player's 'semangat' la.

After 30 minutes run and 6 uphill sprints. I was happy and satisfied with the players effort. Not too bad but there is a lot of room to improve.

Got this from one of the player.
e: Thanks for torturing my mucles =)
me: It's all love =)
e: Love your head la.. =) it's torture

Well it's how you look at training. Perspective.

[5.3k@10km/r + all out 6x sprints]

Back To Running

My last run by myself was...hmmmm...errrrrrrr....aaaaarr...errrrrrrrr aiyaaaaa. Can't even remember when la. I've been too comfortable riding Ima. The reason why I have been riding and not running it's because of the speed. I love going fast but when I'm running, it feels like I'm a slow tortoise. =x

Yesterday I forced myself to make a run to Gurney and back which is about 8K. Furthermore the weather was just perfect, nice cool breeze with an after rain aroma in the air. The view from Gurney drive was rewarding as well. And oh ya!!! I saw a husky! So so cool!

Anyway, back to my run. My calves were really tight after the 4K mark. It forced me to take a few stops to stretch and loosen those muscles. I really dislike this feeling. It breaks the momentum but I guess my body were not conditioned enough after a long break. Thank goodness, my 'engine' is still in optimal condition.

Question. Have you ever feel like you needed to stop running and take a break even though you're just half way through your run? How do you overcome this and finish strong? Is it the mental or the physical?

Answer. Evaluate your determination. Look inside yourself and find that 'man' within you. How much you have it will determine how hard you train. The harder you train, the stronger you get up in the head and your body.

Based on a true story. This boy, bugs me like nothing after my badminton match. He said, 'Let's go to Bukit Dumbar, if we're late, Sam is gonna kill us.' I was like, 'Relax la, I just finish my match, still tired le.' But he keep insisting that we go. So I gave in and took him over there. When we got there, the Inne guys were all done and it started to rain. You could see the word 'disappointed' written all over his face.

Even before going there, he has already established in his mind that he wanted to train. He wanted it so badly that he wanted to run in the run after eating Char Bee Hoon. Ain't that insane courage? But of course, we stopped him.

It was time for the rest to go home but he insisted to stay still the rain stop. I accompanied him. As soon it stop, he went out and made his lap. He was like a happy child being able to play! That is what training means to him. What is yours?

Be inspired

[8K @ 10.7km/h & a clean Ima]

My Phone Died of Hypothermia

On my way to PISA for state physical training, I was caught in a heavy rain half along Jelutong Expressway. Can't do much but just hope that my phone and my cyclemeter survives. I kept checking on the screen just to make sure it still works.

When I got there, most of the guys and girls were already there. LinKen came to me and told me that I inspired him to run from his house to PISA. Ha!ha! Its a mental thing I tell you. Good job bro!

Our Coach came and brief us on the rules and punishment (100 push ups for every offence) if we don't comply with the 'law'. So be begin...before heading there, I was inspired by a running article on a blog, ' How to Think Like the Pros'. So I thought to myself, why not trying those mental exercise. And it really works!

We did 5loops around PISA which was about 5.3 km and I clocked 18m 20s. Average speed of 11.2 km/h. It was more like an interval training with lots of sprints in between. It was tiring. Fuuuuuuuuh. My last 500 m was torturing, I had to follow my coach's pace on his bike and I could feel me running without oxygen in my lungs. He was pushing me to my limits which I enjoyed. =)

Then it was time to head home, clouds were looking really dark and heavy. Sam offered me and Ima a ride home but I thought the rain would delay for me. Haha! I was wrong about it and I gotta pay a heavy price. I continued cycling under the downpour till it got super super heavy that's when I decided to stop and turn into a coffee house along Jelutong Expressway. All eyes are on me. I don't know why.

Its too heavy to continue on, so its pitstop for me. I was feeling cold and hungry. I overheard a drunk uncle talking to come chinese high school girls about me.

uncle: aneh kuan a boyfren luan ai bo? ho liau ar e. (this type of bf you want or not? very good)
girls: mai la...dam dam aneh chao bi. (don't want la. wet wet. damn smelly)

I really stink that time. As I was wiping my phone, it just died. Can't on it even I got home. Its gone. Maybe its true, I can't live without you, maybe two is better than one. Why leave me at a time like this? =(

Some people say I run faster and longer than the rest because I'm a triathlete but that's not true. I believe everyone running last night can beat me easily. Its how much you want to improve and how strong your head is. Its all about Independent Culture.

[BP + 30K bike + 5.3K run]

Wet Running

Haven't been training on my runs lately and PBM is drawing closer. Last night after prayer meeting, I quickly put on my shoes and start running. It was drizzling but no choice, I have to train.

Boys like girls song, Two is better than One is a good training song. How true is this statement? How real it is? How well does it work? Maybe its true that I can't live without you. Wait wait wait! What am I talking about here? Haha!

Its true that if you have someone training with you, its easier to push further but if you do not have friends who would train at odd hours and odd whether condition, no worries. You can always have a watch to help you. This friend will not let you down. =) Beat the clock.

Distance
8km
Time
42.00
Average speed
11.4km/h
Maximum speed
17.7km/h

[d route]

Running in a cool condition delays the tiredness in my legs and body, I feel I could go longer but I felt the burden to 'invest' running half way.

[FW+8k run]

Mizuno Wave Run

After state training in the morning, I managed to mandi kerbau and wacked a big plate of rice before heading towards the bus station. Got up the bus and the journey begins. 4.5hours later I find myself in the heart of KL, jam and slow moving vehicles are a confirmation. Met up with Alvin, Alice and geng, and got a ride from them to Damansara Utama (Uptown).

After dinner, I tried to locate the motel that I'll be staying in. Jensen (TMM) was already there since the afternoon. We walked around and still couldn't find one another. We planned to meet at starbucks but there were two starbucks in that area. After 15minutes ++ we finally managed to meet up.

Got up the room wash up, watch Gladiators, talk a little. ZzzZzzZzzZZzzz.

[motel room]

We got ready by 6am as Danny (TMM) will be picking us up. Felt so sleepy and tired. Haha. It took us about an hour to reach UPM, Serdang.

When I got there, my bladder was about to burst. First time in my life, there is a loooooooooOoOooooOOOong queue for the guy's loo. And the smell of the toilet was really really bad! Running to the toilet and back to the starting line was my warm up.

[pink glittering band]

Race begins with a not so loud horn. And again, I'm stucked behind with the big crowd. Grrrrrrr. Slowly picked up momentum and started getting to the front pack of the race. Half way into my run I met Carmen Leong. She qualified for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii this year. I ran up to her, 'Hie are you the one that did Ironman?' She replied with a smile, 'Yea'. I showed her a thumbs up as an appreciation for raising the Jalur Gemilang when crossing the finishing line in Kona. Proud to be Malaysian. =)

[Carmen the ironmaiden]

I felt strong in my legs through the climb. When I saw the sign of the last 2km, I started pushing harder and faster. (It was flat then) The funny thing about this was, a counterpain booth was set up there, with two guys offering counter pain. It was really weird/amusing. But I guess, it would be useful for some.

[the climb]

I continue to tekan minyak until...I saw the killer slope. Walaueh!! Damn steep and long. No choice but have to persevere through, in my mind I kept thinking, if I can cycle up BP, I can finish this strong. It works! Slowly made up my way to the top and to the finish line with a sprint. Check my time it was 53minutes, no PB as my previous 10K was 52minutes. But then as I checked the cert, it was a 11K run with hills. Its a PB. wohoo!!

[medal]

It was a good run! To appreciate my legs and heart, I rewarded them with Burger King before heading back to Penang.

[yummy]

Special thanks to Joshua, Danny and Jensen unbutton for arranging the accommodation and transport ion for me. It was smooth.

[my roomie for the nite which was suppose to be SOONG'S!!haha]

Something that I learned from this run was the hill separates the extraordinary from the ordinary. Challenges and mountains in life will be there to slow you down and eventually make you stop. But if you continue to livestrong, you will be able to overcome it! Never give up. Only livestrong.

[11K medium intensity]