Thursday 16 April 2015

PJ Half Marathon review

I feel there's good reason to write about the PJ Half Marathon which I ran on 7th December 2014. Running  for the first time in the annual race organized by the Selangor Amateur Athletics Association, on my own home turf was a symbolic representation of how far I have gone on my running journey. As I stated in my earlier post, I started participating in running events at the beginning of 2014, ran one HM, one 12k, three 10k and one 8k - there's no turning back since then.

The PJ Half Marathon in December was great cap to the year that was filled with moments of joy, exhilaration, excitement, wonder, pain and frustration in running. This run was all the sweeter for me because I was able to run with my cousin for whom I have deep respect. A seasoned runner who's done multiple FM, HM and triathlon competitions, he came to the event to run with me (never mind that he wasn't registered) on an early Sunday morning when he could have spent a lazy morning with his family in KL. I was honored indeed and determined to give my best in the 10k distance category. 

I should also mention that my sister ran in the PJ Half Marathon too. It was her first race and first 10km distance. Despite her initial misgivings about registering for the 10km event, she was ready to take on the challenge on race day. She also brought along a running partner to spur her on..

The flag off was at Kelana Jaya stadium, - a site where I used to go for jogs in the evenings many years agoI felt deep satisfaction that I could run early in the morning, on the normally busy roads of Petaling Jaya. It was still dark around 7am and there was little traffic in the Free Trade Zone of Sg Way. I felt like a king on the road as the traffic policemen directed traffic in order for us runners without worrying about being in the way of vehicles on the roads. .

I managed to run side by side with my cousin for the first 2km. I was well aware that I should keep the first few km as an easy, but the effort it took for me to keep up with him was quickly burning me out. I decided I would do my own pace and by 2.5km, my cousin was way ahead of me. Nonetheless, I felt settled into a steady pace by 4km and actually felt fairly good. My legs were nicely warmed up and I sensed that I had enough energy to go all the way to the finish line.

I picked up speed by 8km in SS3 area. Before I knew it, my cousin was visible to me again in the distance... He saw me, slowed his pace, and signaled for me to catch up with him. Seizing the opportunity. I increased my pace... And catch up with him I did..... and I could almost hear We Are The Champions playing in the background. We ran side by side all the way to the finish line...

This was the one and only race in which I achieved a negative-split and did not feel burned out after. I attribute my accomplishment to the presence of a more experienced runner to motivate me..

Results:
Time: 51:03 (PR for 10km)
Rank: 64 out of 485



dashing to the finish line

En route to a new PR in 10k race




Sunday 12 April 2015

Shape Night Run 2015, 11 April



 The time is 8:25pm. Together with 6000 participants of the Shape Night Run 2015, I am waiting anxiously for any updates from the race director. The race was supposed to have been flagged off at 8pm. 

I arrived at Precinct 3 early on race day to visit the various booths set up by the sponsors.  It was a nice and sunny day, and the atmosphere merry. I noticed an overcast sky while taking snapshots of the pre-race activities and wished it would clear later. However, the weather took a turn for the worse around 7:10 p.m. Rain started pouring from the heavens with lightning and thunder, causing anxiety amongst  the attendees who ran helter-skelter for shelter.
 


From the Shape booth where I collected my Shape goodie bag, I quickly made a detour to the Colombia Asia medical tent for shelter.  I stayed there for about ten minutes and when the rain eased a little, I made a dash across to the Auditorium Sri Cempaka. Uncomfortable in wet socks and shoes, I sat myself down in the main hall of the building, removed my shoes and socks and hoped that the weather conditions would improve. Soon after, I fell into a strangely contented state of crowd watching. The various antics of fellow runners entertained me. First, there was the hopeful group whose members diligently did their stretches, ready to sprint from the starting line if they found out that the race would go on. And then there were some who were clearly daunted, as they lay on the floor wondering when they would be able to collect their finisher goodie bags, abandon the run and go home.  Others were engaged in inane chat in an effort to while away time while anxiously waiting for the official announcement from the organizer.

Shape Night Run in its 8th year
A man came up to me and offered his opinion. “Race is going to be called off.” I responded with a smile but could not hide a trace of disappointment on my face at his suggestion. Another lightning spread across the night sky and I knew deep down inside that he was probably right. But then, there wasn’t any official announcement, just yet.

A volunteer comes to the hall entrance to say that the race shall go on at 8:30pm subject to weather conditions; if the weather worsens or lightning persists, then the race would be canceled.  The rain is all but gone at this point but there’s definitely lightning in the sky. It’s still up in the air whether the race will go on.
Posing just before the rain


Rain, lightning, thunder…. Please ago away.

A crowd started gathering at the goodie bag station. 
Time:8:40pm 
Weather: Showers with intermittent lightning. Impression: It’s over… We can all go home! 

And then suddenly I heard music on the speakers and the reassuring voices of Ivan and Zher. They thanked the runners for their patience, commended them for their bravery, emphasized safety precautions and announced what most of us were desperate to hear - the race would go on! Yay! I quickly checked my bag and went along with the ecstatic crowd of runners to the corral. The crowd cheered as soon as the guest of honor completed her speech and flagged off the race around 8:50pm. It felt like we had already surmounted a hurdle by defying the elements by being out there running in the rain…

I sprinted from the start, reeling from the exhilaration of being given the chance to run in this race (It’s the 8th Shape Run and my first time participating in it).  There were puddles of water everywhere on the course, some of which further soaked my already wet shoes.  I responded by running in small strides and a moderate pace. But to my surprise, my Garmin Forerunner 220 recorded 5:04 min/km at the end of the first km. I continued to gain momentum and was able to go sub-5 mins in the 2nd kilometer.


Knowing the route worked to my advantage this time (check out  Mens’ Health and Women’sHealth Night run) as I knew when to expect the inclines and the flat paths. Conquering the inclines was still tough but I didn’t stop like I did three weeks ago. In fact, the inclines are harder to conquer when you have water squishing from you shoes every time your foot lands on the ground.  I knew it was hard to maintain a good pace, but I noticed that I was not just getting passed by others on the inclines - I was also overtaking a few tired runners and was able to gradually move up to the next pack at the 4km incline..


I struggled at the 8k incline but I did not  consider slowing to a walk like I did before; instead, I used the other runners to motivate me. I ran side by side with a middle-aged man, who appeared to me an experienced runner. I checked my pace on the watch and noted that it had dropped to 7:00min/km at that point. After the 'U' turn, I quickly regained speed as it was downhill from there and only about 2km to the finish line. From the U turn onwards, I managed to pass some of the runners who earlier overtook me. 
I exhausted all my energy reserve to reach the finish line at a pace of 6:30min/km.  There was no display on the clock due to the late flag off time and I forgot to stop the stopwatch on my Garmin, until I reached the goodie bag collection booth.  I have  a good feeling that my finishing time was around 1:04 – definitely a time I am happy with.



I believe that I’m speaking on behalf of all the other runners that we take pride in completing that night race despite the unfavourable weather.

Thank you to the organizers for the great racing tech t-shirt which was a godsend in the rainy conditions. I actually enjoyed this run because of the rain! As my friend said in his SMS reply to my complaint about Mother Nature’s ways that evening - running in the rain is fun and refreshing.

Running in the rain was certainly fun and the closest thing to play for me and I can say that I had fun sprinting, jumping, galloping, splashing and dashing to the finish line. It was a great feeling of amazement and satisfaction - running with the elements, under the night skies.

While I look at the bright red spots on my underarms as a result of chafing, (there’s an increased risk of skin chafing when running in the rain), I am glad that that is the only painful reminder of the event.. The Shape Run 2015 was indeed a pleasurable one!

Time: 1:04:19
Rank: 158 out of 1206




Thursday 9 April 2015

Men's Health and Women's Health Night Run

My running adventure has taken me to places far and wide but I have yet to run in Putrajaya. A popular venue for running events, the administrative centre of Malaysia provides a beautiful scenery  with its natural landscape and architecture marvels.

So when I found out about the Men's Health Night Run in Putrajaya which was returning in March of 2015, I was excited to be a part of it, not only because it's a popular event, but also I wanted to run my first night run and what better venue to do it than at Putrajaya? I learned that this year the Men's Health Night Run was renamed the Men's Health and Women's Health Night Run as it's an event organized by the established  Men's Health (Malaysia) and its new sister publication, Women's Heatlh (Malaysia), so that meant that this was an inaugural MHWHNR. I signed up along with 7,500 participants.
The flag off point was outside the Palace of Justice, which houses six Courts of Appeal, two Federal Courts and 20 judge's chambers. In short, building with granite finish is massive! It was smart of the organizers to pick The Palace of Justice as a gathering place as you, just like me would not miss it even if you have not been to Precinct 3 in Putrajaya.


Forcing a smile in spite of a toothache
This was a 12km run and not a particularly easy run for me, despite my recent accomplishment in the Nike We Run KL (21km). The route was challenging with undulating hills to conquer; there was a point (around 8km) that defeated me and I resorted to walking due those darn hills. As I struggled more and more to move, my mantra was put one foot in front of the other and keep moving, no matter what. I was aware that many runners were passing me by but there little I could do about it. I had my battles to fight - sore quadriceps due to over training the day before and a toothache which I thought was a case of dentin hypersensitivity (how wrong was I when I went to my dentist friend to discover a huge cavity in my upper left second premolar!)










Aspiring Men's Health Cover Model
The final 3km was the toughest part of the race as I think again I had used up all of my energy reserve in that stretch. As I continued to engage in self-pep talk. I saw the grand Palace of Justice in the distance to my right and a glimmer of hope came to me as I knew that the finish line was within reach if I could persevere.

I crossed the finish line at 1:10, totally knackered. And relieved that I was able to complete this challenging night run.

Postscript: Net time: 1:09:56  
Rank: 305 out of 2313 in my category
My tooth was restored with glass-ionomer cement and is pain free for now.




Tuesday 7 April 2015

Nike We Run KL

I was very excited to find out from one of the running blogs which I subscribed to that Nike We Run KL 2015 was going to be held on 1st February.

It was symbolic that this hugely popular Nike running series was held in KL on the anniversary of the formation of Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory back in 1974.
The 21k distance was a first for the Nike We Run KL - they weren't making it easy for me to be involved but I didn't hesitate at all to register for it having completed my first Half Marathon in the Penang Bridge International Marathon 2014. I was lucky as I was successful in registering for Nike We Run - registration was full by evening on the day of registration! I felt a little smug that I was going to be amongst the 10,000 participants to run in the Nike We Run.



The route was interesting as it incorporated many KL iconic landmarks such as the National Mosque, Stadium Merdeka and the KL Tower. Furthermore, I relished the idea of being able to run freely on the roads in KL as the roads involved would be closed to traffic on race day.

The race kicked off at 5:30am. It was great to see so many people with the same passion for running congregated at Stadium Merdeka at such an ungodly hour.

My goal was to run all the way in the race with the exception of making quick stops at the hydration stations. I managed to keep to that goal for the most part; however, I gradually ran out of gas. According to the race guide, the route becomes easier from 16km till the finish line as it's a straight path all the way. Shortly after the U-turn at Taman Tenaga, I settled in to a steady plod. Much as I pushed myself to pick up speed again, my legs would not respond to my command. At this point, some of the runners passed me by. I felt frustrated and beaten. My legs were heavy like logs and my feet wet in sweat so I began a long trudge to the finish line. I knew at 19km that I was not going to finish the race under 2 hours. But I was determined to finish the race in under 2:05 which was the time I recorded just three months prior at the Penang Bridge International Marathon.

I mustered whatever reserve left in my body and ran the final kilometer to the finish line. Look at the pained expression on my face in the photo (courtesy of IceCremeSoda).  But one would be mistaken to think that I suffered.. In fact, I was filled with a rush of pride when I crossed the finish line. It was an incredible feeling indeed.....







Result:2:07:35
Rank: 324 out of 2,653


Sunday 5 April 2015

Lion Dash Penang




So I tried something different at the beginning 2015 by taking part in the Lion Dash in Penang. A 10km mixed trail and road run combined with 10 obstacles, the inaugural Lion Dash was held at the Botanic Gardens in Penang on 18th January 2015.

Running in the jungle clad hills was challenging and quite a different experience to running on the road. The trail shoes which I bought before the race served me well. As for the obstacles, they were challenging, and fun! One of the obstacles which I enjoyed the most involved running while carrying a tyre. It's a test of speed, strength and coordination.

The toughest obstacle for me was the one just before the finishing line. Participants were required to dive into a tank of water filled with ice. In the tank, my legs and my toes went numb and wading through the water felt tougher than  running the 10k and completing all the other obstacles combined! Nonetheless, I was determined to complete the obstacle as giving up at this point was not an option.  With the heart of a lion, I walked through the bone chilling water. I crossed the finish line, my feet numb, my spirits lifted.

I am ready game for obstacle events.. Viper arena in May... see you there...

Roar....

Thursday 2 April 2015

Racing back to 2014

Here's my story on how I became a running enthuasist:

I participated in the Jogathon event (8km run) organized by the Department of Health Kedah  on 4th February at the scenic Pendang Lake Resort in Kedah. Afterwards, I was stunned to learn that I finished 8th  in the Men's Open category and was awarded with a cert and prize money. With only a week's training prior to the race, I thought perhaps I can be good at running. And that's how I took up this sport...

I have not looked back since...

Here's a recap of the races I entered in 2014:
1) Marina Run (10km) in Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
2) Larian Bandaraya Alor Setar (8km) @ Sultan Abdul Halim Stadium, Alor Setar
3) British 10k London in London
4) Sg Petani Half Marathon (10km) event in Sg Petani Ground Zero
5) Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2014 (10km)
6) Terry Fox Run @ Lake Gardens, Kuala Lumpur (4km fun run)
7) Penang Bridge International Marathon @ Sultan Abdul Halim Bridge, Penang (Half Marathon)
8) PJ Half Marathon @ Stadium Kelana Jaya (10km)