Pacemakers Anniversary Run 2016

I took part in another relay run last Sunday in the Pacemakers Anniversary Run 2016. This was the 12th edition of the race and as in previous years, it was held at the Lake Gardens - a highly sought after venue for race events as it offers a beautiful landscape and jogging tracks around the lake right in the heart of the city.

Our team is called Marudu Bega and it's made up of four guys and a girl. According to the rules of the race, each team must have at least one female member as their first runner. Each runner is required to run a 3.15 km loop with a total distance of 15.75 km for each team. The transition point as at the start/finish line where each participant is required to pass the baton with a timer chip to the next runner. Baton distribution was done just before flag-off and the process was without any glitch.

Weather was beautiful that day and there were countless stunning photos captured by professional and non-professional photographers alike.

Post-race refreshments include nasi lemak, tou fu fah, soya bean, buns, Revive, mineral water, Hemaviton Energy drink and watermelon for the non-Muslim participants.

Results:
Finish time: 1:27:01
Overall: 52/199

Pace: 5:31 min/km

Participants raring to go

Baton distribution on race day

And off the runners went

Fendi on fire

And it's my turn to run

Keeping at it

Run baby run

Fighting off other runners to reach the crossover/finish line

Over to Aliff

Four guys and a girl - all runners: Asyikin, Fendi, me, Aliff and Ikmal

Asics City Relay 2016

The first-ever night relay marathon was held in Kuala Lumpur last Saturday and it’s none other than the ASICS City Relay Kuala Lumpur 2016. Organised by Spectrum Worldwide, the event transformed Dataran Merdeka into a spectacular and electrifying capital in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

I procrastinated in registering for the event until it was too late to do so. Partly it was my fault for dragging my feet but the truth was I had difficulty forming a team because my would-be teammates were unsure of participating in a relay format.  I was disappointed to say the least at the prospect of missing out on the opportunity to be part of this monumental event where road races are concerned. So when my friend called to inform that one of his team members had bailed, I was ecstatic that he offered the place to me! I was given the responsiblity of runner #2 in our team named Bega Putra 2 for the Half Marathon race. 

There were two categories in the offering: the Marathon and Half Marathon. Each runner from a team of four would run either 10.5 km  (Marathon) or 5.25 km (Half Marathon) . The teams were sub-categorized into male, female or mixed gender. Up for grabs: prizes in the form of ASICS apparel for the top three teams and the winning team for all sub-categories (male, female and mixed) in the Marathon and Half Marathon respectively.

Route

The flag off was at historic Dataran Merdeka just after 8:00 p.m. I noticed the race logo appeared on the majestic Sultan Abdul Samad building. Created from beams of lights which came from not one particular source but many, this logo provided a perfect backdrop to get the adrenaline pumping for the participants. The atmosphere was truly electrifying! 

Captivating light show leading up to flag-off

The route covered iconic landmarks in the heart of Kuala Lumpur including the Sultan Abdul Samad building, Parliament House, National Mosque, Tun Razak Memorial, Islamic Arts Museum, KL Butterfly Sanctuary and the Perdana Botanical Gardens enclave. The course was challenging – with steep hills along Jalan Chenderasari and Jalan Lembah. A number of runners had difficulty tackling those slopes and had to resort to walking. 

Info on the relay format and the all-important transition process

There were two aid stations along the way at 1 km and 3 km. Both offered water and 100 Plus and were manned by friendly volunteers who cheered the runners on. Interestingly, I  was greeted by a group of drummers at kilometer 4 and I felt re-energized running to the beats of their drums. Music without a doubt has synergistic effects on runners. For safety reasons, I don’t run with earphones in races anymore so this live performance was a welcome mood elevator for me and I dare say, for all the runners on that night.

Roads along the entire route were closed to traffic and I have to commend the PDRM traffic police for doing a great job with it. I have in the past run in races with cars passing me dangerously close by. For this race, there was no such issue. Safety always comes first, all the more in a night run. I felt safe throughout the course and I'm glad to note that there were no reports of accidents.. 

Live tracking

There was not a boring moment while runners waited for their teammates to run as there were street performers and live DJ on hand to entertain the crowd. Another noteworthy feature of this race was the availability of live tracking for participants to access online and live updates on a huge LED screen displaying messages from social media with the hashtag  #relaythenight. After the first loop, the live tracking page showed that Bega Putra 2 was in a respectable position 54 in a field of 178 teams in the Half Marathon category. This tracking feature added much-needed excitement for team members and spectators who were waiting for runners on the course to complete their run.

This towering performer enjoyed posing for the camera

All three of us in the team gathered at the finish line to cheer our captain and last runner, Fendi. He ran at sub-5 pace all the way. He crossed the finish line, exchanged high-fives with us three and proceeded to collect medals for the team from the friendly volunteers.  It was certainly a night to remember for Bega Putra 2 and we commemorated it with a group photo with all of us wearing our finisher medal. 

As there was a lot of waiting time, I indulged in my hobby of people-watching and I could see that the event attracted runners of all abilities from the elite to the everyday runner, even total beginners. It was touching to see one team member helping out a total newbie to running (she wasn’t wearing running gear but was determined to do her part in the relay). This male runner helped his slightly befuddled female teammate put on the arm slap band and they were at it for a good 10 seconds. Once the arm band was in place, she was off. I was heartened by the spectacle which demonstrated that running builds bridges and transcends barriers! It also reaffirmed my belief that together as a team and armed with the right attitude we can outrun ordinary and achieve extraordinary. 

Passing the arm slap band to Noah
(photo courtesy of Running Malaysia)

Our captain Fendi about to make a home run
(photo courtesy of Running Malaysia)

And then there was a young man who wasn’t running but came to spectate. He told me that he was there to support his friends.  Naturally, I was curious as to why he wasn’t running - he explained that he had sustained a knee injury not too ago and his doctor advised him against running. He was quick to add that he did other forms of exercise - cycling and swimming to keep fit. It was humbling for me to hear that he could not run on that night as much as he would have liked to. I am ever grateful that I am be able to run and I do not take that for granted, ever.

In summary, the Asics City Relay was well-organized and it’s refreshing to see a new race format finally come to our shores.  Kudos to the organizers for coming up with an innovative way in promoting healthy and active lifestyle for the community.  I’m sure there will be more in store from ASICS and Spectrum Worldwide. Watch this space.

Collection of slap band by the 1st runner of every team

Second runners waiting anxiously in the crossover section

Long queues at the port-a-porty area

Sweet victory for Team Bega Putra 2!!!
(Fendi, Noah, me and Azwan)

Prized possession from the event

Official results available to all shortly after cut-off time

 

Couldn't be happier with my average pace of 5:13/km  

Nike We Run KL 2016 Review

The Nike We Run KL 2016 on Sunday, 10 April was a success. I was among the lucky 8,987 runners who participated in this monumental event in the Malaysia running calendar. I thought I'd do the  recap early for this race instead of waiting for a few days like I normally do till the results are out.  There are so many exciting things about this race to share with my readers, I just can't wait to get started while everything is still fresh in my memory.

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REGISTRATION 

Registration for the event was not without drama: one of us team members experienced a near heart-attack 'moment' when on clicking to pay for her registration, she was greeted with a message stating that her payment was unsuccessful. Subsequent attempts with all off the credit cards failed and her registration timed out. She had no choice but to start the whole registration process again but by this time traffic on the registration site was super heavy. She was kept waiting for three hours just to get to the payment page again. I kid you not! To say it was agonising for her is putting it mildly. All of us on the team, communicating via Whatsapp chat were at the edge of our seats thinking the unthinkable: she will be eliminated from our team should she fail to register. It was only at the eleventh hour that the unfortunate member managed to get a place in the race. It goes to show that, persistence pays off.

PRE-RACE EVENTS 

From the day of registration on 16 January,   a specially curated 12-week training programme by the Nike Malaysia team was activated digitally, the details of which were sent to Nike We Run KL registrants every Wednesday. Not surprisingly, maximum capacity was reached within hours of online registration for each and every of their weekly training events. By the time I arrived home from work to register for the event, my excitement turned to disappointment when I found out that there were no spots left for the training session. Recalling the lesson in persistence, I answered the last call from Coach Shaharudin and Coach Sue Ling, and successfully secured a spot for training. How did I do it? Oh well, no biggie... I stayed back at the office and waited for the email invitation from Nike Malaysia to come into my inbox and that's how I successfully registered. I had the honour of meeting the dedicated coaches Din and Sue, the pacers team and Jean Pierre, the special coach of the day at Desa Park City on a scorching Sunday morning. As it was the final prep session, participants were tested with a five-loop run with a total distance of 10km. I ran with the 2:00 pacers at 5:30 min/km and managed to keep up with them for the entire exercise. I was upbeat to have found the right pacer on race day.

Final training session by Nike Malaysia at Desa Park City

Tested these Nike Lunar Tempo 2 runners

Ready to log the overdue miles on this hot Sunday, 2 April

Coach Din and Coach Sue with the pacers looking really cool

Happy faces after a 10km workout

Posed with Coach Din after getting some valuable advice

RACE PACK COLLECTION

This year the race pack collection was at the Race Village itself over a period of three days leading up to race day. The self-appointed representative, I went to Semasa Parking at KL Sentral on Thursday 7 April to pick up those money-can't-buy Nike race packs. The contents of the race pack were: a Nike running tee in cheerful orange with a unique registration number/ID, a multi-sport tag for the ankle for timing purposes and a color-coded wristband with designated start pen based on the participant's predicted finishing time.

My race pack

Photo opportunity at the race collection venue

First class service rendered by volunteers at the counter

Main tent in Race Village which served as race collection centre before race day

PRE-RACE DAY

Our team of four checked in at Royce Hotel in Jalan Tun Sambanthan. We chose this hotel because of its proximity to the Race Village. We booked the hotel early - on the day when we received the race guide through email. A few days before the race, we wanted to request for a room upgrade but was informed by the hotel staff that the hotel was fully booked on Saturday. I'm sure there were other runners like us who just passed on the idea of having to drive or take public transport in the wee hours of the morning on race day. This year complimentary monorail and LRT services were provided for the runners to get to the Race Village. Kudos to the organisers for the arrangement.  But sleep is a luxury that I was not going to deprive myself of; I reckon that every extra minute of shut-eye goes to benefit the mind, heart and body which amount to better performance on race day. Our team of four went out for an early dinner at Nu Sentral, where we had pasta to load up the carbs, followed by a relaxing chit-chat filled with laughter and discussion centered around running. In case anyone is interested to know, my power song for running is "Let's Get It Started" by the Black Eyed Peas.

Royce Hotel

Single room with King size bed

Spaghetti with chicken bolognese for dinner at Sam's Deli, Nu Sentral

RACE DAY

The Nike We Run KL morning came early as we gathered outside the hotel at 4:30. Danny took longer than expected to come downstairs due to his dodgy belly from the night before. While waiting for Danny, my cousin, Mike who's an experienced runner with numerous FM's under his belt (but refuses to be called an elite runner)  showed up to give us moral support. It was a confidence booster for the team indeed. The team of four were all psyched up. Ladies and gentlemen, we were now the Fantastic Four!

Mike wearing the perfect matching color shoes for the race

At this point, I'd like to introduce the team members:

Danny: Has several 10k titles, first time running a HM, only just recovered from a recent gastrointestinal problem. Goal is to cross the finish line.

Cheng Yee: Ran her first HM in Nike We Run KL 2015, aims to improve her time by avoiding the use of port a potty this year which (she claims) cost her 10 minutes last year

Me: Four HM's in 2 years, all with a finishing time of between 2:05-2:07. Consistence is my middle name. 

Queen: Excited to run her first HM. Goal is to beat the 4:00 cut off time and avoid the sweeper.

Group pic before proceeding to the start pen

RACE DAY (part 2)

We arrived just after 5 a.m at the Race Village where I checked in my bag. There were no queues which was a pleasant surprise to me. I noted there were plenty of mobile toilets by gender and  again, there were no long queues seen. The marshals were strict in not allowing any non runners/non-registered runners into the race village through which registered runners enter the start pens. The orange Nike race tee with a unique number is proof of one's identity as a registered runner. Whereas other race organisers disqualify runners without a bib, this one takes it a step further: no running tee - no run. I actually liked the idea that runners were united in color, running tee and Nike in this event.

I was ushered into my sub 2:30 pen behind the sub 2:00 group and elite runners. As the 8,987 runners waited for the clock to strike 5:30 a.m, deejays JJ and Azura roused the crowd with their animated and lively presentation style. I whipped out my phone and took a selfie, then surveyed the crowd. IT was quite a spectacle to see a sea of orange. There were many young runners age 25 and below around me. A guy behind me was wearing a head band just like mine and earbuds stuck in his ear. He was busy shooting video on his phone to capture every moment leading to the flag-off. And like me, he had the Nike Plus app on standby. And then, the countdown began: 5... 4...3...2..1...

Runners were guided to their respective start pen

JJ and Azura were atop a wave of orange runners

A selfie before flag off

 

What followed next was something I have never seen in a race: fireworks! It was indeed a spectacular visual extravaganza for all. I was mesmerised by the colorful display for a minute or so and then it was time for me to move to the start line. The atmosphere was electrifying! As I walked to the start line to place my foot on the sensor, I found myself standing under thousands of sparks falling from the sky. It was an incredible experience, if a little unnerving...  Confetti was splattered under the start arch which lends splendor to this extraordinary flag-off.  Today, KL came to life at 5:30 a.m!

I ran at a comfortable pace of 5:30-5:45 min/km for the first 10km. There was an elevation gain at 9.07 km on Jalan Tun Razak. which I managed with a pace of 6.15 min/km. I picked up my pace again for the next few kilometers until Jalan Parlimen at the 16th kilometer. The hills got to me and my pace dropped to 6:45 min/km.

I should point out that my favourite pacer (2:00) was in sight in the first 12km of the run, but from then on, she left me behind. Or I should say I began to slow down and trailed behind her. Considerably. At that point, I realised that my goal for a sub 2:00 finish was next to impossible, but I was still aiming for a respectable time. Just Do It.  I managed to keep a good pace till kilometer 14. And from 15th km my pace went progressively downhill so that I was not able to run under 6 min/km all the way to the finish line. I was rapidly burning out.

Elevation versus distance

Pace versus distance

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On Jalan Parlimen where the thought of giving up was attractive to most runners (photo courtesy of Victor Chong)

A turnaround came in the last 200 meters, wherein I drew energy from my reserves and sprinted to the finish line. And you can see that I pushed myself to the limit in this photo finish.

Victory is mine

Physiotherapists on hand to help runners after the race

Gave the lovely pacer a good chase in the course but she beat me to the finish line

At the Race Village, finishers were treated like athletes with post-run stretching performed by Physiotherapists from Universiti Malaya  and ice-bath to cool off  their sore feet. I benefited from a good stretch of my tight hamstrings. With such VIP treatments, I felt like a champion.Come to think of it,  all the participants came and conquered the 21k distance on the day 100416 were champions. Congratulations too all who ran!

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Nike Plus summary

Records fell on 10.04.16

Official results: 
Gun time: 2:07:26
Nett time: 2:05:47
Rank: #449 Overall (M), #355 (Above 25)


Final thoughts on the race:

What I liked:
- Nice running tee with printed number
- Good looking finisher medal
- Plenty of water and isotonic drinks station with sufficient volunteers
- Friendly marshals who directed runners throughout course
- Motivational messages at every kilometer
- Well thought out route with iconic landmarks
- Stretching by physiotherapist and ice-bath
- Week by week email from Nike Malaysia on training progress
- Training programme ebook available to all registrants

 I thought the event was so well-organised that I could not find anything which I disliked.

What could have been improved:
- Ankle tag with a different chip number from ID/bib number could have been labeled with name of the participant. With no other identifiers, there's a risk of mixing the tags among runners in the case of group race pack collection
 - More cheers by volunteers to motivate the runners. There were few of them and they were mostly working alone.