Larian Bendang is an annual event held in conjunction with Yayasan Sultanah Bahiyah's (YSB) Karnival Amal Hari Penyayang. This year the run was held on May 30 and I was glad to participate in it.
In spite of the problematic left knee with which I have been battling, I decided to run the 11km distance in the Men's Senior Category. 'Bendang' means fields in Malay; strangely, I wasn't familiar with this word until I came to the state of Kedah, arguably the rice bowl of Malaysia. I wanted very much to run through the fields in Alor Setar - a place I now call home - as I have done in the past along with some elite runners of the Alor Setar Jogging Club members. I knew the risks of injuring the knee further but I felt it would be wrong for me to not participate in the perhaps the only major running event in Alor Star..
The event was graced with the presence of the chairperson of YSB, Tunku Puteri Intan Safinaz biti Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah. Her royal highness was accompied by the Mentri Besar of Kedah, Dato' Sri Mukhriz Mahathir as the guest-of-honor.
The warm-up exercises were the longest I have ever had to do. I couldn't help but feel as if I was in an aerobics class led by a team of four exuberant female instructors. I'm sure all the enthusiastic runners felt the warm-up session was fun if not too lengthy. It went on for 30 minutes
The race was flagged off at 8am, by which time the temperature soared to the early thirties.
I felt the sweltering heat as soon as I broke into a stride. I decided to go slow and steady; after all this race for me is not about time, but participation. By the third km, I was severely thirsty. I kept looking out for a water station along the way but alas, there were none to be found for another 4km. The only water station available was at the 7km check point. I must have suffered the symptoms of dehydration by 5km as my pace went from 5:30 to 6:00, then 7:00 and 11:00 when I started walking for 30 seconds. Sweat was pouring out of me and I could feel a burning sensation in my legs clad in running tights. Walking helped to cool my body down.. I battled with fatigue and increasing weakness. Please give me water was my mantra....
The hydration station finally appeared and it provided water in sealed plastic cups. Somehow sipping water from a straw just didn't quench my thirst enough. I poured the last quarter onto my head to cool down.. and it felt like I just doused a fire..
From the station, I entered the much-awaited-for paddy fields. This was probably the most scenic part of the route but I was too exhausted to savour the beauty that greeted me. The heat was unrelenting so I just pushed myself to concentrate on getting to the next checkpoint by adapting a run walk run (mostly walk at this point). From the front of the pack, I quickly dropped to the middle and I was in fact, relieved to see some of the runners whom I passed by earlier, now passing me by... Good luck to them...hopefully see you at the finish line later, if I can make it.
I did eventually cross the finish line and helped myself to copious amounts of 100 Plus...
This was one race which required the most effort from me. I was overcome with relief when I crossed the finish line and was glad that the race was over.
Distance: 11.4km
Time: 1 hour 8 mins
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