Surviving My First Viper Classic in F1 Sepang

For my last event of 2019, I completed one of the toughest of the Viper Challenge series - the Viper Classic at Sepang International Circuit.

The Viper Challenge is Asia's biggest sporting event series that combines running (trail and road) with obstacles which test your strength, speed, agility and your ability to work with your teammates (and other participants). Their tag line, "Leave No One Behind", emphasising the importance of team work to complete the course - peppered with obstacles - stayed in my mind since last Sunday.

I first dipped my feet in Viper Arena back in 2015 but didn't particularly enjoy the indoor setting of the course. I didn't enter another Viper event until four years later, in the Viper Beach Port Dickson May this year.  And let's just say I've been hooked to the sport since! I started joining  OCR, mass warrior workout sessions and Spartan classes in my gym and made new friends and training partners. And after a few months of training, I got the courage to sign up for the tough Viper Classic - 20km course and 25 obstacles.  I was warned that there will be mud runs and I was up for it!

After registration and bag drop-off,  I made my way to the start line, joining the 7:00 am wave. I found myself in a corral packed full of other Viper Challenge hopefuls like myself. The host kept us entertained, shouting "Finish" and us responding with "Line". After a few rounds of "Finish Line"s, I was off!

Selfie  before flag-off

And we're off.,,,,

Here's some photos of what happened that day...


Overall, I had an amazing time out there in Sepang, spending around 4 hours to complete the challenge, having attempted all of the 25 obstacles. The obstacles were well-designed  and evenly spaced throughout the course, and had catchy names (Over your Ex, Tarzan and Jane, Nerves of Steel, Stairway to Heaven, Heave Ho, etc). One of my favourite obstacles was Tumbling Block which requires team work and coordination and getting your head down in the muddy waters. This was definitely something out of my comfort zone...

What I liked about Viper is that it is non-competitive so you can do the obstacles carefully, slowly - once, twice or even thrice if you wish... and have a great time with your teammates (I especially like the team element of it).  Team work means no one gets left behind...

Hanging tongue.. a sign of tiredness

Tyre wall climb

Up for running up the wall behind me

Mud time

Getting out of the clogged drain

Into the woods: Palm oil trail run...

Stairway to Heaven

half-way mark... yay

Barbed wire crawl

Poor grip resulted in a fall into the muddy water

Tarzan and Jane

Hay bale, the final obstacle..

Here it is.. the finish line...

Meet the winner...

Great Eastern Live Great Run 2016

I ran in the Live Great Run on Sunday, 23 October and had a blast!

Event info

Now in its fifth year, the Great Eastern LIVE GREAT Run attracts many repeat participants on a goal to beat their previous time. Title sponsor Great Eastern in collaboration with the National Heart Foundation promise a fun-filled and healthy event for runners, running enthusiasts, families and anyone wishing to the take opportunity to go out and run on this Sunday morning - to challenge themselves to go the distance and adapt a healthy lifestyle. This year a new distance was introduced to the Live Great Run - 21km. The half marathon distance is to cater to participants who are looking for a greater challenge.

The new route for the 12km this year - starting and finishing in Dataran Merdeka was exciting. According to the organiser, runners would experience a specially designed course that aims to test their physical and mental strength while they experience the sights and sounds of the city.

The fun run namely the 5km Bubble Dash attracted many participants this year following its successful launch last year. The Bubble Dash in Penang held a month ago received generally positive reviews by participants.

The 12km course is mostly flat except for a 10m elevation in kilometer 3 (Jalan Sultan Ismail towards Jalan Bukit Bintang).

How did the race go?

The race went according to the program in the runners' guide which was downloadable for all registered runners. The Half Marathon was flagged off at 5:30 am and the 12km at 7:00 am sharp.

My training went fairly well for this race as I have been injury-free since SCKLM. After having achieved a new Half Marathon PB in the Great North Run,  I took a (IMHO deserved) break from running. When I resumed training after two weeks, I did it with the same regularity as my previous training program but with less intensity.

The weather was glorious on race day, fairly cool around 27 degree Celsius which was perfect for running in the morning.  I managed to hold myself back and not make the mistake of going out too fast too soon. Starting with a modest  pace of 5'32" in the first kilometer, I got progressively faster and stronger. It was a pleasure running in the heart of the city on the normally busy roads which were closed to traffic today.

I took only one energy gel at the start. There were water/isotonic drink stations at kilometer 3, 6 and 9 all of which had adequate supply of mineral water and Lucozade Sport in paper cups.

Was it well organised?

This was a big event with the competitive 21km and 12km and 5km fun run. The turnout was incredible with a total number of 16,000 participants on that day. Traffic control was well executed by the friendly marshals, water stations were sufficient and there was support along the way. Support in the finishing area was remarkable. I was handed a bottle of mineral water, a bottle of Lucozade Sport and a banana, all of which I gratefully received from the volunteers. With no free hand available to take the finisher medal, the friendly volunteer helped me the wear the disc. I burst with pride because it felt as if I was a top finisher and the volunteer presented me with my medal and prize. Oh well.. I have a fertile imagination despite the fatigue immediately after the run...

Would I do it again?

Absolutely. I contacted two of my friends who also ran in the race and both reported that they felt the event was well organised and fun!

I received an email from the organiser today to thank the participants for their support and for feedback to help them improve runners' experience in future events. Now, that's what I call a true professionals. Well done! And yes, I would do it again.

How did I do?

I was very impressed that the results were published in the evening on race day. A new PB for me in the 12km category - I couldn't ask for a better result.

Summary of results:

Finish time: 1:05:50

Net Time: 1:03:45
Average pace: 5'18"

Overall ranking: 92/1897

Took the train to Masjid Jamek from Taman Bahagia station

Lively pre-race atmosphere in race village, Dataran Merdeka

All set now after bag drop-off

Selfie time!

Sea of blue at the start gantry

A handful of finisher entitlement

A winning smile for this pose