Running Couple

Newton 25km

2010-10-01T22:25:00.004+08:00

Picture courtesy of Mr Tey Eng Tiong

Date : 26 Sep 2010
Venue : Kinrara

Result :
Men Jr Veteran
Rank 9
Gun Time 2:06:25.91
Chip Time 2:06:10.32

Selamat Hari Malaysia. Happy Malaysia Day

2010-09-16T16:08:00.005+08:00

This is for you, Malaysia. I love you!

Event : Hatyai Nature Run
Distance : 21.1km
Date : 8 August 2010
Timing : 1:41:11
Position : 10th in 40-45 Age Category

Picture and National Flag courtesy of KK Yum and Dannie & Carrie respectively.

34th. Bon Odori 2010

2010-07-20T15:31:00.018+08:00

The Bon Odori celebration took place on 17th July, last Saturday at the Matsushita Stadium, Shah Alam.

By the time we arrived there at 6pm, there were crowds of people.

Bon Odori is a Japanese Buddhist observance of honouring the spirit of ancestors, who return once a year to visit their families. It is a joyous ocassion; bringing families and friends together, celebrating rather than mourning the lives of the departed.

Many came wearing their favourite yukatas and kimonos.

While Japanese companies took the opportunity to promote their cultures, traditions and cuisine.

Traditional dance is performed to entertain the spirits of the ancestors.

Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2010

2010-06-29T19:19:00.008+08:00

Rank(Cat) Rank(Overall) BIB No Name Race Category Gun Time Net Time
16 85 8621 TAN JOHN YAM Half Marathon 01:43:31 01:43:17

Powerman 2009

2009-11-16T19:27:00.024+08:00

Venue : Seri Manjung, Perak

Date : 8 November 2009

Start time : 7.30am

Distance : 11km RUN-64km BIKE-10km RUN

Powerman or Tau Foo Fa man? After 4 hours and 15 minutes of running and cycling under the super hot sun, I felt like a soya bean curd being cooked inside a hot oven! I almost melted!

Even though I'm still recovering from all kinds of pain on my legs resulting in lack of training, the optimistic side of me was hoping that I could still beat my previous year's timing of 3:53.51. Try I did, but in the end I was satisfied to just be able to complete the race within the 5-hour qualifying time.

Here's the comparison of the respective split time between 2009 & 2008:
2009 2008
Run1 52:39> 51:46
T1 1:35< 2:37
Cycle 2:08:52> 2:02:32
T2 1:52< 2:12
Run2 1:09:50> 54:41
Total 4:14:51> 3:53:51

Ironically, my only improvement is in both the transition areas!

I mentioned to Tomatoman before the start line that this year's Powerman would only be part of my training. And after this gruelling work-out, I couldn't be asking for more.

Now it's time for some serious trainings - my next agenda...the Xiamen Marathon! Bring it on!

P/S I would like to thank Lok, Jason and their families for leading us to Lumut and back safely. My appreciation also go to Tey, Victor, Jenny and Yap for patiently taking photographs under the scorching sun and everyone who cheered me on during the race. Last but not least, I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to my wife for her constant encouragement and support.

JW Cameron Highlands 12K Run

2009-10-10T15:45:00.029+08:00

We had a good week-end getaway last Sunday whereby we went to Cameron Highlands for a 12km run.

Along the trip, we just makan, makan and makan. Our 1st stop was Bidor town where we ate the famous Pun Chun's duck herbal soup noodle and the tasty yam-cake. Remember my favourite Usain Bolt simply loves eating yam in order to run fast!

When we reached Cameron Highlands, the 1st thing I like most is its cool weather. It's simply awesome! I told Wai Mun we may settle down here when we are old and retired.

Without wasting any time, we adjourned to the T-Cafe (to be known as Lord's Cafe soon) at Tanah Rata for some scones, pancake, pies and strawberry tea for lunch. I like the decor of the cafe as it's simple yet cosy. The price is also reasonable and in fact some travellers claim its scone as the cheapest in the highland.

As if we were still not satisfied with our appetite, after an hour or two, we went for the most expensive scones in town at Ye Ole Smokehouse for an English afternoon tea. Although the decor inside the hotel cum restaurant is very exclusive and elegant, it didn't stop these two "hungry ghosts" from walking straight to the garden for an outdoor english fare! Yes, nothing could beat God's created natural beauty! We had wonderful time together enjoying the greens and flowers. Oh yes, did I mention the scones here are excellent! I would rate the Devonshire cream tea as average. In fact, I prefered the strawberry tea at T-Cafe more.

After checking into Star Regency Hotel & Apartments in Brinchang, we took a short walk to the nearby pasar malam. Most of the vendors sell almost identical farming stuff; such as the popular strawberries, vegetables, flowers, fruits, corns and honey. Flowers from Camerons...ah, I remembered the time I bought a dozen or two roses from Cameron Highlands for Wai Mun when I first court her more than 10 years ago! So, you can imagine how this lovely town has captured a spot in my heart!

We had steamboat dinner in the hotel. Ms Julie Wong, the organizer, was so thoughtful as she sponsored some mooncakes since the autumn winter festival fell on the day itself.

We called it a day after our dinner.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The morning air was cold. For the first time I didn't take any shower before a run. Ooops, sorry!

We drove to the padang (field) in front of Century Pines Resort at Tanah Rata. After a short warm-up at 7.45am, some 40 strong runners started their own journey. I believed everyone has their own target in tackling this 12km challenge. As I'm still recovering my form, I intend to use this run as a practice to improve my endurance. Needless to say, the 6km gruelling uphill from Tanah Rata to Brinchang has offered me what I need at the moment. Wai Mun did quite well as she managed to pace with me throughout the race.

Upon reaching our hotel at Brinchang, we were required to turn back to Tanah Rata which is another 6km downhill. Although it's much easier to run downhill, I was worried the slide might cause the recurrance of my leg injuries.

After 65 minutes of running, we reached the finishing line together. While Wai Mun's triumph was expected as she led all the way, I unexpectedly got 2nd placing in Men Veteran category. A gold and a silver strawberry medal added to our collection of medals now! Lovely!

Post race was some light hearted moments spent catching up with friends, exchanging pleasantries while enjoying some light breakfast at the vicinity.
Thank you to Julie Wong for a well-organised race. We have had a good time in Cameron Highlands, just like the one in Christmas Island organised by your good self. For those who are interested to take part in future races organised by Ms Julie, kindly keep a lookout on her blog. She may organise one in either Sabah or Bali next year.

How To Retire

2009-09-25T16:13:00.003+08:00

I found the following article pretty interesting. Please read on:

HOW TO RETIRE
4 Pre-Conditions for Retirement

I retired in year 2000 at age 52. I am now 61, thus I can claim that I got more experience at retirement than most! I thought I should share my experience with mariners because I have seen too many friends and neighbours who became so bored that they have become a nuisance to their spouse and children and to others!

A few of them have solved the problem by going back to work. They were able to do so because they have a skill/expertise that is still in demand. The rest (and many are my neighbours) live aimlessly or are waiting to die - a very sad situation, indeed..

You can retire only when you fulfil these 4 pre-conditions:

1) Your children are financially independent (e.g. they got jobs),
2) You have zero liability (all your borrowings are paid up),
3) You have enough savings to support your lifestyle for the rest of your life,

AND most importantly,

4) You know what you would be doing during your retirement.

DO NOT retire till you meet ALL 4 Pre-Conditions. And of course you should not retire if you enjoy working and are getting paid for it!

The problem cases I know of are those who failed to meet Pre-Condition #4.

When asked, "What would you be doing during your retirement?"
some replied, "I will travel/cruise and see the World". They did that, some for 3 months and then ran out of ideas. The golfers replied, "I can golf every day." Most could not because they are no longer fit to play well enough to enjoy the game. Those who could,need to overcome another hurdle - they need to the find the
"kakis" to play with them.

It's the same with mahjong, bridge, badminton, trekking and karaoke - you need "kakis"! Most could not find others who share their favourite game and playing/singing alone is no fun. AND when they do find them, a few of them found that they are NOT welcomed like my obnoxious neighbour whom everyone avoids.

Thus if you are into group sports or games, you must form your groups BEFORE you retire. You need to identify your "kakis", play with them and discover whether they "click" with you.

The less sporty "can read all the books bought over the years". I know of one guy who fell asleep after a few pages and ended up napping most of the time! He discovered that he did not like to read after all. We do change and we may not enjoy the hobbies we had..

Routine Activities To Fill Your Week

For most people, your routine work activities are planned for you or dictated by others and circumstances. When you retire, you wake up to a new routine - one that you yourself have to establish as nobody else would do it for you!

The routine to establish should keep your body, mind and spirit "sharpened". A good routine would comprise:

a) One weekly physical sport - you need to keep fit to enjoy your retirement. If you are the non-sporty type, you should fire your maid and clean your home without mechanical aids. Dancing and baby sitting are good alternatives.

b) One weekly mind stimulating activity - e.g. writing, studying for a degree, acquiring a new skill, solving problems or puzzles, learn or teach something. You need to stimulate your mind to stay alive because the day you stop using your brain is the day you start to die.

c) One weekly social activity - choose one involving lots of friends/neighbours.. Get yourself accepted as a member to at least 3 interests groups. Unless you prefer to be alone, you do need friends more than ever as you get older and less fit to pursue your sport.

d) One weekly community service activity - you need to give to appreciate what you have taken in this life. It's good to leave some kind of legacy.

With 4 weekly activities, you got 4 days out of 7 covered. The remaining 3 days should be devoted to family related activities. In this way, you maintain a balance between amusing yourself and your family members. Any spare time should remain "spare" so that you can capitalise on opportunities that come your way like responding to an unexpected request to do a job or to take advantage of cheap fares
to see places or to visit an exhibition.

Mind stimulating activities

Most judges live to a ripe old age. They use their brains a lot to decide on cases. I am sure MM Lee's brain works overtime. He's 80+ and still going strong. In "Today" you would have read of 2 inspiring oldies. One is a granny who learned to play the guitar at age 60 to entertain his grandchildren. She's 70+ today and those grandchildren have grown to play with her. Another is an Indian radiologist who on retirement, qualified as an acupuncturist. He's age 77 and still offers his services (by appointment only) including free ones to those who have no income. I guarantee you that they are happy people who discovered a "2nd wind" to take them to the
sunset with a smile on their faces.

Mind stimulating activities are hard to identify. They require your will to do something useful with the rest of your life, a mindset change and the discipline to carry it through.

Your Bucket List

Despite your busy routine, you will at times be bored. Then it's time to turn to your Bucket List.

Your bucket list contains a list of things to do before you kick the bucket. They are not routine and are usually one off activities. You need them to have something to look forward to. These include anniversaries, trips (and pilgrimages), visits to friends and relations abroad, re-doing your home, attending conferences (related to your hobbies), acquiring a new set of expertise. 4 such activities that are spaced our quarterly would be ideal.

Retirement Is A Serious Business

If you can afford to retire and want to, do prepare to live to your fullest. You need to be fit to enjoy it - therefore get into shape now. You do not want to get up on a Monday and wonder what to do each week, therefore identify your set of weekly routine activities now and try them out to confirm that they are the activities that you will be looking forward to doing each week, week after week. You bucket list
of "rewards" or "projects" or "challenges" is needed to help you break away from the routine thereby make live worth living. Start listing what you fancy and refine it as you chug along in your retirement. You will have so much fun, you would wish you were retired since your turned 21!

Adidas King Of The Road 2009

2009-08-02T19:39:00.009+08:00

1:49:19. Wow! I'm really pleased with this timing as I was taking this 22.7km-half marathon rather easy - no pushing, just plain pacing. And, I came back feeling good unlike last year where I was totally exhausted due to too much energy being used to tackle the hills and manoeuvre around the round-abouts that Shah Alam city has to offer.

What I like about this year's edition is the start and end of the run is at the stadium. That itself solves a lot of logistic problems - parking, toilet, seating etc.

After five back-to-back competitions for the last one month or so, and with the fasting month approaching, I am really looking forward to a well deserved rest now - to re-charge, re-focus and of course to recover from my plantar fasciitis injury.

Till then, stay healthy.

P/S Picture courtesy of Jason Lee. For more photographs, please view from KC's blog.

Pattaya Marathon 2009 as a Pacer

2009-07-26T15:02:00.039+08:00

If I have one word to describe the Pattaya Marathon - it was like Tom Yam whereby it has a mixture of flavours...hot, spicy, sweet and sour. The weather was also a mixture of humid, cool, warm, strong headwind and light drizzle (which we didn't get to enjoy as we were already in the hotel). The terrain was quite tough and challenging especially after halfway mark - lots of inclines with 2 big hills at approximately 36km and 38km!

When we were at the starting line at 4.30am local time, we were already drenched due to the high humidity. After the start, I just set a pace where I felt was comfortable enough to bring us, Patrick Lee and I, back within 4 hours. Patrick was determined to do a sub 4 hour after his close encouter in the recent SC KL marathon. I am also as committed to help him in achieving his target.

After a left turn out of the town, the weather turned slightly cooler and breathable. When we reached 10km, my watch showed 54.17. I told Patrick we were on the right track as I estimated we could finish in 3:51 with 9 minutes backup. I didn't know if my words of encouragement have a positive or negative impact on him as he seemed to be charging ahead whenever he saw a runner in front of us. Is he purely motivated or is he secretly setting a higher target? I didn't know. What I knew was I was trying to keep up with his pace at times. Of course it's not fair for me to slow him down if he was in good form that morning. True enough, when we reached 20km mark, our time was 1:47 instead of the initial plan of 1:50!

At 21km, he started breathing quite heavily. I told him to concentrate on his breathing as I sensed that he has started to slow down his pace. The start of the inclines at this point didn't help at all. I forgo my targeted pace and tried to "pull" him out of his doldrums. I thought I succeeded but not too long, when we arrived at the 26km mark, he signalled me to go ahead. Before I bade farewell to him, I told him he could still make it as there's a 9 minutes backup. Then I soldiered on myself.

From then on, the journey was quite lonely and boring. As we turned into the coastal area from 32km onwards, there was a strong headwind that we had to encounter. Although it was a hindrance, I welcomed it wholeheartedly. But then, at 36km mark, I faced the biggest challenge of this race. Ahead of me stood a big hill almost one kilometre long...I almost wanted to give up! I managed to brave myself and ran as fast as a snail! This was fortunately followed by 1-km downhill which was a huge relief!

As we made another turn, I almost fainted with what I beheld - another slope like our own Double Hill! Try to imagine running Double Hill after having run 38km and you will get what I mean.

The last 4km was just a test of mental strength. I did a swift mental calculation and gosh, I might fall out of 4 hours! Faint or die, I had to increase my pace and finally, I crossed the finishing line in 3:58.19.

Official result:
Name Net Time Cat. Position Overall Position
1) John 3:58.19 45 144

2) Wai Mun 4:20.42 9 229

3) Patrick 4:31.33 24 287

4) Chooi Lin 4:51.10 5 372

5) Uncle Hooi 4:59.57 2 405

6) Teresa 5:42.46 7 533

7) Francis DNF

Half Marathon:
1) Agnes Tee 1:58.04 12 367

2) Peter Lim 2:22.47 74 807

10KM:
1) Gary Goh 1:04

A big thank you to the Thai Organisers for their hospitality, generosity and an event well organised. What amazed me most is runners get to run on three/four lanes and only one lane is open to the traffic. The ratio will definitely the reverse in Malaysia!

My appreciation also goes to my good friend, Gary Goh for making all the arrangements for a smooth and enjoyable trip in Bangkok and Pattaya.

Congratulations to the age-group winners - Uncle Hooi and Chooi Lin for winning some cash prizes.

To Patrick, I'm sorry I failed to assist you in achieving your aim. Nevertheless, with your determination and endless effort I'm sure you'll be able to achieve your sub-4 the next marathon.

Seremban Half Marathon 2009

2009-07-12T17:44:00.012+08:00

Unlike the eve of SCKLM where I couldn't sleep at all, I slept and rested well last night. I would normally have butterflies in my stomach at the eve of any race and my adrenalin would be so high that I'm unable to sleep. Therefore, having such a sound sleep came as a surprise to me as I was secretly hoping that I could break into Top 10 position in the Men Veteran category in the absence of top runners as a result of various competitions held on the same morning.

Wai Mun and I reached Seremban around 6.10am and quickly kept in touch with Mr Yee who is so kind to help us to register for this race and to collect the BIB numbers on our behalf. Many thanks to you, Mr Yee!

Quickly we did some light stretching and I also "helped" to water a plant (pee!...smile). Some past experiences reminded us that there wouldn't be announcements for the race to start, so we headed to the starting line slightly early.

True enough at 6.45am sharp, the race started. I tried running fast and started to attack from the beginning. Alas, I found my legs were too heavy this morning and my rhythm has gone hay-wire! I tried to keep my composure and suddenly I heard the "beep, beep, beep" sound. The road marshall who was directing the leading pack on the motorbike had apparently made a blunder leading the elite runners to the wrong turn and had to lead them back to the correct path. I could hear a lot of grumbles especially from the elite runners while they jumped over the road divider. The poor African Express who could have easily run an extra km!

Soon, we were led to the new route with long rolling hills. I'm not familiar with Seremban but I think it should be a new highway leading to Paroi. It would be nice and enjoyable to run if I wasn't struggling to find my rhythm at that moment. My legs felt rusty.

My "best friend" finally came when I almost arrived at the first sponging station. "What take you so long?", I whispered. With the second-wind and renewed confidence, I tried to narrow the gap and catch up with whoever who was in front of me even though they might be way, way ahead.

I conquered the hills - quite a few of them. I hydrated myself. I sponged. I inhaled fumes. I ignored traffic. Soon I reached the padang in 1:40:52, still with some energy to spare, no thanks to the last distance marker which indicate - 2km to go, when all we needed to run was only about 500 metres! Misleading.

I came in 16th. in the Men's Veteran category. Mission failed but I wasn't sad as it's just a guideline for a better performance in future races. Congrats to those who finished ahead of me! I reckon that I need to run below 1:36 if I ever dream to achieve Top 10 again.

Wai Mun came in 1:51 for a 11th position. However, she is the 7th Malaysian lady to cross the finishing line, thus won some prize money - enough to cover our expenses for petrol and toll and of course, buy me Seremban siew pau!

Despite some minor hiccups and shortcomings, Seremban HM organiser deserves a pat on their shoulder as they did make an effort to improve in providing adequate water/isotonic drink and sponge stations, shortening prize-collection time and most importantly re-designing 60% of their route which is now more conducive for runners. Thank you, Seremban HM Organiser!

Now, I'm fighting against time to recover for a bigger challenge - another full marathon next weekend.

My Personal Marathon Records

2009-07-05T13:20:00.013+08:00

After the SCKLM, suddenly I became curious and wonder how many 42.195kms I have done since I'm into this game. This morning, I quickly compiled and realized that I have completed just 16 marathons and the recent timing in SCKLM2009 was my best so far in Kuala Lumpur, a place I enjoy running the least!

Another finding is that after 10 times of trial and error, I finally get the right marathon training programme that works for me. Perhaps age is also another factor that contributed to a sub-4 performance. What I lack in speed now due to aging, I had to compensate with mental strength - the never-give-up attitude until I cross the finishing line.

Below my humble records:

NO DATE TIME PLACE
1 27-5-1990 4:56.28 Kuala Lumpur
2 12-5-1991 4:16.16 Kuala Lumpur
3 31-5-1998 3:50.32 Penang
4 30-5-1999 4:11.16 Penang
5 2001 4:13.41 Kuala Lumpur
6 3-6-2001 3:57.45 Penang
7 2-6-2002 3:49.48 Penang
8 16-2-2003 4:11.40 Kuala Lumpur
9 11-1-2004 4:28:27 Walt Disney World, Orlando
10 6-3-2005 3:56.18 Kuala Lumpur
11 10-9-2006 3:43.14 Putrajaya
12 24-12-2006 3:33.15 Chiangmai
13 17-6-2007 3:53.31 Phuket
14 24-6-2007 3:56 Penang
15 7-12-2008 3:38.18 Macau
16 28-6-2009 3:47.30 Kuala Lumpur

With my 17th marathon coming soon this 19 July, I'm still uncertain about my approach towards this marathon. Should I go for a lower sub-4 or help my wife and a fellow runner achieve their first ever sub-4 (if they are willing to accept my pacing)? I still don't know. Whatever it is, just wish us luck in Pattaya! Thank you.

Official Result for SCKLM 2009

2009-07-01T09:05:00.008+08:00

NAME: TAN JOHN YAM
EVENT: Full Marathon
DATE: Sunday, June 28, 2009
BIB/DIV: 1656 / M4044
TIME: 3h:48m:21s (gun) / 3h:47m:30s (net)
Position 126 (067) (dapat cari makan in Cantonese? hehehe...)

Analysis:
Result in Entire Field - 140th place
1351 finishers behind. About 9% of finishers ahead.

Result in Gender (Male) - 121st place
1164 finishers behind. About 9% of finishers ahead.

Result in Division (M4044) - 15th place
181 finishers behind. About 7% of finishers ahead.

Who's who
Of the 1491 who finished, 14% were female and 86% were male.

Opposite Sex
For the record, you were ahead of about 91% of female finishers.

Timing Info
Your start delay: 51s.

From Halfway to Finish
You passed 64 runners and 5 passed you.

NAME: YAP WAI MUN
EVENT: Full Marathon
DATE: Sunday, June 28, 2009
BIB/DIV: 0353A / F4549
TIME: 4h:16m:15s (gun) / 4h:15m:28s (net)
Position 033 (008)

Analysis:
Result in Entire Field - 300th place
1191 finishers behind. About 20% of finishers ahead.

Result in Gender (Female) - 31st place
175 finishers behind. About 15% of finishers ahead.

Result in Division (F4549) - 3rd place
23 finishers behind. About 8% of finishers ahead.

Opposite Sex
For the record, you were ahead of about 79% of male finishers.

Timing Info
Your start delay: 47s.

From Halfway to Finish
You passed 163 runners and 9 passed you.

Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009

2009-06-28T18:57:00.016+08:00

By far this is the most suffering marathon that I've ever run. It's not so much of the traffic fume, route terrain, the heat or anything like that. It's because I have to run the second half of my run with a huge blister that developed due to my own carelessness and folly!

Before I start writing the Race Report, I would like to thank Sam Pritchard for pacing with me throughout the Race until 37km where I lost touch with him. Pacing with him really helped in taking some pain off my mind for a while during the run.

The marathon started at 5am sharp with drizzle on top of our heads. It cooled down the weather and I was sure most runners were glad with that.

Not long after the start, I found Sam and I just tagged along with him as his pace suits me well. When we reached Jalan Travers, I was pleasantly surprised to find Tomoko San cheering us on by the roadside. "Gambate!" she said. Thank you Tomoko San for making an effort to wake up early to give support to the runners. How I wish most Malaysian, especially KL-lite share this kind of spirit!

Due to the rain, some potholes were covered with water. I managed to avoid all of them except the one at Cheras water station (@13km). While I was busy sipping a cup of drink, I stepped into that pool of water. My right shoe and sock instantly got wet. As this is a new pair of shoe, it has not been seasoned enough to withstand the wetness. The rubbing sensation began thereafter and my biggest fear came true when at around 20km I could feel a blister developing! What a bad timing as this happened when we were entering into the heart of the city where we were required to make many turnings. With each turn, the pain became more unbearable. I kept telling myself to stay focus and shut down the pain system.

Approaching Istana Negara (@32km), I found that stretch a big killer. The hilly terrain and sharing of a single lane with the fellow runners from 21km and 10km threw my ryhthm up-side-down. I struggled up the dreaded Wisma Tani route at a pace where I think a snail can easily overtake me!

Needless to say, my last 5km was just a matter of surviving - to keep one leg in front of the other. I was a total spent force when I crossed that finishing line to the extent that even to wave to supporters and friends was a big issue!

My watch showed 3:47:51 and I think my official time will be around 3:48:18.

Wai Mun ran back in a relaxing mood in 4:16 and bettered her previous time in Macau. So proud of her!

My hard-earned medal.

Meanwhile, I would like to congratulate those who have completed their maiden marathon this morning ie. Ronnie See, Lynn Toh, Sook Ying, Julie Wong and my fellow office mates, May and Wendy for completing their 1st 10km run.

Klang Pacer Half Marathon 2009

2009-06-07T19:39:00.010+08:00

Date : 7 June 2009

Venue : Setia Alam, a new township between Klang and Shah Alam. Having Setia Alam as the race venue for the very first time, some runners have problem locating the place while collecting their running BIB on the eve of Race Day and/or finding the parking space on the morning itself. The plus point is there are not many vehicles plying around this area, hence a conducive environment for running.

Time : The race was supposed to start at 6.30am. But there was a slight delay as the organiser was sorting out the ribbons in the dark before the runners gathered at the cordon off area. I reckoned this could have been done much earlier during the reporting. Luckily the crowd is not huge enough to create major havoc!

Weather : Hazy, hot & humid. I could smell the haze upon stepping out of my car. Fortunately the major sponsor, SP Setia has a cosy and comfortable Welcome Centre, so I stayed indoor most of the time prior and after the Race!

Route & distance : 21.4km where runners have to make a total of 5 U-turns, 15 turns & cross 3 fly-overs at least twice. No wonder I'm still tired while typing this....!

The Organiser : Despite the above minor hiccups, I feel the overall event is well managed and organised. Kudos to the Organiser! Water station is sufficient. What a bonus when I got a Powergel in the middle of the run! And what I like the most is we need not produce any coupons for food and drinks after the Race! We can eat/drink as much as we like! It would be better if distance markers are provided in the future.

My target : Even though it's part of my training for this coming SCKLIM on 28 June, and also my first week of incorporating some speedwork into my programme, I still expect myself to dip below 1:40.

My performance & result : Unlike usual, I started fast just to test out how long I could last at that pace. I think I did reasonably well except for the slope at fly-over which I found it to be quite taxing and challenging! I managed to maintain my form and focus until about 2-3km before the finishing. I totally lost focus towards the last one kilometre. Luckily I managed to gather all the strength I have for the last 100m push. Time: 1:42:24. Position: 12th. Looks like there are still lots of work to be done for the next 2-3 weeks!

Last but not least, wife did around 1:55 for a 7th position. Congrats to her and all the other runners! Many thanks to the Klang Pacers for organising this event, sponsors and especially the volunteers! The designs of medal and trophy are quite impressive too. I also appreciate fellow runners who gave their support and encouragement to me along the way.

Bidor Half Marathon 2009

2009-05-01T18:11:00.009+08:00

Picture courtesy of Lynn Guan.

April 26 was D-Day to test my fitness level.

Like last year, we drove to Bidor in the wee hours of the morning at 4.30am and arrived at the town about 6am.

We quickly called our friend, Gary Goh to collect our BIB from him. Thanks Gary for picking up the BIB on our behalf. I ate 3/4 piece of Power Bar (never fancy this - I ate just because it's expiring soon!) and gulped a can of Red Bull. And I was all ready to charge!

The race started at around 7am, somehow I didn't run as fast as last year. It's probably due to a delay of finding my own rhythmn and also the increase number of participants. I was a bit lost in the sea of runners! I heard the numbers had increased to 1,600 strong participants this year. Wow! Good on you, Bidor HM organiser. You certainly deserved it!

After struggling for around 7km, I finally found my rhythm. I just kept on that momentum and tried to stay focus. After the turn at 10km mark, we encountered some undulating terrain. Surprisingly I found it to be tougher and more challenging than last year. Again, I reminded myself to stay positive and not put my thoughts too much on the slopes.

I think I did reasonally well for the remaining 5km as I was still quite comfortable with my pace - of course the downhill really helps!

I crossed the finishing line in 16th position (Veteran Category) with a time of 1:41:04. Despite a poorer result compared to last year (1:39:24 in 4th position), I am extremely happy as I know I have gained back my level of endurance after a short 3-week training. Of course there are more trainings to be done before I can say I'm ready for the 42km-challenge of Standard Chartered KL Marathon in June.

Orange Run

2009-04-12T13:36:00.014+08:00

Picture courtesy of Ben Swee.

This is my 1st "race" after my surgery recently. After a one-month lay-off with zero activites - not even cycling, I knew my fitness level is far off the level I need for a competition. I struggled all the way to-and-back Hartamas last Sunday - I took almost 2 hours for a run that could be finished in 1 1/2 hours.

As I planned to treat this 11-km run as a Sunday morning work-out, I queued quite a distance from the starting line, together with Ironman Lee Puh Heng, IM-wannabie Bobby Wong and come-back-kid Tan Chee Wee.

As soon as honk went off, we were sandwiched by crowd of runners. Obviously, the response for this zero-entry-fee race is overwhelming! Suddenly I felt the urge to go loo, so I ran to the nearby McDonald outlet to ease myself - it's kind of first for me in this run.

After that "pit-stop", I waited for a while as I knew the organiser is going to release the female "bulls" soon. True enough, the honk sounded for the second time and within seconds, I saw Lian, Lee Chin, Yu Fang, Michelle Tan and other top ladies came charging.

Suddenly my wife called out, "Hey! What are you doing here?". I told her I would like to pace with her. And off we went.

Her pace was fantastic. I felt quite comfortable throughout. I led on the uphills and she was ahead at the downhills. It felt like two oranges rolling and see who gets to the finishing line first!

With about 5km to go, my wife signalled me to go ahead as she is still tired, recovering from her recent 3-day ritual walk from Batu Caves to Maran (total distance 204km). We bade farewell to each other. I increased my pace and soon I found a new pacer in Lok Jr. This 16-year-old young man is excellent and fast. I just followed him closely and prayed hard that I could cope and not be outrun by him!

Thank goodness, my prayer was answered and I managed to pull away with about 1km to go. I felt really good as I could still finish strong. And not forgetting to thank my two pacers - my wife for her consistency and Lok Jr for his speed. It was indeed a good work-out!

Next stop: Bidor Half Marathon on 26 April 2009 - A test of endurance for me.

After 40!

2009-03-18T21:29:00.002+08:00

They said life begins after 40 for a man. Yeah, I believe!

Because :-

After 40, there were many firsts for me.

After 40, I discovered that long-sightedness has seeped in and therefore, blurring my vision whenever I turn to read a book.

After 40, I'm losing more hairs than I ever expected and my wife thinks it's natural.

After 40, my body is scarred from that cycling accident which made me "more manly" and wiser. (Ha! Ha!)

After 40, I had my first operation done last week and stayed in the hospital for the very first time (and last, I hope).

BUT the positive side of it is : After 40, I now upgraded myself to the Men Veteran category in some running races and managed to "cari makan".

Indeed, after hitting 40, life has just begun .....

Teenage-handbag-thief Outpaced By 72-year-old Ex-sprinter

2009-02-13T19:42:00.001+08:00

Thought the following article interesting, please read.

GE30k 2009

2009-01-18T12:23:00.007+08:00

Happy New Year!

And what a way it was...to welcome this ox year of 2009 with a bull run in the Great Eastern 30km Race this morning!

Admittedly, I didn't prepare much for this year's edition due to a few reasons. One of them is most of my targetted races will only be held in mid and 3rd quarter of the year. The second one is I was rather unlucky to sprain my right ankle on Tuesday. I blamed it on my working shoes!

Nevertheless, I did a recce 2 weeks ago on this new 30km-route after analysing the entry form. Man! It was confirmed tough with many rolling hills!

So now, can you imagine how an unfit and limping fat bull like me struggling up and down the hills! Neither way was easy for me.

Despite all the challenges, I'm glad my run was rather consistent - 51 minutes every 10km for a 2:33:45 finish, beating my conservative target of 2:45.

Looking forward to more competitions to come so as to motivate me to start training again for 2009.

Till then, stay healthy and Happy Chinese New Year to those celebrating!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2008-12-24T18:18:00.009+08:00

Pictures taken during last Sunday's Malakoff 12km Run. A big thank you to all the photo contributors.

And, Santa & Santarina themselves received this lovely Christmas e-Card from Macau...Ho! Ho! Ho! What a pleasant surprise!

Maratona Internacional de Macau 2008

2008-12-10T21:12:00.074+08:00

5 Dec 2008, Friday.
When we touched down at the Macau International Airport, my first impression was the weather was freezing cold. The wind was strong and I felt like turning back to the plane and head home to Malaysia. At that point, I wondered how I could last running 42km come Sunday's Race Day with minimal clothing on.

Upon checking into the GrandView Hotel, we walked to the Macau Stadium (Taipa) which is situated about 300 metres away to collect our BIB and Timing Chip. We didn't expect much and were pleased to receive so many goodies which included a nice shoulder bag, souvenir programme and marathon magazine. (Later, after the race, we were again given a full-sized beach towel, a good-quality finisher t-shirt and of course a huge medal.) For a mere MOP300 (or RM133) registration fee, I think it's value for money!

6 Dec 2008, Saturday.
Wai Mun and I basically spent the whole day sight-seeing the world heritage site around The Ruins of St Paul, eating the famous Portugese tarts, shopping for almond cookies and visiting the Macau Tower. Regretably, I didn't do the bungie jump at the Tower as I had wished earlier as the whopping entry fee had my heart jumped off my mouth!

7 Dec 2008, Sunday (Race Day)
I managed to sleep for only two and a half hour. When I got out of the bed at 3am, I felt so legathic. However, I just braved myself and with Wai Mun beside me, we jogged slowly to the stadium. While depositing our luggage, we met some fellow Pacesetters members from KL: Terence Chau, Daniel Tan and the Kuantan Group. Indeed, it's a small world!

With about 20 minutes to go, the stadium gate opened and athletes made a bee-line into the stadium. This is the first time I experienced the Start and Finish of a marathon on the track of a stadium. Wow! I felt like participating in an Olympic event! What's more when I was surrounded by international runners from Macau, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Korea, Australia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Germany, Portugal, UK, USA and many more countries. The race began at 6am. We were blocked by multitude of runners from all categories running the full, half and mini marathon distance! Fortunately, once we "ran" out of the tunnel of the stadium, the crowd started to disperse. The atmosphere was tremendous even though it's a tad pale compared to marathons in the US. Runners were cheered on by groups dressed in Latin, Japanese and circus performers! Cool!

The weather which was my major concern was pretty nice for running. The temperature that morning was 12 degree Celcius with humidity 48%. I didn't sweat much throughout the run. Nevertheless, I still drank at most of the water stations as the air was dry. I got so addicted to the cool weather that I found myself agitated when the breeze stopped blowing especially towards the end of the race when the sun was up.

Runners are never far from the sea in the Macau Marathon since it began in 1981. The marathon route we ran is twice the Half Marathon course, which means following the waterfront for much of the way and crossing the spectacular 2.2km Ponte de Sai Van bridge four times. It has always been a run between mainland Macau and the islands of Taipa and Coloane. The course and scenery reminded me of running the Penang Bridge Marathon! Except for the bridge, the course is generally flat with great KM markings and ample of water supplies (what a pity there were no sport drink, banana and power gel provided during the run). Mobile toilets were also adequately prepared, so there was no need to do the business at the bushes! A lot of fun with at least one dedicated road lane at all times, very well staffed and organized. We ran passing some famous hotels eg. MGM Grand, Wynn and the Macau Tower.

Little to no fans to speak of except for near the stadium. Nevertheless, I still had a good time as I was always the centre of attraction and being cheered by the passer-by, road marshalls, volunteers and fellow runners..."Santa, Go! Go! Go!", "Jia Yu, Sheng Tan Lao Ren"....so refreshing and encouraging!

Although I developed a blister and sores around my two armpits during the run, I truly enjoyed my run very much and am looking forward to more marathons to come especially those in the cold weather.

For the record, I did my second best time here in Macau.
Overall Rank = 167
Category Rank = 54
Official Time = 3:39:11
Chip Time = 3:38:18
Split Time (21.0975km) = 1:50:22

Wai Mun also did well despite her lower tension inguinal ligament strain injury which resulted lack of training. In fact, she made a comeback after a 6-year absence from marathon running. For that, she made an effort to finish in 4:21:33 (Chip Time) or 4:22:26 (Official Time). She ranked 9th in her Category and 368th in Overall. As usual, I'm so proud of her!

Running a full marathon is never easy - with or without injury, pain or no pain...we just got to respect that 42.195km. So, to all those who completed the marathon last week, be it in Singapore, Phuket Triathlon, Cambodia or Macau...just give yourself a pat on the back. We all deserve that, don't we?

Last but not least, Merry Christmas! Ho! Ho! Ho!

Daddy's Love

2008-11-17T08:28:00.003+08:00

This is a True Story:

A son says to his father: 'Dad, would you be willingly to run a marathon with me?'

The father, despite his age and a heart disease, says 'YES'.

And they run that marathon, together.

The son asks: 'Dad, can you run another marathon with me?' Again father says 'YES'.

They run another marathon, together.

One day the son asks his father: 'Dad would please do the Iron Man with me?'

(Now just in case you wouldn't know, 'The Iron Man' is the toughest triathlon in existence; 4km swimming, then 180 km by bike, and
finally another 42 km running, in one stroke).

Again his father says 'YES'

Maybe this doesn't 'touch' you yet by your heart strings... until you see this movie .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJMbk9dtpdY

Powerman 2008

2008-11-10T08:07:00.023+08:00

Venue : Seri Manjung, Perak

Date : 9 November 2008

Start time : 7.30am

Qualifying time : 5 hours

Distance : 11km RUN-64km BIKE-10km RUN

My Simple Goal
My aim was to just finish the race within the qualifying time and win a medal to dedicate to my beloved wife as a gift for our 8th wedding anniversary which happened to fall on the very same day!

My Conservative Race Approach
As it is my maiden participation, my strategy is to stay as comfortable as possible for the first 2 disiplines and as focus as possible in the final run.

A Rocky Journey
It was to be my event of the year and I have started training a year ago, especially on cycling. I used to cycle to school when I was 14-15 years old but that was on a mini bike! So, cycling on a racing bike is a completely new experience for me. It didn't help when I broke my ribs twice in Ijok and Titi during training. I had 3 stitches on my eye brows...the many scars on my chin, arm and thigh have added more life and colour to my short 1-year cycling experience. Thank God I didn't let these negative elements dampen my spirit. I must also thank Wai Mun for her understanding and care as she didn't even complain a bit especially on the second heavy crash in Titi. I guess marrying an athlete is the best decision I've ever made in my life!

As much as I wish to improve on my run by increasing my mileage and speed, I find it quite impossible as my "old faithful friend" - archilles tendon injury came back to revisit me again and again. This is rather frustrating when we all know that the running legs are important in race like Powerman!

I did 2-3 brick trainings to enable the leg muscles to adjust and get used to the requirement on Race Day. I must confess that I failed miserably during those trainings! I couldn't even complete all of them, eventho' it was only half the distance, as I find myself really uneasy running under the hot sun. Having said that, my confidence level went down to practically ZERO! My only motivator is winning the medal for my wife on that special occasion - so by hook or by crook, I told myself that I must cross that finishing line, rain or shine!

The last 2 months prior to Race Day is a big uncertainty as my Scott was still under repair and I had no choice but resorted to stay at home. My anxiety heightened because my fellow training buddies were busy cycling to places. It was only 2 weeks before the Race that I finally got myself back on the saddle again, courtesy of Gerard and Jezamine. They are so kind and generous to lend me their bikes so that I could at least train on them. Then, the night before leaving to Lumut, I received the greatest news that Bike Pro finally got my Scott fixed and returned me. Imagine, my joy...to be able to make my debut on my own bike! Great!

My Virgin Race
At 7.00am, after parking my bike at the designated lot, it was business as usual - photos sessions, chit-chatting, toilet do and light-stretching.

The race was flagged off at 7.30am sharp. I started slowly but steadily. Most of my friends were already ahead. Later, on the second of the 5.5km-loop, I met Lisar who cheered me on and acknowledged that I was holding back but it was good to maintain it that way, especially during the early stage of the race. My official time for Run 1 was 51:46. Transition 1 was a slow 2:37.

Cycling is my weakest link. Therefore, I was not surprise at all when the Ironladies Siok Bee and Lisar zoom passed me at the early stage of this routine! Initially I found the headwind a bit irritating but after a while, I totally forgot about it. Honestly, throughout the ride, I prayed hard that I don't get a flat. I took the risk of not bringing any spare tube and air pump. Thank goodness everything went well in the end. It must be contributed by the good road condition! Special thanks to the polices for manning the 3 junctions! My official bike time is 2:02:32 (average 31.3 km/hour - a PB for me!). Transition 2 was 2:12.

Run 2 was what I dreaded the most. That was the time when you are already so drained and the sun is high up there, burning mercilessly on our heads and skins! I drank one whole bottle of oralites before I continued to run the last 10km. Even with a cap on, I found the heat unbearable. Not long after, I experienced a mild cramp on my thigh twice, I slowed down the pace and to my relief, the pain gradually subsided! The world felt like so slow. As I entered the stadium for my first loop, I heard Wai Mun cheering me, "Good pace. Keep it up". That really boosted my spirit! I just soldiered on for my final 5km. I found the water station a bit stingy; providing just a quarter cup of water! Come on, this is the time when Powerman both the powerful or powerless needed it the most! Nevertheless, with or without enough water, I wanted so badly to cross the finishing line. At last, when I sighted the Start banner I knew the end is near...wooh! friends and supporters cheering me at the sideline. At last I touched the finishing line with an official time of 3:53:51and ranked 11th in 40-44 age category, the 84th male to hit the tape. My Run2 was timed 54:41.

When I received my first Powerman Medal, I hung it over my wife's neck and feeling good to know that she is so proud of me because she told me so!

Will I do it again?
Like with any marathon races, after the pain is gone and forgotten, you will certainly see us again hitting the road and burning the rubber in no time. Therefore - we'll meet again next year!

Christmas Island Flora and Fauna Half Marathon

2008-10-15T20:25:00.012+08:00

4th October 2008 - Christmas Island...here we come!! We ran a different marathon here - running into the bushes, gravel road, woods and then back to the 'pain-my-ass' road again before turning back to the woods and ending at the field. Even though I was suffering badly, especially my buttock due to an injury a week before, I enjoyed this run very much as it brought us back to nature.

Although the run was delayed for an hour from the original 7am, participants did not complain much as the weather was still cooling. I can imagine if this were to happen in Malaysia, most of the runners would have already voiced their anger! Except for this minor hiccup, I think the Organiser has done a great job as a first-timer. Water stations were adequate. Distance markers were clearly displayed at every kilometre. Warm and friendly faces were there to greet us at the finishing line. A choice of burgers or fish n' chips and ample fruits were served after the race. I couldn't be asking for more except my own fitness and condition which has currently hit rock bottom! Nevertheless, I am happy to be the fifth runner to cross the finishing line in a time of 1:45:59. Every runner was presented a medal, certificate and a running vest.

Wai Mun made me (and the nation? hahaha!) proud when she came back third in the women category even with a detour of about 6km! Well, the dreamer and her day-dreaming again! Hahaha!

For additional reports and pictures, please read Wai Mun and Julie's blog.

Report : PCC Interstate

2008-09-03T22:16:00.004+08:00

Woh, I'm recovering well thus far. The doctor has removed the 3 stitches above my right eye brow today. While the pain is still there, it's bearable. I'm still going for dressing on my left elbow every other day. The doctor said it's healing pretty well and the wound is clean. Some dead skin have started to shed.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the well-wishers and also those who have helped me during and after my unfortunate mishap. I recalled many cyclists stopped and came forward to help and comfort me even though I don't know some of them. One cyclist asked me to lay down and Kenny Kwan helped by putting my head on the helmet. Someone took care of my bike and its accessories. Few of them asked for my wife's contact number, unfortunately there was no signal at that part of the world. Then Adrian came with his support car and drove me to look for my wife and a clinic.

Dear friends, Wai Mun and I are deeply touched by your kind gestures and assistance. We sincerely wish to say a big "THANK YOU" from the bottom of our hearts.

More reports are featured here.

2008 PCC Interstate Cycling

2008-09-01T15:23:00.010+08:00

The Sceneries

The Peloton

The Camaraderie

The Support

Local Famous

The Casualties

Shape Run

2008-08-24T12:16:00.004+08:00

As the name suggested, this 10km run is really for the "out-of-shape" people like me, to participate and have some fun. So when the opportunity arose, I just got a spare BIB to run to sweat it out!

Surprisingly, even though we had cycled almost 70km yesterday, my legs still have the power to push the distance. I think I must be running under the influence of Usain Bolt - my new idol! I was the 7th person in my category to cross the finishing line. My time was 45:10, no bad for a Sunday-runner like me.

Although I was not entitled to any prize due to technical reason but what the heck, I was very satisfied with my performance! I think I'm almost ready for the Powerman. I just need to start training seriously in the next 2 months and hope to peak by November 9.

Wai Mun didn't want to let me outshine her - she also got 7th position. It's always great to have such a competitive life partner to make our life interesting, isn't it?

2008 Adidas King Of The Road

2008-08-10T16:51:00.005+08:00

This year's KOTR event venue was shifted to Shah Alam instead of Sunway. Nevertheless, I think overall the 2008 Adidas KOTR was well organised. It could be flawless if plain water stations were also provided (organiser provided only isotonic drink!) and distance markers were displayed.

As the entry form stated that the distance will be a 22.7km half marathon, I had mentally prepared myself that it's going to be a long race. However, the never-ending of uphills and round-abouts had really caught me by surprise! I should rename this KOTR as "Killer Of The Round-abouts".

And if this was not enough, another surprise awaited me at the finishing line - I won RM200 for my 10th placing! With a timing of 1:47:46, I believe I was really lucky today because under the normal circumstances, I would certainly be empty-handed.

To add to my joy, Wai Mun also won the same amount with a 10th placing! We celebrated our rewards at the nearby Secret Recipe after the race.

2008 KRI Century Ride Report

2008-07-14T22:00:00.073+08:00

Written by Scott.

Hi! I'm Scott. I'm 5 months old. I'm excited and pleased to share my experience in my 1st cycling competition in Ipoh last Sunday.

I was asleep when John excitedly woke me up to prepare for the Century Ride. Apparently he has already been sleepless 2 nights before the race! Once everything has been set up, John, Wai Mun and I slowly got ourselves to the Starting Point. While John mingled around with his friends like Tomatoman, Gerard, Michelle, Yit Thing, Siok Bee, Lisa, Gane, Chee Chung, Carol and my god father Lok Chan Chuen, I observed and saw so many hi-tech and branded bike, eg Cervelo, Time, Trek etc. Most cyclists looked seasoned and fit. Immediately I had a goose bump! John was to cycle me for 160km this morning and it would be our farthest so far.

When the race flagged off at 7.10am, John and I gingerly started our debut at the back of everyone. It was not a mad rush as we were there just for the experience. Nevertheless, whenever we saw Wai Mun and Bro Tey taking our photos, we posed confidently!

After a few kilometres, a train was formed, led by cyclists wearing the LeTua jerseys. John and I quickly followed them from behind. Michelle and Tomatoman also followed suit. It was so much easier and faster by drafting behind them.

Soon we reached the 20km mark. Suddenly I felt strange and then realised that I had a flatten rear tyre. Oh no! Left with no other choice, I moved to the roadside and wonder what to do as John didn't bring any airpump with him. Fortunately, Tomatoman was kind enough to turn back and came to our rescue! While we were figuring how to fix the tyre, an official mechanic brother came and helped. Soon, everything was settled in 10-15 minutes.

We quickly continued our journey. This time there were no cyclists at sight either in front or back of us. I felt bad and guilty especially to Tomatoman as I have delayed him. Immediately I set a goal in order to put my saviour back to the peloton. I got in front of him and pushed as hard as I could, with him drafting behind. Later, we found ourselves overtaking one or two slower cyclists and then a group of cyclists.

As we reached the kampung-road of Sayong, we were welcomed by a huge incline. There were a few cyclists who got down to push their bike. Still, Tomatoman and I kept pushing and were awed with the rolling uphills and downhills ahead! Yahoo! I totally enjoyed this roller coster ride!

I think I've pushed too hard at the countless uphills that John has his both thighs cramped at about 75km! Being inexperienced, he obviously didn't know what to do at this situation. To come down from the bike and stretch his legs? Or just carry on... but what if he falls down and hurts his rib again later? He was a bit confused but by luck we made a right decision by changing to lighter gear and continued. The cramp just vanished after a while. What a relief!

We reached our first check-point at 76.5km where we met Jason Thiang, Chicken Yong, Ken Kan and Michelle who has done credibly well thus far. John filled his stomach by consuming 2-3 bananas at one go. Jason then suggested that we formed a train and off we went.

I managed to follow Jason and Tomatoman until 88km when John had his second attack of cramp. This time it was on his hamstring. Again, I had to slow down incredibly and soon, the image of Jason and Tomatoman became vague and then slowly disappeared out of sight!

At this point, my average speed was 29.7km/hour. By cycling alone, I knew I couldn't maintain anymore. Therefore I decided to focus on completing the ride instead! Soon, mentally, we were at peace.

We reached another water station at 103km in Manong. John swallowed his packet of power gel provided by the sponsor and refilled his bottle of water. There were now 4 cyclists and we formed a small group and pedalled on. John felt good after this water station perhaps due to the effect of the powergel. Now, I'm left in dilemma - should I increase my speed and move on? or stick to this "not so fast" train? Eventually, I chose the latter as cycling in a group, irregardless of the speed is definitely more fun and easier.

At 118km, we had our final check-point in Kuala Kangsar. I was so glad to meet Tomatoman here. I saw Jason having his breakfast in the nearby coffee shop! Talk about enjoying life...Hahaha! Tomatoman and I wasted no time and continued our journey back to Chemor. Soon, we passed Hospital Kuala Kangsar where John was born (this is the 1st time in his life he actually saw the place of his birth)!

After a few kilometres, sensing that Tomatoman was slowing down, I moved forward hoping that he would follow closely. But it was not to be. Later after the race, he told me he has a leg cramp too! Sorry bro, I didn't realize that.

As John pedalled on alone he was thinking of calling his no 1 supporter - Wai Mun to expect our arrival. But before we reached Chemor, we had to handle so many traffic lights near Sg Siput town. Just like a slow runner taking part in a marathon race, there were no marshalls to take care of your safety towards the tail-end of the race anymore! This is my only regret about this otherwise well-organised event.

After slightly more than 6 hours of cycling, we finally reached the finishing line. Of course there was no grand or powerful ending like what we always see on TV in the Tour De France or Le Tour De Langkawi! But the fact that we were able to overcome some obstacles and complete the whole 160km made us feel so good. Yes, John and I are still proud of ourselves.

P/S many thanks to the following persons:
1) Tomatoman for the tyre repair and pacing,
2) Tey for the wonderful pictures (John didn't know that he looks so stunning until he saw your photos), and
3) my no 1 supporter - Wai Mun for driving me to-and-fro Ipoh. Sorry to keep you waiting so long at the finishing. I promise I'll come back earlier next year.

Till then,

Happy cycling and see you next year in Century Ride!

Still excited,
Scott

Official time : 6'05"
Cycling time : 5'44"
Distance : 159.28km (vary between riders)
Average : 27.7km/h
Max : 57km/h

Position by Age Group : 89/165
Position by Gender : 195/334
Overall Position : 205/361

2008 Century Ride

2008-07-14T21:36:00.008+08:00

One for the album.

Off we go... see you after 160km later.

Home sweet home.

My NO 1 supporter and fan!

Scott and his first medal.

More report coming soon....

What A "Fishy" Experience

2008-06-21T20:52:00.006+08:00

Wai Mun and I went fishing today. Believe me or not if I say we do not need any fishing rod or other equipments, but just use our feet to fish? You'd better be because it's true! However, it's not the normal kind of fishing but a fish therapy. Here, we feed the fishes instead of the fishes feed us.

When we first put our feet in a treatment pool, we giggled and almost cried out. There were many tiny toothless Turkish spa fish, of the Garra rufa species, nibbled off the dead skin on our feet. The feeling? Something between hundreds of tweezers and tiny suction cups gently pecking at your feet.

According to enthusiasts, the feeding sessions by these 9cm- to 12cm-long fish can leave you feeling massaged, glowing and with improved skin.

Many people also believe that the Doctor Fish therapy can cure problems like psoriasis, a disease that causes red, scaly patches to appear on the skin.

After the session, we could immediately feel the difference on our feet. They are much lighter, brighter and smoother. We will surely have more of this session in the future! Who knows, it may even help us run faster!

What A Boring Week

2008-06-14T13:45:00.006+08:00

First of all, I would like to thank all my friends for showing your concern about my injury. For your update, the fracture is slowly recovering now, although there is pain on and off especially whenever I lift my right hand. I hope it won't take long to heal. I'm expecting to start some brisk walking by next week and proceed to jog, run and better still cycle from then onwards. Things gotta be slow and steady. There's no need to rush as I'm not a pro and don't depend on cycling for a living...but currently, I'm just so bored to death! Get me outta this computer...! hahaha!

So what did I do this whole week? Nothing, actually! Except getting up at the wee-hour to watch this Euro 2008 thingy. Frankly, I'm no fan of football. I woke up just because I had a bad headache due to too much sleeping, it seemed. There are a few teams that are quite impressive eg. Holland, Portugal, Croatia and Germany. I always like the Dutch team since Marco Van Basten and Ruud Gullit time. Therefore I wish them a good run in the Championship and be the Champion again! If you see me wearing orange cycling jersey, you know who've won.

As for me, I hope I will share the same spirit as the Dutch and be on top of my game - albeit at my own standard as soon as I'm ready to hit the road again.

Batu Arang Ride

2008-06-08T13:12:00.015+08:00

I had a bad fall yesterday during my ride to Batu Arang. Blame nothing but myself for being careless and not focus while cycling. I hit a patch of sand at one of the corners and "crash" I was down on the ground!!! Thanks goodness, there were sand, mud and grass at the side of the curve, I had a soft landing. I was fortunate cos' if I were to fall to my right, I would end up on the road with some incoming cars behind me. That could spell more disaster!

As I was on the ground, the first thing I did was to try yelling at Dr Raymond who was just 10 metres in front of me to inform him a man is down. Immediately I felt my chest pain and a slight difficulty in breathing. The next thing I did was of course to check my precious bike which every riders would do...hahaha! The last check was then on the damage body, if any?

We - Lisar, Gane, Dr Raymond and myself then continued our journey to Batu Arang. Just a few kilometres to the destination, we had a climb. I must say this is the best part of the whole 100km of our ride. A view from the hilltop overlooking the green and beautiful palm tree estates. Quite refreshing to an otherwise boring, flat and stressful ride where we had to keep a constant look-out for traffic, potholes and any other obstacles.

We met the gang of Emma, Siok Bee, Christie, KK and Randy at a coffee shop in Batu Arang. Apparently, Emma also crashed during the ride but escaped with a minor injury. When they saw the back of my jersey filled with stains and sand, they teased and asked if I had a mountain bike ride instead of a road bike...hahaha! Hey! What are friends for, laughing at each other mishap!

After breakfast, we bade farewell and proceeded with our own journey. Dr, Lisar, Gane and I returned to the same route where we came from. Nothing much happened this time...

As soon as I unclipped my shoe off the pedal and came down from my bike, I instantly felt a sharp pain on my right rib. I predicted something worse than I thought as I've experienced that similar pain before. I broke my rib about 3 years ago during a fall while playing ping-pong! Yeah! I know you can laugh out loud because I am such a fragile old man now!

I went for an x-tray in the evening and confirmed that I've a hair-line fracture on my right rib. Well, nothing major but just a slight pain which I have to endure for the next couple of weeks. Hopefully I can start cycling and running again after a month or two! Meanwhile I will volunteer myself to help man our vehicles at the Bukit Aman car park on Sundays morning.

Lastly, to all my concern friends and teammates, I have one sentence for you - I may be down but I'm not out yet! Keep running and cycling safely and I will be back to join you guys soon!

RMAF Half Marathon

2008-05-25T11:17:00.014+08:00

Not long after we parked our car, we were chartered in a bus to bring us to the starting point of run.

When the race began, fireworks were displayed on the air until we left the 2km long air-way. A good effort made by the organiser although it was not as grand as it was last held in the early 90s.

We were required to run almost the same route as the KLIM. I must say the organiser had done a good job by having the safety cones along the roads and making sure it's safety first for the runners. Water stations were adequate and we were even provided a power gel.

As I have yet to recover from yesterday's cycling, I just made sure I finished the run and qualified for a medal as my birthday gift! I completed in 1:40:16 for a 52nd position. What a good number to buy 2552 or 5225! Hahaha!

Yes! Today I turned 40 and like many people say, life is just beginning! I quite agree with the saying as you may've observed, I have just started cycling and travelling to places I've never heard of before. I'm still learning new things and meeting new friends. I'm so blessed to have met good people so far, people and friends who share the same passion and values in life. May I make a birthday wish here to wish all the friends I know, a healthy and enjoyable life for the years ahead!

Titi Ride

2008-05-24T19:55:00.008+08:00

Yes, I finally exceeded the magical 100KM of cycling in one ride!

This morning, I rode with the Iron Lady - Lisar Onn to a little town in the state of Negeri Sembilan called Titi and back. Honestly, I fell in love with Titi at first sight. This town is so simple, peaceful and clean. I wish to stay here with Wai Mun when we retire. I think she will like it too.

Anyway, we started our ride from Pekan Bt14, proceeded to Pekan Bt18 (Gerard joined us at this point), then Genting Peres (Gerard turned back here) and straight to Titi. After having our breakfast, we continued the journey where we came from earlier.

The route offers a magnificent and scenic view with some mountains and a waterfall at the backdrop. There are plenty of greens. Air is fresh. Furthermore, the weather this morning was fantastic with some mist near Pekan Bt18 and Titi. I assure you this is the best day for cycling! Anyway this is not the highlight of my experience. The highlight is how I struggled up the 14km-long hilly stretch of Genting Peres on the return. If not for Lisar's constant motivation, I think I'd have given up!

Cycling with Lisar is really fun. I confessed I had goose bumps when she called me to join her. I was excited at the prospect of riding with an Iron Lady yet I was worried I would be "tortured" by her - her speed of course! In contrast, she kept reminding me to go slow and save some energy for the return leg. That advice is really a music to my ear! Hahaha! An added bonus to this ride is she makes good cookies too! Now I felt fortunate and really enjoy cycling with ladies! Hahaha!

Thanks to Lisar's company and pacing, we completed the ride at a total distance of 109.76km. Total time 4:29:42. Avg speed 24.4 km/h. Max speed 56.6km/h.

NB 15KM 2008

2008-05-18T13:30:00.005+08:00

As mentioned in my previous posting, I took part in this year's NB 15km just because of this....

Isn't it unique and cute?

Anyway, I finished the run in 1:10:14 for a 58th position in the Overall Men category. Not bad considering I just cycled more than 90km the day before.

The hilly terrains would prove too much for many runners. However judging from their facial expressions, I believe not many would complain about that. Everyone seemed to be satisfied after they had completed their run.

As expected, this race was well organised with sufficient water stations, good traffic management and a runner-friendly running course. Thank you to the volunteers for their effort and time. You did a splendid job!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Saturday, May 17 - We cycled from Pekan 18-Pangsun-Pekan 18-Genting Peres-Tekala-Pekan 18-Pangsun-Pekan 18 for a total distance of 94km. I believe 60% of our ride was at speed of 30km/hour or more, for which I was very pleased with. Our very young team (in experience not in age of course!) has certainly been progressing. Keep it up teammates!

A'Famosa Triathlon 2008

2008-05-11T18:16:00.018+08:00

I can't imagine I did it - I woke up as early as 5am, drove an hour (about 100km), waited almost 3 hours for my turn to race and then drove back - just for that 10km run!

Yes, I was in the thick of action again, this time I was to run in the Mix Relay for the A'Famosa International Triathlon in Melaka. Dr Rum started with swimming which is his forte, our gutsy lady Yit Thing did the riding and I was the anchorman in the running segment.

Mind you, this doctor can really swim! He was one of the first few to come out from the water. By the time he passed the ribbon to our rider, our team was fourth. As Yit Thing is quite new in cycling, we expected our ranking to drop eventually. Nevertheless, she did her very best and came back safely. We were told there was a crash involving 4 riders with one of them having to be sent to the hospital!

Honestly when I received the ribbon, I was in a dilemma : should I go all out or just take it easy as I knew by then we were out of the podium finish? Thank goodness I chose the former. My form today was much better compared to yesterday. Furthermore the stress on my both thighs did not bother me at all while running and that further boosted my confidence level.

After running with all my heart and might for 40:34, I finally hit the tape to complete my first experience in a back-to-back 10km race. Even though the race course is slightly under-distance, I'm very happy and satisfied with my performance this morning. To add icing to the cake, we were surprised to learn that we were 2nd Runner Up during the prize presentation. And this is what we got ....

By the way, I would like to congratulate Tomatoman and Ultraman Yip for their Third placing in the Men Relay, Michelle for her successful debut as a Triathlete and many more who have participated.

Bomba Run 2008

2008-05-10T17:00:00.005+08:00

Picture courtesy of Lee Yin Fook aka Pm40.

This is my first 10km run after don't know how many donkey years! Yes, it's that long! I took part just because I'm into this Powerman thing in Nov or else I would rather sleep in the comfort of my bed! Hahaha! Just kidding!

The Run, on a 10.9km-undulating course, this morning has highlighted some of my weaknesses especially on the strength of my leg muscle as well as the speed. I have also lost my sharpness and credence in this type of short distance running. Thank goodness I still have 6 months to polish them up!

For the record, I did 50:48 for a 28th position. Wai Mun got 8th and earned herself RM100. How envy! I made her buy breakfast after the run. Hehehe!

Bidor Half Marathon 2008

2008-05-03T17:27:00.018+08:00

April 27, 2008.

Woke up at 3.30am. Couldn't sleep any further as the weather this morning was rather hot and humid. I wasn't sure if it was the consequence from overtraining as I did a ride-and-run the day before?

Left home at 4.30am and by 6.00am we already arrived at Bidor. Honestly I was quite sleepy and thought of taking a nap in the car. However, excitement won over the drowsiness and I decided to just get ready for the race.

The race was started at 7am sharp. After 2-3 minutes into running, I could feel the stress on both shin - no thanks to my usual laziness of not doing a proper warm up! Being an experienced runner, I knew the pain will go off eventually, so I just stayed calm. True enough the pain vanished after running 3-4km.

As I was beginning to cruise, I started observing and enjoying the surroundings. The route was generally undulating. There are lots of green and rubber trees. Air was good. The best part was runners basically occupied the whole 2-lane road to ourselves due to the almost zero traffic around this area.

After 5km, we were required to make a u-turn heading back to the town. Upon reaching the town, we turned right to another side of the town. This part is even more hilly but I like it very much as it is quite similiar to our training ground at Bukit Tunku area.

Again after another 5km or so, we made a u-turn and headed back to the finishing line in the town. I was pleased to complete the race in 1:39:24 and was fourth in the Jr Veteran category. Wai Mun came back some 15 minutes later and she was 2nd Runners-up in the ladies category. Some of our friends also won the Top 10 finishers. Congratulations to Ben Swee, Neil, Mr Chin, Jessica, Kim in half marathon and Shahnom, Ronnie See, Chen, Clara Bong in 10km. We were presented with a beautiful medal and trophy.

Special thanks to the event organizers for a well organised and runner-friendly race. Enjoyed the race!

KLIM 2008

2008-04-07T19:38:00.013+08:00

It's just another Sunday morning run for me in the recent KLIM which was held on 30 March. No specific goal! Just want to go out there and have fun!

It's also the event I made my debut in the Junior Veteran category. Gosh! I'm 40 years young now! I can't imagine I've been running for 27 years by now. No wonder I'm starting to look for new adventures and challenges - like cycling and duathlon!

Some people told me I should be excited to get the "upgrade" and enjoy the advantage of competing against the older runners. Alas the truth is the organiser also upgraded those 35 years to the same category. So number 40 became the mean of the age group!

Anyway I was the 31st person from my category to finish the 21.8km half marathon. I clocked a consistent time of 1:45:28. My wife got a Top 10 finishing. Here's her encounter I wish to share with you guys and gals!

I've lined up a few races for this year where I will be at its starting block:
27 April - Bidor Half Marathon (1st timer for the run. Nice medal to be collected)

18 May - NB 15km (sudden change of heart after seeing its cute medal)

25 May - RMAF Half Marathon (heard of its rich history. Coincide with my birthday- a must run!)

13 July - Century Ride 160km (it's going to be my virgin ride in an official event!)

29-31 August - PCC Interstate cycling Kajang-Bahau-Kuala Rompin-Kuantan (sooo excited to be part of this mini-LTdL. Probably the ride of my life.)

9 November - Powerman Run/Bike/Run (My event of the year! Also our wedding anniversary)

The Arrival Of A New Family Member

2008-02-18T22:28:00.005+08:00

Welcome our newly "born" son - Scott Pro CR1 aka Scott Tan. It weighs around 7.93kg or 16.6 lbs. The labor cost is RM1x,xxx! Now I can't wait to bring him for a ride this Saturday!

Thanks to Mr Lok Chan Chuen for sparing his time and expertise in selecting the parts of the bicycle.

2008 GE 30KM

2008-01-20T20:31:00.000+08:00

This year I took part in 20km instead of the usual 30km. The reason is obviously due to my lack of training. Nowadays, I only managed to run on Sundays for around 15km-20km and cycle on Saturdays for about 65km. It started since I took up cycling in mid October 2007. These days, running especially on weekdays really requires a huge dose of motivation and inspiration!

Despite the 3-month "lay off", I'm happy I still managed to clock a consistent 1:42:46 this morning to finish at 17th position. Not bad for an old man about to enter into the 40th league in the next couple of months!

Wai Mun puts me to shame as she ran the longer distance and finished 15th with a time of 2:52.

12th Angkor Wat International Half Marathon

2007-12-17T19:44:00.000+08:00

Written by Wai Mun:

When I viewed the beautiful Angkor Wat pictures taken by Runwitme last year, I was inspired to visit the place and at the same time run the Angkor Wat International Half Marathon there.

Therefore, when Air Asia was having a promotional blitz, John & I grabbed the offer and booked ourselves a seat without any hesitation. Two months before the race, Uncle Hooi dropped a hint that he was keen & asked if he could join us. What can we say to this healthy 70 something marathon enthusiast? He certainly deserves to run any race anywhere cos’ he really knows how to appreciate each & every one of them. We welcomed him to board with us just as we welcomed Yew Chee Chung to join us in Chiangmai last year.

Angkor Wat International Half Marathon 2007.
This event is organized by Khmer Amateur Athletics Federation & the National Olympic Committee of Cambodia, co-operated by the Japan Medical Joggers Association & NGO Hearts of Gold. Therefore, it was no surprise to me when I saw the number of Japanese runners turning up to support this marathon. I was fascinated by how an event like this can draw such a multitude of runners from all over the world…from both far & near to come, contribute, run & raise fund in support of the landmine victims, education & prevention of HIV in Cambodia. The response was overwhelming.

Pre Race
We managed to catch up with a local lass, Arun Sinketh (Gary’s girlfriend) the eve of the race. Arun made no mistake when she took us for dinner at Khmer Kitchen. The food there was simply delicious. I took a liking to Khmer food almost instantly as it was healthy, not too spicy & not expensive. Arun works as a Public Relation Personnel at the Angkor Hospital for Children. She shared with us her work at the hospital, her lifestyle and taught us some common greetings in Khmer. John & I felt very blessed to have made new friends every time we travel & the most astonishing part was we didn’t look for them…we just met. Many times, they happened to be our friend’s friend or …we just met.

Race Day
As usual, we woke up during the ungodly hours of the day & hopped into our pre booked tuk-tuk that took us to the marathon site. The morning was rather cold but bearable. When we arrived at the starting point, the magnificent view of the Angkor Wat greeted us. What a sight to behold! We met 3 of our other Malaysian friends – Tee, Subra & Norizan who also came for the race & took photos with them.

Later, a lady approached us & introduced herself as Koo Ai Lin. Ai Lin is a Malaysian working in Singapore for many years. She is also a marathon freak and like us, running & traveling at the same time.

A Different Kinda Race
The running course took us through from the Central Sanctuary of Angkor Wat…passing a series of ancient temples & ruins namely Prasat Kravan – Banteay Kdei / Srah Srang – Ta Prohm – Victory Gate – Bayon – South Gate – Baksei Chamkrong – Phnom Bakheng – Ta Prohm Kei and ended at the front of the Central Sanctuary of Angkor Wat again.

Water stations were adequate. In fact, I found it such a waste to be given a whole bottle of water to runners as most was unable to finish them. The turnout of supporters comprising of mainly little children, never failed to amaze me. They came…waited…clapped…cheered…laughed & offered us their hi-fives! Some were a bit shy and just smiled. Most of them wanted us to clap their little hands or touch their little cheeks when we ran pass them. I slowed down my pace to hold their tiny hands & made sure that I didn’t miss any one of them. Who cares about recording a good running time then?

After the 17km mark, my back began to ache as we were running on the hard surface of the gravel road. My buttocks hurt too. But then…there standing ahead of me, were another row of children. They were waiting to cheer me – their generous applause took my pain away & their giggles warmed my heart. I was truly touched by their simple gestures. They are all so innocent & poor and life is hard on them but they remain happy. I was smiling throughout the last few kilometers admiring the scenes all the way until I reached the finishing line at 21km. Running at a relax pace, I was pleased that I could still clock below 2 hours.

Later, much to my disappointment – there were no position, no prize money & no medals at all. Nevertheless, I comforted myself that the running experience in the World Heritage Site & one of the 7 wonders of the world itself is the prize & it’s priceless!

What made us proud is that we were able to witness how runners from all over the world gathered together in the name of charity (or love) to raise awareness & funds & to help people who are less fortunate in a foreign land. My pain pales in comparison to the millions who have been afflicted by HIV etc. Hopefully, in our lifetime, we will be able to find a cure or some kind of solutions & then John & I will be proud to have played a small part.

An estimate of US$13,000 was raised from this year’s marathon & distributed to different charitable organizations in Cambodia.

Post Race
The rest of the day was spent at leisure. John & I pampered ourselves the much needed massage. Later, while Uncle Hooi & John were having their siesta, I managed to finish reading The Alchemist which left me bewildered cos’ at the end of it, I still find some contents too deep to comprehend. Anyway, we caught up with our new friends Ai Lin & Soo Ling for dinner at the Bayon restaurant that night and had a marvelous time.

We were excited to explore other interesting places in Cambodia for the next few days of our stay there.

A Medal, A Movie, An Awakening
Back to my humble abode, I gazed at the wall panel now filled with a hundred something medals. Each one has a story to tell. They speak to me of my achievements and reminded me of every race experience, friendships formed, mistakes made & lessons learned. Each one holds some meaningful memory. Here, back from the Angkor Wat Marathon, there’s nothing to remind me I’ve run there?

3 days later, I was glad that I made the decision to attend Dr. Aaron’s workshop where the movie ‘Peaceful Warrior’ was shown. The movie relates so well to my recent running experience that inspires me to write & share this with you.

‘Peaceful Warrior’ is a sports movie not about imagined perfection of victory but about heart. It explores the highly competitive world, while introducing an astonishing philosophy that awakes the human spirit. It is a whole new ideology – one that values consciousness over intelligence and strength in spirit over strength in body. It is about letting go of all expectations and simply live in the Now. Ultimately, celebration of achievement is made possible by an open mind.
I began to fully understand that winning a race or getting a medal is not so important after all.

It is not about the medal - it is my passion to run. With or without the prize money or medal, I’ll still run at the end of the day because I enjoy running. And there at Cambodia, I was actually running for a good cause and I was proud of it.

It is not about the race - it is the experience. And this experience is totally refreshing as I didn’t have to push myself crazy to record a good time. I shook hands with the locals, hi-fives the little children along the way and it just felt so good!

It is not the destination - it is the journey. As I reflect, my journey here has been enriching. I’ve learnt that if my purpose to Cambodia is to run & take a break at the same time, then I should not be expecting so much (eg. the medal!). I should enjoy the run & the beautiful sceneries. I should savor the moment and be thankful for having John & so many other friends to share, travel & run together with me all these years.

Yes, it’s not about the medal anymore…

One hundred years from now…
It will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in,
how much I had in my bank account, nor what my clothes may looked like.
But the world may be a little better because I was important in the life of a child.
- author unknown

I Love Cycling More Than Running Now

2007-11-28T21:02:00.000+08:00

The beauty of cycling - you get to go places and enjoy the scenic views in an environment-friendly manner! Picture taken by Gerard Pereira during our ride to Semenyih on 17 Nov 2007.

Woke up very early the next morning to drive to Ipoh for the KRI 12km Run. The end result was pretty obvious - I was extremely exhausted in body and mind.

Sleep, sleep & more sleep - That's one thing that was playing on my mind as I was crossing the finishing line. I would rather exchange the finisher medal with a good sleep!

P/S I got 22nd placing in my 30-39 age category with a time of 54min! Was so pleased with the result as I could still manage to maintain at 4:30 pace in this situation. My wife got 2nd in 57min! Congrats to her.

She again won a 2nd placing in the Penang International 12-hour Walk in the subsequent week. She did 75 laps with a distance of 80.85km. I'm very proud of her right now. Click here for the full results of the Walk.

My New Toy, My New Interest

2007-10-16T16:20:00.000+08:00

Alor Setar 50km Ultra Marathon

2007-09-09T19:06:00.000+08:00

The report for this run will be short just as I cut short my run during the race.

On the eve of the run which was held on 7 Sep (Fri), I felt both legs were weak upon waking up. Expecting the worst, I checked on my body remperature and true enough, I have fever of 37.5 degree. However, as I had earlier agreed to Ching Tai, another fellow runner and participant of the run, I braved myself for the trip back to my hometown - Alor Setar, about 5 hours drive up-north from Kuala Lumpur.

I couldn't eat much for dinner as I felt like throwing up. Neither could I drink much as my stomach also failed on me - which I don't wish to elaborate here the number of times I went to the toilet! Thanks to one Chinese herb medicine - Wong Lou Kat, I have a good-but-drowsy night sleep even though it was for a mere 3 hours!

It has been a very hot day in Alor Setar the whole day we were there. Just as unpreditable as I'm, the sky suddenly opened up and poured as if the organiser needed to cancel the race. Honestly, I was so relief as it affirmed that I would not start the run. But then it stopped after just an hour or so!

There you go, I dragged myself out of the bed with another hour to the gun time. We reached our destination - Taman Rekreasi Gunung Keriang, the Start and Finish point just in time for a light stretching. At 3am the run was flagged off.

Although there were only 63 runners taking part, it was never short of fire and enthusiasm. Everyone was running like brothers and sisters, motivating and cheering each others. Our common goal was to complete the dreaded 50km mark! And because of this energy, I managed to cover until 15km mark before my stomach gave way again and I have to call it a day. A "DNF" is never in my dictionary but I think I have to accept it and be humbled by it and life goes on!

Call me a reflexible guy as I quickly volunteered my service as a waterman by handing the runners cup of drink and sponges.

Will I do the 50km again if you may ask? It's definately a YES!

Congratulations to Ching Tai, Ben Swee and Narumol for their achievement in the run. For more pictures, visit Tey's blog.

4th Malaysia International 24 Hour Walk

2007-08-11T16:59:00.000+08:00

The Walk is into its 4th series and for the first time it's held at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. Unlike the past 3 series where it was held in cool mountains of Genting Highlands, this time the competitors have to brace themselves for a tough challenge of walking in the heat and humidity amidst heavy traffic.

The race is flagged off at 8am, Saturday and will end at 8am, Sunday.

Here's the FINAL results :

To view some walkers in action, please click here,

Or Album2,

Or Pacemaker22.

For more Race report, please visit RunWitMe's blog.

Adidas King Of The Road 2007

2007-08-05T13:26:00.000+08:00

This is the first time Adidas incorporates a 21km in their run and it is also the first time the race is held at Sunway Pyramid. I think that is a great idea as it will attract lots of tourists-cum-runners to this resort (if the right marketing promotion is implemented) as the Sunway Pyramid offers facilities such as shopping, entertainment, dining and theme park all in one roof!

Runners are required to run the whole 21km on the New Pantai Expressway (NPE). Kudos and thanks to the highway authority for closing the whole expressway for us runners! We understand this will definately burn a hole in their pockets as a result of a loss of revenue in toll collection. Thank you.

I am also pleased with my form this morning as I did 1:29:37 and placed at 45th. position. Alas, only later after the race did I find out that the actual distance is only 19.6km. So, if the distance has been exactly 21km, I estimated I should be doing around 1:36 which can easily be my season best too! For the record, I've always finished around 1:42 to 1:45.

With another one more month to go for my debut 50km in Alor Setar, it feels good to know that I'm on the right track!

Just like me, my wife also took this race as a training. However, she is preparing for something more gruelling - the 24-hour walk this coming Saturday! If anyone is free on that day, please do spare sometime and give your moral support to these walkers at Dataran Merdeka (8am - 8am).

For more reports on Adidas KOTR, please click:

1) Impossible Is Null
2) der_pacemakers
3) Watermelonog

For more photos on Adidas KOTR, please click:

1) KC & The Sunshine Runners
2) Running With Passion
3) Pacemaker 22

Sign Up For Angkor Wat Half Marathon

2007-07-29T11:43:00.000+08:00

Picture courtesy of Run With Me.

We have recently signed up for the Angkor Wat International Half Marathon which will be held on 2 December 2007.

This run, to me, is like a revisit to our history book when we were in Form 1. The difference is now I will physically be there to see it on my own eyes. It's going to be an awesome experience for me for sure. 25 years have passed since I picked up a history book. Therefore, in order not to embarrass myself, I've better read up some of the interesting facts about the world renowned Angkor ruins.

MII Big Walk 2007

2007-07-22T19:58:00.000+08:00

Shh...share a secret with you - my buddy won a prize this morning! According to him, this is the first time he has ever won something this big! The last time he won something was when he was still much younger, in a very small run in a very small town in Selangor - that was just mere RM50!

Look at these gigantic trophies! One for him and the other for his wife.

The medal look impressive? All in gold & I love it! Can someone please give me some napkins to wipe my saliva...

StarWalk In Ipoh

2007-07-15T20:45:00.000+08:00

Wai Mun and I took part in the StarWalk Ipoh this morning.

I must admit that I'm not good in walking, be it on leisure or competition! I hate the feeling esp. when my shin sometimes burns to its limit during those walks!

As Wai Mun is taking part in the Walk, I might as well join her...otherwise, the trip to Ipoh will be futile for me. Furthermore, I thought it would be a good idea for me to train the other muscles of my body at times.

The race flagged off punctually at 7am. Indeed, my fear came true when my shin gave way during my first 3km. However, after the 3km mark, I guess I must've warmed up by then and the pain just subsided. I was able to walk fast and started overtaking lots of participants. The feeling was really good!

When I hit the tape, I was really surprised with my timing and position. I got 13th (later upgraded to 11th after some other walkers got disqualified!) and with a PB time of 64'31" (previous best 65+' in StarWalk Penang dunno how many donkey years ago). What surprise me is I was able to do this with only one training last Sunday and while still recovering from my flu!

My joy was further enhanced with Wai Mun emerging champion in her category and finished her 10km below one hour! What a feat!

Now it's time to go back to running....

Newspaper clipping courtesy of Abdul Haris.

My First Back-To-Back Full Marathons

2007-07-01T17:42:00.000+08:00

Yes, I did it! 2 full marathons within a week! And of course it was by chance rather than a planned one! I did the second marathon in Penang on 24 June 2007 because I felt I have done quite badly in Phuket a week before. It was more of a redemption effort. Even though I did not achieve my target eventually, surprisingly I felt much better and happier after finishing the second marathon.

I completed Phuket Marathon in 3:53.31 and Penang with the time of 3:56.

Phuket International Marathon, Thailand, 17 June 2007

If this race was flagged off at a much earlier time and if it was not for the rain on race day, it would’ve easily justified its tagline as “Run Paradise”!

The start and finish of the race was held at the beautiful Laguna Beach Resort, the exact place of their prestigious annual triathlon event which we could see on TV! On Saturday, we collected our one-piece BIB, the Champion Chip and t-shirt in one of the air-conditioned halls in the resort. All were done efficiently and effectively and within 5 minutes, we got our Race Kits! (Penang Organizers, please take note!)

The race course was a mainly flat out-and-back course on paved roads. Having said that, when it came to hilly part, it could still pose a challenge to a season runner like me! One plus point is that there were distance markers on every km and plenty of toilets with clear signage along the route! (Penang Organiser, please take note!)

Race Day
At 5am local time (6am Malaysian time) sharp, we were flagged off. Gingerly, I stepped on the 50-metre long carpet, feeling like a triathlete more than a marathoner!

First 10km (my every 5km split as follows: 5km – 27’36”; 10km – 27’13”)
We ran out of the resort into a generally flat kampong road. Although it was still dark, I could see paddy field on both sides, making me feel as though I was back at hometown (I grew up in Alor Setar where paddy field is a norm)! We ran past 2 Siamese temples before heading to a market. Suddenly, I could smell food and felt a bit hungry!! Few monks were seen walking and performing their duties. At this moment I wish Chan WK or Tey ET were there to take a photograph of me running past these monks. It should make a good picture, I think!

Suddenly the tar road turned to a cerment road and we could see more kampong houses.

11km – 15km (27’01”)
The sun began to rise and the day was getting brighter. By now I came across the first “slope”. This is no big deal, Bukit Tunku is tougher, so I thought! Now, we could see rubber trees by the road side. The terrain became undulating but I just ran on confidently. By the 14th km, all of a sudden, I felt the heat on both my cheeks! Wow! How am I going to last this heat for the next 28km? As I was figuring that out, the first runner was on his way back! Bravo! This guy is fast!

16km – 20km (26’18”)
I think God must be kind and without any warning, the skies opened up and poured at 16th km! I guess most runners’ prayers were answered when it rained cats and dogs! My handsome face was badly hit by the rain water and my nicely gelled hair immediately turned flat! Hehehe! I could hardly open my eyes for the next 2km (due to the rain water hitting on my face) and I was worried of any incoming cars hitting on me. Thanks goodness, no vehicles to be seen at that time (or I didn’t see any)! Needlessly to say, my socks and shoes turned wet and heavy. I was worried I would develop blisters as it was my pair of brand new shoes! Oh, my shoes!

Luckily, by the 19th km, the rain subsided. In fact, it drizzled from here onwards until we departed for home. We turned left into a private beach (or was it Sirinat National Park?). I enjoyed this part of the route the most as we were shaded by big trees and free from any vehicles.

At about 20th km, we were required to make a u-turn and step on the red map. I purposely slowed down my pace and stepped on the map. “Beep! Beep! Beep!”, okay, I can be assured that my timing was recorded accordingly! Hehehe!

I was so delighted to see bananas and watermelons at one station. (Penang Organizers, please take note!) It meant a lot to me as I don’t have a habit to carry any power gels during my trainings or in races. I quickly grabbed a banana and did my monkey business. I meant eating it!

21km – 25km (27’48”)
At 21st km, I was shocked by a lightning and thunder! I was praying hard it doesn’t strike on any of us. By now I was running on the main road where I came from. Ooops, did I say a road? It’s more like a stream now after the heavy downpour. I saw water flowing on the road, flood at some places, landslide and red mud! You name it, now I know these things can happen in even paradise too! Hehehe!

26km – 30km (26’59”)
Back to the undulating terrain and rubber estates. I wished I could do a F1-pit stop to change the rubber of my shoes and stinky socks!

I quickly grabbed a 2nd banana at one station.

31km – 35km (25’57”)
This was my fastest section. I think it’s because of the flat course. I reckoned I would do 3:45 at this pace.

36km – 40km (31’12”)
Alas, did I say flat too early? Immediately I got this hot-Wisma Tani-slope to handle! To make the matter worse, we had to cross a construction site where it has an uneven 100-metre stretch full of mud! The workers had already started their day and lorries were plying on the same route as ours! (Hope the Organizer will improve on this in the future runs).

Really “potong steam” at this moment!

41km – 42km (13’21”)
I “jogged” (any name for a pace slower than a jog?) past our resort room and was tempted to turn back and jump into our bed! No grand finishing kicks from me this time round!

Congratulations to my beloved wife for coming in 3rd in her category in the half marathon!

Penang International Bridge Marathon, Malaysia, 24 June 2007
If Phuket tagline is “Run Paradise”, this Penang run should call “Running Into The Past”! Why? It’s because they never learn and improve over the years!

Things are the same as I first started running here 10 years ago. No Champion Chip till now. Colour ribbons were used instead. The amount of chaos at the starting line (especially for half marathoners) and the finishing (for half and full). The lack of isotonic drink. No fruits provided. Almost non-exist toilet facilities. The only thing they have “improved” is that they charged RM1 for the luggage safekeeping! It must be nuts when they expect us runners to bring cash to a race like this!

If not because of my wish to redeem myself after my “disastrous” performance in Phuket, I wouldn’t be bothered to make last minute arrangements for the bus and accommodation services with our PACM to be here!

At 12 midnight, I woke up or rather got up from the bed to prepare myself. There was zero sleeping for me.

I was at the reporting cordon-off area by 2.30am after a saga with the luggage boys and girls!

When the run was flagged off at 3am, I was concern if I would make it to the finishing line without incurring any leg cramps as the weather then was so hot and humid. Luckily as we entered the main bridge, there was a slight breeze which was most welcoming.

Throughout the run, my left hamstring kept sending me signals. Fortunately enough, I managed to complete the run in one piece. To be honest, I thought I had it in me to better the Phuket timing as I did 26’33” for the 1st 5km and 26’11” for the next. However, my pace slowed down gradually without me realizing it! It didn’t help when I pressed the wrong stop button of my watch at 25th km onwards, where I headed into total darkness.

Thank you to PACM for their services and Powerbar team for providing the complimentary power gel.

Triple Double Hills

2007-06-03T19:45:00.000+08:00

This morning I did my last longest week-end run, ie 3 times on DH loop and then Lake Garden for a 35km before hitting Phuket. Total time taken is 3:08:08. This week mileage is approximately 72km.

I must say I'm feeling good at the moment and much better compared to my condition 5 weeks ago.

With another 2 weeks to go, I'm into last phase of my training - tapering. Although it's the easiest phase amongst all, I always find it the most critical one as I have to be very careful not to fall sick, get injury or succumb to fatigue both physically and mentally!

Wish me luck!

Rebound In Form

2007-05-20T20:01:00.000+08:00

I'm so relief as I managed to cover about 32km this morning, the longest distance so far before the Phuket Marathon which is due to start in one month's time.

I had the company of my wife for the first 11km before we parted. I was to participate in the NB Pacesetters 15km and she has volunteered her service for the event.

I clocked 1:16:54 in the 15km event and was glad as I had the early feel of the marathon pace.

After some sips of water, I continued for another 6km.

I think I'm slowly regaining my confidence after a bad patch for a month due to the flu. I can feel that my body system is slowly but surely getting better now. Just hope I can hit top form comes June 17 in Phuket!

Hiccup

2007-05-02T13:24:00.000+08:00

I was supposed to do a 30km run last Sunday. However, due to a cold and sore throat and also the rain in the morning, I cancelled the plan. Instead, I turned spectator and cheer leader for my wife as she was taking part in her 7km-MM Big Walk. Congratulations to her as she got second, trailing behind a Singaporean walker. You always make me proud of you!

Total weekly mileage for week 4 = 20km, way off target of 55km! I hope this will not haunt me later on Race Day!

Just Signed Up For Phuket Marathon

2007-04-15T16:31:00.000+08:00

Week 2 of 11 training update:
1) Tuesday - 6.5km easy jog
2) Thursday - 6.5km easy jog
3) Saturday - 7.8km easy jog
4) Sunday - 20km easy long run to Hartamas (1:50:40)

Total weekly mileage - 40.8km.

I'm still struggling on the long run. This morning I have the privilege to run with the Ultra-marathoner, Mr Ngae. This ultra-long distance guru set a pace that I found too difficult to cope. I ended a spent force on the return leg. Hats off to him!

Next 3 weeks of training will emphasize on strength. Expect a much more mascular John after this! Hehehe!

The Start Of The Journey To Phuket

2007-04-08T10:57:00.000+08:00

Week 1 of 11 training update:
1) Wednesday - 6.5km easy jog
2) Friday - 6.5km easy jog
3) Saturday - 7km easy jog
4) Sunday - 20km easy long run to Hartamas (1:49:44)

Total weekly mileage - 40km. Task completed and objective achieved although I struggled a bit in the long run. But that's expected!

A New Pair Of CNN Sports Newscaster?

2007-04-01T11:59:00.000+08:00

Great news guys!

Recently, we went to Hong Kong for an audition with CNN and were chosen to be their newscasters for the sports section!

As you can see from the picture, we were looking good on TV too!(Ahem!)

Looks like we are gonna pick up the mic and read sports news more often soon!

Till then, wish us luck in this new and foreign assignment of ours.

Honeymoon Is Over

2007-03-25T17:31:00.000+08:00

One more week and you will see me hitting the road more often in my preparation for the Phuket International Marathon to be held on 17 June 2007. For more details of the event, please click here.

Click PACM members registration for special discount.

All the arrangements for accomodation, transportation and even the training programmes have been sorted out. What's left is the race registration and the execution of my 11-week training programme which is to kick off from April onwards.

I'm looking forward to the marathon and hope my momentum in 2006 will continue to carry me through to this year. However,I need to shelve off 2 to 3kgs extra weight gained during my "honeymoon" after the 30k run!

They Are The Men

2007-03-11T19:17:00.000+08:00

One of our fellow PACM members, Mr Ngae will be competing in the Sahara Desert Ultramarathon which will be held from 25 March to 31 March 2007. This super-duper tough and challenging race covers a total distance of 243km! The temperature may go up to 49 C!

Mr Ngae will be accompanied by another runner, Dr Tan. These two guys are also running for a charity. All the best to them and may they complete their race with triumph! They are the men with Big Ambitions and Big Hearts too!

For more details, please visit PACM website.

Amazing Race Asia II

2007-03-10T05:56:00.000+08:00

This will be interesting! You will instantly turn famous and become one of the celebrities the world will know! You will get all the cheers especially from us, the loyal audience for this show from the word "GO"!

A Different Kinda Race Experience

2007-02-18T22:57:00.000+08:00

What : Ocean To Ocean Relay Running (total distance is 136.6km)

When : 11 February 2007, sunrise to sunset

Where : Pacific Ocean to Indian Ocean, Songkhla to Satun, Thailand

How : A team of 8 runners, relay running for 3 sets per person, in the ordering number.

Who : A total of 189 teams turned up. Pacesetters are presented by 3 teams:-
Pacesetters A – Dr Lyou, Hooi Siew Weng, Lian, Lynn Toh, Lim Chin Kuan, Francis Cheng, Richard Tan, Bala.

Pacesetters B – Garry Goh, Felix Kan, Yap, Wai Mun, Carol Low, John Tan, Peter Lim, Ho.

Pacesetters C – Lim Pueh Tian, Boey Kwong Wah, Gurdip, Ng Chooi Lin, Amelia Ang, Jeffrey Kok, Nigel, Thong Phiam Seng.

At 5.20am local time, all our 3 teams were flagged off together. First we saw Garry, followed by Dr Lyou and then Lim, leaving the Haad Kaew Resort after dipping their baton into the water of the Pacific Ocean.

It was still very dark. Luckily the organizer has arranged for some oil lamps to be placed along the roadside. What a thoughtful planning!

We jumped into our pre-chartered van and stopped midway to cheer Garry and also provide him some water. Thereafter we proceeded to the next checkpoint to drop our next runner, Felix. Not long after that, Garry appeared and passed the baton to Felix.

The excitement started when Uncle Hooi of Pacesetters A overtook our Felix. Uncle Hooi was in top form. He built a good 7 minutes gap before passing his baton to Lian. Our gap from them was widening further as Lian easily outran our 3rd runner Yap. At this point, Pacesetters A team morale was running high. Their captain, Richard Tan was seen jumping for joy. Even their oldest runner, Francis was busy warming up to prepare himself for his turn.

By now the gap was already 15 minutes. I calmly told Wai Mun who was the next runner, not to worry but just stay focus and try to close the gap. And yes she did! The distance was reduced to a mere 80 metres.

Our fifth runner, Carol did a splendid job by sticking to Lim’s pace and retained the distance.

When Carol passed me the baton, Francis was already 100 metres ahead of me. Pacesetters A knew that in no time I would overtake Francis. Richard Tan tried to use all his dirty tricks to stop/slow me down. For example, he tried to hug me tightly and also invited me to step onto a banana skin he placed on the street!

I shamelessly ran pass Francis. Sorry-lah Francis, this is a race! Being the fastest runner in the team, I tried my best to overtake as many runners as possible especially those in the same category. By now, the weather was getting very hot as the sun was blazing on top of my head, even though it was only about 8.30am. I foresaw a tough day ahead!

I managed to build up 13 minutes before passing the baton to Peter. I believed Peter had to suffer the hell of his life as he had to go through a town which was definitely hotter as there were not many trees around. Really salute his strong will!

It’s our 8th and last runner, Ho’s turn. Frankly, I was worried for him as I had never seen him run before. As it turned out, he did extremely well. Besides, he really knew how to enjoy himself by getting all the high-fives from the school boys and girls and the traditionally-dressed supporters!

Soon, the baton was passed back to our Captain Garry again. This time, he had to go through the roller-coaster terrain. I was anxious in case he would walk as he always does on the upside of the Double Hill. Remarkably, he went through the challenges. I supposed it’s the responsibility of a captain that pulled him through. Bravo, Garry!

The heat is at its peak now. However, it had lesser effect on Felix as he came well prepared with a little umbrella head gear! One female runner from Penang was amazed and wished she could buy one immediately. I saw disappointment in her when I told her it was bought in China.

Not long, Lian came chasing from nowhere and overtook our 3rd runner, Yap. Fortunately, the lead was only 500 metres. Wai Mun became our savior again to make sure our team takes the lead from Pacesetters A until the finishing line.

The incredible heat had really taken its toll on most of us. I encountered a cramp on my rib which made my breathing difficult during the 3rd stage of my running. It was as if an asthma attacks you while you are running! I was almost out of breath and this was the most difficult 5km run of my life.

After completing the 3rd stage of the race with Ho being our final runner, we gathered together at the last 1km to meet him and the team of 8 of us ran in a line occupying the whole road. As we were heading towards the finishing line into Satun Pakbara Pier, we were fortunate to catch a glimpse of the sun setting on the horizon. It was the most beautiful scene after 13 hours and 13 minutes on the road. The tan we received could hardly beat how we felt right now – total satisfaction!

As we crossed the finishing line, Ho ran down the steps to the sea, dipped the baton into the Indian Ocean symbolizing our arrival and finally, the relay is over!!! We were all exhausted but relief and happy. We made our way to collect our hard earned medal and were surprised that everyone were given a beautiful jacket with our team name embossed on it. A buffet dinner was served and video clips of the recent race were shown. Later, fireworks were displayed as well. What a carnival!

Overall, I was so overwhelmed by how grand a race like this can turn out! Tremendous efforts and thoughts put in to ensure that we enjoyed ourselves and talk about it. And indeed, this is another different race for us…

For RM45, we were treated to a banquet by the beach at the Haad Kaew Resort on the eve of the race. One could eat and drink as much as you like while being entertained by Thai cultural shows, singing etc. No questions asked. No coupon required! The next morning, we all had porridge with “Yau Char Kwai” and coffee for breakfast. Along the way, we were given sufficient supply of drinks and fruits to keep us hydrated. Some villagers made cakes and offered them to us. The organizers even arranged children at different stations to dance and cheer us. Others stood by the roadside to offer us their high-fives. It really made a difference especially when you are so hot and tired. I am absolutely amazed with the hospitality and generosity of the Thais. Thumbs up to them!! If there’s anything the Malaysian Tourism Board or Athletes Association wishes to learn, they should learn from our neighbour, Thailand.

From a simple race like this, I am glad that Wai Mun and I are able to learn and take home something with us. We learned how to run as a team (a team of 8 is certainly more difficult than a team of 4 especially if you don’t even know half of them). We need to help and encourage one another no matter how slow a person runs. We had to bear each other’s body odour (from the sweat) as we had to travel together in the same van for more than 15hours!!! And finally, we cherished the friendship we made and the team support. Apart from the heat, we never regretted making our trip here.

We would like to thank Richard Tan for organizing our trip there and our team mates for running with us. Special thanks to New Balance for generously sponsoring our group tee-shirts and throwing discounts for their running shoes.

For more pictures, please visit Runwitme blog.

GE 30KM

2007-02-01T17:32:00.000+08:00

21 January 2007 – As my next marathon is only going to be in June, this GE 30km run seemed to be meaningless to me. I just wanted to enjoy the run and at the same time I hope to do better than my last year’s timing of 2:35. Deep inside my heart, I knew I should have no problem, as this year’s distance is about 800m shorter than last year’s 30.1km.

This year’s event has indeed attracted more quality runners. It was obvious that most of the runners were very determined, preparing well for the main objective – the Kuala Lumpur International Marathon to be held on 18 March 2007. I was surprised when I realized that my fellow runners who are usually slower than me in training, suddenly ran side-by-side with me. As the result of this, I was influenced to run faster than I had planned even though I know I am not in perfect shape that very day.

The first loop of “bull run” covering the Double Hill, I did 53:57. After that, I tried to increase my pace for the next loop from the National Memorial to Hartamas. However, I found myself tiring down especially after the mosque. I think the huge slope prior to the mosque has taken its toll on me. I was a spent force! Luckily the organizer provided power gel at the Hartamas water station. I was recharged again and continued my journey back. I did 46:11 for this section. I need to mention that I encountered an unpleasant experience at this water station – a fellow runner unintentionally spit water to the right side of my face and the water fell into my cup! Sigh!

For the final section of Hartamas to the Lake Garden, I did 48:04. I was struggling all the way – consequence from the lack of training. I must say it was my mental fitness that helped me cross the finishing line as physically, I was totally worn-out! My back, shoulder, thigh and Achilles tendon muscles were aching for the next 3 days after this race.

Ah, yes! I completed the race in 2:28:12 (unofficial) for this second edition of GE 30km run.

A Christmas Marathon Festival In Chiang Mai

2006-12-31T18:26:00.000+08:00

This Chiang Mai Marathon has never been in our running agenda or even holiday destination. As the year is coming to an end, Wai Mun insisted that we go for our annual holiday. She has been ‘dying’ for a break as we have not had one since her sister passed away. So, when I suggested Chiang Mai, she welcomed it without hesitation.

One of the pleasures of running outside Malaysia is that you will not feel under pressure even if you under perform because you are on vacation anyway! It’s been 6 years since we decided to incorporate our holidays with a marathon. Like Wan Yew Leong simply puts it, “killing two birds with one stone!”

Another pleasant surprise while running overseas is that we are bound to meet a Pacesetter somewhere during the race. I remember when in Honolulu, we bumped onto a Pacesetter in the street, there we stood and chatted in the middle of the street. It was as if, we all have that Pacesetter chop engraved on our foreheads! In Chiang Mai, we met Frenzo, a friend of Alan Tiang and now our friend too. He is a Malaysian working in Chiang Mai. When he heard about our trip, he e-mailed and updated us on the weather condition etc. so that we can prepare ourselves. It was very kind of him.

Well, after my feat in the recent Putrajaya Marathon and still feeling good about it, I registered for another Full Marathon in Chiang Mai. Later, when news got round that we will be doing Chiang Mai Marathon, Yew Chee Chung, Siew Cheng and husband, Mr Lee, Agnes Tee, Lok and their two sons joined in the party!!

Here’s an account of my race experience in Chiang Mai.

24 December 2006 – I had the privilege to sleep until one hour before the race which started at 4.00am local time. As our hotel was less than 50 metres from the starting point, I took my own sweet time for freshening up and had a simple breakfast. I was relief as I managed to recover from the lack of sleep on Friday night.

It was quite chilling in the morning. I believed it was around 10 degree Celsius but thank goodness there were no strong breeze. I put on my hand gloves and my Santa Claus cap before walking in the dark and quiet street with my ever supportive wife to the starting point at Thaphae Gate.

The crowd was extremely small. I think it was less than 200 participants running the full distance. Anyway it didn’t bother me much as marathon running is always a test against your own self. The race was flagged off at 4.00am sharp signaling the start of my Santa Claus journey.

I started very slowly. In fact it was so slow that my watch showed 6’55” at the first km. Gingerly, I increased my pace and tried to break away from the slow group. Then to my amusement, at the 4km mark, there was one lonely guy playing his harmonica to entertain the runners in the cold! Really salute his spirit! I imagined and wondered if Wan Yew Leong would do the same? Hehehe!

The first 5km reminded me of running in the streets of Seremban town where I was surrounded with shops and market. However, unlike running in Malaysia, the organizer made an effort to make sure the runners’ safety comes first by putting up red cones along the route. Kudos to Jog & Joy, a running club similar to our own PACM!

As we adjourned out of the town, I felt much cooler and cooler! This was not good as I recalled I never performed well in cold weather – from my results in Florida and Sydney. Nevertheless, I tried to stay focus and kept telling myself to enjoy the weather and be thankful as I will never be able to run under such cold weather in Malaysia. I reached 10km mark in 54’54”, almost 2 minutes off target!

At my 15km mark, the leading pack was already returning back. Wow! They were fast! I guessed they must now be 8km ahead of me. Checked on my watch and it showed 1:20:50 which meant I am running at a quicker pace of 25’56”.

From 15km onwards, I stopped checking on my split time as the markers were getting confusing. I just ran according to how I felt. Not long after that, we were required to turn left to a housing area where there were no street lights at all! In total darkness, I was careful not to bump into someone in front of me. We had to make a u-turn at a big tree in front of an ancient temple. It reminded me of a Hindustan movie!

I think I was getting faster and faster as I had been overtaking a lot of runners. Motivated, I ran to a stage where there wasn’t a single runner in front of me. Now this is where the problem arises – all of a sudden I wasn’t sure which direction I was supposed to head next as I could see so many arrow signs in Siamese words. Apparently, they were just signs to the hotels or restaurants! Fortunately, a Thai runner caught up with me. I just followed him closely and into a beautiful park where the Royal Flora Expo is being held. Wow! What a pretty scenery and landscape! After another u-turn inside the park, I knew I was heading back to the Chiang Mai town already and I will not lost my way.

I increased my tempo with confidence and quickly grabbed a cup of sport drink (the only water station providing sport drink) and a banana at the 30km mark. Then I saw the 32km marker and checked on my timing – 2:45! I did some mental calculations and I knew I would be able to complete between 3:35 to 3:45. With a PB in sight, I pushed myself during the last 10km. The feeling was really amazing as it was already getting warmer.

With another 500 metres to go, I changed to my top gear and finished strongly in 3:33:08 (Official time 3:33:17)! I managed to cut down another 10 minutes from the previous PB achieved in Putrajaya. I was more than happy when I realized that while I did 55 minutes in my first 10km, my last 10km was a superb 48 minutes!

Now, I can look forward to achieving my ultimate target of 3:30 before I can really feel satisfied and proud of myself!

I would say the race was fairly organized and we do not have any complaints. I would recommend it to anyone who needs a short break or value-for-money holiday. We enjoyed the run, the company of friends, the Thai massages, good food, shopping and sightseeing. After all, running is not all about winning the prize money. For us, it is important to give our best, it’s about running a good race, making friends and to be able to keep another happy memory in our album… Sawadee!

PACM Results:

42km

Tan John Yam Pos 7 3:33:17

21.1km

Yap Wai Mun Pos 1 1:53:47

10km

Agnes Tee Pos 3 42:27

For Full Results

30km Practice Run

2006-11-12T13:00:00.000+08:00

I am currently into the 3rd week of my training for the Chiang Mai Marathon. My training has been on track so far, thank God for the nice weather. The haze has gone and cool air has settled in due to the aftermath of the rain. Fortunately, the daily showers have not caused any major interruption to my training as it always stops by the time I go for a run.

Everything is shaping up nicely and I did my longest run since the Putrajaya Marathon this morning. I must say I did reasonably well in 2:31 in the 30km trial run organized by the PACM. Considering not much effort has been put for speedwork training, I'm pleased with this result.

Talking about this morning's practice run, I must thank Mr Tan Wah Sing, a bare-foot runner from Kuantan for running side-by-side with me for a good 18km. If not of him, I would have just ran lazily!

The Amazing Race Asia

2006-11-08T21:45:00.000+08:00

We have been a die-heart fan of the US-version of The Amazing Race. We followed the series year-in-year-out without fail! And, we are delighted to have our own Asian version which will be kicked off tomorrow. Expectation is high! I hope it will be as good if not better than their counterpart.

Bet that we will glue to the TV at 9.00pm every Thursdays!

New York City Marathon 2006

2006-11-06T20:34:00.000+08:00

Just wish to share this interesting report on the debut marathon run by the world famous figure - Lance Armstrong. Read on:-

He Came, He Cramped, He Conquered

Cycling champion Lance Armstrong calls the ING New York City Marathon “the hardest physical thing I’ve ever done” Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong did what he wanted to do on November 5 – run the ING New York City Marathon in under three hours. Armstrong, 35, stepped over the finish line in Central Park just under his goal in 2:59:36. His dark green shirt soaked in sweat, the superstar cyclist admitted that the last few miles of the race were a struggle. “Even after experiencing one of the hardest days of the Tour nothing has ever left me feeling this bad,” he said at a post-race news conference. “[My shins] started to hurt in the second half, but the bigger problem the last 7 or 8 miles was the tightness in my calves and thighs. My calves really knotted up. I can barely walk right now.”
Armstrong called the race “the hardest physical thing I have ever done.” While he competed in triathlons as a teenager, Armstrong had never attempted a marathon.
“I think I bit off more than I could chew,” he said. “I never felt a point where I hit the wall; it was really a gradual progression of fatigue and soreness.”Armstrong was relaxed at the beginning of the race, pointing to the crowd and smiling as spectators yelled, “Go Lance.” Armstrong fans along the course buzzed with excitement at the news that he was due in their area.
The millions of fans didn’t go unnoticed by the cycling champion. “It really was one of the more special events I have ever been involved with,” Armstrong said. “Certainly without the support of New York City I would have been three and a half hours. It’s rare that you see that kind of support from fans. Everyone who was cheering out there was cheering for everyone in this race, not just for me.”
The Armstrong entourage was hard to miss. It included a press vehicle, NBCSports.com on MediaZone.com’s dedicated “LanceCam,” Lance Armstrong Foundation athletes, and a contingent of world-class runners who paced him, including Alberto Salazar, Joan Benoit Samuelson, and Hicham El Guerrouj, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in track and field.
Armstrong ran with Salazar in the first half of the race. Salazar certainly knew the course: he won three consecutive New York City Marathons in 1980, ‘81, and ‘82.
“I had to hold him back,” Salazar, 49, said of Armstrong. “Cardiovascularly he was fine. He could speak sometimes better than I could while we were running. I knew that the challenge for him would be the pounding on his legs. So, I tried to keep us at a decent pace but knew he wanted to make it under three hours.”
Samuelson, who won gold at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, paced Armstrong for the last 16 miles of his marathon. Acting like a cycling domestique, Samuelson muscled runners to the side giving Armstrong a clear path.
“I had to use my elbows more than I ever have in a marathon, just keeping a clear path for him,” Samueslon said. “In the last few miles, I had keep the reins on him and just remind him to loosen up his arms and stretch them every once in a while.”
Armstrong needed Samuelson’s advice to loosen up. “Toward the end of First Avenue in Harlem, I thought ‘uh-oh, I am in pain,’” Armstrong said, but he did not stop. “That LanceCam is humbling,” he said. “At one point I wanted to stop and stretch but with the LanceCam on me, I thought that would be embarrassing.”
Armstrong is not the first Tour de France cyclist to tackle the five boroughs. Laurent Jalabert ran last year’s ING New York City Marathon in 2:55.39. Armstrong said he was aware of Jalabert’s result and it was one of his goals to beat that time.
“Before the race that was my goal, I wanted to break three hours. But if you asked me that with three miles to go, I wouldn’t have cared,” he said. “Honestly, at the end I was so tired, I couldn’t care. I don't know how these guys do it.”
Armstrong wore a hat bearing the date of his diagnosis of cancer: 10/2 (in 1996). His struggle to overcome cancer and go on to win seven Tours de France has been an inspiration for others. The Lance Armstrong Foundation, which funds cancer research, raised about $600,000 at this year’s ING New York City Marathon.
“What Lance does is bring more people into the sport of running,” Salazar said. “He is good for the sport and he creates excitement.”
Will Armstrong return next year?
“The answer to that right now is ‘no,’” Armstrong said ruefully. “But I reserve the right to change my mind.”

Raya & Birthday Run

2006-10-24T11:31:00.000+08:00

Salam Aidilfitri to all the Muslim friends and runners.

We have had a pleasant run to Hartamas this morning. Weather was cool. Traffic was light due to the long Deepa-Raya holidays. The haze has also minimized....

I started running together with Adam at a very relaxed pace. We later caught up with Tey, CCube, Lisa, KNN and the birthday boy, Dr Jamie somewhere near the Mosque. We joined the group and ran with them all the way to the Hartamas Petronas station.

On the reverse, Lisa, Adam and I upped the tempo slightly but still running at a comfortable pace. Upon reaching the Mosque, we were surprised to see so many cars. Apparently, our Muslims friends were also up early for their morning prayers especially for today.We were careful at this stage, not wanting to be knocked down by any careless driver.

When we reached the main road of Jalan Duta, we had to slow down and practically stopped to hop over the divider which is as high as my waist level. (I wonder how is PACM to plan the coming 30km without the participants slowing down to do a hop over?)

With another 4km to go, I decided to be a pacer and increased the pace to a competitive level with the intention of helping Adam who is preparing for his 21km in Singapore. He responded and followed closely behind. As always, he did well....Good for him!

All in all, it was a good run as I came back satisfied knowing that I have done 5km more than my initial plan of 15km!

Once again, many happy returns of the day to Dr Jamie!

Sa-Wa-Dee Ho Ho Ho...

2006-10-23T13:46:00.000+08:00

THANK YOU to Jamie, Adam, Khee Meng, Azwar, Rohaizad, Dr Raymond, Justin, Newton, Bernado and other running friends for your words of encouragement and compliments on my recent achievement in the Putrajaya Marathon. Hope I could do better in the coming marathons.

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I know this blog has been somewhat quiet as I have not been running much these days after the Putrajaya Marathon. My weekly mileage is around 11 to 20km with the longest 11km-Double Hill run on Sunday mornings.

That's how poor my current condition is! And if this isn't enough, the thick haze has "killed" my every little hope for a decent run. Sigh!

In fact, in the beginning of October, I had to halt all my running and working activities for a week as my both eyes were infected and red. My wife has passed her conjunctivitis to me....talk about sharing! But then again, no thanks to this haze!

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Haze or rain, we can still see so many PACM members running the long distance on Sunday mornings. They are either busy preparing for the Bangkok Marathon (26 Nov) or Singapore Marathon (3 Dec). Here, I would like to wish them the best of luck in their run during the competition.

As for us "the running couple", we have just booked our air tickets to Chiangmai for their marathon on 24 Dec 2006. Yes, it's Christmas Eve! I believe it will be a brand new experience for us to be able to compete and celebrate the festival in a foreign country!

If you ask me whetrher I will be a running Santa Claus again this year, like what I did en route to Hartamas, I will only tell you when I come back from the land of smiles. Sa-wa-dee!

For more information on Chiangmai Marathon 2006, click here.

P/S special thanks to Ms Narumol, an avid long distance runner from Thailand for providing the information.

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Crazy or not, I'm going to sign up for the 42km event in Chiangmai. I have only 9 weeks to get my fitness back to a competitive level. I will apply my tested formula from the Putrajaya run to this race except to shorten it by 2 weeks. I know time is not on my side. I only wish the haze will go away as soon as possible.

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The next overseas running trip on our list will be the Maui Marathon which is scheduled on 16 September 2007. There will be full and half distance categories. Anyone interested to join, please let me know.

A PB In Putrajaya

2006-09-10T18:11:00.000+08:00

Yes, I did it!

It was truly an amazing feat for me to clock a personal best time of 3:43:09 in such a grueling race in Putrajaya Marathon. I am surprise that I was able to beat my previous best of 3:49:48 which I did in 2002 in a much easier and cooler Penang Bridge Marathon.

I would like to dedicate this special moment to my beloved wife and also two of my best friends, Adam Loh and Kelvin Ng who encouraged me to go for a PB before the start of the race. It was as if they had this feeling that I was going to make it today.

As my initial target was just a sub-4, I started very easily and aim to reserve some energy for the hilly sessions later part of the race. I sticked to my pacing of 27 minutes for each 5km. Everything seemed to work out fine to me. At 32km, when I realised my body was still going strong and should be able to cope with additional stress, I increased my pace. As I knew a PB was within sight, it was now a matter of how fast I could go!

Alas, the last 2km was really a major challenge to me, both physically and mentally. The heat has taken its toll on me. The "climb" at the last slope near the finishing line was a killer. All of a sudden, the short distance seemed to be so long!

Luckily, I managed to hang on until the last 100m where I heard cheers generously coming from friends and supporters. Thank you guys and ladies!

For the record, here's my split time:
5km - 26'40"
10km - 26'54" >> 53'35"
15km - 27'00" >> 1:20'35"
20km - 24'50" >> 1:45'26"
21km - 6'53" >> 1:52'19"
25km - 18'47" >> 2:11'07"
30km - 27'02" >> 2:38'10"
35km - 27'53" >> 3:06'03"
40km - 25'42" >> 3:31'45"
41km - 4'59" >> 3:36'44"
42.195km - 6'24" >>> 3:43'09"

P/S luckily Powergel was provided at 30km. Otherwise, I would curse the Organizer as they prepared only one banana station. They failed to keep to their promise of providing fruits from 24km onwards!

The Run-up to Putrajaya Marathon

2006-08-31T12:02:00.000+08:00

Countdown to D-Day : 10 days to the Putrajaya Full Marathon!

So far my preparation have been good and almost according to my own 11-week training programme. But there were times whereby the training has been disrupted due to illness, leg injury and the unavoidable heavy rain and thick haze.

My training emphasized on conditioning for the 1st 2 weeks, followed by 3 weeks of strength training, 4 weeks of speed work-out and 2 weeks of tapering off. I hope this plan will enable me to cross the finishing line without much suffering.

As much as I wish to do at least one 70km in weekly mileage, I only managed 63km. The highlight of my training was a 3-loop of Double Hill which is approximately 33km, performed last week!

Right now, I am feeling good and hopefully I can maintain my form until the race day. Wish me luck!

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During this tapering off period, I plan to have a few more sessions on acupuncture and some massages. Need to pamper my tired body!

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My thanks to the valuable advice and input by Dr Jamie and Tey ET, I bought a pair of Mizuno Wave 8 recently. It was indeed a good buy as this "bloody expensive legs" of mine have been responding well to the shoe so far (I suspect my legs always work well with all the branded shoes!).

Come on my Mizuno, much will also depend on you whether I am going to make and break on D-Day. Please don't disappoint me!

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On paper, Putrajaya Full Marathon has been quite promising and professional.

I received a letter from the Organiser explaining why the race will only be flagged off at 6.00am. It is indeed a very late start off time considering of the hot and humid weather here. Nevertheless, the Organiser has proactively initiated to provide some fruits at certain distances, ie. banana at 24km, orange at 28km, watermelon at 32km, banana at 36km and honey juice at 40km! Looks like we will be in for a "fruit-athon" too!! Hopefully I don't get carried away by this fruit party that I forget to focus on my race.

A big thumb up for the Organiser! Hopefully the event will run smoothly and take off well so that more will participate in the Full Marathon next year.

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Recently, I had an encounter with snakes on 2 occasions on my run to Hartamas! One is big and dead (perhaps ran over by a vehicle) and the other still alive and crossed my path! The two of us (the small-sized, black and golden coloured snake and yours truly) had a shock of our life! We jumped simultaneously before we parted away. Thank goodness I don't step on it!

So my advice is always on the look out for little things on the ground while you are running.

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Lastly, I would like to end with a "Happy Independence Day"! I love you, Malaysia!

Poor Poor Seremban Half Marathon

2006-07-16T21:07:00.000+08:00

Well, if you didn't take part in this year's SHM, you absolutely did not miss anything at all. The race has gone from bad to worst and to the extent that they cut down to just ONE water station for the 21km runners! No wonder there were 4 make-shift stalls set up by the roadside selling mineral water! What a joke! Maybe the organiser should make it clear in their Entry Form to inform runners to carry extra cash for their future races.

Thanks to the organiser of SHM, I have had a good work-out this morning from the race. They provided a training condition that you probably can't find it elsewhere - no water to quench your thirst, stinky smell from carcass in the middle of your run and the worst part was the fume from the stalled vehicles! From this kind of training - I guess I became stronger mentally but physically unhealthy! You would've guess if we will take part again in the future.

For the record, I did 1:45:02 with position no. 21, due to fewer runners I'm sure.

P/S By the way, their medals have never change one bit over the decades!

I Am Back

2006-07-08T17:34:00.000+08:00

Adam is right - I am now back into competition. My next target will be the Putrajaya Marathon to be held on 10 September and guess what, I will be running the full distance!

Sometimes it is scary knowing that the place is so hot with little shades and wide highways. The undulating course plus the late starting time - 6am are of little help either. I can still remember how I suffered last year despite it being half the distance!

Nevertheless, I will still give it a shot to support the organizer as this will be the first time they are organizing a 42km marathon. Besides, I also have many customers-cum-friends from this administrative township.

To get the ball rolling... I took part in 10km in Ipoh last week. Despite a short one-week training, I think I did reasonably well in 45:43 which even surprised myself!

While my next warm-up race will be a 21km in Seremban next week, I hope I will be able to clock in as much mileage as possible within my busy schedule without aggravating my old injury.

Hopefully, I will be able to cross the finishing line under 4 hours in Putrajaya.

Till then, God bless me.

NB 15km Recce Run

2006-05-14T11:51:00.000+08:00

Thanks for all the condolences and words of comfort forwarded to us recently.

As Wai Mun mentioned in her eulogy for Jennifer ...
"Altho' her time with us has been a short one, Jennifer had indeed lived well, laughed often & loved much.
She filled her niche & accomplished her task,
A tougher sister / friend we have yet to find,
May God grant her His Rest & Peace divine.
We will all missed her - her voice, her smile, her wit & her passion for life. May we then cherish these fond memories of her in our hearts and move on with life with Jennifer's enthusiasm."

Yeah my dear friends, it's really so important for us to live, laugh and love. Let's learn to treasure every moment. When we first joined Pacesetters, we were just going crazy on running. Our minds was so focused into running, racing and achieving PBs in competitions after competitions. It was until Wai Mun and I met and got married that we finally 'stopped to smell the flowers' and began to appreciate the friendship we made via the Club.

Next week, Wai Mun and I have been assigned a road marshall job for the coming NB 15km Run. While I have a little experience in the task before, it is interesting to see how Wai Mun will deal with it - as I believe most people will agree with me that female species don't have great sense of direction! Ha! Ha! Ha! Joke aside, I still have strong faith in her in carrying out her duty well.

This morning, most of the PACM members have a familiarization run on the actual route. So did I, except that I took my run more seriously compared to the rest. I just wanted to have a feel on the new course plus a test on my fitness level.

Though I did not push up to 100%, the new route is challenging enough to make me sweat to my last drop. It took me 1:15:17 to complete the run.

My personal observation is that this year's run will certainly be more challenging compared to previous years as there are more hills to tackle. Another factor to consider is that runners are to run a repetition loop up the Bukit Tunku which will be a test on your mental strength as well.

Fellow runners, good luck and don't forget to have fun on race day!

Life's A Roller Coaster

2006-05-07T18:56:00.000+08:00

Ever since I took up a new job early this year, my running has taken a back seat. That explains why I have been inactive in blogging too.

My weekly mileage barely touches 30km. And most of my runs were done on 2 days only - a back-to-back Saturday and Sunday! A run on weekdays seems like a mission impossible to me these days.

It was like everything had to stop after KLIM. It was also clearly unfortunate that we had to miss the Saberkas Marathon due to the untimely death of Jennifer (Wai Mun's younger sister). Jennifer had suffered brain tumour & lung cancer for a year & a half. Her journey with C had indeed been a tough one cos' by the time she was diagnosed with this C, she was already in her 4th stage. Imagine the agony she had to go through with chemo + surgery. Within 2 months, she went thru' 2 operations : one for brain & one for the left lung! As a result, she lost her vision of the left eye....However, she had been very strong and positive about the whole thing. Her courage & trust in God has been such a comfort & encouragement to the family. Even towards the end of her days, she kept holding onto dear life & fighting back. So, it was truly amazing to see her making her own obituary & funeral arrangements ie. what dress to wear, flowers, which pastors to conduct her funeral etc. etc.

We came to realize how short, fragile & uncertain life can be. Therefore, while we still can...value health - treasure the little things - stop to smell the flowers - live life to the fullest - learn to love more...etc. etc. (easier said than done, right?)

Considering our current situation, my wife and I have decided to give this year's PACM 15km run a miss. However, we will both still be there - as volunteers of course. We hope to be able to catch you guys in action on the race day. Don't forget to have fun running!

Before signing off, I wish to share a thot which you may or may not agree. Well, anyways...

"Racing through life could be very stressful. If we stay in high gear too long, we lose our ability to shift down. And when we are stressed, we can't access happiness, appreciation, fun compassion, generosity, awareness of beauty and other wonderful qualities. High stress also triggers negative emotions like frustration, anger and fear.
Life has much to offer if we will slow down and truly experience it. We must always remember that we are the ones in control of the accelerator....we CAN choose to brake.
Therefore, enjoy life! It's not only the scenery you miss by going too fast...you'll also miss the sense of where you are going & why." - Eddie Cantor

My First Half Marathon In KL

2006-03-11T18:42:00.000+08:00

Can you believe it? Yes, it is indeed my very first half marathon in this metropolitan city since I started running in KL in 1990. I had either run full distances or 10KMs before! Perhaps that was why I could only sleep for an hour the night before the KLIM 2006.

As usual, I started slowly to warm up. I reached the 5km mark in 24:34.

As I was feeling good, I increased the pace and overtook quite a number of runners on the uphill near Tmn Desa. I reached 10km in 47.19. Oh yes! Thanks to the Powerbar Team for handing out the Powergel.

After the Dewan Bahasa Dan Pustaka, I think I lost my rhythm and energy a bit by zigzagging past the school children in the 7km category. My 15km timing was 1:12.

The story went on until the finishing with occasional blocks by the kids. How frustrating! I intentionally skipped the water (or mist?) sprinkle provided by Nike at Jalan Sultan Ismail. Sorry, no time for water game!

My spirit was lifted when I saw a group of PACM members and friends cheering us at the Dataran Merdeka U-Turn. Thanks mate! See you later as I've an unfinished job to do.

I knew the finishing is near so I tried to increase my pace. However, due to the lack of training for the last 3 weeks before the race, my endurance seemed to have failed me. I couldn't find my strength I needed most.

I completed my maiden half marathon in KL in 1:42:32! Still, it is the best time I've ever clocked since my injury. Hope for more better things to come!

5km Split Time:-
1st 5km - 24:34
2nd 5km - 22:45
3rd 5km - 24:46
Final 6km - 30:26

Official Results of GE PACM 30km Is Out

2006-02-03T21:41:00.000+08:00

To view the final results of the GE PACM 30km Run, please click here.

Gong Xi Fa Cai

2006-01-27T22:24:00.000+08:00

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

We would like to wish you a happy and prosperous Lunar New Year.

Two more days to the CNY and we are already starting to eat, eat and eat. Need to run more during this long holiday break or I will turn into a big, fat dog!

Wow! Wow! Wow!

Run For Terence

2006-01-25T21:23:00.000+08:00

der_Pacemakers is organising a run to show our support to one of our fellow runners, Terence (Penguin-6) who was diagnosed with brain tumour.

While his wife is not working and his own job is at stake, whatever assistance and support we extend him will be useful. Runners are known as a supportive and positive bunch. It's time to come forward to help a fellow sportsman in need. Treatment for tumours are often expensive and debilitating. The patient will also be weakened substantially by all the drugs. Besides resting and taking proper food, it's also beneficial to take food supplements such as antioxidants. All these require money.

As this is a non-competitive run, you can run any number of laps you wish to. After which we'll be passing the hat around to collect some contribution for him. You can also pen down messages for him in a book.

Date: Saturday, Feb 4th
Time: 8am
Venue: KLCC Park, the large space between the carpark and the mosque
Distance: Any number of laps

Please turn up in full to support him and spread the word around. Please also indicate your interest to take part in the comment column in der_Pacemakers blog. Thank you.

This One For You, Terence

2006-01-22T14:46:00.000+08:00

First of all, I would like to dedicate this GE Pacesetters 30km Run to one of our fellow runners, Mr Terence a.k.a KL Penguin who has been diagnosed with brain tumor recently. I wish to tell him that he is not fighting the illness alone. He has got a strong support from all the runners and triathletes. So, be strong and fight like a champ!

I had a memorable experience in the inaugural GE Pacesetters 30km run this morning. The run was generally well organised by the PACM. If there is any area for improvement, it will be the toilet facilities and the availability of more cheering teams. Anyway, kudos to the cheering team whom I'm sure have lifted our spirit during our run. A high five to you!

The run is tough and challenging, I can tell you. For those who are not familiar with the course, it could be a nightmare as we have to conquer so many hills. However, the roller coaster-like terrain suits me fine. I just needed to pace myself well. I completed my first Double Hill loop in 58:44.

I got a big boost at the beginning of my second loop from the cheering team. From there, I was encouraged to increase my pace slightly and was rewarded with a timing of 48:01 at the Hartamas checkpoint.

On my home run, knowing that I should be safe from any leg cramp, I increased my pace further with 3km to go and sprinted to the finishing line in a time of 2:34.39. The last 10km split was 47:53.

Wai Mun completed a remarkable 2:51.29.

Once again, I would like to say a big thank you to all the volunteers for their sacrifice and effort to make this run a success. I'm sure we runners will always appreciate your contribution.

2 More Weeks to GE PACM 30K Run

2006-01-09T05:18:00.000+08:00

Yeah! Bring it on, baby!

I did my longest run of the year this morning - 25km and I felt quite good with my condition at the moment. That showed my 5-week of conditioning trainings have borne fruits.

I will add some speed work-outs in my next phase of training before tapering off for the 30km run.

Although it won't be one of my key events, I will aim for a 2:30 finishing. Any takers out there to pace together on that day?

First CNY Card

2006-01-06T13:08:00.000+08:00

I received my first Chinese New Year card today from the generous Datuk Mohd Yaziz - one of our sponsors for the Pacemaker Runs. See how creative he is to put every friends' name in the card and post it via website. How effective and efficient way of wishing people you know!

Wai Mun and I would like to wish him a healthy and fit body to enjoy his promotions-after-promotions, from Datuk to Datuk Seri, then Tan Sri and whatsoever!

Adious 2005, Welcome 2006

2005-12-31T20:12:00.000+08:00

We would like to wish all our friends, runners, walkers and bloggers an endless happiness and excellent health.

Happy New Year!

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas

2005-12-25T14:03:00.000+08:00

(Picture courtey of KC & The Sunshine Runners)

First of all, I would like to wish all runners and readers of this blog a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

It's a Sunday morning. So you can expect some runners gather at the Lake Garden to start their run even though it's a Christmas day.

However, I chose to do something different this year - by dressing up as a Santa Claus! This is the second time I dressed up fancifully for a run - the first being in an office attire for the Rat Race!

Thank goodness, everyone seemed to be in jovial mood when they were approached by this little Santa Claus. They were even more surprise when they received their little presents - some Himalaya sweets (sponsored by Wai Mun) and bottle of lotion (courtesy of Amelia). Looking at their smiles really made me feel good!

And yes, I completed my 20km run and came back in one piece - unlike the Santa Claus who is always madly being rush by children for goodies in the shopping malls.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

Happy Dong Zhi

2005-12-22T16:20:00.000+08:00

Today is a rest day for me. Yes, no running!

Instead, I have been eating the whole day. I had breakfast with my wife at Mid Valley, Christmas lunch in KLCC with buddies and soon, I will be having a family reunion dinner for the Dong Zhi festival in Bangsar. Isn't that wonderful?

Hey! Did I mention I had tang yuan (glutinous rice ball) too? Yes, I had it during my tea time, courtesy of my likeable neighbour.

Life is good.... enjoy it while you can.

By the way, if you don't know what Dong Zhi is, here's some explaination (which I will try to remember too):

"In the Chinese calendar, the festival falls six weeks before Chinese New Year. A popular expression among the older Chinese to refer to the end of a year and the coming of the next one is: “Chi tang yuan, da yi nian (Eat tang yuan and grow older by a year).”

One of the must-haves for the festival is the marble-shaped tang yuan, which carries the meaning of a family reunion.

Yuan, which means “round” or “a circle”, is also an auspicious word that suggests yuan man (perfection)."

Mizuno Wave Run

2005-12-19T12:53:00.000+08:00

It was a different role for me in this Run. Instead of participating as a runner, I rendered my service as a volunteer and I was assigned the Route Marshal's job.

A day prior to the Run, we gathered at the venue - Padang Merbok in the morning. We have a great time determining the best spot for the Start/Finish point. Due to the heavy rain the night before, the field has turned to a little pond with water and mud everywhere. Eventually, we agreed on a dryer ground before the Race Director - Mr Wan piled the first wood as the marker in a simple "opening ceremony". From there-on the job was much easier as we just needed to work according to the layout set by the Race Director. We made sure there was sufficient space for distributing the Finisher's Position cards and medals, timekeepers, result recording, check-in and exit areas.

Next we recce the actual race route and put on the road signages so that the runners would not lose their way. We had a short briefing at 4pm with all the 18 road marshals and assigned each duties at the specific checkpoints. That was our Day One job.

The following day when the Run was to start at 7.30am, we arrived early at 6am. After our breakfast, we adjourned to our respective checkpoints. I was based at Checkpoint No.2 and the last checkpoint.

At checkpoint 2, I needed to make sure all the runners turned right to the KTM Station behind the Bank Negara. After just 10 minutes from the Start, all the runners had passed by my checkpoint. Thereafter, I walked back to the last checkpoint guiding them to the finishing line.

It's always interesting to see how the runners react to their run. Some of them can run very fast; some struggling; some for fun; some for personal glory.

For me, it's indeed a pleasure to give back to what I like doing - running!

Zhen Qi Practice

2005-12-16T12:36:00.000+08:00

My wife and I have been attending Qi Gong or Zhen Qi classes lately.

The practice is easy as what you need to do is to focus on your exhaling and your "tan dien" or abdomen. We need not do all the exercises like you see in Tai Chee. We sit and concentrate on our breathing - sound easy?

Actually, it's not as easy as we think as our mind is always "in the go". If you are not thinking of something else, you may sometime fall into the trap of sleeping.

There are 5 steps in a routine of EXHALING:
1) Focus on your heart.
2) Imagine the Qi flows from the heart to your lower "tan dien" (abdomen).
3) Concentrate on your "tan dien".
4) The Qi will flow to your back and then to the top of your head once it gets stronger.
5) The circle will complete when the Qi flows from the top of the head to your forehead, chin and back to your "tan dien".

You will notice some reactions in your body, depending on your health condition. Some participants burst into cry due to their past bad experience or depression. If you have blockage in certain parts of the body, you will feel a sensation of poking or ants biting at that specific area. Once the Qi has heal the problematic areas, its flow will become smoother and you will feel great! I saw some participants' face has turned reddish! How envious!

Well, we have not reached that level yet but we will be there if we are persistent to do more practices. However, I notice some positive result in my achilles tendon injury as the pain is almost gone (if not fully gone, touch wood).

Hope we could incorporate this Zhen Qi practice in our run - before, during and after. Who knows, we could do more PBs in the coming future. Hehehehe....

Our new World Champion

2005-12-04T21:04:00.000+08:00

Congratulations to Nicol David for becoming the new World Champion & World No. 1 ranked women squash player!

We are so proud of your achievements and your contributions to our country. Malaysia Boleh!!!

Mouth-Watering Sports Attire

2005-11-29T20:55:00.000+08:00

Congratulations to Malaysian athletes who won gold medals in the SEA Games in the Philippines.

What attracted me the most is their sports attire - so trendy and stylish. The colour and the design is also outstanding unlike the previous series. What make it so special this year is that male athletes got the chance to match their female counterparts in this area. It's good to see that whenever there is a Malaysian athlete on the starting block, they have already won a "gold medal" - in terms of presentation. Way to go, Malaysia!

By the way, are they for sale to the public?

Hari Raya Open House

2005-11-29T12:24:00.000+08:00

Attended Azwar's Open House last Sunday. Most of the PM members were there. There is one obvious strength in all runners - punctuality. In all the functions I attended to, runners would be the first to arrive - on time, on the dot! Even the host's wife commended it. Keep it up, fella.

We had a good time together, served with lots of good food and entertained by the latest hot-in-town news-turn-jokes.

Azwar has a very nice house. If I have a house like his, I will install some simulators - swim like Ian Thorpe, cycle like Lance Armstrong and run like Haile Gebrselassie! How nice.....!

Again, thank you for the invite, Azwar.

KRI 2005 Full Results

2005-11-25T13:40:00.000+08:00

Click the URL below for the full results of the 2005 KRI 10km Run :

http://www.ipohroadrunners.org/200510k/10KRR2005.xls

No Medal For Me in the KRI 2005

2005-11-22T07:00:00.000+08:00

My wife and I went to Ipoh International School to collect her BIB last Saturday. Incidentally, we attended a talk by Dr Ron Hill on his running experience.

This averaged-built and soft spoken 67-year-old Englishman is the first Briton to complete a marathon under 2:10 - a feat he accomplished by clocking 2:09:28 during the 1970 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh. Wow! What is he doing in such a small race like KRI then? Apparently, he aims to run in 100 different countries before he turns 70! Double Wow! Sound familiar? Yes, I hope The Running Couple can do that too!

I picked up a few tips from this legend during his sharing:
1) High weekly mileage - the longer the better. He did more than 250km per week! No wonder he has been running EVERYDAY since 1964.
2) He has got achilles tendon injury before. And what he did to his injury? He continued running...SLOWLY. Eventually, the pain went off! That really excited me and I'm looking forward to my running again.
3) No cross training is required. His method is a pure running.

----------------------
RACE DAY

I started very slowly at 6:02 for the first km. Gradually, I increased my pace. By the 3rd km, I was back on track - 15:38. But there was no panic button to press as I took this "race" as my normal Sunday training run. I cheered and motivated the fellow runners especially our friends in PACM.

At the u-turn in the mid-way point, I finally saw my wife in front. She was running very well this morning. In fact I was supposedly pacing her. But now I trailed her!

After the u-turn, I ran more seriously. At the 6th km, my time has dipped below 29 minutes. At this point, I overtook Dr Ron Hill - the winner of 1970 Boston Marathon. With due respect, he has run very well in his age and in this hot and high humidity country like ours! Furthermore, he didn't aim to win the race. Otherwise, a small fly like me has got no chance at all!

With about 2 more km to go, I caught up with Khee Meng and Mr Yee from Seremban. Both told me my wife was just in front. I nodded and tried to catch her.

With about 500 metres to go, I caught up and said hi to my wife. I increased my speed a little so that she could overtake a girl in front of her. I paced her until the entrant of the finishing point at the football field. I stopped and checked my watch. To my surprise, it showed 47:56!

No medal for the pacer, yet I was very satisfied with the work-out. By the way, my wife got second in her category in 48:30 unofficial time. Well done, dear!

Hot, Hot, Hot Taroko International Marathon

2005-11-13T10:10:00.000+08:00

“Oh yes! I finally reached the turning point,” I whispered inside my heart with much relief. The heat was getting on me. It was so scorching hot. I reckoned it was equivalent to 10am Malaysia time (30 degree Celcius perhaps). I bade farewell to the full marathoners and sincerely wished them luck as I made my u-turn back.

We were only about 40 minutes into the running yet I have started to struggle. “Maybe I should be joining the 8am running group in Bukit Aman next time. It is too late now as I am in the midst of a race of the Taroko International Marathon.”

One month before the race on 5 November, we weren’t sure if this year’s competition would be on or not. The official website has not been updated and worse still, it was removed all together sometime in October. We were informed that this year’s event was a go through our counterpart in Taipei - Yung Ho Running Club (YHRC). We quickly gathered our PACM members who had expressed their interest to participate earlier. In the end, 8 of us made the trip. They were Hooi Siew Weng, Ong Boon Hin, Ng Soo Fin (for the full marathon) and Teresa Goh, Phua Qui Thin, Yap Wai Mun and I (for the half marathon) and Chan Wing Kai (the cameraman). Special thanks to the YHRC and the ever-helpful Tey Eng Tiong for helping us with the registration.

At 5.00am, 8 of us assembled at our hotel lobby for the official bus to shuttle us to the starting point which was located some 40 minutes away. There were many other runners as well in the bus comprising mainly locals from other cities in Taiwan.

Upon stepping down from the bus, we were welcomed by cool breeze and magnificent view of the mountains. The atmosphere was very carnival-liked with lots of banner, loud music and of course the toilets. There was also an aerobic warming up session.

We quickly did some stretching, took some photos and went to the toilet before checking in our luggage. We walked slowly to the starting line which was situated right at the famous entrance arch of the Taroko National Park.

The 5km fun run was flagged off at 7.00am. We were supposed to flag off 10 minutes later. However, due to the uncontrollable crowd, the run was further delayed by another 15 minutes. The MC had to repeatedly announce for the runners to move behind the starting line. That shows the enthusiasm of the full and half marathoners to start the race!

“Bang!” I started slowly but steadily. I kept to the left which is the fastest lane in the Taiwanese traffic system. After just 2-3km, I started to sweat heavily and the sun was already on top of my head. I could actually see my own shadow running beside me. The course was straight and flat. At some point, we were sandwiched by seaside on the left and mountains on the right.

After the u-turn, there were not many runners in front of me anymore. It was kind of boring running alone! The heat had taken its toil on me and my armpit started to ache! A Caucasian runner was seen running without his shirt.

We were cheered on by some of the villagers and young children along the way. At one section, the workers from a nearby cement factory turned up to cheer us at the roadside. How sweet!

After crossing the starting arch, we were required to run another 5-6km inside the Taroko National Park. I rejoiced as the environment here was much cooler. There were many caves and tunnels. I could imagine we were like rats running from one hole to another! The view here was magnificent with waterfall flowing and the beautiful rocks just next to you. That’s the reward/incentive for traveling this far for a marathon. This is also the reason for running the Taroko Marathon, for I am so sure that we can never get to run into such a beautiful gorge with such magnificent scenes back home in Malaysia or anywhere else!

Some of the tunnels were quite dark. However, the ventilation was good. With about 1km to go, I could hear some cheering from the spectators outside the long tunnel. Suddenly I saw sunlight and I knew the finishing line was near. I pushed as hard as I could to complete this hottest half marathon that I had ever run!

The Results
21km

NameCategoryNet TimeOverallPosPos by GenderPos by Age Group

Tan John YamMen 36-451:44:471029626
Yap Wai MunWomen 36-451:54:04228182
Teresa GohWomen 56 above2:11:50602441
Phua Qui ThinMen 56-652:58:481867163468

1st runner 1:14:13 Last runner 3:12:57

42.195km

Ong Boon HinMen 46-554:37:48305287104
Ng Soo FinMen 46-555:09:17485456161
Hooi Siew WengMen 66 above5:38:236566145

1st runner 2:44:14 Last runner 6:11:53

For complete result, click on the link below:
Full marathon
http://www.sportsnet.org.tw/score_detail.php?Id=4

Half marathon
http://www.sportsnet.org.tw/score_detail.php?Id=5

What they said:
Phua, “The run was generally well organized. If the starting time can be earlier and the route remains inside the Taroko National Park, I think it will be wonderful.”

Ong, “I’m satisfied with my time today even though it got tougher at the end of the race. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the scenery here. After my run in Beijing and Taroko, I’m looking forward for a better result in the coming Singapore Full Marathon.”

Hooi, “This is the toughest and hottest in my 23 full marathons experience so far. Physically I’m still very tired and have not recovered from my tracking trip from Nepal the week before.”

Teresa, “I had a pleasant run here except for the heat. At my age, to be able to run, I’m already happy. Coming back 1st is a bonus!”

Wai Mun, “I came to view the beautiful Taroko Gorge and not only have I seen it, I’m glad I left my footprints there. It was another memorable experience for John & I.”

A Frightening Car Park Encounter

2005-11-01T02:40:00.000+08:00

To all runners and readers of this blog,

Be alert at all times when you are in any car park as there may be someone who will try to take away your vehicle and other belongings or even cause harm to you physically!

My wife has a close encounter this morning.

At approximately 6.20am, she reached the Taman Tasik Permaisuri, Cheras. She parked the car in an open and well-lit car park near the children playground. There were some joggers around. She stepped out of the car and started to do her stretching near the car before her jog.

Suddenly, a lady jogger whom we know as Ah Yeng shouted to my wife to ask her to quickly come up to the playground. Luckily she did because right at the same time, one white van and one red car turned on their vehicle light and started to approach the two of them. Fortunately, they were saved by the knee-height pavement! According to my wife, there were many Indian guys inside the car and the van. Both vehicles were without their number plates. The drivers pedalled hard and the engines were screaming! They shouted some foul words. They even have the guts to show their face out of their winded window. Obviously they were very upset because their operation has failed. They were rallying around the car park in high speed before they left a few minutes later.

After recovering from the shock, Ah Yeng told my wife that it happened last Saturday morning too. Their strategy is to hit a car when the owner just parks his/her car in the parking lot. They will either demand for money, steal the car away or worst kidnap the owner as he/she comes out from their car to inspect the damage.

Again, please be extremely careful especially if you are alone in a car park, either you are preparing for a run, to work or to shop.

Happy DeepaRaya

2005-10-27T03:00:00.000+08:00

Next week will be a long holiday for us Malaysian, thanks to our Hindu and Muslim friends. In anticipating that most of us will be traveling to our hometowns or some places for holiday starting this weekend, we - the Running Couple, would like to wish you a Happy Deepavali and Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri for those who are celebrating it! To those who are driving, drive carefully and patiently!

This year the Running Couple will be joining another 6 strong runners from Pacesetters to explore and treasure the running atmosphere and experience in Taroko, Taiwan. Our run is scheduled on the 5th Nov.

Stay tuned for our report and photos when we come back.

Meanwhile, happy holiday to all of us!

Speed Workout

2005-10-19T13:50:00.000+08:00

Arrived at Kpg Pandan track at 6pm and the weather was pretty hot. Only a handful of runners were training due to the fasting month by our muslim friends.

I jogged around the football field for about 2km followed by a light stretching. I felt good as the pain at my tendon has subsided.

Today we welcomed a new friend from Ghana joining our group. His name is Richard. This young gentleman can really run. His target is to dip below 33 minutes in 10km. I'm sure he will achieve it with ease!

Slowly the group turned bigger and the weather turned out colder as the result of the shading of some dark cloud.

As usual Coach Chan asked us to run one easy round of 400m and another round of 50m slow and 50m fast for warm up.

We were required to run 3km for 2 sets. Coach gave me a target time of 13 minutes. I did 12:42 and 12:44 respectively, well below the target. The second set was tough! Before the start, I thought I wouldn't be able to sustain the time I set in the first set as I was running out of energy. I somehow managed to stay focus and maintain it throughout. What a good mental training!

After a short break, we ran 400m for 4 sets at 2:10 interval. My timing was 1:40, 1:36, 1:33 and 1:20 respectively. I always like to run 400m as I can use and train my muscle strength.

We finished the day with an easy 1,200m warm down.

La Hermandad de los Centuriones

2005-10-16T11:00:00.000+08:00

De izquierda a derecha, Annie VanderMeer (British Centurion, Continental Centurion y Malaysian Centurion), Adri Leermakers (BC, CC y MC), Irina Zaigrajskaia (MC), Alex Vandenhoeck (MC), Zdenek Simon (MC) y Bernardo José Mora (CC y MC).

It's a pleasant surprise to know that I have a visitor as far as Spain to my blog recently. The feeling was warm even it was a short and simple "Hello. Best wishes from Spain". It came from our 24-hour Walk 1st Runner-Up, Bernardo Jose Mora.

Bernardo and Alex (the 2nd Runner-Up in Genting) were superb walkers. They extended their stay after the gruelling 24-hour walk and took part in the MMBW a week later. Bernardo and Alex again won some prizes in the 20km and 10km category respectively.

Even though I don't speak a single word of Spanish, I understand Bernardo is a serious and active ultra marathon walkers. You will understand what I mean if you visit his blog.

Selamat datang ke Malaysia and of course my blog!

3rd Malaysia International 24 Hours Walk on NTV7

2005-09-30T11:20:00.000+08:00

If you've missed the "live action" of us in the 3rd Malaysia International 24 Hours Walk, miss no more.

Stay tuned in front of your TV set this Saturday, 1 October 2005, at 6.00pm as NTV7 will be viewing how we suffered during the walk. Don't wink your eyes for it's just a short 30 minutes programme.

Happy watching!

MMBW2005

2005-09-28T11:00:00.000+08:00

Walking past the pain and agony

2005-09-27T00:00:00.000+08:00

Reported by The Star, 26 September 2005
By NG WEI LOON

It was a different roller-coaster ride for 300 walkers, including 60 foreigners from 20 countries, who took part in the Malaysia International 24-Hour Walk at the Genting Highlands Outdoor Theme Park.

Instead of enjoying a short burst of adrenalin rush on a roller-coaster at the theme park, they had to endure the pain and agony of having to walk around the 876m circuit for 24 hours at an altitude of more than 1,800m (6,000 feet).

Several participants were seen staggering during the final stages of the race. After the race, several of them could hardly sit down due to exhaustion and fatigue.

Zagryazhskaya Irina from Russia, who won the women's Open in 2001, set a record winning distance of 176.88km on this occasion.

Irina finished four laps ahead of runner-up M.S. Vander Meer from Holland who did 173.38km. Tarasevich Marina from Belarus was third (163.74km).

“I like walking in Genting as it has a scenic landscape,” said the 33-year-old Russian, who competes in three to four 24-hour walks a year.

The foreign walkers who turned up came from as far as Mauritius, Germany, Denmark, Czechoslovakia, Spain, Belarus, Riussia, Belgium, Ghana, Oman, Singapore, France, Hong Kong, Australia, Holland, Denmark, Sri Lanka, Japan, United States, United Kingdom and Nigeria.

In the men's Open, Czechoslovakian Simon Zdenek emerged champion when he walked 218 laps, two laps ahead of defending champion Jose Mora Bernardo from Spain.

Zdenek covered a distance of 190.9km to improve on his third place finish in 2001. Runner-up Bernando did 189.15km. Belgium's Alexander Vandenhoeck (185.64km) was third.

“My strategy was to stay with the leading pack. After I was penalised, I stepped up the pace as I had to work harder to compensate for the penalty. It was a pleasant experience racing on a flat course here,” said Zdenek.

The event offered RM45,000 in prize money to the top 20 winners in the individual categories and the top three teams.

In the individual categories, the champions walked away with RM6,000 while the runner-up and third placed winners received RM4,000 and RM2,500 respectively.

Armed Forces' Mohd Hanizam Harun and Yap Wai Mun were Malaysia's best performers in the men's and women's sections respectively. Hanizam finished in eighth place (167.25km) while Yap finished sixth (133.96km).

“I took part in a 12-hour walk in Penang earlier this year. I wanted to break into the top 10. I am glad that I managed to achieve my target in Genting,” said Hanizam, 28.

A total of 11 teams took part in the team event. Debutants Singapore Amateur Athletic Association (SAAA), comprising S. Thiagaraja, R. Subramaniam, Chong Fui Fong and Low May Ling, led from start to finish in their 204.92km effort.

Race Walkers Association of Malaysia (RWAM) completed 198.78km and finished second. Sahn Hahng Tai Bo A from Hong Kong were third (189.15km).

The event was organised by the RWAM and supported by the Youth and Sports Ministry and the Federal Territory Amateur Athletic Association.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Azalina Othman, who gave away the prizes to the winners, praised the participants for their months of dedicated preparation for this gruelling race.

Olympic Council of Malaysia secretary- general Datuk Sieh Kok Chi and organising chairman Datuk Peter Chin were also present at the prize presentation ceremony.

RESULTS
Men's Open: 1. Simon Zdenek (Cze) 218 laps (190.9km), 2. Jose Mora Bernardo (Esp) 216 laps (189.15km), 3. Alexander Vandenhoeck (Bel) 212 laps (185.64km)

Women's Open: 1. Zagryazhskaya Irina (Rus) 202 laps (176.88km), 2. M.S. Vander Meer (Ned) 198 laps (173.38km), 3. Tarasevich Marina (Blr) 187 laps (163.74km)

Team: 1. Singapore Amateur Athletic Association (Spore) 234 laps (204.92km), 2. Race Walkers Association of Malaysia (Mas) 227 laps (198.78km), 3. Sahn Hahng Tai Bo A (HK) 216 laps (189.15km)