Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2009

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

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

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

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!

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

Thought the following article interesting, please read.

GE30k 2009

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The Sceneries




The Peloton



The Camaraderie





The Support


Local Famous


The Casualties