Latest news would be I've ran my SECOND Half Marathon in my running history!!!! Timing isn't that great but I ran almost the entire journey till cramps came in. Here goes nothing!
27.06.2009 - Saturday - Race Kit Collection Day
I woke around 8.30am, had a light meal before going to Dataran Merdeka(DM) to collect my running race kit. I parked at Bukit Aman car park and walked to DM...probably about 1.5KM away.
Once at DM, it was pretty buzzing with activities. There was this 100 plus mobile unit with wallclimbing stuff attached to it.
100plus mobile/promo unit?
Preparing for the wall climbing
HE IS FAST!!!!!
TOUCH DOWN! Or should I say, touch up?
Safety crew members
This guy walking around to get people's participation for wall climbing. He did ask me as I was taking his picture LOL. I said No thanks.
With that out of the way, I was trying to find my half marathon area and God, it was already quite sunny by 9,40am!!
My category :) 21.1KM baby yeah! *The uncle on the right helped me to take a picture.
Other tents for the rest of the categories
I was there :) * I asked the Uncle on the right to help me take this picture
Before the race kit collection day on Saturday, I was freaked out by the comments found on the Standard Chartered KL Marathon Facebook page on Friday afternoon. It will filled with ANGRY and NEGATIVE comments ever since the moment the race kit collection started on 26.06.2009 12.00pm.
Here is what I've found out.
Here is what I've found out.
- Power outage
- Laptops can't work because of network down
- Some Bib numbers were not printed
- Account NOT FOUND?
- Out of BAGS!!!!
- MANY had to wait in the RAIN and SCORCHING SUN!
Our Bag which were still in boxes
Amazing workforce
Aunty and blur guy going WTF?
Looking for vest sizes
When it was my turn, I just gave the lady my confirmation slip and they just gave me whatever number its currently at. WTF shouldn't it be the same as the confirmation slip? The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2008 was much more organised than this.
As soon I collected my vest, I went for my hair cut at my usual saloon and what the fuck, the price had gone up from RM19 to RM20!!!!! Ridiculous! So fuck it, I went home and checked out the goodies(BEFORE OPENING THE BAG)
Not bad...not bad at all
As soon I collected my vest, I went for my hair cut at my usual saloon and what the fuck, the price had gone up from RM19 to RM20!!!!! Ridiculous! So fuck it, I went home and checked out the goodies(BEFORE OPENING THE BAG)
Not bad...not bad at all
The logo
Silky material, check out the static..its hugging the floor!!!
Can it even wick sweat away???
Back of the vest
Silky material, check out the static..its hugging the floor!!!
Can it even wick sweat away???
Back of the vest
Its been awhile since I last saw this logo
Seriously wtf are all these crap? Stupid booklets for Insurance/ banking and MSG? I mean MSIG? The only COOL thing was the TATTOO sticker of the Logo
Seriously wtf are all these crap? Stupid booklets for Insurance/ banking and MSG? I mean MSIG? The only COOL thing was the TATTOO sticker of the Logo
Behold, my epic bib number "69"
Front shot
Weird, I have to write on a layer of PLASTIC?
The chip
Passed QC!
Instructions to follow
I woke up around 2.30am...yes folks, my event is at 6.15am but I woke up THIS early. I woke up, had my some bread and 1 cup of coffee. Blur like fuck, I still manage to prepare and get ready to hit the road.
Weird, I have to write on a layer of PLASTIC?
The chip
Passed QC!
Instructions to follow
After pinning my bib to my vest, me and my gf went out to watch Transformers 2~!!! Awesome movie which lasted 2 hours 30mins! How did I get my tickets and good seats? E-Ticket my friend. I paid using Maybank2U and selected my seats! Simple process although it costs RM1 additional.
With that done, I got home around 8.45pm and started to go through my checklist:
1. Whey
2. Shaker
3. 4 Oral Rehydration Salt
4. Power Gels
5. 1.5L Mineral Water
6. 2L of Water(My Bottle la)
7. Towel
8. Spare clothes
9. Nike Pouch
10. Small bottle for ORS
11. IPod
12. Armband
13. Sandals
My FUEL!
My armor for tomorrow's battle
28.06.2009 - Sunday - Race Day
With that done, I got home around 8.45pm and started to go through my checklist:
1. Whey
2. Shaker
3. 4 Oral Rehydration Salt
4. Power Gels
5. 1.5L Mineral Water
6. 2L of Water(My Bottle la)
7. Towel
8. Spare clothes
9. Nike Pouch
10. Small bottle for ORS
11. IPod
12. Armband
13. Sandals
- Bib Number
- Timing Chip
- Safety Pins
My FUEL!
My armor for tomorrow's battle
With that all done, it was shut eye mode!
28.06.2009 - Sunday - Race Day
FRESH LOOK!
I left my place around 3.25am from Puchong....picked 2 buddies of mine from Kelana Jaya area; David and William. We arrived at the Bukit Aman carpark around 3.50am!!!! hahahahaha. We spotted afew other friends, Choi, Frank, Keat Seong and his gf. We had some extra stuff to eat before making out way to Dataran Merdeka; e.g banana, energy bar(Fruits and nuts) and 1 bottle of Oral Rehydration Salt.
It was raining!!!! omg!!! The full marathon was about to start and it was pouring. Me, Charles, David and William seeked shelter at the porch of St. Mary's church right before Dataran Merdeka. We waited till 5.45am before we made our way to the field. With much excitement, we took 1 photo before we started the run!
Yours truly
David, the banana provider for the day :D and his camera handphone rocks!! Nokia!!
William my pacing buddy!
Charles :)
The route?
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My route is the one in GREEN!!!!
To be honest, I don't really recall when the cramps happened and bla bla bla. I mean, I'm trying hard to push myself ...I don't really take note at which location and what happened next so please forgive me :( I wasn't really thinking about blogging EVERY detail of my run but I will try my best.
Me and William was pacing each other since the begining of the run! We both reached the 10KM mark in like 55minutes!!! Is that true? SUB 1 hour 10KM? Keeping our spirits up, we continued running till we hit Lebuhraya Smart and that was where the first sign of calves cramp happened!!! I continued walking as I don't what it to happen so soon. We've just passed the 13KM mark..NOT NOW PLEASE!. William being an awesome buddy, he accompanied me, walking and running whenever I can. It was his first half marathon by the way. I felt kinda quilty for holding him back. I was walking ALOT, drinking at every water station to rehydrate, took my ORS and even apllied heat rub oil provided by the medic people there but still the cramps was there.
After a mixture of walking, running and heat rubbing, I felt like I could run when I use my quads muscle to trigger the push off instead of my calves. I was able to run but at a slow pace. William noticed I could continue running and told me to leave him as he had "hit-the-wall". As soon as he gave me the green light, I just carried on with my pace and stride. All was well and I manage to run and run and run!! I do have to stop once in awhle to massage my calves...it did help in a way.
When I was near Parlimen, I came to a halt and started walking towards the water station about afew hundred meters away because my cramps were about to happen. I got a pat on the back...it was Keat Seong! He was in the Full Marathon category. After seeing him, I felt motivated and started to slow run again. However, my legs were not as motivated as my mind. I had to stop! After awhile, I spotted Choi but I didnt noticed it was him till I saw him infront of me and his Fastswitch 3 yellow shoe!
I spotted some medic person and I asked for more heat rub oil. I massaged my calves forawhile before I started running again. I struggled along the slight uphill towards the National Monument. I manage to run uphill with my quad muscles pushing off the heel REALLY tough.
After running pass Bank Negara, I knew it was going to be a U Turn ahead as most runs will go through that route at Jalan Raja Laut. I tried to conserve energy by walking. I miss calculated. I started running WAY too soon at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman.
My cramps came RIGHT BEFORE THE FINISHING LINE...approximately 20 meters? How fucked up is that! THIS time however, it happened only on my RIGHT leg calves AND QUADS! Holy shit, my quads was SWELLING. Thank God, there was some senior runners resting at the side that came to my aid. Apparently he knows how to handle cramps. He saw my leg's condition and started checking my calf and quads. First, he massaged my calf then once he spotted the swollen area on my quad, he PRESSED and MASSAGED IT. OMG IT WAS FUCKING PAINFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I told him it was painful and to stop pressing but he said it is a must if not the cramps will be worse and won't subside. Sweet Loving Jesus.....the pain was @%^$^%#@$$@. After like 2 or 3 minutes, the senior runners helped me up on my feet and I was walking towards the finishing line. I mean it, WALKING. I was taking 1 step at a time with my left leg while DRAGGING my right leg.
Official photo 1
Official Photo 2
Me and William was pacing each other since the begining of the run! We both reached the 10KM mark in like 55minutes!!! Is that true? SUB 1 hour 10KM? Keeping our spirits up, we continued running till we hit Lebuhraya Smart and that was where the first sign of calves cramp happened!!! I continued walking as I don't what it to happen so soon. We've just passed the 13KM mark..NOT NOW PLEASE!. William being an awesome buddy, he accompanied me, walking and running whenever I can. It was his first half marathon by the way. I felt kinda quilty for holding him back. I was walking ALOT, drinking at every water station to rehydrate, took my ORS and even apllied heat rub oil provided by the medic people there but still the cramps was there.
After a mixture of walking, running and heat rubbing, I felt like I could run when I use my quads muscle to trigger the push off instead of my calves. I was able to run but at a slow pace. William noticed I could continue running and told me to leave him as he had "hit-the-wall". As soon as he gave me the green light, I just carried on with my pace and stride. All was well and I manage to run and run and run!! I do have to stop once in awhle to massage my calves...it did help in a way.
When I was near Parlimen, I came to a halt and started walking towards the water station about afew hundred meters away because my cramps were about to happen. I got a pat on the back...it was Keat Seong! He was in the Full Marathon category. After seeing him, I felt motivated and started to slow run again. However, my legs were not as motivated as my mind. I had to stop! After awhile, I spotted Choi but I didnt noticed it was him till I saw him infront of me and his Fastswitch 3 yellow shoe!
I spotted some medic person and I asked for more heat rub oil. I massaged my calves forawhile before I started running again. I struggled along the slight uphill towards the National Monument. I manage to run uphill with my quad muscles pushing off the heel REALLY tough.
After running pass Bank Negara, I knew it was going to be a U Turn ahead as most runs will go through that route at Jalan Raja Laut. I tried to conserve energy by walking. I miss calculated. I started running WAY too soon at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman.
My cramps came RIGHT BEFORE THE FINISHING LINE...approximately 20 meters? How fucked up is that! THIS time however, it happened only on my RIGHT leg calves AND QUADS! Holy shit, my quads was SWELLING. Thank God, there was some senior runners resting at the side that came to my aid. Apparently he knows how to handle cramps. He saw my leg's condition and started checking my calf and quads. First, he massaged my calf then once he spotted the swollen area on my quad, he PRESSED and MASSAGED IT. OMG IT WAS FUCKING PAINFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I told him it was painful and to stop pressing but he said it is a must if not the cramps will be worse and won't subside. Sweet Loving Jesus.....the pain was @%^$^%#@$$@. After like 2 or 3 minutes, the senior runners helped me up on my feet and I was walking towards the finishing line. I mean it, WALKING. I was taking 1 step at a time with my left leg while DRAGGING my right leg.
Official photo 1
Official Photo 2
But you know what, I completed it! I said it before, even if I have to crawl, I would finish it and I did! Of course, I thank my good graces that I did not have to CRAWL.
I met up with David at the medal collection area. WOO HOO! His first half marathon and he finished in 2 hours 54mins!! Awesome timing bro!
David, officially a half marathoner. Congrats dude!
Me? Pathetic finishing pictures but hey! I ran most of the jouerney! I'm happy
And guess what?
I manage to take a picture with
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KENNY SIA! It not like I adore him or what not. I have been reading his blog since a few years back. It's just cool to be able to meet up and take a picture with him in person. After all, he IS one of Malaysia's most influential blogger!
After awhile, William arrived and we took a group picture!
I DID IT!!
I have said it in my facebook, I dedicate this run to my newly born niece, Kristen!
-Sorry, have not uploaded pictures of her just yet. I'm lazy -
On a side note, I have something good to share soon. STAY TUNE!! REALLY SOON
I met up with David at the medal collection area. WOO HOO! His first half marathon and he finished in 2 hours 54mins!! Awesome timing bro!
David, officially a half marathoner. Congrats dude!
Me? Pathetic finishing pictures but hey! I ran most of the jouerney! I'm happy
And guess what?
I manage to take a picture with
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.
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.
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KENNY SIA! It not like I adore him or what not. I have been reading his blog since a few years back. It's just cool to be able to meet up and take a picture with him in person. After all, he IS one of Malaysia's most influential blogger!
After awhile, William arrived and we took a group picture!
I DID IT!!
I have said it in my facebook, I dedicate this run to my newly born niece, Kristen!
-Sorry, have not uploaded pictures of her just yet. I'm lazy -
On a side note, I have something good to share soon. STAY TUNE!! REALLY SOON
1 comment:
Ganas bro... i rikes!!
Now put on your "new" shoes and go do the FULL!!!
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