sundown marathon 2009

i didnt register for it at first.

i wanted to attempt the 84km this year, and had planned to start training in jan. but due to a hamstring injury that took me out of action totally in jan, i gave up the idea of doing the ultra marathon and decided not to register for the event at all.

then just last week, i suddenly felt the urge to run, and to do the marathon. so i asked my ex-XO who had registered but was not running for his slot.

i had been doing high mileage runs for the past few weeks (16-21km) runs, about 35 to 40km a week, and i always felt pretty good on those runs, so i decided to se how i stand with my training at this moment.

one thing that haunted me was how i had particpated in this same event last year as my first marathon. i suffered multiple cramps that were so bad at the 32km mark that i had to walk the last 10km and finished in 5:30. i kept having this fear that i would cramp up. so another reason for taking part this year was to banish those demons, at the same race, same arena where they had struck me so cruelly last year.

met 2xla, QR and xueping last night, heading to tampines one. i made baked rice for lala as well as let the other girls try it. thanks for the great feedback! =D
had my usual pre race meal of muesli and cereal and headed to changi V to meet ex-Xo to collect the race tag and timing tag.

after some pre-race prep, the race started. QR, xueping and i took our own sweet time to reach the start gantry, so our start time was a bit late.

ok to sum up the race:

1) started the first 10km rather fast, i just wanted to break free from the majority of the crowd, and i kept to the side roads where it was much clearer than the main road

2) this indian dude who looked like a beast (muscular with long curly hair) decided to give me a run for my money. after i overtook him he caught and overtook me back. but he was panting, so i maintained, passed him, and opened up on him. why go so hard so early?

3) at east coast, this dude in a red singlet and yellow adidas racers (same one i have at home, but i wore newtons for this race) and i had a go at each other. i overtake, he overtook again. this "sparring " continued for the next 1km. but he had over extended himself and could no longer maintain the pace. i overtook and opened up on him. never saw him again after the U-turn at the 19km mark.

4) i was feeling so happy on the run. i just felt really good. so i was smiling throughout and posing for any cameras i saw. thanks bryan, sham and eddie from key power for cheeiring me!

5) overtook this angmoh lady in green who was FAST. she was so cheery too! she would turn out to become the ladies winner for the marathon.

6) maintain my quick pace till 25km, where i could really start to feel a bit of fatigue setting in. some people saw how i was smiling while running and made comments. i was very amused.

7) thanked all the traffic police who stopped traffic for me as i crossed the roads. i was in a really good mood.

8) saw zhixiang and overtook him. saw angie from SMU bi team too. she was fast, and would soon be the 1st runner up for the ladies 42km.

9) 31km mark. a silver mazda 6 came up beside me, with jason and lala inside to cheer me on! it was a much welcomed bit of motivation!

10) 32km mark. this was where i had cramped up last year. as i passed it, i assessed how i felt. still good. a big YES to myself and thanked God for carrying me through thus far. i am doing much better than last year.

11) 36km. lala, jason, jj and mich stopped by the road to cheer me on! it was a huge boost as i could feel that i was starting to hit the wall. with them, i bashed through the proverbial wall. they told me that josh was just ahead. check how i was feeling and i knew i could pick up the pace. josh was in visual sight.

12) caught up with josh. he told me to try and go below 3:30. i figured that with the way i was going, it was a possibility, so i mainained this pace and told myself to keep going. the image of chris mccormack running in the kona world championships kept coming into my mind and i wanted to emulate that.

13) overtook a last few people from hendon onwards all the way to changi V. the last 1km i upped my pace to catch the last 2 guys ahead of me and sprinted to the finish.

14) i crossed the line at a gun time of 3:35. minus the time for the late start i had, i should have done 3:20 something. a personal best, and i really felt very good with it.

15) went for the post race massage. shioksss. waited for josh and zhixiang, watched a bit of transformers, then we headed home.

One thing that struck me during the run, was how happy i felt. and through the run, i could not stop praising and thanking God, who made so much possible. and i believe that my Creator made me to run. i may not be Mok-like fast, but when i run, i feel His joy. and the happiness i find when i am running makes me want to share my joy with others. thats why i smile when i run, and hope to bring others to know this joy of mine. there's a reason why whenever i cross the finish line of a race, i hold my hands up and look up to God and thank Him for giving a love for this sport.

ok thats all for now. will update more soon.