Race day! I woke up around 415am to get ready for the run. We were to gather in the lobby at 445am to wait for the bus. I fixed my milo-oatmeal breakfast and munched on it while getting ready. The lobby was filled with runners - apparently there were about 90 guests from Singapore staying at the Coronade that weekend due to the GE event! There were about 40 from MF Safra, 20-odd from SGRunners and 20-odd from Toa Payoh Safra. And that was excluding running groups who were staying at other hotels. It was fun to see familiar faces at a non-local event.
The buses took 15min to reach Lake Gardens. We alighted just outside the park and walked a short distance to the starting area. The setting was a friendly casual Sunday morning. People milled around, chatting and stretching while waiting for the reporting to start. The pre-dawn air was fresh in the park and temperature around 22-degC.
The race was flagged off promptly at 6am for the 30km (and 630am for 20km). The route was known for the endless number of rolling hills and much winding around residential estates. You would not bother counting the slopes because it would never be the last until the race ended. You simply tackled the upslope ahead, enjoyed the cruising down and looked out for the next climb. The rolling slopes were a mix of gradient and length.
The first 18km was around private residential areas, condominiums, national monuments and parliament. I think I started out too fast because by 1.5h into the run, my legs felt tired. I started off with Alber, then he went ahead. Alex caught up next and ran a little in front of me. I saw Jancy in front of me, running alongside Alber for a while. Then I caught up with Vincent, and much later on, Helen and Chairman. By 2h, the signs of cramps were creeping in, especially on the downslopes. My calves, quads and soles took turns at threatening to cramp. My right knee and ITB felt really tight. That was no good. The last injury I wanted was a bad ITB, which many of our runners had last year. I probably needed more routine massages, which I had laid off from since end-Nov.
We then ran through the Hartamas Shopping Centre district, where runners were going in both directions. Distracting myself, I kept my eyes peeled on the opposite road for familiar faces. Ricci was going very strong, he was already exiting the area as I entered. Some distance later, I saw Teck Hou, then Ong, Kumaran, Sam, Derrick and so forth. I saw Ping running fast, she was eventually in the 6th position for the 20km category. Sam won prizes for coming in 5th for the 30km run, probably the Veteran's category.
The U-turn point and powergel station this year was moved further up a slope. Last year we went up a small slope up, round a couple of shops to reach the drink/ powergel station, and then down a long slope. This year it was the reverse - we went up the long slope, to the same shops, and down the small slope. My legs felt pretty drained when I reached the U-turn section. I took a powergel and tried to speed up on the return leg. Wee Hou passed me and signalled me to follow him. It was MR ultra deja vu. I kept pace for some distance, sped up ahead along the tarmac highway stretch, but the cramps were still looming in the background. Any fast and wrong steps would trigger the cramps.
I reached the last 4km mark and had only 20min more to my sub-3h target. At that point, I knew it was a lost cause, I would not be able to cover that distance in that time, certainly not with hints of cramps. Wee Hou overtook me, and then Sok Hwa caught up from behind and told me to "jia you". She was having a relaxed run today! The last 1km seemed to take forever. Finally I saw the familiar signs that said "400m to go". Funneling into the finishing line, the photographer was shouting to me to raise my arms for a victory shot.
Time taken 3.05h. It was 7min slower than last year when I was less prepared! I was away on a climb and returned only 2wks prior to the race last year. My maximum mileage was a struggling 20km. During the last run, I had pain in my hip joints then from all the slopes and really struggled through them. Yet my timing was much faster. I could not fathom why.
But as one Nike t-shirt stated "Runs end. Running does not." There, it captured the essence of running. After sulking for 15min while doing my cooling down stretches, I was distracted by the post-run carnival at the gardens, food, shopping and taking photos. I took a free breakfast cereal, checked out the booths and ended up buying 4 pairs of New Balance socks - very cheap, RM6 per pair!
Our catered bus brought us back to the hotel for a nice shower. We were driving back to Singapore in the afternoon, but before that, a very important interlude - Japanese buffet lunch at Kampachi at the Equatorial Hotel. The sashimi tasted bland though it was fresh. The rest of the selection was decent and had a good spread for our rumbling stomachs. The drive back was smooth. Myself, Alber and Heng took turns at the driving wheel and we reached Singapore around 7pm. It was very fun indeed to have like-minded fellow runners on a trip. I look forward to more of such race trips in future.
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