- It's been a while ..... -

Yeah, it's been quite some time since I last blogged .... Not sure why, maybe I'm lost for words. Hahaha .... But don't worry!! I'm back now and I will update my blog as and when possible ....

- The North Face 100 50km Duo -

Another run that I just signed up. And also the 1st trail run I'm joining after more than a year. I'm not sure whether I can last the distance but I'm gonna work hard for it.

Event Date : 15 October 2011, Saturday 
Race start time :
100km solo : 1am Flag-off time
(Registration starts at 12am midnight)

100km duo : 7am Flag-off time
(Registration starts at 6am)

50km duo : 10am Flag-off time
(Registration starts at 9am)

Venue : 
The race will start and end at MacRitchie Park. The exact route will be kept confidential until 1 week prior to the event. 

REGISTRATION FEE	Early bird	Normal
100km Solo – By Invitation only
Open category (for men & women)	$300	$350
100km Duo
Open category (for men & women)	$190	$230
Women category (for women teams only)	$190	$230
50km Duo
Open category (for men & women)	$120	$155
Women category (for women teams only)	$120	$155
More infos here : The North Face 100

As this is a Duo race, my chosen partner for the 50km Duo run is my running buddy Ibrahim.  Running 25km on trail within 4.5 hours shouldn't be a problem for us.

We called ourselves - Obviously Awesome Duo !! - .
Our aim is not to compete, but just to complete the run together.
And as any other races, my main target is just to complete within the cut-off time. But for this run, my targeted time will be below 3 hours !!
Seriously hope that I can do that .....  And to do that, I need to do more trail runs ......

- 'Freedom Freaks' got their own running tee -

And yes .... Finally, my running kakis and me has got our 'official' running tee.
Not as great a design but at least it's something that we can call our own. The logo was designed by our own member, Sunny and fine-tuned by me myself ..... Hahaha.
The design at the back was created by Wan Albedo. It took us quite some time to finally agreed on the chosen design. 

The actual design on the tee-shirt. It looks real good.
Personally, I think the tee-shirt's quality is good.
And together with the simple design, it really suits our group.

The design at the back of the tee with the wordings, "LEAVE NO ONE BEHIND." And again, we said what we mean, and we mean what we said.
We will always wait for people during our LSD runs. No matter how slow, we will run together from start till the end.

These 2 models posing with the running tee-shirt.
Making its debut on their LSD run yesterday.

This tee-shirt will be making its official racing debut on 25th June 2011 for the few Freakers who are gonna be doing the Sundown Ultramarathon 100km run.
Hope they can make the group proud by finishing the race in under 18 hours.
Let us stand up and be known in Singapore's running community.

Anyone interested to join us in our bi-weekly LSD run can just contact me thru here or my Facebook account. Our aim is just to have fun and make new friends.The more, the merrier because life is too short to not make many more friends.

- Sundown Marathon 2011 race Review -

 

 

My race bib

And finally, the day I've been waiting for is here. So much anticipation about this event. This was my 2nd Sundown run but my 1st time doing a night marathon. Was expecting to be of the same as running a normal morning marathon, but how wrong was I. The decision to wear a half tights instead of the normal long one seems to backfired against me.
The pre-run was a very exciting one. Met up with my usual running kakis, had our usual camwhoring session, discussing about each others running tactics etc ....
Wonderful atmosphere we had there and also taking pics with strangers as we were wearing our Manchester United's jersey. That's the good thing about running I guess. Strangers do connect to each other somehow rather.

UNITED in running

 

Strangers when we 1st met

The run started 5 mins off the scheduled time at 2205 hrs. It started off quite well for me for the 1st 10km. Clocked at 1hr 10 mins, it was what I've planned. And as the distance gets longer, my pace becomes slower. So too were my legs. Started to feel cramps all over and also had a stomachache after the 18km mark, I had to walk/slow jog to make sure I didn't poop along the route. Hahahaha .... The deep heat given by the volunteers didn't help much too.
After the turning point at 21km mark, I felt the way back to the end point seems like forever. Everything was a drag. But I'm still determined to complete the race no matter how long it took. Giving up was never an option. I just wanted to earn the finishers medal and tee shirt real bad !! One thing for sure is that I'm gonna missed the Champs League final with the pace that I'm doing now.
After reaching the 39km mark, I had to fasten my pace to complete my race at a respectable timing. Sub 6 hours is my next target after I failed to get my targeted timing of below 5hr 30mins. Then again, 3km feels like eternity !! Still can't pace myself well and finally reach the end point at a poor timing of 6hr 23 mins. Really unexpected and disappointed with myself. And at the same time, heard news that Man United was losing 3-1 to Barca !! Double combo to me !! Nevertheless, felt happy that I've completed my 3rd Full Marathon even though my timing was not a good one. Will train harder for my next FM !!
I hope to be back stronger and much more faster than this. Insyaallah ..... 



- Sundown Marathon 2011_ Garmin Connect Details -

 Collected my hard-earned finishers' medal and tee shirt. Really glad I made it !!
Nothing really beats the feeling of achieving my goals .....

My running kakis after the run.
Everyone is a hero. Doing something we love most and achieving our individual goals, really made our nite!! 
We've beaten the sunrise and we sure gonna be back again next year !!

Slacked there for a while before we made our way to a heavy breakfast of nasi lemak and roti pratas.
And also our well-deserved sleep.
Sleep really can't wait now.

My finishing pose

And lastly, the finishing pose that I've been planning while I was running. Could be better though.
Can't help it. I'm tired to the max !!

- Slow and steady: The last run before Sundown 2011 -

Did a slow and steady pace run before my 3rd marathon. Just wanna loosen up my stiff muscles after days of work .....
Hopefully my knees are ok come this Saturday and complete the run in my targeted time of 5 hour and 30 mins.


- Slow and steady the last run before Sundown 2011_ Garmin Connect Details -

- Recovery run cum tapering for Sundown -

Planned to do a 6km slow and steady run after yesterday's long run at Passion Run.
But due to heavy rain, decided to cut it short as not to dirty my new running shoes.
My knees felt great and doesn't feel any cramps on my muscles .....
I'm all set and ready for my 3rd full marathon this Saturday evening. Insyaallah ...
Hope to do few more short runs before the big day.

- Recovery run cum tapering for Sundown _ Garmin Connect Details -

- 100 Plus PAssion Run 2011 25km race Review -

My bib number

Attended my 2nd Passion Run yesterday afternoon but it was my 1st in the 25km Men's category. Reached the location 15 minutes prior to flag-off. Blame it on the traffic leading to ECP!!
Met few of my runner kakis there and had a short warm-up/stretching before I proceed to the start point. Did not get to join the 1st wave but it doesn't really matter to me. I ran to complete not to compete !!
The 2nd wave started exactly at 1640hrs and it was a very slow start because of the bottleneck due to the narrow start of the course.
I started really slow because I don't wanna waste my energy and also 25km is a long way!! The hot weather doesn't help too. At the 4th km mark, I was already feeling so thirsty and feeling so lethargic. And so I told myself to keep a constant pace of between 6min 30sec to 7mins per km. It did help me because I didn't stop for any water breaks for the next 12km .....
Overall I think I had a good run. I was able to keep a constant pace throughout except when I had a water break at every 5km mark. I had a cramp-free run too which is really great considering that I didn't have a proper stretching.
At the last 3km, I tried to run as fast as I can hoping that I can complete within my targeted timing of 3hrs. I was happy to see the end point and cross the line in exactly 3hrs. It may not be a great timing but I know I had accomplished my mission.

- Passion Run 2011 25km _ Garmin Connect Details -

Joined the queue to collect my finisher medal and also the under-sized finisher tee.
I really like the unique medal but the tee shirt is crap. Too tight for my body.
But no complaints about the logistics and the way the event is being run.

Chee Wah,Jeff,Me,Ronald

Met few of my running kakis at the bag collection area and congratulated one another on another run completion.

At the end finish line

Overall, I think it was a good run for me. A new running experience under the damn hot weather. Hope to run this event again next year with a better timing.
Will update the official result or pics soon.

- Road to Sundown -

I'm back !! And it feels so good to be running again ....
After 11 days of resting and busy with work, I've decided that I need to run if I wanna have a good timing for Sundown Marathon.
Good weather to run in but my knees doesn't feel good if I increase my speed to below 6 mins/km.
Good slow run and I hope my knees are good come this Saturday and next Saturday.

- Road to Sundown _ Garmin Connect Details -

- SAFRA Singapore Bay Run & Army Half Marathon 2011 -

Another run that I just signed up. And this run falls on my birthday. So, it makes it more special to run on my 32nd birthday.

Event Details

Date: Sun, 4 Sep 2011
Venue: Flag-off at Esplanade Bridge
Time: 5.15am to 12pm

This annual mass running event is the largest in Singapore and jointly organised by SAFRA and The Army. The event comprises both the competitive 21-km half-marathon and 10-km routes. The social runners can participate in the non-competitive 5/6-km Fun Run as well.

Participants will get to enjoy a unique route taking them over the new downtown around the Marina Bay area as well as pass historical places. Participants will also be entertained by the street side performances along the various running routes. The fun continues with stage performances at the end point carnival and complemented with various merchandise stalls offering promotional discounts on the wide range of sports related products.

Competitive participants will each receive an event T-shirt, goody bag, personalised certificate and a finisher medal. For the 5/6-km Fun Run participants, they will each receive a certificate of completion and an event-shirt. 


More infos here :

This will be my 3rd year running this event and I was really impressed with their logistics and also supports from the army boys.
Plus the cheap pricing, I believe this event is a gonna be a huge success for years to come.

- adidas South East Asia 'King of the Road 2011' -

 

Another major running events to take note of. 

adidas King of the Road (KOTR) is a running championship held across Southeast Asia. Held in five countries across the region, and organised in city areas, the adidas KOTR race will culminate in an ultimate championship race that will be held in a different host country each year.

In 2011, the race will make its regional debut in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines, and is aimed at bringing runners together from across the region.

adidas KOTR Southeast Asia Championship will be held in the Philippines, in a bid to crown the adidas South East Asia 'King of the Road 2011'.

Dates and host countries : 

15 May - Thailand 

28 August - Singapore 

25 September - Indonesia 

2 October - Malaysia 

23 October - Philippines

Each country is a qualifying leg towards the finals, which is held in the Philippines on 23 October 2011. The winner and runner-up of each country's 16.8km category will win an all-expenses paid trip to the Philippines to compete with the best of the best in Southeast Asia.
The crowing of the adidas King of the Road Southeast Asia 2011: Only citizens and PRs are eligible for the championship title of the King of the Road for Southeast Asia. Foreigners are welcomed to take part and they will compete in the 'Open' category.  

Race Distance
The championship race distance is at 16.8km. Complete 2 marathons (84km) over 5 countries with adidas KOTR 2011.

Themes
Each year, a different event theme will be introduced to spice up the race atmosphere. In 2011, 'colours' will be the theme, and this is represented through a variety of different coloured adidas event tops that will be provided in your race pack. The multi-colours showcased are meant to demonstrate the vibrancy of the sports scene across Southeast Asia. All KOTR participants are encouraged to be involved in 'colours'! 

*Special

Complete all 5 countries in the Adidas King of the Road Championship 2011 and get a special finisher tee! 

 

 

 

 

For more infos, click here.

I will have to skip this event due to its expensive prices and also it's the fasting month during the Singapore's leg.