dare to dream

 

Like others, I also received my new Balance-Pacesetters 30km certificate by mail few days back. I couldn’t really recall how I fare in that run. To my surprise, it was printed on certificate as 3:03:46. To my standard, that was already a pretty awesome timing … … just imagine if I were to continue running with that pace for another 12km, I would have made a 4:15 marathon, and that will be the day that my dream has finally comes true. (well, not really …. sub-4 is my dream, or probably my nightmare.)

 

 

Have a good weekend!

 

“Man, alone, has the power to transform his thoughts into physical reality; man, alone, can dream and make his dreams come true.” Napoleon Hill 1883-1970

of family matters and DNS

If you think that adventure racing is simply bulldozing into nature, you are absolutely right wrong. An adventure racer must prepare a whole lot of equipment prior to the race. Yesterday was the Skill Test and Equipment Check, where all the racers must complete all the required race skills testing plus ensure that all the equipment is as per requirement. It is meant for the racers to demonstrate to the race organizers that we have the skills to keep ourself (and other people) safe on the technical sections of the race. Failing to do so, the team will not be allowed onto the race course.

These are the things that are COMPULSORY Equipment per Participant of Eco X-Capade Team Category:

• Climbing harness with CE or UIAA certification (certified for rock climbing purposes).
• Two locking carabiners (May be autolock or screw gate)
• One abseil device: Figure of eight or Omega Pacific SBG II. No ATC or Petzl Huit allowed.
• Two slings (minimum 60cm long)
• Water container good to contain minimum 2 liters of hydration liquid.
• One (1) Mountain Bicycle in good condition. Road bikes, time trial bikes, cyclo-cross and tandem bikes are not permitted
• One (1) Biking or climbing Helmet per participant
• One (1) Headlamp or torch per participant.
• One (1) pair of full-fingered Gloves suitable for abseiling
• Footwear – running shoes/ cross trainer/ trail shoes (toe revealing shoes are not permitted)
• Waterproof map case for race passport and instructions

 

Well, in trying to live up to the name of “macambagus” (no lah, actually cheramiche’s sons are not well), we arrived at the skill test session VERY late where the race briefing was already on-going and the skill testing stations were already closed. Gulped!!

Organisers were kind enough to open up the skill tests for macambagus and one other team. There were 4 testing stations altogether;

• Mandatory and First aid equipment
• Kayak skills – ability to recover from a capsized kayak and climb back into the boat
• Abseil station  – show ability to abseil with usage of prussic.
• Rock Climbing and Belaying

Since it was already late, we completed the abseil station only. I was having problem the first round, but passed the second attempt. It was really CRUCIAL  for us to know how to do it  confidently, as part of the race course would bring us to a 30m abseil at Damai!

So, how did we DNS (Did Not Start)? By the time we reached home, wifey, being at 37 weeks pregnant was already experiencing  pain, in fact, she’s already on MC for past one week (although doc’s anticipated her due date as 23 July). I also received a text mesage from Cheramiche that his sons are still not well, and needs him to be around. In fact, he just texted me and said that he was up all nite to take care of his youngest son. As the race could be a whole day affair, plus we could be in deep woods where there’s no coverage, we decided to pull out, for the love and care of a family is life’s greatest blessing. It can be the greatest adventure of a life too.

FAMILY FIRST …. (although deep down, I wanted to do it so much …).

I think we have made the right choice Have a great Sunday, folks!!

climbing at damai

As an adventure racer, you are expected to be sufficiently good at almost all of the adventure activities, namely; kayaking, swimming, rafting, biking, running, abseiling, compass-navigation and also climbing. Last few weeks, in getting myself prepared for the Eco-X race which will be held tomorrow, 4 July 2010, I went rock-climbing with several friends at Damai Wall. Friends Dyze, Laura, Ida and Dee were there.

Damai Wall is situated north of Batu Caves, 20mins drive from city center of Kuala Lumpur. Damai Wall is the most popular climbing spot in the region.The routes are mostly vertical and therefore the haven for new climbers aspiring to their first experience of climbing natural rock. Multi-pitch climbing is popular here as routes are bolted up to the top in 4 pitches, graded from intermediate to expert for selection. This wall will be packed during weekend at times with some climbing, abseiling group events, guides and trainings.

 

 

what a weekend!

I’m sure everyone had a great time during the Standard Chartered KL Marathon (SCKLM) last Sunday. As a runner, I think the organizer had done a pretty good job, despite of some loop holes here and there.

We started the run at 5am, in the rain. Frankly, that was the best 10km ever. It felt like running through the mist-fan. I was glad to see friends were running well too (I think Enaikay did his personal best for the first 10k). Probably due to the morning run (last 3 marathons this year were all in the evening) plus the cool and wet weather. I ran in my trail running shoes again, the same one that I wore for Sundown Marathon – it would be too risky to use a different pair of shoes as I only trained LSD once. My PT sessions were also not much of a help with most sessions designed for beginners.   

‘Psychologically’, the route this year seemed shorter too. I enjoyed most of the stretch, except the poor tarmac quality along Ipoh Road. Despite of all that, I am quite satisfied with my run – it was a 15-min improvement from my previous Sundown Marathon.  Here’s how I fare;

Rank      BIB No     Race Category                                       Gun Time            Net Time
480           455            Individuals – Full Marathon              04:45:59                  04:44:49

(phieew, lucky I didn’t stop to take the pic of my timing at the finishing line like I normally would … or else my sub 4:45 is busted!)

Unlike in previous marathons, this time I was in the mood to capture quite a number of photos. Do have a look.

p/s – I’m not really sure what’s happening now in blogsphere. My office’s network admin blocks again the access to all blogspot accounts….shucks! Miss reading friends’ race reports!

staying active

I have interesting events lining up for the second half of this year. It’s a mix of adventure racing, trail running and pure fun runs. There are also some other races that I am eyeing for; Perhentian Island Challenge, Orienteering Championship and Genting Trailblazer to name afew. It’s good to see so many races thriving this year, offering opportunities for people to stay active.

Well, races let me stay active in fun ways. It also allows me to “stay on track” with my physical fitness goals. Whataboutyou?

 These are the races that I’ve signed up;

 

 

 

 

 

 

p/s – Since the KL International Marathion is just around the corner, I am running with friends this morning at 6.30am (Saturday). We plan to run the route Bukit Aman - Double Hill - Matrade - Seri Hartamas – Bukit Aman, offering a 25-ish km in total distance. Any other takers?

sundown post-mortem

Sundown was my third marathon of 2010. And never in my life that I ran all three in the evenings. By far, sundown’s timing was my Personal Worst althought it was the best run I ever did. I was steady throughout and only made walk-breaks at water stations which took hardly one minute. Since water-stations were located at every 1.5km, I figured I must have stopped 28 times which easily translates into 30minutes of walk-breaks. That’s pretty long but I had no regrets. Thank God that I ran cramp-free and injury free.

Well, here are the things that I did;

Proper Hydration – As mentioned, I stopped at every water stations along the course, even when I didn’t feel like it. This is important to ensure that I run cramp-free and injury-free. Cramp sets in easily when the body dehydrates or low in sodium or even when there’s drastic heat difference e.g. warm muscles in cold water, vice versa.

Electrolytes in-Balance – I took eight ORS sachets (wasn’t a planned move) throughout the run. I only took it when I had water at waterstops. On water-stations with 100+ or other energy drinks, I didn’t take any ORS or PowerGels, but I drank two cups of the energy drinks. 

Calorie Intake – I took four PowerGels during the marathon. Each Powergel gives about 100 kilocalories, mostly comes from carbohydrate and fructose/glucose. It also has sodium in it which can replenish the lost sodium (thru sweat). I only took my first PowerGel after 1hr. The subsequent ones at every 45 minutes.

Pre-Run and Post-Run Stretching – Stretch to the first point of resistance to at least 20 seconds. This is to allow the Golgi Tendon Organ (GTO) to override Muscle Spindles, thus allowing for greater Range of Motion (ROM) during the run. You won’t get the full benefits if the stretch is less than 20secs. This is what I was taught as a trainer.

Other things that I did differently in preparing myself  for this marathon;

LSD Training – I only did LSDs (once per week), with distances ranged from 15km – 42km. My training took the entire month prior to Sundown.

Trail Running shoes – As blogged previously, trail running shoes have highly shock absorbent material that cushions and protects the heel at impact (thicker layer at heel). It performed perfectly well with my heel landing. Trail running shoes also do not allow much sole movement. The only bending point is between my forefoot and midfoot. It lets my midfoot-heel section stays intact, thus, providing better stability for my landing.

Forced Breathing  – I’m quite used to this type of breathing by now. The downside of it is that it creates alot of noise. I did double exhale and single inhale throughout my run. It also ensures that I have long and deep breaths, thus, allowing good supply of quality oxygen into my system. This will avoid cramps too.

Heel Landing – Yes people, for the first time ever, I did heel landing throughout my run. Heel has big muscles and bones connected to it. Logically, it is the strongest point at the foot.  

There you go. I may not be  a good and fast runner, but I always wanted to run injury-free and cramp-free. I was happy to be able to walk normal the following day with minor soreness. I hope you too had a great recovery and let us run responsibly. Try to get to know your own body better.

See you guys at SCKLIM!!

 

 

phiew…that was close

Looking at the start time of 12 midnite, I knew well that I had to sleep during the daytime or I’d end up zombie-running during the sundown. I decided to drive to JB a day earlier with Lil and munchkin right after my PT at 6am. My plan was to tire myself with driving down south, plus window-shopping and swimming once in JB. Unfortunately, we had to put family’s Singapore trip on hold as their immigration won’t allow a 7-month pregnant lady to enter their country…shucks!

Well, I wanted to hit the bed well after 4am and to wake up past 12 noon on Saturday. Unfortunately, I saw myself dozing off after 12 midnite and woke up at 7am. I had to cancel my coffee-appreciation course booked earlier that day at theafcstudio in Singapore to allow myself to catch few more hours of sleep.

Since I stayed at Puteri Pacific JB, the CIQ complex was just a walking distance. In less than 30minutes, I was already at Kranji MRT station. Logistically, the hotel is a perfect location …. not only wifey and munchkin could roam around the shopping area connected to the hotel, but my car was safely parked too. Since I had 5 more hours before the flag-off, I went to theafcstudio at Orchard/Somerset to get some stuff and made a quick budge to Changi Exhibition Centre, where the marathon was held.

It was great to see a bunch of familiar faces there; Syah, Nadia, Zaki, Dett and Sharafi all ready to ruminate the FMs, while Diket, Yimster, Izam and Ziff all looked satisfied with their completed HMs.

We were in the last pack when it was flagged off at 11.59pm, and took us a good 5 minutes to cross the starting line. By this time, I was practically all by myself, trying to squeeze my way through thousands of runners in the first 2km of CEC paved area. Frankly, I hate this stretch … it was so humid and hard to breathe (I think I took in more carbon dioxide than oxygen).   

The crowd loosened up once we hit the airport slip road. From this point onwards, the run became enjoyable (except few points where you could smell shitty stuff coming from a nearby STP). While many people hate the run at East Coast Park, I on the other hand, always love the run there. The route at ECP is very flat and nice, well rolling at some sections. At certain stretch, you can even listen to small waves pounding against the sandy beach. Priceless!

I’m fond of long runs. And I think a lot during the runs – about family, business and the less-fortunates. It makes me feel very grateful that I’m alive and healthy, and blessed with good and understanding family. It keeps my feet on ground.

I only realized that I was running out of time to complete the marathon (in less than 5 hours of course) when I passed the 37th km mark. I ran (well, most of the time I only jogged …. hehheh) at km 38 and 39, but sprinted in the last 3km. See, I never sprinted that long before (the longest was 2km during the Putrajaya Night Marathon) and man, was I surprised that I could sprint that far.

The official result was out yesterday and my chip time was …taddaaaaaaaa….  

In case if you can’t read it, it’s *beep* 4 hours 59 minutes 58 seconds !!!!

Geez, just imagine if I were to take a 2-sec break during the last 3kms …. phieww, that was close and don’t play-play ….

p/s – those who play lotteries, well go and buy 5958 … it’s a  pretty good number hehheh. Have a good week everyone!

a full marathon distance

A group of us attempted another Long Slow Distance (LSD) last Friday evening. Cheramiche, Fadhil, Ijam, Kash & Rais (as Kash our official support ‘team’ … hehehe), Ziff and I met up at Palace of Justice (PoJ) at 9.00pm for another round of training. Initial target was 25km but we were more than happy to have it completed at 24km. Cheramiche, Fadhil and Ijam left earlier after reaching their targets. As usual, the rest of us spent another hour for our usual chat & makan2 session. Kash brought very delicious Meat Fried Rice with loads of cili-padi (small fiery-hot chillies), mini bananas, icy cold Gatorades and Chocolate Milk, while Ziff brought some montel bananas. I came empty-handed and wallop these free feast :( yikes!

I also received an unexpected request from one of my PT clients to do another LSD of 19km on Sunday. Well, work is work. I accepted her request and off we went for my 2nd LSD of the weekend. We started from Kiara Park, ran to Petronas @ Sri Hartamas, off to Mont Solaris and ran back to Petronas before we shot back to Kiara Park. All in all, we covered at least 19km. We also bumped into “late Ngae Koh Hieng” memorial runners along the route. It’s so good to see many runners turned up for that run. He surely left  a big impact on all of us – he will be sorely missed.

All in all, I’ve covered 43km of running over the weekend and I’m all ready for the Sundown Ultra Marathon. so, this is the list of LSDs that I’ve done in getting ready for my Sundown;

LSD no. 1 (25 April 2010) – 45km (6hr Rogaining Championship) (DONE)

LSD no. 2 (02 May 2010) – 10km (Bomba Run) (DONE)

LSD no. 3 (08 May 2010) – 30km** (DONE – in split session …err …counted?)

LSD no. 4 (i) (15 May 2010) – 25km (Putrajaya) (DONE ~24km)

LSD no. 4 (ii) (16 May 2010) – 15km (pirating NB-Pacesetters) (DONE)

LSD no. 5 (21 May 2010) – 25km (Putrajaya) (DONE)

LSD no. 6 (23 May 2010) – 19km (Kiara-Hartamas) (DONE – unplanned!)

Sundown Marathon, Singapore – 29 May 2010

let’s rooaarrrrrr!

Always dreamed about a Universal Studios vacation? Let’s plan for a trip this December, a day before the Singapore Standard Chartered Marathon (SSCM) 2010 …. baikkk punya pancing!!

This is one of my favourite marathons. It’s flat, fast and festive.

FLAT – the route is as flat as a pancake. Best of all, what comes with this “pancake” are bananas, lots of water-stations (I think every km towards the end), powergels etc.

FAST – everything is fast in this marathon; the bib collection, the bag deposit, the medal collection etc.

FESTIVE – supporters are all scattered throughout the route. they even have mini concert past the 25km mark, at East Coast Park.  

 

eerrr, see you there, no?

Eco X-Series 2010 is back!

Yessss, Eco X-Series 2010 is back! macambagus has been competing in this eco-x races since it was first introduced way back in the year 2000. After a one year break, the Eco X-Series is back again, it was said to be bigger and better! It will be held in a brand new area, with several brand new disciplines and a brand new race category.

Once again, Nomad Adventure is working with the indispensable support of Pejabat Kementrian Pelancongan Malaysia Negeri Selangor (Ministry of Tourism Selangor State Office) to showcase the scenic secrets of the state. This will be the most accessible race course that they have ever had. It’s 20 minutes from downtown KL to the race start and finish line! And the race links three super cool adventure locations: Batu Dam, Batu Caves and the Selangor State Park.

 

 

Info on Race Disciplines

For all categories, this will be a continuous race course, so teams will have to carry all their race equipment from the start to the finish line. All disciplines are of equal weightage, so if you want to win you have to be good at everything!

Mountain Biking

Some blogs have touted the Batu Dam area as having some of the best mountain biking in KL and certainly the most scenic. In the jungle it will be 100% single track and will feature some demanding climbs as well as fast, swoopy descents. It is estimated at least 12+ km of riding.

On foot: Jungle and River Trek, and Road Running

Everyone will get to experience some incredible jungle trekking through a unique limestone area. Tackling this section will be a full body workout as you scramble and climb over rocks and duck under obstacles. Eco X-Capade and X-Challenge teams will get an additional river trekking section which is always pretty cool (literally)! Eco X Sprint and X-Challenge will also face a road running section of less than 5km but with some good hill climbs.

On, In and Over Rock: Caving, Rock Climbing and Abseiling

We are preparing for the longest abseil we have ever set up in an adventure race! But only the Eco X-Capade will get to do it, and our advice to the teams is that they should bring some fresh underwear because they are going to need a clean set after this $#!?-inducing abseil. The caving and climbing is a fun section for everyone. Eco X Capade and X Challenge teams will have to know how to belay.

No matter who you are, there is definitely a race for you in the Eco X Series! No excuses not to sign up!  Train hard, train together and don’t forget the bananas!

(taken from www.nomadadventure.com)

Download the forms below, print out, fill up and  fax it to 603-7958 1710 or e-mail them at eco-x@nomadadventure.com

• Entry Form
• Indemnity Form

Closing date: 24 June 2010

10% Early Bird Discount (Valid until: 31 May 2010) 20 days to go!

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