This year, crashing my brother is law place @ Relau, jalan2 cari makan @ Penang at the same time. Err last year pun sama gak. Its gonna be an annual thing for us lah i guess.
Pre race (17 Nov 2012)
11.30 am - arrived at Queensbay Mall from Taiping, went for race kit collection. In and out around 10 minutes. bought 2 packs of power gel. just in case. i know im gonna find a free one lying on the street. i just know it.
Noon - time for some Nasi Kandar. ate a full plate @ Nasi Kandar Pelita near USM. Haven. I wanna add another plate. Eh, im running tomorrow's morning. tak jadi. Price according to your appetiate. ours around RM5.50 each.
Evening - Stopped for some groceries @ Sunshine Supermarket. Its not a supermarket. Its like a small Mall. bump into a coffee promotion at the entrance. took part and won 10 packets of white coffee. :P Kaki terpeleot (twisted leg) sket. = Padan muka.
In-laws called. Gonna meet up for makan2 at Bukit Mertajam (about an hour away). Free makan, who can resist kan? Ibu mertuaku belanja lagi. Destination : Restoran Puncak Mutiara.but took us 6 U-turns and almost 2 hours to get there. Sesat. but the Kambing Briyani is worth it. dont like the 'welcoming' smell though. Service is ok. portion wise, ok. Makan duduk bersila. Lots of choices of food. Harga makanan blh tgk website dia.
9.45 pm - left Restoran Puncak Mutiara for Relau.
slept at 11 pm.
Race Day (18 Nov 2012)
What i had before the race :
2 biji kurma, half a cup of cold chocolate drink. Continuous hydration since early of the week. Err, habit dah minum air suam every time. U should too.
but im too sleepy. had to woke up. its a must run event that i've been preparing for.
bought a bottle of purple Gatorade on the way to Queensbay Mall (where the starting line is). Mat Rempits dominating the streets. Patrol cars were going here and there. What a morning.
2.45 am - arrived the starting point and catch up with Sazmie, Fadli and Bai before doing a proper warm-up. its a must. Penting tu. More than 34k runners will be running today. wonder how will i fair in today's run? weather super fine btw. i dont feel like talking too much. Eyes half open. Keep burping last nite's kambing beriyani. oh well.
3.00 am - gun off! took me few minutes to actually cross the starting line because of the crowd. this time im gonna do it right. running at my own pace rather than running too fast like last year's marathon. most of my friends probably running in FM category. i chose to run in this category as somehow, i enjoy this category more. did a FM last year, finished it in 6hrs and 45minutes. but for this one, i might finish it under 3 hours. then boleh balik tido.
the first half an hour seems a bit boring, its still dark.. and its too crowded as i tried zig zagging to escape it. atleast most of them were running. the view of the bridge during this time of the hour is magnifique! plus the view of sea of runners in front of you, as you were trying to make your way up front. good luck with that.
3.38 am - saw a group of Kenyan (not sure which category) already did a u-turn and running fast towards then end of the bridge. I've yet to arrive the main span at this point.
3.40 am - a guy in his wheelchair passed me by. everyone's clapping as he made his way through. tried to run alongside him, but he left me once he get a momentum.
3.48 am - arrived at the main span. someone hit my balls (bukan tahap senak la) while running through a group of runners slowing down at the WS, i pushed him a lil bit. soft push. mind where you swinging your arm next time. ok im good to go. U-turn is nowhere to be seen.
3.51 am - saw a guy with seriouly big afro hair. a familiar face. except his hair is now much, err.. bigger.
4.00 am - reached the U-turn. its not even half way yet. ate half of the gel. feel the boost of energy. neck kind a hurt. turned off the mp3 player. im sleepy alright.
4.07 am - reached the 10km mark. yay! 11 more km to go. its humid and i need to do smoething about it.
what do you think i did?
a : take off my running vest
b: pour some water on the top of my head
c: running by the roadside pavement?
answer is C! Ha! i wont take off my running vest la. besides, pouring water does help, but makes your vest heavier. by running on the roadside pavement, its kind a lessen the hard impact of the tarmac. its made of cement, and a slightly higher than the road level, thus gave me some cool wind to help with the heat. but if u stumble and fell down off the pavement, its the looongg way down, off the bridge. do it on your own risk. im not risking anything. i know what im doing :)
a banana man (i think he's from Japan) were seen passing me by. even a banana can overtook me and left me 18 tiang behind. Yup. its one fast banana. i only wish him 'Gambate'. Sish. I want to run in rambutan costume next time. Probably can golek2 sampai finish line.
4.25 am - its 15km mark and im still running! its almost the end of the bridge and im heading for another U-turn near the Caltex station, and back to where i started first. at this point my leg kind a hurt. those running for FM making their way forward from this point. All the best. Tried it last year. takmo dah.
but somehow i still going strong. at this point i stop occasionally for hydration (plain water only). still on the hydration plan, every 25 minutes or so. i think using this water belt hurts my neck.
and told you i found a power gel. GNC punye. blh guna utk next run. Last year if ound 2 tubes of GO Gel. ate one, saw another one tp malas nak pick up.
5.05 am - reached the 18km mark. doing the power walk and running every now and then. felt the effect of lack of sleep. you body says 'get some rest by the roadside' but your mind keep pushing saying 'if i stop now, i will not move at all and end up sleeping by the roadside'. I listen to what my mind said. Body rebel by making the legs seems kind a heavy. And im busy thinking about all this until it reached the last KM! phew.. and phew..
5.30 am - reached the finishing line! wohoo! timing : (please see pic below)
Left the venue around 6 am with my brother in law. couldnt stay much longer. too sleepy :P
This information (if relevant) i would like to share.
During the race : sipping Gatorade (perisa anggur tu) every 25min or so. one small bottle.
Stop at WS after an hour running for plain water only.
Post race : a bottle of drinking water + 2 cuppa of iced cold Milo = im blessed! Cont with a plate of Tosai and nescafe ice!
Evening - Went for a stroll @ Queensbay Mall. Got myself a Subway + one free Sub (with a coupon from 15th Nov paper). Tummy full and
Continue Cari Makan for Pasembor @ Padang Kota, Georgetown. Overcrowded, hawkers pushing you to eat what they are selling, beggars, but nice busking. Food terrible. Nice view though. and met Fariz with his wifey and friends while at it. RM25 (based on your selection, could be more)
ok. 2nd destination - Char Kueh Teow Sani - full house. Lucky to get a table. Recommended. cuma wifey kata takde kucai. agreed with her. Rm 4.00 biasa, Rm5.00 special.
Ok. 3rd in the menu : Burger Bakar NZ. Near Sunshine Supermarket entrance. Ok, this is overwhelming. Too much food :P but i must try this. this is our last night here. end up i ate it the next morning. Juicy and good. Rm5.90 only.
Left for Putrajaya the next day. I think im gonna do HM only for now on.
p/s : I did these kind of thing only when i had a distance run. Normal days? haa.. tak buleh.. :P akan jadi gumuk.
abbreviation :
FM - Full marathon
HM - Half Marathon
WS - Water Station
*This post is solely based on my own experience as a runner. U may, or may not take this as a guide as everyone's body is different from each other. The best thing is to know your own body and your own limit before attempting a distance running*
No comments :
Post a Comment