SCKLM 2016 - full marathon race report

This is my second and the last marathon for the year. Let's just say, the kid got his ass handed to him but finish none the less. However this is not the reason why I'm hanging up my running shoes already. At the beginning of the year, the aim was to enter only two marathons. So, I guess my running season is done and dusted in August =) 

Training

In June during the fasting month of Ramadan, I only managed to get a 10 km run in and that was it. Then in July, I managed to put in a total of 91 km run with the furthest distance being 15 km. I would usually put in more mileage for my training but I had been busy with work for the past month. When I registered for the marathon back in March, I aimed for a sub-5 finish. After my training, I lowered my expectation to a sub-6 finish. I knew that I was under prepared for something that needed a lot of preparation. 

Race day

The flag-off was at 4 a.m. Stopped for subuh prayer at KM15 where they had a prayer station set up for Muslim runners. I was running with a hydration bag which I carried my camera phone, cash, i.d, electrolyte gels and pills, and a kain pelikat (which I didn't know was provided). You can tell I wasn't aiming to break the world record time for a marathon that day. Runners aiming for PB's or just want to run fast and light would only rely on water stations to re-hydrate.



At KM30 I started feeling cramps hitting my quads especially on the descends. I had to occasionally stop, stretch and massage in order to continue running, but could only run a couple hundred meters before the cramps started kicking in again. From KM35 when the route took us to a couple more ascends, my quads just gave out and I knew sub-6 finish would eluded me this time. I ended up walking from KM38 until the last 500 meters towards the finish line. With what was little to nothing left in the tank and the cheers from the crowd, I tried to run through the cramps with a smile on my face crossing the finish line.



Thank you to everyone who came out to show support, from the volunteers to the supporters cheering, setting up their own water stations and snapping photos of runners. Appreciate it! Nothing much to say here, see you guys next year. Keep running!

I eventually lost sight of the 6:00 hour pacer lead by Mr. Choi.

Let's just say, all these fishes and I still can't find Dori.

At KM40 where I decided to take a nap.

With Zahid at the finish line. 
Let's just say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

With Nasrul at the finish line. His first marathon.
Welcome to the club. Congrats!

I may be slow, but I'm still lapping everybody on the couch =P

Route 68 Challenge 2016 - 50K race report

The longest footrace of my life (so far)

510 days, 73 weeks, 17 months, and over a year later, my sabbatical from the running scene is finally over. I am back and feeling better than I had before. 

Where have I been?

My last run I joined was the Penang Bridge International Marathon back in November 2014. I clocked my best time for a marathon (4:57) and that capped off my running season for 2014. Then life changed; transitioning to working life after graduating, surviving a highway motorcycle crashed, playing weekend football with JAFC, but mostly work work work work work. I still keep up with the regular short runs over the weekends and had Standard Chartered KL Marathon 2015 insight, but everybody knew how that went down. I had only one goal for the year and that was to run one marathon. That's basically how my running season for 2015 went - without a single race at all. 

Where do I start? 

I went on the running blogs and checked for events that will be held this year. SCKLM is still in the second half of this year and that would be too long for me to wait, plus there is a high chance of last year's debacle repeating. As a result, I went for next best thing, Route 68 Challenge 50K Ultra Marathon which would be the longest footrace of my life as my comeback race.

Training

Training was simple, short and fast. Only 4 weeks of high mileage runs a total of 150KM and then tapered for another 2 weeks before the race. Taper week was disrupted with a climb up Mount Kinabalu a week before the race with the family. Why not ?

Climbed Mount Kinabalu during the taper week

Race day

I was joined at the starting line with my fellow running buddy, Zahid also known as Ah Seng (and now UltraSeng), who was also making his debut 50K Ultra Marathon but never ran a 10K, half-marathon or a full-marathon race before. When you're as strong as a horse, you skipped many levels I guess. 

0700 start

With Ah Seng (the one in red) taking it easy for the first 16K

[Photo by: Rany Tan]

Ultra is a different ball game compare to marathons. The gears - everybody was running with a backpack carrying things like drinks, foods, energy gels, caps, sunglasses, reflective vests, headlamps, lotions and more. The aidstations - they had soft-drinks, biscuits, candies, fruits, even nasi lemak, and more. The crowd - from the runners to the supporters were smaller in numbers. And finally the route - although it was a road race, but the hilly terrain gave that added challenge which is usually associated with Ultra races.

At the KM25 u-turn checkpoint, enjoying nasi lemak for breakfast

The first 16K was a decent uphill run. It was a cool morning, the route was covered with trees along the way and I felt good. Then from KM16 Genting Sempah checkpoint it was a downhill run all the way to KM25 u-turn checkpoint and I still felt good. But, the 9K uphill journey back to KM34 Genting Sempah checkpoint was where I started having problems. Muscles in my legs feeling tight, plus with the current dry season in the country, the afternoon sun can really take you out. The last 16K downhill run back to the finish line was not as straightforward as it seems either, especially when you're tired and your legs were beat up, it felt like forever.

Passing through a crime scene where a dead body of woman was found,
you don't see that everyday

Always nice to see supporters opening their own aidstations for runners.
This one came with a tent for solat

Couple hundred meters left to reach the finish line.
I'm ready to get this over with

[Photo by: Tey Eng Tiong] 

That forever feeling eventually went away at 3 p.m on a scorching hot Sunday afternoon in mid-April when I crossed the finish line. And just like that, I completed my first 50K Ultra Marathon, the longest footrace of my life. Thank you everybody who supported, helped and pushed me to the finish line. I am totally grateful for this experience. It feels great to be back =)

After 8 hours of running, the suffer fest has ended

[Photo by: Mira]

List of names who were looking for different kind of tauge and
congrats to all runners who managed to find it