Yes, I had started my training a month ago. In fact, I am actually tailoring the training based on Alberto Salazar's Book entitled 'Alberto Salazar's guide to racing'. It is a fantastic book and it had offered quite a lot of insight into human performance than I had ever read about.
My first job is actually improving my base speed. The good thing was, I had managed to identify my base speed which is 3min 30sec / 620m. At this current moment, this is my yardstick at which I will use to judge all my runs. In addition to identification of my base speed, I am working on 2 other much difficult levels and that is my 'race' pace (3.20min / 620m) and my heart blowing pace (2.55 / 620m). Currently, I manage to run at 3.20min / 620m with some effort thrown in. However, I would need terminate my run at somewhere 15k because of overworking. If I am running at my heart stopping pace (2.55), it would not even last to the 8k.
In terms of training, I had also steadily increase the number of days. However, I had also found out that the more days I run, the less I would be able to recover fully before the next run. Not only that, I am prone to bouts of cold and I am suspecting that my body is trying to adjust to the increase in load. So, as a preventive measure to my colds, I am shooting vit.c everyday.
At this current moment, there are still no fixed days that I am running but I am trying to adhere to the principle of hard / soft days. Soft would meant sometimes complete rest and this is something definitely I will not be ignoring. The most important is that we need to listen to our body. The wealth of information coming from our body is really useful. I mean, I had experienced where I was on a course for a full blown cold and just right the day before, I managed to detect symptoms like feeling lethargic, afraid of cold and rise in body tempreature. I was lucky because, immediately after that I took 1000mg of c's and tons of water at the same time, cut off my running and go to sleep early. I was surprised that the next day, I felt ok and not only that, I felt stronger to run.
Right now, I am working on cutting seconds off my base time and hopefully this would improve my general speed. At the same time, I am also alternating shoes where I would use the cushioning shoes for the long run while for speedwork, I'll be on racing flats. In my opinion, racing flats are definitely useful for strengthening the muscles on the leg because it forces the runner to use many portion of the thigh and calves which were not used during normal runs while not to mention, it would definitely force the runner to be more efficient in terms of their strides. All these would sum up to a more efficient running form.
Hope that everything is going on a right direction for me.....KEEP RUNNING!!!
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
Overdue report for SAFRA Shears Bridge Run and Army Half Marathon 2006
This year’s edition of SAFRA SHEARS BRIDGE RUN AND ARMY HALF MARATHON had been quite successful as well. I had a good memorable run although not all of it can be considered good. Read on to find out!
26 August 2006
Got all my things packed last night and this morning, it is a good day with exception that I would need to go back to the office to settle some matters. I began my journey to Singapore and was scheduled to meet Jason at around after lunch. I arrived late as the causeway was jam packed and I could not locate the hotel. This time, the hotel (Beach Hotel) proved to be a right choice as it was clean and inexpensive (SGD85) while, its location is just 1.3km away from the starting line. I guess budget hotels within the city are always better. Anyway for the rest of the day, I decided to take a break from shopping or going around town so that I can rest sufficiently for the race. My preparations for this run is as good as nothing due to the fact that I was very much involved in my work earlier, neglecting my training at the same time. I had strategized that in order to survive the full length of the run, I need to rest well. By evening, Bong Seng smsed that he could not join us as he was involved in his work too so with this in mind, Jason and I decided to have our dinner at PastaMania Funan IT Mall. After the dinner, we had a walk around Funan and visited the running shop. Well, there is nothing much new except that for the breathing apparatus that Jamie was talking about. I saw that it was quite big but forgot to enquire about the price. Duh. The shop was quite well equipped and I would really recommend anyone to visit the Running Shop in Funan IT mall. You will be surprised. After that, we just head back to the hotel and on the way, visited 7 Eleven and got my usual race beverage. We adjourned to sleep at around 11pm.
27 August 2006
I was dreaming about some beautiful girl when the alarm woke me up...shucks...there goes the ending. I was feeling somewhat lethargic so I got up and immediately proceed to shower, just to get myself refreshed. Got myself into my running gear and it was already 4.30am when I told Jason I am going for a pre-race run. When I got out from the hotel, the first thing I noticed was how ‘heavy’ the air was. The term heavy was given because the atmosphere really felt stuffy and somewhat a little hot. I was thinking, is it my mind playing tricks on me or really the environment? I took the first step and it was indeed difficult. I am not sure why but then the feeling is that of the same as the previous year’s run, hot and stuffy. While running, there was a general feeling of difficulty in breathing so I tried blotting this feeling in my mind. It was around 4.45 when I got back to the room to finish off my race beverage and already, I was sweating heavily. Shit...this is not that good. I mentioned to Jason that it is going to be a hot day.
5.15am and we began our slow jog to the starting line. As usual, I proceed to the bridge and as I was late, I was located somewhere in the middle of the marina bridge. The first thing that you would really notice is the huge number of participants of this race. I had never seen anything like that before and personally I would think that the number of participants is quite comparable to the Singapore Marathon. I could not help but feeling nervous as this was many times the size of the Mizuno run and I am not sure if I was up to the task of having the ability to finish this race. My breathing turned shallow and I was sweating even more, due to the close proximity of runners around me and the hot environment as well. Just 5 mins before start, I remembered the lesson learnt from previous run where I suffered due to the heat and this time, I told myself no more crazy starts. Just relax and let the legs run naturally. The countdown began....5...4...3...2...1...
5.30am and the horn sounded. It was a slow rush to the starting line. Thirty seconds had since passed but the crowd in front of me barely moved and by the time I crossed the timing mat, it was already more than 2mins. As usual, these crazy guys started like they were on turbos and they really freaked me out! Relax....this is what I kept telling myself as I trying to avoid another incident of bad injuries and rehabs repeating itself. Ten minutes had passed and it was time for me to do a self assessment on my condition. I felt ok and was not thirsty so I decided to skip the water stations but then, I was sweating heavily. I kept this in mind and turned up a notch in my speed as I felt my pace is a little too slow. There were no distance markers so I had to rely on my own gut feeling to get things right. While running, it suddenly dawned on me that I did not manage to potong sayur on even a single runner! I mean, there were bunch of runners running around me and yet, I could not escape from them. Every time I turned up a notch in my running, there were another bunch of runners in front of me. It is as if, there were endless bunch of sayur’s in front. There is seriously no way you can experience the feeling that you are running alone and to me, this is real competition. The pressure is immense as I was used to running on very thin field of runners and not something like what is happening around me. It is for a good 10km or so, the field of runners began to thin down but still, there were many more runners compared to local races.
As I was entering the east coast park, I did another self assessment and I was feeling ok despite the sluggishness of my legs. I knew my chance of completing this race is quite high as the sun had not risen from the horizon and the finishing line is another 45mins run or so. I tried another round of turbo but again, the feeling is the same as the starting where there were endless runners ahead of me and I was in a total blur.
For this year, the organizers had changed the route and we are supposed to run within the city itself, and trust me, it is one magnificent sight. There were endless buildings and one lane was closed for our running purposes only. However, it is also in the city which I did not enjoy part of this run where runners were forced to stop at the traffic lights to let the cars pass through. Many runners threw their arms in the air when the police blocked the runners from crossing the traffic light junction. To me, it felt as if all my efforts to keep the back runners from chasing up with me had been washed down to the drain. It was here that I began to suffer as I had lost the momentum to keep myself going. It was a difficult struggle and I believed that we had lost a good 2 mins as a result of stopping at junctions. To tell you guys the truth, I wouldn’t have mind running in a less scenic route but please, don’t stop the runners from continuing on their journey. There are reasons that I made these statements too because, there were also other runners trying to beat the traffic as they cannot stop and the organizers are actually endangering the runners by not letting them go through. To me, this is one of the most painful moment in running when you have no momentum while we have to finish off the distance. Before long, I was already walking...For a few hundred metres at least. Just right before the turn into the finishing line, I squeezed everything out...as much as I could. Just right before the finishing line, the timing board was flashing 1Hr 57Mins....I beat the singapore timing by a good 2 minutes with some walking thrown in as well! It was a happy moment for me, smashing 2 minutes from such running condition is really something worth to be remembered for. I had never in my life walked such great deal and it was suffering during the last few kilometres. As I entered the finishing line, I collected my hard earned medal and the day is really tough and I was glad that it started that early. If there is a Marathon event slated on this day, it would literally cook our brains out.
Anyway, I waited for Jason to be back and met ST at the Reebok booth. We chatted a little and then saw Jason. He too commented that the weather is a killer here and I guess he was right.....So for now, I guess I'll see you guys in Singapore. Prepare for the heat guys...it's gonna be piping hot!
26 August 2006
Got all my things packed last night and this morning, it is a good day with exception that I would need to go back to the office to settle some matters. I began my journey to Singapore and was scheduled to meet Jason at around after lunch. I arrived late as the causeway was jam packed and I could not locate the hotel. This time, the hotel (Beach Hotel) proved to be a right choice as it was clean and inexpensive (SGD85) while, its location is just 1.3km away from the starting line. I guess budget hotels within the city are always better. Anyway for the rest of the day, I decided to take a break from shopping or going around town so that I can rest sufficiently for the race. My preparations for this run is as good as nothing due to the fact that I was very much involved in my work earlier, neglecting my training at the same time. I had strategized that in order to survive the full length of the run, I need to rest well. By evening, Bong Seng smsed that he could not join us as he was involved in his work too so with this in mind, Jason and I decided to have our dinner at PastaMania Funan IT Mall. After the dinner, we had a walk around Funan and visited the running shop. Well, there is nothing much new except that for the breathing apparatus that Jamie was talking about. I saw that it was quite big but forgot to enquire about the price. Duh. The shop was quite well equipped and I would really recommend anyone to visit the Running Shop in Funan IT mall. You will be surprised. After that, we just head back to the hotel and on the way, visited 7 Eleven and got my usual race beverage. We adjourned to sleep at around 11pm.
27 August 2006
I was dreaming about some beautiful girl when the alarm woke me up...shucks...there goes the ending. I was feeling somewhat lethargic so I got up and immediately proceed to shower, just to get myself refreshed. Got myself into my running gear and it was already 4.30am when I told Jason I am going for a pre-race run. When I got out from the hotel, the first thing I noticed was how ‘heavy’ the air was. The term heavy was given because the atmosphere really felt stuffy and somewhat a little hot. I was thinking, is it my mind playing tricks on me or really the environment? I took the first step and it was indeed difficult. I am not sure why but then the feeling is that of the same as the previous year’s run, hot and stuffy. While running, there was a general feeling of difficulty in breathing so I tried blotting this feeling in my mind. It was around 4.45 when I got back to the room to finish off my race beverage and already, I was sweating heavily. Shit...this is not that good. I mentioned to Jason that it is going to be a hot day.
5.15am and we began our slow jog to the starting line. As usual, I proceed to the bridge and as I was late, I was located somewhere in the middle of the marina bridge. The first thing that you would really notice is the huge number of participants of this race. I had never seen anything like that before and personally I would think that the number of participants is quite comparable to the Singapore Marathon. I could not help but feeling nervous as this was many times the size of the Mizuno run and I am not sure if I was up to the task of having the ability to finish this race. My breathing turned shallow and I was sweating even more, due to the close proximity of runners around me and the hot environment as well. Just 5 mins before start, I remembered the lesson learnt from previous run where I suffered due to the heat and this time, I told myself no more crazy starts. Just relax and let the legs run naturally. The countdown began....5...4...3...2...1...
5.30am and the horn sounded. It was a slow rush to the starting line. Thirty seconds had since passed but the crowd in front of me barely moved and by the time I crossed the timing mat, it was already more than 2mins. As usual, these crazy guys started like they were on turbos and they really freaked me out! Relax....this is what I kept telling myself as I trying to avoid another incident of bad injuries and rehabs repeating itself. Ten minutes had passed and it was time for me to do a self assessment on my condition. I felt ok and was not thirsty so I decided to skip the water stations but then, I was sweating heavily. I kept this in mind and turned up a notch in my speed as I felt my pace is a little too slow. There were no distance markers so I had to rely on my own gut feeling to get things right. While running, it suddenly dawned on me that I did not manage to potong sayur on even a single runner! I mean, there were bunch of runners running around me and yet, I could not escape from them. Every time I turned up a notch in my running, there were another bunch of runners in front of me. It is as if, there were endless bunch of sayur’s in front. There is seriously no way you can experience the feeling that you are running alone and to me, this is real competition. The pressure is immense as I was used to running on very thin field of runners and not something like what is happening around me. It is for a good 10km or so, the field of runners began to thin down but still, there were many more runners compared to local races.
As I was entering the east coast park, I did another self assessment and I was feeling ok despite the sluggishness of my legs. I knew my chance of completing this race is quite high as the sun had not risen from the horizon and the finishing line is another 45mins run or so. I tried another round of turbo but again, the feeling is the same as the starting where there were endless runners ahead of me and I was in a total blur.
For this year, the organizers had changed the route and we are supposed to run within the city itself, and trust me, it is one magnificent sight. There were endless buildings and one lane was closed for our running purposes only. However, it is also in the city which I did not enjoy part of this run where runners were forced to stop at the traffic lights to let the cars pass through. Many runners threw their arms in the air when the police blocked the runners from crossing the traffic light junction. To me, it felt as if all my efforts to keep the back runners from chasing up with me had been washed down to the drain. It was here that I began to suffer as I had lost the momentum to keep myself going. It was a difficult struggle and I believed that we had lost a good 2 mins as a result of stopping at junctions. To tell you guys the truth, I wouldn’t have mind running in a less scenic route but please, don’t stop the runners from continuing on their journey. There are reasons that I made these statements too because, there were also other runners trying to beat the traffic as they cannot stop and the organizers are actually endangering the runners by not letting them go through. To me, this is one of the most painful moment in running when you have no momentum while we have to finish off the distance. Before long, I was already walking...For a few hundred metres at least. Just right before the turn into the finishing line, I squeezed everything out...as much as I could. Just right before the finishing line, the timing board was flashing 1Hr 57Mins....I beat the singapore timing by a good 2 minutes with some walking thrown in as well! It was a happy moment for me, smashing 2 minutes from such running condition is really something worth to be remembered for. I had never in my life walked such great deal and it was suffering during the last few kilometres. As I entered the finishing line, I collected my hard earned medal and the day is really tough and I was glad that it started that early. If there is a Marathon event slated on this day, it would literally cook our brains out.
Anyway, I waited for Jason to be back and met ST at the Reebok booth. We chatted a little and then saw Jason. He too commented that the weather is a killer here and I guess he was right.....So for now, I guess I'll see you guys in Singapore. Prepare for the heat guys...it's gonna be piping hot!
Thursday, September 21, 2006
The long awaited Mizuno 10K report
Hi guys, this is my report for the Mizuno 10K..yea, I know, it's way past overdue and I should have had i put onto the internet on Monday itself. Again, please blame everything on the work. It's killing me and my running. I was still at office even sometimes past midnight and for this week alone, I had not gone back earlier than 9pm. Shit....
Anyway, for this year, I ran 2 Mizuno event. The first being in Singapore Kovan Hub while the other would be in KL. Apart from the name of the sponsor i.e. Mizuno, this is where all the similarities end. By far, I still felt that the event in KL is the best in terms of organisation the reason being, it has a much more friendlier atmosphere compared to the Singapore run. At the same time, there is also finishers medal and not to mention, the hellish route that the runners would have to go through! I am not so sure whether it was because there weren't any friends running with me for the Mizuno event in Singapore but then, it's always comfortable seeing familiar faces.
My preparations for this 10K had not been as good as the Mizuno Singapore due to the fact that the route is especially hilly not to mention, during the past few weeks, there had been a lot of disruptions to my running. I never loved hill runs, most probably due to the fact that I had never trained on a hilly course. However, on Saturday, I was determined enough that I should run the way I always wanted to.
It was a fine morning. Jason picked me up at around 5am and already, I was waiting for him. This time, I was more than ready having all the light stretches done beforehand. At the same time, I had everything prepared in advance and after picking up Phyllis we were on the way to KL. Upon reaching, I had contacted CM to see where he had parked his car so that I can have my bags deposited. One thing, I still think that the organisers should have prepared the baggage deposit area as I am sure, there were others would have thought the same.
After doing some serious business, it was time for warm up where I did some light strides through and forth the starting line. I manage to meet up with KNN, Carboman, Fook & Grace, Janggut Man, DK, and many more. We were a bunch of havoc makers....I guess this is what we are! Anyway, in a short time, the air horn sounded. Everybody rushed down the street but then, I was stuck in the middle of the slower runners. I knew I had to make up for the lost time but then, in my mind, I kept myself cool headed as I did not want to commit the mistake of starting too fast. It was only at the Bank Negara that the field started opening up. I took the outer lane where there were less runners and started my engines. I felt good....there is not much of struggle that I was expecting to experience. Slowly I eased into my pace while relaxing my body. Before long, the first incline came. Again, I took the outer lane because I was overtaking runners and after that, I still felt good. Adam was just in front of me and I knew I need to follow him as my pace was somewhat similar to his. I manage to keep my distance behind him and then, came the dreaded first major incline. In all my races, I had always harboured this phsycological fear for this hill. It is darn steep and my lungs always burst because of it. However, this time I just told myself to do the best I can. It was two thirds after the hill that my lungs were blown and I was suffering from side stiches. I walked....for around 30secs or so. I picked myself up again and ran. After a steep downhill, the second incline came and this time, i pushed. I was quite fast and at last, manage to reach the top of it although I was already tired. Next, I knew it was time for me to turn on turbos but then I wasn't really sure if there is anything left for me. So I did. I 'ran'. The feeling was somewhat familiar to the Singapore Mizuno where I ran my heart out. But this time, my heart is somewhat near my throat as I was running too fast. It felt like exploding but I didn't gave a damn. I just pushed. Before long, I was reaching the finishing line and my timing was 52mins 20secs. If I am not mistaken this is my second fastest timing for double hill and I was more than satisfied that I had done what I had set myself to complete.
After the race, I was mingling around with the gang and after that, headed towards the Lake together with Carboman to join in the Terry Fox run. Instead of running, we were having a coffee by the lake. It was nice...right carboman!?
Anyway, I am still a long way from having to achive my running target and right now, I am concentrating on my running mechanics and focus. I will run faster next year. This is my target that I had set myself to achieve and I know.....I CAN.
Anyway, for this year, I ran 2 Mizuno event. The first being in Singapore Kovan Hub while the other would be in KL. Apart from the name of the sponsor i.e. Mizuno, this is where all the similarities end. By far, I still felt that the event in KL is the best in terms of organisation the reason being, it has a much more friendlier atmosphere compared to the Singapore run. At the same time, there is also finishers medal and not to mention, the hellish route that the runners would have to go through! I am not so sure whether it was because there weren't any friends running with me for the Mizuno event in Singapore but then, it's always comfortable seeing familiar faces.
My preparations for this 10K had not been as good as the Mizuno Singapore due to the fact that the route is especially hilly not to mention, during the past few weeks, there had been a lot of disruptions to my running. I never loved hill runs, most probably due to the fact that I had never trained on a hilly course. However, on Saturday, I was determined enough that I should run the way I always wanted to.
It was a fine morning. Jason picked me up at around 5am and already, I was waiting for him. This time, I was more than ready having all the light stretches done beforehand. At the same time, I had everything prepared in advance and after picking up Phyllis we were on the way to KL. Upon reaching, I had contacted CM to see where he had parked his car so that I can have my bags deposited. One thing, I still think that the organisers should have prepared the baggage deposit area as I am sure, there were others would have thought the same.
After doing some serious business, it was time for warm up where I did some light strides through and forth the starting line. I manage to meet up with KNN, Carboman, Fook & Grace, Janggut Man, DK, and many more. We were a bunch of havoc makers....I guess this is what we are! Anyway, in a short time, the air horn sounded. Everybody rushed down the street but then, I was stuck in the middle of the slower runners. I knew I had to make up for the lost time but then, in my mind, I kept myself cool headed as I did not want to commit the mistake of starting too fast. It was only at the Bank Negara that the field started opening up. I took the outer lane where there were less runners and started my engines. I felt good....there is not much of struggle that I was expecting to experience. Slowly I eased into my pace while relaxing my body. Before long, the first incline came. Again, I took the outer lane because I was overtaking runners and after that, I still felt good. Adam was just in front of me and I knew I need to follow him as my pace was somewhat similar to his. I manage to keep my distance behind him and then, came the dreaded first major incline. In all my races, I had always harboured this phsycological fear for this hill. It is darn steep and my lungs always burst because of it. However, this time I just told myself to do the best I can. It was two thirds after the hill that my lungs were blown and I was suffering from side stiches. I walked....for around 30secs or so. I picked myself up again and ran. After a steep downhill, the second incline came and this time, i pushed. I was quite fast and at last, manage to reach the top of it although I was already tired. Next, I knew it was time for me to turn on turbos but then I wasn't really sure if there is anything left for me. So I did. I 'ran'. The feeling was somewhat familiar to the Singapore Mizuno where I ran my heart out. But this time, my heart is somewhat near my throat as I was running too fast. It felt like exploding but I didn't gave a damn. I just pushed. Before long, I was reaching the finishing line and my timing was 52mins 20secs. If I am not mistaken this is my second fastest timing for double hill and I was more than satisfied that I had done what I had set myself to complete.
After the race, I was mingling around with the gang and after that, headed towards the Lake together with Carboman to join in the Terry Fox run. Instead of running, we were having a coffee by the lake. It was nice...right carboman!?
Anyway, I am still a long way from having to achive my running target and right now, I am concentrating on my running mechanics and focus. I will run faster next year. This is my target that I had set myself to achieve and I know.....I CAN.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Monday, September 11, 2006
2006 Putrajaya International Marathon
This is the first time I had participated in the Putrajaya International Marathon and it was quite well organized. Apparently, the organizers had got several things right and the where they had the starting line close to large parking lots. It is a good move as runners would not have to walk to the starting lines and at the same time, it can actually minimize the baggage handling area where the runners can opt to store their belongings in their cars. It is also another good idea that the organizers had brought forward the starting time as I have heard Putrajaya is notorious for its unforgiving temperature. At the same time, water stations are ample too.
The day started on a very rushing mode where I s#@t fast, showered fast and everything was fast as I woke up late. Got into Jason’s car and it was 15mins later that I remembered about the race beverage I had left on the kitchen sink. Goddamn.... We manage to reach Putrajaya at around 5.00am and there were plenty of parking lots around. Saw several regulars and then proceed to store my stuff in Fook’s car which he arrived 45mins later with Ronnie. After witnessing the flag off of the Marathon Runners, we took pictures at various places. But while all these were happening, my mind was constantly evaluating on the humidity and the temperature prevailing that morning. It was really a godsend where it was very cooling that day and the air is somewhat light and dry. While I knew I will not suffer much in this race although the race course is undulating all the way, I kept telling myself that I should not be overzealous on my speed.
It seemed that everything went by so fast. Before I realized anything, I was already standing at the starting line. While everybody was standing at the starting line psyched up, I was trying to relax myself because I knew I could run well when I am not too nervous. The timing of 1hr 55mins was all I had in mind as I had not trained for the event where during previous week, I was too focused on my work. Never mind who’s going to smoke who but then just finish the goddamn race.
Some minister (I guess) flagged us off and in a flash, I was already after several landmarks and heading towards the first round about. My starting pace was too fast and I decided to slow down. Saw Ai Ling the leng lui and passed her while running at the first bridge. Next I decided to slow down when I saw some bloody menacing hills right in front of me and decrease my strides so as to allow me to tread through the crazy hill. Surprisingly, I wasn’t sweating that much as compared to Singapore and I knew I might just be able to scrape through 1hr 55mins. While running towards the main bridge, I could not help but to slow down and enjoy the view of the surrounding area. At this point of time, I had been smoked by CM and I decided to gave up my chase as he is running too fast...sigh....there’s still a long way to go for me to chase you man....you really kau lat lar...
While running, I couldn’t help but noticing that the route is largely undulating in nature. I mean, every climb we make is followed by another drop while followed by another climb. Shit, this is tough. What makes it mind numbing is that I had to keep on switching my strides whenever a hill is in sight and it really bothers me when my pacing and speed falls. There is no consistency in my energy output and I am drained as a result of that. Double Shit.
It was all mind game from 15th km. Every uphill I encountered, I pushed and pushed without giving much thought to my energy levels. As I entered the mosque, I thought that it is going to be a straight route to the end so I gave it all I got. As I was running, I saw the tent from a distance and I thought this is going to be it. Looking at my watch, I was on track for a super kau lat PR too but then, my heart sank when runners begin to turn left into the detour. Shit! What’s this! Suddenly I remembered CM telling me that there will be a detour around the building and so I thought it is just a small turn. No big deal.
I was wrong...
My spirit sank further when there was an uphill climb and not to mention, after the uphill climb it was all the way straight into the oblivion. Cilakak! I could not even spot where the runners were turning and that is when I decided to take a break. I walk and cursed these organizers having to make us experience something like that. To make matters worse, my stomach acted up and I feel like want to lau sai. This is real suffering.....
Nevertheless, after walking for a good few minutes I decided to continue the journey when the turn was in sight and the finishing line is just ahead. I just gave all I could for the last few hundred meters and manage to cross the finishing line in 1hr 54mins 54secs which is well within 1hr 55mins which I had set. Haha! So much for perfect timing!
After the toilet trip, I met up with Ronnie and gang for a short walk around the area. After an hour or so of hanging out, it was time for breakfast at puchong. My pork noodle sucks big time. No taste. Yuck. But then, I was happily eating it as I was hungry.
Next race, Mizuno and I will not wallop kau kau lat. Haha!
(Note from editor: Due to extreme fatigue from Putrajaya International Marathon, readers would be advised to excuse the writer from having to use certain explicit words while not to mention, the inability to construct a proper sentence. Thank You. :-p)
The day started on a very rushing mode where I s#@t fast, showered fast and everything was fast as I woke up late. Got into Jason’s car and it was 15mins later that I remembered about the race beverage I had left on the kitchen sink. Goddamn.... We manage to reach Putrajaya at around 5.00am and there were plenty of parking lots around. Saw several regulars and then proceed to store my stuff in Fook’s car which he arrived 45mins later with Ronnie. After witnessing the flag off of the Marathon Runners, we took pictures at various places. But while all these were happening, my mind was constantly evaluating on the humidity and the temperature prevailing that morning. It was really a godsend where it was very cooling that day and the air is somewhat light and dry. While I knew I will not suffer much in this race although the race course is undulating all the way, I kept telling myself that I should not be overzealous on my speed.
It seemed that everything went by so fast. Before I realized anything, I was already standing at the starting line. While everybody was standing at the starting line psyched up, I was trying to relax myself because I knew I could run well when I am not too nervous. The timing of 1hr 55mins was all I had in mind as I had not trained for the event where during previous week, I was too focused on my work. Never mind who’s going to smoke who but then just finish the goddamn race.
Some minister (I guess) flagged us off and in a flash, I was already after several landmarks and heading towards the first round about. My starting pace was too fast and I decided to slow down. Saw Ai Ling the leng lui and passed her while running at the first bridge. Next I decided to slow down when I saw some bloody menacing hills right in front of me and decrease my strides so as to allow me to tread through the crazy hill. Surprisingly, I wasn’t sweating that much as compared to Singapore and I knew I might just be able to scrape through 1hr 55mins. While running towards the main bridge, I could not help but to slow down and enjoy the view of the surrounding area. At this point of time, I had been smoked by CM and I decided to gave up my chase as he is running too fast...sigh....there’s still a long way to go for me to chase you man....you really kau lat lar...
While running, I couldn’t help but noticing that the route is largely undulating in nature. I mean, every climb we make is followed by another drop while followed by another climb. Shit, this is tough. What makes it mind numbing is that I had to keep on switching my strides whenever a hill is in sight and it really bothers me when my pacing and speed falls. There is no consistency in my energy output and I am drained as a result of that. Double Shit.
It was all mind game from 15th km. Every uphill I encountered, I pushed and pushed without giving much thought to my energy levels. As I entered the mosque, I thought that it is going to be a straight route to the end so I gave it all I got. As I was running, I saw the tent from a distance and I thought this is going to be it. Looking at my watch, I was on track for a super kau lat PR too but then, my heart sank when runners begin to turn left into the detour. Shit! What’s this! Suddenly I remembered CM telling me that there will be a detour around the building and so I thought it is just a small turn. No big deal.
I was wrong...
My spirit sank further when there was an uphill climb and not to mention, after the uphill climb it was all the way straight into the oblivion. Cilakak! I could not even spot where the runners were turning and that is when I decided to take a break. I walk and cursed these organizers having to make us experience something like that. To make matters worse, my stomach acted up and I feel like want to lau sai. This is real suffering.....
Nevertheless, after walking for a good few minutes I decided to continue the journey when the turn was in sight and the finishing line is just ahead. I just gave all I could for the last few hundred meters and manage to cross the finishing line in 1hr 54mins 54secs which is well within 1hr 55mins which I had set. Haha! So much for perfect timing!
After the toilet trip, I met up with Ronnie and gang for a short walk around the area. After an hour or so of hanging out, it was time for breakfast at puchong. My pork noodle sucks big time. No taste. Yuck. But then, I was happily eating it as I was hungry.
Next race, Mizuno and I will not wallop kau kau lat. Haha!
(Note from editor: Due to extreme fatigue from Putrajaya International Marathon, readers would be advised to excuse the writer from having to use certain explicit words while not to mention, the inability to construct a proper sentence. Thank You. :-p)
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Friday, September 01, 2006
Click III - The End?
It had been more than one week….One whole miserable week. I had not moved a single limb because I was totally immersed in my work where I could only go off at 9.30pm everyday. As you can see, my SAFRA Shears Bridge Run report was not even published to date although I had a really memorable run on this event. But then, nothing would beat the satisfaction that the project I was helping to handle, took off.
From the last posting, the mould modifications had been made but then, it did not solve our problems. The ejection of TPE from the core mould was so difficult that it is totally pointless to put this mould into mass production use. The material is too soft and we faced countless rejected parts. Not only that, for several times, our ideas for mould improvement seemed to be so distant from reality that they are impossible to be implemented on a large scale. Shit would be a good word to describe the situation we were in. So again, a flurry of emergency meetings was held between the designers and the manufacturers. We sat down and immediately thrashed all our concerns out. The designers were not willing to change the design although we have highlighted ‘gracefully’ that there was a ‘design error’ on their part. The term design error denotes that there had been certain portions of the part designed were not manufacturing friendly enough on a large scale. When this happens, high incidences of rejection will occur and material losses would be sky high.
Therefore in response to our concerns, they were willing to change the material composition to ease our burden on production. They had suggested adding Poly-Propylene (PP) into TPE to improve on its hardness characteristics and hoping that this would solve our production problems. It was really a breather for us because that was what we have been hoping for from the beginning. If adding PP into TPE had been decided from the mould drawing phase, then the project would have taken off on a much earlier date. After the decision, it was again time for traveling from South to North for material testing. Goddamn, I had traveled to Puchong 3 times for the past week and I was required to go back on the same day!!! The agony of driving for 8 hours can never be put into words. It was all pain….mental pain.
After adding the materials, the designers were still not satisfied with the results. The assembled parts did not felt ‘good’ enough as it could not lock itself into place. Shit…this is what happens when material composition was changed in the middle of mould development where material shrinkage had deviated from the previous calculations. You see, different materials had different percentage of shrinkage in plastic injection and for this ‘new’ material composition, it shrank less than it should be. In other words, the parts were ‘bigger’ in dimension. F#%&!!!! Again, a flurry of meetings was held and finally, they had suggested us to further improve on the core mould dimensions taking into account of the shrink percentage. Well, the mould makers had highlighted that this process is a ‘one way street’ where once it is done, it cannot be reversed. To minimize the risk, we did it on one cavity in case these designers decided to change their minds. However, all these can never be compared to the biggest challenge of all and that is, we have to complete this process and bring them new samples at 8am next day as they will be leaving Singapore for US. When I heard this, I was close to kicking them where it hurts the most….
Thus, my toughest day within this week began. Immediately my boss called the mould makers in KL and told them to proceed with improvement on the core mould. Next we made call to the mould tester’s place and asked him to premix and preheat the materials. My boss rushed down to KL at 5pm while I was scheduled to begin my journey at 7pm. After work, I rushed back to my home and grab my passport where the plan was, to get to KL by 11pm and shoot back to JB, hoping to reach the customs by 4.30am just to avoid the jams. Well, there would not be any jams in JB as it would be a public holiday (31 Aug) but to the Singaporeans, it is work as usual. It was a rainy day and I was blasting down the highway at 120kmh. Just before Machap town, I was nearly involved in a multiple car collision. It happened when suddenly I saw few cars in front of swerving dangerously to the left lane of the road traveling in excess of 120kmh. At the same time, the car in front of me stepped hard on the brakes and I knew shit is ahead. I stepped on my brakes too but then it was not enough to get my car out of the colliding path. So I swerved hard to the left lane and it was several meters after that, I manage to get my car in control. But then, I was not out of the danger. Just barely 5 seconds after my car was in control, I heard a loud screeching noise coming from behind and I knew shit is about to come. From the left lane, I quickly swerved to the emergency lane and it saved me from mishaps where just right after that, a Wira shot pass beside me with its tires still screeching. It would have been a bad collision as the Wira was traveling very fast from behind with 4 occupants within. As the vehicles slowed down, indeed there was a crash ahead involving 2 Iswara’s. Well, as I was passing by, I noticed that the front Iswara had no brake lights on! I could not help but pity the back Iswara as it was really difficult to notice any cars without any lights on especially as it was pitch dark during the night.
I continued with my journey putting this incident behind my head. I reached KL by 11.45pm and then rushed to the JB customs after collecting the samples, reaching at 4.45am. I was already feeling a little groggy as I was without sleep for the past 20hours or so. However, I pushed ahead, taking the earliest bus into Singapore and reaching the intended destination at around 6.30am. I gave him a wake up call at 7am and waited. It was only after 8am that the gwailo came down to see me. After seeing the samples, he said that we have got them right and tells us that there were no more request to change the dimensions with exception on the colour, where he had requested to get what he required. A sense of relief descended upon me. The gwailo appreciated the fact that we got these babies out within such impossible time limit and he is a firm believer that Asians are the hardest bunch of workers! Yea right…..
We bid farewell after that and it was already 8.45am. I was wandering around Newton area feeling a sense accomplishment where the team worked their asses off this project. Finally, we have managed to balance both ends of spectrum, the customer’s requirement on how their product should feel and our requirement on manufacturing friendly. Instead of feeling tired, I felt somewhat refreshed and to ‘celebrate’ this, I headed to Orchard Road for a breakfast in McD’s! While munching down the burger, I couldn’t help thinking would this be the end? By the time I reached home, I had not slept for the past 30hrs or so. I was totally pooped….
From the last posting, the mould modifications had been made but then, it did not solve our problems. The ejection of TPE from the core mould was so difficult that it is totally pointless to put this mould into mass production use. The material is too soft and we faced countless rejected parts. Not only that, for several times, our ideas for mould improvement seemed to be so distant from reality that they are impossible to be implemented on a large scale. Shit would be a good word to describe the situation we were in. So again, a flurry of emergency meetings was held between the designers and the manufacturers. We sat down and immediately thrashed all our concerns out. The designers were not willing to change the design although we have highlighted ‘gracefully’ that there was a ‘design error’ on their part. The term design error denotes that there had been certain portions of the part designed were not manufacturing friendly enough on a large scale. When this happens, high incidences of rejection will occur and material losses would be sky high.
Therefore in response to our concerns, they were willing to change the material composition to ease our burden on production. They had suggested adding Poly-Propylene (PP) into TPE to improve on its hardness characteristics and hoping that this would solve our production problems. It was really a breather for us because that was what we have been hoping for from the beginning. If adding PP into TPE had been decided from the mould drawing phase, then the project would have taken off on a much earlier date. After the decision, it was again time for traveling from South to North for material testing. Goddamn, I had traveled to Puchong 3 times for the past week and I was required to go back on the same day!!! The agony of driving for 8 hours can never be put into words. It was all pain….mental pain.
After adding the materials, the designers were still not satisfied with the results. The assembled parts did not felt ‘good’ enough as it could not lock itself into place. Shit…this is what happens when material composition was changed in the middle of mould development where material shrinkage had deviated from the previous calculations. You see, different materials had different percentage of shrinkage in plastic injection and for this ‘new’ material composition, it shrank less than it should be. In other words, the parts were ‘bigger’ in dimension. F#%&!!!! Again, a flurry of meetings was held and finally, they had suggested us to further improve on the core mould dimensions taking into account of the shrink percentage. Well, the mould makers had highlighted that this process is a ‘one way street’ where once it is done, it cannot be reversed. To minimize the risk, we did it on one cavity in case these designers decided to change their minds. However, all these can never be compared to the biggest challenge of all and that is, we have to complete this process and bring them new samples at 8am next day as they will be leaving Singapore for US. When I heard this, I was close to kicking them where it hurts the most….
Thus, my toughest day within this week began. Immediately my boss called the mould makers in KL and told them to proceed with improvement on the core mould. Next we made call to the mould tester’s place and asked him to premix and preheat the materials. My boss rushed down to KL at 5pm while I was scheduled to begin my journey at 7pm. After work, I rushed back to my home and grab my passport where the plan was, to get to KL by 11pm and shoot back to JB, hoping to reach the customs by 4.30am just to avoid the jams. Well, there would not be any jams in JB as it would be a public holiday (31 Aug) but to the Singaporeans, it is work as usual. It was a rainy day and I was blasting down the highway at 120kmh. Just before Machap town, I was nearly involved in a multiple car collision. It happened when suddenly I saw few cars in front of swerving dangerously to the left lane of the road traveling in excess of 120kmh. At the same time, the car in front of me stepped hard on the brakes and I knew shit is ahead. I stepped on my brakes too but then it was not enough to get my car out of the colliding path. So I swerved hard to the left lane and it was several meters after that, I manage to get my car in control. But then, I was not out of the danger. Just barely 5 seconds after my car was in control, I heard a loud screeching noise coming from behind and I knew shit is about to come. From the left lane, I quickly swerved to the emergency lane and it saved me from mishaps where just right after that, a Wira shot pass beside me with its tires still screeching. It would have been a bad collision as the Wira was traveling very fast from behind with 4 occupants within. As the vehicles slowed down, indeed there was a crash ahead involving 2 Iswara’s. Well, as I was passing by, I noticed that the front Iswara had no brake lights on! I could not help but pity the back Iswara as it was really difficult to notice any cars without any lights on especially as it was pitch dark during the night.
I continued with my journey putting this incident behind my head. I reached KL by 11.45pm and then rushed to the JB customs after collecting the samples, reaching at 4.45am. I was already feeling a little groggy as I was without sleep for the past 20hours or so. However, I pushed ahead, taking the earliest bus into Singapore and reaching the intended destination at around 6.30am. I gave him a wake up call at 7am and waited. It was only after 8am that the gwailo came down to see me. After seeing the samples, he said that we have got them right and tells us that there were no more request to change the dimensions with exception on the colour, where he had requested to get what he required. A sense of relief descended upon me. The gwailo appreciated the fact that we got these babies out within such impossible time limit and he is a firm believer that Asians are the hardest bunch of workers! Yea right…..
We bid farewell after that and it was already 8.45am. I was wandering around Newton area feeling a sense accomplishment where the team worked their asses off this project. Finally, we have managed to balance both ends of spectrum, the customer’s requirement on how their product should feel and our requirement on manufacturing friendly. Instead of feeling tired, I felt somewhat refreshed and to ‘celebrate’ this, I headed to Orchard Road for a breakfast in McD’s! While munching down the burger, I couldn’t help thinking would this be the end? By the time I reached home, I had not slept for the past 30hrs or so. I was totally pooped….
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