Monday, December 07, 2009
The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009 Experience #1 of 2
Start Line: The time was 5:51am. Crossed the Start Line with Vincent. It was great weather but I carried an inadequately-rested mind from the sleepless night before.
0km~9km: Sustainable pacing of about 6mins per kilometre. Pretty comfortable and I felt I could go a long way with that. The route was a slight variation from all my previous races, and I definitely welcome new elements.
10km~11km: Mountbatten Road to Fort Road. Almost a compulsory route in all my previous races. What's significant doing the route here, is definitely the memories linked to the years in my alma mater many years ago.
11km: Entrance to East Coast Park, the start of a 20km-long segment along the beach. Just as we entered ECP, the winner of the Marathon, Kenyan Luke Kibet just exited the beach. His speed was mind-boggling. I had only just completed 11km, but he was already on his way to his 31st km.
12km: Already hearing stomach growls, I picked up a banana here to power up.
13km: Abandoned Vincent here, and continued alone.
13km~18km: Not wanting cramps to set in yet, I decided to start drinking electrolytes (100-plus) in this segment. And since then, I stopped by almost every drinking station and gulped down the most ever amount of liquid in any previous races.
19km~21km: In the run-up to the half-way mark, words like "When shall I start to stop and walk?" kept bothering. I told myself not to stop until at least the halfway mark, as mentioned in the previous entry.
21km: I picked up a Powergel here, and consumed it immediately. Not sure whether it was merely psychological, I felt a boost, and decided against stopping to walk. This boost should be able to keep me going for a while more.
22km~26km: Mini cramps started to develop. However these were bearable and so I decided to shrug them off by just concentrating on every next stride. Moreover, I remembered that in my first-ever marathon 2 years ago, I ran non-stop for the first 26km. I felt I should at least cover this distance as well.
26km: I was happy to continue past this milestone without having to stop yet. Hence I broke my personal record for the longest-sustaining running distance.
27km: MAJOR cramps had set in. Muscle fatigues put my thighs to an abrupt stop. The abrupt stop in itself triggered off more cramps in the calves, thighs and tightness in the knees. I knew I was 'hitting the wall' very soon.
27km~30km: I know I will not walk the rest of the journey--doing marathons is about pushing limits and forcing yourself to cover the distance even though you're drained. I undertook a run-walk system. I would brisk-walk (instead of casual walking), then run faster to make up for lost time until cramps are unbearable again, then brisk-walk.
30km~31km: A distance milestone, as the first digit progressed to a '3'. I exited East Coast Park, and knew the last segment that I would soon face, would be the most gruelling one--cramps+physically drained+a hotter weather.
34km: A check on time showed that it was already about 4 hours since I started the race. With roughly 8km more, I would seriously need to hurry up, if I were to equalise my previous timings.
34km~39km: These 5km were the toughest in the race. To me, it seemed that each kilometre were longer compared to those in the earlier parts of the race. My run-walk system were no longer as sustainable. I continued to push for a jog, then walk, then jog. It was most mentally torturous here. There were many instances after I told myself "Ok, jog to the bus stop in front", my legs would agree to move, only to stop against my will before the landmark. I guess my remaining physical strength was dwindling.
39km~41km: The F1 pit, the floating platform, the esplanade. They seem near to each other, but to an exhausted runner, it was eternity. With the sun up high, and the lack of natural shades in the form of trees, and a perpetually dry throat even after litres of water were consumed, this stretch was a loathsome one. Thoughts of "the end is near" didn't help at all. And yet I kept looking at the time, with some hopes of improving on previous timings, as long as I could reach the Finish before 11am.
41km~42km: I suppose the elapsed time of 5 hours from my start was reached during this kilometre. I was on the esplanade bridge, still jogging-and-stopping.
42km~42.195km: Running the race in a teamNUS singlet really paid off here--with huge support coming from NUSSU at the sides. One of the supporters handed me a teamNUS flag, which I waved to the Finish. The atmosphere got higher and wilder, and all of a sudden, I felt that all the pain that I was withstanding had evaporated.
42.195km: The moment had reached. Some people sprinted past me, others indulged in the screams of supporters. I savoured the moment. I looked at my watch--10:53am! Remembering that I started at 5:51am, an estimated time would be close to 5:03. I do not need a confirmation from the official results to tell me, that I had just broken my 2 previous timings. I've attained my personal best in 2009.
Next up: The Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009 Experience #2 of 2
人生是黑白的.
12:12 AM <3
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