Thursday, September 04, 2014
The Army Half Marathon Race analysis is out (Credits: Runpix):
-Net time: 02:14:44.
-Based on net time, I was somewhere around the top 21% of the entire field of 14725 finishers.
-Comparing with only people of my age group, I was around the top 15%.
-In the final 5.5km, I overtook 523 runners, and another 77 runners overtook me.
-Average km: 6 min 23 seconds.
-Average speed: 9.4km/h.
Past timings for the last 8 years:
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2007 timing -- 02:14:29
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2008 timing -- 02:21:02
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2009 timing -- 02:17:38
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2010 timing -- 02:04:18
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2011 timing -- 02:07:33
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2012 timing -- 02:15:18
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2013 timing -- 02:24:41 (Huge bottleneck)
SAFRA Army Half Marathon 2014 timing -- 02:14:44
My timings for these 8 consecutive years had been fairly constant, which I personally think is comforting. The AHM is one of my most favourite runs, knowing that it isn't too demanding nor draining. I'm really not sure how long I can keep this consecutive participation streak going, but I'll continue to be at the AHM Start Line, stronger.
人生是黑白的.
12:12 AM <3
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Monday, September 01, 2014
An awesomely fulfilling weekend - I took part in 2 of my biggest loves: Watching a concert and doing a race.
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苏打绿 空气中的视听与幻觉 十周年巡回演唱会 - 新加坡站
Singapore Indoor Stadium
I've watched tens of concerts to date, and I can't emphasize further that a 苏打绿 (Sodagreen) concert will definitely rank among the tops.
Very sincere performances and band members; very entertaining and humourous lead singer; very talented musicians; and very down-to-earth. I'm sure these are what any audience at a 苏打绿 concert would experience and be in awe of. I find that 苏打绿's fans are a different breed too: they're super warm, hyped-up, openly supportive and positive. In fact, you either are a die-hard fan of the talented indie band, or you're totally unappreciative altogether. There doesn't really seem to be in-betweens.
Last night's concert was their 10th-year anniversary since their debut album. With 9 albums under their name, they've grown their fan base tremendously over the years. Just 2 years ago, their [当我们一起走过] concert was held at Expo, the second-grade venue for concerts with a smaller audience turnout. Finally, in 2014, they've made it into the Indoor Stadium, along with dynamic stage designs, pyrotechnics and confetti. I personally was most thrilled by the Concert Packs placed at every seat, consisting of a Green battery-operated lightstick, banners, 10th anniversary postcard and stickers. Oh, not forgetting the numerous fringe activities outside the venue before the concert began!
We had a group shot with the 10th anniversary van.
Lead singer 青峰 is a real talent in composing, singing and even entertaining the audience.
It was yet another top-class concert!
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It was also the Army Half Marathon weekend!
Because of just that few hours in between the concert and the flag-off of the annual race, BK and I decided to have a stayover at Swissotel to maximise the rest we could get. We returned to the hotel after a supper, and ended up with just a 2-hour plus nap time.
I woke up at 4am, to prepare myself for the 5am flag-off. It was probably my most punctual flag-off ever.
This year's AHM route was slightly better than last year, following backlash over at least 2 severe bottlenecks that trapped runners for an average of 15 minutes. Those bottlenecks in last year's 21-km route were excluded from the 2014 route, but they created another choke point- at Marina Barrage. I am still confused over why they decided to plan the route around the Barrage complex, which was dark, full of bushes and narrow. They could have easily avoided this bottleneck by cutting through the interiors of the Marina Barrage, as had been the norm in previous editions of the race!
Being one of the most premier races in the local running calendar, the sheer number of runners (20,000 runners) did compromise the race experience, because I had to do alot of lateral overtakings and countless accelerations/decelerations. These not only wasted time, but energy as well. That said, I still laud SAFRA for delivering yet another great race.
The post-run massage this year was also the best I've ever had. The therapist did a very thorough and forceful rub-down of my calves and thighs, and even doubled the 10-minute limit that each runner should be entitled to. His skills were superb - I'm sure it will aid my post-run recovery.
With that, I completed my 8th consecutive Army Half Marathon.
人生是黑白的.
12:37 AM <3
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