Date: 01/02/2015 5:58 AM
Type: Run (Race)
Distance: 14.92 kilometers (Own Garmin)
Time: 1 hr 00 min 50 secs (avg pace: 4:05 min/km)
Official Time: 1 hr 00 min 59 secs
Shoes: Brooks Launch
Venue: Precint 10
Route:
A tune-up race before Seoul Marathon.
Initial plan was to run Nike KL 21km but it was sold out out immediately while I was still in KL after SCKLM 2014. Looking for more info and noticed this race that was rescheduled from 8th Feb to 1st Feb.
1 Feb 2015
2:30am - Wake up
3:00am - Breakfast, rest, and nap
4:30am - Gear up
5:15am - Warm up from place I stay
5:40am - Arrived race venue
5:58am - Race start
Pre-race
I didn't feel quite fresh on that morning. As mentioned on training record of this week that the fatigue from interval run carried on up to Saturday, worsen by last minute cleaning job at work place. However, I remind myself try to get as much as possible from the event - at least to get the feel and sensation of a running in an event.
The crowd was not heavy as this is not a large scale event. People were standing everywhere. I walked through the venue and found the starting point was inside the car park. There was warming up session around 10-15 min before the event.
Seeing no people lining up, I stood 10-20 m behind the start, thinking I'd be able to get in just right after the warm up session end. However, I was wrong. Just right after the session end, people coming out from no where to occupy the front. I was merely moving 1-2 m ahead, behind about 5-6 row of people. I realized no matter how near I close to the start, in whatever races, I'll never get to the front. Well this is what a tune-up race for right - to gain experience.
Plan
From the previous week experience of running a 11 km tempo at avg 4:02 min/km pace under 4:30pm sun, my plan was to run a 4:00-4:02 min/km, which will be approx 1 hr to finish the race. This will be my lactate threshold pace if I able to make it.
There's a few "yes: and "no" in me for the pace. The "yes" are it is a flat course, good experience for the pace during last tempo. The "no" is, I've never really try the pace at 15 km distance, and I'm a bit tired.
The Race
And so the race started from the car park, towards a weird zigzag junction, and turn left to the main road. The crowd loosen up after heading to main road. Behind the crowd, I focus on rhythm to slowly get into the race.
1st-5th km
The first km done at 4:04/km, so I added some push to make a 4:02/km at 2nd km, but the pace dropped to 4:08/km at 3rd, and a 4:02/km at 4th after some push, then a dropped to 4:11/km at 5th. It was unable to gauged the effort. Saw Thai Lee around end of Gurney Drive, and met Jin Ji somewhere Northam Road. He came into the race after sick for few days. Tough one.
I couldn't remember where the water station was. The first one would be around 5-6km, and the second one was 10-11km. What I am sure that water station was not the one of the slower section for me this time.
"I am not sure" section
7th, 8th and 9th km were the slowest section done at 4:11, 4:10 and 4:09. This is the "I am not sure" section. I was fully aware of that. My mind was wandering. Am I pushing too much for today's fitness? If I push will I slowed down? Will I even not complete forced to stop? I was even doubted the route, that together with other runners were we missing a turn and was running the wrong route. "Will we be disqualified?" I was really thinking.
Final surge
Somewhere around 9th km as we turn into the road that I familiar with, and passing a women runner, I finally able to focus on the run. Probably because from how I feel and the distance left to be covered. The rest of the distance was done 4:03 and below. I wanted to push further but I guess that's the best I can do. Somewhere after Mc Donald I saw Tiger, which I didn't expect as he usually sprinting together with the front pack. Probably he was doing other form of training, or came in from other races.
13th km was done at 3:56/km due to thinking that it's going to end by seeing the start venue. The fact is we need to make a u-turn at the traffic light far ahead. Near the traffic light, saw Siau Teh easily cursing at the opposite site, and also Ricky, guy I knew from Jinji wedding. In front, I saw familiar running gait of Dave. I understand that he just ran the SCHKM last weekend. I tried to close the gap but I was not able to do it up to the finish line.
After the finishing line
Used up my last effort to cross the finishing line. Stopped the Garmin, collected what I should collect. including a pack of tau fu fa. Greet some people. Looking around every one seemed to know each other. I picked goodies back slowly run back to continue my recovery run of the day.
A few lessons learnt:
1) Try take gel with plain water instead of isotonic (no side stitch this time, although taken with isotonic)
2) Be focus and trust your trained pace.
3) Familiar the route if can (in local event)
Opinion on the event:
Pro - Registration and bib collection of bib was smooth. Get email from organizer regarding updates and bib collection.
Con - Poor traffic control. There's no divider on the route to separate out vehicles and runners. In some section, the runners were identified by merely "a group of people running on the road". The event took the advantage of lesser traffic in the morning, rather than having any control on the traffic. There's not enough control at the traffic light. At one section (near Caltex), I literally run zigzagging on the main road, following runner in front, not knowing to keep left or right. Approaching the traffic light I was running in the middle of the road and ran between two cars that stopped for the red lights. There's no control there, I literally ran across the road seeing one car cross the road due to the green light and no car followed. I was merely lucky.
I strongly feel that if there's an event going on, there should be sufficient divider/control/signage or whatsoever, to indicate to other road user something is going on.
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