Date:                       Sunday 05 nov 2006 – Subang Jaya 10k Run.  Bib no A0188

Target:                     Sub 1:20 because of training layoff

Race strategy:        Run 1st half at slow pace, and 2nd half faster

Actual:                    Run 1st half at slow pace (rusty legs), and 2nd half just slightly faster.  Didn’t stop because no water stop!

Timings:                  1:06:22 just slightly slower than Mizuno 10k

Official results:     none.  Beyond 50 min cutoff time (gotta be the hardest cutoff time)

Pace:                       6:38 /km

Time of run:           7:30 am

Route:                     Complicated

Weather:                 Fair.  Moderate RH (relative humidity).  No winds.

Calburn:                  693

Postrun Wt:            Dunno

Shoes:                     Brooks Vantage 2.  Total shoe mileage 382 km.

Mindtune:               Shakira at first then changed to Fort Minor “Where’d U go” for slower pace

 

General expectations:  Just one:  with layoff of one month, didn’t think I could do a PR on this race, so decide to take it easy and treat it as “Start of the 2007 Race Season” run.   Too busy at work to think about any expectations.  In fact, didn’t prepare anything like the previous races.  Even forgot to buy a Powerbar.

 

T minus 1 day:  Previous week already used Google Earth to review the route to MPSJ & the entire 10k course.  So Saturday afternoon had no problems going there except for unusual traffic jam.  Looks like people are on the road to go to open houses.  Got mein T-shirt, two chocolate bars, race bib + pins, one can of herbal drink. 

 

Race Day:  Startup 5:20.  Did the usual routine.  For breakfast, had a couple of cookies & a cuppa Nescafe.  Then off to the race venue, reached there around 6:40, parked in the housing area just beside the field.  Went in & submitted the reporting card.  Plenty of time before start, so did mein warmups on the track.  Then later the organizer also asked people to do their warmups.  Looks like most of the elites were there, but didn’t see anybody I recognized.  By 7am the organizer already asked the 10k runners to assemble by the roadside.  By 7:15 am they said it’s gonna start in 5 mins  Aiyo this is 10 mins ahead of plan.  By 7:20 bang!  Eh oredy start arr?  So I ran.

 

Nothing much to say about the run.  Traffic control was adequate; the road marshals did their jobs well.  There weren’t any km markers or anything, so I didn’t know how far along I was.  The route was not really hilly, but had a lot of gradual inclines.  About 3k into the run I sayured someone who looked like Mary of Princessren who was walking, but then she started running & I paced her until she dropped out.  Not sure if really was Mary.  Later about half-way mark I expected a rewater station at 5k, but nothing, so I didn’t know when to crank the juice.  Only after 40 mins of running I started to shift into second gear.  At this point many runners were already taking walk breaks.  Then into the final stretch, it was uphill for about three quarters passing by the track entrance, just maintained the pace.  When it turned flat, went into third gear, and made the U-turn.  Then, just before the entrance, shift into 4th gear for the final sprint to the finish line.  Heheh  In the last 200-300 meters I overtook a few people & none overtook me.  In the chute, at the finish line, the guy said it was beyond cut-off but stopped the chrono anyway and it was a 1:06:22.  Not bad after a month of layoff.  Non-stop sommore.

 

After that it was the usual hunting for water, etc.  Watched the rest of the runners finish, but nobody I knew.

 

 

The good:  Colorful T-shirt, this time manage to find an M size.  Happening atmosphere with pre-race warmup & post race live band.  Free Star newspaper for Saturday (T-shirt pickup) & Sunday (race day). 

 

The bad:   No medal.  Boo!   Forgot to buy a Powerbar for race morning breakfast.  Forgot mein goody bag coupon.  No PR, & just a measly 19 seconds off a 10k PR!!

 

The funny:  Nothing funny happened.

 

Lessons learned:  Hey, I can still run a non-stop 10k after a month’s layoff.

 

In Summary:  A good run.  Should have turboed sooner, then maybe I could PR.  Just 19 seconds off a 10k PR.  If I were as fit as in Mizuno, I could probably turbo to a PR by several minutes since the route is not hilly.

 

Characters:  None confirmed.  There was another 21k event at Bidor, maybe that’s why didn’t see anyone famous.

 

Postrun:  Tired but functional.  Surprisingly feet felt fine, maybe because I wasn’t overdoing it.  Totally blanked out on the bus trip back to Penang.

 

Postrun + 1 day:  A bit sore at the quads & hamstrings, but not much worse than post Mizuno2006.  Again, maybe because I wasn’t really pushing it.  As I write this, I’m really starting to think about interval training.  How?  How?  USM seems the only solution to this.  I really must find out.

 

 

 

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