Ifhozm's Penang Bridge Half-Marathon Training Diary

Tuesday 17 April 2001.

Yes folks, I'm training for the Penang Bridge Run half-marathon. It's a 22.3 km run traversing the bridge and back. There's a Marathon category too but hey, I'm not ready for that (yet). Here's the race map. In this IT age, the organizers are waaay lagging as the Penang Bridge Run, reputedly the largest run in the country, doesn't even have an official website, unlike it's less famous cousin the KL International Marathon.

I consider myself an intermediate runner, not a beginner, not elite either, somewhere in the middle. I can run 5km comfortably (but slowly haha) in about 40 mins or so, i.e. at a pace of 8 minutes/km. I usually run two or three days in a week, and my farthest distance ever (as of today) is 7 km, finishing in just under an hour (haha!) You can laugh at me now, but I hope to graduate to a more esteemed level of Half-Marathoner (yeah right).

The only race I've ran is the FIZ 5k Fun Run 2000 which I ran "illegally", meaning I did not enter officially and just ran along with the registered runners. It was exhilarating at the moment, but now thinking about it, the distance must be less than 5k, because I finished the run in less time than usual. I overheard some people discussing their suspicions of a shorter distance too. Anyway, all I got in the end was a cup of Milo and a can of 100-plus, hehehe! That was my first exposure to a race.

So why a half-marathon? Why not race a 10k first? It's just because there isn't a local 10k race in the near future. There IS a 10k category in the Penang Bridge run, but for boys and girls, and you don't even get to run on the bridge. Also, the challenge of a half-marathon is mind boggling. My aim is just to finish it, not to win it or anything. If I can finish within the 3-hour time limit the better, because then I get a cert and a finisher's medal (which is unlikely to happen, see my calculations below). I won't get too upset if I ran out of steam and cross the finish line on a bus, heeheheee.

So here's my training calendar leading to the main event. I model this after Hal Higdon's Half-Marathon Training Guide with some modifications. All the distances have been converted to km (hey, in this part of the world we use metric). I had to start at week 7 in a 12 week program, but that's okay since I've regularly ran 5km over the past few months. I worry that I might not be able to accomplish the long runs. It scares me somewhat that I have to do 10k this weekend (woohoo!)

Training track - I run quite close to the actual race track, i.e. by a concrete track by the seaside overlooking the Penang Bridge. I've ran on this route for quite some years. I will be referring to some landmarks to describe the route. Basically the route covers 2.5km. If I run 5 km then I will get back to where I started. I usually start in the middle of the route at Two-Trees. Below are some of the landmarks and their distances covered.

(Lover's End) <--0.4 km--> (Biker's Pass) <--0.6 km -->(Two-Trees) <--1.5 km--> (New Jetty)

For long runs, I plan to extend the route beyond New Jetty, maybe up to KC's Place but I have no means of measuring the distance right now.

Some calculations - The race starts at 5:30 am, and to get a finisher's medal I have to cross the line at 8:30 am. The problem is that the race starts before I can perform the fajr prayer at 5:40am. Assuming I start at 5:50am after performing fajr prayers, I'm left with 2 hours 40 min to finish the race in time, which means a pace of 7:10 min/km which I doubt I can do with two uphill stretches on the bridge itself. So, I'm aiming just to finish before the women's race ends at 9:00am, i.e. 3 hours 10 minutes to finish, or pace of 8:31 min/km. I'll get a better idea of what kind of pace I'm capable of in the long runs, especially the 16km/10 mile long run in the week prior to the half-marathon.

My Running Future - If I complete this half marathon, then I can surely run a 10k, right? I'll run the FIZ 10k officially this year, then maybe the KL International half-marathon next year. From the looks of it, my daily workout will maintain at 8km/5mi for regular runs and 10k+ for long runs. After a few years of 10k and half marathons, who knows, maybe I'll be capable of the ultimate - the Marathon. Until then, I can't wait to get the title of Half-Marathoner on June 3 hehehehe!