Penang Bridge Run;PBR (24 June 2007) Race Report

I had been planning to run the 2007 PBR since March 2007. My goal was modest -it was just to start running half marathon (HM) races again. My last HM race was the Seremban HM in July 2005, almost two years ago. My fitness level was not up the mark. Since the NB-Pacesetters 15km race in end May, I could only run 2-3 km at a time once or twice a week. Hardly enough to run a half marathon distance just one month away.

Friday
I left KL at 1.00 pm hoping to reach the Penang Bridge before 4.30pm. However I only reached the bridge at 5.15 pm as there were several stretches on the highway with only two lanes open instead of three. It took me a good 15 minutes to get through the rush hour traffic at the bridge entrance.

Saturday
In the morning, I collected the race bib, T-shirt and reporting card at Queensbay mall. I did some shopping to buy some food and water for the pre-race meal. I had a quiet evening at the hotel watching a DVD.

Sunday (Race Day)
I woke up at 2.30 am and immediately switched on the electric kettle to boil water. After showering and "toileting", I ate a bowl of oatmeal mixed with Milo, a banana and bread roll. Outside the hotel, I could hear wailing sounds from a police car siren. I looked out and saw dozens of motorcyclists racing on the roads around the hotel. These Mat Rempits have made the roads around Bandar Bayan Baru as their illegal race circuit.

It took me 10 minutes to the starting line near Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) all the while, keeping a lookout for the Mat Rempits. Near USM, the nearest parking spaces were already occupied so I had to drive 1 km away to find a place to park. After the preliminaries were settled, I was near the starting line. I was surprised to see Ah Long and Kenny Tan lining up for the race.

Race Report
My race plan was simple - to run as long as I can but with a minimum distance of 10 km. If I had to to walk after 10km I may have a chance to finish in less than 3 hrs by walking and running alternately for the next 12 km.

The starter gun was fired on time at 3.30 am. I heard it but how come the runners in front of me were not moving? I asked Draco if the run had started and he replied "Yes". After about 30 seconds, I started walking. Three and half minute later I started to run.

The initial 1.5 km was a combination of walking and running. I walked when the crowd ahead of me slowed down and ran when there the crowd moved faster. Some students decided to sprint in brief burst only to stop moments out of exhaustion. I had to abruptly slow down or stop when these students cut in front of me. It was very annoying.

I was running well for the first 30 minutes even during the long uphill section to the highest point on the bridge. At the same time I was fighting an urgent need to pee but where would do the deed? I got my chance at the top when I ducked behind some steel sheets and let myself go. There were some electric cables strung along the railings and I nervously visually inspected them to check for damaged insulation. There were none and I was able to pee without electrocution and becoming 100g lighter.

The next 3 km was easier as it was downhill. While coasting downhill, I met A*** running his second HM and first PBR. We chatted for a while and both us wondered when is this going to finish?

At the 8km where the downhill section became level, I was too tired to continue running. My watched showed it I had reached 8 km in one hour 10 minutes. It was time to walk just short of my plan to run at least 10km. I continued walking until I got back onto the bridge. I met Julian here and we chatted.

I tried to start running again but could only sustain my pace for a few hundred metres. I could see the row of lights from the lamp posts leading to the top of the bridge. Beyond that it was another 3.5 km to the end of the bridge. It was all so far away. At this point, I was not walking alone and I was amazed to see so many people walking. My lips were quite dry and I realised I was suffering the effects of dehydration. I remembered I had drank only once from a small container (100 cm3?) at the 5km water station.

I continue walking until reached the highest point of the bridge. From then on, it was mostly downhill so I started to run again. The last water station was located here and I managed to grab hold of a 0.5 Litre bottle of water in an ice filled red coloured bucket. I drank most of the water and poured the rest over my head and body.

The bridge was now full of the 10km runners who had joined this final 3 km stretch. I had to run around some of the students. I could hear the music from the bands playing at the USM field. I checked my watch and it showed 2 hrs 45 minutes. I was only 15 minutes short of the qualifying time. It was becoming critical so I mustered my remaining reserves to run faster over the last 1 km.

At 2hrs 53 minutes, I finally ran underneath the finishing banner and received my medal and certificate. My legs were stiff, sore and for a while I walked around in a daze. I had just finished my 19th and hardest half marathon race. My finishing time was 30 minutes slower than my first half marathon ran in year 2000 also at PBR. But I figured I gave it all and have nothing to complain about my performance.

Penang Bridge Run - just 10 days away

I haven't blogged for 17 days. My blog is mainly about running and to tell the truth, I haven't run much over the past over the past one month. My plan was to run 8 km a day and 45 km a week but it has not materialised. In fact for the past one month, I am have been running about only 15 km a week. My weekday runs are now mostly on a treadmill and that too is limited to 5 km each time, 2 or 3 times a week. During the weekend, my runs are even shorter, sometimes just 2 km. It is all due to my right knee which has become considerably worse since the NB-Pacesetters race.

My right knee is now sore most of time unlike previously when the soreness would last for 2 or 3 hours after I had finished running. It seems that my right knee has further deteriorated to a state where it is adversely affecting my day to day activities. What I do know is I have to stop running after the PBR for some time. Hopefully I will get better and would be able to run on most days without experiencing serious problems.

As far as PBR, it is a 50:50 chance now. There is a 50% chance I would go ahead to run and a 50% chance of not running.

How to Become a Millionaire - Nigerian Style

I receieve the e-mail below at my office e-mail.

ATM CONTRACT RESOLUTION UNIT
FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN PAYMENT
(RESOLUTIONPANEL ON CONTRACT PAYMENT)
IKOYI-LAGOS NIGERIA

Our Ref: FGN /SNT/STB
ATTN: BENEFICIARY,
THIS IS TO OFFICIALLY INFORM YOU THAT WE HAVE VERIFIED YOUR CONTRACT/INHERITANCE FILE AND FOUND OUT THAT WHY YOU HAVE NOT RECEIVED YOUR PAYMENT IS BECAUSE YOU HAVE NOT FULFILLED THE OBLIGATIONS GIVEN TO YOU IN RESPECT OF YOUR CONTRACT/INHERITANCE PAYMENT.
SECONDLY WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED THAT YOU ARE STILL DEALING WITH THE NONE OFFICIALS IN THE BANK YOUR ENTIRE ATTEMPT TO SECURE THE RELEASE OF THE FUND TO YOU. WE WISH TO ADVISE YOU THAT SUCH AN ILLEGAL ACT LIKE THESE HAVE TO STOP IF YOU WISH TO RECEIVE YOUR PAYMENT SINCE WE HAVE DECIDED TO BRING A SOLUTION TO YOUR PROBLEM. RIGHT NOW WE HAVE ARRANGED YOUR PAYMENT THROUGH OUR SWIFT CARD PAYMENT CENTER ASIA PACIFIC THAT IS THE LATEST INSTRUCTION FROM MR. PRESIDENT, CHIEF OLUSEGUN OBASANJO (GCFR) FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA. AND THE UNITED STATES FBI.THIS CARD CENTER WILL SEND YOU AN ATM CARD WHICH YOU WILL USE TO WITHDRAW YOUR MONEY IN ANY ATM MACHINE IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD, BUT THE MAXIMUM IS TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS PER DAY, SO IF YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE YOUR FUND THIS WAY PLEASE LET US KNOW BY CONTACTING THE FOREIGN OPERATIONAL UNIT OF AFRI BANK NIGERIA PLC, CARD PAYMENT CENTER MRS. CARO OGO ON HER EMAIL ADDRESS:caro_ogo004@yahoo.se Direct Openfax: +234-803-592-5403, AND ALSO !
SEND THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION:
1. YOUR FULL NAME
2. PHONE AND FAX NUMBER
3. ADDRESS WERE YOU WANT THEM TO SEND THE ATM CARD 4. YOUR AGE AND CURRENT OCCUPATION
THE ATM CARD PAYMENT CENTER HAS BEEN MANDATED TO ISSUE OUT USD5.3MILLION AS FULL PAYMENT FOR THIS FISCAL YEAR 2006/2007. ALSO FOR YOUR INFORMATION, YOU HAVE TO STOP ANY FURTHER COMMUNICATION WITH ANY OTHER PERSON(S) OR OFFICE(S) TO AVOID ANY HITCHES IN RECEIVING YOUR PAYMENT. FOR ORAL DISCUSSION, CALL AND EMAIL ME BACK AS SOON AS YOU RECEIVE THIS IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR FURTHER DIRECTION AND ALSO UPDATE ME ON ANY DEVELOPMENT FROM THE ABOVE-MENTIONED OFFICE.
NOTE THAT BECAUSE OF IMPOSTORS, WE HEREBY ISSUED YOU OUR CODE OF CONDUCT, WHICH IS (ATM-822) SO YOU HAVE TO INDICATE THIS CODE WHEN CONTACTING THE CARD CENTER BY USING IT AS YOUR SUBJECT.
REGARDS,
Dr ken Nnamani
ATM CONTRACT RESOLUTION UNIT
(Federal Republic of Nigeria)

Amazingly there are Malaysians who have fallen for this e-mail scam, black money etc. Sheer greediness makes a a normally intelligent person stupid!.

I have been having a sore right knee since last Sunday's NB-Pacesetters 15km. The hilly route has certainly not done any favours to my right knee. I didn't run for four days until Friday when I ran 6.5 km. My right knee was very sore after that.

During the weekend I had to reduce my mileage and I only ran 3 km on Saturday and Sunday.

NB-PACESETTERS 15 km 2007 Race Report

I had never planned to run the NB-Pacesetters 15km race. My first and only parcitipation in this event was back in 2004. I knew the route was hilly and I feared that I would make my injured knee worse. Secondly I was not very sure if I could even finish the race in a reasonable time. My longest run since Feb 2006 was the SMART Tunnel (14 km?) in Feb 2007. I had never run more than 7 km in my daily training runs. How was I suppose to be able to run 15km?

As luck had it, on Sunday evening on 29th April, a friend of a friend had registered for the race but could not make it. The friend passed the bib and reporting card to me (Bib no A405). That meant I had to go to the race.

Yesterday At 5.30 am I waited at the Klang stadium for the friend. There was supposed to be three people travelling with me to KL. We waited until 6.00 am for one guy to show up but he never did. Calls and SMS messages to his mobile phone were not answered as the mobile phone was switched off. We decided to leave at 6.00 am without him.

We reached KL at about 6.25 am and started to look for a parking spot. We found an empty parkind spot behind the "PAM" building. We rushed to the starting line where there was already many runners gathered near the starting line. I was doing some stretches when a "bang" went off. I looked towards the start line banner and notice smoke coming out from the starter gun. Everyone started walking towards the starting line in a cheerful mood.

The route started with a 500m long run downhill before the familiar uphill run towards Bukit Tunku. I had run on section route many times before and reminded myself to pace properly as there was still a lot of hills to encountered. When I reached 5 km, I checked my watch; it read 32 minutes. The next 5 km went along the steeper sections along Langgak Tunku - the infamous Double Hill. I met Martin@aka Lonerunner here. We briefl said hello to each other before he ran ahead. I was struggling a bit here but mentally I reminded myself to run as long I could.

At 10km, I had run 65 or 70 minutes. At this point where I face another hill (2nd loop) I ran out of gas . I walked and run from 11km to 14 km. Hordes of runners overtook me when I was walking intermittently for about 2 km total (20 minutes). In a race like this where there are many "professional" runners, there were very few who walked. My spirit lifted when I saw the 13 km signboard and the downhill slope. At this point, I had been on the road for 1 hr and 30 minutes. My knee was hurting, my left ankle sore, I wanted to pee badly although I was very thirsty but the end was near. I mustered a final effort to run the last one km to the finish line.

Approaching the finishing line, I saw CM Teoh and boy I was really happy to have completed ny longest run in 15 months. My time was not that good - 1hr 42 minutes compared to my run in 2004 (1 hr 28 minutes). But the important result was I knew I had a chance to complete the Penang Bridge Half Marathon Race in June.

After the race, I met Cheong, Josie and Yong and took some photos. At the tents, I didn't come across other Pacemaker runners except DK. I did meet a whole bunch of the Pacemakers later at the main road.

Surprisingly I didn't feel very tired after the race. I guessed I didn't really run that hard. Officially I am now the slowest Pacemaker runner but hopefully that will change next year.

As usual the race organiser and volunteers did an excellent job. The NB-Pacesetters 15kn race remains a race made for runners. I also liked this new route better than the old route through Taman TasikPerdana for its more challenging route.

Training Update and Saucony ProGrid Triump4

Amazingly I have run 45 km over the past one week with 20 km over the past 3 days to Sunday. This is the highest mileage I have reached since February 2007 when I had to almost stop running due to injury.

On Saturday morning, I got my Saucony Progrid Triump 4 from Choi. I ran 6 km on Saturday and 3 km on Sunday using this shoe. The shoe is designed for a neutral runner but I found was it is also acceptable for a slight pronator like me. I got the black/gold colour version which is a bit too flashly looking for me.

The cushioning is quite soft and certainly feels softer than my ASICS GT-2110. The forefoot transition is a bit stiffer, probably due to the stiffer upper structure. A noticeable crease formed on the upper corresponding to the part where the sole bends or transitions during the lift cycle of the forefoot. Comfort wise , the shoe fits well but perhaps need a little bit of breaking in to soften and fit to the foot. I also have to get used to much lower heel section is much lower compared to all the ASICS GT-XXX models I have worn in the past.

Overall the shoe is quite light with a very soft ride. There is one area where the shoe needs improvement; the area where the tongue is sewed to the the upper can be felt and is potential to form a blister.

Training Update

I have been running more than usual over the past one week. A brief summary :-
Friday (27 April) : 6.5 km at KLCC park
Saturday : Rest
Sunday : 7.0 km in Klang. Ran with some Klang pacer guys
Monday : 5.5 km on treadmill
Tuesday : 6.0 km in Klang. Ran again with Klang pacer guy.

Over the past five days, I've run 25 km. My strained left calf is 100% OK now. I should start running some longer runs but nowadays my definition of a long run is any distance more than 8 km but less than 12 km.

Strained Right Calf Muscle

I strained my right calf muscle yesterday. My training run at KLCC park was pretty lousy although my right calf was still OK when I was running. I had to run and walk for 5 km and it was one of the most unsatisfying run I've ever done.

For the next 2 days, I will be away in Port Dickson to attend a seminar. I won't be running today as I am walking with a slight limp. The calf injury is not serious I think but it will take a few days to heal.

Monday:A Very Late Run

Yesterday it rained heavily from 4.00 to 6.00 pm. I was stuck in another office in Tun Razak road and could not return to KLCC. When I finally to board a taxi, I only reached KLCC at 6.30pm. It was too late for me to run at KLCC park as it would have taken me another five minutes to walk from the gym to the park. I decided to run on the treadmill and even then I started running at 6.50 pm. I ran 5 km at 10 km/hr and stopped at 7.20 pm. The gym had more people than usual with 70% of the treadmill occuppied.

I only reached home at 9.00 pm. That is the life in the Klang valley, there is so much time wasted on the road.

Europe Trip - A Short Report

I returned to Malaysia on Saturday morning arriving at the KL International airport at 6.00 am.
I and three other colleagues spent about two weeks in Europe. The first week was spent in Norway. I had to fly from Kuala Lumpur to Stockholm airport, Sweden. At Stockholm, the connecting flight on SAS was delayed by 2 hrs. This delay caused us to miss the connecting flight from Olso to our final destination, Trondheim. When we arrive in Oslo, the flight to Trondheim on SAS again was delayed for two hours. The upshot was we boarded the flight to Oslo at 11.0
pm instead, three hours later than our originally schedule of 8.00 pm. It was very cold in Trondeim with the ground was covered with snow and ice. I think the temperature was probably -5 deg C.

In Norway, we went to three places; Trondheim, Oslo and Bergen. I liked Bergen the most as the city is filled with old buildings. Norway is a good place to run really with plenty of lakes and parks. I didn't do any running as I didn't bring any gear for winter conditions.

From Norway (Bergen) we flew to Amsterdam airport to catch a flight to Edinburgh, Scotland. This flight was on Saturday and so I had the weekend in Edinburgh. On Sunday morning, I went to Edinburgh castle. The castle overlooks Edinburgh city and there were fine views from various spots around the castle. In the castle, there were various exhibits on Scottish history with emphais on the military history of Scotland. It was quite surprising how warlike the Scots were in the past. In the past, many Scotsman have in fact served as mercenaries in European armies.

I managed to run twice on a the hotel treadmill (6 km). The gym was in the basement and it was quite cold in the room.

After Edinburgh, I left for Aberdeen about 2 hrs by train. The view of the country side was spectacular as the train track ran fairly close to the sea. Abedeen is not an attractive city as it is an industrial area mainly serving the oil and gas industry.

After spending just one night in Aberdeen, I flew to Paris on Tuesday. The weather was quite good in Paris with temperatures around 18 to 20 deg. C. There was a large park (near Jardin Vendrome) about 200 m from the hotel. But in the end I could not run due to lack of time.

I am hoping to minimise travelling in the next two months and do enough traning for the Penang bridge half marathon on 24th June 2007.

Going Overseas again

My 2nd trip overseas is next week for two weeks. I will be going to Norway, Scotland and France. I am not looking forward to facing the winter temperature in Norway. Is April spring or winter in Norway? It must still be winter as the cities I am going is still receiving snow. The temperature in Trondheim ranges from -5 deg C to 2 deg C. Olso is warmer if you can call temperatures ranging from -2 to 5 deg C "warmer". I certainly won't be running outdoor because there is snow and ice on the road.

After Norway, I move to Scotland where it is "warmer". The temperature ranges from 5 to 10 deg C. Again it's too cold for me to run outdoor and it is such a hassle to bring along my winter running gear.

My last stop is France. I will be going to Paris and Lyon (Southern France). Wow, the temperature is quite good ranging from 3 to 20 deg C. But I am not sure I would be able to run when the temperature is higher as I have to attend meetings in the daytime.

Overall, my prospects to continue training over the next two weeks are not very good. I am hoping the hotels where I will be staying at will have a gym with a treadmill. In Europe, most of the smaller 5 star local hotels do not have a gym or fitness centre. Often you have to pay to use the gym facilities even if you staying there. Tomorrow I will spend some time surfing the hotels website to check if they have a gym.

Update : From the hotel websites, most of them have a gym or fitness centre. I am not to sure if they have a treadmill.

Larian Mesra Polis (Did Not Start = DNS) : Although I collected the bibs on Saturday and pinned them to the running vest, I didn't go to the race. When I woke up at 5.30 am, I discovered I still had a cold and sore throat.

Short Report on a Trip to Singapore

I was in Singapore for a 2 day business trip (Monday night to Wednesday afternoon). Other than a meeting on Tuesday, I had some free time on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon. Initially I was planning to go to Queenstown shopping complex to buy the Saucony Progrid Triump 4 shoe but I had decided to buy it from Choi. After lunch on Tuesday, it was too hot to walk around so I stayed in the hotel until 4.00 pm. After 4.00pm, I took the MRT trains to City Hall station which was near the Funan IT mall. My destination was the "Running Lab" shop.

In Kuala Lumpur there are no specialist shops for runners and triathletes. I spent about one hour in the shop and bought a few things:-

1. One Sorbothane Elite insole
2. Two race bib belts
3. One Wright Coolmax sock
4. One wallet that can be clipped to a short (Nathan brand)
   

After leaving Funan IT mall, I went to HMV in Orchard Road to look for CD and DVDs. I bought the Malaysian banned DVD "Lelaki Komnunis Terakhir". It was almost 7.00 pm when I left HMV and I walked about 500m back to the Royal Plaza Hotel in Scotts Road.

After a shower and rest, I felt a bit restless and so went out to the Borders bookshop about 100m away from the hotel. I spent one hour there and bought 2 books and a LED reading light.I was a bit hungry as I had not eaten dinner and by the time I left Borders it was almost 10.00 pm. I made a quick stop at McDonalds to get a Fillet-O-Fish which I took with me to the hotel.
Lights out at 11.00 pm.

The next morning I had a late breakfast at almost 9.30 am. Loitered in my hotel room and decided to check out at 11.00 am. After checking out, I went to Bugis and Arab street using the MRT. Walked around in the hot mid-day sun to have a look around the area. The area is a backpacker hangout but it is unlike many such places around Asia. For one, it was spotless clean. I guess the Singapore authorities have "sanitised" the area. I did not sight a single grubby back-packer nor were there any whiff of an easy availability of illegal substances a.k.a ganja, pills etc.

I had lunch at Raffles hospital food court. On the way back to the hotel, I stopped by a shop to buy some CDs. I collected my bag from the hotel and took a taxi to Changi airport. I managed to get on an earlier shuttle flight at 3.25 pm. I reached home at 6.00 pm.

As usual, Singapore has always impressed me with its efficiency in doing most things. Buses and MRT trains arrive on time. The streets are free of litter. There are none of the chaos and disorder found in cities like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. The efficiency and order are good for business and makes life predictable for most people living in Singapore. I have say that the more trips (this was my 3rd trip in 3 years) I made to Singapore, I could be live there for a while.

However what I discovered is Singapore is not a forgiving society/country. In Singapore I have always come across various people who lived on the margins. The elderly woman at the Orchard Road MRT selling various cheap goods for a few Singapore and a blind man selling tissue at Funan IT mall. For a country listed as the 21st wealthiest in the world, should such people be left behind and be forced to live at the margin ? This article has something to say about "Survival of the Fittest"mentality amongst Singapore leaders.

Malaysia = Fat Nation

Last month, the Malaysian government proposed to ban fast food advertisements. Ever wonder why?

Malaysia now has the fattest population in South East Asia. In 2006, Malaysia passed a milestone - the overweight population (54%) now outnumber the "not" overweight (46%). In just ten years, the proportion of population who are overweight in Malaysia has more than the doubled from 24 to 54 %. See this report.

As for me, I am doing my bit to ensure the minority (46%) of Malaysian do not fall into the majority category. On Friday I ran 6 km in 36 minutes and yesterday 4 km (time unknown).

I want to Shop!

PM19 is going to Bali tomorrow for the 4th time. I went to Bali in 2004 and liked the place a lot too. The things I enjoyed the most were the cultural stuff like watching the dances, shadow puppet shows (Wayang Kulit) and the wide variety of cuisine.

I ran yesterday with Gan. As customary when I am running with Gan, the pace will not be slow. We hit sub 7 min 30 seconds pace for three laps (1.3 km each) until both of us were tired. After that we power walked for another two laps at maybe 10-11 minutes per lap (7 to 8 km/hr). Total distance = 6.5 km.

Today I had a more leisurely run at KLCC park but first I ran two fast two alone. I met Newton and we continue to run together. A lap later we came across Jamie and I did 2 more laps. All three laps were run at 8 min. 45 seconds. Total distance = 6.5 km. My right is a bit sore tonight.

After reading up on some shoe reviews, I have decided to buy Saucony Progrid Triump 4. This shoe received an excellent review in Runners World U.K. Jamie mentioned this shoe when we were running today. I have actually worn a Saucony shoe way back in 2001. I loved that shoe but I left it on the bus when I returned to Kuala Lumpur from the Penang Bridge Run. Very soon afterwards, Saucony shoes were no longer available in Malaysia.

I have added a few more items to my shopping list in Singapore:-

• DVDs : In addition to the "Lelaki Komunis Terakhir" ,I will be looking for "The Big Durian"and a box set of "M.A.S.H, the TV series".
  
  
• Books at Borders or Kinokouniya.

Tired 3 Days

The last 3 days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) have not been great training days. On Friday I was around at KLCC park but I couldn't run because my right knee was sore. So I had to walk, walk and walk for one hour. Walking is so boring. Nothing beats running.

I also didn't run much over the the weekend. I tried to run on Saturday evening but my left foot hurt after just running 400m. So it was another one hour walking session. On Sunday, I only walked for 30 minutes. Two days walkijg was enough for me but today (Monday) my left foot is better. Right knee is still sore. Hopefully I can run today.

Two weeks ago I ordered some vitamins, phytochemicals and glucosamine-MSM tablets from the USA. I appointed Pos Malaysia as my agent to clear them past customs at the KL International airports. Last week I received a letter from the Pharmaceutical and Drugs Dept. of Malaysia. The stuff I have ordered has been marked as "Unregistered drugs and substances" and illegal importation is subject to a fine of Ringgit 50,000 and a jail sentence.
Well the tablets worth USD 150 is now stuck at the customs. Maybe they will be destroyed off or become "misplaced". The tablets I bought contained substances that have been generically approved in Malaysia. True, the brands have not been approved and registered in Malaysia but someone at the Pharmacy department can at least read the labels, could'nt they ? In fact, last year I ordered the similar products without going through the same problem. Why now?

Singapore Shopping List

I will be going to Singapore for a meeting on 2nd April. I have already prepared a shopping list for things I want to buy in Singapore.

1. ASICS GT-2110 (not the 2120) to replace my 2 year old ASICS GT-2100.
   
   
2. 2 pairs of impact absorbing orthortics.
   
   
3. 1 new split notch type running shorts. My old shorts which I used to wear in 2003 doesn't fit anymore :-(
   
   
4. DVDs in particular "Lelaki Komunis Terakhir" by Malaysian film maker, Amir Muhammad. His latest documentary "Apa Khabar Orang Kampung" has just been banned by the authorities in Boleh Land.

Indoor Running

I had to run on a treadmill for 3 days since Monday (rested on Tuesday). My left foot pain has eased a bit. I was able to run on Wednesday (5 km) and Thursday (5km).

Yesterday's workout was more interesting and quite strenous than the previous two. I ran for 500m at 8.0 km/hr followed by another 500 m at 9.0 kmh/hr, a total of 1.0 km. For the next 2 km, I ran at a constant pace 10.3 km/hr. For the last 2 km, I increased the treadmill speed to 10.8 km/hr. It was quite hard going to keep running. One guy who was also running for 20 minutes looked over checked me out a few times. I don't know what that was about though

My training plans for March and April is to gradually increase my training distance to 8 to 10 km. I also plan to improve my speed as measured on the treadmill to 11.0 km/hr and be able to maintain it for at least 10 km. I don't plan to do any long runs yet.

I hope it doesn't run this evening again and I will be able to run outdoors.

Wednesday : Foot Pain

I ran 6km on the treadmill yesterday. Average speed ; first 5 km : 10.3 km/hr and last 1 km 10.5 km/hr.

When I woke up this morning and stood up, my left foot hurt. More precisely, the bottom of my left foot was tight and sore. It felt as though there was a rubber band stretched a bit too tight across the arch. After I walked around for a few minutes, the tight and sore sensations disappeared and didn't appear for the whole day. But now as I am typing this in my room, I could feel a sore sensation when I rub my fingers across the arch. It's probably the beginnings of plantar fasciitis. I am glad I didn't run today.

I think I've experience this before a long time ago and made a full recovery. I certainly don't want it to become worse, so I may not run tomorrow if the area is still a bit tender.

Monday : Easy Run

Today was an easy run day for me. I didn't run at KLCC park but hit the treadmill at the fitness centre. I kept boredom at bay by listening to Hiroshima on my iPod and watching other exercisers running on the treadmill. In particular I "observed" one well endowed Chinese girl running furiously on a treadmill two treadmills away from me. It was too bad she was wearing a loose fitting white T-shirt:-)

She is quite a good runner, possibly running at 8 or 9 km/hr and she was already running when I started and she kept going for a few minutes more after I stopped my run.

Distance run : 6.0 km
Time : about 35 minutes
Pace : 10.3 km/hr

KL International Marathon (KLIM) 2007 Photos

My plan was to be present at Dataran Merdeka before 6.00 am in time for the flag off for the half marathon run. But I woke up late this morning and only reached Dataran Merdeka at 6.30pm.I didn't participate in any event during this years KLIM. Here are some of the photos I took during the event:-

The rest of the photos are in this album.

Note I've made the album Public. You can see the photos now. (Thanks, Jamie)

Malaysia Boleh ! (Malaysian Can !)

I managed to get air tickets in Sudan that enabled me to leave Khartoum on Thursday night instead of Saturday night. It was a long journey home as I had to fly from Khartoum to Dubai (3.5 hrs) and transit in Dubai airport for 4 hrs from midnight t0 11.30 pm to 3.30 am. If you transiting in Dubai airport, be prepared for the crowds and lack of space and seats. You may end up sitting on the floors because all the chairs are occupied.

I boarded an Emirates flight from Dubai to Singapore at 3.20am. There were many Indonesian women (20 or so) boarding the flight as well. They were probbaly working as maids in the middle east. Unknown to me, after 3.5 hrs of flying the airplane stopped in Colombo, Sri Lanka for 1.5 hrs to pick up some passengers. After another 3.5 hrs, I finally arrive in Singapore at 4.00 pm. At 6.20pm. I caught another flight (1 hour) to Kuala Lumpur.

Altogether, the return trip took 18 hours through 3 countries (United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka and Singapore). A long and tiring trip but it was better than spending the weekend in Khartoum.

Malaysian Airlines has been named as the 3rd best Cabin staff in 2006. 1st place was Thai Airways, 2nd ranked was Qatar Airways and at 5th place, Singapore Airlines. Malaysian Airlines (MAS) also won "The Best Economy Class". Well the economy class in MAS is not cheap compared to other airlines but at least you know it is the "best".

My blog site has a new look. After 3 years, I was getting bored at how it looked.