3hr 32min 15 sec chip time (Including two pee stops). Preparation for this race wasn't too good. Sleep problems had forced me to do fewer long runs over the months. But more disturbingly, I couldn't fall asleep at all the 'night' before the race. I was awake the entire 5 hours when I laid in bed from 6.30pm. Really underestimated the task of adjusting my biological clock.
As a strong believer of getting sufficient sleep, I was severly demoralized. I knew I was going to do a full marathon with negligible sleep. That was dangerous and I was thinking of not starting the race. Eventually, I thought I should instead forego the Singapore Marathon in 2 weeks and just think of ending all this training and anxiety with one good race. I decided on this (and my singapore marathon bib has been sold :)) and soon met up with Frank, Choi, Loke, Jeff, and his friend at the 14th floor before heading out to Queesbay Mall together.
Although having taken the decision to do this race, I was very very disturbed by not having slept prior to this. If it was a 10 or 20k, not having sleep wouldn't have been too bad. But hey, its a good 42km and it is not as if you can flag a cab down on the bridge if your body decides to call it quits.
Though I started off slowly with Kenny Tan, I started increasing my pace after 3++km. Faster and faster I went, I reached the 10k mark in 47min. What the....that was a good 8min faster than the planned 55min 10k split. I immediately knew I had to slow down. And slow down I did. I covered the next 10k in 50min.
It was after the leaving the bridge that I felt a real mental battle coming. I knew we had to go to and fro on the Jelutong Expressway but had no idea where the U-turn was. There were no distance markers and the heat didn't help at all. Oh, I also haven't mentioned how my head was starting to feel the nonsense from not having slept.
After the half-marathon U-turn, it was pretty much a quiet run. There was the occasional full marathoner I saw, most of whom heading the opposite direction already. With very few people around, it felt like some slow, quiet, lonely death. Not having slept was like a pre-suicide procedure.
Pace was slowing, while total damage was increasing. The Jelutong U-turn soon came and it greeted me with a packet of powergel. I took it desperately as I needed whatever energy food/illegal drug to help me cling onto dear life. Split time here was 2hr 43min, and the distance marker clearly lied to me, saying it was the 35km mark.
Now this is it, the final stretch. A long long one. On this stretch before coming back to the half-marathon U-turn, I was having a few exchanges with a Caucasian lady whom I eventually let go. Alam Shah, whom I earlier overtook, soon passed me as well. And as I continued dragging myself, Alam Shah continued to extend his lead over me and was soon a good 50m ahead.
However, things changed dramtically when I saw the big FOUR-O (Split time: 3hr 20min). Inside a sea of half-marathoners, I shouted "40km!" as I upped my pace. This was greeted by my first cramp of the race - on my right calf. Thankfully it was the temporary type. But this cramp started coming back, on and off. Soon, my lower right thigh also came down with this on and off cramp.
While I was being careful with this tricky cramp pattern, I didn't slow down. This pace increase then got me within touching distance of Alam Shah. I then quickly passed him and made sure I didn't let my guard down. Faster and faster I went, Queensbay Mall eventually came within sight. I let out a below average kick to the finish line bearing in mind the potential cramps.
So here I was...
Photo from the race website. And I'm the one on the right in white, not the one posing :)
Really wanted to hang around and wait for my friends to come back. And then soak up the atmosphere when the sun rises. But I then decided to "quickly" limp back to the hotel instead to save myself from further damage from a sleepness night.
Photo taken from Wikipedia
