Phuket Mountain Beach Marathon on 22 Oct`06 (Sun)

Pre-race
Set off for Phuket on Friday night via Tiger Airways -- my first time @ Singapore Airport Budget Terminal and due to the after office peak hour, I was unable to flag down a cab and unbeliveably took the bus & train to airport! CY, C & W were waiting for me and after a swift check-in, we had a quick dinner @ Hans and rushed to board the plane (5mins before take off). Smooth transfer from Phuket Airport to our hotel, Golden Sand Inn @ Karon Beach -- perfect location as it was right opposite the start point of the marathon. A little disappointed with the room though -- small & musty smelling (gotta bear with it for 2 nites). There was a loud party by the beach that last till 5am! We woke up late for breakfast on Saturday morning and popped by the race expo to register for the marathon -- weather was great with clear blue sky (gosh, after the haze, it was a joy to breath in fresh air) and the expo overlooked to a lake and mountain. The organisers were setting up tents for post-race party and some local participants were pitching up tents in shelters next to the race expo(save cost on accomodation). This was more of a local race and everything was written in Thai -- volunteers were very helpful and spoke Mandarin to us as they could hardly speak English. For half marathons, we got a RED shoe bag, yellow event T-shirt and a finisher's medal at the end of the race -- very good race pack for 400 baht registration fee :) Oh, no timing chip for this race and the start time was changed to 5.30am instead of 5am. With some time to kill before the pre-race party @ 5pm (hightlight was 5km bikini beach run), we went for ATV adventure for 1,500 baht/pax -- exhilarating 1-hour with some nervewrecking moments (while rolling down a steep slope, I lost control of the bike and ramped into the trees! With no reverse gear, the guides had to help push my bike out!). The base camp was after the view point and we got a feel on part of the 21km route -- boy, the slopes were long and steep! Our quad bikes were rolling down the slopes FAST -- imagine running up the same slopes, ARGHHH! We had a late lunch and was stucked in our room when a storm delayed the start of the pre-race party. After raining pigs and elephants, we walked over to race expo -- there was free food & drinks and a bazzar selling running shoes & attires (prices similar to wat u get in Singapore). Met 2 runners from MR25 and chatted with them briefly -- was told that my category was competitive with many strong Thai runners. These runners took part in races to win cash prizes equivalent to their monthly salary! After carboload with seafood pasta @ a nearby restuarant, we had an early nite -- thank goodness we could sleep in peace with no loud music!




The Race
Woke up @ 4.30am, quickly washed up, down a packet of PowerGel and left for the start line @ 5am. Did a short run to warm up and followed by stretching. Gathered at the start line 10mins before flag off -- abt 100+ runners and was behind the MR25 veteran who was taking part in the Male 60-65 category. The horn sounded and off we ran along the coast -- boy, the MR25 veteran shot ahead! Decided not to follow his pace and maintained my 5:30km/min pace. The first 4km was flat and great for warm up -- was careful with my foot landing as it was still dark and I had my prescriptive sunglass on. Time check at 4km mark was 21:39min -- nice comfortable 5:25min/km pace. The hills began here -- runners began to stop and walked up the slopes but I persisted to run up the slopes. Huffed & puffed my way to the view point -- took my first water break. Huh, no isotonic water -- juz diluted tea. Still felt good -- calve muscles not tight, thanks to the NUS hill training runs! Then it was a long descent -- I flew down part of it and slowed down when my left knee hurt slightly. It was daylight by then -- saw runners on the return route. Couldn't helped but exclaimed out loud that the downslope was never ending!! Was happy to see the hill turned upslope and then a short flat portion before the U-turn mark -- the race marshall radio back my bib number as I round the marker. Time check @ 11km was 1hr3min -- managable 5:44min/km pace. Sigh, must have slow down during the upslopes! Gotta push hard to achieve sub2!!

The return route was tough -- practically all the runners around me was walking up the slope and I was so tempted to join them!! Arghh, I continued my snail pace up the slope -- C waved & overtook me but stopped to walk slightly ahead. When he heard me coming, he would pick up and run with me. Took my second water break at 13km -- no more cups!! The volunteers picked up a couple of cups from the ground and washed & re-used them. Re-fuelled with Gu Gel and resumed running up the slope -- overtook C and a handful of runners. Many gave me a thumb up for my effort of running SLOWLY up the slope!! SO GLAD to reach the view point finally -- the worse was over!! Gulp down a cup of diluted tea from my last water point and flew down the slope. Time check @ 16km was 1hr 34min -- oh oh, slower pace of 5:53min/km. Was a bit lost when there was no sign at a junction -- a kind Thai veteran pointed me to the right way and paced me for a distance along the coast. By then, the sun was beating down on us and I literally melted! The road was not closed off and traffic was getting heavy. Time check @ 19km was 1hr 57min -- *shake head* 6:09min/km pace, there goes my sub2 :( There was marker per 100m for the final 1km and I pushed on & dashed through the finishing line @ 2hr 08min -- gave the camera-man a victory sign and big smile! Yeah, I completed the race and felt good! Pleasantly surprised when I was handed the tag for 3rd place in my category -- wow, even had trophy and cash prize of 1,500 baht! That was a good consolation for not achieving sub2 :)


Post Race
Went searching for isotonic drink but couldn't find any -- went back to my hotel to pick up my camera and bottle of gatorade. There were lotsa food for the runners -- fried rice, noodles, fruits etc. C & W came back 10min and 30min after me -- all of us happy to complete the run! We met the MR25 veteran -- he came in first for his category @ 1hr 56min. He informed me that I had to gather the top 5 runners in my category for the prize presentation. Huh??! He managed to gather the runners for his category and we gave our support for our fellow Singaporean with loud applauds when he went on stage -- he got a trophy and cash prize of 3,000 baht. After a long wait, No. 1 & 2 runners were still missing -- the rest of us decided to forgo going on stage and juz collect the trophies. Boy, the trophy was bulky and heavy -- oh no, had to lug it along for the rest of my holiday!! Thank goodness CY came to my rescue -- she was going back earlier and helped me to bring it back to Singapore (along with some of my excess baggage)! With the race over, we moved on to our first climb site @ Koh Panyee (a floating Muslim fishing village @ Phang Nga Bay). We met the 2 MR25 runners while waiting for the tuk tuk to Phuket Town -- the veteran helped to negotitate with the driver to drop us @ the bus station. Along the way, we picked up some tips on marathon running from him -- he was sharing with the other MR25 lady runner who completed the full marathon in 4hr 55min @ 4th place. We parted way as they boarded the bus to Hatyai -- they travelled by coach from Singapore which took 1 day!


P.S. The MR25 lady runner ran the Phuket International Marathon @ Laguna in June and said this was a tougher route. And heard from DR that the MR25 veteran's average timing for half mary is 1hr40min+ -- this must have been a very tough course! I got eye no see tarzan -- luckily I didn't follow his pace! Though I was off my target by 8min, I had fun and it was a very good race experience! Runners were encouraging one another along the route and scenery was beautiful :)

Distance : 21.1km
Time : 2hr 08min
Avg pace : 6:04min/km

Pace Calibration Run on 20 Oct`06 (Fri)

Was planning to run 12km this morning. Gentle may joined me if he didn't run yesterday -- he would sms me @ 5.20am if he can join me. Well, turned out he had a midnite run :) Woke up at 5am and dismayed to see the thick haze outside -- hmm, to run or not to run? Laze for a good 30min before I got out of bed -- it had been a while since I check my pace and gonna do a pace calibration run (to find my comfortable pace for "auto-cruise" mode). There is a 1km route round my neighbourhood - perfect for this run. Got out of the house @ 5.45am and started the run after a quick warmup. Breathing was too fast for Lap 1, maybe still fresh and bursting with energy -- huh, 4:50min (didn't know I can do that speed!!). Try to slow down the breathing for Lap 2 -- argh, 5:01min (too fast to sustain for longer distance). Reduced speed further for Lap 3 -- ok, 5:14min(close to the comfort zone). By Lap 5, my breathing was almost constant -- abt 2 strides per exhale. Haze getting worse and decided to stop after 6 laps -- total time taken 31min. Did a cool down by walking 1 lap and stretching after that. Happy to see some improvement -- my last pace calibration run before KL Mizuno Wave Run, my best lap was 5:15min and avg pace of 5:30min/km :) All set for the half-marathon this Sunday -- hope to maintain a 5:30min/km pace and achieve sub2!

P.S. Finally received my 3rd pair of Mizuno Wave Inspire2 from USA! The length is the same as my 1st pair :) Can't wait to take them out for a test run after my hols.

Lap 1 : 4:50 min/km
Lap 2 : 5:01 min/km
Lap 3 : 5:14 min/km
Lap 4 : 5:17 min/km
Lap 5 : 5:22 min/km
Lap 6 : 5:20 min/km

Distance : 6km
Time : 31min
Avg pace : 5:11min/km

NUS Hill Run on 18 Oct`06 (Wed)

Haze was back to moderate level and a good day to run -- YEAH! tktan's ex-collegue, lm, was not feeling well and skipped the run. So tktan and me took a longer route -- I needed more hill practise and planned to tackle Kent Ridge Park via Pepys Rd (the long long upslope). tktan bought a bottle of gatorade to carry along the run -- thot it would be a short run and didn't bring camelbak. From KRGH, we ran along Pasir Panjang Rd and turned into Haw Par Villa -- very breathless going up the slope and calves muscles tight as my legs not warmed up yet. Recovered on the downslope along Zehnder Rd. While waiting to cross the road @ South Bouna Vista Rd, bumped into my ex-colleague, M, who was cycling home. He asked me about my knees -- well, still pain but I am still running :P He is recuperating from knee operation and cannot run for 1 year -- can only swim and cycle :( Boy, tough to chat while I was on the run and he on the bike! We parted way when we reached his home along South Bouna Jln. Continued on to Pasir Panjang and turned left to Pepys Rd -- there, the long upslope was waiting for us. tktan pulled ahead of me in no time -- I stayed focus on my foot landing & tried not to look up the slope. Yeah, I made it to the top without stopping! Oh, the view point at the top offered a clear view of the PSA port! Managed to catch my breath as we ran thru a few flights of stairs in the park. We exited the park via Science Hub and ran thru the underpass @ DSTA to Alexandra Industrial Estate. From there, we continued along North Bouna Vista Rd and took a toilet break @ Bouna Vista MRT. Next was Ulu Pandan Canal -- cool and breezy as we up our pace (time check for this stretch @ 2.5km was 12min55sec -- wah 5:10min/km pace!) Usually tktan would wanna chiong on this stretch but he was rather quiet during the run (later found out that he was experiencing runner's trot and had to slow down & control!!) Happy to be on our way back, we ran along Clementi Rd and chiong up the final slope to KRGH. Very shiok run - thanks to tktan for the gatorade and pushing me @ the final slope to KRGH!

After cool down and shower, we had dinner @ KRGH Kingfisher Cafe -- Country Style Braised Mee Suah Soup, Bamboo Fish with Bitter Gourd and Homemade Beancurd with Soya Paste & Pork Floss. YUM YUM :)


Route : Start @ KRGH -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> Haw Par Villa -> Zehnder Rd -> South Bouna Jln -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> Pepys Rd -> Kent Ridge Park -> Sci Park I -> Alexandra Industrial Estate -> North Bouna Vista Rd -> Bouna Vista MRT -> Ulu Pandan Canal -> Clementi Rd -> End @ KRGH

Distance : 14.6km
Time : 1hr 22min
Avg pace : 5:37min/km

Telok Blangah Hill Run on 17 Oct`06 (Tue)

After Sunday's Esplanade-ECP Run, I was concerned abt the build up of body temperarure under hot and humid weather -- first time encountering such extreme response from my body. Searched on the net and found these 2 interesting articles that help me to be more conscious of my body and it's reaction/response :-
Running in The Heat
All Systems Go

tktan has been experiencing cessation of sweating during our runs -- which resulted in his body and CPU being heated up. Sounds like a mild heat stroke and he is wise to stop and cool down. As for myself, I would attribute the last Sunday's body heat up to a few factors :-
1) my Nike dri-fit top was unable to pull moisture away from my body and felt sticky & uncomfortable
2) my camelbak contributed to the heating up of the body and the WARM isotonic was not welcoming when all I could think of was ICE!
3) my new Inspire2 felt heavy, should have seasoned with more shorter runs before emarking on 30km+ run
4) kept to a tempo pace even though feeling hot, should have slow down.


Telok Blangah Hill is the last of the 4 hills that I had yet to try. So, I planned a route that covers 3 hills -- Kent Ridge Park, Telok Blangah Hill and Mt Faber. To prepare for the 2-hour run, suggested to tktan to try hyperdrate -- drink 2-4 cups of water 30 mins before the run (he drank a can of coke with salt to aid hydration). To have COLD isotonic drink on the run, he was gonna try putting ice into his camelbak -- cool! I would be running light with no camelbak and wearing my old trusted Inspire2 :) We proceed with the run despite the haze @ PSI 105 and prepare to stop if there was any discomfort. Hope the trees on the hills would filter out the haze. Took our usual route to Kent Ridge Park via Pasir Panjang and South Bouna Vista Road. It had been 3 weeks since I last run the killer slope -- felt the calves tightening along the way! Recovered our breath on the downslopes and cut thru Science Hub to Portsdown Flyover. Hmm, the haze seemed to diffuse. Turn right to Queensway, another right to Alexandra Rd and left to Depot Rd. Nice stretch along Depot Rd with the tree lined road and cool breezes -- not hint of soot smell. Next, we turned right to Henderson Rd and there, the entrance of Telok Blangah Hills. Recalled my previous experience during adventure race -- we walked up the entire slope! This time, I was determined to run up and focus on my forefoot landing and not looking up at the slope -- 2 uncles walking down cheered me on with "jia you". At the car park, caught up with tktan (as usual, he juz sped up) and saw a group of Safra MF runners doing their hill intervals. As we continued up the slope, waved to Bug and DR as they sped downhill. We completed the loop and on our way down, saw the whole group of Safra runners chiong up the hills again! Felt good that I was able to maintain a steady pace up the slope and calves not tighen at all.

We carried on down Henderson Rd and began the climb up our last hill, Mt Faber via Morse Rd. It was a long long stretch but I persisted with tktan leading way infront. Both of us felt good enough to go for another round the Mt Faber Loop(1.5km) -- I tried to match my stride with tktan's on the upslope but felt that I needed extra energy to push off the legs. Guess he has stronger thighs! After flying down the downslope from Mt Faber, we had to change to lower gear and run up Lower Delta Road to Tiong Bahru Plaza. Phew, finally the end, Tiong Bahru Food Centre, was near! tktan was having a stiff neck from his stiff left arm. Urged him on with "Juz another street" -- erhm, actually 2 more streets down the road. He was ready to stop at the bus-stop opposite Tiong Bahru Plaza but was surprised that I continued running and gave chase! The run end @ Lim Liak Street -- distance abt 19.1km @ 1hr 51min. Thanks to tktan for the mobile water station -- the COLD isotonic drink did wonders! Will try that for my next LSD :)

After cool down, we had a quick dinner at Tiong Bahru Food Centre -- lor mee for tktan and chwee kueh & rice roll for me. Hmm, food so-so -- the toppings for chwee kueh has dried prawns but the rice cake not as tender as the stall @ Clementi Food Centre. We took Bus 33 back to Kent Ridge and reached KRGH @ 10.20pm -- oops, locker service was closed! Well, will be back tomorrow for NUS Hill Run - return locker key and towel then :)



P.S. Glad that we proceed with the run -- indeed the air was much better in dense greenery! It was good run and I felt good not pushing hard & enjoyed the slopes :) Did steal glances of the nite scenery from top of Telok Blangah Hills and Mt Faber.

Route : Start @ KRGH -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> South Bouna Vista Rd -> Portsdown Flyover -> Queensway -> Alexandra Rd -> Depot Rd -> Henderson Rd -> Telok Blangah Hills -> Henderson Rd -> Telok Blangah Rd -> Morse Rd -> Mt Faber -> Lower Delta Rd -> Tiong Bahru Rd -> End @ Tiong Bahru Food Centre

Distance : 19.1km
Time : 1hr 51min (including traffic light stops)
Avg pace : 5:49min/km

Esplanade-ECP Run on 15 Oct`06 (Sun)

On Saturday, went down to Tanjong Pagar area to check the public lockers @ Robinson Post Office(thanks to tiwazz n JT for the leads) – to my dismay, the lockers were out of order. Haiz, we would not have a place to keep our change of clothes for Sunday Heat Flat Run. Remembered tktan mentioned abt a good beef noodle stall @ Amoy Street Food Centre – so went down to give it a try. Beef slices were tender and the noodles were cooked juz nice – though the sauce was a tad sweet to my liking. Still prefer the beef noodles @ Changi Village :)


Most SgRunners were taking part in the NIE overnite race and needed a rest on Sunday. So, only tktan joined me for the run. We met @ City Hall MRT at 6.45am and walked to the outdoor theatre @ Esplanade. We had hope that the haze would miraculously disappear like last weekend -- haiz, the horizon was a blur. Well, now we could only hope the sea breeze would help to diffuse the haze somewhat. After a quick warm up, we set off @ 7.10am towards Indoor Stadium via Marina Promonade and Kallang Riverside Park. This was tktan's first time running this route. Maybe due to the haze, our usual chitchatting pace became a bit breathless for me (erhm, later found out that we were doing a faster than normal pace). Due to the massive construction work in the vicinity, we made a couple of detour while trying to find the bridge to Tanjong Rhu. Happy to reach the first milestone 8km @ East Coast Park(ECP) -- time check was 42min @ 5:15min/km pace! From here, we could set to auto-cruise mode along this 9km flat road to National Sailing Centre. Majority were runners, with a handful of cyclists and bladers. Safra runners were everywhere! The sun was a red glow behind the haze and weather was VERY hot and humid -- felt the oppressed heat building up in my body. We took our first break @ toilet before seafood centre at 13km -- refuel with powergel/Gu gel. tktan stretched his stiff left arm and tried Gu gel (banana blitz w/o caffine) for the first time -- hmm, tasted SWEET. Oh, not sure whether it was the effect of Gu gel, he had to sidetrack a couple of times to "let out gas" -- good thing he was not running in front of me!! Saw DO & DR ran passed -- they were taking part in the Nike Runaholics Run. As we continued our run, we met more SgRunners such as BR, cosmic_wind, alvo, meteor and bee -- oh, loneshark and gentle whisked by on their bikes. At National Sailing Club, we took a cool down break before making our U-turn -- time check was 1hr 34min @ 5:32min/km pace. At Carpark F2, we saw the tent set up for Runaholics and stopped for a chat with DO, DR and cosmic_wind -- they had completed their run and cheering on the other runners. DR mentioned about the bad weather and advised us to cut short the distance if we feel any discomfort. By now there was no wind and my body began heating up -- now I understand what tktan meant when he said his CPU became overheated! Our third break @ the toilet after seafood centre was much needed to cool down -- time check 1hr 55min @ 5:29min/km pace. We decided to push on another 5km to Fort Rd - my body felt like burning! Made another stop after Big Splash -- boy, this toilet was so far off. Started to have slight running nose (juz read in the papers that this was one of the side effects of haze) but persisted till Fort Rd -- time check was 2hr 23min @ 5:30min/km pace.

We took a walk break to the Indoor Stadium via Tanjong Rhu and bought an ice cold drink from 7-Eleven -- wow, tasted like HEAVEN! Decided to call it a day and did our warm down stretch. Think we sat there chitchatting for an hour (felt like rooted to the ground) before taking the bus to Suntec City for lunch -- I had a veggie ban mian and tktan had salmon noodle. Then we round off the meal with fruit sago (nothing compared to KL's) and cut fruit (rock melon, green apple, watermelon n papaya). On our way back, we stopped by Nike store and I tried out their foot analysis. First time running barefooted on a treadmill -- was showned a video clip of my foot landing. My foot was mild flat foot and supinate. Maybe due to my sprained right ankle, my right leg was heel strike while my left leg was midfoot strike -- boy, need to re-train my right leg to midfoot strike! Thanks to tktan for going thru this tough run with me -- sorry for being mentally weak and didn't push on to complete my intended 30-34km run.


Route : Start from outdoor theatre @ Esplanade -> Marina Promonade -> Kallang Water Sports Club -> Kallang Riverside Park -> Cross Sir Arthur Bridge -> Stadium Rd -> Indoor Stadium -> Cross bridge to Tanjong Rhu -> Fort Rd -> East Coast Park -> Lagoon Food Centre (14km) -> Carpark F2 (15km) -> National Sailing Centre (17km) -> U-turn and end @ Fort Rd

Distance : 26km
Time : 2hr 23min
Avg pace : 5:30min/km (first 8km @ 5:15min/km pace!)

PG-SK Run on 13 Oct`06 (Fri)

Skipped RL Run on Thursday to give my legs a rest -- my left knee felt more painful than usual when I climbed up the stairs (arghh, had developed “stairs phobia” since I had inflammation under my left knee cap earlier this year). As I was unable to run on Friday nite & Saturday morning(Animiles Run) due to prior appointments, I joined gentle for an impromptu run on Friday morning. He intended to do 12km and we agreed to start the run @ 5.30am to make it in time for work. Received his wake-up sms @ 5.10am and met him @ the bus-stop opposite my block @ 5.30am. Air was fresh in the early morning and we started the run towards Punggol via Punggol East Flyover. We ran thru Punggol Fields (passing gentle’s place) and connected back to Sengkang via Punggol West Flyover. Then we ran along the LRT line to Jalan Kayu and made a loop back to my block – wow, we completed 12.3km in 1hr 6min @ 5.22min/km pace! I was worried my pace was too slow for gentle and turned out to be another “chiong” run! Well, it was a good tempo run and managed to arrive @ office before 9am – much to my colleagues’ surprise :)

Went for carboloading to “replenish” the food/energy burnt during the morning run : ) Had a 7-course lunch @ Grand Shanghai at Grand Copthorne Hotel – consisted of appetizer cold dish (chicken wing, green peas & fish strips), prawn, pork, fried dumpling, popiah, xiao long bao and dessert (whit fungus with red dates). Following by dinner @ a chinese restaurant at Neil Rd which specialized in zha jiang mian, hot & sour soup and fried dumpling(see pic – more of a roll).




P.S. When I sms gentle to inform him of the distance and pace, his reply was “Whow – no wonder my legs still tired now”!

Route : Punggol Rd -> Rivervale Dr -> Sengkang East Way -> Sengkang East Dr -> Punggol East Flyover -> Punggol Field -> Punggol West Flyover -> Sengkang East Rd -> Anchorvale St -> Fernvale St -> Fernvale Rd -> Sengkang East Ave -> Anchorvale Rd -> Anchorvale St -> Compassvale St -> Punggol Rd

Distance : 12km
Time : 1hr 6min
Avg pace : 5:22min/km

NUS West Coast Run on 11 Oct`06 (Wed)

After Mt Faber Run on Tuesday, planned to skip the NUS hills and do a flat run @ West Coast Park. tktan and his ex-colleague, LM, joined me for the run -- after checking that the haze was @ PSI less than 100. LM was concerned abt the distance (his longest was 5.8km 2 weeks ago) -- assured him that it would be short. After warm up, we ran along Pasir Panjang Rd, cut thru the canal @ T-junction of Science Park Rd and reached West Coast Highway. Crossed the traffic light to West Coast Park -- from here, we ran the outer skirt of the pathway. Thought I could do a leisure run but turned out to be a "chuan" run! The 2 guys were closed at my heels, so I cannot slack :( Was adjusting the pace according to their foot steps behind -- hmm, no sign of slowing down, arghh... Midway, couldn't hear tktan's foot steps -- he slowed down due to tight thigh muscles. Next, couldn't hear LM's foot steps -- he slowed down after chionging for 4-5km. Almost on the verge to give up, he passed the car keys to tktan but we urged him on -- juz a little bit more to KRGH... Luckily there were 2 long break at traffic lights along Clementi Rd after we exited from the park -- the guys recovered and sprinted up the final slope to KRGH, leaving me smelling their dust! We completed the short run of 6.75km @ 37min -- huh, no wonder I was feeling out of breath! LM improved a lot since the previous NUS run 2 weeks ago -- well done! Thanks to tktan for the ice cold 100plus and Ribena!

The highlight of the run was the German Oktoberfest @ KRGH Stamford. We started dinner with German beer -- Erdinger Dark for tktan & LM and Erdinger Light for me. Cheers to a good run! tktan and I ordered the 3-course set meal -- German Sausage Salad, Cream of Cauliflower soup and Roast Duck with apple and bread stuffing for tktan and Grilled Tuna Fish with mustard dill sauce, apples, potatoes and red cabbage salad, Roasted Marinated Crispy Pork Knuckle with sauerkraut and potatoes and dessert from buffet spread for me. LM skipped the set meal and had sea bass. Haa haa, we could eat more after a short run!





P.S. Oops, I forgot to inform the guys abt dress code @ NUS Guild House -- collared shirt for guys. tktan was wearing a round-neck Mizuno T-shirt and nearly barred from the restaurant -- I requested for a shirt for him to put on (it happened to my friend @ Suntec NUS Guild House, too). And they gave him a colorful hawaiian shirt -- haa haa :)

Route : Start @ KRGH -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> West Coast Highway -> West Coast Park -> Clementi Rd -> End @ KRGH

Distance : 6.75km
Time : 37min
Avg pace : 5:30min/km

Mount Faber Run on 10 Oct`06 (Tue)

Monday was rest day from running and met up with my ski buddies for Korean food @ Chinatown -- authentic and good food (will go back to try more dishes). Feeling fresh and need to "use up" the carbo loaded the night before, I resumed my plan to run from KRGH to Mt Faber -- estimated distance of 15-20km. tktan, who juz recovered from flu n still nursing a cough, joined me for this new explorative route. Hmm, haze was back, juz after 2 days of absence. Not at a life threatening level, we proceed with the run -- with option to cut short the distance if haze got worse along the way.


From KRGH, we ran along Pasir Panjang and turned into Sci Park II -- met my ex-colleague and he looked shock to see me running (or he dun see me as a sports person). Passed by Bloogie, which used to be occupied by African Heartbeat, ran up the slopes to Gemini and up the stairs to South Bouna Vista Rd. Wah, this windy upslope was nothing compared to the killer slope @ Vigilante Dr :P Then we entered Sci Park I -- first time I ran reverse direction and enjoyed the gentle downslopes to Science Hub. tktan found the path that link to Portsdown Flyover and I tried it for the first time. After the flyover, we turned right to Queensway -- met Safra MF runners (only recognized bug) who were on their training run. Air was particularly bad along this stretch , with pollution from vehicles. Turned right to Alexandra Rd and then left to Depot Rd. Nice stretch along Depot Rd with light traffic and fresh air from the tree lined road -- saw a Depot Height Shopping Centre(didn't even know this exist) and an Indian temple. Turn right to Henderson Rd and then left to Telok Blangah Way -- passing Safra MF clubhouse. Mentioned to tktan that there is a nice Japanese Restaurant, Himawari, inside. We ran along the fringe of Mt Faber via Telok Blangah Rise. At Lower Delta Rd, we saw the Mt Faber sign, marking the entrance and start of the slopes. Took a deep breath and started running up the long windy slopes -- signaled to tktan to go ahead (he made running upslope so easy and effortless!!). Slow and steady, I made baby steps up the slopes, with tktan stopping for me to catch up. At Jewel Box, he asked me whether I needed a break but I declined -- juz wanna get over the hills in one go (oops, later realized he actually brought his digital camera to take some night scene -- sorry, next run then!). Thanks goodness the upslopes were over and we welcomed the long downslope to Morse Rd.

We took a break at a petrol kiosk along Telok Blangah Rd -- tktan's left shoulder was getting stiff and needed a stretch. Both of us felt good to go on to Labrador Park -- from Telok Blangah Rd, we turned left to Labrador Villa Rd. Maybe due to the haze, the park was quite deserted except for a few couples and a group of Chinese guys. Not as breezy as our first run but no hint of smell of soot. Made a stop at the toilet as tktan need to cool down his CPU (aka head) -- he didn't carboload and ran out of fuel which in turn heat up his CPU. We bought a cold sports drink from the vending machine -- new flavour of soda and carbonated. We completed the final upslope to Olive Restaurant -- burping gas along the way up :) After exiting from Labrador Park, we ran along Pasir Panjang Rd -- dislike this road due to the hurdle jumps up/down the pavements. Instead of ending @ KRGH, we cut short the distance and end @ Pasir Panjang Food Centre. Did a cool down stretch before having dinner at the food centre. tktan resisted the temptation to have the char kway teow and ordered prawn noodle soup. I had mee rebus -- more interested in the dessert later. We finished off the meal with hot cheng tng and ice nata avacado(first time trying this dessert -- nice, i like!). Then we took a bus back to KRGH and headed home after a quick shower -- had to rush thru shower as the locker service closed at 10pm -- the staff had to wait for me to return the locker key and towel). Many thanks to tktan for the mobile water station and carrying barang like camera, ezlink cards, knee guard, $ etc.


Route : Start @ KRGH -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> Sci Park II -> South Bouna Vista Rd -> Sci Park I -> Portsdown Flyover -> Queensway -> Alexandra Rd -> Depot Rd -> Henderson Rd -> Telok Blangah Way -> Telok Blangah Rise -> Lower Delta Rd -> Mt Faber -> Telok Blangah Rd -> Labrador Park -> Pasir Panjang Rd -> End @ Pasir Panjang Food Centre

Distance : 18.75km
Time : 1hr 52min (including traffic light stops)
Avg pace : 5:58min/km

BG Run on 8 Oct`06 (Sun)

My right knee had this “clicking” feel after Animiles Run on Sat. Had to put on knee guard for my Mid-Autumn nite hike @ MacRitchie – thank goodness it was an easy walk to Jelutong Tower and we had a feast @ the top of the tower while watching the partially-conceal-by-haze moon. Reached home ard midnite and got ready my stuff for next morning run – packed my knee guard in my camelback, juz in case I need it during the run. Slept at 1am and woke up at 5.30am – need to catch the first train @ 6am to Dhoby Ghuat MRT and run 4km to BG. Had a mini snickers while waiting for the train. Weather was great when I exited from Dhoby Ghaut MRT station – clear with no hint of haze! Cool run along the quiet Orchard Rd – minus a few late-nite ravellers on their way home. Another fight @ Orchard Tower – groups of policemen and drunkards hanging outside the building. Felt the weight of my daypack as I ran up Nassim Rd – finally made it to SMU basketball court. Time check was 22min – wah, surprised that I could maintain 5.30min/km pace with additional load!

Tiwazz and tktan were doing their stretch at the basketball court while littletigger, charlotte n ronnie were running round the track. Soon more runners arrived – renoh, teelee, JT, kickjazz, divey & roetogen. We put our barangs in TLV before the run started at 7.15am. JT, kickjazz, divey & roetogen would be doing their run-walk routine while the rest followed renoh. We ran along Bukit Timah Rd – erh, surprised that we didn’t turn into 4th Ave (later found out that the route was modified due to the uncertain haze condition). Oh, taz, who came late and not aware of the change of route, lead charlotte to the slopes of 4th Ave! As we turned left to Clementi Rd, the upslopes began – one after another till Ulu Pandan Canal. My right knee was feeling sore and I put on my knee guard before the 2.2km to Bouna Vista MRT – littletigger shared with us that he used to put on knee guards on the run but no need to do that after he switch to wear CWX knee-length tight. Renoh stayed to wait for more runners while littletigger, ronnie, tktan and me continued – hmm, the knee guard was restricting my knee swing and slowed down my pace. We had a toilet and water break @ Bouna Vista MRT – thanks to tktan who brought coins, the iced cold 100plus tasted GREAT! Renoh rejoined us after waiting in vain for more runners. At the junction of Commonwealth Ave and North Bouna Vista Rd, we spotted taz, charlotte and tiwazz. We passed by Holland Village and continued along Holland Rd – very messy area with all the construction work going on. Was so tempted to stop running and take the bus to BG... Finally, BG was in sight and we turned left to Cluny Rd – oh mine, more slopes… Arghhh, saw the prata Shop and widen the stride – yeah, completed the run in 1 piece! Thanks to tktan for pacing and encouraging me – especially the last stretch @ Cluny Rd with words like “gentle slope”, “downhill all the way”!

Tekko came with hot buns for breakfast and the osteopaths, Jo and William, arrived to give the runners a personal running gait analysis. William started the analysis with me describing my problem areas – mainly hip and knee. Same as Paul’s analysis, my pelvis was slightly rotated which resulted in my hip pain. He did a quick massage on my right knee to ease the strained ligament – the clicking feel was gone! Than I was asked to show him my slow walk, fast walk and running posture. He observed that I landed on my mid-forefoot, supinate more on my right foot and my arm swing was restricted (didn’t do a full swing). This could be the cause of my knee & hip pain – oh, my stiff right last toe, too. Then I took off my shoes and socks for him to check my leg length. It appeared that my left leg was slightly shorter – or due to tight muscles. He advised to pay them a visit to do a thorough analysis. While waiting for all the runners to complete their individual analysis, we chitchatted and munched on buns and konnyuku jello (made these with my niece on Sat -- new flavour of fresh orange juice with aloe vera and lime-flavoured Gatorade). Jo gave a quick summary of the common problems among us. He would arrange another session 4-6 weeks later to see whether there is any improvement. Thanks to tekko for organizing this good session, and the buns, too!


After shower, we went to Adam Rd’s food centre for lunch. Had the big prawn noodles – didn’t suit my taste :( Many thanks to teelee for the ride home! Managed to take a power nap – I should consume powergel sparingly!

P.S. Maybe due to lack of sleep, ran out of fuel or Sat’s Animiles run & nite hike, was not in good condition to run… Next time, better take a good rest before a long run.

Route : Start @ Dhoby Ghuat MRT -> Orchard Rd -> Nassim Rd -> Evans Rd -> Bukit Timah Rd -> Clementi Rd -> Ulu Pandan Canal -> Commonwealth West Ave -> Holland Ave -> Holland Rd -> Cluny Rd -> End @ SMU basketball court

Distance : 19.6km
Time : 22min (first 4.1km) / ard 1hr30min (next 15.5km)
Avg pace : 5.30min/km (first 4.1km) / 5.48min/km pace (next 15.5km)

Animiles Run on 7 Oct`06 (Sat)

Was planning to test run with my new Inspire2 on Friday but the haze was particularly bad – had to change plan and joined the Animiles Run on Sat morning. Received gentle’s wake-up sms promptly at 4.20am and got up to get ready for the run – glad to find the haze cleared overnite. Substituted powergel with 2 mini snickers – so that I could sleep after the run (hardly take caffine coz I dun drink coffee/tea – the caffine in the powergel kept me awake after my runs). Hopped into gentle’s car at 4.47am and we went on to pick up chuacath, fennel and George @ Hougang – made a couple of U-turn due to unfamilar grounds. Arrived at LPR ard 5.20am – left 3 Animiles runners(Vivian, Anna and another guy) @ the start point as the rest had started @ 4.45am for 27km. Gentle & chuacath were going for 25km, fennel and George for 24km and I joined Vivian’s group for 18km (maiden run for my new Inspire2 and need to conserve some energy for BG run on Sun). After a quick stretch, we started the run – the Animiles runners ran ahead as I warmed up to find my comfortable pace – keeping them in sight. George overtook me before the end of Old Upper Thomson Rd and fennel was following closely behind me. George & fennel went on straight to Sembawang Rd while I made a left turn to Mandai Rd towards Track 7 & Seletar Reservoir -- wah, more upslopes!

Air was good as I ran along the Seletar Reservoir, passing the tower – only Anna was in sight abt 100m ahead. Joined back to Mandai Rd and head towards the T-junction of Mandai Rd and Mandai Ave – passing the Mandai crementorium. Crossed path with Vivian mid-way and Anna at the traffic light. As I made my U-turn, spotted some 27km runners(including imd) crossing the traffic light to Mandai Ave. Met gentle & chuacath on my way back – they were doing good. At the Seletar Reservoir, I was looking out for Anna but lost sight of her – gosh, I must have slowed down a lot or she had increased her pace! Ran passed the tower and u-turn at the round about – able to up my pace slightly with the help of downslopes. Mentally prepared myself for the last 4km along windy Old Upper Thomson Rd – took a deep breath and ran up steadily. Saw 2 Animiles guys stopping for a drink – they had put 100plus behind the metal barrier. The monkeys were awake and making lots of noises in the trees. Troops of cyclists zoomed passed. As usual, welcomed the sight of Cassurina and sped down the last 1km to LPR. Finished the run at 1hr46min – thought I was doing a tad slow. Later heard from Vivian that I did more than 18km -- the 18km route was to turn off from the Seletar Tower but I ran an extra 1.2km to U-turn @ the round about!

Imd and realrunner were cooling down and SC5 came back shortly, followed by cheow, fennel, George, gentle and chuacath. We finished off the run was a good breakfast at Sembawang Hill food centre – had chwee kueh with generous serving of not-so-oily chai por. Thanks to SC5 for organizing the run and gentle for the ride to/fro LPR.

P.S. Verdict of the dumbbell waterbottle : Tried it out for this run – boy, the bottle leaked from the top! Quite yucky to hold the sticky bottle coz I filled it with H2O! Had to hold it upright and minimal swinging – very restrictive to the arm swing and I had to change hand often. The capacity of the bottle is abt 400ml. After my run, 2 Animiles gals came up to ask me where I got the bottle – told them @ Mandarin Gallery but dun recommend them to buy due to the bad experience. Well, at least the bottles made good gift for my nieces as they were fascinated by the shape.

P.S.S. Verdict of mini snickers vs powergel : I did get hungry on the return leg – maybe need to eat more before the run :P Good news was I was able to take a nap in the afternoon!

Route : LPR carpark -> Old Upper Thomson Rd -> Upper Thomson Rd -> Mandai Rd -> Track 7 -> Mandai Rd -> U-turn at traffic light after Mandai Cremetorium

Distance : 19.2km
Time : 1hr46min
Avg pace : 5:31min/km

RL run on 5 Oct`06 (Thu)

After the visit to my osteopath and swimming @ NUS SRC on Wednesday, my ankle and knees felt better. So went down to Running Lab for their weekly run after my seminar @ Bugis yesterday. First run of the week... Met many familiar faces and they asked where have I MIA to -- missed the runs for a few weeks due to dinner appointments and work. Eddie and imd were not around and mightyjoe was leading the run(he even wore a blinker @ his back for the new comers to spot him) -- this week was the Fort Canning route. The CDB was blurry with a thick layer of haze -- hmm, air quality was bad. After warm up, we started the run towards Fort Canning, via River Valley Rd and Clemenceau Ave. Fennel's frien, George was leading the front pack -- hmm, how to lead when the speed monster was running at less than 5min/km pace??!! I was chasing after them initially and soon lost sight of them @ Fort Canning Park. Wah, this time I could run faster up the slopes -- thanks to my newly discovered upslope running style(landing on forefoot instead of heel). Oops, made a wrong turn into the park and backtracked -- saw cokiee and fennel leading some other runners and followed them into the park. As we exited from the park, think cokiee stayed back to wait for new runners and I lead the way from here. Boy, kinda of stressed with this group of guys breathing heavily down my neck. After crossing the overhead bridge to River Valley Rd, we ran passed Clark Quay & Liang Court and turned left to run along Singapore River. My stitch came on at this point and I informed the guys to U-turn at Kim Seng Rd and slowed down. Tried to control my breathing but the stitch persisted -- in fact, had stitches on both sides!! Well, juz kept running and happy to finish the run @ 44:58min -- surprisingly, another PB as my last Fort canning run in early Aug took 48min :) Eddie was back from his other run and conduct the warm down exercises.

On our way to Peninsula Plaza for dinner with Eddie, Ekfram, don and other runners, George, fennel and me detoured to Feder Sports to check whether they have my size for Mizuno Wave Inspire2 -- lady luck shinning again, they have my size!! Happily bought a pair at S$150 -- thanks to George and fennel for bringing me to this store! Oh, fennel couldn't resist and bought a pair of "rocket" shoes, too! We then joined the rest for dinner at the basement food court -- 3 of us shared curry fish head with bryani/white rice. In the mist of talking abt nite diving, we were shoo out as the food court was closing -- to be continued @ next RL run...

P.S. Had ordered a pair of Wave Inspire2 from USA but shipment was delayed -- will probably get it in third week of Oct. Oh well, I now have a new pair to train on :)

Route : Start @ Hill Street -> River Valley Rd -> Clemenceau Ave -> Fort Canning Rd -> Fort Canning Park -> Cross overhead bridge to River Valley Rd -> Run along Singapore River -> U-turn @ Kim Seng Rd -> End @ open space opp Hill Street

Distance : 8.2km
Time : 44:58min
Avg Pace : 5:29min/km

Lunch Date with Osteopath on 4 Oct `06 (Wed)

During last sat Animiles Run, I mis-stepped into a pot hole and nearly sprained my ankle -- rebounced quick enough and felt no pain. Thought I was lucky and continue running. Started to feel pain on the outside of my ankle on Sunday and got worse on Monday. Tried icing and deep heat rub(thanks to tktan's advice) -- the pain eased slightly. At the same time, both my knees felt stiff (usually only my left knee has problem, but this time, BOTH knees!!). Well, guess I better consult my osteopath, Paul Bell @ Osteopathy-podiatry.com, before more damage is done. My previous sprained left ankle was left untreated which resulted in inflammation at my left knee and triggered off pain in my right hip! When I first saw Paul in Jan`06, I was advised to stop running completely till the knee condition improved :( Have this fear that he would asked me to stop running again...

Usually Paul's appointments are fully booked, lucky star shining on me -- managed to get a 30min slot during lunch today -- took time off from work for an extended lunch till 2pm. Last saw him in Jun`06 for hip pain -- this time, more pain areas - ankle, knee and hip :( He started by checking my hip -- oh oh, my hip was mis-aligned (pelvis rotated) again. He was concerned abt the recurrance of my hip pain -- maybe due to my running style(usually both hips will feel pain, but mine juz right side) or I need orthodics for my shoes. KIV for the time being till the next visit. Then he moved on to check my knees -- OUCH when he exerted pressure below my right knee cap. Mild case of patella -- gotta do lots of stretching. Next, he massaged my right ankle to ease the ligament strain -- 5k pain. Next was the right thigh to hip -- from 21k pain(using finger) to 42k PAIN(using elbow) ! All this while, we were chatting abt past & upcoming races and training -- to distract me from the pain (he is a tri-athlete and actively taking part in local and overseas biathlons, triathlons, marathons etc.). He had to remind me to BREATHE numerous time -- coz I tend to hold my breath while in pain! Boy, I was elated when the PAIN therapy was over! Felt great though -- no more ankle and hip pain :) And good news was he didn't ask me to stop running!! We wish each other good luck for upcoming races -- he is doing a Himalaya marathon @ high altitude!!

FYI, below are some links on ankle and knee injuries :-
Anklesprain
Patella
More on Patella

Particularly, I find these exercises very effective -- do give it a try!
Knee_Pain_Exercises


On my way back to office, I stopped by Mandarin Gallery to get the dumbbell waterbottles from Xercise -- bought 2 (with the 2nd one @ 50% discount) for S$17.85 (each abt S$9). Will try it out on my next long run...

SK-JK Run on 1 Oct`06 (Sun)

The leather strap of my red BabyG square watch always feel wet & yucky after my runs -- it is a dress watch with stopwatch function only. Time to get a "runner's" watch with lap timing :) Hmm, can never resist anything red -- saw this Nike Triax Speed 50 Regular Watch (Red Mahogany/Flame Red) and bought it immediately! It's a beauty, ain't it!

A timepiece designed specifically for runners in training and competition - so you can gain the confidence and conditioning that matters most after the gun goes off.
• 50-lap chronograph tracks your lap times while training or racing.
• Five-segment interval timer guides walk/run programs and interval training
• Target Time to track your progress while racing
• Key information is just a touch away with the View button, and the convertible display shows lap and total time simultaneously
• A Data Mode recalls timing/lap memory:
- Best lap
- Average lap
- Target Time differentials for each saved run.
• Two time zones and alarms
• Date display
• Scratch-resistant mineral glass crystal
• One-touch backlighting
• Water resistance to 100 meters.

Superst*r juz came back from HK and in need of a run to prepare for GE 5km run 3 weeks later. So I volunteered to run from my place @ Sengkang to her place @ Jalan Kayu(4km) and then run together to Compass Point(3.6km). Tried out my new Nike watch for this short run. Got out of the house at 7.40pm and ran along the LRT line -- light traffic(not many pp know this short cut) with lotsa stationary trucks occupied one of the desserted 2-lane road (pls be careful if running alone here). Saw some men fishing on the bridge over Sungei Punggol and foreign workers "camping" at the LRT stations along the way. Superst*r was already waiting for me at the bus stop on Fernvale Lane -- all ready to run with her cap & ipod. Time check @ 4km was 21:39min (5:30min/km pace).

We proceed to run the same route back to Sengkang. Sometimes, I ran alongside Superst*r to check her pace. Other times, would run infront but listened to her foot steps and breathing and adjust the pace accordingly. Her breathing was a tad fast -- so I reframed from chitchatting. When we sighted Compass Point, we increased pace and finished the 3.6km run in 25:30min (7min/km pace). Well done, this is the longest distance Superst*r had run so far and without stopping! We did some stretching to cool off and walked to a nearby open-air food court for drinks -- iced Milo tasted heavenly!

P.S. Verdict of Nike Triax Speed 50 Regular Watch -- felt a tad heavy but I like the large display(easy to read). Juz discovered it has a "pace" function -- set target timing for each segment of your run and check against it during the run.

Route : Sengkang -> Compassvale St -> Anchorvale St -> Fernvale St -> Fernvale Rd -> Sengkang West Ave -> Fernvale Lane (U-turn) -> Sengkang West Ave -> Fernvale Rd -> Fernvale St -> Anchorvale St -> Anchorvale Rd -> Sengkang East Way -> Compass Point

Distance : 7.6km
Time : 47:09min
Avg pace : 5:30min/km for first 4km, 7min/km for next 3.6km

Animiles Run on 30 Sep`06 (Sat)

It had been ages since I last ran @ Animiles Run. Missed running in the early morning and decided to "support" SC5 (he promised bird’s nest/sharkfins to lurk more runners) – no biz lately due to the many organized LSD on Sundays. The menu for this week run was 1) 4.45am for 30km and 2) 5.15am for 22km. Gentle, who juz completed his ICT, planned to run 18km. He was so kind to offer me a lift and we would start the run together with SC5 at 5.15am. My alarm rang @ 4am and I waited for gentle’s wake-up sms @ 4.20am and meet at the bus-stop @ 4.45am. Beep beep, the sms read “just step out of my house” 4.41am!!! Jumped out my bed and sms-ed gentle to give me 5min more. Luckily, I had filled up my camelback the night before. Dashed out of the house – gentle, fennel & her fren were waiting @ the bus-stop already. Paiseh to make u guys wait!

We arrived @ LPR ard 5.10am. Fennel & I planned to do 24km and we started first as SC5 was still waiting for more runners. Air was nice & cool along windy Old Upper Thomson Rd. Fennel said she would be taking it slow (hmm, her slow is not slow hor) and asked me to go ahead. SC5 “sliently” overtook me and soon I was running alone. Time check @ 4km was 22min – nice 5:30min/km pace. Traffic was light and I was running mostly on road – the pavement was too dark and I would run slower. Nearly twisted my right ankle when I stepped into a pot hole – phew! After crossing the traffic light @ junction of Mandai Ave and Mandai Rd, I had to switch to running on pavement as there were more heavy vehicles along Mandai Rd. Nearing the zoo signboard, saw SC5(22km) on the way back, followed by Terence(27km), Bug & Cheow(30km). Time check @ 12km (at zoo signboard @ Mandai Lake Rd, u-turn for 24km) was 1hr 6min – still 5:30min/km pace. Planning to do a 2.5hr run -- hmm, still have time. Felt good enough to go on and decided to become a “cheetah” – yeah, I finally touched the gate of the zoo! Time check @ zoo gate (13.5km) was 1hr14min – 5:29min/km pace. By then, the sky brightened and it was great running pass the UPR. Oh, encountered a gross sight – saw a dog’s head from road kill on the pavement! Wah, that made me ran faster! Time check @ 23km(before the slopes @ Old Upper Thomson Rd) was 2hr 5min – 5:26min/km pace! Saw gentle and chuacat(first time @ Animiles Run) at this point – overtook them as I concentrated on landing on my forefoot up the slopes. Surpised to see Tekko drove passed -- oh, he was the support vehicle for his MHA and VRP gals. As usual, the windy road seemed never ending and I slowed down… Finally reached Cassurina and dashed for the final 1km -- finished @ 2hr31min. Terence, bug, cheow and fennel were already cool down from their run...

After stretching and clean up, we had breakfast @ the nearby food centre – chit chatting abt running stuff (what else?). Thanks to SC5 for organizing this run and gentle for the ride to/fro LPR!

P.S. Good to see that fennel has recovered from her injury and will soon be leaving her "burnt" marks on the trails! It was a great run in the early morning and glad to maintain an almost constant pace of 5.30min/km for the entire distance!

Route : LPR carpark -> Old Upper Thomson Rd -> Upper Thomson Rd -> Sembawang Rd -> Mandai Ave -> Mandai Rd -> Mandai Lake Rd (u-turn pt for 24km) -> zoo gate (u-turn pt for 27km)

Distance : 27km
Time : 2hr31min (my PB!)
Avg pace : 5:36min/km