KLIM2008 experience

I woke up at 4 am , ate my power bar and went straight of to Edrin's place. Called him when i arrived at his apartment and he certainly missed the alarm! Luckily i was early , so i was able to wait for him to get ready without being tight up. We parked the car near the Tang Ling famous nasi lemak stall area ; quite a distance away to walk to Dataran but it has been our tradition to park there !

I was alone to do the 21k. I had to do itl this year as I am not getting any younger. One is considered to be Men Junior Veteran after 35 ! I trained hard therefore I was confident that I would be able to finish the race . There was no time limit set because all I wanted is to just complete the run and not end up as a DNF. 3 hours and 30 minutes seemed quite impossible after my recce the night before.
The crowd was exhilarating ! It was really happening to see lots of runners preying around , getting ready at 5.30 in the morning. I was a bit embarrassed by my physique when seeing other participants. Everybody looked professional and experienced and there I was , a 21k wannabe lining up to start the race of his life.

Adrenaline was pumping hard and when the clock strike 6 , I was on the go. I focussed and concentrated on my own pace ; refusing to bother the crowd around me. I was jogging slowly , maintaining my speed and just proceed!It was also the azan when we started and I managed to stop by the roadside and fulfill my prayers. Of course, it was still early in the race when my tummy felt uneasy ! I can't remember which hotel it was , ( along Jalan Syed Putra ) but it was nice of the captain to allow me using his toilet !! HAHAHAHA
I was still running constantly on reaching the 5km mark , did not feel tired nor having any pain. Hmm..that is good i thought. arrived at Mid Valley just before 7am and the route took its turn towards the Seremban - KL highway. The route wa a bit up-sloping , so i decided not to force myself so much ; hey my objective ws just to finish the race ! It was indeed a long stretch to checkpoint 10km as we had to pass the Sungai Besi Airforce base ; threading beside the Smart Tunnel .
I was alright until 10k because i ran very slowly. I had few uncles running with me in my "group" , they were my pacers !! haahaha Was looking forward to tag along the sexy gym trainers but obviously my meeting point with them was only at the starting point !!!
I continued my pace , walk and run intermittently with my mind focusing to not feel any pain if there was any. I was ok till the 16K mark when i felt a bit crampy.. hmmm.. I was not panting ; but the lactic acid was certainly accumulating.
When i arrived at the 20k mark , Azad gave me a call asking my whereabouts. To my surprise , I was on course to run within the qualifying time !! Ohh.. a sudden surge of energy came ( along with my Powerbar Gel la.. ) and i was so motivated to run hard till the finish line. Of course, it was at this juncture that i was beginning to feel the strain and my feet suddenly felt blistered.
Ahhh.. mind games i thought ! The body is trying to influence my mind at this point ! I told myself, i can do it because its up to one's willpower now !

As soon as Dataran was in sight, i sped up ! Damn... it felt really good. All the things that bothered me in the last 1km disappeared and I was so motivated to finish it in style ! It felt so good.. o good ! Alhamdulillah ! Such happiness to see myself crossing the finish line within the 3 hours and 30 minutes and I was not tired !! Waaaahhh... best !!!! Getting the finisher's medal was such satisfaction and I was like a small kid ; wearing it around my neck until it was time to go home !!


the group

Azman the blogger !!
Alhamdulillah it went smoothly and I did not have my usual cramps on runs such as this ! I was OK after the 21k torture . The Celebrex may have had a factor in ensuring I was able to endure any expected pain !! Waah... i made it , nothing is impossible and my marathon attempt might be sooner than i thought !

Official time : 3 hours 13.01
Chip time : 3 hours 11.39

( not that fast though for some , but to me.. AN ACHIEVEMENT !!! )