In case you are thinking that I sailed through the race, you are mistaken. Far from it. For months, the spectre of doing the toughest race in SIngapore dogged myself and EW. we had taken a blind leap of faith; actually it was through my constant egging that we signed up for the 100 km duo and over the months we asked ourselves whether trail running would be "any sweat?". The SAF correct answer when your superior asked you was to spew out the spinal answer " No Sweat Chicken Feed Haha all the way". A kind of SAF trainee vernacular. That became my mantra, a sort of false bravado.
The training began in earnest sometime in July but it was never followed according to plan, not least because trail running required daylight and a decent 2 hours or more to cover the distance which realistically meant the weekends, something which was taken up by cycling.
Well the mileage was not really enough and the most I had covered was a 40 km distance( over the week 0 one month before the race and the longest run was 25 km in early september.
My race strategy was to run at 8 minutes/ km and try to reach Lorong Asmara( 22 km) and then push and to 32 km and if I was really down and out i would bail out of the race at 32 km which would be the most I have ran at least on the trail.
We started at 7 am and i found that highly agreeable because when we did the 25 km, it was blazing by the time we started and in 3 minutes your heart rate would hit 160; we ran through the same route as last year, took it easy and the 4 of us ran together. at the 2-3 km mark EW had gone ahead and with the large throng of runners, I thought it best to keep aerobic and a HR of less than 140 and kept it comfortable. We chatted about chek's new dogma and was doing a decent pace of 7:30/km.
We got out to RRR soon enough and the weather was still agreeable. We got to the satellite station and stopped to refill and me to clear my bladder. we resumed at that point and i realised when we got into the kampong trail i had lost cheks and mh. we turned towards Hindhede road and entered the MBT. i had not ventured there before. MH caught up with me and i learnt that cheks had taken a tumble and slowed down. we ran together through the Mandai PCN and caught up with EW at Mandai road and then stopped to refill at Lor Asmara at 21 km. One of the volunteers told us it was 2 km up and EW and MH contemplated re-filling only when we are out. I was out of water for the last 5 km and thought it prudent to put in about 400 ml of water and downed some more isotonics before we went on. As it turned out this was where the race began. This was where the mind games started. There was little cover( i knew that); it was pretty hilly( i knew that too) and it was 13 km!!( i didn't know that). At one point we were on all fours climbing a steep slope. the promise was the checkpoint at 32 km which took forever to reach. I was over-heating, my last drop of water in the hydration bag long gone. My toes were beginning to hurt and I felt out of breath when i climb yet another knoll.
i caught up with MH at the lorong asmara CP, got some deep heat on the legs, drank some more and doused my over heated body with ice cold water. I told MH to go ahead as i wanted to wait for my buddy. By 15 minutes, he had still not appeared and i was getting stiff so i pushed on.
The sufferfest was truly on and once you clear 32 km and left the CP at 1045, you were always in with a decent chance. I walked and ran with a fellow dude called ray and we chatted a bit till Zhenghua park. I had a second wind and started running slowly. a trot that took me all the way back to finish at 7:10. It felt great to finish the 50 km and i was pleased that i could do it with the amount of training. It was definitely a tough race. Psychologically you always had to dig deep. Being mentally prepared was half the battle worn.
will i be back for another race? i am not sure. my memory for pain is short...
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Kota Tinggi to Rompin 4th-5th September:
I have always been encouraged by an article shared with me by PK on my birthday by Kristin Armstrong entitled " The Wall". Here it is:
Marathoners know the proverbial wall.
The wall is typically located someplace between miles 20 and 23, but it can sprout up anywhere. It can even begin as a simple, unassuming speed bump, but can grow up faster than kudzu in Atlanta. Suddenly you find something massive, directly in front of you, blocking the path between right here and the finish line.
The wall is constructed of many bricks; things like fear, pain, loneliness, hopelessness, burdens, doubt, guilt, exhaustion – physical, exhaustion-mental, exhaustion-emotional, exhaustion-spiritual. It is a black hole in our psyche, a gap in our fence, a riptide in our reservoir with the potential to carry us away. The wall becomes nearly physically tangible to a runner, but the same wall exists in other areas whether we choose to recognize it or not.
Maybe part of why I run is to get a good, hard look at that sucker. There is a part of me that likes to know, every once in a while, what I am up against on the inside. If we get up close enough, we might spot some loose bricks, wedge our fingers in and yank them out, revealing a rectangular shaft of light from the other side. Other times, we get up close enough and spot some handholds, footholds, a way up and over. How much time and mileage do we waste each time we try to go around our wall, instead of facing it head on?
There is even an expression which has become somewhat cliched, "hit the wall." People use this all the time in a non-running context, signifying reaching the end of the rope, an empty tank, a point of frustration, no return, giving up, turning back.
What does it mean to you to hit the wall? What kind of bricks are you stacking?
When you reach your limit, your wall, the end of yourself – what happens next for you? What do you find there? Release? Relief? Grace? Do you have a breakdown or do you break it down? Do you make a plan or an excuse? What gives – the terrain, or you?
I wonder if it's possible to imagine drawing a new starting line just when we think we can't muster another step. Some experienced runners say the race doesn't even begin until mile 20…until the wall. That's when you really find out what you are up against, and in that same sweet moment, what you are really made of.The truth is I fully expected to feel the 320 km. I had trained but in fits and starts and was not altogether
I fully expected to meet this entity on this ride. It would be my longest ride, plus it will be back to back. My preparations would not be what i would call adequate or for that matter something I would be happy about. Having fallen off the bike, i took a whole week off and then rode a bit before presenting my for the ride. Beneath my brave front was one of uncertainties.
It was eventful to say the least. I rode the first 15 km with my brakes against my back wheel. I was labouring and was uneasy and then frankly alarmed to see everybody passing me. By 10 km, my heart rate was 166 bpm and I was ready to give up. I was half thinking I may have been significantly deconditioned by the 2 weeks of recuperation. I finally stopped and discovered the problem, but not before wasting dollops of energy.
I managed to rendevous with my mates and for the rest of the way rode toegther for as much as possible. GL and CH rode fast and furious and we weer split before long. JN and SE was behind; GL and CH was ahead so JT and i took terms to pull each other. We RVed for lunch and then rode together after Mersing into the Forest which was a fabulous area with rolling hills. I had a puncture there and was relieved we could get the tire fixed before being on our way. CH then had a flat so we pit stopped again. By 130 km, my bottom was positively sore and I was only too glad to see the hotel.
After a night's rest, we re-assembled again and I could feel my heavy legs and was dreading the ride. Many a times I was tempted to not go on the road but hop instead into the bus. It did not help that at 6oo m out of the hotel, I had unbelieavbly another flat. By the time I was done, We were left waya behind and had to pretty much play catch up. I was suffering badly. My back was really hurting and by 20 km i had slowed to a crawl. It was 140 km to go and I saw that wall pretty early. It was everything as Kristin had said. When you are in that position, exhausted and hurting, you think of giving up. Your mind tells you all sorts of neagtive things." you are where u are becasue your training is inadequate; you should stop and what on earth are you tring to prove anyways). Many a point, I had to grit my teeth and looked like I was ansarling because I was cycling through the pain. If the forests were bad, the part from Mersing to Kota Tinggi was even worse. The hills that we did not seem to notice was towering and positively harder on the legs and the lungs now. I struggled with SE . A little later, JN remarked that at that point, I was back in the early days when I joined them: positively slow!
After enduring hours of back pain, I glaned at the speedo and was pleased we were only 30 km from the end. I stopped one last time; to wait for SE and then refueled before riding in together.
In this, I dug deep; really deep and I thought given the circumstances, I did decent. I was pleased not with my time or that I was behind and struggled whilst my friends were in front. I was pleased, I had the good sense to help other cyclists after I had fought my emotions and physical pain and a sense of personal triumph that I finished not because I was physically capable, but I was temperamentally and psychologically quite unwilling to give up; severe backpain not withstanding. I was bouyed by camaderie and esprit de corps of mates waiting up front for me whilst I was slow and kind of encouragement from fellow cycliss when my tank was long empty.
Marathoners know the proverbial wall.
The wall is typically located someplace between miles 20 and 23, but it can sprout up anywhere. It can even begin as a simple, unassuming speed bump, but can grow up faster than kudzu in Atlanta. Suddenly you find something massive, directly in front of you, blocking the path between right here and the finish line.
The wall is constructed of many bricks; things like fear, pain, loneliness, hopelessness, burdens, doubt, guilt, exhaustion – physical, exhaustion-mental, exhaustion-emotional, exhaustion-spiritual. It is a black hole in our psyche, a gap in our fence, a riptide in our reservoir with the potential to carry us away. The wall becomes nearly physically tangible to a runner, but the same wall exists in other areas whether we choose to recognize it or not.
Maybe part of why I run is to get a good, hard look at that sucker. There is a part of me that likes to know, every once in a while, what I am up against on the inside. If we get up close enough, we might spot some loose bricks, wedge our fingers in and yank them out, revealing a rectangular shaft of light from the other side. Other times, we get up close enough and spot some handholds, footholds, a way up and over. How much time and mileage do we waste each time we try to go around our wall, instead of facing it head on?
There is even an expression which has become somewhat cliched, "hit the wall." People use this all the time in a non-running context, signifying reaching the end of the rope, an empty tank, a point of frustration, no return, giving up, turning back.
What does it mean to you to hit the wall? What kind of bricks are you stacking?
When you reach your limit, your wall, the end of yourself – what happens next for you? What do you find there? Release? Relief? Grace? Do you have a breakdown or do you break it down? Do you make a plan or an excuse? What gives – the terrain, or you?
I wonder if it's possible to imagine drawing a new starting line just when we think we can't muster another step. Some experienced runners say the race doesn't even begin until mile 20…until the wall. That's when you really find out what you are up against, and in that same sweet moment, what you are really made of.The truth is I fully expected to feel the 320 km. I had trained but in fits and starts and was not altogether
I fully expected to meet this entity on this ride. It would be my longest ride, plus it will be back to back. My preparations would not be what i would call adequate or for that matter something I would be happy about. Having fallen off the bike, i took a whole week off and then rode a bit before presenting my for the ride. Beneath my brave front was one of uncertainties.
It was eventful to say the least. I rode the first 15 km with my brakes against my back wheel. I was labouring and was uneasy and then frankly alarmed to see everybody passing me. By 10 km, my heart rate was 166 bpm and I was ready to give up. I was half thinking I may have been significantly deconditioned by the 2 weeks of recuperation. I finally stopped and discovered the problem, but not before wasting dollops of energy.
I managed to rendevous with my mates and for the rest of the way rode toegther for as much as possible. GL and CH rode fast and furious and we weer split before long. JN and SE was behind; GL and CH was ahead so JT and i took terms to pull each other. We RVed for lunch and then rode together after Mersing into the Forest which was a fabulous area with rolling hills. I had a puncture there and was relieved we could get the tire fixed before being on our way. CH then had a flat so we pit stopped again. By 130 km, my bottom was positively sore and I was only too glad to see the hotel.
After a night's rest, we re-assembled again and I could feel my heavy legs and was dreading the ride. Many a times I was tempted to not go on the road but hop instead into the bus. It did not help that at 6oo m out of the hotel, I had unbelieavbly another flat. By the time I was done, We were left waya behind and had to pretty much play catch up. I was suffering badly. My back was really hurting and by 20 km i had slowed to a crawl. It was 140 km to go and I saw that wall pretty early. It was everything as Kristin had said. When you are in that position, exhausted and hurting, you think of giving up. Your mind tells you all sorts of neagtive things." you are where u are becasue your training is inadequate; you should stop and what on earth are you tring to prove anyways). Many a point, I had to grit my teeth and looked like I was ansarling because I was cycling through the pain. If the forests were bad, the part from Mersing to Kota Tinggi was even worse. The hills that we did not seem to notice was towering and positively harder on the legs and the lungs now. I struggled with SE . A little later, JN remarked that at that point, I was back in the early days when I joined them: positively slow!
After enduring hours of back pain, I glaned at the speedo and was pleased we were only 30 km from the end. I stopped one last time; to wait for SE and then refueled before riding in together.
In this, I dug deep; really deep and I thought given the circumstances, I did decent. I was pleased not with my time or that I was behind and struggled whilst my friends were in front. I was pleased, I had the good sense to help other cyclists after I had fought my emotions and physical pain and a sense of personal triumph that I finished not because I was physically capable, but I was temperamentally and psychologically quite unwilling to give up; severe backpain not withstanding. I was bouyed by camaderie and esprit de corps of mates waiting up front for me whilst I was slow and kind of encouragement from fellow cycliss when my tank was long empty.
Monday, August 23, 2010
A Crash
This week was tough personally for me. I had a tough week at work with paperwork and surgeries. my training quite literally took a back seat. i struggled in my pool class on thursday with YF and could barely keep up. My strokes were frankly horrid and i was trailing the whole class the entire time.
On saturday was our usual FITR ride. I had looked forward to this ride which would include another mount faber sojourn this time of the "k2" side. we started off at my place at 4 amd rode steadily through NUS and then west coast.we looped around at Jurong Island and then rode up the Keppel Viaduat. While the first part was pretty leisurely and we were all chit chatting, the pace picked up noticeably when we turned around. The front pack was riding at 43- 45 km/h and i was struggling to keep up. I rode on my drops to improve aerodynamics and was barely holding on. The steady group was about 30 m behind so i pretty much was riding along. At that point a long trailer pulled up next to me. I could feel the air turbulence adn it unseated me momentarily. I got off my drops and placed my hands on the tops. That's when i saw it. a jagged pothole looming ride in front of me. It wasn't the largest but it spanned the space between the left barrier wall of the viaduct and the wheel of the trailer. I had nowhere to go . i braked so that i could allow the trailer to pass me. I did not particularly relish the idea of hitting the pothole and ending up in the underbelly of the long trailer. I hit the pothole at speed and steadied myself. Its funny we always imagine theis entities to be a hole and that's that/ Ton that day i realised when i landed in it that there was a hole within a hole. I felt it in my bones when i hit the second one. I was thrown forwards and could feel myself separting from the bike but not before i kicked it. i landed heavily on my right. and sprung up immediately. CH was right behind me and came to my assistance. ALl my stuff was on the road, my mobile phone, spare wheel, bidons and a rear wheel. My chain had also come lose, my glasses were off and i had left a lot of skin on the road; contributed namely by right shoulder, right flank, right hip( gosh the fabric was torn andtattered), right knee and ankle. Amzaingly i did not feel much pain; most likely to the adrenaline rush. I continued after we got the bike righted. amazingly it was still in a ride-able condition and we finished the 70 km.I had felt ok after that. We stopped at Evans for breakfast and that's where it all hit home. my hip was sore,i could not weight bear and my abrasions hurt like hell.
bathing was difficult and the pain sharp, but it reminded me i was alive and was fortunate in thatr espect. I will be out for a bit. The wounds have gotten a bit infected and I have to wait the wounds epithelialize before i restart my training.
Understandably my mood was a tad darker in the antecedent few days but i feel better now. Lesson learnt? Yes, ostensibly. Riding safe means knowing your limits and capabilities.
On saturday was our usual FITR ride. I had looked forward to this ride which would include another mount faber sojourn this time of the "k2" side. we started off at my place at 4 amd rode steadily through NUS and then west coast.we looped around at Jurong Island and then rode up the Keppel Viaduat. While the first part was pretty leisurely and we were all chit chatting, the pace picked up noticeably when we turned around. The front pack was riding at 43- 45 km/h and i was struggling to keep up. I rode on my drops to improve aerodynamics and was barely holding on. The steady group was about 30 m behind so i pretty much was riding along. At that point a long trailer pulled up next to me. I could feel the air turbulence adn it unseated me momentarily. I got off my drops and placed my hands on the tops. That's when i saw it. a jagged pothole looming ride in front of me. It wasn't the largest but it spanned the space between the left barrier wall of the viaduct and the wheel of the trailer. I had nowhere to go . i braked so that i could allow the trailer to pass me. I did not particularly relish the idea of hitting the pothole and ending up in the underbelly of the long trailer. I hit the pothole at speed and steadied myself. Its funny we always imagine theis entities to be a hole and that's that/ Ton that day i realised when i landed in it that there was a hole within a hole. I felt it in my bones when i hit the second one. I was thrown forwards and could feel myself separting from the bike but not before i kicked it. i landed heavily on my right. and sprung up immediately. CH was right behind me and came to my assistance. ALl my stuff was on the road, my mobile phone, spare wheel, bidons and a rear wheel. My chain had also come lose, my glasses were off and i had left a lot of skin on the road; contributed namely by right shoulder, right flank, right hip( gosh the fabric was torn andtattered), right knee and ankle. Amzaingly i did not feel much pain; most likely to the adrenaline rush. I continued after we got the bike righted. amazingly it was still in a ride-able condition and we finished the 70 km.I had felt ok after that. We stopped at Evans for breakfast and that's where it all hit home. my hip was sore,i could not weight bear and my abrasions hurt like hell.
bathing was difficult and the pain sharp, but it reminded me i was alive and was fortunate in thatr espect. I will be out for a bit. The wounds have gotten a bit infected and I have to wait the wounds epithelialize before i restart my training.
Understandably my mood was a tad darker in the antecedent few days but i feel better now. Lesson learnt? Yes, ostensibly. Riding safe means knowing your limits and capabilities.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
This Week
Monday Run10 km 1 hour( was hoping for a tempo run but ended up spraining left ankle and rolling around at Ulu Pandan road for a good 15 minutes be4 hobbling for another few minutes.
Tuesday YF Swim 2.4 km 1 hour 45 minutes
Wed Ride 20 km( hills) 50 minutes( nice ride thru Clementi-NUS-North Buona Vista- Commonwealth- Queensway-2 loops 2nd Avenue- 6th Avenue)
Turbo ride 50 minutes( on my new Kinetic trainer: awesome)
Thursday Turbo Ride 1 hour followed by 20 minutes( really slow run up 6th Avenue with WL) 2.4 km
Friday Rest
Saturday Hills 56 km. 2 hours Kaki Bukit( to Maris Stella)- Jln Bukit Merah- Mt Faber x 2- Tiong Bahru Hill- Labrador Park- Pepys Hill- South Buona Vista-NUS-Ulu Pandan
Sunday 70 km( 3 hours) followed by Brick run 1:15
Total: 11:10
Fab week!
Tuesday YF Swim 2.4 km 1 hour 45 minutes
Wed Ride 20 km( hills) 50 minutes( nice ride thru Clementi-NUS-North Buona Vista- Commonwealth- Queensway-2 loops 2nd Avenue- 6th Avenue)
Turbo ride 50 minutes( on my new Kinetic trainer: awesome)
Thursday Turbo Ride 1 hour followed by 20 minutes( really slow run up 6th Avenue with WL) 2.4 km
Friday Rest
Saturday Hills 56 km. 2 hours Kaki Bukit( to Maris Stella)- Jln Bukit Merah- Mt Faber x 2- Tiong Bahru Hill- Labrador Park- Pepys Hill- South Buona Vista-NUS-Ulu Pandan
Sunday 70 km( 3 hours) followed by Brick run 1:15
Total: 11:10
Fab week!
Monday, August 2, 2010
Swim Class- bane or boon?
When I first started training for triathlons, I devoured some books on the subject and thought I could do decently just going to the pool and do the laps and then watch youtube videos to try and perfect my swim strokes. I had come off a running background and gone into multi-sports for variation, to break the monotony of pounding on the streets and mainly because I had started to get niggling knee and back pain and I was losing a lot of weight. Triathlon training would put a bit of upper body muscle from swimming and cycling would build leg strength and endurance and all the while, cardio workouts will not be compromised.
I had experienced improvements in my riding since training with the FOTR riders and picked up a lot of valuable tips from the gang. Sometime after the Aviva 70.3 where i clocked a dismal 50 minute swim, I thought I would benefit from proper swim classes. I was focused on stroke correction and wanted to get out of the water feeling better than more rested than all the races I had been in.
A colleague introduced me to YF. Mind you, i had started with another group but motivation was a real problem. I ended up going only for had of my signed up classes last year. Well, YF classes last 1 hour 45 minutes and it was heart poundingly tough. I learnt certainly more than stroke correction. I learnt that training at a consistently higher intensity was something I never did. Pushing the limits constantly was tough for me and I was literally panting after each set. Mind you I am still the slowest in the class but I have increased my distance and have gone faster( albiet only slightly). Above all it has made me fresher when i come out of the water and can get in some decent bike and run splits. Oh, and it has done wonders for my running as well
I had experienced improvements in my riding since training with the FOTR riders and picked up a lot of valuable tips from the gang. Sometime after the Aviva 70.3 where i clocked a dismal 50 minute swim, I thought I would benefit from proper swim classes. I was focused on stroke correction and wanted to get out of the water feeling better than more rested than all the races I had been in.
A colleague introduced me to YF. Mind you, i had started with another group but motivation was a real problem. I ended up going only for had of my signed up classes last year. Well, YF classes last 1 hour 45 minutes and it was heart poundingly tough. I learnt certainly more than stroke correction. I learnt that training at a consistently higher intensity was something I never did. Pushing the limits constantly was tough for me and I was literally panting after each set. Mind you I am still the slowest in the class but I have increased my distance and have gone faster( albiet only slightly). Above all it has made me fresher when i come out of the water and can get in some decent bike and run splits. Oh, and it has done wonders for my running as well
Monday, July 26, 2010
Port Dickson International Triathlon 2010
Well the PD race has come and gone. It was a fabulous weekend. Rain threatened to ruin the race. when we convoyed up to PD on saturday, it had drizzled and at some point threatened to deteriorate into a formal tropical storm. The clouds were low and heavy with rain and we drove slowly; mh with daddy and mummy( the 3 bears minus goldilocks), cs and family and hp with me. We drove at a leisurely pace and were at PD by 12 where we had a relaxed lunch. Place reminds me of radiator springs from movie "Cars" where Lightning McQueen found his true love. In fact we joked over lunch that the place is so laid back and sleepy as a town that when you got in, your resting heart rate automatically would have dropped to 33/minute like Alberto Contador's!
We got up really early and checked in our bikes after a quick breakfast at 5 am; then settled down to enjoy the atmosphere. It was high tide at 2.1 meters so we didn't have to duck dive or do any other fancy stuff. We just had to dive into the water on the gun. It was to be a one loop L shape swim out into the open sea before making a left into the marina where the waters would be as calm as a swimming pool, cs assured us.
From the beach start, i tried to get in with a faster swim cadence and then started to draft as much as I could. I was a bit worried about swimming the full 1.5 without touching dry land as i have never done that before. Even at the Aviva 70.3 race, it was 2 loops of 900 m so this was going to be a first for me. I was getting comfortable and was swimming well although i had the occasional kick and the usual prat who held on to my feet. Got out of the water at 35 minutes on my watch and then made the slow run on sand to the T1 where i took about 3 minutes thereabouts to get out on the bike.
It was to be a fabulous ride. I had to stop to retrieve my profile design aero bottle when it fell out of the harness. I could ill afford to lose a bottle, particularly one that would set me back $60! haha so i back tracked slightly and grabbed it; with the excitement, I noted with amazement that i had a tremor that made it difficult to fasten it into the contraption. Thank God I don't get this on my day job! I was careful to look for potholes and the fact that it was draft legal made it risky for me to get onto my aero bars for fear of ending up in one of them particularly when u have riders on both sides of you! After 3 to 4 km on the hoghway, we banked a hard right and that was when the rolling hills began.I was using my Orbea and i dropped 2 gears to help me climb the first hill. Felt good and strong when i started to catch a few guys. Then it was a long downhill run and i got down into an aero position and felt my speedo go up to 50 km/hour; By that time, my Garmin started going wonky and i realised i had run out of memory. There were a few more hills and by the 4th, I was slowing a lot because I was pushing pretty hard. I relaxed a little and thought i should keep at a steady pace of 30 to 32 km/hour( by feel i must add!). There was traffic and one needed to stay alert. I was so alert i started to notice fallen hand pumps, CO2 gas canisters , Bidon's, gels and was tempted many times to stop and pick up stuff. After Bintan where Literally drop everything from my Bike, I thought it should be time to recoup some of my monetary losses from repeated purchases of all these supposed essential stuff. I was moderately grateful that the back spasm that plagued me at Bintan did not rear its ugly head.
I got into T2 and then got out pretty quickly i think. I was halfway out when i realised I forgot my sunnies and had half a mind to turn back. By this time, I had actually no idea what was my bike split timing but resolve to put in a solid run. I got off at a decent pace and felt strong. I remembered Lloyds words the day before to keep my cadence high and steps short and felt like had a lot in my tank. we turned left and I remembered the run course would be hilly and would take us through at least 5 hills. I thought I should count it. Another game I played was to see how many people I can pass and i concentrated on passing as many people as i can. on home leg I counted I caught 89 people on the run. I probably pushed a fair bit but was pretty fresh when I finished the race> i glanced down at my Garmin stopped it and the time was 2:50:56. I was incredulous, a pb certainly for me.
Official Time: 2:50:56
Swim 38:18
Bike 1:19:26
Run 52:02( !!) course must be shorter than 10 km! haha
a PB for me!
next question: can I do better?? should aim for 2:45 for next OD( haha! my memory for pain is certainly short!)
We got up really early and checked in our bikes after a quick breakfast at 5 am; then settled down to enjoy the atmosphere. It was high tide at 2.1 meters so we didn't have to duck dive or do any other fancy stuff. We just had to dive into the water on the gun. It was to be a one loop L shape swim out into the open sea before making a left into the marina where the waters would be as calm as a swimming pool, cs assured us.
From the beach start, i tried to get in with a faster swim cadence and then started to draft as much as I could. I was a bit worried about swimming the full 1.5 without touching dry land as i have never done that before. Even at the Aviva 70.3 race, it was 2 loops of 900 m so this was going to be a first for me. I was getting comfortable and was swimming well although i had the occasional kick and the usual prat who held on to my feet. Got out of the water at 35 minutes on my watch and then made the slow run on sand to the T1 where i took about 3 minutes thereabouts to get out on the bike.
It was to be a fabulous ride. I had to stop to retrieve my profile design aero bottle when it fell out of the harness. I could ill afford to lose a bottle, particularly one that would set me back $60! haha so i back tracked slightly and grabbed it; with the excitement, I noted with amazement that i had a tremor that made it difficult to fasten it into the contraption. Thank God I don't get this on my day job! I was careful to look for potholes and the fact that it was draft legal made it risky for me to get onto my aero bars for fear of ending up in one of them particularly when u have riders on both sides of you! After 3 to 4 km on the hoghway, we banked a hard right and that was when the rolling hills began.I was using my Orbea and i dropped 2 gears to help me climb the first hill. Felt good and strong when i started to catch a few guys. Then it was a long downhill run and i got down into an aero position and felt my speedo go up to 50 km/hour; By that time, my Garmin started going wonky and i realised i had run out of memory. There were a few more hills and by the 4th, I was slowing a lot because I was pushing pretty hard. I relaxed a little and thought i should keep at a steady pace of 30 to 32 km/hour( by feel i must add!). There was traffic and one needed to stay alert. I was so alert i started to notice fallen hand pumps, CO2 gas canisters , Bidon's, gels and was tempted many times to stop and pick up stuff. After Bintan where Literally drop everything from my Bike, I thought it should be time to recoup some of my monetary losses from repeated purchases of all these supposed essential stuff. I was moderately grateful that the back spasm that plagued me at Bintan did not rear its ugly head.
I got into T2 and then got out pretty quickly i think. I was halfway out when i realised I forgot my sunnies and had half a mind to turn back. By this time, I had actually no idea what was my bike split timing but resolve to put in a solid run. I got off at a decent pace and felt strong. I remembered Lloyds words the day before to keep my cadence high and steps short and felt like had a lot in my tank. we turned left and I remembered the run course would be hilly and would take us through at least 5 hills. I thought I should count it. Another game I played was to see how many people I can pass and i concentrated on passing as many people as i can. on home leg I counted I caught 89 people on the run. I probably pushed a fair bit but was pretty fresh when I finished the race> i glanced down at my Garmin stopped it and the time was 2:50:56. I was incredulous, a pb certainly for me.
Official Time: 2:50:56
Swim 38:18
Bike 1:19:26
Run 52:02( !!) course must be shorter than 10 km! haha
a PB for me!
next question: can I do better?? should aim for 2:45 for next OD( haha! my memory for pain is certainly short!)
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The week before the Port Dickson Race
Well its not quite the eve. there are some more days to go. Its not a race that is quite on my personal A list but its there to spice up the racing calender of the year for me. I was pretty miffed with the weather in Munich. Was to have done 2 glorious days of cycling with Nils but we were rained out. Throughout the week I was there, it rained trhoughout and I was left wondering if I was truly experiencing summer in Germany. Well at least there was the World Cup and I spent the afternoons and nights watching footbal.. Managed to clock 40 km during my stay there which was small consolationfor not being able to cycle.
It has since been a fruitful month; and this week because of unforseen work committments decided to join YF's monday's class. Swam 3.2 km; twas hard but great sense of satisfaction. WOke up this morning same ol same old and did a bike/run/bike/run which feltgood. Legs were not too heavy and managed a decent 5:20 pace at heart rate of 140/min.
Suppose will do another ride tmrw( God willing) and possibly a swim if i have the time and do another run on thursday before heading up to PD on Saturday; but not before a night of gastronomic fellowship with sake and japanese-chinese fusion at xi-yan!
It has since been a fruitful month; and this week because of unforseen work committments decided to join YF's monday's class. Swam 3.2 km; twas hard but great sense of satisfaction. WOke up this morning same ol same old and did a bike/run/bike/run which feltgood. Legs were not too heavy and managed a decent 5:20 pace at heart rate of 140/min.
Suppose will do another ride tmrw( God willing) and possibly a swim if i have the time and do another run on thursday before heading up to PD on Saturday; but not before a night of gastronomic fellowship with sake and japanese-chinese fusion at xi-yan!
Friday, June 11, 2010
4 Days in Taiwan
The last time I was in Taiwan was a mere 6 months away when i attended the National meeting in Kaoshiung and I am really glad to be here again at the kind invitation the taiwanese neurosurgeons again. Te flight into Taoyuan was good. Managed to watch "Ghost writer" which I thought was a decent movie with Ewan Macgregor. I thought he aged a bit but who hasn't right? The drive to Taichung was painful and took an hour more than usual because of the jams at the gihway. The sky was grey and it was drizzling but I didn't mind that as it kept the weather cool. When i reached the hotel, any hopes of running on the streets were dashed. It was just not too conducive and I thought I would do some gym work except my legs had gone to sleep after all the hours in the plane and car. I spend the rest of theday in my room catching up on paperwork and preparing my presentation for the next 2 days.
This morning it was another hour to Chang Gung Memorial Chia-Yi hospital to meet and run a mini-symposium on intra-operative imaging. It was a new hospital in the middle of nowhere but the size of SGH(!) with a well thought out layout. I spent 2 hours hanging out there doing a short presentation and going through some of the nuances of using the system and how to modify workflow to accomodate this new technique in surgery.
The highway stops for meals and rest have changed so drastically since the last time I had the chance to stop by which was during my army days. I tried to remember why I hadn't had the chance to view the new changes and realised I had either flown or taken the train, not ideal ways to see the country. We had an uber( with umlaut) fabulous meal of beef noodles before making my way here.
I plan to do some catch up reading for a bit and then possibly hit the gym today before attending the dreaded booze filled dinner which I can't sneak out of. As is typical of taiwanese banquets, everybody carries a glass topped with booze( you name it!) and will walk around to toast each other. As a guest and invited speaker, you get your fair share of "bottoms- up" so the trick is to not touch a drop will this activity starts. Feels like when i do a tri race; i try to conserve energy by doing absolutely bugger-all till the gun sounds! haha.
I can't say i enjoy travelling as much as I have before but I suppose some invitations are hard to turn down. I had already turned down 80% of invitations this year because I would rather stay at home. So this year, for conferences, I have only accepted Seoul( which i have done), Taiwan( 2 down!), Munich( next week, aargh!), Ho Chi Minh, Tubingen and Bali and hopefully there wouldn't be anymore. Then I can have a more ordered life!
This morning it was another hour to Chang Gung Memorial Chia-Yi hospital to meet and run a mini-symposium on intra-operative imaging. It was a new hospital in the middle of nowhere but the size of SGH(!) with a well thought out layout. I spent 2 hours hanging out there doing a short presentation and going through some of the nuances of using the system and how to modify workflow to accomodate this new technique in surgery.
The highway stops for meals and rest have changed so drastically since the last time I had the chance to stop by which was during my army days. I tried to remember why I hadn't had the chance to view the new changes and realised I had either flown or taken the train, not ideal ways to see the country. We had an uber( with umlaut) fabulous meal of beef noodles before making my way here.
I plan to do some catch up reading for a bit and then possibly hit the gym today before attending the dreaded booze filled dinner which I can't sneak out of. As is typical of taiwanese banquets, everybody carries a glass topped with booze( you name it!) and will walk around to toast each other. As a guest and invited speaker, you get your fair share of "bottoms- up" so the trick is to not touch a drop will this activity starts. Feels like when i do a tri race; i try to conserve energy by doing absolutely bugger-all till the gun sounds! haha.
I can't say i enjoy travelling as much as I have before but I suppose some invitations are hard to turn down. I had already turned down 80% of invitations this year because I would rather stay at home. So this year, for conferences, I have only accepted Seoul( which i have done), Taiwan( 2 down!), Munich( next week, aargh!), Ho Chi Minh, Tubingen and Bali and hopefully there wouldn't be anymore. Then I can have a more ordered life!
Thursday, June 3, 2010
A Week of Sloth followed by a return of the old routine
Last week, I stayed 5 days in Seoul and what was supposed to be a relaxed trip turned hectic. The journeys to the hospital from the hotel was an hour every morning. I stayed till 5 pm and then made the ardous journey back before preparing for dinner. Seoul is crowded and I mean really crowded and I am not one for crowds. Give me a quiet place anytime. The long and short of it was that i brought my shoes and exercise gear and all but did not venture out once. Must be the long days and the night filled with sohchu and Calbee beef. So I was certainly glad to be back. Did 2 short sessions in the 25 m pool focusing on my kicking . Rode with Cheks and the turbo but today's workout was memorable. Took my bike out to RRR and did 3 loops and stopped only to rest at Mayfair park. kept a measured pace when climbing and stayed seated. I kept on big chain ring although the gears used were rather big but focused on trying to keep cadence and in aerobic range. Overall I was pleased with my effort.
Kept the session short as tomorrow as I have a sufferfest of a swim session with YF.
Kept the session short as tomorrow as I have a sufferfest of a swim session with YF.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Bintan Triathlon 2010
Well this is the second time i am taking part in the bintan triathlon od race. I had gone into this without much expectations; i trained minimally after the dreadful bout of fever and was careful not to over exert my self. besides, i had a niggling backache all week; which i felt started during the bout of illness.
This time we stayed at Nirwana instead of far out and as the bus took us to the resort, memories of last year's race came flooding back. The cobblestoned entrance of the resort, the slow climb all the way to the hotel lobby, the humid weather and of course the route from the ferry terminal to the hotel was part of the last 10 km of the route too.
This year was a big mass start for males and a separate for females and teams. As usual I started slow and the clear waters allowed me to draft quite effectively. I chose a chap in red( because he was so obviously easy to spot) and sat on his feet pretty much for the whole of the first loop. I concentrated on checking out the corals which were intriguing with its population of small fishes. Did i really miss this last year??I cam out of first loop and saw the girls. Gail commented that I was amongst the last to get out of the water. I glanced at the back and realised that there weren"t more than 20 chaps in the water! I swam with a little more urgency this time round and got out of the water and glanced at my watch only to find i had not pressed start! what a buffoon i was! i gathered lated i was probably about 38 minutes out of the water. T1 was quick 1:05 and i was off on my bike. i powered ahead at 35 km/hour and caught KL at the 4 km mark and felt pretty strong. I caught a lot of chaps on the bike as well.The undulating hills were great and i was enjoying it but m back started to act up again. I had downed some neurofen before the race but it was probably too low a dose and i could feel with each pedal stroke my right paravertebral spasm getting worse. in the last 10 km, i was getting pains in my right leg every time i pedaled and i had to move into the small chainring which slowed me down a lot. I got in at 1:26. along the course I dropped my pump, pitstop as well as my mouthpiece from the speedfill probably as a result of me trying to bunnyhop the speed bumps. T2 was another speedy affair 1:54 and then i started the run. The back pain eased a bit and i could go at a 6:15 pace; i focused on breathing easy and stopped to stretch my back a couple of times. the first lap split was slower than the second and i actually picked up to 5:45 in second lap and finished the run with a 1:01 split.
The official results at the end of the day did not have my name in it. Must be another timing chip failure again! happened to me at the tribob aquathlon and now here at the bintan race. a bit exasperating!
This time we stayed at Nirwana instead of far out and as the bus took us to the resort, memories of last year's race came flooding back. The cobblestoned entrance of the resort, the slow climb all the way to the hotel lobby, the humid weather and of course the route from the ferry terminal to the hotel was part of the last 10 km of the route too.
This year was a big mass start for males and a separate for females and teams. As usual I started slow and the clear waters allowed me to draft quite effectively. I chose a chap in red( because he was so obviously easy to spot) and sat on his feet pretty much for the whole of the first loop. I concentrated on checking out the corals which were intriguing with its population of small fishes. Did i really miss this last year??I cam out of first loop and saw the girls. Gail commented that I was amongst the last to get out of the water. I glanced at the back and realised that there weren"t more than 20 chaps in the water! I swam with a little more urgency this time round and got out of the water and glanced at my watch only to find i had not pressed start! what a buffoon i was! i gathered lated i was probably about 38 minutes out of the water. T1 was quick 1:05 and i was off on my bike. i powered ahead at 35 km/hour and caught KL at the 4 km mark and felt pretty strong. I caught a lot of chaps on the bike as well.The undulating hills were great and i was enjoying it but m back started to act up again. I had downed some neurofen before the race but it was probably too low a dose and i could feel with each pedal stroke my right paravertebral spasm getting worse. in the last 10 km, i was getting pains in my right leg every time i pedaled and i had to move into the small chainring which slowed me down a lot. I got in at 1:26. along the course I dropped my pump, pitstop as well as my mouthpiece from the speedfill probably as a result of me trying to bunnyhop the speed bumps. T2 was another speedy affair 1:54 and then i started the run. The back pain eased a bit and i could go at a 6:15 pace; i focused on breathing easy and stopped to stretch my back a couple of times. the first lap split was slower than the second and i actually picked up to 5:45 in second lap and finished the run with a 1:01 split.
The official results at the end of the day did not have my name in it. Must be another timing chip failure again! happened to me at the tribob aquathlon and now here at the bintan race. a bit exasperating!
Thursday, May 13, 2010
my very meaningful birthday present
i received a card from my good friend last night with well wishes for my birthday. I am 44 today. Its something I would instinctively recoil at: more than halfway or if you are traditional chinese( its die die!).
well i would have assumed i should be living life to the fullest; some parts i would do it all over again if I was asked to; like wl and the girls or my job. i truly discovered myself when i started running again after a long hiatus. As i have mentioned before, i have never been much of an athlete and running was my way of keeping fit( to build cardio fitness was the aim); ok ok as other close friends will tell you its when i was chasing after equally old friends on a beach in phuket and getting dropped when i was thought i was relatively fit that jolted me into the mode that has takne me to today.
the running got more serious and longer, though not naturally faster. i just wanted longevity in my running experience; not push myself to the point where i bust my knees and will spend the rest of my days with my legs prooped up on a ottoman gulping beer and downing chips in front of the telly.
back to my card because of i am digressing. its an article by kristin armstrong entitled "the wall" which appeared in Runner"s World which was shared with me adn want to share this with you:
The Wall
04/29/2010 3:07 PM
Marathoners know the proverbial wall.
The wall is typically located someplace between miles 20 and 23, but it can sprout up anywhere. It can even begin as a simple, unassuming speed bump, but can grow up faster than kudzu in Atlanta. Suddenly you find something massive, directly in front of you, blocking the path between right here and the finish line.
The wall is constructed of many bricks; things like fear, pain, loneliness, hopelessness, burdens, doubt, guilt, exhaustion - physical, exhaustion-mental, exhaustion-emotional, exhaustion-spiritual. It is a black hole in our psyche, a gap in our fence, a riptide in our reservoir with the potential to carry us away. The wall becomes nearly physically tangible to a runner, but the same wall exists in other areas whether we choose to recognize it or not.
Maybe part of why I run is to get a good, hard look at that sucker. There is a part of me that likes to know, every once in a while, what I am up against on the inside. If we get up close enough, we might spot some loose bricks, wedge our fingers in and yank them out, revealing a rectangular shaft of light from the other side. Other times, we get up close enough and spot some handholds, footholds, a way up and over. How much time and mileage do we waste each time we try to go around our wall, instead of facing it head on?
There is even an expression which has become somewhat cliched, "hit the wall." People use this all the time in a non-running context, signifying reaching the end of the rope, an empty tank, a point of frustration, no return, giving up, turning back.
What does it mean to you to hit the wall? What kind of bricks are you stacking?
When you reach your limit, your wall, the end of yourself - what happens next for you? What do you find there? Release? Relief? Grace? Do you have a breakdown or do you break it down? Do you make a plan or an excuse? What gives - the terrain, or you?
I wonder if it's possible to imagine drawing a new starting line just when we think we can't muster another step. Some experienced runners say the race doesn't even begin until mile 20...until the wall. That's when you really find out what you are up against, and in that same sweet moment, what you are really made of.
For all of us who are interested in long distance runs, isn't this what its about?
happy running and training!
well i would have assumed i should be living life to the fullest; some parts i would do it all over again if I was asked to; like wl and the girls or my job. i truly discovered myself when i started running again after a long hiatus. As i have mentioned before, i have never been much of an athlete and running was my way of keeping fit( to build cardio fitness was the aim); ok ok as other close friends will tell you its when i was chasing after equally old friends on a beach in phuket and getting dropped when i was thought i was relatively fit that jolted me into the mode that has takne me to today.
the running got more serious and longer, though not naturally faster. i just wanted longevity in my running experience; not push myself to the point where i bust my knees and will spend the rest of my days with my legs prooped up on a ottoman gulping beer and downing chips in front of the telly.
back to my card because of i am digressing. its an article by kristin armstrong entitled "the wall" which appeared in Runner"s World which was shared with me adn want to share this with you:
The Wall
04/29/2010 3:07 PM
Marathoners know the proverbial wall.
The wall is typically located someplace between miles 20 and 23, but it can sprout up anywhere. It can even begin as a simple, unassuming speed bump, but can grow up faster than kudzu in Atlanta. Suddenly you find something massive, directly in front of you, blocking the path between right here and the finish line.
The wall is constructed of many bricks; things like fear, pain, loneliness, hopelessness, burdens, doubt, guilt, exhaustion - physical, exhaustion-mental, exhaustion-emotional, exhaustion-spiritual. It is a black hole in our psyche, a gap in our fence, a riptide in our reservoir with the potential to carry us away. The wall becomes nearly physically tangible to a runner, but the same wall exists in other areas whether we choose to recognize it or not.
Maybe part of why I run is to get a good, hard look at that sucker. There is a part of me that likes to know, every once in a while, what I am up against on the inside. If we get up close enough, we might spot some loose bricks, wedge our fingers in and yank them out, revealing a rectangular shaft of light from the other side. Other times, we get up close enough and spot some handholds, footholds, a way up and over. How much time and mileage do we waste each time we try to go around our wall, instead of facing it head on?
There is even an expression which has become somewhat cliched, "hit the wall." People use this all the time in a non-running context, signifying reaching the end of the rope, an empty tank, a point of frustration, no return, giving up, turning back.
What does it mean to you to hit the wall? What kind of bricks are you stacking?
When you reach your limit, your wall, the end of yourself - what happens next for you? What do you find there? Release? Relief? Grace? Do you have a breakdown or do you break it down? Do you make a plan or an excuse? What gives - the terrain, or you?
I wonder if it's possible to imagine drawing a new starting line just when we think we can't muster another step. Some experienced runners say the race doesn't even begin until mile 20...until the wall. That's when you really find out what you are up against, and in that same sweet moment, what you are really made of.
For all of us who are interested in long distance runs, isn't this what its about?
happy running and training!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Sunday FOTR ride
well we had the biggest group yet for a FOTR ride, 11 in all and for the first time we had 2 persons of the fairer sex join us. we did our usual mandai route and then climbed RRR before coming out of bukit timah and up 2nd avenue. no takers for the 5th Avenue ride though.
After our customary breakfast i noted something wrong when i got out of the shower chattering. on dear, i am coming down with something. the bug really hit me with a sledgehammer. one minute i was well charging up RRR the other minute i have been reduced to a "sick chicken" with myalgia and headaches . My pores were emitting heat and i was running a 40 degree temperature. After going for a ward round, all i couild do when i got home was lie in bed with chills and rigors. Throughout the day I drifted in and out of sleep; waking up to drink water and take some meds before crashing again. I got up for lunch and dinner and basically slept till 10 am today. it was so bad i did not turn up for work , my first no show since like forever.
I am feeling better now but worry about the bintan triathlon. I should still go but its unlikely i shall be able to train much this week. i should still do the swim and bike route for the fun of it but sit out the run if i am not up to it.
After our customary breakfast i noted something wrong when i got out of the shower chattering. on dear, i am coming down with something. the bug really hit me with a sledgehammer. one minute i was well charging up RRR the other minute i have been reduced to a "sick chicken" with myalgia and headaches . My pores were emitting heat and i was running a 40 degree temperature. After going for a ward round, all i couild do when i got home was lie in bed with chills and rigors. Throughout the day I drifted in and out of sleep; waking up to drink water and take some meds before crashing again. I got up for lunch and dinner and basically slept till 10 am today. it was so bad i did not turn up for work , my first no show since like forever.
I am feeling better now but worry about the bintan triathlon. I should still go but its unlikely i shall be able to train much this week. i should still do the swim and bike route for the fun of it but sit out the run if i am not up to it.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
TriBob Sprint Triathlon
There was an air of expectation this year with the event not least because CH, JT and JN have agreed to do the mini. Was an early morning start for me and I arrived at carpark 4 at 630 am. Decided to use my orbea with the zipp 1080 wheels. ARrive got a vantage spot at transition and met CH first, had a banana and chit chatted a bit. The atmosphere was very carnival like and after the body marking i went out to the beach and got a bit of a warm up. The tide was amazingly low and you could literally walk to the first buoy which was not good. Current was minimal. My wave was the 3 rd one and I did my usual last in the water and went to the right. I had learnt some valuable lessons from yellowfish swimming and was looking to put into some serious test. I swam strong and confident and was for the first time actually overtaking some chaps. got out of the water at 17:00; a pb! got out on the bike and rode decent averaging 33-35 km/h. thefinal average was 32-33km/hr i think because of the time spent going round the hairpin and mounting and dismounting not that i was really bothered.the run was where it all went pear shaped. i was hoping to do a 5:15 to 5:30 but the lack of airtome in the runs was telling, i managed just under 6:00/km barely. all in all a 1:27 time which was an improvement from last year. JN, JT and CH all did sensationally and I was secretly pleased they completed comfortably.maybe i can persuade them to go one level up and who knows, they may be travelling with me for ironman events?!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Has been a while...
Well its been awhile since my last entry. Major things to report? have managed to encourage 3 of my frens to do a mini-sprint. hooray! even did a mini- training session at sentosa to help out. The fledging triathletes look great.
Then after much procrastination i i signed up with yellowfish for formal swim lessons. He video taped my swim and the description wasn't pretty! i was described as a Longkang swimmer much like how a dog might swim! I watched the video and winced; well at least it can only get better from there! my head was bobing up and down, i did not pull fully, my kicking would not have dislodged my grandmother from her sofa. to add salt to wound, i developed cramps in the latter part of the session, an ignominuos first for me.
somebody asked me again why i choose to escalate the level of distance( i.e sprint to od to 70.3 to ironman) and not focus on one distance and excel in it? well i suppose i could but hey, isn"t life's challenges about facing your fears and doing what can't be done( at least to you?0 . if i can do a sprint, then my personal progressed must be measured according to what distances i can now complete that i could not previously do right? what is the point of finishing a previously distance i had previously finished except to do it faster? okay okay it shows you have improved but personally what cuts for me is facing my fears. why did i sign up for the phuket 70.3? i would think it would be the hills. my personal resolution would be to train and ensure i will not push my bike up those steep hills but to grind my way to the top. its not about a personal pb, its about facing your fears( in this case of hills) and conquering them. to do what i i thought i could not previously do; that is what its all about isn't it?
Then after much procrastination i i signed up with yellowfish for formal swim lessons. He video taped my swim and the description wasn't pretty! i was described as a Longkang swimmer much like how a dog might swim! I watched the video and winced; well at least it can only get better from there! my head was bobing up and down, i did not pull fully, my kicking would not have dislodged my grandmother from her sofa. to add salt to wound, i developed cramps in the latter part of the session, an ignominuos first for me.
somebody asked me again why i choose to escalate the level of distance( i.e sprint to od to 70.3 to ironman) and not focus on one distance and excel in it? well i suppose i could but hey, isn"t life's challenges about facing your fears and doing what can't be done( at least to you?0 . if i can do a sprint, then my personal progressed must be measured according to what distances i can now complete that i could not previously do right? what is the point of finishing a previously distance i had previously finished except to do it faster? okay okay it shows you have improved but personally what cuts for me is facing my fears. why did i sign up for the phuket 70.3? i would think it would be the hills. my personal resolution would be to train and ensure i will not push my bike up those steep hills but to grind my way to the top. its not about a personal pb, its about facing your fears( in this case of hills) and conquering them. to do what i i thought i could not previously do; that is what its all about isn't it?
Friday, April 9, 2010
I really must be getting old...
after the last post, expounding bravado and testosterone, i literally in the last 2 days. It was hectic. by late wednesday, I was feeling the effect of having workouts for 7 days straight. As luck would have it, my patient deteriorated in the early hours of thursday morning and i had to scrap myself out of bed to operate at 4am in the morning instead of cycling. Took me 3 hours and a lifetime to stop bleeding. I left the operating theatre drained and hunted down a coffee dispensing machine to give me a much needed caffeine boost before dashing to do a round at ttsh and then saw 2 patients in the clinic before dashing back to sgh to start my elective operating. Hey if i thought the ironman was insurmountable maybe today would test my inner resolve again. I went straight into action and resected a brain tumour in double quick time in a lady with a solitary metastasis from breast cancer, then rushed to the Novalis suite to plan treatment for a guy with recurrent brain mets from a lung cancer. Then its back to the operating theatre for the mother of all skull base tumours which took all my energy. the tumour was so darned difficult I did not have lunch or did i stop for a toilet break. Twas 10 pm when i finished. So today was a bit of a wash out and after another brain tumour to remove, i didn't feel much like going to the pool for a swim. most likely it will be a early night where i will sleep well and hopefully dream of a good weekend to get in some quality workouts.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Back to the Usual Routine
Post Aviva 70.3, there has been a bit of distraction that has taken me away from the usual physical workouts. I have been pre-occupied with operating and work; i bought a new bike adn spend hours tinkering with it and countless more hours dreaming about it. I was mulling over what races i should be doing. Last week though, i got some training albiet low volume.
Did 2 short tempo runs( 2.5 km and 5 km) keeping my pace about 5:30/km and lower adn both of which came out of bike workouts. I went to the RTC 's 25 m pool to practice bilateral breathing and kicking. Will need many more hours to streamline my swim and make it look like i am drowning. Did an OWS at Siloso and swam about 1.5 km and got stung by jellyfish twice which prematurely ended the endeavour.
All in all, an easy pace 8 hours 15 min last week.
I plan to crank it up a gear and for start my preparations for the Tribob's sprint and OD events in May. A bit more tempo runs and speed training would be in order; i have negelcted running of late because i am obsessed about right swim strokes and cycling speed and spend the lions share of my workouts on these but in rality, I make most progress in any race in my runs so it would make sense to keep my running fitness and catch and move up the ladder on the runs
So i have planned 4 runs this week. I have done one 4 km tempo run at 5:10 on monday after the swim. I plan to do a 10 km race pace run today; a 20 km long run on saturday( since FOTR is not riding) and a speed session on sunday.
In the meantime, I shall continue to mull about the Phuket 70.3!
Did 2 short tempo runs( 2.5 km and 5 km) keeping my pace about 5:30/km and lower adn both of which came out of bike workouts. I went to the RTC 's 25 m pool to practice bilateral breathing and kicking. Will need many more hours to streamline my swim and make it look like i am drowning. Did an OWS at Siloso and swam about 1.5 km and got stung by jellyfish twice which prematurely ended the endeavour.
All in all, an easy pace 8 hours 15 min last week.
I plan to crank it up a gear and for start my preparations for the Tribob's sprint and OD events in May. A bit more tempo runs and speed training would be in order; i have negelcted running of late because i am obsessed about right swim strokes and cycling speed and spend the lions share of my workouts on these but in rality, I make most progress in any race in my runs so it would make sense to keep my running fitness and catch and move up the ladder on the runs
So i have planned 4 runs this week. I have done one 4 km tempo run at 5:10 on monday after the swim. I plan to do a 10 km race pace run today; a 20 km long run on saturday( since FOTR is not riding) and a speed session on sunday.
In the meantime, I shall continue to mull about the Phuket 70.3!
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Cycling is all about lungs and legs, not gear...
Isn't that obvious,speed on the bicycle no matter how sophisticated when distilled to its basic elements, is all about lungs and leg strength. The exercise scientist quanitfy that by measuring VO2 max, an index that measures the efficiency of gaseous exchange and utilization.YEt, as cyclist, the proverbial " bad cook always blames its utensil" instinct in us laments about our lack of aerodynamic insufficiency, unwanted weight etc as explanations for our inadequacy on the bike> Logically speaking all of us should just by mid level bikes spec"ed to its onto basic components based on what we know in our heart right?
Of course not. There is always a better groupset, set of wheels, stiffer frameset, more comfortable seat, stiffer shoes to set our pulses racing. We indulge in these because we want it for aesthetics, its "cool factor", the way it makes us feel on the bike.
Just got a road bike yesterday. some of it was part reason, part want more than need. The Wilier Cento Uno Di2 with ritchley front stem and Zipp 1080's. Took it for a spin this morning, felt like I was riding like the wind and marveled at the way it handled( certainly much better than a TT bike); the Di2 shifted gears like a charm. The electronic" whirring " sounding futuristic as the gears moves silently in place. I could keep up with a couple of guys on the Dogmas on the Mandai climb; wow that was a first.
I got back and wanted to look at my average speed. I supposed I should be a lot faster than previous outings. WHen the data churning was done and presented I looked at it eagerly,anxious. Well you guessed it, speed improved by only 1 km/h.
Of course not. There is always a better groupset, set of wheels, stiffer frameset, more comfortable seat, stiffer shoes to set our pulses racing. We indulge in these because we want it for aesthetics, its "cool factor", the way it makes us feel on the bike.
Just got a road bike yesterday. some of it was part reason, part want more than need. The Wilier Cento Uno Di2 with ritchley front stem and Zipp 1080's. Took it for a spin this morning, felt like I was riding like the wind and marveled at the way it handled( certainly much better than a TT bike); the Di2 shifted gears like a charm. The electronic" whirring " sounding futuristic as the gears moves silently in place. I could keep up with a couple of guys on the Dogmas on the Mandai climb; wow that was a first.
I got back and wanted to look at my average speed. I supposed I should be a lot faster than previous outings. WHen the data churning was done and presented I looked at it eagerly,anxious. Well you guessed it, speed improved by only 1 km/h.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Do I Need a Coach?
Well the 70.3 has come and gone and it was personally a major milestone for me and I had completed it; oh ok i completed with barely 10 minutes to spare. Now for another mountain to climb. I am still deciding if I should be doing the IMWA. It may be a real tall order as it stands; but its either that or try to do another 70.3 race or 2 right?
I have been mulling over the need to get a coach to help me. Well SH needed it and it really helped him. He did a 6:06 and scores of other chaps have it. I have always baulked at having structured training but I do acknowledge that:
1. it provides motivation
2. the other chaps in the class will spur you on
3. you meet like minded chaps who can be friends for which you can enjoy the races together.
The problem is the job i have does not make for organised training. A single case lasting 12 hours will put my training plans awry. Painful as it is, I am afraid I will waste money getting into a program i can't keep up with. Also I always thought and prided in myself the ability to push myself through barriers and self motivattion has never been a problem. I could no doubt still complete and train for an IM event by following programs in books/ websites but what if i could increase satisfaction by not finishing in the top half of my age group?
So the last 2 days I have been trawling Shem leong's and yellowfish and Tribob"s website deciding and I am still doing so.
I have been mulling over the need to get a coach to help me. Well SH needed it and it really helped him. He did a 6:06 and scores of other chaps have it. I have always baulked at having structured training but I do acknowledge that:
1. it provides motivation
2. the other chaps in the class will spur you on
3. you meet like minded chaps who can be friends for which you can enjoy the races together.
The problem is the job i have does not make for organised training. A single case lasting 12 hours will put my training plans awry. Painful as it is, I am afraid I will waste money getting into a program i can't keep up with. Also I always thought and prided in myself the ability to push myself through barriers and self motivattion has never been a problem. I could no doubt still complete and train for an IM event by following programs in books/ websites but what if i could increase satisfaction by not finishing in the top half of my age group?
So the last 2 days I have been trawling Shem leong's and yellowfish and Tribob"s website deciding and I am still doing so.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
FOTR ride
It has been a while but after the AViva, this ride was appropriate and felt right. we didn't have everybody together. PK is still out with nursing his fracture, SY is recovering from his appendicitis so it was SE, JN, CH and JT who joined us from longhouse.
It was a recovery ride and we cycled in 2's chatted a little along the way and then we suggested going up RRR. CH and JT had not done it before. It was perfect conditions. Dawn was just breaking and it was not pitch black like the last time we rode; there was a cool wind blowing and traffic was light save for one or 2 taxi's and buses bringing people to ST kinetics at the end of the road.
After our breakfast i went to work but re- gathered at PassiONE where my bike position was adjusted. Felt more powerful after my revised bike fit. New bike position is more aggressive.
Will try riding tomorrow. Looks like i am the only one riding. I will plan to ride the Farrer Road-Queensway-Normanton- Adam-Thomson- Mandai- Upper Bukit Timah and charge up RRR. Well that's the rough plan.
It was a recovery ride and we cycled in 2's chatted a little along the way and then we suggested going up RRR. CH and JT had not done it before. It was perfect conditions. Dawn was just breaking and it was not pitch black like the last time we rode; there was a cool wind blowing and traffic was light save for one or 2 taxi's and buses bringing people to ST kinetics at the end of the road.
After our breakfast i went to work but re- gathered at PassiONE where my bike position was adjusted. Felt more powerful after my revised bike fit. New bike position is more aggressive.
Will try riding tomorrow. Looks like i am the only one riding. I will plan to ride the Farrer Road-Queensway-Normanton- Adam-Thomson- Mandai- Upper Bukit Timah and charge up RRR. Well that's the rough plan.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Post Ironman 70.3 Euphoria?
You know, I think there is an element of truth when EW remarked that I had a bad case of post-euphoria and psychosis brought about achieving your modest goals at middle age( aka AVIVA ironman 70.3). I was starting to dream big dreams.Instead of another 70.3, I had boldly declared I want to try for the IMWA at Busselton, to raised eyebrows at home. I ran 2 big all day clinics and did some pretty complex cases over the last 2 days and will be operating tomorrow on another case where it was deemed inoperable by doctors in a patient's home country.
The last was that I entertained the ultra-marathon; a slot potentially vacted by PK because of his clavicle fracture. In the quietness, I think I may have over-stretched my imagination bit. I have not done much groundwork and with 8 weeks to the race, I have not done more than half a marathon and will have a sprint OD race in May before tackling the penultimate 84 km race( all within one month)
WHAT was I thinking??
The last was that I entertained the ultra-marathon; a slot potentially vacted by PK because of his clavicle fracture. In the quietness, I think I may have over-stretched my imagination bit. I have not done much groundwork and with 8 weeks to the race, I have not done more than half a marathon and will have a sprint OD race in May before tackling the penultimate 84 km race( all within one month)
WHAT was I thinking??
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
The Day After...
I thought it was supposed to be the most dreadful day. I thought I will be sore all over and can barely get off my bed. As I was watching the telly at half 9, I could barely keep my eyes open despite the cracker of a game between man u and liverpool.
As it happened, my eyes opened and i awoke at 5 am as always. I was surprised. I sat my alarm to wake up at 7 am to go to work but my body was used to the routine of old, 5 am for a run or bike. I was aching a bit in the calves and quads but not too bad. I scampered out of bed and changed up and got ready for work instead of a workout.
I had a killer of a clinic but was doing a post- mortem subconsciously of my race. I was particularly interested in my thoughts at each segment of the race.
Pre- race: I was strangely detached though not in a negative way mind you. Rather I was not anxious and did not think very much about the potential difficulties. I was thankful the weather was decent and that my preparation was as good as it is.
Swim: I focused on turning my head and looking at the blue sky and tried to sight every 10 strokes, and kept my breathing even. I was mildly anxious when i noted the other waves were overtaking me and I saw very few yellow cappers. I thought about those hours in the pool and tried to use my core muscles. I emerged 220 of 240 but felt good I kept to my race plan and a heart rate at 130/minute.
Bike: I kept my eye peeled on my speedometer and tried to keep my cadence at 80-90. In the first lap, I focused on following the rules of non-drafting and realized everybody was doing with every given opportunity. I thought of my rudy project glasses and what a scoop for me to have bought it as it really came in handy with the dusty road and the crud you get on on the Sheares bridge. I noticed the debris from the Sands resort at the side of the road. I was conscious of my right quads, then left quads and debated on the merits and demerits of getting out of the saddle given the sorry state of my fatigued muscles. I tried to look for SE but could not see him. On the second lap, the muscles relaxed somewhat and i started to enjoy the ride. I was pedalling with decent efficiency in the aero position. I saw some cool guys with the aero helmets and resolve to buy one when i finally hit average 35 km-40 km/hour( hah that probably means never). By the third lap, I was suffering again, my back and bum was killing me. You know someone once told me you are never consciously aware of your arse till you get hemorrhoids, then it becomes conscious and in the forefront. It pre-occupies your mind with every movement. It was like that with my back and bum. With every pedal stroke, I was experiencing excruciating pain and had to grit my teeth and finish the 10 km.
Run: I focused on running form but before long I was so fatigued I could not go any faster before cramping up. I focused on getting from one aid station to the other and looked at the other runners in a similar plight. WIth all their sunglasses on I could not see in their eyes but could probably fathom what was in their heads.It should probably be like mine, which is "what am I doing fighting as I am fighting to put one foot after the other". I told myself this is where the race starts and I have to dig deep into myself and summon every limited ounce of energy to keep moving. I smiled for the first time when I saw WL and the girls cheering me on excitedly.Who wouldn't? with the finish line in sight, I tried to regain some form and ran past the finish line with a grin on my face, glad it was all over.
So what is next? SE suggested Phuket 70.3; I thought Busselton is a possibility. When I mentioned to WL, she rolled her eyes and said plainly that I was plain looney.
Yes, probably I am but hey you only live once right?
As it happened, my eyes opened and i awoke at 5 am as always. I was surprised. I sat my alarm to wake up at 7 am to go to work but my body was used to the routine of old, 5 am for a run or bike. I was aching a bit in the calves and quads but not too bad. I scampered out of bed and changed up and got ready for work instead of a workout.
I had a killer of a clinic but was doing a post- mortem subconsciously of my race. I was particularly interested in my thoughts at each segment of the race.
Pre- race: I was strangely detached though not in a negative way mind you. Rather I was not anxious and did not think very much about the potential difficulties. I was thankful the weather was decent and that my preparation was as good as it is.
Swim: I focused on turning my head and looking at the blue sky and tried to sight every 10 strokes, and kept my breathing even. I was mildly anxious when i noted the other waves were overtaking me and I saw very few yellow cappers. I thought about those hours in the pool and tried to use my core muscles. I emerged 220 of 240 but felt good I kept to my race plan and a heart rate at 130/minute.
Bike: I kept my eye peeled on my speedometer and tried to keep my cadence at 80-90. In the first lap, I focused on following the rules of non-drafting and realized everybody was doing with every given opportunity. I thought of my rudy project glasses and what a scoop for me to have bought it as it really came in handy with the dusty road and the crud you get on on the Sheares bridge. I noticed the debris from the Sands resort at the side of the road. I was conscious of my right quads, then left quads and debated on the merits and demerits of getting out of the saddle given the sorry state of my fatigued muscles. I tried to look for SE but could not see him. On the second lap, the muscles relaxed somewhat and i started to enjoy the ride. I was pedalling with decent efficiency in the aero position. I saw some cool guys with the aero helmets and resolve to buy one when i finally hit average 35 km-40 km/hour( hah that probably means never). By the third lap, I was suffering again, my back and bum was killing me. You know someone once told me you are never consciously aware of your arse till you get hemorrhoids, then it becomes conscious and in the forefront. It pre-occupies your mind with every movement. It was like that with my back and bum. With every pedal stroke, I was experiencing excruciating pain and had to grit my teeth and finish the 10 km.
Run: I focused on running form but before long I was so fatigued I could not go any faster before cramping up. I focused on getting from one aid station to the other and looked at the other runners in a similar plight. WIth all their sunglasses on I could not see in their eyes but could probably fathom what was in their heads.It should probably be like mine, which is "what am I doing fighting as I am fighting to put one foot after the other". I told myself this is where the race starts and I have to dig deep into myself and summon every limited ounce of energy to keep moving. I smiled for the first time when I saw WL and the girls cheering me on excitedly.Who wouldn't? with the finish line in sight, I tried to regain some form and ran past the finish line with a grin on my face, glad it was all over.
So what is next? SE suggested Phuket 70.3; I thought Busselton is a possibility. When I mentioned to WL, she rolled her eyes and said plainly that I was plain looney.
Yes, probably I am but hey you only live once right?
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Aviva Ironman 70.3 2010 weekend
Well in earnest the weekend started on friday; SE and I went to collect our race packs and then attended the race briefing. it was raining a fair bit on Friday. Met up with Albert and old friends William and David from the days of the bintan triathlon and sat in the main mega tent amidst pouring rain for the briefing.
Saturday did not start well. The heavens opened and emptied lots of water on us. My koi pond was full to the brim. The pipe in the pond that was supposed to maintain constant height of water was overwhelmed. The rain abated slightly at 3 pm and i was there to check in the bike. When i reached the transition site, there was a queue about 400 m long! it took us 1 hour to check in our bikes and another half hour to collect our timing chip. not stellar organization i must say.
On race day I got up at 4:30 am had a hearty breakfast before going down to ther ace venue. After body marking it was time to set up my transition.The weather was looking decent but given the overcast sky, i thought i will dispense with the sunblock. bad mistake.
My wave started at 0725 hours and I resolved to use the same strategy from last week. I tried to stay aerobic and develop a nice rhythm. Alas it was not to be, I was kicked a number of times, once smack on the right side of the head and another squarely in the chest. Never did find a rhythm after all these rude shocks but at least i stayed aerobic. finished the first loop at 22 minutes and got out of the water at 5 minutes. There were very few yellow cappers around by then. I surmised i was probably 90th centile in my age group; pretty much unruffled by this now.
Got my bike out and maintained a decent pace on the start. The sheares bridge climb was tough and OKC overtook me then. Gosh he was in a later wave( 5minutes) and had already overtaken me at such an early point. I was making pretty good time and on the return leg of lap 1, my chain came undone again. Had to stop to re-postion the chain but had difficulty getting the momentum going as it was on the bottom of the viaduct climb up ECP and I almost developed cramps. I was worried, given the early problem of cramps i was worried I will have difficulty with the run later. Decided to slow down a little to rest the legs and spin a little. did the first loop in 1:05; the second loop was a lot faster and my cramps had abated so I put in a very decent 2nd loop. The 3rd loop was probably where it went pear shaped a little. My back and my bum was starting to hurt; my quads were also cramping up and by when i neared vivocity i could feel my calves acting up. The crosswinds were getting stronger and i was slowing down to 25 km/hour and by the time i was descending fort road, my bum was getting really sore. i could not get out of the saddle as i was worried my cramps will overwhelm me so i kept myself in the saddle. It was to turning out to be a true sufferfest and i was so glad to be done with the bike leg.
The run leg turned out to be even more painful. The sun was now out in its full glory and I wilted under the heat. It would not be an under-estimation to say i literally gritted my teeth to get through that. I could only take small steps and was not managing more than 7.30/km because any faster and i would go into a state of "status cramiliticus", a state exemplified in cramping of muscles in sequence in areas you least expect that would literally stop your run cold.
Saw my two little girls flying their little banners cheering me on and that picked me up. You always read about the feeling that you get when you cross the finishing line and i was wondering how would i feel. Would i be overcome with emotion and have tears welling up in my eyes, or will i be surveying the crowd savoring the moment or would i be awash with sentiments of accomplishments. In truth I was just so damn glad it was over.
Swim 51:16 min
T1 4 min
Bike 3:15:32
T2 4:50
Run 2:34:35
6:50:13
Overall ranking 691
Saturday did not start well. The heavens opened and emptied lots of water on us. My koi pond was full to the brim. The pipe in the pond that was supposed to maintain constant height of water was overwhelmed. The rain abated slightly at 3 pm and i was there to check in the bike. When i reached the transition site, there was a queue about 400 m long! it took us 1 hour to check in our bikes and another half hour to collect our timing chip. not stellar organization i must say.
On race day I got up at 4:30 am had a hearty breakfast before going down to ther ace venue. After body marking it was time to set up my transition.The weather was looking decent but given the overcast sky, i thought i will dispense with the sunblock. bad mistake.
My wave started at 0725 hours and I resolved to use the same strategy from last week. I tried to stay aerobic and develop a nice rhythm. Alas it was not to be, I was kicked a number of times, once smack on the right side of the head and another squarely in the chest. Never did find a rhythm after all these rude shocks but at least i stayed aerobic. finished the first loop at 22 minutes and got out of the water at 5 minutes. There were very few yellow cappers around by then. I surmised i was probably 90th centile in my age group; pretty much unruffled by this now.
Got my bike out and maintained a decent pace on the start. The sheares bridge climb was tough and OKC overtook me then. Gosh he was in a later wave( 5minutes) and had already overtaken me at such an early point. I was making pretty good time and on the return leg of lap 1, my chain came undone again. Had to stop to re-postion the chain but had difficulty getting the momentum going as it was on the bottom of the viaduct climb up ECP and I almost developed cramps. I was worried, given the early problem of cramps i was worried I will have difficulty with the run later. Decided to slow down a little to rest the legs and spin a little. did the first loop in 1:05; the second loop was a lot faster and my cramps had abated so I put in a very decent 2nd loop. The 3rd loop was probably where it went pear shaped a little. My back and my bum was starting to hurt; my quads were also cramping up and by when i neared vivocity i could feel my calves acting up. The crosswinds were getting stronger and i was slowing down to 25 km/hour and by the time i was descending fort road, my bum was getting really sore. i could not get out of the saddle as i was worried my cramps will overwhelm me so i kept myself in the saddle. It was to turning out to be a true sufferfest and i was so glad to be done with the bike leg.
The run leg turned out to be even more painful. The sun was now out in its full glory and I wilted under the heat. It would not be an under-estimation to say i literally gritted my teeth to get through that. I could only take small steps and was not managing more than 7.30/km because any faster and i would go into a state of "status cramiliticus", a state exemplified in cramping of muscles in sequence in areas you least expect that would literally stop your run cold.
Saw my two little girls flying their little banners cheering me on and that picked me up. You always read about the feeling that you get when you cross the finishing line and i was wondering how would i feel. Would i be overcome with emotion and have tears welling up in my eyes, or will i be surveying the crowd savoring the moment or would i be awash with sentiments of accomplishments. In truth I was just so damn glad it was over.
Swim 51:16 min
T1 4 min
Bike 3:15:32
T2 4:50
Run 2:34:35
6:50:13
Overall ranking 691
Monday, March 15, 2010
Completion of the last week of training
Well after last week of training which was really a tapering, i am not sure if I had done too little. I did decent on swims, included 2 open water swims and 1 pool but did little on the bike and runs. I did 3 tempo runs all less than 5 km and then did one 50 km cycle and the last 2 cycles on the trainer at short durations. clocked 7.5 hours and this week would be doing a lot less.
I suppose its like what pk and the books, you can't do much to gain endurance mileage at this point now. I plan to do light workouts over the next 3 days and then allow friday and saturday for race preparation and rest and quiet contemplation.
5 more days to go!
To all my friends who are doing the race, all the best!
I suppose its like what pk and the books, you can't do much to gain endurance mileage at this point now. I plan to do light workouts over the next 3 days and then allow friday and saturday for race preparation and rest and quiet contemplation.
5 more days to go!
To all my friends who are doing the race, all the best!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Ghost of Open Water Swimming Exorcised
One of the reasons I was interested in doing endurance mulit- sports is not that I am a strong endurance athlete. Far from it. I was a particularly bad swimmer and whilst in my younger days I was keen on scuba diving, I have not swam for more than 13 years after getting married for more than 200m without stopping to sun bathe or have a beer. The thought of swimming in open waters was particularly terrifying when you do not have flotation devices( B.C or breathing apparatus; aka SCUBA gear) and the prospect of drowning after being swept away by a current of dragged under by some unseen force seems so real.
I figured I needed to face my fear and one of the things was I swam a heck of a lot. Taught myself front crawl; took some lessons and watched stacks of videos. Even after having a number of races, I still struggled and could not swim comfortably to get out of the water without a heart rate of less than 140 which of course affected my bike and run legs.
The particular difficulty at the aquatholon where I struggled with 750 m of OW swimming did little for my confidence.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to take part in the Aviva clinic.It was the most valuable lesson in OW swimming I ever did. I realised the problem with my swimming is that I sighted more than what was necessary and because of that I tired very quickly. I also subconsciously followed the pace and cadence of other swimmers. Bad mistakes which took up valuable energy.
Yesterday in the lengthy swim i learnt to draft, sight judiciously and stay relaxed during the swim to keep in the aerobic range. I actually enjoyed the swim and got out refreshed and for the first time a heart rate of 140!
I figured I needed to face my fear and one of the things was I swam a heck of a lot. Taught myself front crawl; took some lessons and watched stacks of videos. Even after having a number of races, I still struggled and could not swim comfortably to get out of the water without a heart rate of less than 140 which of course affected my bike and run legs.
The particular difficulty at the aquatholon where I struggled with 750 m of OW swimming did little for my confidence.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to take part in the Aviva clinic.It was the most valuable lesson in OW swimming I ever did. I realised the problem with my swimming is that I sighted more than what was necessary and because of that I tired very quickly. I also subconsciously followed the pace and cadence of other swimmers. Bad mistakes which took up valuable energy.
Yesterday in the lengthy swim i learnt to draft, sight judiciously and stay relaxed during the swim to keep in the aerobic range. I actually enjoyed the swim and got out refreshed and for the first time a heart rate of 140!
Saturday, March 13, 2010
I wanna do the the Milo triathlon 2010 because I want my father to be proud of me
That's what abigail wrote on her Milo triathlon entry slip in response to a question on why she wanted to participate. This girl at 10 years of age looks like a 7 year old; is the third smallest in her standard and rarely does anything physical but was quite adamant about it sometime ago. I hadn't done anything to really encourage her but she must have seen me in the early morning coming back from cycling when she was preparing to go to school or me running in the late afternoons. She was always curious. " Dad, are you racing to win? Why do you go out there in the early mornings and put yourself through all that when you are always amongst the last? Do you really enjoy all this torture??" To a 10 year old whose main interests are makeup and dressing up and counts for characters on the Disney channels sitcoms and movies as role models, I find the questions amusing and in the early days thought that I should answer some of these questions as candidly as possible. Its the "spirit of participation that matters". Its a healthy lifestyle and i want to keep myself fit as long as possible to see you get married and have kids and your children have kids. I am going to give your mum a run for the money to see who lives longer. Occasionally it is the more subtle lessons of life; like learning discipline, learning to deny yourself as you work towards a goal. pushing your limits.
All that talk must have sunk into that little mind. She tool the opportunity to do open water swimming at the Tribob aquatholon; cycled at the Clementi cannel and ran around the neighbourhood. She had a mild flu 2 days before the event and we thought she would probably use that to back out but she didn't. On race day she was first up and was sufficiently bright eyed and bushy tailed for me to think she will truly go though with this. She swam her heart out, and pedalled as furiously as she could muster and finally in the run she pushed herself to the limit. as i ran with her i could encourage her. I saw her grit her teeth and sprint at the home stretch.
She was a little green about the gills from over-exertion but she gave it her all.
Yeah, the old man was immensely proud of her achievements that saturday morning. Well done Gail!
All that talk must have sunk into that little mind. She tool the opportunity to do open water swimming at the Tribob aquatholon; cycled at the Clementi cannel and ran around the neighbourhood. She had a mild flu 2 days before the event and we thought she would probably use that to back out but she didn't. On race day she was first up and was sufficiently bright eyed and bushy tailed for me to think she will truly go though with this. She swam her heart out, and pedalled as furiously as she could muster and finally in the run she pushed herself to the limit. as i ran with her i could encourage her. I saw her grit her teeth and sprint at the home stretch.
She was a little green about the gills from over-exertion but she gave it her all.
Monday, March 8, 2010
A sense of loss
For almost 2 years now i had kept a little logbook of how much I have spent on bike, swim and run workouts. In Oct 2008, i decided to make dreams a reality by starting in earnest my training for a tri event. it probably coincided with me signing up for the tribob event. In fact I was so early with my registration that my bib no was 4! some chaps thought i was some elite age grouper then! Well that little notebook chornicles in a way all that i have done since i started on this journey. it records every workout and all the data is tabulated so that i can sort of see my progress. I must admit looking at my progress through the log is like watching paint dry. The improvement is almost indiscernible. Its only when you look at it after 12 months that you see some improvement in my times.
well yesterday, in all the hectic running in between hospitals,clinics and ward rounds, i left it somewhere . okay okay i lost it. i don't even have a clue where i left it. i spent a good hour back tracking to no avail.
its then that i feel a sense of loss, the chronicles of my journey into endurance multisports probably lost forever. its probably not critical at this point of my training and leading up to the last 2 weeks to the race but its akin to losing like your comfort pillow. you can't help feeling a sense of loss. in this regar i am thankful i have this entries to chronicle at least the last 3 months activity and also my garmin data which has detailed all the info since july last year.
well yesterday, in all the hectic running in between hospitals,clinics and ward rounds, i left it somewhere . okay okay i lost it. i don't even have a clue where i left it. i spent a good hour back tracking to no avail.
its then that i feel a sense of loss, the chronicles of my journey into endurance multisports probably lost forever. its probably not critical at this point of my training and leading up to the last 2 weeks to the race but its akin to losing like your comfort pillow. you can't help feeling a sense of loss. in this regar i am thankful i have this entries to chronicle at least the last 3 months activity and also my garmin data which has detailed all the info since july last year.
Tough Weekend!!
The weekend's workouts were a real killer. I joined SE starting at 6 am for his killer routine which was guaranteed to be a suffer fest. Started with a 50 km ride which by a miscalculation became 60 km which was immediately followed by a 8 km run at 7 min/km pace. I was still quite all right but the ride did take a bit of a toll on me. Had some trouble getting the tires up to the right pressure; must be the valve we conclude. The trouble is other than the obvious which is a real risk of getting a flat, the problem was rolling resistance which i could feel was really high on my wheels that day.
After the brick run, we went for a 23 km cycle and that was when i really felt it. I slowed to 23 km/hr and struggled to stay on the road. after that we went on a 1 km tempo run. By 500 m, my heart rate was 170 and i slowed to a crawl and fell behind SE. I was so glad he stopped and announce the workout was over.
Decided I would really need to bring my bike in. The guys at the shop went through the bike; felt the tires and checked the crank and the chain and remarked wrly that I was probably next to loony to cycle in that condition.
The girls wanted to ride in the late afternoon and I decided to bring them to the canal for a ride and then thought i should do a 4 km tempo run. bad mistake, i was really knackered and could barely catch my breath.
I was incorrigible and on sunday decided to do a 20 km long run starting at 10 am. After yesterday's exertion i was probably mad to do clementi hills. i slowed to a 8 min/k trot to keep my heart rate less than 140/minute. Took me 2:30 to finish 20 km. Tried out my caffeine gels which was not to bad.
All in all a good weekend; i probably overdid it but I should be able to finish the race on race day by 8 hours... hopefully!!
After the brick run, we went for a 23 km cycle and that was when i really felt it. I slowed to 23 km/hr and struggled to stay on the road. after that we went on a 1 km tempo run. By 500 m, my heart rate was 170 and i slowed to a crawl and fell behind SE. I was so glad he stopped and announce the workout was over.
Decided I would really need to bring my bike in. The guys at the shop went through the bike; felt the tires and checked the crank and the chain and remarked wrly that I was probably next to loony to cycle in that condition.
The girls wanted to ride in the late afternoon and I decided to bring them to the canal for a ride and then thought i should do a 4 km tempo run. bad mistake, i was really knackered and could barely catch my breath.
I was incorrigible and on sunday decided to do a 20 km long run starting at 10 am. After yesterday's exertion i was probably mad to do clementi hills. i slowed to a 8 min/k trot to keep my heart rate less than 140/minute. Took me 2:30 to finish 20 km. Tried out my caffeine gels which was not to bad.
All in all a good weekend; i probably overdid it but I should be able to finish the race on race day by 8 hours... hopefully!!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Its less than 3 weeks to go!
I admit I really had cold feet. I was doubting if my preparations were adequate. That despite all that effort in the last few months, my physical attributes and strengths are truly not quite up to scratch. My good mate SE gave me some timely advice: finishing dead last> DNF( did not finish)> DNS( did not start). Great advice indeed. I promptly went out and did a long run of 20 km incorporating the hills of clementi and north buona vista and ulu pandan road. Had to carry the good old water bag( is that what you call it?) on my bag because weather was scorching and kept a slow pace of more than 7 km/min, aiming to run at a HR of not more than 140 on the straight and not more than 160 on the climbs. Took me 2 and a quarter hours but at least felt half decent. Also did a time trial in the pool of 2 km and completed it in 55 minutes with a combination of frontcrawl( with sighting) and occasionally breaststroke to simulate the turns. Also did a 60 minute workout climbing rifle range 3 times. The bike had been given a clean bill of health by the boys at Soon Watt and it was my first outing since the fateful crash. Was funny, went i mounted the bike i almost fell again this time on the right! landed on the bonnet of a parked jaguar! Thank goodness it was unscathed and there was nobody in sight to witness that embarassing moment. Did 3 loops huffing and puffing. my heart rate was 170 on the upslopes. had to avoid families of monkeys who by 630 were sitting in the middle of the road as they were not expecting any traffic. had to weave past them. i shudder to think of the possibility of me hitting them. given their close social structure, they would probably attack me if i was on the ground with a twisted bike after mowing down a couple of them. i know how sharp and fearsome their teeth are. i saw it at first hand at the lab!
as i move into the weekend, i have planned a bike-run-bike-run with SE tomorrow and hopefully i can do another hard bike followed by a short brick on sunday.
as i move into the weekend, i have planned a bike-run-bike-run with SE tomorrow and hopefully i can do another hard bike followed by a short brick on sunday.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Bike Crash
Saturday was supposed to be our round island 100 km bike. we started out at half past 4 at SE ' s house and to be honest it was an enjoyable ride. We took on the Kaki Bukit Viaduct, Yio Chu Kang, Mandai, Clement and Keppel. We were riding down Nicholl highway with me leading the way and PK, CH and SE behind in that order. At the 84 km mark I was riding in aero when I hit something on the road. It was a moment's lapse in concentration. I veered into the wall on the highway and had to counter correct the swerve into the wall. As luck would have it the correction was probably in excess and I skidded, took a tumble and roll over on my shoulder. another split skin graft except this time on my right shoulder. I rolled over my bike a couple of times and felt the wheel of a bike hit my right scapula and SE's infinit which he has passed to me to try emptied all over me.
I looked up and was stunned to see the whole gang had gone done. PK had somersaulted beyond me and looked a bit dazed. It was only later that we realised he had fractured his left clavicle. Went to CGH and then Gleneagles before ascertaining that he did not need surgery( thank God!)
I think something like that will change your perspective of things. I wonder if the sluggishness this week has something that has changed me mentally. I would say there have been quite a fair bit of negative thoughts, like what if my training is inadequate? or like"who am i trying to kid!? i am not that young anymore". Well i have done little since then except for the sprint aquathalon). I got out of the water with a heart rate of 170 which of course truly wrecked my run. I could only manage 6 min/km and was really tired during the run. The swim was half of what I will have to do in 3 weeks time!
In a way this is pretty much crunch time isn't it. Its where self doubt can creep in and weaken your resolve. where negative sentiments and fear makes you want to retreat and do an about turn. It is the time where i would hope i can dig really dip and examine my heart; it is the time where mental barriers are broken and we know the true limits of our human strength.
I looked up and was stunned to see the whole gang had gone done. PK had somersaulted beyond me and looked a bit dazed. It was only later that we realised he had fractured his left clavicle. Went to CGH and then Gleneagles before ascertaining that he did not need surgery( thank God!)
I think something like that will change your perspective of things. I wonder if the sluggishness this week has something that has changed me mentally. I would say there have been quite a fair bit of negative thoughts, like what if my training is inadequate? or like"who am i trying to kid!? i am not that young anymore". Well i have done little since then except for the sprint aquathalon). I got out of the water with a heart rate of 170 which of course truly wrecked my run. I could only manage 6 min/km and was really tired during the run. The swim was half of what I will have to do in 3 weeks time!
In a way this is pretty much crunch time isn't it. Its where self doubt can creep in and weaken your resolve. where negative sentiments and fear makes you want to retreat and do an about turn. It is the time where i would hope i can dig really dip and examine my heart; it is the time where mental barriers are broken and we know the true limits of our human strength.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
About swimming...
what is it about swim training for tri's that truly vexes me? i have spent quite a fair bit of time invested in the pool to build aerobic fitness. This week was a 1000 m x 2 swim keeping mainly in the aerobic range on monday followed by a speed session on friday of 10 x 100 m swims. On sunday tho when i was supposed to have quite a breeze swimming the 750 m, i was surprised( horrified!) that i was faced with the same problem as previous open water outings. I was tired, wheezing and struggled as i sputtered through the swim. I was so thankful at the halfway point to be out of the water to catch my breath if actually for just that short moment. My swim time was pretty decent actually, about 16 min which was an improvement from last year but that brought me scant relief.
Halfway through the swim i really had second thoughts about the aviva swim. i am starting to think that i would really struggle and may not make the cut-of 1:10.
Of course saturday's bike crash where pk ended up with a fractured clavicle didn't help. on sunday i had to get into the race with the right side of my body covered with abrasions and a badly swollen right hand. not being able to move my middle and ring finger and hence not pulling effectively really did not help my cause.
with my hand all swollen today and increasingly painful, i am actually worried i may have had a worse injury with my writs. i had better do an x ray to sort that out.
Halfway through the swim i really had second thoughts about the aviva swim. i am starting to think that i would really struggle and may not make the cut-of 1:10.
Of course saturday's bike crash where pk ended up with a fractured clavicle didn't help. on sunday i had to get into the race with the right side of my body covered with abrasions and a badly swollen right hand. not being able to move my middle and ring finger and hence not pulling effectively really did not help my cause.
with my hand all swollen today and increasingly painful, i am actually worried i may have had a worse injury with my writs. i had better do an x ray to sort that out.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Another milestone week.
well i did 15 hours on the trot last week. With the new year holidays firmly behind us, I had a number of long cases lined up and i was rather concerned about whether I would have the time or energy to keep training. In fact, I did a very slow swim of 50 odd laps on wednesday; on thusday, I was in the pool this time for a fast half hour swim before doing a 3 and a half loop up rifle range route lasting an hour and then doing a quick brick running 5 km. I was so tired on friday i had to take a break and on saturday, I did a 117 km bike ride with ch. Just the 2 of us, me starting at 330 doing a single Mandai loop before meeting him at 5 am for the rest.On sunday i did another mid morning running and managed to cover 16 km of undulating hills before calling it.
This week would be a bit less in terms of hours but i am sure higher in terms of intensity!
This week would be a bit less in terms of hours but i am sure higher in terms of intensity!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
A New Week and a New Challenge
After 3 days of enforced rest, I was all ready to re-start my sputtering campaign. I was due to ride 120 km with the FOTR gang and a reunion dinner beforehand certainly helped in the carbo laoding but this was undone by some alcohol ingestion( definitely not so clever) although I tried to do so moderately. I had just finished my antibiotic course and was beginning to feel a little better.
I woke up at 2:30 am and was ready for SE and PK at 330 am to do the 4 loops of CCR and selarang. Forgot i was on call and on the first loop had a number of calls and issues to sort out causing me to miss the turn on the road to the climb. Met the second wave guys( CH, SY, JN, WL) at 530 am for the remaining 3 loops.
By the 4th loop, I was feeling tired, and could not get comfortable whether it was riding aero or straight up on the saddle. there was a niggling tug at the insertion of my hamstrings but we kept at a speed of 31 km/h. I told myself to dig deep mentally and focused on deep controlled breathing.
There was a quiet air of achievement as we crossed 125 km, of breaking through the pain barrier. One of the things about training a race like this was personally redefining for myself what was possible and reconsidering my own limits and that the improbability was really an obstacle of the mind and not of the body.
I had the niggling discomfort all the day long but went out on a run( 15 km) on the hills of clementi and nus at 1030 which went well. My HR though was going at 160 throughout and i perspired bucketloads but finished strong.
On Tuesday, FOTR's gathered again this time on a 80 km ride through Mandai, Neo Tiew and Buroh, Keppel, this time a t a slower average speed of 25-26 km/h.
Its down to the last month of training now; and I think the aerobic base training would shift into a different gear into more race specific training and taper for the last 4 weeks for me.
Target times for the Aviva 70.3:
Swim 740-840( 60 minutes swim)
Bike 840-1155( 3 hrs 15 minutes)
Run 1155-1410( 2hr 15 min)
overall: 6:30
I woke up at 2:30 am and was ready for SE and PK at 330 am to do the 4 loops of CCR and selarang. Forgot i was on call and on the first loop had a number of calls and issues to sort out causing me to miss the turn on the road to the climb. Met the second wave guys( CH, SY, JN, WL) at 530 am for the remaining 3 loops.
By the 4th loop, I was feeling tired, and could not get comfortable whether it was riding aero or straight up on the saddle. there was a niggling tug at the insertion of my hamstrings but we kept at a speed of 31 km/h. I told myself to dig deep mentally and focused on deep controlled breathing.
There was a quiet air of achievement as we crossed 125 km, of breaking through the pain barrier. One of the things about training a race like this was personally redefining for myself what was possible and reconsidering my own limits and that the improbability was really an obstacle of the mind and not of the body.
I had the niggling discomfort all the day long but went out on a run( 15 km) on the hills of clementi and nus at 1030 which went well. My HR though was going at 160 throughout and i perspired bucketloads but finished strong.
On Tuesday, FOTR's gathered again this time on a 80 km ride through Mandai, Neo Tiew and Buroh, Keppel, this time a t a slower average speed of 25-26 km/h.
Its down to the last month of training now; and I think the aerobic base training would shift into a different gear into more race specific training and taper for the last 4 weeks for me.
Target times for the Aviva 70.3:
Swim 740-840( 60 minutes swim)
Bike 840-1155( 3 hrs 15 minutes)
Run 1155-1410( 2hr 15 min)
overall: 6:30
Friday, February 12, 2010
Enforced Rest
After last week workouts, i was feeling good and thought I should be able to rack up more time with decent workouts. I rested on Monday and on tuesday hit the pool and did 60 laps( 10 x 6 ) completing it in 1:35( minus the rest). I was really feeling good and was thinking of joining the joyriders for a mid-week ride followed by another brick run. By the evening however, I was n't feeling too well and the back of my throat felt raspy and it got more sore as the hours wore on. In the early hours of the morning, I had a full blown URTI and had to start medicating myself. WL was surprised, remarking that that was the first time I have taken meds for a flu in our 14 years of marriage. " Must be the thought of the Aviva" she quipped. I was forced to agree sheepishly. I wanted to get back into shape as soon as possible as there is a 120 km ride on saturday, one i would be most disappointed to miss. I must admit I am not 100% but I feel after 3 days of enforced rest, I am in morbid fear of my aerobic fitness ebbing away through this bout of illness. PK felt I was over-training and I probably was. I am not in my twenties and I should have been more cognizant of that.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Why all the Swimming?
I am weak in swimming, biking and running and the logical structure of any training program would be to focus more on a weak section. On my end i should be the bike or swim but i have subconsciously been more worried about my swimming. My workouts over the last 2 months will reveal that i spend a disproportionate time in the pool. I spent 1 hour 45 minutes in the pool today doing 6 sets of 10 laps each at rpe 5. I was working on coordinating my kicking and keeping my body horizontal in the water. I was paying attention to the position of my hands as it entered the water. I averaged a slow 15 minutes per set but felt good as i left the pool.
Why is there a personal effort to logged the laps then over cycling or running? Well I have never been much of a swimmer and as I may have mentioned before I have never managed more than 2 laps in the pool of front crawl until the grand old age of 42. As such I needed to get up to speed so i can do justice to any multisport event i participate in.
In the last open water events, I was anxious and probably hyperventilated. The mask was too tight, water too choppy, I was too winded and i was swimming all over the place, situations that did not help my timing at all. But that was not on my mind when I was in the water. I remembered my first event and prayed before i hit the water:" God don"t let me drown!" i think that must be the most fearful thing to happen. the choking and the water in your nose and all the fearful things.
That must be the subliminal message i am sending to myself that motivates me to swim harder in the pool; to improve my aerobic fitness to minimise that phobia footprint from being anything more than a baby size one. Will I be ever rid of that? probably not but I am glad I am facing it. I can change what I am afraid of and face it not in a foolhardy way but to make proper preparations to deal effectively with it.
Why is there a personal effort to logged the laps then over cycling or running? Well I have never been much of a swimmer and as I may have mentioned before I have never managed more than 2 laps in the pool of front crawl until the grand old age of 42. As such I needed to get up to speed so i can do justice to any multisport event i participate in.
In the last open water events, I was anxious and probably hyperventilated. The mask was too tight, water too choppy, I was too winded and i was swimming all over the place, situations that did not help my timing at all. But that was not on my mind when I was in the water. I remembered my first event and prayed before i hit the water:" God don"t let me drown!" i think that must be the most fearful thing to happen. the choking and the water in your nose and all the fearful things.
That must be the subliminal message i am sending to myself that motivates me to swim harder in the pool; to improve my aerobic fitness to minimise that phobia footprint from being anything more than a baby size one. Will I be ever rid of that? probably not but I am glad I am facing it. I can change what I am afraid of and face it not in a foolhardy way but to make proper preparations to deal effectively with it.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Been a While but I haven't been slacking
Its has been a bit before my last entry. During this time I have put a fair bit of time; after the success of the last week ( and entry), i only mananged 6 sessions( 2 each) but managed the following:
S 4.5 km( 2.15)
B 143 kmk( 5:15)
R 18.5 km( 1:30)
The highlight would have to be the century ride with SE, starting at 3:30 am completing 3 loops of CCR- Selarang. Also a workout was a wednesday workout with Jr followed by a 8 km brick running the hills of Clementi.
This week, I increased my time and clocked 12:13( 10 workouts with 4 bikes, 3 swims and 3 runs). I put quite a bit of time in the pool building aerobic fitness( and did a total of 130 laps). Was feeling a little sluggish but scapped myself off the floor and went to the pool to do 60 laps.
Bike mileage was a little lesser. It included a wednesday JR session where i was dropped on the first hill of Mandai; I was holding a decent speed of 33 km/h when I suddenly ran out of gas at the first hill and slithered to an incredible 18 km/h. Was second last into the Shell station which was sobering. Not withstanding I did a run and did 10 km on hills of Clementi and Buona Vista which partially ameliorated my bruised ego!( haha!)
On thursday I did a easy 20 lap pool session in 30 minutes, then did 2.5 loops at RRR and then a 30 minute brick run of 4.5 km.( This came at the back of one craniofacial tumour and an aneurysm clipping). Friday was a mental toughness day where I did intervals of 14 laps x 3; completing in 65 minutes and then had to go back and do a brainstem tumour case which i must confess felt easier than the week had been!
Saturday was supposed to be another century ride but SE had a fever and I copped out, meeting JN to do a 70 km. Traffic was especially heavy at Jln Boon Lay and we had to contend with a lot of heavy vehicles. When we reached Clementi road, we caught a wiff of the most amazing aroma of roti prata curry and I suggested we take a break to stuff our faces. JN was no resistance( thank God!) and we happily tucked into roti pratas before tackling Clementi road.
Today was a special treat CH joined us and we decided to do a 40 km recovery ride especially as SE had a fever only yesterday and we had done 70 km yesterday. It was CH 's call that was the catalyst to do the ride today. The rallying call meant we did a 40 km ride through Mandai and we went up clementi road bridge- commonwealth road. CH had a close shave with an errant SBS bus that came to close for comfort. I heard a wail behind coming from him before feeling the bus brush pass me very shortly thereafter. Well if it was a near miss, CH certainly hit the jackpot hitting the road when he couldn't get his clips off the pedal on time, all fault is mine though! I decided not to beat the traffic light at the last moment and CH thought otherwise. I turned around and saw him in a heap. He got up unscathed but not before he some abuse on me. Sorry CH!
went for a quick ward round and then thought i should do a short run up 6 th avenue at 11 am to simulate race conditions( i am sure it will be blazing that day!). Did 8.5 km in 50 minutes( about 6/km) and saw my heart race go up to 160 and averaging 150-155 throughout.
so all in all a great week!
Total 12:13
Swim 6.5 km( 3:14) 3 sessions
Bike 165 km( 6:20) 4 sessions
Run 34.05 km( 2:55) 3 sessions
S 4.5 km( 2.15)
B 143 kmk( 5:15)
R 18.5 km( 1:30)
The highlight would have to be the century ride with SE, starting at 3:30 am completing 3 loops of CCR- Selarang. Also a workout was a wednesday workout with Jr followed by a 8 km brick running the hills of Clementi.
This week, I increased my time and clocked 12:13( 10 workouts with 4 bikes, 3 swims and 3 runs). I put quite a bit of time in the pool building aerobic fitness( and did a total of 130 laps). Was feeling a little sluggish but scapped myself off the floor and went to the pool to do 60 laps.
Bike mileage was a little lesser. It included a wednesday JR session where i was dropped on the first hill of Mandai; I was holding a decent speed of 33 km/h when I suddenly ran out of gas at the first hill and slithered to an incredible 18 km/h. Was second last into the Shell station which was sobering. Not withstanding I did a run and did 10 km on hills of Clementi and Buona Vista which partially ameliorated my bruised ego!( haha!)
On thursday I did a easy 20 lap pool session in 30 minutes, then did 2.5 loops at RRR and then a 30 minute brick run of 4.5 km.( This came at the back of one craniofacial tumour and an aneurysm clipping). Friday was a mental toughness day where I did intervals of 14 laps x 3; completing in 65 minutes and then had to go back and do a brainstem tumour case which i must confess felt easier than the week had been!
Saturday was supposed to be another century ride but SE had a fever and I copped out, meeting JN to do a 70 km. Traffic was especially heavy at Jln Boon Lay and we had to contend with a lot of heavy vehicles. When we reached Clementi road, we caught a wiff of the most amazing aroma of roti prata curry and I suggested we take a break to stuff our faces. JN was no resistance( thank God!) and we happily tucked into roti pratas before tackling Clementi road.
Today was a special treat CH joined us and we decided to do a 40 km recovery ride especially as SE had a fever only yesterday and we had done 70 km yesterday. It was CH 's call that was the catalyst to do the ride today. The rallying call meant we did a 40 km ride through Mandai and we went up clementi road bridge- commonwealth road. CH had a close shave with an errant SBS bus that came to close for comfort. I heard a wail behind coming from him before feeling the bus brush pass me very shortly thereafter. Well if it was a near miss, CH certainly hit the jackpot hitting the road when he couldn't get his clips off the pedal on time, all fault is mine though! I decided not to beat the traffic light at the last moment and CH thought otherwise. I turned around and saw him in a heap. He got up unscathed but not before he some abuse on me. Sorry CH!
went for a quick ward round and then thought i should do a short run up 6 th avenue at 11 am to simulate race conditions( i am sure it will be blazing that day!). Did 8.5 km in 50 minutes( about 6/km) and saw my heart race go up to 160 and averaging 150-155 throughout.
so all in all a great week!
Total 12:13
Swim 6.5 km( 3:14) 3 sessions
Bike 165 km( 6:20) 4 sessions
Run 34.05 km( 2:55) 3 sessions
Monday, January 25, 2010
Twelve hour week
I arrived at a new milestone last week. I completed 12 hours of workouts which had 4 bikes, 4 swims and 2 runs( both bricks). I thought the last few weeks I have been rather soft with myself and resolved to ramp it up. I completed 6 km of swimming and tried to practice bilateral breathing. Not very successful but at least I can get a bit further than the last few attempts.
On the bike, i started the week on Monday with a 3 loop RRR ride after a 1.7km swim. I rode with the joyriders on wednesday and kept up with them till Mandai road when I got dropped but at least I held some ground this time so I felt good. On saturday, JN, BFG and I did a long ride where we did bukit-timah-Clementi rd-Commonwealth- Farrer-Adam-Thomson-Mandai-Kraji-Neo Tiew-Lim Chu Kang-Jln Buroh-Westcoast. JN develoepd cramps and we had to stop for a while. We continued and climbed up Keppel and then the West Coast highway till Vivo city. I had heard a lot about Keppel and was mildy dissapointed that the climb was a bit short. We cycled into a head wind adn according to BFG were riding at 35 km/h( although i had no idea as my watch had gone to sleep!). We got off and then went on the AYE! Turned off at lower delta road and went back on Paterson, Scotts and Stevens road. All in all i did 90 km in 3.5hours( not counting stop points).
I thought i spent so much energy that I was positively falt on Sunday and could barely keep up on the FOTR. In fact i was so out of sorts that I elected not to climb RRR. I felt a little better in the afternoon nd was able to do a slow 8 km run over 50 minutes. I deliberately timed it before the sun grew milder to make sure i simulated race conditions. I would need to do a lot more runs in the sun as I think I will hit the run leg at about 12 noon so I might as well get used to it.I used my HRM and tried to keep HR less than 160 throughtout which was not easy as any mild exertion sent by hr soaring.it was almost a 6:30 per km that i did.
At this moment i shall target for the following
S 1 hour
B 3:15 hours
R 2:20 for a race time of 6:35- 7 hours
On the bike, i started the week on Monday with a 3 loop RRR ride after a 1.7km swim. I rode with the joyriders on wednesday and kept up with them till Mandai road when I got dropped but at least I held some ground this time so I felt good. On saturday, JN, BFG and I did a long ride where we did bukit-timah-Clementi rd-Commonwealth- Farrer-Adam-Thomson-Mandai-Kraji-Neo Tiew-Lim Chu Kang-Jln Buroh-Westcoast. JN develoepd cramps and we had to stop for a while. We continued and climbed up Keppel and then the West Coast highway till Vivo city. I had heard a lot about Keppel and was mildy dissapointed that the climb was a bit short. We cycled into a head wind adn according to BFG were riding at 35 km/h( although i had no idea as my watch had gone to sleep!). We got off and then went on the AYE! Turned off at lower delta road and went back on Paterson, Scotts and Stevens road. All in all i did 90 km in 3.5hours( not counting stop points).
I thought i spent so much energy that I was positively falt on Sunday and could barely keep up on the FOTR. In fact i was so out of sorts that I elected not to climb RRR. I felt a little better in the afternoon nd was able to do a slow 8 km run over 50 minutes. I deliberately timed it before the sun grew milder to make sure i simulated race conditions. I would need to do a lot more runs in the sun as I think I will hit the run leg at about 12 noon so I might as well get used to it.I used my HRM and tried to keep HR less than 160 throughtout which was not easy as any mild exertion sent by hr soaring.it was almost a 6:30 per km that i did.
At this moment i shall target for the following
S 1 hour
B 3:15 hours
R 2:20 for a race time of 6:35- 7 hours
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Counting My Blessing's and being Thankful
Too often, we fall into a mood of self reproach and pity, bemoaning our plight of not making as much money as our private colleagues, or not having the lungs and legs of our friends who appear to swim, bike or run faster than us. We fret about the inadequacies within our lives. Of our kids not being the bright students that they should be and our spouses not as understanding as they should be.
Three days ago, I was cycling 45 km and was trying to get some climbs on the overhead ramps and undulating hills of Clementi, Queensway, Farrer and Mandai road and feeling frustrated that after 2 months of riding, I still found it as every bit tiring as the first outing. I must admit feeling a bit down; gosh i most likely will end up being bottom 5th centile at the race given my speed and endurance level.
The I went to work and spoke to one of my patients GL( not her real initials). She was a young spritely girl who has just graduated a few years and had begun work in a promising career as a professional and all seemed great and the future was as good as she could imagine to be. She had a great boyfriend and while they have not touched on issues of matrimony, she could really see her married life taking shape. She had some headaches for a number of months and she she brushed it off, attributing it to stress. The headaches did not go away and she began to feel a lot sleepier and tired. She was found a week before christmas by her mother collapsed in the toilet. She was brought to hospital and a brain scan showed a tumour. She told me she could not believe it. What she did not know was that this was a brain tumour in the part of the brain called the brainstem, which is the part of the brain that connects the forebrain to the spinal cord. Its a critical part of neurological real estate and its where the brain fibres cone down from the numerous centres of the control through a narrow passageway as they pass to subserve their various functions in the body; sort of like a neurological Kyber pass. There was also the matter of swallowing control, heart rate and blood pressure controls and breathing control centres within millimetres of the tumoour. If you think this is bad news, the news just got worse. This is a tumour of blood vessels and to make surgery more complicated was the fact that she could bleed to death.
I laid the facts bare for her. She had by then been put on the ventilator as we were worried she could stop breathing. I watched her eyes widened , then lowered in abject depression. The operation was going to be a very long one and carries a signifiant chance that she would never wake up or be completely ventilator dependent and disabled, paralysed from the neck downwards. She fought back tears and asked to be alone. She called me back to the room after 15 mintues and wrote in a notebook that she was going through the operation and for me to speak with her ageing parents to allay their fears. I operated for 12 hours and finished at 1 am and it was a difficult procedure.
She awoke and it took us a full 3 weeks to get her off the ventilator. She was still weak and it will be months before she will be able to walk. In the morning I saw her and she never failed to be me a weak smile and a half formed thumbs up. She would write " I am getting better!" complete with the exclamation mark. Her strength of spirit was indomitable. She refused to back down. I look at her and know that she will take a long time to regain full ability if ever and then she will have to pick up the pieces again. The hospitalisation probably would have put a financial strain on her as she is an only child and her parents are old.
"This has been life changing for me doc." she writes. " I have come to value life more and be thankful for every inch of improvement I make because I was going to die without the surgery. Surgery was painful and I have gone through significant moments of trials and tribulations but what doesn't kill me will make me stronger".
It took a young girl's sharing of her illness to remind me of life's mercies and joys. I felt ashamed, while I was fretting about my hapless cycling ability, this girl was fighting for her life. I was grateful she shared this with me. Too often, surgery is about correcting diseased anatomy and we forget occasionally under those blue drapes is a human being with hopes and dreams not unlike ours.
Three days ago, I was cycling 45 km and was trying to get some climbs on the overhead ramps and undulating hills of Clementi, Queensway, Farrer and Mandai road and feeling frustrated that after 2 months of riding, I still found it as every bit tiring as the first outing. I must admit feeling a bit down; gosh i most likely will end up being bottom 5th centile at the race given my speed and endurance level.
The I went to work and spoke to one of my patients GL( not her real initials). She was a young spritely girl who has just graduated a few years and had begun work in a promising career as a professional and all seemed great and the future was as good as she could imagine to be. She had a great boyfriend and while they have not touched on issues of matrimony, she could really see her married life taking shape. She had some headaches for a number of months and she she brushed it off, attributing it to stress. The headaches did not go away and she began to feel a lot sleepier and tired. She was found a week before christmas by her mother collapsed in the toilet. She was brought to hospital and a brain scan showed a tumour. She told me she could not believe it. What she did not know was that this was a brain tumour in the part of the brain called the brainstem, which is the part of the brain that connects the forebrain to the spinal cord. Its a critical part of neurological real estate and its where the brain fibres cone down from the numerous centres of the control through a narrow passageway as they pass to subserve their various functions in the body; sort of like a neurological Kyber pass. There was also the matter of swallowing control, heart rate and blood pressure controls and breathing control centres within millimetres of the tumoour. If you think this is bad news, the news just got worse. This is a tumour of blood vessels and to make surgery more complicated was the fact that she could bleed to death.
I laid the facts bare for her. She had by then been put on the ventilator as we were worried she could stop breathing. I watched her eyes widened , then lowered in abject depression. The operation was going to be a very long one and carries a signifiant chance that she would never wake up or be completely ventilator dependent and disabled, paralysed from the neck downwards. She fought back tears and asked to be alone. She called me back to the room after 15 mintues and wrote in a notebook that she was going through the operation and for me to speak with her ageing parents to allay their fears. I operated for 12 hours and finished at 1 am and it was a difficult procedure.
She awoke and it took us a full 3 weeks to get her off the ventilator. She was still weak and it will be months before she will be able to walk. In the morning I saw her and she never failed to be me a weak smile and a half formed thumbs up. She would write " I am getting better!" complete with the exclamation mark. Her strength of spirit was indomitable. She refused to back down. I look at her and know that she will take a long time to regain full ability if ever and then she will have to pick up the pieces again. The hospitalisation probably would have put a financial strain on her as she is an only child and her parents are old.
"This has been life changing for me doc." she writes. " I have come to value life more and be thankful for every inch of improvement I make because I was going to die without the surgery. Surgery was painful and I have gone through significant moments of trials and tribulations but what doesn't kill me will make me stronger".
It took a young girl's sharing of her illness to remind me of life's mercies and joys. I felt ashamed, while I was fretting about my hapless cycling ability, this girl was fighting for her life. I was grateful she shared this with me. Too often, surgery is about correcting diseased anatomy and we forget occasionally under those blue drapes is a human being with hopes and dreams not unlike ours.
Friday, January 15, 2010
A Real Hectic Week
I was raring to go after nursing the flu for last 3 days of the last week. I hadn't recovered fully but I felt so lethargic that I felt compelled to go out and ride. Had a superb ride and did 41 km in 1:45; not the fastest and on the coastal I didn't have the lungs or legs to follow PK, HC and JN but was at least able to keep them in my sights which was better than nothing! Learnt to get out of my saddle to climb and practice the "ol' scrapping gum from the sole" drill.
I followed it with a 50 lap swim in the pool and felt really good about it. Took 1:30 but I felt good at the end of the session and was able to do another bike on Tuesday and rode 45 km, taking a slightly longer route, going down Bukit Timah, Clementi and Commonwealth and then down Farrer road to Lornie before doing the old familiar route again. By the time I hit Bukit Timah, traffic was heavy and got impossible at Nanyang Girl's. I had cars horning me, one passed by me so close I could feel the side mirror shave my wrist. Another pushed me towards the medial line of the double yellow and that;s when I decided I had enough and stopped and then walked across the bridge before making the rest of the journey back home cycling back to the estate, quietly resolving to finish cycling by 6:30 before the rest of Singapore wakes up and rushes to school.
At this age, a crash and a broken long bone would probably signal the end of my chances to do another race. The injury would rule me out for at least 6 months and another year to regain my aerobic fitness so that would really be it wouldn't it?
After that I was literally innundated by work, operating till 1 am on Wednesday, 8 pm on Thursday and had no time to play with Maisey's and even 'kins, let alone do any workouts.
CH called and asked me to cycle today and we started a little earlier than our usual rendevous time. It has been a long time since I cycled with CH; i think it was as far back as OCtober or November so I thought my performance with him would be a good gauge of how much I have improved. CH was always leaves me in his dust and I thought if I could keep up with him, it would give me some hope. We decided to ride down coastal road to the temple and back. There was a strong breeze and CH tired out after heading out in front. We took turns drafting and finished and turned around in a very short 1:17 for 35 km( this included some rest time and some time chitchatting on the return leg.
Well its Friday and I have Saturday and Sunday to make up for serious training time. Thus far, I have only done 4:35 and will need to make up substantial time and mileage for this week.
I followed it with a 50 lap swim in the pool and felt really good about it. Took 1:30 but I felt good at the end of the session and was able to do another bike on Tuesday and rode 45 km, taking a slightly longer route, going down Bukit Timah, Clementi and Commonwealth and then down Farrer road to Lornie before doing the old familiar route again. By the time I hit Bukit Timah, traffic was heavy and got impossible at Nanyang Girl's. I had cars horning me, one passed by me so close I could feel the side mirror shave my wrist. Another pushed me towards the medial line of the double yellow and that;s when I decided I had enough and stopped and then walked across the bridge before making the rest of the journey back home cycling back to the estate, quietly resolving to finish cycling by 6:30 before the rest of Singapore wakes up and rushes to school.
At this age, a crash and a broken long bone would probably signal the end of my chances to do another race. The injury would rule me out for at least 6 months and another year to regain my aerobic fitness so that would really be it wouldn't it?
After that I was literally innundated by work, operating till 1 am on Wednesday, 8 pm on Thursday and had no time to play with Maisey's and even 'kins, let alone do any workouts.
CH called and asked me to cycle today and we started a little earlier than our usual rendevous time. It has been a long time since I cycled with CH; i think it was as far back as OCtober or November so I thought my performance with him would be a good gauge of how much I have improved. CH was always leaves me in his dust and I thought if I could keep up with him, it would give me some hope. We decided to ride down coastal road to the temple and back. There was a strong breeze and CH tired out after heading out in front. We took turns drafting and finished and turned around in a very short 1:17 for 35 km( this included some rest time and some time chitchatting on the return leg.
Well its Friday and I have Saturday and Sunday to make up for serious training time. Thus far, I have only done 4:35 and will need to make up substantial time and mileage for this week.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Down with the Flu
This week started off with cycling and ended with some of that. The mind has been stuck on debating the pro's and con's of each individual road bike.
All went well until the evening of wednesday when I started to get a case of the sniffles. I shrugged it off as a case of allergy to an obscure agent I had become exposed to but it quickly deteriorated to a sore thrat, cough and fever. Downed a number of Decolgen and even resorted to antibiotics but the URTI marched on and I developed myalgia which in effect put out all aerobic sessions. I had difficulty even coping with prolonged talking in the clinic because it just really aggravated my throat. Had to call off saturday's ride.
Had some spare time which I used to good effect clearing paperwork which had been piling up. Had to push away some overseas engagements to Taiwan and Bandung at pretty short notice. Had time to check out some cool bikes, namely trek madones and pinarello dogmas. Dream bikes for now.
I was quietly determined to ride on sunday with the usual gang and we rode 41 km in 1:35 minutes. Started off a little late as HC could not find the place.Overall a good ride and I practiced getting out of my seat to do a bit of climbing. On the straight on the coastal road though, I could not hold much and dropped back quite significantly. Gosh I really have a lot of improving to do!
The we got to chatting about bikes and JN intimated that there is a bet going on that I will end up buying the Dogma. If money could truly buy speed, I would be sorely tempted, not that I could afford to part with such princely sums but I think there is always added pressure with the acquisitions of such bikes because you should be worthy to ride these gems. What is the use of riding at 30 km/h on such machines which can take you faster potentially? The real action is the amount of wattage you can produce as you push those pedals( albeit with the correct technique of course which I still don't have!). To paraphrase the great Lance Armstrong, " it really ain"t about the bike!
SO should I even buy another bike? The Ordu seems great. A bit rough but fast and nimble and certainly I would think a spectacular buy but something in me feels like another bike. Senesible to buy another Orbea( orca) or splash out some real dough on a Pinarello/ Trek? Decisions, Decisions. Problem is after the dust is settled and the bike is bought and a hole in the pocket is burnt, my cycling would be as crap aswver. Now wouldn't that be the real tragedy?
All went well until the evening of wednesday when I started to get a case of the sniffles. I shrugged it off as a case of allergy to an obscure agent I had become exposed to but it quickly deteriorated to a sore thrat, cough and fever. Downed a number of Decolgen and even resorted to antibiotics but the URTI marched on and I developed myalgia which in effect put out all aerobic sessions. I had difficulty even coping with prolonged talking in the clinic because it just really aggravated my throat. Had to call off saturday's ride.
Had some spare time which I used to good effect clearing paperwork which had been piling up. Had to push away some overseas engagements to Taiwan and Bandung at pretty short notice. Had time to check out some cool bikes, namely trek madones and pinarello dogmas. Dream bikes for now.
I was quietly determined to ride on sunday with the usual gang and we rode 41 km in 1:35 minutes. Started off a little late as HC could not find the place.Overall a good ride and I practiced getting out of my seat to do a bit of climbing. On the straight on the coastal road though, I could not hold much and dropped back quite significantly. Gosh I really have a lot of improving to do!
The we got to chatting about bikes and JN intimated that there is a bet going on that I will end up buying the Dogma. If money could truly buy speed, I would be sorely tempted, not that I could afford to part with such princely sums but I think there is always added pressure with the acquisitions of such bikes because you should be worthy to ride these gems. What is the use of riding at 30 km/h on such machines which can take you faster potentially? The real action is the amount of wattage you can produce as you push those pedals( albeit with the correct technique of course which I still don't have!). To paraphrase the great Lance Armstrong, " it really ain"t about the bike!
SO should I even buy another bike? The Ordu seems great. A bit rough but fast and nimble and certainly I would think a spectacular buy but something in me feels like another bike. Senesible to buy another Orbea( orca) or splash out some real dough on a Pinarello/ Trek? Decisions, Decisions. Problem is after the dust is settled and the bike is bought and a hole in the pocket is burnt, my cycling would be as crap aswver. Now wouldn't that be the real tragedy?
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Its a New Week!
Well a new week and we started sunday with a ride with 5 in the group. AY our resident champion cyclist joined us and we had a great bike through our usual haunt. A 5 am ride starting from bukit timah through Mandai road and then charged up Rifle Range road. We all nodded in the affirmative when we are at the end of the RRR:" what a great workout!" while still catching our breaths.( 45 km 1:50)
We finished up and went on to breakfast. WL made us a superb breakfast before we broke up. I had enough energy to run 5 km after that in 33 minutes which was at RPE3 but felt more like RPE5!
The workout week ended with me completelt a 11:49 total for the week.
Perhaps it was the strenous week or it was the first day of work in the year but when i hit the pool on monday, I was quite tired and only managed 22 laps and was done in half hour. I managed little better on Tuesday when i could only have time for a 10 km run( done at RPE 3; 1:06).
This morning I met JN and we joined the joyriders. Perhaps, it was the lingering fatigue but I did not start well and had to play catchup adn ended up being dropped big time. JN and I struggled dead last and we were quietly grateful to JL for staying with us and giving us tips and encouraging us.JL commented " dude, you are actually not a bad cyclist, you just have not developed the technique" . Wow, what a nice way of breaking the news in the softest possible way. Thankfully, I am in the habit of getting dropped so often that I am used to it adn I think it actually pushed me to try even harder. Today was another one of those days. I pushed so hard and tried so hard I have an abrasion on my right buttock, which I did not realise until I was seated on my chair performing surgery. Buttocks are supposed to exist in your subconscious and subliminal plane of thought until 2 scenarios: one when you are in the act of defaecation and the other when you have a lousy lesion in your end, be it hemorrhoids or abrasions! I finished the 43km in 1:20 and then proceeded for a brick run of 4 km which i covered at 30 minutes. That would make my tally of training to 3:20 this week
We finished up and went on to breakfast. WL made us a superb breakfast before we broke up. I had enough energy to run 5 km after that in 33 minutes which was at RPE3 but felt more like RPE5!
The workout week ended with me completelt a 11:49 total for the week.
Perhaps it was the strenous week or it was the first day of work in the year but when i hit the pool on monday, I was quite tired and only managed 22 laps and was done in half hour. I managed little better on Tuesday when i could only have time for a 10 km run( done at RPE 3; 1:06).
This morning I met JN and we joined the joyriders. Perhaps, it was the lingering fatigue but I did not start well and had to play catchup adn ended up being dropped big time. JN and I struggled dead last and we were quietly grateful to JL for staying with us and giving us tips and encouraging us.JL commented " dude, you are actually not a bad cyclist, you just have not developed the technique" . Wow, what a nice way of breaking the news in the softest possible way. Thankfully, I am in the habit of getting dropped so often that I am used to it adn I think it actually pushed me to try even harder. Today was another one of those days. I pushed so hard and tried so hard I have an abrasion on my right buttock, which I did not realise until I was seated on my chair performing surgery. Buttocks are supposed to exist in your subconscious and subliminal plane of thought until 2 scenarios: one when you are in the act of defaecation and the other when you have a lousy lesion in your end, be it hemorrhoids or abrasions! I finished the 43km in 1:20 and then proceeded for a brick run of 4 km which i covered at 30 minutes. That would make my tally of training to 3:20 this week
Friday, January 1, 2010
Long Ride Saturday
After a day of rest on New Year's day recovering from the revelry and merrymaking, I was raring to go. There were 4 of us and we planned the Lim Chu Kang route. It was the usual 5 am set off time and we rode down Adam- Lornie route. HC had not quite exorcise his demons from the last group ride although I thought he felt more comfortable after the last ride with me.Nevertheless we did not go up the ramp at Macritchie reservoir. On passing LH we saw the joyriders no doubt preparing for their morning ride. I took over the lead from JN after LH and decided to go down old upper thomson road for HC to face his last demon when he crashed out and was pleased he kept up well and took the corner onto the main route without event. Mid way down Mandai route, we were overtaken by a peloton of uber fast riders and literally ate dust. A second group came up and I was determined not to be left behind and actually tucked nicely between the front 3 and drafter them and was able to keep up the pace. They were going at 33-45 km/h all the way to the Mandai shell station. PK took over and we swung right down Kranji road. The road was a narrow single carriageway( 2 way road) and traffic was quite heavy to our surprise. We actually were stopped at the Railway crossing and the barriers were down because the train was passing through. How cool is that in Singapore?? We rode to the Kranji reservoir and took a break there, swigging our water and chatting. As we prepared to restart, PK's bike ran into some troub le and in the dark we were fiddling around and discovered he had broken a spoke which meant he had to take cab back to home base while the rest of us continued. I was totally unfamiliar with the route and JN had to leda. The next stretch was quite an unforgettable experience. As we wound round Neo Tiew route passing places where I only passed while I was in the army, we passed and sniffed farm manure and we passed some satellite/ radio stations where the pylons were spaced nicely apart. With the sun coming up, The pylons stood silently interconnected with wires. The base of the pylons were shrouded in swaths of mist. The imagery was surreal and the horizon was made the softer with the mist rising slightly to blur the edge, in stark contrast to the sharp sillouette of the radio pylons.
We came down to Lim Chu Kang road and with the long straight I leapt out of the seat and sprinted forward and told JN I will meet him at the end of the road. I was riding at 40 km/h but ran out of gas in barely 1 km to my embarrassment. I had over-estimated by capability! We rode down Old Choa Chu Kang road and Bricklands road before turning to Choa Chu Kang estate where at this point we became lost and had to stop to ask for directions. A kind elderly man pointed us the way to Upper Bukit Timah route and we made it back to rendevous with PK where we had a great breakfast at JN's house.
66.5 km; 1:38
We came down to Lim Chu Kang road and with the long straight I leapt out of the seat and sprinted forward and told JN I will meet him at the end of the road. I was riding at 40 km/h but ran out of gas in barely 1 km to my embarrassment. I had over-estimated by capability! We rode down Old Choa Chu Kang road and Bricklands road before turning to Choa Chu Kang estate where at this point we became lost and had to stop to ask for directions. A kind elderly man pointed us the way to Upper Bukit Timah route and we made it back to rendevous with PK where we had a great breakfast at JN's house.
66.5 km; 1:38
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