Endurance Comes in All Distances

This is the theme for today's The North Face 100. I shld change it to "Endurance Comes in All Timings" for personal use :P I nearly ended up in the organiser's ambulance before the 4th hour of the race! Hahahah.

Good or bad race? Well...i believe all matters come with 2 perspectives.

The good...race org aspect, the route was interesting & well-marked (i have to say it's tough too). Though i was "Alice in Wonderland" most of the time (in fact 99%), i enjoyed the route. It din bore me. The 3 loops around Zhenghua Veggie Farm had variety & clear despite being CP 3, 4 & 5 altogether. There was enough water & isotonic drinks support. Marshals were placed at appropriate places. Oh, one poor boy was assigned to marshal in a jungle trail near Zhenghua...all by himself. When he told me the direction to take, i thanked him & commented abt his ulu spot. He innocently smiled and said "huh huh..ok lah". I tot that was so sweet-mannered (? sorry...can't think of a suitable word now...too shacked).

The bad...the organiser removed the chip mat & finish banner after we crossed it. They took it off thinking we're the last team but there were still pple behind us! Ok...now on retrospect, they might have needed to remove the stuff due to the NParks requirement blah blah blah. Anyway, i tot they shld have stayed to cheer the last team/runner (since they were still allowed on the course in the 1st place). Ya, strictly no medal for those who crossed the finish line after 8 hours. Okay...maybe they have a different practice as Stanchart, as in whoever completed is a finisher. All i feel is they could have done a better job in promoting running as a sport i/o making it appear like a commercialized event. The single runners who came in after us looked so lost & dejected when they came back and all the stuff are gone.

So much for the race org. Let's talk abt race feel.

I'm just glad that we completed the race. Though not within the 8 hours cut off, I am happy i tried my best. Seriously, as early as MacRitchie, i tot i aint gonna make it. We were a close shave from a premature "death" at 11am. My condition warranted medical attention hence a medic was called to me when we reached BT Nature Reserve. She suggested i pull out from the race. They said there'll always be another race. They also cited this part of the race is gonna be tough cos it's a steep ascent to summit. We told her i'll grab some rest & water at ranger station & decide later, depending on my condition.

Thankfully, i regained "consciousness" hence decided to push on. The medics didn't seem too pleased with our decision & reminded me health's more impt & to stop racing when required. Altho we were just half an hour away from cutoff time, i was confident to reach the CP in good time. We train in BT & are fully aware of the toughness of different sections. Anyway, the medics have their points...fully understandable.

I reckon some of the main officials tot we couldn't make it. The 2 bikers who trailed us from BT to Zhenghua did the same when we headed back to MacRitchie. One of them said that it's impressive to see us so motivated still. From BT to ZH, we were the last team. Likewise the way back to MacR. Actually by then, we weren't the last team but some teams dropped out so we became last again. We eventually overtook a few teams & they had to trail the "new" last team.

Another marshal who was at BT trail recognized us (Serene said it wasn't difficult to identify me cos i was reli in a bad shape when he first saw me) asked if we walked all the way. Afterall initially, we were really lagging far behind as the last team but managed to catch up & overturn our position.

How bad did i feel? VERY BAD. I felt so weak that I just couldn't run. Each time i stepped off to run, my breathing went haywired. I was heaving badly, felt cold inside & felt nauseous by just drinking water. It was so bad that i took a while to recognise friends who went to support the event...Sam, Charmaine. Esther etc. At first, i tot i was running low on sugar again. I quickly ate my jelly sweets but tat didn't helped. Serene guessed i may be feeling overly-anxious abt the race & the cutoff time but this condition carried on til the end of the race.

Honestly, i still duno what's wrong with me. Chen Ping & Aili said i may have over-exerted but it took place even b4 i hit 5km. I never start fast for a long race. It's not sugar-low cos i noe how it felt and the remedy. Not mentally weak cos i have done this distance b4. To reduce the possibility of poor performance, I hv done everything to keep myself in good pre-race condition : carbo-loaded, drank Gatorade & rested early the nite b4, ate a proper bfast & even took hydration salt (smtg i usually don't do) on race day. Well..shit happens :)

Last but not least, i am really really thankful that Serene stuck by me throughout the race. Despite my shitty condition & occasional frustrated "outbursts" on the course, she was very patient with me. At some distances, she even helped to carry my race pack. I felt kinda bad having to taint her reputation as a strong racer. Many teams adopt the strategy of running at OTOT in order to clock a good overall timing. That wld be ideal if both runners are reasonably strong and in good condition on race day. However, some teams ended up having a big gap between the 2 runners & the weaker runner is left alone to complete the gruelling distance by him/herself "unsupported". When u r reli down & out, suffering from cramps, blisters and what have you, the support from ur teammate can make the suffering a whole lot easier.

Would i have pushed on to continue the race w/o Serene? I dunno. I'm relieved i didn't get a chance to find out...