PJ Half Marathon

I have heard so much about the PJ Half-Marathon from people who had completed it many years ago way before I started running. Kenny, my brother had done it 17 years ago. He reminisced the kind of disciplined training; running almost daily at Lake Gardens sometimes with veteran Pacesetters members.


Others have warned: “You MUST train for this distance, it is not like 10k” – Suresh my colleague pointed. None of my practice runs have gone beyond 13kms. The last long run was the Nike 15km back in April. The night before the race was also my niece’s birthday – Kenny’s daughter. While doing my routine photographing, Kenny again proudly pointed his framed and famed 1987 PJ Half-Marathon certificate with a timing of 2:17 (literally asking me to match his timing). I got worried when he said, “ Watch out after the 18th km because that is when you start to dehydrate.” Even Mee Peng questioned my readiness “Do you have enough training or not? I notice you hardly run “

On the positive side my 2 mentors: Jamie and Newton have full confidence in me. “…you will do 2:15 come race day. mark my words!” says Jamie. “You did Nike 15km and that was running on hills..” says Newton. Deep inside, I dread the thought of not finishing.

Went to bed around 10:30p.m after a hefty birthday meal of fettuccini, meehoon, half-burger and fried drumsticks (chicken feet power). I skipped the greasy birthday cake.

It's time…


Woke up at 3:30 a.m. Breakfast: Oatmeal PowerBar, self-formulated cereal drink and 2 bananas. Stomach felt a bit bloated up – took a heavier dose of cereal drink than normal. Packed 600ml of Gatorade for pre-race consumption and 2 packets of PowerGel.

It was easy to spot the PJ Stadium as the floodlights were brightly lit. Reached the car park around 5:50 a.m. The stadium was spacious and unlike Dataran there were proper free toilets and no smelly mobile units. Pre-race drinking water was available – a first! Good job sponsors! Later, met Cheah and Newton’s brother Chee Hwa. I decided not to carry the water bottle pouch after talking to Chee Hwa who is a seasoned half-marathoner. I forgot to thank Chee Hwa for helping me with the bibs collection earlier.


The 2 officials who manned the Registration card counter gave the wrong info by stating the race starts from inside the stadium. Later, there was an announcement to assemble outside the stadium. As I moved towards the road, Newton called me. Newton introduced me to Justin. Also met Kenneth and his wife, Yen-Nee. Justin advised us of the long incline at the start. While waiting, suddenly we saw people running perpendicular to the road where we were standing. We thought it was the start of the race! To everyone’s relieve it was a false start.

The Challenge Begins…


I started my stopwatch at the sound of the gunfire. Here I am… finally doing the 21km run. As usual Newton ran along side. Everybody seemed to take it easy, no rushing. Around the first kilometer, Jamie came up on our left flank. Called him and 3 of us chatted for a minute before Jamie went ahead. Later somebody greeted us from behind; it was Sivapalan our ex-secondary-schoolmate. Reached the 1st water station, supposedly the 4th km mark in 24:48. We didn’t feel we were running fast and suspect the distance markers may be inaccurate.

Very organized water station and option of drinks; first group served isotonic drinks and the second group drinking water, distinguishable by the cup design. Good job Water Station organizers! I grabbed 2 cups of water. Took my time to gulp the first one down. I used the second cup to rinse my hands and wipe my face.

Motorola Interchange


Told Newton to go ahead. U turned at the bridge, ran on the pavement and back on the other side of the Federal Highway. Cars and buses were all over the place. Somehow I was unperturbed by the presence of these vehicles since I am used to running on the road shoulder (sometimes at night) at home. Skipped the first sponge station.

In the next 2 kms, I was trading leads with a lady runner. Her footsteps were dead silent. Cannot hear her breathing or movement. At the start of the Subang flyover, her agility pulled her uphill ahead of me. I took my time to neutralize the hill and sped downhill. Managed to overtake the feather light runner. Cannot really see her face because normally when I overtake I don’t turn my head to look at the person but when being overtaken I will occasionally look. Since she moved like a ninja, I have no way of knowing when she will next overtake.

From afar, I could see the 100 Plus umbrellas, which means it’s the second 8km water station. I had planned to take the PowerGel at this stop but changed my mind. The feeling was like “I’d rather breathe than eat”. Did not have the appetite. The water was rejuvenating and energizing. Next came the sponge station. This is the first time I took the sponge. It was ice-cold water!

At the 11km mark a Caucasian lady runner (dyed blonde hair) slowly overtook me. This spurred me to follow her pace. She may not have the perfect body but her skin completion was excellent - like porcelain. I just followed her closely and soon realized a lot of cars were slowing down to look at her! Including a TNB truck loaded with uniformed staff moving along with us at jogging speed! Opposites attract – she must be some kind of magnet.


As I was approaching the 12km water station, it was time to slurp the caffeinated strawberry flavoured PowerGel. Took my time to drink 1.5 cups of water. By this time, Porcelain Runner was ahead by about 10 meters. I caught up with her and hesitated whether I should overtake or just follow from behind since our pace was almost identical. In the end, I overtook her and a few other male runners who seemed to be tailing her :)


From the opposite road, I could see the leaders heading back to the stadium. Admired their athleticism. On the other hand, I saw a runner sitting by the cement walkway massaging his toes, not sure if it was cramps or blisters. I pity him because he looked kind of sad.

Subang Roundabout


After the Subang roundabout I was able to see closely the runners who had already U-turned back at the Aerobridge. Saw Newton on the other side taking a sponge and gave him a yell. Took about 5mins before it was my turn to take a sponge. At this point I saw Ninja girl in the opposite direction running with her eyes almost closed. While running back to the roundabout, images of “2:15” and “2:17” begin to cloud my mind. Kenny and Jamie’s expectations were haunting me.

Beyond 15km


I was looking forward to the 4th and last water station. Next to it was a big “15KM” signboard. I reached here at 1:38:20. My tongue was dancing with joy when I drowned my dry throat with water. No intention of taking the 2nd Gel. Here onwards I started concentrating on the route; keeping a look out on loose gravels leftover from the construction and using the shortest possible path when tackling a bend. At one long right turning stretch, instead of running to the left most lane which was cordoned by cones, I choose to run just outside the cones to shave off a few meters. I was running with my head down and did not even notice Porcelain lady had accelerated way ahead – she had turned on her afterburners!

Twilight Zone


Somewhere at the 17 or 18th km right after the Subang NKVE flyover, my left calf muscle twitched. The spasms were intermittent and it got me worried. It was a sign of a mild cramp that could develop into something, which I was afraid I could not control (had I taken the 2nd gel would it make a difference? I wondered).

Initially, I was comfortably tailing two runners and when it happened I immediately dropped off. Since the contraction was on the left leg, I used my right leg to push forward and the left one to limp. This technique seemed to work albeit at a reduced speed but at least I did not have to walk or stop. This is what happens when one has never tested the distance – it was exactly what I feared and what Kenny had warned.

20km Signboard


I was excited when I approached the left turning, the signboard states “20km”. I looked at my watch it was 2:01:51. It was back to the MAS building road. I should have no problems covering the last kilometer in 13 minutes! Flashes of glory and jubilation tingled my spine. As I was sprinting pass the traffic lights in one of the junctions, my right calf had a sudden attack! The split second feeling was as if the muscle behind my knee had momentarily lost contact with the bone. I was over-abusing my right leg due to the earlier situation. This is where teamwork comes into play; it is now the left leg that would take the lead and the right one dragging along.

Another Gunshot


I ran and kept wondering where the hell is the stadium entrance. Followed the runner in front of me and pray he knows the way. A group of runners probably the leaders who had finished much earlier cheered us on. I smiled and acknowledged their support. There onwards, I dare not look at the stopwatch as now every second counts. Finally I entered the stadium, the comfy track cushioning was so nice to run on. About 150 meters from the finishing line, I heard a gun shot “BANG!!!”. Something told me it was bad news and indeed it was. Jamie and Newton were cheering me on. I queued up at the finishing line in front of another “A” group runner and stopped my Timex watch. It showed 2:13:10.

Disappointment


I waited for awhile while the officials were not recording any of our bibs. Then one of them broke the bad news “The official time is over”. One of the runners who was just behind me questioned the official and said his stopwatch showed it was before 2:15 of which the official replied “You cannot follow your time, you have to follow our official time”. I felt shortchanged and flabbergasted. So near yet so far but that is how it is.



Group Photo


While I was digesting the situation, Newton came up to me to join in a group photo. I was the last runner. Mee Peng jested and told me she had earlier requested Cheah (Cheah did a fantastic 1:50) to run back and look for me…just in case I pengsan (fainted). Kenneth and Yen-Nee had finished an hour earlier and were waiting for the rest. This would motivate me to run faster next time, as I do not want to keep the good people waiting too long for the last man. Thanks to all the comrades!



Retrospective


Prior to this race, I had 2 fears. One was that I might not be physically strong enough to withstand the 2+ hours of continuous pounding (did not adopt Galloway). The second was the water station: should I carry the water bottle as insurance for a “no water” scenario? I honestly believe I cannot possibly finish within 2:15 and had hoped no injuries would hamper my aim to just complete the race. It’s a miracle.