Here is an extract that i wrote to NTUC Sport & Wellness and Mt KK team
HK was cold on the first day i stepped there on last fri. Weather was looming 11-15 deg whole day. The temp itself was bearable but not the chilling and gusty wind that blew upon you. Realised that i was not going to "survive" the 42km wearing only my T-shirt, i had to scurry and find a hiking shop and bought myself a base layer. Gloves was next on the list and luckily for "Lady Street" (Pasar Malam), i got myself a cheap pair of wool gloves.
Expo
It was held at the Victoria Park in Causeway Bay. They converted the football hardcourts into a big expo and finishing area. As like other race expo, there were diffrerent sports brands marketing their products. What was interesting was the flexibility and gait test conducted by the HK Polytechnic University. Since it was free, i did a trial with them and was pleased with the results.
Race Day
Race started at 7:45. Lucky for me, my hotel is almost right in front of the start line. When i went there, there were already many runners doing their warm up. Boy, it was cold and i thought i do a short warm-up to get the body going. After a short speech, race started. At the beginning, the street roads were slightly narrow and so most of the average runners (like me) had to go through a slow pace for about 10 mins. Once we hit the highways, the field is spread evenly and there were more space to move around. That was where i started to increase my tempo and was doing a 4:30-4:40min pace. At 12km mark, saw the race leader and also our Singaporean elite, Ramseon heading back. Sceneries were only confined to highways and tunnels. To make it slightly worse, the air was quite foggy and couldnt see anything nice landscape.
I kept to my fueling regime and was surprised that i was able to stay a consistent pace. At 30km mark in the last tunnel, my watch read 2:28hrs and my body was still managing the pace well. I was thinking that i might have a chance of doing a PB in this course. However, i knew that the true test would appeared only at the 34km mark. True enough, i saw the incline slope at the end of the tunnel but what i did not know that the incline slope would also lead to a steeper one. I reduced my pace and slowly ran up the "hills". Felt a tight hamstrings at 38km and had to ask the Med Officer to apply some deep heat. Took a look at my watch and it read 3:11hrs. I was gambling whether should i go under 3:30hrs for the last 4km. In doing so, there is a chance that i might pull my tight hamstrings and risked the remaining distance walking. Or should i reduce my pace and finish the race conmfortably? Since i knew this course will be PB, i opted for the latter. Hence i went on at 5:30min pace for the next 2km. The crowds got larger and were cheering for all the runners, i felt a "renewal" in my legs at the point in time.
. I increased the tempo again and cruised into the finishing line, overjoyed and elated coz it is all over.
Post Race
Went to Korean BBQ buffet and "whacked" all the meat (protein carbo load).
In summary, i think that for some of us, this race could be a PB due to its cooling weather. Others may find it slightly tough due to terrain. For me, i am glad that i have done it and in the process i have also ran a PB.
Expo
It was held at the Victoria Park in Causeway Bay. They converted the football hardcourts into a big expo and finishing area. As like other race expo, there were diffrerent sports brands marketing their products. What was interesting was the flexibility and gait test conducted by the HK Polytechnic University. Since it was free, i did a trial with them and was pleased with the results.
Race Day
Race started at 7:45. Lucky for me, my hotel is almost right in front of the start line. When i went there, there were already many runners doing their warm up. Boy, it was cold and i thought i do a short warm-up to get the body going. After a short speech, race started. At the beginning, the street roads were slightly narrow and so most of the average runners (like me) had to go through a slow pace for about 10 mins. Once we hit the highways, the field is spread evenly and there were more space to move around. That was where i started to increase my tempo and was doing a 4:30-4:40min pace. At 12km mark, saw the race leader and also our Singaporean elite, Ramseon heading back. Sceneries were only confined to highways and tunnels. To make it slightly worse, the air was quite foggy and couldnt see anything nice landscape.
I kept to my fueling regime and was surprised that i was able to stay a consistent pace. At 30km mark in the last tunnel, my watch read 2:28hrs and my body was still managing the pace well. I was thinking that i might have a chance of doing a PB in this course. However, i knew that the true test would appeared only at the 34km mark. True enough, i saw the incline slope at the end of the tunnel but what i did not know that the incline slope would also lead to a steeper one. I reduced my pace and slowly ran up the "hills". Felt a tight hamstrings at 38km and had to ask the Med Officer to apply some deep heat. Took a look at my watch and it read 3:11hrs. I was gambling whether should i go under 3:30hrs for the last 4km. In doing so, there is a chance that i might pull my tight hamstrings and risked the remaining distance walking. Or should i reduce my pace and finish the race conmfortably? Since i knew this course will be PB, i opted for the latter. Hence i went on at 5:30min pace for the next 2km. The crowds got larger and were cheering for all the runners, i felt a "renewal" in my legs at the point in time.
. I increased the tempo again and cruised into the finishing line, overjoyed and elated coz it is all over. Post Race
Went to Korean BBQ buffet and "whacked" all the meat (protein carbo load).
In summary, i think that for some of us, this race could be a PB due to its cooling weather. Others may find it slightly tough due to terrain. For me, i am glad that i have done it and in the process i have also ran a PB.
| Over-all Pos-ition | Gen-der Pos-ition | Cate-gory Pos-ition | Cate-gory* | Race no. | English Name | Chinese Name | Country | Official Time | Net Time | 10km Time | Half Way Time | 30km Time |
| 434 | 384 | 73 | MMS | 20516 | LEW BUANG | Singapore | 3:33:21 | 3:32:37 | 0:52:02 | 1:42:13 | 2:28:18 |
Our hotel
My "dream" finishing time
Me doing the free running test
Post Race Dinner - SK and Candy
Lam - Enjoying the Dim Sum Lunch
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