My First Ultra-Marathon

I did the MR25 Ultra-Marathon today, totalling 6 laps of the 10.5km MacRitchie x-country route.
Officially I ran a total distance of 63.3km in a time of 8hrs 51min. Was awarded a certificate of participation, as well as a nice T-Shirt.

Mr25 Ultra-Marathon finisher's certificate

Race Overview

As I was leaving my house for MacRitchie for the MR25 Ultra-Marathon, the rains came. It got heavier and heavier. I received a couple of smses from SgRunners asking if the run was to go on. I drove up to MR and was stuck in my car for a good 45min, as the rain was too heavy for me to leave. I could see people turning up in cabs and cars, and many gathered in the toilet at carpark B.

A rainy morning & start

At about 6.45am, I got down to register and get my bib 3158. At 7.15am, after a short brief, and with the rain still beating down, the run was flagged off by MR25 President. We were to run laps around the MR x-country route of 10.5km, and cover a minimum of 5 laps before being recognized as a Ultra-Marathoner.

Lap 1

There were lots of sloshing and splashing as we ran up the Northern Route. I was trying to avoid the many puddles of water, hoping to keep my shoes dry. I was running a slow pace, and was just tailgating TLR and Evelyn. I was overtaken by quite a number of anxious runners at this point too. As we ran, the skies turned brighter and the rain became lighter. At the end of the first lap, the rain had become a slight drizzle. I finished lap 1 in about 1hr10min. Once back, the marshalls will call out our bib nos. and recorded our lap times, as well as keep track of the number of laps we had run. My shoes were soggy by now, but I decided to change my socks and shoes after the second lap.

Lap 2

Started off lap 2 after a short water break. I was still feeling strong, and my shoes were also drying out. The rain has stopped by midway of the 2nd lap, and I was looking to finish it for a change of shoes. I was still wearing my old GT2090, which was definitely not suitable for trail running. I was running mostly alone for lap 2, and 3km near to the end of the loop, saw a PaceSetter runner from KL who was lost. I guided him along, and I continued to run strongly to finish in 1hr15min. As I returned, I saw DO amd TLR about to make their way for lap 3. run3 came in strongly shortly after me, and I cheered her on. I took a longer break after lap 2 to change my shoes. I put on my trail runners, Nike Air Storm Moto..a tad heavy.

Lap 3

Just before starting off on lap 3, I saw taz, who was looking strong. We chatted for a bit, and I made my way. run3 and Yankee had already started off...wow, they really don't waste much time. In this lap, I started to take more walk breaks, mainly on those upslopes. It will serve to help me conserve energy for the remaining laps. The ground had dried quite a fair bit, and my dry shoes really helped to make me feel more comfortable. At the turning out into SICC, and at the water point, I saw Yankee and Carine. I joined them from there, and they told me run3 had run ahead. From there, Carine and me paced one another, taking walk breaks on upslopes. Yankee has decided to slow his pace and lagged behind. I began to feel a little tiredness in the legs, but was still ok. Carine mentioned she will go for a change of shoes after that 3rd lap, and she will finish the 5laps for the coveted tee-shirt. As we near the exercise area, we met DO who was much ahead earlier. DO developed shin problems, and had to abandon the run. What a dampener for him. Carine and I moved on after a short chat with DO. We finished jointly and had some nice photos taken by Lim Teck Heng & Balasing.

Lap 4

I took just a short break before starting lap4. i put on some deep heat cream to my claves, and also had a hydralyte from DO. DO had turned to become support crew, and was doing a great job cheering for Sgrunners coming in for the laps. I was quite strong in this lap, and was pacing a group of 2 guys, but otherwise, it was quite uneventful. I met jamessoh and Jennifery at around the Jelutong Tower. They were going on lap 3 then. I finished lap 4 in about 1hr25min.

Nice completion of of laps 3,4,5

Lap 5

In this lap, I was overtaken by run3 a couple of times as I walked the upslopes. run3 and choonwei were running together. I was also joined by Dasher who had just arrived. run3 was like sprinting most of the time. hmm....this gal is a fast runner by any standards. I just did my own pace, and I told Dasher to move ahead if he needed to. At the SICC drinks point, I met up with run3 and choonwei again. run3 said she was feeling tired, and would be finishing off with 5laps. I was still contemplating on whether to do a 6th lap. As we ran along the wooden bridge onto the sunny area along the golf course, I also met Ah Leng from SAFRA. He too was going to finish with 5laps. I picked up speed and and soon left them behind. I bumped into Chua and Sok Hwa at the tree-roots area, and they were happy to find that I have closed the gap. DO was surprised to see me finish ahead of run3 as she was in front of me earlier. cw, Dasher and run3 came in shortly. I estimate that I did lap 5 in 1hr35min. I was happy to complete the minimum requirement and had a good photo shot. I completed the 5laps, 52.5km in 6hr49min. I wanted to stop here, and just collect my cert. Bug had already finished his 5laps in 1hr 25min...wah, fast. Slacker was there to support with chicken rice, and maybe thats what motivated Bug to rush back..hehe.

1 more lap (Lap 6)

I decided after a long rest to walk my last lap. I asked DO for some salt solution, to prevent cramps. As I started to slow jog the 6th lap, I could feel the tightening of my muscles. I walked quite a lot, but still attempted to run as much as I can. I walked quite a lot at Sime Trail, and could see a few runners walking too. As I reached Jelutong Tower, I was pacing an Ang Moh guy. He was walking faster than my very slow jog. Once we cross the golf course, and into the exercise area, I saw a new water point set up. Took a drink there and some photos from Teck Heng. with a remaining 3km left, I just plodded along, and with just 1km more to go, I overtook the Ang Moh and I sped home to a rousing applause from Sgrunners support. It felt so good to finish. I immediately went to collect my finisher's cert and a nice tee-shirt. Yankee and 136 was in the queue to collect theirs too. Well done all SgRunners.

Post Run

I spent a while trying to do some stretches, and chatting with all the satisfied SgRunners. Sotong was having chicken rice. I was in no mood to eat anything so solid. Ultraman was about to begin his 7th lap, and TLR too wanted to go for a 8th lap. DO asked me to try for a 7th lap to be in the prize standings, but I was just too tired to go, though I still had a good 3hrs to do it. taz came back quite a while later, and he went straight for his 7th lap. He finished in 8th position eventually...well done.

I left earler, and did not join in the buffet dinner that was arranged. I just wanted to go home to get a good bath, and rest my sore legs. I was happy that I have conquered yet another challenge, an Ultra-Marathon of 63.3km in distance. I hope this will set the tone for better things to come for my running in 2006.