2 weeks to KLIM06: The Final LSD

This morning we had the smallest turnout for any run at SAFRA MF. We were scheduled for our 36km LSD run from SAFRA Clubhouse -> Henderson Rd -> Harbourfront -> Keppel Rd -> Marina South (Marathon route) -> Shenton Way -> Esplanade -> Marina Promenade -> Nicol Highway -> Mountbatten -> National Stadium -> Kallang -> Crawford Rd -> Marina Promenade -> Esplanade -> Shenton way -> Keppel Rd -> Harbourfront -> Henderson Rd -> SAFRA Clubhouse...essentially part of the SCSM05 marathon route. The runners from HK mara were back, and we spent some time looking at the photos. Many are still recovering from the recent mara. DO, Bug, Teck Hou, Kumaran, Derrick and myself started off. Ong and Jaime were there to provide support and waited for us to have lunch 4 hours later...kudos!!

I had a good steamboat dinner and sweet potato soup last evening as carbo-loading for this morning's run..haaa. I also brought along 2 mini snicker bars to try as refuel on the run. Topped up 2 bottles with honeyed water. I just had a banana and coffee for breakfast. We started off pretty slowly, about 6min/km pace...I was bent on starting slow. We ran along the nice cool weather along Harbourfront, Keppel Road, then skirting Shenton Way and into Marina South. We followed the SCM Marathon route in Marina South and arrived at Victor's Superbowl after 1hr15min of running. Took a 100plus break there, and I popped 2 salt tablets to test the usefulness of salt to prevent cramps. In Marina South, I saw many bicycles parked neatly in an open area, and later found that they were for the NTU X-Phsique race. Many of the SgRunners and friends are in Sentosa this morning too for the NUS Biathlon. Hope they did well for their race there.

As we continued out from Marina South, Kumaran and Derrick left us, and the 4 of us continued out into Shenton Way, and then made the next stop at Collyer Quay. I estimated we had done about 16km by then, taking 1hr40min. We proceeded on around The Esplanade and onwards to Kallang and made a right turn in PA from KFC. The sun was out in force, and the weather was HOT. It was draining us, but I sort of welcomed it as it was good for conditioning. I had my white cap on, which did help to some extent. By the time we reached the Singapore Indoor Stadium, Bug and Teck Hou wanted a 100plus break. We made a 10min stop, and from there, ran in the sweltering heat towards Marina Promenade. This part of the run reminded me of the struggle I had during SCM05. This was the last 5km of the SCM05 route, and that was where I started to walk a bit then (due to cramps). At this point, I reduced pace a little and then ran into the shade of Marina Promenade...ahhh, sweet relief. Bug decided to go back on his own from there, as the heat was really getting to him. We continued to push on and made our final water stop at Collyer Quay again. I was feeling ok, except that the heat was getting to me a little. We had run an estimated 28km in 3hrs up to that point.

Made a 10min stop at Collyer Quay, and from there, we ran the final 7km back along Keppel Road, Harbourfront and then ClubHouse. The weather was very hot, and I could feel the heat in my cumulus building up. Up along Telok Blangah Road, I had to take a 200m walk to rest as well as allow the shoes' heat to dissipate. Finally reached the Clubhouse in about 3hrs40min, covering about 35km...1km less than originally planned, since we did a short detour inside PA. It was a good LSD, and the conditioning will be good for my physical as well as mental requirements. I hope this will be sufficient for my KLIM06 Marathon race...and if I get enough sleep, with no unexpected injuries or cramps during the race, I should be looking at a sub-4hr marathon. Wish me luck!

Distance Ran:35km ___Time:3hr40min____Pace:6:15min/km
Average HR:N/A____Max HR:N/A____KCal:2,400KCal est.