Marathon tapering week

Tuesday 6/6: Did a 15km run with SAFRA MF runners from ClubHouse to Botanic Gardens. The route took us from Clubhouse -> Henderson Rd -> Delta Canal -> Ridley Park -> Botanic Garden -> Farrer Rd -> Margaret Drive -> Delta Canal -> Henderson Rd -> Clubhouse. There was a large turnout of at least 25, with 1 or 2 new runners. I ran mostly with Bug, DO and bbmon as we enjoyed the cool night, though it was still humid after an abrupt stop to the earlier rains. We stopped at BG toilet after 9km and 46min; waited for about 10min for the rest of the runners to come in, before we proceeded along Farrer Road and Margaret Drive. We did quite a fast pace here, running in a smallish group of 4. We headed all the way back to the ClubHouse feeling quite drained from a hard workout. I could feel soreness in my archilles during the run, after having borne the weight of the heavy pair of trail shoes I tried on on Monday evening.
Distance Ran: 15km___Time: 1hr25min___Pace: 5:40min/km

Wednesday 7/6: Did a evening of run and stairs climb as part of MK Climbathon training. Met up with Hamidah and the team at Bishan Stadium. We discussed a bit about the Montrail shoes, and with feedback from Sim, we decided to change to the lighter version...Montrail Susitna II XCR...will go down this Saturday to Camper's Corner. Kelvin and Xavier are away on some expedition...will wait for them to come back to conduct an experience-sharing session of MK with the team.

We did a 40min run through Bishan Park and back, before proceeding to the 30-storey flat of Roland to do stairs climb. Hamidah was already there waiting with nice cold Powerade. We did 3 flights of 30-floors. It was some time I did any stairs climb. It was tiring, especially after the run. I was panting hard by the second set. After the stairs workout, we had discussions about the prelim MK Climb in july. Hamidah also announced to us a trekking expedition to K2 somewhere near Nepal next year in August (Dubbed the "Savage Mountain," K2 in the Himalayas is Earth’s second-highest peak and arguably the hardest climb in the world). The few of us immediately volunteered to be considered for the fully sponsored month-long expedition. It will be quite exciting, and training will start from October. She also asked us to introduce friends who are fit and might be interested to join in. We will be on the lookout...:))


Thursday 8/6: Had planned to join in the Running Lab (RL) run with Beverly, but due to a last minute meeting schedule, have decided to do a 9km tapering run around my home instead. I really need to get my Mizuno Wave Rider 9 and the new Asics Nimbus running shoes soon, as most of my existing runners and trainers are newaring their retirement age. I still have the Adidas Adizero ahich has clocked close to 280km, and I hope to save that for Phuket Marathon.


Saturday 10/6: I went for a 18km Animiles run as my last weekend tapering run before Phuket Marathon. Watched the opening World Cup game between Germany and Costa Rica, and went to bed at 2am. Had about 2.5hrs of sleep, and got up at 4.30am. Took a coffee and 2 small bananas and reached LPR toilet at 5:05am. Saw SC5, notme, lieu, choonwei, bleu and the regulars. Met up with doraemon_red aka Doreen who joined in for the first time. bbmon and DO were also joining me for the 18km distance.

We started at about 5.30am, and soon most of the animiles were in front...hehe. I ran behind for a short bit, before moving up with bbmon and DO, after ensuring that doraemon had her pacers guiding her...thanks bluedauphin (Rachael) and snail (Caroline). The morning was cool along OUTR. I could hear bbmon breathing quite heavy as she is still recovering from her chesty cough and flu. DO and I ran ahead after getting out onto UPR, and we caught up with SC5, and then cw. On the turn into Maindai Road, cw chionged ahead and moved on for his 24km distance. DO and I turned back at the 9km U-turn point (just after the bridge at the Crematorium area), after doing approx. 45min. We gestured to bbmon and notme as we turned back. I continued to run ahead, and picked up pace slightly.

Back at the junction to UPR, we saw a gal runner (didn't get her name) injured, suffering from a cut in her leg. There was another runner with her, and someone had gone ahead to look for the support vehicle. After checking with her to ensure she was alright, we continued on our way. I continued to hydrate from my fuel belt, and though I brought a mini Snickers bar, I didn't feel hungry enough to want it...the bananas provided sufficient fuel for this shorter run. Back onto OUTR, I saw the cyclists and quite a number of early runners running in the opposite direction. We exchanged some greetings. The sky was still dark, as dawn was slowly breaking. I finished the run at 6:50am, taking about 1hr21min. I realized Doreen might have gone off first, since she was doing a 1hr 10km run. I waited for the rest to come back, and we had a good time chatting and cheering on the Animiles who did 24km, 27km... We also spent some time later looking at cw's very shwe bike, and had a nice breakfast of special toasted bun and coffee. A very nice 18km Animiles run, first time I did a shorter distance, and that would make me a squirrel for the day....hehe
Distance Ran: 18km___Time: 1hr20min___Pace: 4:30min/km