Kuching has always felt like my second hometown as I have some good friends like the Fat Old Man Running Yahya and his wife Nasa who provides great hospitality when I am there. I arrived at Kuching on 15th Aug with my wife Donna and some of my running members from the KK No Excuse Runners and upon exiting the immigration gate I was already warmly greeted by the FOMR and his better half. We also met many Sabahan runners who were in the same flight as us.
We made our way to the REPC at Plaza Merdeka, and this year it was much more organised and a lot faster. I really love REPC as this is the place where I get to bump into running friends I haven't met in a long time.
After the REPC it's refueling time. This year I didn't make the mistake I made last year when I ate way too much before the race. It was a simple plate of chicken rice and ABC Special. Then it was back to the hotel and preping the gear for the big race at 3am.
Woke up at 1am to have my usual pre run meal, coffee and some buns, and then made my way to the flag off point. Met up with some friends I haven't seen in a long time and also my gang from KK No Excuse Runners. Some of us ran the half while others ran the full marathon.
After all the photo session, and a visit to the loo, it was time to get serious. I came in to the race with one mission, to finish the race with a sub 4 hour time. I quickly made my way to the starting line, trying to go as near to the front as possible.
The race flagged off at 3am as planned. Right from the start, my plan was to run the whole race at a pace of about 5:40, assuming that I can maintain that pace throughout the race, to finish it just under 4 hours. I didn't wanna make the same mistake I made last year by starting the race way too fast and cramped as early as km18. At flag off, I was lucky enough to be behind some speedy Kenyans who made quite a space in front of me to maintain my planned pace. I ran my 1st km at 5:30 then slowed down to about 5:35 after km2 and tried as much as I could to maintain that pace throughout. Then 30 minutes into the race, I took my first planned DIY energy gel, and another one 45 minutes into the race. There were water stations exactly every 3km. 90 minutes into the race, I took another dose of energy gel.
Everything was going smoothly until km25, when my left hamstring began to cramp. I stopped and gave it a stretch and continued running. Then it was time to take another dose of my energy gel 150 minutes into the race. At the next water station after I got my cramp, I tried to drink a lot more 100+ hoping that the extra salt would ease the cramp. At km28, my right hamstring started to cramp and I was beginning to slow down because of these cramps. I stopped for a while to give it another stretch and continued running. At km32, my left quadriceps started cramping and that forced me to run slower still. My pace dropped to between 5:45 to 6:00. At this point, a check at my Suunto watch race calculator showed that I was about 5 minutes ahead of my target sub 4 hour time. However, this time was shrinking as the km went on as I couldn't maintain the planned 5:40 pace anymore because of the cramps and fatigue setting in. I tried my best to run as close to 5:40 as possible but my legs and body were turning into jelly. Then at the final 5km, came the infamous Chung Hua School Hill. This final hill needs maximum effort to overcome as at so late into the race, my whole body was already drained of strength and my legs have turned into jelly. I did what I have always been doing when I meet elevated roads, pumping my arms higher and lifting my knees 1-2 inches higher at every step. I checked my watch again and it showed I am only 1.5 minutes ahead of my schedule. This was getting really too close. My legs were so tired after running up that hill, even the downhill run felt so tough. My pace slowed down to 6:00 and I was running out of time to achieve my target time. But I pressed on, trying to relax my whole body and run as relaxed as I could. At the final 200m, I turned and saw the finishing line with the clock indicating 3:58:45. I was thinking...the finishing line is still quite a distance away, and there's only less than a minute and half left, can I make it? I ran as fast as I could, without passing out, and made it to the finishing line by the skin of my teeth, in 3:59:33, making top 100 overall and 58 in my category in terms of position.
What a finish! Finally, all my focus and training throughout the whole year paid off and it was mission accomplished!
After finishing my run, I was given a very generous helping of food and Revive and a can of Red Bull. There was even a leg massage for us!
I waited for my members to come in one by one and all of them did well and did their best to finish their respective race. Many congratulations too all of KK No Excuse Runners! Notable mention to KKNER's Full Marathon Virgin Carol who came in under 6 hours! Superb effort and many congratulations for such a great run!
When everyone was back, we did our customary Poga.
Overall, this year's Kuching Marathon was a fantastic event despite hearing some issues about medals/finisher Tees not being given away to runners who came in more than 20 minutes pass Cut Off Time. It is very disheartening for a runner to finish the whole distance but not given anything despite trying his/her best. The organiser should have stated more clearly that this was going to happen, and provide at least a sweeper bus as an option for runners who did not want to continue the race after passing COT.
However, that very same runner should have also known before signing up for that distance whether he/she can run that distance in the allotted time called the Cut Off Time (COT). Runners have to respect the distance, and those who do not prepare for it adequately will suffer. In worse case scenario, they may tempt injury or illness, or worse. Don't misunderstand me, it's not that people cannot spend their hard earned money to register in whatever distance they want. As for myself, I register in races to test my fitness and the effectiveness of my training. I can run 21k any day of the week at any pace I want, and there is no real need to sign up for a race to log mileage especially if it is held near where I normally run.
I join half and full marathons to see where I stack up against competition. I reap the reward of honest training, thorough preparation, and hard racing with a strong finish across the line where I know I did my very best on the day. To me, that’s the real post-race loot, and it’s what makes the registration fee worth it for me. In short, one have got to respect the distance. To look at it in another way, if the runner fails to make the distance within the COT this round, see it positively, train harder and come back stronger in your next event. This positive move surely beats bitching around about not getting a medal/finisher T if the runner fails to make it on time.
I am sure me and most of my gang will be back next year for this race, as this is truly still the best marathon I have ever attended in Malaysia.
Where do I go from here? I feel that I have almost reached my limit in terms of pace, so I will likely attempt longer distance runs but still do Full Marathons. These old pair of legs still have many more miles to go.
