1st event of 2006: Navy Biathlon

26th March 2006: Singapore Navy Biathlon! Over and done with in a day. Time passes so fast!

This is my 1st race of the year! Although I knew I am well-prepared for it, I still had the pre-race jittery. Geez. After all, it IS the 1st race of 2006. It would kind of serves as a morale booster if I should do well for the race! :)

Dad could not fetch me to Bedok this year as he had to go to the cemetery for Qing Ming. Argh. The 1st train from CCK to Jurong only runs at 6.03am on Sunday! I was panicking on the night before the race and actually wanted to share cab with other sgrunners, Balasing. (P/S: that's not his real name, just the forum nick). Another runner, IMD, staying in Dover actually wanted to come out earlier to pick me up with another runner at Clementi... I did not take the ride as I did not want to bother someone whom I did not know very well! :p Oh, they are really kind people by the way. It's just me, don't wanting to bother others.

Hence, after some discussions with one of the runners on MSN on the 25th at 10+pm, I decided to take a cab from Jurong East after taking the 1st train from CCK. It would be slightly cheaper?

I woke up at 5am on the big day. I had breakfast, showered, and did some last minute packing before setting out to the train station at 6am. Think I caught the 2nd train which arrived at 6.10am. I arrived at Jurong at 6.20 and spent about 10minutes looking for a cab. Ah. Crappy. Bala later said I should have sms him in the morning. :p The cab ride cost me $16. Haven?t spent so much for a taxi ride in a long time!

I arrived at the venue at 6.52am. I hurried to the registration counter and then had body marked, after which I met Bala and IMD while walking to the toilet. They were just 10 minutes (or 8mins) behind me?

I changed into my swim suit and then made my way to the transition area to set up my 'square'. I did not see any familiar faces around that time. It was already 7.20am and I was more or less ready.

Caught DO and Penguin, another 2 runners from the sgrunners forum. One was in the Men's Veteran while the other in the same category as me. We chatted a bit and they proceeded on to the swim start to warm up. I fiddled with my stuff for a while more before going over to the swim start.

Warm up. Stretches. As I stood facing the sea, the sun was rising on my left hand side. It was beautiful. A piece of heaven showing itself. The entire sky was lit up by the red sun hidden behind some clouds. It seemed like it was going to be a cloudy morning and certainly friendly for a run later after the swim. I think I had the same thought as last year when I saw this scene. How I wished I had my camera with me.

I swam a while in the water and they were announcing for participants in the 1st wave to be flagged off at 7.45am to gather at the swim start. There were as many participants as I could remember last year. They actually had to close all registration earlier this year as the capacity reached its maximum. This shows that multi-sports events are certainly taking off in Singapore.

Although like any other individual event that I participate in, this time round, I have known many other like-minded enthusiasts who are taking part as well. It is unlike last year, when I was alone and did the entire event alone! I went there alone, took part alone, came back after the event alone... and had no one to share the event with except for Ken, this other biathlete whom I knew. Geez. Although some runners did not take part, they still came to support us! How encouraging of them!

I met Alvo and Meteor at the start line. Thanks to Alvo, I had a picture of myself in swimsuit and swimcap! I loved that pic! Hah! It was really pre-race jittery that got to me as the rubber came out of my goggles as I was wearing it! *screams* I knew I was able to put it back in but guess my fingernails were short and could not pull it back in! I turned to Alvo who was at the side and he helped me with it. Thanks to him I got the rubber back into the side clasp. Phew. Funny. He let out a small scream when I approached him for help. :p

The whistle went off at 7.46pm on my watch and we were off to the waters. I walked to the waters and then started swimming and following the crowd. I got kicked many times throughout the entire swim. There seemed to be too many swimmers! I was just worried that my goggles would be kicked off my face!

There was a turn at the 1st buoy and we would be swimming parallel to the shore, with the open sea on my right hand side. I was swimming on the outer part, as I did not want to be tangled up in the human mess again. All of a sudden, I felt a stinging pain spread across my right wrist and then my right thigh at the posterior part. I wanted to pass it off as fiberglass or maybe seabugs, as I have felt this kind of pain before in other open sea swims and they disappeared quite quickly. NO!!! This time round, the stinging pain lingered on and I was quite certain that it was jellyfish. A jellyfish that had brushed past me!!!!!!!!! I hate these creatures, yet are fascinated by them at the same time as they can be so graceful and bizarrely mesmerizing as they move through the waters.

Only this time round, the 'hate' aspect came into my mind. I don't want these suckers to come near me!!!!!!!! I am aware that they do move around in schools and I though maybe it was because I was far from other human beings. I then swam closer to the crowd and to the guiding line. I was hoping that they would not get close to humans.

Last year, it was choppy waters which caused many swimmers to get lost. This year? Jellyfishes. Geez. The waters of ECP eh. Someone posted on the sgrunners forum that the highest tide was 2+metres at 8am in the morning. I guess this was the reason that brought in the jellyfishes with the changing of tides. Bleah.

The pain was there throughout the swim. I checked occasionally my wrist and touched my thigh to make sure there was no open wound or simply to sooth the pain. Didn't help, of course. I was just expecting for the worst to happen. I hope that they were not poisonous and that I would not knock out in the waters anytime soon! I was thinking also am I the only unlucky one or do others get this too?

I was glad to make a turnabout at the 2nd buoy. This marked the return leg of the swim before turning for one last time which would head for shore all the way. Although the condition of the waters was much calmer and friendlier than last year's, this return leg certainly felt VERY LONG! I had a good swim on this stretch but it really took too long. There were a few times when I wondered if I was lost or swimming in a zig-zag manner. I saw other swimmers dispersed far in front of me and they were wearing red caps. Yeah, correct, we are in the same category. The blue cap swimmers from Wave who were flagged off 15minutes after us, soon caught up with us. Whoa. All from the Men's open category.

I checked my watch after what seemed like an eternity swim. I do not like to check my watch for I just wanted to do my best and not stress myself. However, this was getting too much. Sigh. I knew I would not be able to sub 40mins for my swim already. I persevered on till I finally neared the last buoy! I thought I would be long free from the tresses of the jellyfish but alas! I got stung again! This time on my left forearm! Stinging pain radiating across the entire forearm. Grin and bear it. I have experienced worse pains before.

Finally the exit. I heard Meteor's voice cheering for me. I was checking my time and my wrist and forearm as I exited the waters. Disappointed with the swim time. Almost 44 minutes. I know I am capable of even better timings. *SIGH*

I rinsed myself with a pail of water and hurried to the transition area. Dried myself and then put on my shorts and tee. Last to go on was my shoes. Then took my fuel bottle along which contained 100PLUS to last throughout the run. Spent about 2 mintues in the transition area.

I felt good and strong as I ran out of the transition area. I did not go too fast for fear of stitches which seemed inevitable and to get my body used to the rhythm of running first. Start slow and steady, and finish strong and proud.

I saw DO in front of me, as well as Penguin. Penguin exited the water 1st, followed by DO and then me. However, both DO and I overtook Penguin. She went slow for the run as she did not train. She's really a strong swimmer and a good runner too. Except that she is too lazy to train, which she herself admits. Otherwise, she would make a very strong biathlete! :)

I was pacing this Raffles girl in front of me. Well, she was wearing her sleeveless dri-fit top which had the 'RAFFLES' word sprawled across it. We were at around the same speed as the distance between us was constant more or less. There was once when I ran up beside her at about the 3rd or 4th kilometer and she hurried her pace and sped up. It's okay. It was still early in the run. I kept reminding myself to run at a comfortable pace, for there's still more than half to go. I ran past several female runners who are smaller sized than me (:p) and some men's veteran category guys too. Not pushing myself too hard, I just want to enjoy the run.

The route was exactly the same as last year, but only that it was totally cloudy this time round and the weather was perfect for running. I noticed that the crowd this year seems to consist of stronger participants as I ran past MANY participants from the Men Veteran category last year. Not so this year!

I did check my timing at the 3km mark. Took about 15minutes. If I could continue at this speed, I could sub 1hour for my 10km. In this case, I could maybe sub 1hour 40min for the event. This became my target for the event then.

At the last turnaround, I managed to catch up with the Raffles girl. She was in front of me all the while. There was the last 3km or so to go. I closed up the distance with her though I did not speed up significantly yet. She slowed down, I think. I was running neck to neck with her for about 50metres when she seemed to be challenging me with an increased speed in order to overtake me again. But this time round, she did not make it. Guess she was too tired from the over-expenditure of energy right from the start.

Dad used to tell me all the time when I was younger that one should not expend all his energy in a race at the beginning for there?s still a long way to go. A piece of sound advice which sticks with me my whole life.

My strategy worked! I sped up at the last 2km gradually. I could feel some tightness in my thigh and calves, and was wary. However, I was feeling strong. The last 1km (with signboards indicating every 100metre distance) was where I really took up speed. I checked my watch at the 5km mark and 8 km mark. I could really sub 1hour! As to sub 1hour 40min for the event, that was possible too!

I was really motivated and gave my best in the last 2km. I ran strong and finished the race proud. Finished my race in my own targeted timing. 1hour 39min 27sec. I was happy. The 10km run was my personal best. 54min 17sec. I never expected to sub 55min for 10km, much less after a 1.5 km swim! However, it could just well be the swim which warmed up the muscles and set the whole body in motion!

Alvo, Meteor and Tiwazz were at the railings by the side nearing the finishing point. I met Astrogirl for the 1st time too. Thanks to Alvo and Meteor again, I got a pic of myself running in! :)

I paced up and down the finishing area. I still felt strong after the run. Could still jog on tiptoe to cool down. Got my finisher's medal. Then I met Penguin who suggested me going to the First-Aid Station to see what they can do about the stings.

True enough, it was confirmed to be jellyfish stings. Not poisonous. And there were many other participants who got it as well. Actually one other thing that I was concerned about after the stings got me was that I hoped I would not get stung in my face! :p that must be AWFUL! A lady participant got stung on her neck! YIKES!

Vinegar and some cream later, we moved on to look for the supporters at the railings. We took a few group photos, after IMD and Hedgehog(whom I met for the 1st time) came in. we waited and cheered for Balasing next. I went off to shower at about 10.20. I was hoping to catch Ken whom I knew was taking part, and estimated he should come in at about 10am. No sight of him after half hour. Probably he had come in, or I might have missed him.

After showering, it was more photo taking time. By this time, Renohtaram had come down to cheer us. Oh dear, that boy had lost even more weight after a few months. He's really stressed at work. I met Xuanjing while collecting my certicate too. She did not join us. I met Cheow12 and Violet(his girlfriend) for the 1st time too. DO, Penguin, Balasing and I squeezed into the back seat of Alvo?s car to go to Marine Parade hawker Centre for lunch. I had a hard time choosing what to eat there. Finally, I decided to have the famous Apollo char kway teow. It's my 1st plate of char kway teow in years! And it did not taste fabulous. Too wet and not sweet enough. It did not suit my palate.

I sat at the same table as Balasing, Penguin and later Tiwazz and Sportventurer came to join us too. Penguin had to leave for NUS to go for lecture. I chatted with the others at the table. After everyone had finished lunch, we proceeded on to Marine Parade CC on foot to meet the World Harmony Run runners who would pass by the CC for a 10min break. It's a 37km run whereby the runners would pass by certain places of worship for the 4 major religions and end off somewhere in the east. This run is held throughout the world and the organizer happens to be a sgrunners forum member.

I met Cokiee and Charlotte for the 1st time. There are some other members on the run who were not introduced to me. By the way, Cokiee was a judoka from CJC! What a small world. He knows Alby, Mike, Sureen, Julia, Celeste and Selene... :)

The WHR runners continued on their run after the short break and we departed. Hedgehog, Kops21, IMD, Sportventurer and DO joined them for the last 10km of the run. I went to meet LL to attend a talk at Bedok CC. Tiwazz, Alvo and Metoer went to Planet Fitness for their gym session while Balasing went to shop in Suntec.

What can I say about the entire day? Fruitful and fulfilling. To be able to take part in my favourite event with other like-minded enthusiasts and meeting so many new friends. Even having friends who would come down all the way from home to cheer u on in the early morning even though they are not taking part. I have not felt this kind of camaderie for a long time. Not since the last Nike Real Run in 2003 with the judokas. Sad, but the harsh reality is that everyone moves on in life with new-found targets, aspirations, and goals. We move on into different realms of what Life has to offer. We do not occupy the same reality anymore and I have to find new friends who are into such activities. Once upon a time not too long ago, I had to go for biathlon and runs alone, often envious of those who do belong to a group that offers support. Now, I have found a group that I feel a sense of belonging. It's a great, yet relieved feeling.

Although the disappointment with my swim timings is real, and the stings from the jellyfish pained, the PB in my run timing and the wonderful people I have met on this more than made up for all the shortfalls. There are bound to be more events which I would have a chance to meet up with these pals. Kudos to the sgrunners!

Another race completed. Another worthwhile moment. Another entry into my diary of accomplishments. :) I love doing the things I love! That is what Like is all about, ain't it? :)))

"It never occur to me to stop, or give up."


P/S: A colonel passed away after the event, when he was just 600m from the finish line. He left behind a widow and 2 girls aged 2 and 7. My deepest condolences to his family. Many runners voiced their concerns on this issue of pushing ourselves too hard. Our bodies are the best indicators of our physical state. When it needs to slow down and rest, we should allow it to. Taking a step back would save your life and there are always other races in the future. In the pursuit of personal best and pushing the mind beyond, one needs to stay in check of the physical signs of the body and also think of the family... Maybe easier said than done as PB may all that occupies you mind when u race...



"Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go. "
~T.S. Eliot

"The race is not always to the swift, but to those who keep on running. "
~Author Unknown, in reference to Ecclesiastes 9:11, "I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."

"There is no telling how many miles you will have to run while chasing a dream."
~Author Unknown