Powerman 2006 race report!

Before i begin, let me first say that my first two papers went pretty well. I'll definitely pass both of them, a credit or a distinction would be a bonus. :)

Okay, now on to bigger things. :)

***Friday 10th November - I arrived at Uncle Peter's at about 6 pm. After being rooted to those darn library chairs for hours on end, i must've been a bit fazed out because i remembered everything except my helmet. Uncle Peter lent me his Giro white helmet which was plastered all over with the Ironman logo. i was worried that i wouldn't make it back from the 60km bike leg. "Must come back ar! Already wear Ironman helmet some more don't want to come back!". Pressure much!

When Uncle John, Uncle Alex and Aunty Christina came, we departed at 7 pm. I was hungry but we only stop to eat at 9-ish in Bidor. You guys know which restaurant. It's the famous Chicken Biscuit restaurant. But most of their food have finished and we were left with wat tan hor and fried meehoon to save our dinners. I was surprise to learn that Isaiah was already in Lumut. Ha! ain't no injury was gonna prevent that guy from the Powerman!

We were cruising along Teluk Intan when the car started making noises. We had a flat. It's almost humourous. I am ashamed to say that a big city girl like me had never experienced a flat tire before. Uncle Alex was on it like one of those F1 pit stop crews. So i had to kick start my inaugural individual duathlon with a bang! haha...
We finally reached Orient Star Lumut at 11.45 pm. I was dying to hit the bed. The past few days of drowning myself in Capital Budgeting was both mentally and physically draining. :) So when the rest invited me for a drink, i had to say no.

Saturday 11th November - I had no idea what time to set the alarm. I have never raced in the afternoon before. I was afraid if i set it too early then i'd be tired by the time noon comes. But if i got up too late, i'd be too groggy or i wouldn't have time to eat and let the food digest before race. It was a dilemma indeed. I figured 8.00 am was reasonable. But my handphone vibrated next to my face at 7.40-ish when Isaiah sms-ed me saying he was having a walk on the waterfront. haha...such an early riser. I got up, washed up and went down for breakfast with Uncle Alex, Aunty Christina and Uncle John.

It was the usual hotel buffet breakfast. I helped myself to a little more carbo and bigger portions too since i had planned to skip lunch. Isaiah and Mr Kee was having breakfast too so I joined them for a bit. :)

After breakfast, i bought 2 PowerGels and 1 sachet of Powerbar Endurance drink. I got my timing chip and started getting nervous when i saw more and more people pouring into the hotel. I wanted to go and warm up, but it was only 10 something at that time. I was a little jumpy, not knowing what to do next.

Finally at 11.10 am i went up to the room to change into my gear, stick the Gels to my bike and mix the endurance drink. After a few tries, i opted for 2 ponytails because the back strap of the Giro helmet was quite low. Once i was happy, i brought my bike down and left it with Uncle Alex and gang. I call them my support crew, coz they were all not taking part. I went for a short warm up run, eventhough i was told it was too early. I had to do something to calm those jitters.

Came back and brought my bike for a spin. Yazid called me as i rode passed him. Then i saw Yusri and Rameash who all agreed to cheer me on. All of these are OB Instructors. They were with the media apparently. :) Finally went back to get my bag and things and checked into transition. Oh Orient Star is a minute's bike ride to the race start. :)

After checking in, i went for a proper warm up run. I met Tang Kit Mun, the, then, little girl who overtook me in a couple of sprint races. She's only 14 and look how tall she's grown!Race flagged off at 1 pm sharp. i started off with Lizi who claimed she was already tired. Well so was i, but i'll die before i say that out aloud. I have this theory that if i don't admit it to myself, then it's not true. I was advised to go easy but i had my own strategy which was to nail the first 10km to get a good headstart. Zailan came up to say "Hi". haha...don't you think it's amazing how social races can be. i really enjoy meeting new people especially when running. :)
dumb cameramen waiting to be ambushed by some very very strong men
I kept on a steady pace, fighting every temptation to walk, but grabbing water at every station. I wasn't even going easy, but yet i came in after 1 hour 9 minutes. The sun was still high up in the sky. I was hungry, thirsty and burnt. Going into the transition area i lost my bearings for a while. I couldn't find my bike. Usually marshalls show you where it is but these marshalls seem quite lost themselves. I finally found it, got my helmet on and drank a big gulp of water. Heading out of transition i caught sight of the bunches of bananas and isotonic drinks. That's my lunch! I grabbed a couple of bananas and swallowed a mouthful of heavenly cold 100 plus. Still not too good with my balance, i struggled to peel the skin of the banana with one hand and chomped it down like my life depended on it. Did the same for the other. :)
After the crash course that Uncle Alex gave me, i was quite determined to keep pumping thoughout the 60km course. Much to my surprise it wasn't as hard as i thought it would be. I actually went on quite smoothly. People overtook me like nobody's business, like they always do in the bike, but i still felt pretty good. My only hope was for the tubes to not burst. God knows what i'd do if they did. About 10 km into the race dark clouds hovered above. and not long after it poured tigers and dingos! It was craazzzzyyy! Wanna know what rain feels like travelling at 25km/h? It feels like sand grains pelting upon my sun burnt skin. At 30km/h, it felt like icicles, cold and sharp! Shivering, hungry and soaking wet, it took a lot to push away thoughts of giving up. I especially hated when lorries zoomed past and honked so deafeningly that i swear i'm not partially deaf. Next thing i knew, i was done with one loop. Seeing that i did 30 km in 1 hour 16 minutes i was ever more determined to push harder, knowing now that i'll make the qualifying time. I had a Gel and could almost feel the adrenaline bursting through my veins!

The rain had slowed down to a drizzle, and soon it was just puddles on the road with a cool breeze in the air. It was perfect! I sped up a notch, with a 100% focus on my legs. I couldn't help smiling to myself, knowing that i'm gonna make it much earlier than i targeted. I was ecstatic when i saw the U-turn at 45 km and it seemed as though within minutes the transition area came into view! Euphoric, i was all smiles as i saw the smiling face of my ever loyal support crew, who seemed to have braved the sun and rain with me. haha...
After parking my bike, i tore out my other Gel and sucked on it. This guy came up alongside me saying "C'mon...another 10k more!". I smiled, saying under my breath "Bring it on...". I was really powered up. I felt so amazingly energized that i could hardly believe it. Sure i had the usual disorientation of the legs after cycling, but it wasn't long till i was pounding the ground consistently. I found my pace and started overtaking people, slowly but surely. It was amazing!

after the U-turn, i glanced at my watch. the feeling of sheer confidence that i'll be making it back on time is priceless. up ahead i saw Halim, this guy who runs around ss14, and i was game to overtake him. haha such is the gratitude i have for the guy who advised me to keep my toes on the pedals to give my legs more power. he was very encouraging. "you're looking good! go ahead!" and he made leeway for me to overtake. how nice...:)
it wasn't long before i saw the finish line again. Lumut Waterfront, though now already bustling with people who have finished long before me, was the most beautiful sight i've seen all day. The smiles on the faces of my dear support crew, the sound of Adele's voice announcing my arrival, i took in everything and it was breathtaking...literally. because i was so spent out. The first person i saw after i crossed the line was Penn. haha why am i not surprised...:) Got my medal, got my finisher t shirt, which by then have run out of S and XS sizes. I got an M size, but i couldn't care less. I could've gotten an XL and i'd still wear it with pride. :)
The rest of the night, needless to say, i was smiling like a silly monkey. Uncle Peter and gang brought me out for dinner at Kg Koh for some super amazing seafood. And then we adjourned to Jook's Bar in Lumut to meet Ian Tee and some other really interesting characters for beer. I had 2 bottles of Tiger. My eyes could hardly stay open by then.

At 2 .30 am Uncle Peter decides to go mamak! wahlau, i swear my head could've plonked down on the tandoori chicken at any moment. Finally, past 3 am, we went back to the hotel. I just hit the bed like a sack of bricks, dragging my sore sore legs underneath the covers and resting my spinning head...

***

I had so much fun. Many thanks go out to my amazingly efficient and ever supportive support crew, Uncle Peter, Uncle Alex, Aunty Christina and Uncle John. Pictures are snapped by Uncle John. I had a blast and it was all because of these 4 people. They made Powerman possible for me :)

I also appreciate the smses which came in the night before my race. I'm actually quite surprised to receive so many. I think i must've made quite a big deal about my joining this race huh? hehe...well, thank you. I feel like KennySia doing the KLIM...except that he had his accomodation sponsored. hehe...but you guys are the best! :)

And as for aspiring duathletes, this is gonna sound every bit as cheesy as some lamer who have just done an amazing feat, but trust me, if i can do it...so can you...

cheers!