Dedicated to my family, Eileen, my Scorpion friends who took time off to support me for this race.
They most certainly had seen the worst state that I was in and yet they not
only were patient with me, but stayed by my side all the way to the finish
line. Also dedicated to the Avengers, for tanking the project preparations during the weekend that I was racing and
still find time to come down and support me.
The Monster Ultra is definitely the most challenging race
that I had attempted to date. From as long as I can remember, I never once had
doubt of myself in completing a race. Not even for my first Ultra, the Sundown
100km. I find 100km races still rather
manageable as coming from a cross country background, having clocked weekly
mileages of 100-120km before, the mental edge knowing that you ran 100km in
total mileage for consecutive days really gives you the extra boost in confidence
to finish the race. Nevertheless they are not to be underestimated. However, I
had not in my life, attempted to up my mileage to 200km a week, and I am not
even close to 160km! 200km to me, was a rather huge step into the world of the
unknown. Doubt were most certainly present in the days leading up to the race.
Training progress
The realization of insufficient conditioning only struck me
in September, after I had done the Craze Nut 101km as the experience was not a
really great one ( I ran alone, without support because I did not sign up for
the race). Thankfully, it was still had
5 weeks out and I still had sufficient time to train up adequately for the
race. Thus I set out to ramp up my mileage in order to further condition my
body to the brutality of the 200km. The punishment endured at Craze Nut 101km
was a sharp reminder as to how much more I would have to improve in order to
tackle the 200km. Thus, I planned to do as many 30km runs as possible after the Craze Ultra
leading up to the Monster Ultra, with another speed session in the middle of
the week and the rest of the days would be adopting crossfit as a form of
strength and conditioning to transform my body into a 200km killer machine.
Everything was progressing well. I was improving rather
quickly, feeling stronger after each training session. However, after my 5th
30K run, I came down with flu 2.5 weeks out from race day, which was probably,
as my doctored told me, due to the haze. I was desperate to recover quickly and
continue training, eager to get in some last minute miles to reassure myself
that I was conditioned enough to tackle the 200km, however, having ran
competitively since 13, I knew, as much as I hate to say, it is better to go
into the race slightly undertrained, in tip top health to struggle through the
race than to train through an illness and entering the race sick.
Finally, 3-4 days before the event I was fully recovered. I
went for a slow 10km jog 2 days before the race to get the feel of race pace on
the day itself and discovered that there was a tingling sensation in my ITB. It
appears that my ITBs were rather tight and thus contributing to this sensation.
Being worried, I did some foam rolling, stretching and avoided running till the
race itself. Although the events leading up to the race was not a smooth
sailing one, I remained optimistic, convincing that should I make it to the
start line healthy and injury free, I would push through the 200km.
Logistics
Conditioning the body alone is not enough. To tackle a race
this long will require extensive support from your crew, to provide you with
constant supplies of your needs, be it food, drinks, medical. One week out from
the race I actually met up with my friends together with my family to discuss
the crew support plan. In the end, it was agreed that my friends will take
12hrs night shift, whereas my parents, together with my girlfriend, will take
the day shift. We planned down to the details, as to where could be the
possible stop points, what I would like to eat at each checkpoint, my possible
needs, my targets for the race, etc.. the meeting took about 3 hours before we
are finally done with a comprehensive support plan. In essence, my plan was to
stick to a diet of bread and isotonic drinks, taking them at
10km intervals
with seeing my crew every 5km.
There were lots of stuff to be bought! Medical supplies such
as painkillers, cold and hot spray, bandages, plasters, antiseptic, etc. Food,
bottled water for my hydration bag, isotonic drinks, ice box, spare clothes,
spare shoes, windbreaker.. The list is endless. By the time I layout everything
for item check the day before the race, I felt like I was going out for a
camping trip instead of a run!
RACE DAY
So D-day finally came. I was still rushing my project in the
morning and early afternoon, eager to get as much done as I know I will have
the weekends burnt. During the late afternoon at around 4pm, I tried to get in
a nap but I was too excited to do so. All I was thinking about is the race and
I cant wait to get to the end of it! I was so excited that I don’t even have
the appetite to eat much of my dinner that evening.
Finally I was at Macritchie Reservoir, the start point and
end point of the race. Being an hour early, I went to collect my race bibs and
sectional maps provided for the race. The sectional maps were maps which showed
10km of the route at a time, B6 size. I took my time to pin my race bibs to my
hydration bag and my running singlet, applied some Vaseline on sensitive areas
and waited at the carpark eagerly for the race to start. It was a very humid
night – I was already sweating even before I started running!
At around 845pm the race organizer, Ben Swee, gave us a
safety brief and explained how the support by the organizer will be done. It
turns out that there will be only one vehicle, with food and water supplies,
roving along the race routes. In addition, one ambulance will also be providing
roving medical support. I felt that I was lucky to have brought along my crew
if not I would have to go through the hassle of buying food as I highly doubt I
will have frequent encounter with the supply vehicle. After the brief ended the
race officials gathered us at the start line and I felt the surge of adrenaline
once again. As I was getting ready to run out of the start line, one of the
race officials issued a sparkler to every participant, stating that after the
last sparkler is simmered the race will begin. Halfway through the igniting of
sparklers I was getting restless and impatient. WHY CANT THEY JUST START
ALREADY?! It felt like eternity before the last sparkler simmered and the race
director flagged us off. 0km down, 200km to go!!!!!
The Race
0-10km
Once out of the starting line, I felt an abundance of energy
within me. I felt light and great. Perhaps
the tingling sensation of the ITB, as well as the illness before that
which forced me to take rest, allowed me to fully recover before attempting
this race which thus explains the great feeling – starting the race fresh. I
was on pace, and I felt like I could go on forever. I was supported by Hong Yew
and Hazel, who provided me with ice cold 100 plus at the 5km mark as well as
some food at the 10km mark. I was feeling great, however, I held back, knowing
that the suffering would kick in later on in the race if I let my adrenaline
take control of me.
10-20km mark
10km mark was outside Sembawang Air Base, from there I ran
to the next checkpoint which is outside Kranji MRT Station. This was my first
time running past woodlands MRT. As I ran past the MRT station and residential
areas, the surroundings became more quiet and peaceful. I briefly enjoyed this
short moment of solitude. Sometimes running alone have its pleasures too. Hong
Yew and Hazel continued to provide me with leap and bound support from his car
and I am still consistently getting in fluids and food. Everything is going
well so far.
20-30km
From Turf Club, the next 10km will be a rather boring one as
we will travel to the industrial areas in Lim Chu Kang, then Kranji Dam, to Neo
Tiew Road then to the long stretch of road at Lim Chu Kang. I was running
towards Kranji Dam when Hong Yew’s car drove past me and out comes my first
pacer of the race - AKUJK aka Jian Kai
AKA the beast AKA the hulk. I was glad that he joined me at this stage of the
race as it would be rather dangerous to run alone along this stretch – we are
running along the roads with no pavement at the sides so it is crucial to have
a buddy to watch out for each other. In addition, dogs are present in those
areas and the last thing I want is to be attacked by one so early in the race.
I felt that by having a buddy will deter the dogs from attacking us. I was
still going strong along this stretch of road. No doubt it is boring, however
JK kept me well distracted with his unusual pacing method - His pace is not
consistent, constant change in speed throughout the time he was pacing me –
Sometimes he sprints forward, sometimes he does a brisk walk, sometimes he did
some cadence work,etc..This thus is able to distract me and thus the boredom
wasn’t as bad as it would be. At certain point of time Hong Yew will be driving
directly behind us, to act as a warning to incoming vehicles. At 2-3am though
it is a peaceful and quiet place to run at but this area is also thus prone to
reckless speeding drivers.
30 – 40km
This is the stretch that stretches across the long stretch
of Lim Chu Kang Road, past Jalan Bahar and then down towards Boon Lay way. When
I reach Lim Chu Kang Road, I began to run in a ‘zoned’ out state. I was a
rather nice feeling. Basically I was stoning and running all the way.
Everything just happened because of muscle memory. Hong Yew drove behind JK and
I and provided me with water and food regularly. JK was carrying my water bag
so whenever I needed water I just have to reach out and drink from the tube. We
made it look like JK was breastfeeding me initially however, we got the hang of
it rather quickly and I could drink on the run just after a few tries. This
stages of the race everything still felt great, no aches and no pain in my ITB.
A really good sign.
40-50KM
When we reached the 40km mark, which was a Shell station
next to Boon Lay Way, the pacer duty passed on to ALBERT. I was really glad to
see Albert, now that I have an additional friend joining the crew, my mood
lightened up from running the mundane stretch along Lim Chu Kang Road. Here on
we will run to West Coast Park’s Macdonalds where we will link up with the rest
of the crew. The route was seriously boring as it is now 3-4am. There is very
little cars on the road and all you can see are long neverending stretches of
roads. Along the way I felt a drop of water or two then I was like
“Dammmmmmnnnnnnnnn..” It was starting to drizzle. I was really worried that it will
turn into a torrential rainfall and that would mean I have to run in the cold.
Not exactly keen on that. Thankfully, it was only a passing drizzle. I was also
starting to get a little sleepy and things are starting to get a little harder
mentally. Physically I was still alright. When Bert and I reached the
Macdonalds I lay down on the ground, to relieve some stress on my back, which
was aching a little (I don’t know why). Shortly later the rest of the crew came
and Hong Yew, JK and Albert all worked together to give me a massage. It FELT
SOO GOOD AHAHAHA. I was also a little sleepy by then. Took in some fluids, had
some bread again changed my socks and lay down for awhile more. After half hour
of rest, I proceeded on with the race.
50-70km
This 20km brings me from West Coast, up to Clementi, to
Bukit Batok, Bukit Timah and all the way to Toh Tuck Avenue. It is close to
sunrise and by this time I was already 15 minutes off my pace. My legs were
starting to ache a little and I was doing slightly more of a run-walk pattern
to conserve strength. At the 60km mark I was really hoping for the sun to rise
as I was feeling very sleepy from the earlier portion of this stage. That
feeling reminded me of outfield days in NS when we didn’t get to sleep for a
few nights. At 70km we met up with Hong Yew and the crew. I was still feeling
rather sleepy despite it already being day time. We refilled my waterbag and I
ate somemore of my blueberry bread, which is starting to get a little boring as
I had been eating that for quite a while. Furthermore, when taken with liquid,
the bread will cause bloating in the stomach and I had been running with a
weird feeling in the stomach for the past 30km.
70km – 80km
The last 10km that my friends will crew me. After that the
duties will be handed over to my family and there will be no pacers for the
next 20km till 100km. I felt re-energized, knowing that I will be able to see
Eileen and my parents and this 10km felt strong. HOWEVER, Bert and I nearly got
lost as we took a wrong turn at Dairy Farm Road. Instead of turning to Hillview
Drive we continue to head down Upper Bukit Timah Road. Luckily I sensed
something was wrong and checked the map and fortunately, we were at a Junction
whereby we just had to make a right turn and head all the way down to the other
side of the road then we will be back on track again. When we finally reached
Blackmore Drive and linked up with my parents and Eileen my friends left and I
was running alone again.
80-100km
After 9 hours of company with a pacer, it felt incomplete to
run without one. When I resumed running after a short rest at Blackmore Drive
suddenly I felt someone turned off the Master Switch within me. I could not
run. I began to walk more and then when I reached Holland Road, I realized I
was hungry. Fortunately my mum cooked some porridge and I took abit of it.
Though I was hungry, I could not eat much I just didn’t know why. But it feels
good to eat something different, after a 12hr of diet on bread and Isotonic. It
began to drizzle again. After eating the porridge I felt better and could
continue to run alittle again. However, the issue with porridge is that it is
easily digestible and at 85K I was hungry again and had to eat again. This
carried on every 5km till the 100km mark.
When I reached the 92KM mark, Eileen joined me to runJ Felt so much better to
have someone running with you. We reached the bottom of Mount Faber and I
decided to walk up to conserve energy since the climb up was actually very long
and steep. It had been a long time since we last gone up Mount Faber together
and I totally enjoyed the walk up with her. Glad that I was able to “Pak-tor”
and run a race at the same time HEHE! It still took q abit of effort to walk up
Mount Faber, given that I had already ran 90+ km. There we linked up with my
parents. I had a little more porridge and enjoyed the breeze for a moment. That
day was rather hazy and everything that I saw from the top of Mount Faber was a
blur. The tranquility of the surrounding makes me feel much better. Soon after,
we head down Mount Faber and linked up with Kok at Telok Blangah MRT Station.
When I saw Kok I was…too tired to be happy. The weather is getting hot by the
minute. The three of us ran all the way to Labrador MRT, through Labrador Park
and towards Keppel Bay. It was very humid. There was no breeze at all and I was
suffering rather badly. Struggled through Keppel Bay, didn’t have the energy to
appreciate the scenery and FINALLY hit the halfway mark at 2pm. I rested at the
carpark opposite Seah Im food centre. I tried to get some shut eye but because
the weather was soo damn hot, I just couldn’t. Took a 45 minutes break, changed
my shoes because they were a little wet from perspiration dripping down my
legs. The feeling was so good. When you are uncomfortable like that every
single thing that makes you feel slightly better youll appreciate it. I even
changed my top. The warm top boosted my spirits and I felt better immediately
after changing into dry apparels. And yes I was feeling a little cold despite
the hot afternoon. Weird.
100-120km
I felt much better after changing into dry shoes and clothes
and after some porridge and a short rest, I was hitting the road again, this
time at q a good pace. I managed to sustain it till MBS then I crashed again.
This time round, it was a rather huge crash. I managed to struggle till Marina
Barrage where my parents linked up with me again. I had some porridge but when
I left again. I could not run. I just could not I don’t know why. Maybe it is
mental? Maybe it is the diet?? (more on that later) or is it my training was
inadequate? I am not sure. I was in despair. I could only do what I can. Walk.
And walk it is. All th way from Marina Barrage all the way to Tanjong Rhu.
There, I saw a fellow competitor and IMMEDIATELY, I felt much better. Now that
I am typing this report, maybe it is really all in the mind. But I was able to
carry out a jog for a while. Till I reached Old Airport Road and I crashed
again. It was so bad that I nearly walked all the way to the 120km mark, which
is the junction pass Victoria School going towards Bedok. I was really happy
when I saw the support vehicle parked there as I was running low on fuel.
Immediately took some coke and potato chips from there. We sat there and I did
some stretching till my parents came with black herbal chicken soup and rice. I
gobbled down everything. That was my very first solid meal since……..24hours
ago. I felt full and satisfied. Shortly after I finished my dinner, Hong Yew
linked up with us. There he took over the pacing duty of Kok and my girlfriend
towards Bedok Reservoir, which is the 135km mark where
John will take over the
crew duty from my parents and Eileen.
120- 157km
This part of the race is what I can consider the worst part
of the race. Due to the long rest that I had at 120km and the food that I took,
I was able to set out rather comfortably, and despite being tired, being able
to set out on a walk-run routine. We ran past East Coast Road, then to Still
Road. All that while everything is still going well, but when we finally
reached Upper Changi Road, I felt bad again and this time round I walked from
Bedok MRT to Expo. I was feeling really sleepy and frustrated and though I
should just walk till I feel better then I start running again. During the walk
I ranted a lot to Hong Yew. It made me feel slightly better. I think there is
really a huge difference running alone and with someone by your side. Looking back I feel quite bad but I just cant
help it at that point of time. I guess there is always this part of ultra where
you will need to communicate with someone, just to keep your sanity. For me it
is always to talk to my friends or Eileen. During the Craze Ultra, because I
was racing alone, after the race I experienced a few days of mental trauma from
the race due to the torture that the mind had to go through during the race.
At Simei, Hazel
joined the run. I felt really bad that I had due to being crew support for the
race, the couple lost substantial amount of sleep. When Hazel linked up with
us, we had a short rest at a public bus stop. I was so tired that I just lay
down on the floor and fell asleep immediately. I didn’t even know till Hong Yew
woke me up and he told me that I had already slept for 15 minutes! But after
that sleep I felt slightly better and I could carry on a consistent run/walk
routine all the way to Bedok Reservoir.
I was REALLY surprised to see the Avengers waiting for me at
Bedok Reservoir. It was a confidence booster and that brighten up my spirits,
which was really at a low for quite awhile since the 110km mark. I was also
really happy to see John. At that point of time I guess I was too tired to show
any emotion but I was feeling very grateful for everyone who had supported me
or visited me so far. John was a huge fitness fanatic. Unlike me he is all
fitness, down to the nutrition level. I guess he would have scrutinized my meal
plan. He fed me with bulletproof coffee brewed with butter and a drink which is
a mixture of coconut juice, coconut, flaxseed and other superfoods in it. I
guess I know at that point of time my nutrition plan is indeed screwed up and
thus, I just had to give it a try. A brief rest and chat with the Avengers and
John, I continued my run with HY and Hazel to 140km where we will linked up
with JK and John again. Along the way, we passed by long stretches of road with
nothing in sight. It is also already night time - around 11pm and the
sleepiness is setting in again…..
We linked up with JK and John at 140km along Tampines Avenue
9. There I got a massage from Hong Yew and I ate some fried noodles that JK had
bought. It tasted so damn good. Was so tempted to finish it all but I still had
to run…Hong Yew and Hazel stopped pacing me there and JK took over. We ran all
the way to 145km mark which is just nxt to Eileen’s house. There I took a 1hr
nap. I fell asleep immediately at the void deck when my head hit the hydration
bag (my pillow). I was woken up by JK and Eileen when my napping time is overL I was really groggy
and had to limp up to Eileen’s House where I took a bath. It was really cold
and I was shivering even when I was showering in warm water. The feeling is
similar to showering when having a fever.
The shower woke me up a little and I continued running after that. I
could move at a pace for a while till Changi V and after that I crashed again.
This time it was a 7km low period. I walked all the way. I was sleepy, my legs
were heavy and refused to move. Once again, I told myself to be patient, just
relax and walk. Nonetheless I was really tired and I did not realize that I was
showing a very black face. Eileen accompanied me throughout this journey and
she is optimistic, despite me showing the very tired face she constantly
cheered me on and encouraging me. I was really grateful that she did that. To
John and JK also thanks for putting up with those face of mine and the short
replies of umms and ahhs during that
period.
157-200km
After that period, I suddenly checked my time. It was 820am
and I still had 43km to go. I freaked out and instantly became awake. Suddenly,
the idea of not finish became very real. Despite the reassurance by my crew, I
decided to just push all the way. It is do or die to me. For me, it is
untruthful of me if I said that I never thought of giving up. That thought DID
come to my mind. But I know, I will NEVER take that path. The thought of the
feeling of regret should I give up came to my mind, the thought of the
disappointment of my Crew members came to my mind the thought of my pride came
to my mind and it is as soon as the thought of giving up came to my mind, it
went away. Instead, I was thinking of the medal waiting for me at the finish.
The thought of my future ultramarathon plans. All these came to my mind. I was,
at the 157km mark super determined to make up for lost time and make a strong
finish in this race.
I carried on at a very good pace. A pace which is so much faster
than the one which I had been traveling at for the past 14hours. After a short
stop for a breakfast of Economical bee hoon, I sprang off. At Punggol waterway,
I was joined by Almo and Bert (once again). We ran all the way at a rather fast
pace, stopping only for short periods of time to get in a massage or get in
some food. No time was wasted. Once I had gotten enough of what I need we
continued moving. I felt more awake and my legs were suddenly energized. We ran
past Serangoon, Sengkang, Yio Chu Kang, Serangoon, Ang Mo Kio, where we were
joined by Anders. We continued till Khatib MRT Station where Almo left and
shortly after at Chomp Pang Camp, Kok and Eileen joined us. By that time I had
covered 30km in 5 hours – a sharp contrast to Saturday when I took 10 hours to
just cover 40km. The finish was really strong I literally ran the last 5km
without stopping at all to walk. It was really hot but Albert, being such a
good pacer and after running side by side with me for 50km, constantly fed me
with water from my water hydration bag that he carried for me to ensure that I
can continue at this strong pace. I felt awake, refreshed and strong. I crossed
the line with a time of 43h40min and felt a rush of relief. The relief that it
was finally over.
Lessons Learnt
I felt that I could have done better, possibly a sub 40hrs
finish if I was able to handle my mid race a little better. I think the poor
performance of the mid race was due to:
-Nutrition
I guess my nutrition of bread and isotonic is totally
flawed. As I had mentioned earlier, bread causes bloating and actually made me
rather uncomfortable, giving me a false sense that I am full but actually I am
still lacking in calories. Thus this might have caused me to crash numerous
times. What I had found out is that soup with rice works really well for me as
I had taken that for the entire last 1/5 of the race, where I performed rather
well. In addition I did not try out what foods work for me during training and
thus this had caused me to suffer costly. What works for 100km MAY not work for
200km.
-Lack of Sleep
200km, unlike 100km is a very long race. Unless you are
running competitively, it is always better to factor in some form of rest. In addition, I realized that I had not
scheduled night training runs and that might have caused me to not be used to
running at night.
-Mental
Probably not enough visualization done. Or rather I did not
know what to expect. What could be done the next time would be to go through
the hardest part of the race (middle) constantly to know what to expect. In
addition, long runs could be longer to give a mental edge in running races
longer than 100km.
-Training
Include in more long runs probably up to 5-6hrs long and at
a much slower pace to acclimatize time on feet even more. However I feel that
the implementation of Crossfit had benefited me greatly as it kept my ITBS at
bay.
SO..THIS IS MY MONSTER ULTRA 200 REPORT! TILL NEXT YEAR!:)
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