I was very unhealthy before I tried to turn my life around. I had been smoking 3 packs a day. Drank every week. I developed hypertension. I peaked at 91kg.
Fast forward 2 years later, I had attempted many, many runs, including 8 full marathons within the first half of 2011. It was part of my "preparation" for Sundown Ultra, Singapore, my very first Ultra Marathon. The cut off was 18 hours. I made it in 17hours 34mins.
Because I had done too much too soon, I developed some pain in my medial collateral ligament. So I stopped running marathons, plus I wanted the chance to do the HSBC UK Triathlon. For the second half of 2011, I concentrated so much on trying to swim and doing triathlons. I did the Hoohathlon, PD Triathlon, HSBC UK Triathlon, Desaru Long Distance, Desaru Sprint, Miri Olympic, Miri Sprint and finally TRIED to do the Laguna Phuket Triathlon as well as Phuket 70.3 but I suffered a bike crash in the LPT so... Phuket 70.3 was down the drain.
I couldn't exercise for about 2 months after the crash due to the blood clot in my head. Which makes the last race I did for 2011 the Powerman Malaysia and the Sabah Ultra: TMBT, the week prior in early Nov.
Sabah Ultra TMBT's cut off was 36 hours. I made it in 34hours 41mins. http://www.cyng-chasingdreams.blogspot.com/2011/11/sabah-ultra-2011-100km-trail-most.html and http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150341660336765.343507.732086764&type=3&l=ee2e96acc9 Then for some weird reason, I became bolder and registered for the Vibram Hong Kong 100km. It became my first race for 2012. I didn't really talk about it to anyone. I know the terrain was tough. I know it was a mixture of sand, earth, steps, tar, abit of gravel and big, big rocks. Worse, I had no idea how was I going to tackle the cumulative elevation gain of more than 4500m. Plus the issue that I have lost 2 months of training since the bike crash. I didn't get clearance from the doctor to do this HK100. As long as I still had dizziness, I knew he would say no. I tend to get the dizziness when I lie down. Not when I'm upright. So I figured, since I can withstand going through the whole night without napping, I'm going to try it anyway. The cut off was 32 hours. If you can do it within 24 hours, you get a special trophy. I made it in 28hours 47mins. I didn't get a trophy, I got the hoodie and certificate of participation. But it doesn't bother me. I'm more than satisfied that I even managed to complete it at all.
By now, I'm sure you've seen many pictures of what HK100 was like.
(http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150543559311765.368857.732086764&type=3&l=585e98e026) It was indeed hilly and steep. But the scenery more than makes up for it. My favourite has got to be this feller.
Yes. That is one of the participants climbing up. And I followed soon after. I literally jammed for a good few minutes. I was like... how the heck am I supposed to tackle this thing??? We already had to climb many hills before this one. And this wasn't even the peak yet. This is Needle Hill. The third highest peak in Hong Kong. I still had to tackle the second highest peak which is Grassy Hill below. But Grassy Hill was tar all the way.
Then finally I needed to tackle Tai Mo Shan. The highest peak in Hong Kong. The picture below, is where I needed to get to.
From where I was standing, that looked like a million miles away. It felt really, really far and damn hard to finish. But I was adamant on TRYING to finish.
You see, I am not a runner. I cannot call myself a runner. I don't run daily. And I definitely cannot sustain running the WHOLE 100km. I spend alot more time swimming since swimming doesn't hurt me so much. (I'm supposed to be more hardworking in cycling, but now that's another planet altogether)
I couldn't train as much as the others in preparing for this HK100. I sure as hell didn't do a 50km that I'm supposed to, a couple of weeks before this race at least. I tried to train in FRIM in the first few weeks of February. (This race was Feb 18.) I ran Rover track at the most 5 times in one go, trying to simulate withstanding the pressure of running uphill. But even 5 times of Rover track and round the loop only gives me 18km.
Yeap. THAT was my mileage in training for this HK100. For like 3 weeks only! I was severely undertrained.
I think the only thing I had was the "experience" of having tackled Sundown Ultra on the road before. And Sabah Ultra on the trails before. In terms of "nutrition", for Sundown Ultra, I survived on two gels and half a bun. For Sabah Ultra, I ate about 4 gels, 3 perpetuem solids, abit of rice, chicken and vege at checkpoint 5 and 3 buns. For HK Ultra, I ate 3 gels, 3 buns, 1 cup noodle and 2 perpetuem solids.
In terms of gear, I used three different hydration bags for all three ultras.
From right, it was used in Sundown ultra, it was very slim and I liked it alot. The middle Camelbak is what I used for Sabah ultra, since you need to carry EVERYTHING you want to eat and need (headlamps, batteries, emergency blanket, sauna pants and jacket, gels) It is NOT slim. And it is damn heavy to run in, once you add 2 liters of water and all the stuff you need. The grey Nathan bag in the leftmost, that seems to be the best hydration bag for me now. I could fit the necessities for HK ultra in it. And it was alright to run in. Well for the most part, we were lucky they offered alot of food in each support check point.
In terms of shoes, well...
Those are my very first running shoes. The Asics Kayano 16. It served me in almost all my runs up till Sundown ultra when they killed me after my feet expanded, as well as give me bad ass blisters. See how narrow the front are. I threw them away after completing Sundown ultra.
The left pair are the NB Minimus MT10. Which I have also abandoned after using them in Sabah ultra, as they hurt alot on the gravel. The right pair are my new North Face Cyprus which I used for HK100. Which are better on gravel, but they're actually hiking shoes. So it's not light when running on tar road plus it feels very "keras" (hard). There is no cushioning as they are vibram soles. Both the NB Minimus MT10 and the North Face Cyprus are vibram soles. I still haven't given up yet on vibrams.
In terms of clothing, I'm sure that is a matter of personal taste, so I don't need to talk about mine here.
Now. This page is like a double edged sword here. I know I will be attacked for my slow timing (again) and there will be remarks like "Aiyah.... Cynthia so slow and undertrained also can make it, sure can do wan lah"
Yes. I agree with you that you should train for such a distance. Especially if you want awesome pawsome timing. For this HK ultra, it was ALOT like Climbathon (running up Mount Kinabalu) as there were MANY stairs. And it was hilly. Sundown ultra was on the road. It isn't hilly as Sabah or Hong Kong is. But when you're using the same muscle group all the time, you tend to get cramps. Sabah ultra is a whole different terrain altogether, it's definitely NOT like Climbathon (at least to me, it isn't). That's why I feel it's not a fair comparison to ask me which is harder, Sabah ultra or HK ultra.
In my opinion, Sabah ultra's terrain is alot of gravel and trail. (which doesn't make pure running easy), it is rough and and it is raw. Especially check point 6 to checkpoint 7. Holy crap. That Miki Loop still scares the shit out of me. There ARE steep parts of Banjaran Crocker so don't look down on Sabah's terrain, please.
I feel that if you are the type of runner who loves to tackle the stairmaster, then you would love HK100. If you don't like a lot of stairs, then you would enjoy Sabah ultra TMBT. But really, most importantly, is to keep an open mind and try out as many terrains as you can.
One main thing I have learnt after these three ultras, particularly in Sabah Ultra TMBT and Vibram HK100, is that I need to accept the conditions of the race as they are. Whether it is hot or cold, steep or flat, tough or easy, it is what it is. And as a wanna-be runner, I need to be able to withstand all these conditions. Whether there are enough support stations or not, when it comes to an ultra, you HAVE to be self sufficient. Stop expecting to get your money's worth. This isn't a McDonald's value meal. And like Raymond Ng told me when I complained why was the ending to TMBT still so hard at the end!!! He said, it is like that, if you don't like it, then don't join. He was so right. Cos the terrain is what it is. It's what the villagers use everyday!
Don't expect so much from the organiser. HK100 planned alot of food for each station. But it didn't matter to me cos I KNEW, by the time I arrived, most of the food would be gone. I was lucky there were still some buns left. In my opinion, HK100 was abit like Sundown Ultra, in terms of "pampering" the participants. They set up their support stations around toilets. Promised alot of food, coffee and tea. But really all those kind of things don't matter to me. I don't utilise them anyway. Learn to be independent. As a runner that's how it should be. For non-races, you have to be independent during your runs anyway. Test out your gear. Test what nutrition plan works for you.
Most importantly, keep an open mind. What I've learnt from more experienced runners like Michelle Looi, you shouldn't just look at the distance. You need to look at the terrain, the weather, the elevation, muddiness, etc. I may be doing a 100k and you're doing a 50k. But your 50k may be more "chee kek" (tougher) than my 100k if you need to climb more. And especially, if you can SUSTAIN running the WHOLE trail distance, I fully respect you.
And that's why, this year. Things will be different. You won't see me in alot of races. I will pick and choose. I no longer need to try out everything like I did for 2011. I will train properly. I will get ready for Ironman Western Australia properly. I will run 2012's Sabah Ultra TMBT properly.
Time to get ready, baybeh~!
