The day before the race, Firus and I went to collect our race packs at Sunway Pyramid, that was big and at some points, overlooked the amazing Sunway Lagoon where Justin Bieber had performed for MTV World Stage not too long ago. The collection point was full of energy, playing the latest Top 40 music and young folks doling out the goodie bags and manning the registration. There was the standard adidas stuff like apparel and their latest shoes.
When we collected our race packs, Firus got the ultimate lucky number (C3888) and the helpers made sure that he knew! The horrible fella was overjoyed and promised to frame his number tag!
The running route was basically going up and down one of the major expressways, NPE highway. The challenge was getting there. Despite staying in a hotel that was relatively near, it was tough for a cab to bring us in the next day as the roads were being blocked. We could walk. But that would take us a good 40 mins! A good warm up but I'm not sure I had the strength to endure all that!
The next day we woke up at 5. As you can tell it's a lot earlier than I'm used to.. thus this stoned face! Strategically, we chose to take a cab and with luck, he managed to take us through the smaller roads to the residential area that was just behind the expressway.
We made walked there and it was really exciting to see the expressway signs flash stuff like- "this road will be closed for adidas king of the road" and "check Twitter for updates on the traffic situation". Very good use of social media!
As we continued walking, we were joined by runners and I went from being groggy to mildly excited. The road was huge compared to what I was used to back home. It was fantastic seeing everyone so enthusiastic, doing their stretching and warm-up jogs up and down and the highway when it was still pitch black. We did our own preparation as the crowd began to swell.
Standing behind the starting line, we heard the excited chatter of the runners, with some whipping out their cameras for pictures and others updating their facebook status. From their running attire, we spotted people from Singapore and many others from different parts of Malaysia, runners of marathons, school teams, state sportsmen all psyched and ready to go! The runners burst forth when the horn went off and there was this amazing drumming by some folks on the side, which I remember correctly, was possibly a school band. On the way back there would be a rousing group of percussionists, this time made of traditional drums and the like.
It was slightly smokey and the sky was still dark when we started, with houses lined along the side. Soon enough we hit the toll booths and it wasn't a breath-taking sight but it just struck me as utterly amazing to be able to set foot on this place normally reserved for vehicles! I thought it was funny and awesome at the same time!
Past that, the road got really wide and there was a lot of room for overtaking or running at your own pace. Being relatively out of shape and having not trained sufficiently, it took a lot of effort for me to hit the halfway mark of this 16.8km run!
On the home stretch, we were joined by runners who did the 10km race, with most of them tired out and walking. By then my legs were hurting like mad and I joined the crowd in their walk! After a cup or two of 100 Plus on the side I continued running, hobbling a bit as I finally crossed the finish line.
I confess to being ill-prepared but I enjoyed every moment of it. The crowd, the atmosphere and the sights were all fresh to me and it was great to be among everyone who fought so hard to conquer the distance and reach the end.
The majestic sight of Sunway Pyramid.
One of the cool things about this run was the different running tees that designed for the race! There were 3 for men and 3 for women so there was an amazing splash of colour as all the runners gathered at the end, taking photos and whatnot.
Firus was a good ten minutes in front of me. I really should've pushed myself harder! I was wearing the wrong shoes though so by the end of it all I couldn't wait to get my feet out of them and give them a break.
After that we, had a good meal at what I understand to be restoran kegemaran malaysia - KFC - overlooking the Sunway Lagoon. It was value for money and accompanied with a good view, possibly the best, most relaxing breakfast that I could have after the race.
Despite the pain (wow, the run really made my legs look good) I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. It was the highlight of this trip, definitely, and I've realised that this is the kind of stuff that gets me excited when I travel. It was a great experience, something "hardcore", something I'd remember for quite awhile. I'm keen to do other races overseas and when I travel in the future, I look forward to being part of something amazing, full of cheer and spirit, just like adidas' king of the road kl.
