I'm back..

to blog hor li si...hahah...

Hmm..so what should i blog about? Given that i haven really been blogging for quite sometime and last few entries were revolving around the same topic..

Oh well, it's the festive season now..so let's just talk about Xmas..how did everybody spend their Xmas? I know of people who climbed 3000+m..people who just nuahed and pigged out..and of cos people who were trying to 'kiap' a (fake)$5 note in a swimming pool..using their toes..

For simplicity, i shall categorise my Xmas season into pre, during and post periods..

Pre-Xmas There's the yearly tradition of meeting up-cum gift exchange with my sec sch folks..after someone introduced some new confusing rule(everybody picks a number and tat number determines the order of choosing the preferred gift ' #1 has no choice, #2 can 'snatch #1's present and so on)..the gift exchange started..

Of cos, it has to be my dear pal wei, who has absolutely no idea how the rule works, to be #1. Got a decent radio-cum-alarm clock cum-ipod speaker gadget tat came in a shape of an iron..well, since she's the first and has the widest choice, she has to be contented with the danger of having her present 'snatched' by the next person..
I got to go next and decided to go for size..chose the biggest one and it turned out to be a wrist pad for the keyboard..ok lah, some fanciful stuff tat i won't buy for myself but won't mind as a gift..so decided to spare wei the trauma of having her gift snatched away from her..

Then things start to get a little complicated from here..to cut a long story short, there were some mutual exchanges including a portable BBQ set(courtesy of yours truly), and i ended up with a 2007 diary..kinda similar to wat i'm using for 2006..except tat it costs much more(apparently it burst the budget of $15 vs the free one i got) I'm really ok with the present..but it just really doesn't justify the cost..at least to me(sorry!)

During XmasXmas day itself was spent with my ssc folks..no gift exchange this year..owing to the sheer number of NILIPIs and newly-employeds..Nevertheless, it was entertaining enuf..with their attempts at a 'shao nian te gong dui'..some water telematch games ripped off a taiwan variety programme..needless to say there were quite a few unglam poses and shots from them while i was happily curling up in front of the tv watching my TAR :)

Then there were the more 'intellectual' games..which had ALPS going around hugging people, Ah Seng doing her best 'carebear stare', 0.5 saying 'i love you' all the time and of cos, the winner of all - OSIM who had to put her leg up to her ear..all without attracting anybody's attention..

Or how about Win Lose or Draw..which ALPS and instructor can read each other's mind so well tat a random shape can be 'Jurassic Park'..and how Ah Seng can guess 'I know what you did last summer' correctly, based on 7 strokes..
Oh, and did i mention Taboo? And how Ah Seng has to breastfeed my children for me next time..

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Ah, seemed to have blogged quite a bit liao..shall space out my entries a bit...will leave Post-Xmas for a later entry..think i'll have quite a bit on post-xmas..

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Din realise it's been some 2 weeks since i last blogged..

Partly cos i'm facing a drought in my inspiration(ha..like real) and partly cos i couldn't log in to my blog..

Ok, i just wanted to make sure my blog doesn't die from neglect..will be back for more blog entries..i promise..

A day in the life of a runspirator

First of all, for the benefit of those who are not sure of wat a runspirator is..according to the official Singapore Marathon runner's kit brochure - A runspirator is 'anyone'..anyone who inspires someone..anyone who inspires someone to go beyond the limits and challenge themselves at the Singapore Marathon. Runspirator = Run + inspiration + 'tor'..geddit?

For those of you who think being a runspirator is easy..i must remind all tat i ran almost 20km last year(though i only ran 6 this year). And there's the timing..being the mobile runspirator cum cameraman(ok lah, i did so voluntarily one lah), i had to arrive no later than the runners..which means 530-ish..AM. The only difference being i dun need to force my breakfast down and shit at the unearthly hour of 430am..

After the obligatory 'before' photos(apparently someone spotted us cos of the camera flash ; never fails to work - whip out the camera and people will miraculously appear from nowhere), the runners went off to their pens(again, for the sake of non-runners readers, the holding area for runners before the flag off is also known as the pen..ala pigpen)

Being the mobile runspirator also means i need to plan my every move with precision..with roads closed and open only to runners(not even to pedestrains or runspirators at certain sections - i was plucked out towards the end), i need to figure how to get to point X before the runners..

First stop - Marina South (3km & 12km)I had planned to cycle there and hoping to catch them at the start of the loop..but due to the sheer numbers of runners in the early stages, i had problems negotiating thru traffic lights and pavements on my bike. Next best alternative? MRT. So it was Raffles Place - Marina South for me. But the bloody train took 18 mins to come(it was barely a 3mins ride) and i end up missing them on their way in..

Together with a few other runspirators, we waited for the last runner to pass us and duly crossed to the other side of the road and waited patiently for the runners to come out of the marina loop..and within 5 mins, led by the car with the timer(is there an official term for it??), which was cruising, not even crawling..the elite runners are running out already..yes, they are tat fast..

I was easily the most sedate runspirator there..while the other runspirators gradually got more and more exicted as more and more runners passed..i was standing there, barely showing any emotion..so expressionless i was, the official there din even bother to hand me those whistle things which she happily gave out to the rest..

And because it's the first lookout point for me, i wasn't very sure of the order of my ssc folks(yes, they have an 'internal ranking'), which resulted in me missing a couple of them..ah lian even had to call out to me, instead of me spotting them..haha..& of cos, there's twink and meiren who ran past me before i could take out my camera..not one who can stand missing out on a photo op, they have no qualms about backtracking 20m so tat i can capture them..my frens..sigh..

Raffles Quay(14+km) Back at the Raffles Place MRT, i hurried up to ground level..tried to spot them folks..but think missed them liao..(which proves that running is faster than taking MRT)

Picked up my bike..tried to cycle along the route but realised that my tyre seems to be going flat..A quick calculation tells me that long cut + a flat tyre almost means i can hardly keep up with the runners..Plan B - Runspirators bus. Yes, buses are available to fetch runspirators from point to point to catch the runners in action..
Boarded one at Adelphi..thinking where should i stop..again, the long detour made me suspect tat i might miss some of them if i alight at PA..besides if i drop at PA, i'd never make it in time to catch them at ECP(unless i run ..but i was conserving my energy, having promised to pace 0.5 back to the finish line).

ECP (25km) So i ended up getting off at ECP. Went to look for our runspirators..wasn't hard to spot them, with a big picnic mat and 1 big cooler, not to mention runspirator-hubby, 1 runspirator-sis and 1 runspirator turned runner..i daresay we're one of the most elaborate groups around..Managed to catch all of them, except for instructor who has already u-turned and was the other side of the route liao..everybody seems to be going strong, no doubt benefitting from the almost-perfect weather(i didn't like it when it rained..cos it meant i can't take any photos)

Stadium Drive (36km) Had taken the runspirator bus to PA, which is somewhere at the 37+km mark where we also have a runspiration station..i took a look at my watch and decided there's a good 15-20mins before the first runner arrive, so i backtracked to national stadium..found a good spot just after the 36km marker and parked myself there..While waiting, i also became a standing clock..having asked 'wat time is it now?' by runners no less than 3 times. Got a bit confused by my ssc folks cos their coming-in sequence changed a bit after ECP and i could no longer predict who is appearing next..good thing is, at this stage of the run means most of the runners have slowed down considerably..thus easier for me to spot them..saw quite a few other familiar faces too(including CLH, whom meiren have a 'problem' with)

Finally my target appeared..poor 0.5 was suffering cramps in both her legs..stupid me had left behind the deep heat rub in my bike and could offer no help except to hobble alongside..but her cramps were so bad we had to stop twice before PA station..meiren also overtook us at this time..luckily, a kind soul offered his deep heat and 0.5 managed to last till our next runspiration station..

Stadium Link (37km) More H20 and a powergel managed to get 0.5 started again..enroute to first bridge, we saw twink and 10..both seems to be struggling a bit too..but there was only 1 of me and quite impossible to pace all 3 of them together..in the end, i stuck with 0.5, having promised to run the final stretch with her..

The Final Countdown Finally, we saw the 40km marker..then the 41km flag..last stretch liao..tried to will her on(i learnt my lesson last year and kept my mouth shut this time round, no more corny lines from me)..her 2 angels were waving madly as we entered padang..it was also at this time, i was 'chased off' by the officials 'u, get off the lane..NOW!' i stepped off..only to jump in 20m down the lane(catch me if u can, boo! >.<)

The rest were all cheering for her in the last 30m...again, i forgot to siam..so tat she can have a nice finishing photo..sorry! With a huff and a puff, she finally stepped on the mat and crossed the finish line..gong xi gong xi!
And that's the end of my runspiration experience..thank you!

p.s. if any of u want to know ur split timings, i can tell u according to the photos i took at the various points..

It's over..

Months of training finally paid off in yesterday's marathon..thanks also to 0.5's 2nd sis powerful chants, blessed with the perfect weather, most of them managed to better their previous timings..well done folks!

Shall blog about my runspiration experience in a later entry..

Meanwhile, enjoy the photos at http://www.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=tthjh81.6qkau7id&x=0&y=k0yey8

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You don't choose to run a marathon despite its difficulty but because it is hard.

You like the feeling of aiming for a distant goal and eventually reaching it..

The hardest part is over ~ The fun starts now ~ The race is a victory lap