Finally, I can get my long boring lock of hair chopped off. Was so looking forward to a different hair style but was worried that it will cause much annoyance and irritation while running. Anyway, this is the latest me.

Oh ya.. my hair stylist asked me to be his model for a show in conjunction of his 3rd saloon opening at Autocity this coming August. I remember the first time he asked was a few years back when he just started out with his very first saloon at Perangin Mall. Both occasion, I told him I’m not qualified. I wish I am. But nah…runway is not my territory.

Try to spot our photo here: http://pmtey.blogspot.com/2007/06/2007-penang-bridge-marathon-photo-tell.html , taken by a man who run with a SDLR. So cool! As he took our photo, we wondered if we ever see that photo. Simply delighted to finally found it!

One of the thing I enjoyed most during the marathon was to be surrounded by very encouraging people with very positive vibrant energy. Whenever I slowed to walk, some uncle would shout "jia yu" as they ran past me, which never fail to make me smile. So sweet of them! Two guys even gave out free power gel, which I think the funding was from their own pocket. Bless their kind soul! It was very encouraging to see fellow-sufferers who were all experiencing their own individual drowning but yet so determine to continue on. Ever wonder why I can only cross path with fellow sufferers? It's because the muscular hunks were most probably feasting on penang char kuew teow by then. In the beginning and towards the end, there were so many people, especially the "ang moh" cheering for us. :))

Read lots of writing on this marathon. Some dramatic, some victorious and others disappointment. A good preparation doesn't guarantee a good race. There are just too many elements to take into consideration. Anything can happen during the 42.19km. My heart goes out to those who failed their own expectations. No doubt, it's more piercing than the physical pain.

5 hours 24 minutes and 42.19km; that's what all the blood and sweat for the past 4 months had been boiled down to. This maiden marathon brought along so much the hope, pain, magic, rage, fantasy, disappointment and exhaustion, especially with the deteriorating health. X-ray, ECG, other tests on top of countless trying medicine not only drained my energy, weaken my body but also crushed my spirit; just 2 to 3 weeks before marathon. Who won't when you felt like a dead fish all the time? Luckily when I decided to shunt all the medicine a few days before the race, everything turned out to be okay (so far).

Went eagerly to collect our jersey at Queensbay on Friday night. Was so looking forward to know how many had actually signed up for FULL marathon, out of the whopping 21000 participants - Malaysia Book of Records of highest number of participants. To my surprise only 90+ signed up for women open, 300+ for men open and 300+ for men veteran. With that figure, I mentally prepared myself for the worst that would happen -> to be the last one to finish or to be the only one to board the bus back. Indeed at 2.30am on Sunday, I feel like a lamb entering the tigers' den. Very intimidating wait at the flagging off area. Had I not race that day, maybe I'll be able to enjoy the moments of been surrounded by muscular hunks better.

I was so thankful for the smooth first 30km run/walk. God knows how many bad run I had forced myself through throughout the training. To run when the stomach was so bloated, to run even as you see blood dripping, to run even when you had awful stomach ache and to run even when you feel like your spine is going to break.

The real game started after 30km, when glycogen running low and fatigue creeping up, when joint pain setting in and muscle cramp haunting every steps, when stomach nauseating, when the body giving up.... that's when the mind has to stay strong and sane. "Mind over matter" in that "hitting the wall" phenomenon is ALL that I was looking for in the marathon (definitely NOT the muscle & bulking up). Been there, done that. Mission accomplished at the moment I see the finishing line.

Last year, I wasn't that satisfied with my 5.8min/km half marathon. This year, I couldn't thank God enough for the 7.7min/km full marathon (finished 300++th out of ~800 marathoners), especially with so much hoo ha before the race. It was a perfect run despite all the pains. The sunrise was beautiful that morning when I limped past Intel. Well, it's definitely easier to say those words from the hind sight. But when I was limping, I almost swore ( "almost" because to swear a.k.a to use God's name in vain is forbidden ) to warn you all that:

NEVER sign up for marathon unless you enjoy:

1. blister ( until we found RM24 nike dry fit sock which works like magic )
2. pain, plenty of it, everywhere
3. being a running bore. neglecting people, life, social needs and other interest; in order to clock in enough mileage
4. injury, everywhere
5. tan - i've never been so tanned ever since i left school **snob, snob** had to intentionally run under the hot sun to adapt the heat for the actual day race
6. diarrhea, stomach cramp after long run
7. etc, etc, etc
   

Will spare you the details of the lonely journey of the agony last 10km. But, if you really want to "cari pasal" like me, please do some research to get some good marathon tips. It's a 'brutal' sport and can be fatal. For a start, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon .

The aftermath was milder that I expected. I can still drove down to Taiping for wedding dinner after marathon. MH drove us back at midnight. **applause,applause** On Monday, we can still bring my dad and uncle for sightseeing around Penang. Can even climbed all the way up the steep steps of the white pagoda at Kek Lok Si. Loving this energetic moments. I hope it will last forever. Go away, aging process. I want to be at this age forever. Yah!

The results http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news_sports.php?id=269306

The dreadfully daunting task of putting one leg in front of the other is accomplished!

The run was perfect despite of me didn’t even catch a wink yesterday night (blame it on anxiety), which I couldn’t thank God enough. Alleluia!! My stomach had been kind to me (no diarrhea), my system had been good (no shortness of breath), the weather was perfect (no thunderstorm as forecasted), etc. The only challenge was the excruciating joint pain and muscle sore/cramp beyond the 30km, which of course was part of the game.

Now my leg feel like been run over by the lorry and I can’t sleep. :( Help me…

The photographer. **applause, applause**


The so called "honeymoon suite" @ phi phi.


The yummy food.

Another to-do-list-before-I-die been struck off. Yu-hooo…

The process is very much like slaughtering a pig. First, they measured your weight (to determine the cord with correct elasticity) and wrote it down clearly on your hand to make sure zero mistakes possible. Then they tied you up. Lastly, they asked you to hop into a cage to be transported to the slaughtering pit.




Despite the jumpmaster’s advice of not to look down, I still can still cheekly posing for MH below.

When we were ascending, 50m seems to be so short and in no time we reached the top of the crane.

Before I can even steadied my leg, I heard the jumpmaster shout “1, 2, 3, JUMP”. I didn’t jump. Haven’t register on what I was supposed to do. Haven’t muscle enough courage. Haven’t been able to lift up my leg. At that moment I wish the instructor would do me a favor by kicking me off the crane instead of me having to summon enough courage to take the plugde. Or can someone invent the springboard which will jerk you forward with a press of button??

AAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGG.....................


WAAAAAAAAAAAAA................................




Rescue operation.


The calmness of the lake after the shouting subsided. :p

For RM70, I signed up for parasailing. Parasailing, also known as parascending, is a recreational activity where a person or two are towed behind a vehicle (usually a boat for aquatic one and jeep for terrestrial one) while attached to a parachute.


The harness or towrope is attached to the speed boat.



I’d to run towards the speed boat, towards the sea in the super heavy harness.

Luckily it was windy and within seconds I was hoisted into the air. Yu-hoo....


The sheer thrill and excitement of being airborne.



The “monkey boy” helped to yank down the parachute during the landing.. else I’ll be floating in the sky forever.