The 10th Anniversary of the SCKLM was held on 8 April 2018 and takes runner through KL. It's a new course (I think), but still retain the rolling hills which to me is the hallmark of SCKLM. Around 38,000 runner participated in various category from FM down to kids dash. I registered for the FM hoping to (again) break 4 hour.
More info:
https://www.kl-marathon.com/
Pre-Race
1. Around 4 hour into last year's race, I was upset things didn't go the way I hope it would. While nursing my cramps and jogging to the finish, I was determined to sub 4 SCKLM 2018. I was less prepared then and "hoping" things would go my way was not really a convincing strategy. After the 2017 race, I examined what went wrong, found a training plan and stuck to it. SCKLM sub 4 mission officially started early December 2017.
2. SCKLM was personal because apart from the Ironman marathon, I never ran a marathon other than SCKLM. I set a goal to go sub 4 at my first and second SCKLM and failed miserably. My 3rd last year was close but not good enough. I knew I needed to properly train and I did that this year. That was why coming into this race, I was less nervous. In fact, on Saturday, I was more excited about taking my kids to play at the KLCC playground plus having a nice dinner at KLCC than the REPC.
3. My strategy was to run 5:30/km, get to halfway for subuh prayer plus some major maintenance and see out the rest of the way around the same pace. I planned to perform ablution (wudu) before starting so that I could pray with my socks on. I also planned to take it easy on the uphills and take advantage of the downhills. There's little margin for error like pooping or cramping etc. during the race. I told my wife the day before the race that it's gonna be 3:50 to close to 4:00 hour.
Race-Day
4. Slept around 10 PM and woke up at 3 AM. Had my usual breakfast and pooped. This was a mini victory for me as far as pre race ritual is concerned as I rate pooping higher than warming up haha. By 3:30, I had showered and started warming up in front of the hotel. It was nothing fancy, just routines/drills to mobilize the hips. 15 mins before the start, jogged to Pen 2. It was already overflowed. However, as people started filling the gaps, I squeezed in. The runners around me were mostly happy, nervous etc. Being someone who is kind of an introvert, I relish being all alone among thousand of runners. I was focused on not getting beat by the course.
5. While waiting for flag off, I saw the 4 hr pacer and 3:45 pacer with their oversized balloons. I decided to stay in between them so I could worry less about pacing. I couldn't trust the GPS signal around tall buildings. At 4 am sharp, the gun went off and I focused on hitting my cadence at >170 spm. Lots of people were in front of me but the road was wide enough. I was faster than my goal pace and slowly catching up to the 3:45 pacer. This was when the competitive side of me started giving me funny ideas. I thought that I should capitalize the great feeling I was having and stick with the 3:45 pacer and try to go sub 2:50. But the rational side of me was obviously against the idea as I was about one hour into the race, and at that rate, I'm sure to blow up and could easily go from feeling great to not so great.
6. So, I decided that it's too much of a risk to follow the 3:45 pacers. Instead, I used the buffer I had to slow down at aid stations and just taking it easy on the uphills while ensuring the 4hr pacer were still behind me. I ran sub 2 at half way, my stomach was fine, legs were good, still didn't fart or anything so all were good. I had the urge to pee though, but I needed to perform the Subuh prayer first. I had to hold it in until I reached the 27km mark to pray and then peed. Feeling good afterwards, I decided to run a little bit on the uphill, especially the short ones. It was when I reached the 30km mark that I felt a familiar sensation on my left hamstring. Hello cramps, it's been a while.
7. Before I knew it, my quads started to feel the same. It dawned on me that I needed to sort it out. I walked the aid station, put on some ice, ate some bananas and gels being distributed. Few moments later, the cramps were gone and I started running at goal pace again. The cramps would pop up now and then so I decided to carry ice with me and use the magic spray as much as I can to prevent the cramps from getting worse. I slowed down on the climbs and even walked. The buffer I had was instantly reduced.
8. But after a while, I could somewhat run and ran the last 2-3km relatively faster as I wanted to finish the race ASAP before the wheel fell off completely. I felt it was a bit reckless but I was nearing the end with minutes to spare. Right after crossing the finish, my left leg cramped up. I stretched a bit before meeting up with my family. Took some pictures and went back to the hotel. I finished in 3:53 with an average pace of 5:26/km and to me it felt like a huge win. Take that SCKLM! :)
Post-Race
9. After the race, I was in no hurry to eat, but forced myself anyway. Rehydrated and went to take the car parked at KL Sentral via LRT . On the way home, I was already thinking about the next race. Once home, I slept.
Race Comments
10. I have nothing to add from my last year post on SCKLM. It's a great race and IAAF certified. Additionally, the course was hilly. So having the sub 4 felt legit and so pleasing.
11. As I look back at the result and what I did in training, few things stood out. Among them are:
- Strides couple times per week for economy/cadence
- Ample recovery between quality workouts
- Took it easy on easy days
- consistency is king: mileage
- specificity is queen: practiced marathon pace on long runs
- Adding threshold workout in long runs and on tired legs
12. On race day, the decision to sit back and taking it easy in the 1st half paid off. Though I did sometime went over my head and went a bit too fast. Holding back requires as much focus as going fast. Stopping to save time is a bit counter intuitive though I considered it as an investment as the time used to take care of things proved to be a good decision. I didn't specifically train on hills so I felt it was necessary to deliberately slow down, walk or even stop to save my legs. I know I was doing it right when people passed me on the uphills.
13. 3 weeks before the race, I did a long simulation run with a 2 x 10km at marathon pace. I fell apart after 26km. I was worried that this was a sign I couldn't sustain the pace. But, come race day, I trusted my training and stuck to the pace I had trained for despite that particular "failure". I realized in hindsight that it was actually a good run considering I didn't have gels and was running in the heat. As Sebastian Kienle 2014 IM World Champ said "Never judge your life because of one bad day. Judge it because of the best day"*. That quote rang true to me.
14. I know some people can sub 4 the marathon in their sleep. But to me, it was a challenge therefore I really felt a sense of achievement. The last time I felt like this was after 2016 IM Langkawi. For this race, I poured all my effort (about 4+ months) and was at the border of my limits (the cramps was a sure sign). Last year I did KOKK a week before SCKLM and it disrupted my prepration. This year, I took the preparation and execution for this race seriously.
15. I don't race a lot because training/preparing for a race deliver a much more profound sense of accomplishement. While doing triathlon, I felt like most times I needeed to race to identify myself as being a triathlete. But after the IM, I knew that being an athlete was more than just the IM race itself. It's a long term, resource consuming effort that goes beyond what I initially perceived. Having experienced that, I've ruled out a lot of things/noise and left with the things I knew I wanted out of sports that brings the greatest satisfaction.
16. Through obervation, runners wearing some sort of finisher T at REPC and peole doing funny things (cheat/course cutting) just to get their hands on the medals/finishers T, just goes to show that, marathon/ironman/endurance sports in general is more than just a sport, it's a way for people to express their identity. It's a bit of a generalization but that's the way I see it (big sample size in SCKLM). I'm no different.
17. As for the course cutters, I think it is down to ignorance + indifference as to what running a marathon really means. The aftermath and reaction to the viral posts showed that it is personal to many (including me). Also a reminder to myself, taking social media at face value is also something that we need to be wary about. There are more behind these posts with smiles, medals etc.
19. The mundane aspect of training, juggling life + work, the lows (and chafing haha) is almost never shown. But it's not specific to running only. It's social media culture to show ourselves in the best light possible. These posts are a subtle way to show we are the best or at least belong in a certain group. Likes and comments only reinforces this idea. It's a convenient way to feel good about ourselves. Newer runners are probably "pressured" to "fit in" and/or as a socmed content to fish for likes, especially if they've announced they're running a marathon. We're all gulity of this to a certain degree. My 2 cents.
20. Whatever it is, running doesn't mean it should always be about hard work etc. Running itself is fun racing or not. There are bucket list races that I just want to finish and enjoy (mostly ultras) and trails/mountains I want to explore. On the other hand, the competition aspect of running, pushing yourself etc. can only come in races. Improvement is fun too. Besides, I just don't physically possess the ability to recover fast enough to race a lot. It also saves me loads of money.
Race Notes
21. Race itenerary kind of went like this:
Saturday
03:00 PM: Race kit collection
04:00 PM: Playground KLCC with the kids
06:00 PM: Dinner at Ben's and stocking supplies from Cold Storage
07:00 PM: Park at KL Sentral
09:00 PM: Snacking on pizza and sushi
10:00 PM: Sleep
Sunday
03:00 AM: Woke up/shower/breakfast/poop/warm up
04:00 AM: Race
07:55 AM: Finish race/pictures/stretch/eat/rehydrate/back to hotel
10:00 AM: Check out and brunch at Nu Sentral
12:00 PM: Home and sleep
22. The race:
Registration: RM90(medal, event sleveless t and finisher t, post food, 2 gels on course, bananas)
Accomodation: RM160 (Adya hotel, family room)
Traveling cost: Parking (RM 72, DO NOT PARK OVERNIGHT AT KL SENTRAL, should've parked at Nu Sentral), LRT from KL Sentral to MAsjid Jamek: RM1.20 (Bring T&G or buy tickets in advance - long que after race)
Waiting for toilet: No issue
Sorting out drop bag: No issue
23. Race Detail:
3:53:47 (Nett)
43km
~820m D+ (strava)
293/8155 overall
Result check:
https://register.kl-marathon.com/2018/scklm18/reg_scklm18/result_check
Some cool stats:
http://www.runpix.co/arace11/57/kul18/rp.php
Final Note
24. In short, I love planning, training and executing a race and this year everything clicked. There were times I doubted my self but I had faith in my training. There's some element of honesty about racing. We can say whatever we want, but in the end there's nowhere to hide if the work was not put in. I've experienced both end of the racing spectrum and it made me love the sport even more.
25. Anyway, road racing season is over. I am 1/2 in terms of 2018 goals. Time to accumulate some vert and have fun in the trails. Next race, Penang Eco 100k. A new cycle begins.
*Originally from: http://ap.ironman.com/triathlon/news/articles/2014/10/kona-week/kienle-kona.aspx#ixzz5CG7kkjLm,
2018
