"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail"

-The polo boys from Hall 2 getting a tactical brief before their match last thursday.-
Semi-circle formation FTW!

So you think you can dance?

I've been in hall since goodness knows when! But am enjoying my stay quite a bit!
I've been catching flicks from my roomie's hard disk, training with the Hall swim team and the polo boys.

I'd be heading off to CCAB tomorrow for a time trial around 6 in the morning. And I'll be back to hit the track again at pioneer stadium around 2pm. It's gonna be good!

I've also been having rehearsals for next years hall production...
Part of what I'm required to do...
is the following cringe worthy dance



HOSAY LIAO LAH... I'm finished...

First and foremost

I played my first H20 Polo IHG match today as hall 2's number 11.

We won 8-1

=)

I'm in love with this sport...

And my arms are aching...

20 seconds short

I wanted to complete SCSM this year in under 5 hours.

To be really specific, I wanted it done in 4:30 and below.
Looks like I have to wait till next year before it comes to pass.

My official gun time was 5:00:19, 20 seconds short of making it under 5.

I was disappointed, but looking back, I've learnt a lot from this race.

After sneaking a peek at the race clock during the final 1km. My face tells it all. My hopes were dashed.

Heel striking to the finish... The pain to be felt only much later.

I really thought too highly of myself when I told myself I could do the marathon without training. I've been effectively put out of action for almost 2 months with the exams before this marathon.
I'm still glad to announce that I've been achieving personal bests for all the races I've been signing up for since I've begun punishing my knees.

I did 6:01:04 last year
so I effectively shaved off 1hour+ for this year's 42.195km
It still isn't a timing I'm proud to declare to the world... More so to the Bi-team when they come hounding me for my results...

Here's a short breakdown of the entire race:

0km-10km:
Started off strong... Well somewhat. Prolly 75% of my 10km race pace. Was with WQ the entire time. He definitely was feeling bored running at my pace. We could have gone faster, but my legs disagreed considering I had a whole day ahead of me. We gunned down quite a few runners in the starting pack. We passed the under 4h pacers early in the game, and I thought this race was mine. Never stopped at a single water point, and felt I was going strong. As I entered ECP, I pictured myself running out of ECP with 10km left to go. Time check:Under 50 minutes! I was good to go!

10km-20km:
Was a good stretch. Maintained my constant pace for the greater part of this leg. I recall catching sight of the first few runners on their return leg when I was near the food center. An achievement! I didn't even see the elite runners last year. Made a quick dash to the 21km mark recalling my previous AHM pacing. Time check: Under 1 Hour 55minutes. Better than my AHM timing. Relieved, I told myself if I managed to hold on to this timing, I would definitely clock in under 4 hours for this marathon.

20km-30km:
The longest leg of this entire race. Shortly after passing the 21km mark, I ran into a little difficulty. I wasn't feeling sore in the legs like other races yet. I was feeling light headed and groggy, vision was slightly impaired and blurred. I also noticed that I stopped sweating for the previous few miles and that salt crystals were seen building up on my arms and legs. I recognized it as a sign of dehydration and realized that the last time I hydrated was about an hour before the race... By the time I got to the next water point, it was already too late. I downed a cup of hundred plus with a pack of powergel, but it just wasn't enough for me to maintain my pace. I tried very very hard to get my legs into motion, but they failed. My pace just kept getting slower and slower. My heart broke every time I saw someone overtake me. I did a jog trot till the 26km mark where I hit the wall and broke down. The 26km-30km stretch would be my walk of shame. I burnt out at the 30km mark last year, and I was super disappointed after hitting the wall at 26km. The engine just stalled and couldn't start.
I saw Ana, LZ and the entire troupe making their way into ECP while I was exiting Fort road, and I decided that I should at least push a little bit more. Better die while doing a marathon than die never achieving a PB right?

And so I sortied on. Started running again after the 30km mark. My eyes were closed most of the time as I was praying for a swift end to my misery. The splitting headache was driving me nuts. I couldn't even smile for the photos. Shortly after this, the 4hour pacers ran past me. I really really wanted to cry.

30km-finish:
I saw the most number of familiar faces in this leg. I saw BRX and friends doing the HM, and many other volunteers enroute. I saw my idol Jon Ma waiting at the finish line too (I only managed to hear part of "......EHHH MARKKK!!! ... YOU RUN AN 84KM ALREADY AH?...") Prolly because I was lagging too far behind Mok's blistering 2:43:42 time!
Anw, I knew the game was over when I exited ECP. I was switching between a walk and long striding stretches for the greater part of this leg. Ok... Maybe I was walking most of the time. But my heart really sank when the 5 hour pacers made their way ahead of me... I knew it was "GLHF try harder next race". I tried making a run for it during the last 2km. Under normal circumstances, I would have brought the timing under 5. But with my legs outta control, I had to stick with my sub-par pace and finish just 20 seconds short of my desired timing.

As always, all my races are dedicated to the almighty

Though I may not have hit my 4:30H goal, I still achieved a PB. I really thank God for sustenance throughout the race. I prolly would have just collapsed after the 24km mark. Knowing that I've clocked PB's for all my races so far is a reminder that the best is yet to be, and there are greater things in store for me. I also know that His ways are above mine, and that I have to patiently wait for my turn to step up and claim the promise. I WILL be stonger, run faster and go further in 2010.

Watch out!

Quotable quotes

Yoda: "Do or do not... there is no 'try' "

Jon Ma: "Do or do not? Then you go and tri!"

CLICK ME!

His entries never fail to inspire me to go further and rediscover what my limits are. It's also heartening to see a promising athlete who's also passionate in his walk with God.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything , by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,, present your request to God. - Philippians 4:6

Awesome stuff...

I'll be back in action at 1600H on wednesday.
I'm wearing trunks and bringing a pair of goggles to my exam venue. I'll plunge straight after everything is done, and swim till I die.

For now...

It's the final push for exercise grandslam on wednesday.

Let the mugging commence!

:O

Lookie what I got in the mail today

If you were wondering... Yes... The notes in the air are my notes on optics and waves plus a lab report which was due shortly after the shoot was over. Sorry prof. *Eyes mangled report*


I'm off for my first paper! CHARGE!

For all you soccer lovers who think you're fly

Oh yeah??
I don't care if you're too passionate about football.
I am not disabled just because I don't play soccer.
I just don't enjoy the sport.
What? Not playing equates to me not being as capable/tough as the rest of you?
This adds fuel to my already burning disgust of soccer fanatics...

Like what a famous polo player once said
"If water polo was so easy, they would have called it football"

Random rantings to get stuff off my chest...
*fumes*