I took part in this virtual run for the first time and truly enjoyed it! It says a habit can be formed in every 21 days. Running to me is already a habit, but for other (good) habits that you have not formed, try to do it for 21 days consecutively and see if you will achieve any success. A good example – Quit Smoking. If you are currently a smoker, try to quit it and persist for 21 days. I hope it can really change your life forever. Smoking is harmful to yourself, to the environment and to the people around you. 21 days is all it takes. Try it.

42race has this 21Day Challenge every month. This year I believe will be all about Horoscope. February challenge is Aquarius theme – Be the fighter. You can choose to run either 20KM, 50KM, 100KM or 200KM. I signed up for 100KM because 50km is too little and 200km is too much for me at the moment. 

I love the medal and looking forward to receive it!

My normal monthly running mileage is about 70 – 80KM. But for this challenge, I completed slightly more than 100KM in 21 days! If you have a goal in mind, you will do everything to achieve it, come hell or high water. This was what I did. Having something to look forward to is important so that your daily life will be more fulfilling and exciting :D.

Another goal of mine is to run my first full marathon. I am aiming to do it by the end of this year. I think by then I will be ready to take on the challenge.

If you are happy, go for a run. If you are depressed? go for a run. After a good run, sweat it out, you will definitely feel much lighter and happier! Have a more positive outlook and ready to take on any life challenges.

One of my LSDs was from Ghim Moh Link to Harbourfront via the Southern Ridges with my brother and sister. We took our own sweet time to run there from about 7am+. We even had our Roti Prata breakfast at Seah Im Food Centre, chit chat and then ran back to Ghim Moh Link again. Total distance clocked was about 20.5KM. It was a nice route and weather was great. We stopped for water break at Hort Park as we didn’t want to carry any water with us. Hort Park has got many water coolers and vending machines. I look forward to more long runs like this!

42race’s website is not very pro in my opinion but there are many run submissions every day. Every time I log in, I see new submission and it keeps refreshing itself like every few seconds! Wow the traffic is indeed quite substantial. I think they are quite successful as a Virtual Run organiser. The medal design is nice and it attracts many people to sign up with a reasonable fee of S$9.90. Most importantly, the motivation to run is there. I think I won’t be signing up again for March challenge because I will be going for a short trip during the school holiday. But I will most likely sign up for April challenge because there is 2XU Compression Run and 50 Hours Non Stop Run :D. A good opportunity to pump up the mileage run. Haha. 

Agaration about 25% of deaths in Singapore every year is related to cancer. It’s really a very high percentage 😣 With advances in science and cancer research activities, it is hopeful that progressive breakthroughs can lead to a cure and manage cancer better. Run for hope is a run to raise awareness and support of cancer research. Contribution in healthcare research is really important, even Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg also contributes billions of money in healthcare research aiming to cure all illnesses including cancer.

There is 2 distance category, the 3.5km and 10km. So I still turn up for the run though I was still sick as this is a rather meaningful running event, I feel ok and I could just turn up and walk all the 10km as I assume since there is no medal and no timing chip, there is also no cut off time 😆 Just possible that when I return to the finish point nothing is there anymore 😂

One of the reasons I participated in this run is also in remembrance of a lady, which fate had causes us to cross path in life. Seeing her going through many check ups, chemotherapy, taking of the medicines and going through pain and side effects over years, she was a determine and strong women and had fought fiercely battle after battle from breast cancer to liver cancer. You just have to believe that sometimes people come into your life to give you valuable lessons so that you will learn.

(Photo Credits: JJL Runners – Veronica) Though there is no finisher medal and no timing chip to record timing, it is still nice to see many runners I know at the event and so many people showed up to support the event though weekends is really shiok to nua in bed. But it will be nice to give us finisher medals as extra motivation, especially to medal collectors like me, the eyes will have heart heart like this: 😍 when we receive medals after the runs 😆 I think with medal and timing chips, more people may participate in this event.

I really like the bib design as there’s a blank space for the participants to write their dedications. Added to my wall of collection if the running bibs 😊 I cleared the entire one side of my room to leave the wall out and I think it is going to take years to fill it up with running bibs 😆

The website and social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram is very well updated and maintained. With inspirational posts from cancer survivors and contest such as the best bib designed to keep the participants involved.

(Photo Credits: Running Shots – Eugene Tan)
On race day, weather is good but now I really miss the feeling of running at 13 degrees in Hong Kong. Seriously must run in cold countries then will know it’s so shiok! Not every run need to chiong so I went slow, chit chat with my friend and when Photographers spotted, we act like we very hardworking and run 😂 See the above photo is so nice 😆 Thank you photographer 😍 And so nice when the photographer took down his “weapon” off his face then I realised it’s Eugene! A running friend who have passion for photography and now he have joined running shots to take photographs of runners during running. Say hi to him when you see him in your future runs! 😊

Maybe because there is no timing chip, I have no motivation to push myself to run plus I’m sick anyway, so don’t need to be so hard on myself. It’s still enjoyable though at my 7th km, the Sun is out and started to feel hot but I already gave up in hiding from the Sun months ago, I’m getting so much tanner and many people mistook me as foreigners. Come to think of it, I’m very universal 😆 Over the years, I’ve been mistaken before as their local when I visited their country for holiday or back here at home Singapore as Thai, Burmese, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indonesian and I’m most commonly mistaken as Malay.

The portable toilet is enough for the participants and no queues for baggage deposits and collections also no queues. Flag off for the 10km is at Bayfront event space at 7.15am sharp shortly followed by the 3.5km category. The race route is the usual route to Marina Barrage and u-turn back at Garden by the Bay East. There’s many water points along the route with only water and no isotonic drink but also never mind because at the race village got two Milo vans! Win liao! Hope more future runs will have Milo vans in the race village or even Milo at the hydration points along the routes! Stay hopeful! 😍

And also the Vitagen tentage is fantastic lah! Got photo booth and also provide like unlimited bottles of Vitagens for the runners!

Overall I enjoyed the event very much, especially the Milo van and the trampoline workout we sat near the performance area at least a good 10 minutes watching the new type of workout, it’s seems really fun!

This time, as a friend said to me, ‘You are running for the animals’.  Yes, it’s the Safari Zoo Run and I was answering the call to raise awareness for wildlife conservation.  To make things interesting, there are 4 teams: Team Ah Meng (orang utans), Canola (manatee representing aquatic wildlife), Chawang (elephants) and Sunny (Hornbills).  I love birds so I picked Team Sunny, the Hornbill Mascot.  I joined the 10 km competitive category and there were 5.5 km, 2.5 km family and kids’ dashes.

My friend, Francis had signed up ahead and I had tried my luck at getting a free slot first as the entry fee was relatively high.  I had made a resolution to cut down on ‘racing’ since this was eating hard into my budget and overall plan.  It didn’t help that I took up running at such a late stage too.  Recently, for brief moments, I wish I was younger to start on this stage of life as I realized that in the real world, age is an issue most of the times – try competing for the same position in a company or for any sponsorship.

But still, it had been a rediscovery of the self as I entered into this year of the Rooster, recovering from a fractured spine.  You are as young as you think (or as old).  Running had also strengthened that belief.

I was getting ready my credit card to pay the entry fees one morning after the futile attempts to get sponsorship.  Then I saw a post on FB by Run Society, the official online media, for a giveaway contest of free slots.  I tried my luck and got it !  So thanks to Run Society, I got the opportunity to Run For Wildlife free for this race… before I meet Francis again for his debut full marathon in March (Sundown).

The race pack collection was a new experience as the organizer introduced automated machine for dispensing the entry pack.  I got my pack without mishap as the volunteers were more than ready to help when I hesitated.  There was still some manual handling as I was given the blue carrier for the pack with the discount coupons by the volunteer but it was done in double quick time since there was no queue and I got those as I was waiting for the machine to print the bib.  (I realized some folks did encounter some delays on other time of the day due to unfamiliarity and ‘waiting time’.)  Still, it was a positive attempt at making it available 24 hours to participants in future.

On race day, I made it to the start line early and the race was flagged off 10 minutes after the announced start time.   Francis ended up in the second wave with his friend.  But he caught up at his fast pace when I just reached the 3 km checkpoint and then he was gone as he maintained his pace.  The route was well marked and volunteers were on hand to guide throughout.  The hydration points provided both water and Aquarius drinks except for the last station, I believe.  The first hydration point was located less than a kilometer from start point.

Results were announced 2 days after the event.  I realized that photo finishes were taken for participants.  I observed there might be gaps in the shots so certain time stretches were completely missing (or at least at point of writing this post).

Looking at some of the shots too, I thought the camera could be more prominently shown because there was a number of shots of blocked runners or too close a shot. Not many seemed to be aware of the placement of the cameras.

But Running Shots photographers were on the running route and as usual they took their splendid shots of the different categories (and they are ‘free’!).  I took the liberty of sharing some of those candid shots of the young participants.  You could just search for Running Shots on facebook if you are somehow new to them and they usually indicate the time span and physical location of the photo shots.  (Thank you for the photos, Marcus from Running Shots.)

The air was fresh in the early morning (there were some stretches where you could smell fresh animal dung too) and the route was an interesting break from the usual Singapore race routes.  You won’t be seeing elephants or lions (including white lions) for example in the enclosures along a normal race route.  So I would say it’s an attractive route though there were some slight gradients.  Surprisingly during the run, I didn’t experience any mosquito bites as one might expect.

I collected the finisher medal and a cup of water at the finishing point.  The finisher medal was unique too, with designs of the four endangered mascots.  Then we had to make our way out some distance to the ‘entitlement’ area before we could get the usual stuff like bananas and Aquarius drinks.  We also met the peahen and its chicks making their rounds at the area, unperturbed by the crowd around them.

We made our way back to the zoo to spend some time with the animals before we made our respective way back home.  It was a nice way to cool down after a race.  As you could see, I was fascinated too by the white tigers.  I enjoyed the morning with the wildlife and this also made up for missing my planned visit to the zoo last year.

So this is also part of my journey back to another full marathon – the Sundown, my fourth full marathon since 2015 and then onto my 8th Half Marathon (2XU)  a week after.  I will be attempting these challenges to support a cause close to my heart and hope to get some support for the kids. https://www.simplygiving.com/runforthekids. Till then, run safe and happy.

Safari Zoo Run and REPC

Safari Zoo Run 2017 is back for its 5th year and continue to draw many new as well as past participants into running for a cause – Wildlife, and also, it continues to commemorate our beloved Ah Meng who passed on and became an angel in February 2008

The race entry pack collection happened over the weekend of 10 – 12 February at the Marina Square Atrium.

What made the collection experience unique is the use of the organizing team’s proprietary innovation of the race entry pack vending machine. According to the staff, participants only need to scan their barcode (found on the confirmation email) onto the scanner of the machine, and tada, your tee shirt, as well as the timing chip will be dispensed.

Race Day

Like what most of the runners do upon reaching the race village, I scuffled right to the baggage deposit where the process was smooth, partly due to the abundance of counters available, and I only arrived 15 minutes before flag off so most runners might have already depo-ed theirs.

Warm Up & Race Route

Just before the flag off, we had an impromptu warm-up conducted by the emcee! You know the ‘YMCA’ dance? Yes, we did that as part of warming up and we didn’t really know we were doing it until the too-familiar song started playing. Shortly thereafter, we also caught a glimpse of the mascots as well – Chawang and Ah Meng flagging all runners off!

The 10 km race route would have brought us running through almost all of the available habitats in the zoo, and it was a great experience personally as I have not set foot onto the zoo for almost a decade.

As we ran, the sky began to brighten up, and so as the zoo’s ‘residents’, and in particular, I remember how I noticed the lion’s stare was following me as I ran past it, and with many runners were like “Wow, they are all awakened!” I can’t help but to imagine the animals thinking “Why on earth are there hoomans running around when it isn’t even 8 am yet!”

The race route constitutes a mixture of diversions between first, second loopers, left/right turns, mild slopes (which got slightly technical) and loops. There were at least twice I ran past different finishing gantries (possibly for the different categories) on race day. Water points were ample for my category so no complaints about it. All in all, the race experience was great with the forgiving weather complimenting it.

Post Race

The finisher medal is pretty looking and decent. Finishers were also provided with post race snacks such as bananas and mineral water to replenish the carbs and fluid loss during the run. With a full day complimentary day pass into zoo, friends and myself took some time to walk around the zoo, exploring other wildlife we haven’t seen during the run or in a while, while cheering for the runners of the later categories on their way back to the finish line.

This was my first Safari Zoo Run, and with the above, I have no qualms about joining next year and I certainly look forward to it! P.S I would also like to catch my baby giraffe the next time I am back!!

It is my first time participating in Safari Zoo Run. The Safari Zoo Run is organised to raise awareness for wildlife conservation and to encourage family bonding. Thank you JustRunLah! for the slots! Runners participating in the run gets complimentary entry to the Zoo and River Safari after the run! Of course I will make use of the opportunity to explore the Zoo 😍 But after Zoo I have to go back rest already as I have Run for Hope the next day 😆

Have to grant the runners complimentary entry what, the race slot is very expensive compared to other runs! A 10km competitive slot is $80 😱 A family of 4 person can easily cost over $200! 🙈 But considering that these are tourist attractions, just buying tickets for its entry is already around that price so consider it paying to visit the beautiful creatures! 😊

Thank you Rey for helping me collect the race entry pack as I was away in Hong Kong for Standard Chartered Marathon 😊 Since I’m back from Hong Kong I’m a little sick, I kena flu virus and I can predict that next few days I will get cough as it always comes as a package 😂 Speaking of which, I’m really grateful that my legs is very fine the very next day after the marathon. Last year after my Sundown marathon, I couldn’t even walk properly after a week 😭

Flag off for the 10km competitive run is at 7am so I took a taxi there at around 6am wanting to reach there earlier in case there is jam. Though it’s about 8km from home， I’m not so hardcore to run there and it’s troublesome to take bus and do all the transfers there and I will not make it on time. Baggage deposit and collection is efficient with no queues at all as I think most people drive there and does not require baggage deposits. What I like is that there is actually shower facilities prepared for the runners of both gender! There’s not much of a queue and even seats and slippers are prepared for those who wants to take a shower 😍

There’s a slight delay of 10 minutes in the flag off time but it’s no big deal. The emcee is trying his best to come up with a short unplanned warm up to keep us entertained during the delay. The 10km route is quite sloppy and theres 4 water point one loop, for the 10km route we are running 2 loops around zoo and night safari with the second loop a smaller loop so we are passing by many water points and no need to worry of not enough hydration. The weather is cooling these few days and luckily it is cooling this morning too and the Sun is not out 😊

(Photo Credits: Running Shots – Eugene Tan) I feel that my flu getting worse after 2km so I have to go slow. This 10km took up even more effort than the 42.195km I did the last weekend. I thought I will just walk the rest of the distance, the cut off time is a generous 3.5hours 😆 That’s when a runner from 42race saw me and ran with me. That’s what I like about running and participating in running events, we get to meet people, exchange conversations and share experiences. Thank you Willis for running with me, really appreciate it, if not seriously I would have walk all the way after 2km. I’m just glad that I managed to complete the run and the medal is so nice! 😊

After the run went to explore the zoo with Kelvin and Rey. The family run/dash is still going on, there is so many adorable kids running. Just so cute! 😍

I really like going to the Zoo, Bird Park and River Safari and also places like the Underwater World and Sea Aquarium though it’s really troublesome to go to these places. These are happy place to go to 😊 And for your information, it is free entry to the Zoo, River Safari, Night Safari and Bird Park within 7 days from your birthday with a paying person! 😍 I like some animals they are really beautiful, gentle and cute creatures with interesting facts about them such as the male penguin will picked a pebble which he thinks is beautiful and gives it the a female penguin he likes and the otters will hand hands while they sleep! So lovely right? Makes me feel that life is so magical and amazing!

In 2015, I even signed up for a yearly membership for Zoo and River Safari. And for quite a while, I visited the Zoo and River Safari quite frequently. And the privilege for their members in the past is that you can enter the zoo as early as 7am to encourage people to run when it’s only opened to public at 8.30am, but I don’t know what is there for their members now. What I like best going there super early is that it’s quiet, no human beings except nature, those beautiful creatures and you (Even the Zebras were stunned to see a human being there so early in the morning 😂)

Then, the zoo is like my “gym” and the path is my “thread mill”. During the weekends I would run there from home and spent quite a lot of time there, mostly hanging out with the Ring Tailed Lemur and the Giraffes or can just be sitting there looking at the Orang Utans. Let’s not debate whether a zoo is a “prison” for these captured creatures but can see that they are well taken care of, it’s a safe environment with food and shelter and with vets and zoo keepers who are trained to look after them 😊

My Race Journey. Safari Zoo Run 2017 (10KM and 2.5KM Kids Dash) 

How are you racing? I have been so behind the race scene this year. In fact, if not for the complimentary race slot, I have not signed up for any races yet! Let me take this chance to thank JustRunLah! for this. Having my race registration waived and since it is a themed run which sounds great for kids, I thought why not I register my daughter too. Lil’ Miss, as how I referred to my 7 year old kiddo, is a very spontaneous little girl who loves outdoors and is always willing to tag along with me in either her scooter or bike as I go out for a short run.

I bought her first scooter when she was 3 and eventually got mine too as I got hooked into a level up GPS based android game few years ago wherein I had to go to a certain location where there is this called “portal” which can either be a figure, a mural, a landmark or a anything and link it to another portal. Each time I link them I earned mind units (MU) so that is where I level up in addition to destroying the portals owned by the opposing faction. There were only 2 factions and this game is developed by the same PokemonGo game developers. Since then, I always wanted to go out check out new portals and so did my Lil’ Miss who enjoys discovering places with her scooter. She enjoys her ride so much that my wife worried she will develop big leg muscles considering our daughter is still a girl! This did not stop us though and this has brought us even closer before I started running. Now she has learned how to bike. 

As I was offered with the free slot, I quickly signed up for a 10km competitive and 2.5km kids dash for Lil’ Miss both under team Chawang, the Sumatran elephant. She was very excited that time I broke the news that she’ll be going for a race. I even got a hug when I told her it is going to be at Singapore Zoo. She has been asking me to go to the zoo again for the nth time earlier this year which apparently we are scheduled to go later this month through our corporate scheme and so this run is a perfect experience for her. This is going to be her first official competitive race too so I am as excited as her and as worried at the same time as her mother. Worries like what if she cannot finish the race and act like a baby crying in the middle of the race or what if she gets too competitive at the start and ends up fainting or injure herself along the way. Although I believe in her so much that I know she can finish this short distance “easy-peasy” like she always say, I still can’t stop the anxiousness in me. I trained her to be a tough girl and she knows how much I hate seeing her become teary eyed. She attends swim class every weekend and she bikes for fun as well. That is enough training for her. I reassured my wife that our Lil’ Miss can do this. 

Race pack collection was a breeze. We went on the second evening of the race pack collection. There were auto-counters which I thought were photo booths so it did not intrigue me much and went on to the manual counters instead. There were not much people then so collection at Marina Square was a little less of a hassle except that I registered my daughter’s FIN wrongly -common mistake or maybe just for me, O for 0 instead so we spent a little bit more time waiting for them to search. The event shirt was quite big for my Lil’ Miss but we were told that there were only a few shirts for kids available and that we were not allowed to change hers for a smaller tee. Chance is to post it on social media as suggested by one of the crews and wait for the right shirt size for exchange which I do not find any spark of hope. It was still alright to keep the shirt though because kids this age grow up fast and she can use the shirt for maybe a couple more Safari Zoo runs. It is funny how race packs become more and more empty these times. It is not a mystery why less people post about their race packs on social media nowadays unlike before. Our race pack is bare containing only the event shirt, the bib and a few prints which are mainly discount coupons. What more do you expect. Race packs change too as much as people/runners do. 

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The excitement in my daughter’s eye never faded off until the race week. She may not have full understanding of what’s going to happen next unlike us adults that we, at some point, seem to worry about our race performance. Still, the parent in me, took her out one evening a few days before the race day for a very short run just to test whether she can really endure running 2 kilometers without stopping. We ran a distance of about 3 bus stops as 1 km estimate and back. Proud I was that evening knowing that she possess such eagerness to run. I told her to imagine that the third bus stop is the finish line and that once she sees it, she must run faster than ever before and never stop until the finish. Surprisingly, she did as I say. Of course we had to stop before we u-turn and let her take a rest. There I am now very confident that she can do it and went on for a one more round that she merely resisted and started hearing a lot of complaints from her so I decided to call it a day and we headed back home. 

I went off first during the race day leaving the house at dawn. Mandai area is quite accessible to me because a direct bus coming from Ang Mo Kio interchange passes by my place and goes straight to the zoo. I instructed my wife and daughter to come a little bit later and but they must be there by 8AM as the kids dash flags off at 9AM. The bus journey was rather fast and reached the venue dimly lit by vehicles’ headlight. I walked through the dark using my phone’s torch and proceeded to where the music comes from which I assumed to be the race village. I went straight to drop my bag and passed the information booth, from afar I can see the stage where the host is randomly talking to runners. Porta-loos are well situated and something new to me is the mobile shower which I find it cool specially to everyone who loves to be always feeling refreshed after a good run. I still had plenty of time so I did a little warm up run and loosened some muscles before going in to the start pen.

The flag-off was delayed by 10 minutes which is kind of still not bad as I find the place still very dark. The host did a good job as he entertained us well while we waited. I could see silhouettes of some primates jumping at the branches of one of the tall trees in front of us. Ah Meng the mascot then helped to flag us off. I start strong at a sub 5 minute pace probably because of the rush of runners in the front where I am and immediately a downhill slope pushed us even faster til I realized I am not running a comfortable speed anymore. I slowed down and constantly checked my watch and made sure I  maintained a 5 min pace instead. A gentle uphill slope welcomed me at the 3rd km mark but what surprised me more is that the uphills seemed to be never ending until finally I realized I have passed by this part of the route earlier completely unaware that I am already on my second loop. It has gotten bright and I could see a squirrel crossing the road swiftly. The animals showed up from their dens and I couldn’t stop myself to slow down and admire the place looking left and right as I run thinking God is indeed amazing creating such beautiful animals of different sizes. And so yes, it’s that uphill slope again at the 8-9 km which nearly killed me dropping down pace to 5:30. I aimed for a sub 50 minutes  but finished at 50:12 net time.

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I went off quickly to find my wife and daughter after getting my medal. It was a long walk from the finish line back to the race village. At that moment, the family run is being flagged off. As I approached the race village I immediately saw my daughter getting some artwork done on one of the tents. While she was busy, I asked my wife to get me some post run photos. Then we proceeded to the start pen and waited until they flag off the 2.5km competitive Kids’ Dash.

Before the Start Pen Opens

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The kids were flagged off in 2 waves: first the 10+ year olds and lastly the 6-9 year olds where my Lil’ Miss’s is. This time the Chawang mascot flagged them off. Two or three kids fell down on the first wave. I was crossing my fingers that it will not happen to my precious one on the second wave. Off they went and yes, nobody fell. I saw her very happy as she ran alongside other kids. Impressively, some kids are very competitive that you can see them wearing those game faces especially the older ones.

Me and my wife went to the finishing side immediately after their flag off. We walked slowly as we  entertained ourselves with sights of the mascots all around seeing real kids and kids at heart very happy at their presence. We followed the sign to the kids holding area. I expected Cassy, Lil’ Miss’s nickname to finish in 20 minutes or so. Fifteen minutes have past but I couldn’t see her distinct purple shoes. I decided to find her then. I was a little worried she might have injured herself and walked instead. Truly enough, I caught her walking with other kids looking at the big birds flying above. I waited for her until she reached the giraffes and took a quick snap with the huge stunning long-necked creatures in the background.

Lil' Miss in Action

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Finally, I encourage her to run the remaining distance and reminded her that once she saw the finish line, she has to run faster which she did without hesitation! Hooray! She did it. She completed it in 18:43 net time. Not bad at all for a first timer.

We had the best time at the Zoo. We had to leave early though as Lil’ Miss needs to attend her stage 2 swimming exam. Meanwhile, enjoy some our photos at the zoo.

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We look forward to the next kid’s race. Are there any race you can suggest?