Ing Temple Run

2.15 am. Took a cab to the Amarie Watergate hotel.

2.45 am. Ate a sponge cake and a banana before going into the hotel lobby. They serving coffee and tea for the runners! Wondered whether I will bump into Runwihme?

3.00 am. Boarded Bus no 5. Collected my breakfast pack. Got a sandwich, banana, an apple, an orange juice, a packet of orange juice and a bottle of mineral water. Those people staying at the Amarie Watergate got a even bigger breakfast pack! Wonder what's inside?

3.30 am. Ate the sandwich and drank the orange juice. Tried to get some sleep thereafter but couldn't. Too excited - mahchiam like a schoolboy going on his first excursion.

4.45 am. Reached. Hell - still got to transfer to a pick up truck to reach race site. Walked around looking at the stalls. Bought 2 running t-s for 260 baht each.

5.30 am. The full marathon starts. Went to take a leak.

6.00 am. Another leak! Why so much pee?

6.30 am. The race starts! The race plan is to go for a PB (anything below 2.02 2004 AHM timing). Decided to start slow - 1st 2 km at 6.00 min pace and thereafter at 5.30 pace.

1st km - 6.15 min. 2nd km - 11.45 mins within target. Decided to continue at this pace for the first 5 km. The scenery is nice - plenty of fruit trees along the way. Longan, lychees and pomelos. Will take photos on the return leg. Alamak, need to piss again! No toilet in sight. Continued running. The road is generally flat with some crossing over the klongs. It's just like running in Lim Chu Kang during the NS days. No dirt road. All proper tar road. The villagers are out in full force. They livened up the route by playing traditional Thai music, peforming puppet show. Missed the 8km marker. A lot of people are overtaking me. A little girl probably about 10 years is already running back. Reached the 10 km point about 55m. 11 more km to go.

Then I decided instead of just going for a PB why not try breaking my first target for this year? - complete the race in below 1:50! Which means I have to finish the next 11 km in 55 minutes or less. Should be achievable! Picked up speed. Shit, still need to pee. Where is the toilet? Overtook the little girl and a lot of other people - the sexy angmoh, the guy taking photographs, the beared ang moh... 15 km: Time so far 1:17 - 6 more to go in 33 minutes. The sun is out now and it's blazing hot. There is hardly any shade as all the trees on the side are fruit trees and not very tall. The legs are now screaming. Must be all the previous days of walking! 18 km - 3 more to go and its already 1:33. 3 km in 17 minutes? Possible. But the spirit is willing - the flesh is weak. Somehow couldn't summon enough energy to run at that faster pace. 2km left and it's already 1.41. 1 more km to go 1:47. There goes my target! Tried to go all out but it's tough. Ha the end point at last. 200metres to go. 1.51 on my watch. The timer at the end point shows 2:53:03. Chiong the last 50 minutes and it's over - my first overseas race! Check my watch - arrgh it's still running! Must have forgot to switch it off! Press again. Shows some funny figures. Press clear - Holy cowbunga - deleted the whole damm timing. Shit! Anyway, the Chip Time is 1:54:08 that what's the official results say!

Grab my finisher medal from the girl and than I surronded by 3 Thai girls. What's going on? Alamak, no hugs they just want my timing chip back and I thought it was traditional Thai welcome! Grab a cup of water. Went to look at what's food is available. Porridge, and noodles etc. Didn't feel like eating those. No enery drinks only some bottled white tea drink. Went to the massage booth and got my legs massaged by 2 aunites. Whoa, steady there. The right leg is still slightly swollen from the fall last week at the MRT station!

Then the SMS came - "have you finished? It says. Replied yes and than asked an angmoh lady to take a photo for me. Aw shucks. Forgot to take the photograhps on the running route back! Another SMS - "so you takin the first bus out?". Sigh - got to go. Got a Thai guy to take another photograph for me. Than saw the toilet - ha forget about that as well. Photos at Yahoo! photos

Met 3 Singaporeans while resting. They signed up locally and paid local rates. Big savings. They doing the KK Climbathon next. Invited them to join sgrunners before bidding goodbye.