Okay. This part will be wordy.
Ali ajak aku pegi Singapore Marathon ni sebab it's one of the most organized marathon lah. Memang betul pun. Registration mudah. Cuma perlu cepat. 5 months before the run, the 21km slots has actually been filled up. Gila tak gila.
Number collection pun was a breeze. Close to 60 counters were available for 4 days for runners to collect their race kit. Like Ali said, "kalau kau kena beratur lama pun, kau takkan marah punya pasal they've done their best."
And that's where the good stuff ended. Haha. Race day was quite kelam kabut. Singapore Marathon got so famous, I think it collapsed under its own weight.
To begin with, I hate the route. There were 19,000 half marathon runners. And on the first 3km, there were sections that were only 3 meters wide at most. Aisehmen. How can lah like that. Bottleneck gila baboons. Ok lah granted kalau route tu selebar-lebar Autobahn pun, aku still lari slow, tapi not fair for those who were aiming for a personal best time and had trained hard for it. Dah lah mahal registration fee.
I didn't like the stretch within Universal Studios. Rather, I don't like the runners there. A lot of runners stopped and blocked the way to take pictures with Po, Shrek and Bumblebee. Hampeh betul. Satu lagi aku menyampah, berhenti ambik gambar kat distance marker. Arghh!! Benci siut. Mesti newbies yang buat kerja macam ni. (Okay, aku tak lah veteran/seasoned sangat kot, but I've moved on from the phase posing dengan distance marker)
The worst part of the half marathon run is the overall layout. You start in a damp, humid area densely covered with trees. That's when your body will pour sweat out and lose water by the buckets. And towards the end you run on the highway, uncovered, totally exposed to the noon sun. The heat finishes the job that the humidity left behind. Habis. Sau tong. Tutup kedai.
After the 14km mark (2/3rd of the way) I think only 5% of the crowd were actually running. The rest were walking, talking about lunch.
Termasuklah yours truly. Hahaha. Ekceli aku dah start jalan waaaay earlier.
Hasilnya? 21km in 4 hours. Amat cantik timing. Macam mula-mula run dulu.
So in a nutshell, I think Singapore Marathon is good for:
1. Slow runners (like me). You never run alone. That keeps you motivated. Sebagai contoh kalau hang slow, first time runner kat Port Dickson Half Marathon, menangis la sorang-sorang run at the end of the pack kat jalan kampung tengah-tengah kebun rambutan.
2. First time runners. 21km is actually quite difficult to comprehend. So first time runners tend to underestimate it. In a run where most people walk, it's a safe bet to get the gravity of the distance.
3. Rich runners. Registration fee is expensive, considering the exchange rate. And everything in Singapore (with the exception of Mustafa) is expensive. Memang mahal, tapi berbaloi berkorban sebab......
4. Mengusha awek. Seriously. Awek Semenanjung has got the chest gene but not the ass. Awek Sabah has the ass gene but not the chest. Awek Singapore has got both (mati aku ayah aku baca benda nih). If you're single and has got eagle eyes, this is the place to be. So Ali takleh, sebab dia dah kawin dan dia mata sparrow. Ayman orait. Haha. And I'm sure them aweks has got good personalities too (ayat selamatkan diri).
And don't run Singapore Marathon if you are:
1. Aiming for a PB. Run the Borneo International Marathon instead. It's a flat route, scenic and road is wide all the way.
2. Claustrophobic.
3. In wrath with them distance markers photographers!! (Nak ambik gambar ok, tapi jangan la block jalan, please. Dah la jalan sempit)
And with that, sila enjoy gambar posing maut. Konon berlari la, padahal been walking for the last 8km before crossing the finish line. Last 25 meters baru purak-purak lari. Haha.
