Day 249 : 29th March 2011 Musings

The more people who congratulate me on my recent Aviva Ironman 70.3 Singapore PB, the worst I feel.

In fact, I felt pretty upset after the race.

If I had not missed the buoy, will I have met the cut-off time?

When I struggled to decide whether to swim to the second buoy, the thoughts of SunDown Marathon 2009 came to mind...
During SunDown Marathon 2009, my friends were persuading me to take a shortcut, cos there were no timing mat at the U-turn point. I declined.
But this time round, I evidently missed a buoy and did nothing to rectify the situation.

I am angry with myself, I am angry with the organisers.
I dun understand why they choose not to put out the lane ropes...
The organisers are seasoned tri-athletes themselves, they should know better.
Why the canoeists did not herd us back towards the second buoy?
I started to realise that there were very few canoeists out on race day.
Even then, will they be able to herd more than 400 swimmers towards the right path?
(I know the 30-34 and 35-39 waves got lost, not too sure about the other waves)
Which brings me back to the question : "Where are the lane ropes?"

Surprise of the race was my bike leg.
I was on extremely light gears, yet I managed to cranked out an average 29kmh...
What if I have trained harder...

Knowing my Bike Time is the defining moment of the race...
I have everything to gain and nothing to lose.

Surprisingly, what went through my mind was "Will I PW my run again this year?"
I started well, I was hoping for a sub-3 hr Half Marathon...
I was trying to get into the comfortable pace right from the start as TS has taught me...
I have done more runs than I have done for the past two Half-Ironman(s).
I have high hopes of making the 7:30hr target that TS has set for me.
But race adrenaline won't allow me...
"Push it down" I commanded many times, but the legs have a mind on their own...
I know the game is over when the cramps started attacking...
Run any harder and I will have to start supporting trees, supporting lamp posts...
By the time I cleared the 4km mark, I am a goner...
The legs has ran out of juice...
Lack of training...
17km walk ensues...

I was happy with a tinge of disappointment when I cross the Finish Line under 8 hours.

Sayonara, Aviva Ironman 70.3 Singapore.
Sayonara, SunDown Marathon.
Race experience is what counts and you disappointed me 3 years in a row.
Thank you for striking a turkey...