DNF in IM Guyre ~ Kwenchana-yo! Happy to just be in Korea.

IM Gurye, Korea 2017 ~ the story of many firsts.

When I first started putting pen to paper, I wasn't sure if I would be writing a story of a successful virgin attempt on my Full distance Ironman, or if it would be a sob story of my failure.  It turned out to be neither. For despite my DNF on the run leg, I must admit I have never enjoyed a race so much.

The Tricators at Changi Airport

What made it so enjoyable was:

• the beautiful unspoilt natural scenery throughout the whole race course in Gurye 
• The beautiful weather 
• The highly-organised Korean coordinator 
• The fact that the race was in Korea, one of my favorites countries 
• And finally, that I was in the company of a bunch of experienced, highly positive, highly motivating seasoned Ironmen from the team Tricators, led by Jamie Goh.

Incheon Airport

Short introduction 

Suburban Gurye

Gurye-eup is a province five hours drive down south of Incheon.  Almost to the southern tip of the Korean peninsula. An ulu little agricultural town, covered by miles after miles of padi and plantation. Tiny hamlets of houses scattered sparsely in the province, interspersed with farmland.  In the distance, mountains ringed the magical lands. Glancing afar one could catch sight of Korean Ajumas in hats lined up in rows planting in the fields, a surreal sight that one could find only in the Korean dramas.

Gurye is far far away from Seoul

And Wanda Ironman aptly selected this perfect setting to give its participants an experience unmatched elsewhere.

Ann Kheen very tickled by the fact that we ended up doing what the Korean drivers usually do.
Gerard laughed: "You guys spoilt by Cebu liao lah!"
Stella He: "Yah, usually the IM athletes have to find their ways on their own."

My first attempt at a full distance IM race 

Having DNF-ed my first 70.3 in Putrajaya, done a relay Bintan 70.3 with Serene, and finally gained enough confidence to go on to complete another six 70.3's, I felt that it was time that I gave my body and my mind the chance to up the ante. 

Ann Kheen and Wai Meng's registrations for the event were certainly an impetus for my hastily-made decision. 

I didn't think there could be any one more last minute than I, in submitting a plea to the organiser for an eleventh hour slot. My sincere naivety must have touched the Korean organisers, and they relented with a special race slot. This granted slot, three and a half weeks before the race, for a severely under-trained and under-prepared me, started the whole process of scrambling for plane tickets, for accommodation and transport. 

The Tricators at Blue Sun Hotel

My good friend Jason managed to link me up with Jamie Goh, a very accomplished Ironman herself, who was leading a huge contingent from the group Tricators, to Gurye.  I was so grateful to her and her Hong Konger operator Kent Wong, for making all the arrangements for me so quickly. And the rest was history.

VIDEO: Gurye 01 - Gurye 求礼邑, here we come!

So how from this point? 

"You are very courageous," said my good friend Geok Lin, in disbelief. I don't blame him, because I kept questioning myself too.

"You have the physical and mental determination to complete this," said Charles.

"Just pace yourself.  Can complete one," reassured Gerard, trying his best to comfort me.

"You can do it one," encouraged Ah Chua.

"You have done several 70.3's already. You are ready," said Ewin.

"You signed up already so just go there and enjoy man!" said Geok Lin. "看我怎么死!" I jokingly replied him.

Day after day, I laughed at my own lunacy. "I must be quite mad!" 

"Yes, you are. You are really quite." confirmed Inn Inn laughingly. 

"Still, you are undertrained hor," Kai Sing very rightfully reminded me. I was really thankful because that was a wake up reminder. 

Desperate times called for desperate measures. I just had to make quite a nuisance of myself with the barrages of questions to my good Inn Inn, Stella, Tom and Jason, who tirelessly replied me with all their experiences. 

"It's time well-spent." Quietly said Stella, when I thanked her for all her time.

I even had the gall to text my newly-acquainted Jamie, who didn't hesitate in sharing with me all her advice.

Lesson learnt- never disrespect the distance & the race.

Important advice that a first-time IM participant needs to know

For myself, I was absolutely certain the only way I could wriggle my way out of this was by training myself mentally.  And I needed all the advice I could get from every body.  

Jason Tan came to my rescue with his many gems:

"Leading up to the big day, make sure you keep yourself injury-free," said Jason. "No point last minute hugging Buddha's legs.  Do a 5 hour ride in preparation for the race. And remember, the fourth discipline is the most important one, as most experienced IM will tell you. Nutrition is the most important thing. I underestimated the importance of nutrition and I paid the price by suffering in my previous IM. My failed fourth discipline started kicking in 10km into the run.

Plan your attire. Fashion is great for the camera, but comfort is key.

When it comes to the run, mental is key!"

Tom Yang gave me plenty of advice:

" I usually wear two piece tri suit for long races.  But my trisuit will always be my base layer, with wetsuit over my trisuit.  During my IMNZ, I pulled on a cycling shorts over the tri shorts for added padding, but (when doing this) be careful of abrasions.

For IM, your heart rates won't be high. I won't look at my heart rate at all. I will just watch my power meter. In fact my coach had asked me to remove the Speed field on my Garmin so that I won't get pressured by the speed but just focus on my power."

Goh Inn Inn offered her experience:

"I would change into cycling shorts because whatever little discomfort will be magnified during the cycle leg.  I'm frightened of the cold and I heard that the temperature could drop to 15 degrees during the run, so better prepare a long sleeve for the run.  And make sure we go for the test swim because I read that the lake could be cold. 

For the ride, there is one big climb right when we go out and three small ones on the three loops, I heard that it is higher than mount Faber and two times longer but not as steep as vigilante. So gotta take it easy on that first big hill.

Nutrition is one big consideration. I placed a peanut butter bread in my survival needs bag and it never tasted so good! There are some who could not eat anything at the run leg and their systems shut down and they couldn't continue any more."

Stella He spent hours dishing out invaluable advice to me, squashing my last hope of even using a trisuit for the race, hoping to look nice and sexy in the photo:

"Firstly, wear cycling gears for cycling and running gears for the run.  Take your time to change.  My coach taught me to unclip at each station on the bike and stretch for one minute each time. And eat solid food on the bike.  I would cycle on the aggressive position for about 59-60% and the more upright position the rest of the time, because the different positions alternate different muscle groups. For the FIM, aero is not really that important because most of the time you're bike speed is less than 35km/hr. Comfort is important and your aero position is for you to rest.  Must keep in mind - you BIKE for the run!

On the run, if you have to walk, walk for 2 minutes and then run.  During the run, may be difficult to eat solid food because it's hard to digest."

Jamie Goh very kindly shared many of her pointers, seeing that I was a total newbie:

"Stepping up to the Full, it's less speed and more endurance so you cannot Chiong otherwise you risk burning out.  I will do 25km/hr for my bike to make about 7 hours plus. I may push a little for the swim to have more allowance fire my bike. 

I usually take a salt capsule every two hours, and a gel every one to one and a half hours. It's a little more enough, but I tend to get bloated. So I under dose myself on nutrition, although I know if I improve on my nutrition I may have energy to perform better. 

There is a special needs bag that you can use on the bike and run leg. But after they lost my special needs bag during my first race I stopped using them."

Ewin Teo, when asked what was the pitfall for first timers, said this to me:

"Most people bonk on the return leg of the bike. I make sure I replenish 360Cal of gel and 1500mg of sodium per hour.  I tend to over dose on my salt intake but that's my preference.  You must be very careful and meticulous with your gel nutrition.  Cannot be complacent.  There was one race when I thought I felt good and I delayed taking my gel for 15 minutes.  It was only 15 minutes but it made me bonk."

Charles' parting message was so profound: "look at it this way. It's just a long 17 hours normal day at the office." Now THAT was comforting.

So the stage was set and the seedlings in my mind had started germinating and sprouting. Day by day my confidence grew as I rehearsed and fine-tuned my gel, Saltstick capsules and water intake while I slogged it out on my 3- and 4-hours trainer sessions. I even bonked on one of the longer trainer sessions when I attempted to under dose myself on the gels, going into a nosedive giddiness, a scary sensation.

"It's good to be on the trainer for long sessions," said Gerard. "It's quite Siong one because you cannot stop to free-wheel."

Like myself, Ann Kheen and Wai Meng were deeply pondering their nutrition. It was strange how different the preparation for an IM was from a 70.3. There were simply so many more components and variables. 

"Anything that may go wrong can go wrong. It's Murphy's Law," reminded Ann Kheen.

And my good Francis took so much time to coach me again and again to make sure I didn't sink when I was out there on the lake.  Many thanks!


Arriving in Korea

Day 1: 7th Sep 2017

VIDEO: Gurye 02 - Blue Sun Hotel & Athlete Check-in


I love being in Korea. I love the aroma of her air, the taste of her water.  Setting foot on her soil on the 7th September 2017 made my heart flutter with a totally different type of emotion. A challenge awaited.  I came with little expectation of myself.  I'd always maintained: "My first Full Ironman I will do it with the intention of a DNF if it is meant to be thus. But if I finish, it'll be a bonus to me."

"Don't talk Lao Sai talk lah please," reprimanded Ann Kheen, bouncing my basketball really hard in the hope that he will get me fired up in the positive direction. 

All crowding the IM coach counter. Must be asking for special seats lah these boys.

The coach trip took a full five hours- the magnitude of the sheer distance from Incheon only became apparent to me when I slept and woke up, only to fall asleep again. It was the beginning of autumn but the sun was still hot during midday. 

"Just that the air is not humid,"said Inn Inn. 

The scenery started changing as our latitude turned southwards. There were several Malaysians who were on board the same coach and they were delivered to various hotels around there Sandong-myeon 山洞面 region, about 6km from the race venue. There were about three or four areas officially designated by the organisers for the athletes to stay. This Sandong area was the nearest to the venue. On one of our several tries to and fro the race site, we encountered a group of three poor Australian ladies who were strangely being arranged to stay in a hotel a 40 mins bus ride away. The frustrations written all over their faces, having to deal with the daunting distance as well as communication problems, were painful to see.  I was glad that we were with a group of experienced racers led by a knowledgeable group leader. 

Blue Sun Hotel 

This quaint little hotel was perched on a steep slopes up from there main road. The staff was very courteous and patient with us and the concierge could even speak Mandarin.  Gurye probably doesn't receive many foreign tourists usually, thus we were tickled to see them hurrying to bring up new mattresses to all the rooms. We must have arrived a tad too early for many of these mattresses were still piled up in the lobby. 

Athlete check-in

The air was crisp at 4:06pm at Blue Sun. 

"Ok everybody just dump your luggage in your room and we meet in 10 minutes' time to walk down to take these hotel shuttle to do or athletes check in quickly today," that was quick thinking by Jamie.

It was much better to get this settled before the other athletes started arriving the next day. 

The shuttle bus stop for the athletes was located about 600m away from Blue Sun hotel. A short pleasant walk through the village provision shops and eateries took us to the small little main road. 

5:15pm

The impressive gigantic tent at the expo was there first thing that caught my attention. I had never seen anything like that. The level of coorporation between the local government and the Ironman organiser are usually very apparent from the way the event is run.  This being the inaugural Full distance Ironman race in Gurye (the previous ones were 70.3), I was sure the local government must had paid plenty of emphasis.  

There was a hotel right at the expo venue. Sadly it was reserved for the race officials and organisers.

Were there any convenient stores at Gurye-Eup?

The convenient store in Expo.

Yes indeed. A very well-stocked convenient store right across the huge tent at race expo, a German cages and restaurant and a local restaurant provided the much needed support. 

Nearer our Blue Sun Hotel, off the main road, were several nice restaurants selling local traditional Korean ramen, Neng myeon, local food, pizza, chicken

After dinner at the hotel we all went back to set up our bikes.  At 8:14pm we received Wai Meng's telegram text that he didn't have his skewers with him. His were special through axel skewers for his bike and it would be near impossible to procure anything like these here in Korea. 

Amidst the mad scramble, I was deeply impressed by this man's total dedication to his race and his decisiveness. Within half an hour he already had the situation fully under control and by 2am on Friday his skewers were already on board the next Singapore airlines flight on their way to incheon. Kudos to the Elite Customs boys for a very rapid personalised mobilisation and a job well done.

We all finally managed to sleep well that night. 

Race Expo

Day 2: 8th Sep 2017

Fatty at the M-dot.

VIDEO: Gurye 03 - Race Expo, Gurye tour & Carbo-loading dinner


Having delayed our test ride to the next day just so that ZhongXuan may set up Wai Meng's skewer, we didn't join the main body for their test ride this morning.

The main body test ride (most likely at unfriendly pace & unfriendly distance. haha!) that we missed.

The night before Edmund and Jason were discussing going on a one hour to one and a half hour long test ride, a magnitude that was beyond a newbie like myself, thus I was secretly glad that I couldn't join them for the ride.

The lovely view during the main body's test ride.

A late wake up and a simple breakfast of buns and whatever we bought in our room prepared us for the now accustomed downslope walk through the neighbourhood 25 Mart provision shop and then by shuttle bus to the expo. We were really spoilt by our previous races, according to what Gerard jokingly said. Stella remarked in the group text thread that for IM races it was very common to stay far away from the race venue and often athletes had to find their ways to the expo and transition.

The non-Gurye-touring bunch, touring the Race Expo instead.

We must had been early, arriving at about 10am. The expo stall selling the event t shirts was not exactly ready and we spent half an hour under the hot sun just waiting for a t shirt. I must have dehydrated easily a litre within that period.

While we were browsing the expo a huge group of the boys and girls were doing a free tour of Gurye organiser by the IM organiser. It looked really fun and they had lobster for lunch and visited temples and attractions in Gurye.  This being my first time, I thought I was probably better that I just conserve my energy.

The Gurye fun tour!

The nice lunch at the German restaurant at the expo site filled us up with all the necessary carbs and protein from plenty of fried chicken, beef and potatoes.  The small super mart at the village foot of the hill from Blue Sun Hotel 6.4km away supplied us with the rest of the water, Pocari sweat and whatever tit bits and squid jerky.

Walking back the distance to our hotel.

Today was really a nice rest day for me.  It was relaxing all the way, and even the race carbo loading dinner at 5pm(free for participants and 20,000W for spouse) was nice.  Just didn't know why Serene's stomach was throwing tantrum and ended up not eating even a single mouthful of the dinner.

Waiting for shuttle bus (again! hahaha..) to the Expo for carbo-loading dinner.

Post carbo-loading dinner group photo back in Blue Sun Hotel

Preparation of the Transition bags and Special Needs bags

My Bike Gear Transition 1 Bag

"I am going to prepare my transition bags and my special needs bag tonight," I declared to Ann Kheen and Wai Meng.

I dared not take the risk of something going wrong. The seasoned IM we're much more at ease, choosing to leave the packing to be next day, the actual day of the bike and Transition bags check-in.
 

My Run Gear Transition 2 Bag

It was a rites of passage, preparing the transition bags and the special needs bags and the street gear bag for a full IM.  There were five bags altogether, compared with almost none in a 70.3.  After listening to so many experts, and internalising their inputs, I formulated my own plan.
All three of us - Ann Kheen, Wai Meng and myself - we found that doing this IM was  so much more technical, involving many hours of thinking and re-thinking, and a total understanding of oneself and one's nutritional needs.
Some of the seasoned IM do well with little nutritional replenishment, and some totally discarded their Special Needs bags, choosing to be more independent.  After thinking long and hard, I decided that since this was my first IM, I had better just make full use of all the five bags.

My Bike Special Needs bag

Different IM races have different check-in schedules for the bags.  IM Gurye's schedule was like this:

1. Bike check-in,  T1 Bike gear bag and T2 Run gear bag check in at the same time on pre-race day.  Once checked in, we will have no more access to the T1 and T2 transition bags.  So everything must be planned accurately.  What more, we will only have access to T1 bag during T1, and T2 bag during T2.  So there could be no mistakes.  The T1, T2 bags will be available for collection right after the race. 
2. Bike Special Needs bag and Run Special Needs bag plus Street Gear bag check in on the very morning of the race day.  The Special Needs bags will be collected the next day together with the bike.

My Run Special Needs bag

Frankly, the more I thought, the more confused I became.  That was where the fun was all about, because it was like planning a battle.  Only, it was my own battle.

The helmet and cycling shoes had to be placed into the T1 Bike Gear bag, together with the cycling attire and nutrition.  The running shoes and running attire, together with the racing belt and bib would go into the T2 Run gear bag.  Being super worried about saddle sore, I placed one tub of BodyGlide in every Transition bag and Special Needs bag. For the Bike Special Needs bag, I plonked a whole tub of Emulsifying ointment (this turned out to be my saviour).  And each Special Needs bag has three packs of fried salty Silver fish 银鱼 that was my happy food, lovingly prepared by Serene and 妈妈.

Like what Ann Kheen said, Murphy's Law always applied. True to Prof Murphy's theory, I ended up having two green Bike T1 gear bags, instead of one green and one red bag.

"Better don't risk it," said Ann Kheen. "Better change to a red run gear T2 bag tomorrow."  He was right. Otherwise I might just find my T2 bag being misplaced because the volunteers were trained to look out for the specific coloured bags at each Transition.

Welcome to Sandong, Zhongxuan!

Test Swim 

9th September 2017

"Gather at the lobby at 5am so that those who wants to do the test swim can take the 5:30am shuttle down the hill to the test swim area. Test swim starts at 6:30am," instructed Jamie.

"Wear the wetsuit half way and then go there and pull it up before the test swim," advised Kelvin Kwek.  Clever, this man!

 "Wee How," said Ann Kheen early in the morning when we met at the lobby. "Remember that video of that girl demonstrating how to wear the wetsuit after turning the arms and legs inside out? It's way easier just to use the NTUC plastic bag." I laughed after hearing that.  Indeed I found that morning that using my Yaohan plastic bag was easier.

Fatty putting on wetsuit

It was nice cool morning. Not cold. Probably about 17-18 degree Celsius. Not like Busselton.  I could see the happiness in Wai Meng and Ann Kheen's faces that they were happy about the weather.  Cool enough but not cold.  The calm waters of the Jirisan Lake and a thick layer of mist shrouding the surface of the water conjured a scene right out of Lord of the Ring. I felt like we were going to jump right into a magic lake.

"If you don't know how to plunge off the platform, don't." Advised our SEA Games swimmer. "Just hold on to your goggles and leap off the platform with one leg in front and the other leg behind to break your sinking."

"I am going to just sit down and push off." Announced Wai Meng.  With a couple of recently fractured ribs, he really was worried about the water.

Crazy bunch of guys - the Tricators.

Some of the boys were wondering if they should ditch the wetsuit and wear just a swimming trunk or trisuit instead, as it was announced during race briefing the day before that wetsuit was optional (water temperature was 23.5 - 25 degree Celsius).  At the end only Ram Toh and Bert Grobben did the actual race without wetsuit.  Our swimming coach Kelvin Low, and our Ann Kheen found their swims more comfortable with the wetsuits and chose to keep them on.  For the rest of us, we were happy with the extra buoyancy offered by the neoprene.

"Wah.. the swim was so nice," said Wai Meng after coming out of the water. "But I did not apply the anti-fog, and it was so foggy both inside the goggles and outside in the air that I couldn't see anything." he continued to complain. "I only did one buoy and then I swam back."

"Me too. I only did slightly further than one buoy, about 110-120m, and then I turned back. I did only an 8 minutes of test swim.  Good enough liao." I said.

The string of closely linked small yellow buoys on my right made sighting unnecessary. I just slowly stroke and enjoyed the lightness of the swim.  

One by one the boys and girls emerged with the many Koreans, huge turnout of PRC Chinese, a multitude of Japanese, many Thais, many Pinoys, some Hong Kongers, several Malaysians, and 60+ Singaporeans.

Dolphin Kang jumping outta da water.

Almost everyone was out of the waters and was happily chatting away on the platform.

"Where is my Ann Kheen ah?" asked Viena.

Many minutes passed, but still no signs of that powerful swimmer. Wai Meng, Serene and I kept peering into the fog, trying to pick up anyone who swam remotely like him.  But one after another we were disappointed.

"Hey.. where could this Ann Kheen be?"

And finally, half an hour after the rolling jump off, the man emerged smiling from side to side.

"Wah lau! I was so worried for you!" Kao beh-ed Viena.

"It was such a nice swim. I was swimming so relaxly and the wetsuit felt so good.  I didn't want to stop. So I swam all the way to the u turn. I would have continued to the other arm of the swim route but they didn't allow me. So I only did 1.9km." 

My goodness! This SEA-gamer did a 70.3 swim for a test! Unbelievable.

月朦胧，鸟朦胧.

Poor Bobby had to walk walk walk until just before walking up the hill then
he gam guan take out his wetsuit.

VIDEO: Gurye 04 - Test swim, test ride and Bike check-in

Test ride for three of us 

Everyone else had done his/her test ride.  Now that Wai Meng's machine was out, three of us we were ready to do our own test ride. 

"Why don't we turn right from the slope down the hotel, and follow the actual race route to point A. It's 5km of uphill," suggested Wai Meng.

Man, what a 5km it was! It was a gentle upslope right from the start and gradual it was, though the increment in gradient was apparent as km by km went. Ann Kheen was right in front, and Wai Meng a short distance behind. No matter how I spinned I just couldn't make any advancement towards these two.  Granted, I dared not flood my thighs, with the race a day away.  But still, I was feeling breathless with the ride. Towards the last part of the slope we were slowed to a crawl.  Ahead in the distance I could see the round about where we would be doing a u turn. In front, the two boys were also slowly spinning.

See beh chuan for me on the test ride.

How I wish I had another gear.  It was afterwards when Ann Kheen said: "I think we should really consider the Ceramic Speed Oversized pulley, like what Edmund Lim uses.  If we want to get an OCP, I will want to get this CeramicSpeed brand."

In Edmund Lim's own words: "The OCP is like giving me another gear during a climb." How true, his words.  At times like these I needed something like this.

Elaine Young also uses Cermaic Speed Over-Sized Pulley!

As we made the U-turn for the returning 5km, Wai Meng called out to me: "Be careful of the downslope. It is going to be very fast."

His words didn't strike me until when I descended. Wah lau.. it was fast, as all the potential energy we stored going against gravity exploded into kinetic energy. Ann Kheen let go all the way, with his legs squeezing tight against his saddle, a skill he learnt over the years from his MTB cycling days and his Scrambler riding. This man is a devil on the descent.

Wai Meng kept braking and keeping a distance away from Ann Kheen.  Me? I was just far far away behind, hands on brakes.. making sure I came nowhere near.

Sadly, I had no power meter reading on this test ride as the deep cold in the airplane cargo cabin enroute to Korea killed my power meter batteries. Again Murphy's law applied. I was wondering what else more could go wrong. 

I was lucky for Edmund and Jean very kindly bought me a set of Energizer AAA batteries from the 25 Mart convenient store coming back from lunch, and my problems were solved. They were my saviour.

"Man, I am totally humbled!" I declared coming back from the short test ride.

We didn't even dare cycle up the steep slope to our hotel, but unclipped and pushed our bikes up instead.

"On race day, if I come to a steep slope, I will unclip and push up. Like what Jamie said. No point cycling up and getting your legs tired out." announced Wai Meng wisely.

Enlightening Lunch with Bobby Lim and Kelvin Low

We had a great lunch at the Neng myeon and Ramen stall along the row of shop houses.  It was a great lunch as theee of us sat down and listened intently to the advice dished out by Bobby and Kelvin.

Bobby: "Commando become Makando."

"Nutrition is very important and need to make sure we eat/drink well on the bike even if we feel we are ok as the nutrition is not meant for the bike but for the run later," Bobby advised us. He added: "about the last 30km of the bike we need to ease up and  go higher cadence to ease the leg so that our legs won't feel heavy when the run begins."

My Gurye neng myeon

Bike and Transition bags check in

Edmund Lim very expertly led Korean platoon one out.

Jamie decided that it would be wise to do an early check in. So around 3pm a small group of us cycled off that 6km to the transition area, led by Edmund.  The rest of the group cycled off half an hour after us.  It was a pleasant downhill ride, hardly needing to pedal at all.  Along the river we cruised, arriving at the transition feeling the warmth of the air as the sun rays started to changed into a slight golden hue at half past three. 

A nice ride through kampong roads to reach Transition.

The Transition bags were hung in their respective areas and pushing our bikes to the tent, we collected our time chips and then finally we racked our bikes on a row of metal frames with slots to fit our rear wheels.

"Better don't leave any gels any CO2 canisters and CO2 pump heads on your bike," advised Kelvin Kwek.  He pointed to everybody's bike. "You see we all go in with our bikes naked.  You will never know if your stuff on the bikes are going to be lifted off.  All someone needs is to twist out the canisters and they are all gone."

Wise words. Looking around, many of the  experienced Tricators IM were sending in their bikes empty.

I obediently took off my CO2 canisters and pump, but after some thoughts, I decided to risk it and leave my five gels inside my bento box and covered the bike with the bike cover.  That cover should at least serve as a hindrance, I felt.  Some of the bikes around me had their helmets hooked onto their cockpits even. Champions, these fellows were.

Walking back, a couple of the senior members told us that they needed to go back and sleep early and would not be joining the group for dinner.  In retrospect, I felt that they must be very in tuned with their own bodies and knew that they needed to sleep very early, as the wake up time would be 3am the next morning.  This would be something that I would take note of for my future races.

Dinner with ZhongXuan

We were all so glad to have ZhongXuan here to our rescue.  And we enjoyed a nice private early dinner of pizza and delicious chicken wings at another small stall.  The Ajuma was very candid and with gestures we placed our orders and surprisingly, though a smiling Ang Moh patron before us had to wait 40 minutes for his food, ours arrived very shortly. 

Birthday dinner for Joanathan Kang (aka J J Lin)

We finished our dinner just in time for the main body pre race dinner at the pizza restaurant. The boys and girls were having a birthday celebration for Jonathan Kang, and we were really tickled by his speech.  This man has talents no less than J J Lin himself!
 

A surprise Video from our children the night before the race!

Such a wonderful video! Touching!

RACE DAY

Photo by Phillipino photographer Jepoy Hizon

Terrible night I had before the race.  Either I had too much to eat, or being the first time on an IM course my mind must had been partying overtime without me feeling it.

The troublesome thing about staying 6km away from the transition was the slight inconvenience face by my quirky bowels.  My fortunes were smiling at me that morning, as the toilet at transition, though with a long queue, was clean.

I didn't know about the others, but my heart was light and I was in the mood for fun, experiencing none of the usual pre-race jitters.  In retrospect it may had worked to my advantage in completing the race had I had more adrenaline flowing.   But I could not look back too much without reprimand from Ann Kheen. "Look forward! Don't look backward!" he would bark.

I looked around and all the experienced boys and girls were smiling - Jonathan Kang, Bobby Lim, Ram Toh, Edmund Lim, Kelvin Kwek, Andrew Teo, Ken Ng, Clarke Wan, Nigel Sng, Alvin Yap, Johnny Chng, Elaine Young, Tammi Lim, Edwin Lee, Tom Yang,  Goh Inn Inn, Jason Tan,  Conrad Yeo, Bert Grobben, Melvin Leong, Lee Joen Yen, Khina Ong, Celine Lo... and of course the woman herself, Jamie Goh.

Ann Kheen was his usual sombre self.  Wai Meng was perhaps cursing the waters of Lake Jirisan inside his heart, water not his most favourite environment.  But kudos to him, he was not showing any signs.

The wetsuit kept me warm.  I loved the feeling of having neoprene on skin.  But somehow I felt that my wetsuit was getting tighter and tighter with every passing year.

"Wah your wetsuit so seasoned already ah," someone pointed at the torn and tattered wetsuit of mine.

"Mine then is seasoned ah!" said Tom Yang, poking at the wetsuit glue pasted armpit of his suit.

VIDEO: Gurye 05 - The Race






The Swim Leg

There wasn't a sense of urgency, no haste, no kan-cheong-ness at the flag off.  I felt a total lack of the highly-motivating usual adrenaline rush.  In the wake of the magical misty lake, everything seemed to be taking place in slow motion.  There were no waves of flagging off.  Everyone was recommended to do self-seeding, meaning chin-chai if one wanted to go in front one could.  And the athletes were let loose in sets of 4 or 5,  at intervals of a few seconds, according to the electronic beep. 

VIDEO: A nice video of the swim start by AsiaTri

Beside me, swimmers were plunging headlong into the cool water.  I must have been a laughing stock had anyone seen how I plonked in straight. 

The floaty feeling accorded by my wetsuit removed my last bit of anxiety.  I wasn't a fast swimmer.  And with no nervousness driving me, I was merely stroking along.  Black neoprened bodies streamed past me.  The multiple small yellow buoys on my right kept me in line.  Simply, my objective was to only decide how far away I was to swim from the buoy line- one metre away or just by the side.

There was the usual grabbing and slapping. And the Pinoys and PRC Chinese were no less aggressive.  Somehow being in a dreamlike state, the sting of the collisions was taken out. The lake water was murky. Seeing nothing in the water, and nothing out of the water through the mist floating on the lake surface, every stroke felt strangely serene.

"I just swam buoy to buoy," recalled Wai Meng afterwards. "But someone grabbed my foot and my calf went into cramp. I had to hang onto the buoy line for a while to let it go off. Around me the swimmers all kept asking me Kwenchana-yo Kwenchana-yo?"

"I was in front and there was almost no fighting," said Ann Kheen.

Unanimously the group agreed that the lake swim was better than expected. My initial fear of having no buoyancy was proven wrong.  I kept to my original plan of being really slow in the swim. The inverted U-shaped route brought us first on the outside of the buoy line, and after make a u-turn at the right leg of the inverted U, we swam on the inside of the U. 

I kept hearing whistle blowing through the magic mist. No one around me gave it much of a notice.  It was later that Serene told us the story:

"The fog got so bad that the race director decided to cancel the swim half way through and the marshalls blew the whistle to stop and fish everyone out of the water.  But no one hew them. Then after a while the director announced on the loud hailer- swim continue!"

On the last leg, my strokes became more aggressive. I hadn't swum 3.8km for the longest time. Boredom (haha!) must have set in.  My outstretched left hand began to find itself slapping buttocks in front and at times pushing buttocks.  One instance the left hand must have found a sweet young thing's face and the next I heard a loud but sweet female voice "Ouch!!".  Poor girl. I would have loved to stop and say sorry.  But on my part I was constantly watching me watch, in fear of it being kicked off its bike mount.  I had my fair share of kicks in my goggles, taking the brunt of the toes in two instances. 

A couple of hundreds of metres from the finishing, I suddenly heard a familiar voice on my right.

Wait Meng called out: "Wee How! Wah lau eh! Why you elbow me?!"

I did? Hahaha.. sorry Wai Meng. I didn't know it was him mah.  

The exit ramp came up finally.  And Wai Meng and I climbed out together. 1 hour 58 minutes! Steady lah! I was contented.  Wai Meng was happy, because now that he was out of the water, he was totally in his elements already.

"I'm so happy to see you," Wai Meng said. "That means I'm swimming ok." This Wai Meng very humble lah, he.

This time round Chew Ann Kheen appeared.  Not only did he emerge, he emerged
very early in the pack.

I felt my petrol tank, and was glad to find that it was quite full still.  Of the two strips of Clif Bloks I had before the swim, I possibly used up all of these (400 Cal) and another 500Cal from my own glycogen store. Not bad.  After my intensive carbo loading the past three to four days, I reckon I should have about another 1500 Cal left in my glycogen store.

Swim Coach Kelvin Low very very fast out too!

Meanwhile, in Transition 1...

Tammi really stopped, posed and smile!

Jason Tan showing (almost) full.

Alan Yap stripping to show his Tricators underwear inside.

It was so easy in the transition.  The volunteer grabbed my Bike gear bag 1147 and I walked into the changing tent.  I was amused by the changing men around me.  They were all taking their own sweet time.  My cycling pants worn, bodyGlide applied, and my brand new Pearl Izumi red jersey donned,  I put on my cycling shoes, slapped on my sunglasses and my Bambino, and the Sweet Varnvarn image was all ready to go.

Tom Yang very fast too!

Kelvin Kwek giving the super thumbs up!

Tammi Lim running with a huge grin.  Now for her Zone 1 ride.

Wondering where Wai Meng was, I turned my head and saw him standing motionless behind me at one side of the tent. My curiosity made me take a peek at him and the fellow was pee-ing there, a precedent that I gladly followed!

Lee Joen Yen's wetsuit was custom-cut to facilitate removal.

Enjoying the first out of water drink was Goh Inn Inn.

Three huge races in a short period of time. This Bert Grobben was really something.

Edwin Lee's whole set up must have impressed that jaw-dropping cyclist beside him.

My wetsuit, swimming cap, goggles and whatever nonsense just went back into my transition bag and a volunteer was eagerly waiting to take it back from me.  So, that was how things go on a Full distance IM race. 

Jonathan Kang JJ Dolphin coming outta T1

I'd gotten all my nutrition prepared on my bike, and I would rather eat once my heart rate settled down while I was cruising.  So T1 was more for me to bathe in the pleasure of the moment, and to enjoy pushing my bike out.  Never had I a race with such calmness.  Charle's words echoed in my mind - it's a long day in the office.  That must have been the main reason.

Easy Peasy for Ram Toh the Elite.

Steady-pace was Goh Inn Inn's plan on the ride.

The Cycle Leg

Jamie on the purple aero machine.

Negotiating the Bike out was simple enough.  Just follow the red carpet and we were off.  At 8am, the mist still shrouded the mountains, and the air, though not as crisp as Busselton, was still at a comfortable  coolish 20 degrees Celsius.  No wonder the only liquid on my skin was the lake water and not my own sweat.

Elaine in a magical setting.

The cycling leg started off smoothly enough.  The roads were smooth, the cool breeze was therapeutic.  What I found even more enjoyable was the fact that I transited literally from a magical lake right into an enchanted countryside, a corner of Korea that a normal tourist may not venture into.  The Seomjingang (Seomjin river) flowed first on our right, and then on our left as we traversed the bridge northwards to the Sandong area for point A.

Celine Lo was petite but look how aero she was!

 To both sides, the meadows stretched out as far as the eyes could sea, abruptly ringed by the ranges in the distance.   Punctuating the farmlands were farmer ladies in conical straw hats in a row, backs bent, working hard in the fields, like their ancestors had for centuries. This Jirisan National Park was a spectacular place.  As I cycled, my thoughts drifted to those historical periods during the Korean War, when the US marines encountered so much difficulty scaling these mountains in their northward conquest from Busan, to overcome their North Korean foe.  These were the very soils that the American and Korean soldiers tread on, fought each other, and died painful deaths.

Alvin Cheong cheonging down the mountain

And on this day, as history temporarily sank into oblivion, what was more difficult was the constant reminder to myself to pedal smoothly, breath deeply and relax my shoulders.  I watched my heart rate very closely, making sure it kept in my zone 2 range of 120+/min.  The first climb out of transition towards Point A came, and remembering my tough test climb the day before, I took it even more easy, with my speed slowing to 6-7km/hr only.  I lost Wai Meng very quickly, and I was all on my own.  I was past by time and time again.  I simply bo-chap them, as advised by many an article.  Cycling at zone 2 was such a pleasant feeling.  Certainly, that 5km up towards Point A was a slow crawl, but I successfully kept my heart rate at around 135/min.  Feeling absolutely no burn in my quadriceps, except for a slight heavier heave in my breaths, I made the U turn and shot back down the 5km downslope initially at 59km/h and later about 37-39km/h with frequent application of the brakes, followed by another 5km of gentle descent to point B1, our first aid station at 20km.

Ken Ng the invincible - come what may, kerb or whatever.

I remembered Stella's words to unclip and rest at every station. And I did just that.  Before the race, Lee JY shared with me his own experience.  He was one who would not stop at any station on the bike leg because time was precious in his race. Perhaps one day, when I became a seasoned racer like him I could attempt that.  But as a newbie, I had better not take the risk.

Conrad Yeo with the zroom zroom disc wheel.

 

The 180km bike leg felt like a long long ride. At some turns there were groups of Ajumas and Ajushis cheering us on "Huating!" they would shout. Another turn another group of drums-beating and cymbals-clanking old folks.  The young volunteer marshalls were assigned flags and seats and they were much more docile than their older uncles and aunties.  

I paid little attention to my speed, neither to my power (surprisingly). The instinct for survival meant that I just looked at my heart rate, glad to keep it at mid-120's.

Kelvin Kwek making sure he is totally compressed calves to thighs to counter vaso-vagal symptoms.

Nutrition on bike, and the Special Needs station 

Bobby's and Ewin's words rung in my frontal cortex.  I delayed not even a minute in my consumption of the Clif Bloks, strictly a 200Cal strip every half an hour, coupled with one Salt Stick capsule each 30 minutes. I calculated, with 1000ml of Pocari sweat and the sodium from the Clif Bloks and the SaltStick I should be replenishing 1000mg of sodium an hour. Just nice for one who sweats buckets. 

The bike ride took me 7 hours 33 minutes.  I started off with five Clif Bloks in my bento and one in my rear pocket. By the time I arrived at the B2 aids station at 41km I had consumed four 200Cal Clif Blok gels.  Another one more gel, and I arrived at the 50km Special Needs station, sheltered in a bay on the right side of the main road. The highly efficient Ajushi called out my bib number and the Ajumas behind the tables grabbed my special needs bag. I replenished three Clif Bloks into my bento box and chew greedily into my ziploc bag of air-fried silver fish. These were my happy food.  And gave me much pleasure. I heard some guys saying that one needed to eat real food on an IM race. So I guess this was the closest I could come to real food.   With a cheeky smile at the old aunties at the table I reached inside my special needs bag, dug a huge glob of emulsifying ointment, turned my back to them, and applied them generously over my nether region.  This emulsifying ointment was really such a life saver.  The cycling pants did make it much more comfortable for me, with mild saddle discomfort.  In contrast, many of the Tricators were in their custom-made Tricator Tri suits. I was impressed by their resilience in taking on the 180km ride on Tri suit paddings.  They must have seasoned their perinuems over years.

I must have been doing some overtaking here. Steady lah, me! Siao siao ah.

I had access to the special needs station at 50km, 93km and 136km.  Somehow on the third run through the special needs station I found enough gels on me to last till the end, and I decided not to go into the pit stop.

Clarke Wan, the one who uses the same Tri Vent shoes as me, showing how easy it is.

Aid station-wise, I was deligent and made sure I stopped at everyone even after I gave the third Special Needs station a miss.  That really helped my recovery.

All in, I consumed 12 strips of  Clif Blok chews and one Honey Stinger from the last aid station, a total of 2600Cal, which more than replenished my Garmin-estimated 1770Cal expenditure during the bike leg.

Ann Kheen climbing the slope at 8-9km/h this very moment, according to himself.

Terrain on the three small loops

The outer leg of the bike route consisted of three loops from about 30km onwards, each loop measuring around 43km. Thus the B2 station was encountered three times at 41km/84km/127km.  The one special thing about the B2 aid station was, after you were given a chance to replenish your hydration, it rewarded you with the climb.  This smaller climb was nowhere as crawling as the first big hill up to point A.  Although one could feel the exertion of the climb, it was gentler but yet equally unrelenting.  It was too easy to let go and flood the thighs in the haste to mount the crest.  For a newbie like me, the will to curb that constant urge to push was paramount to surviving the ride.

"Bike to prepare for the run," was the mantra for many a seasoned IM.  For me, I wanted to bike to survive it first.

Bobby so happy just letting the weight of the bike carry itself downslope.

Technical aspects of the ride

I was in the aero position for roughly 70%, especially when the road was flat and straight.  The times when I took to the base bars were mostly during steep and fast descent, and when climbing in a slow crawl.  Glad I was, that in my last few weeks of training, I focussed aplenty on strengthening my core with planks, to keep myself maintained on the aero bars.

Wai Meng showing what REAL COLOURS is all about.

There wasn't any sharp turns on this route, and the only technical part was really the descent.  One may opt to zham-brake all the way or grip the saddle tight with the thighs, shift one's weight back and grit his teeth and let loose all the way down.  For a less experienced cyclist like myself, it was a risk I dare not take.  Otherwise I believed I would have hit the kerb more than once and flipped.  Ken Ng had the misfortune of such an accident but his skills and reflexes must have saved him from injuries.

Andrew Teo with his Bambino Visor up. Must be too hot liao.

There were no potholes nor uneven ground so pathonomonic of a Bintanian or a Cebuano race.  The asphalt was smooth as Korean silk.  I counted myself lucky that my two CO2 canisters and the two inner tubes ended up still intact on my saddle bag.  Kelvin Kwek apparently had a puncture right out of transition on his bike. 

Fully aero, even the legs, was Chew Ann Kheen.

Ann Kheen and Wai Meng both kept harping on a headwind on a downslope that kept their speed from going above 25km/hr.  Strangely I experienced none of that.  There wasn't any headwinds for me. Perhaps it depended on when one hits that stretch.  On a long 180km ride, I guess the wind conditions could change.

Johnny on his way to the finishing line for his first Full!

The last stretch of the bike leg

I must have been the last few on the bike.  I saw hardly any one.  And on the outer three loops, the number of cyclists dwindled from my first loop onwards.  When I was doing the third loop, the roads were so empty I felt quite demoralized.  Just when I started towards the road into that Namdo bridge, I saw Wai Meng heading out.  I mentally calculated he should be about 10km ahead of me. Somewhere earlier I saw Ann Kheen coming in the opposite direction.  That was much earlier.  I was sure that dark knight should be well on his run leg by now.

Nigel is one heck of a relax Ironman. From fat fat 10 years ago until Ironman today.

I spotted Inn Inn in the opposite direction. "Inn Inn!" I called out to her, finally glad that I could call out to a familiar face.   

Throughout the cycle leg I saw no one else I could recognise, a reflection of my slowness.  My speed has been consistent, consistently slow.  However that could mean the difference between a bonk or completing my bike leg.

Making the last u-turn, I drew abreast with Inn Inn.

"I just hope to make the cut off time," she called out to me, clothed in her dashing purple blue full arm-sleeved outfit.  

I glanced at my watch. "Hey you are a runner! We have enough time!" I shouted back.

Still more to practise.

A lack of focus

A list of concentration gradually crept upon me on the last 20km of the ride.  I believed some mental fatigue must have set in, and I lost my discipline in rehydrating myself. Especially that one last hour, I drank possibly only a few sips of water.  And consumed only one Clif Blok, although the total number of calories I replaced on the one leg added up to around 2609 Cal. On hind sight I believed that slackening on the last one hour must have had some impact.  

Khna Ong stylish as can be.

The last 10k was spent on the highway back to Transition.  That highway was straight as an arrow but it was deceiving. Masquerading as a mirage of flat straight, it was actually a gentle climb. And I found an inability to mount my speed.  I was starting to feel impatient.  The last few kilometres was so elusive.  When I finally made that right turn onto the ramp and started towards the small road leading to the transition, the sight of many happily running on the side of the road really was discouraging.

Lee Joen Yen steadily spinning up the slope.

I have finished the swim and I was coming to the end of the 180km ride. I was starting to feel fatigue, both from the ride, understandably, but perhaps also from a slight dehydration.  The 42km walk loomed.  My mind started throwing doubts at myself, if I could possibly have the physical fortitude to complete the run.  And my confidence started taking a dip, slight, but still a dip.

Transition two

I couldn't wait to arrive at the dismount line.  This 180km had been one of my most enjoyable ride, truth to be told.  I suffered very little, my heart rate was steady, and my quads were not flooded. All these could be attributed to going at a real easy pace.  For me, a really weak runner, my real stumbling block laid ahead.

By the time I racked my bike, the whole transition was filled already.  It was dejavu like many of my previous races.  The volunteers were not as attentive by now, as I was the last few.  I walked up and looked for my own Run Gear bag, and walked to the Male changing tent.

By this time, the changing tent flaps were opened and a few sides were lifted up and no official bothered to lowered them to preserve the decency of the male athletes.  Those last few inside the tent were also, like myself, too tired to care.

"Heck lah. See, see lor," I grumbled, and stripped myself naked.

Girls, female marshalls, and anybody everybody walked outside the tent as I struggled to pull up my long compression tights, my running shoes and my race bib.  I followed Wai Meng's example by keeping my cycling jersey on so that I can keep my gels in the rear pockets.



Was I smiling?  Yes, I was still smiling as I jogged out of T2, and made my way slowly round the curvy wurvy road and the right turn up the ramp over the river to the other side.  I spotted Inn Inn coming back and I waved to her.  Inside my heart I was happy.  She was a good runner, and now she just needed to execute her run to perfection.  As I continued I thought I spied Lee JY coming in too.  This good man had my utmost respect.  A real fighter.



The Run Leg

Andrew Teo very good! Running time the sky still bright bright!

I felt really good jogging out of transition 2.  It was 10 hours into the race.  This timing cheered me. I had been conserving myself right up till now and things had been great.  I was not prepared to waste all my efforts.  Looking back, smiling and running seemed to be the secret to a successful completion. Most every Tricator was smiling as he/she ran.

The 5km from T2 to the loop point at the Expo site went though the slight elevation where we usually walked.  Reaching the 5km was a landmark for me. My body felt good. My mind was calmed. I was smiling.  My heart rate was lowish about 120+.  I had two strips of Clif Bloks hung on my race belt and I was ready to eat 200Cal an hour.  I should have accumulated sufficient sugar store from all my feeding on the bike leg.

Conrad Yeo with matching jersey and running shoes!

Serene and all the supporting spouses cleverly posted themselves right at that point and their cheering lifted me.  I had about another 6 hours plus at this point to complete 37km.  

"Let's see how my legs hold up!" I told myself, and I just slow jogged.

There were still plenty of runners on the to and fro loop.  The  temperature was off the high of midday and at about 4:40pm it was beginning to cool down, though the sun was still smarting. 

After being on the roads for close to 11 hours my brain was in a zen state of  emptiness.  My left hip pain had been numbed by now, and the ankles were simply just doing their jobs.  It was 6km towards the outermost I-turn and this 6km felt great.

Edwin really no sweat ah! Respect!

100m before every aid station I slowed down and walked and grabbed a couple of cups of Pocari sweat and ate some gels. I dared not consume the banana nor any other food as I wasn't used to doing that.  My stomach was starting to feel bloated by then.  And I figured it must be due to so many gels that I have eaten.  Perhaps all the isotonic drink could also have contributed a little to the dyspepsia. 

Happily I chugged along.  From the corner of my eyes I spotted Ram in the opposite direction running back. 

"Man, these guys are good!"  

Johnny Chng smiling so happily... must be his last loop liao.

I was guilty for not putting in enough training for my run. Excuses after excuses I offered myself to explain my inertia in getting my butts up.  The deficiency was especially stark at this stage of the race, when my body started to deteriorate rapidly kilometre to kilometre. 

From a kilometer away I could hear the drum rolls at the turn around point. Drawing nearer the cheering drummers and supporting volunteers were urging me to go on. "Huating!" they shouted.

Kelvin Low showing what tough stuff he is made of!

The sky was turning a deep dark blue behind them.  I slowed down and walked to grab a drink and a Honey a Stinger gel. I squeezed it down my throat and tried to run again. But somehow the machinery didn't respond.

"Shit, so many people walking. I'd better walk too."

This Jason Tan ah... even when the sky was dark, his smile forever brightened the day (night)!

Really many were walking.  But with a difference. Many already had the first loop yellow band and many already were displaying the yellow AND the second loop pink band on their wrists.  I felt pathetic with nothing on my wrist.  I felt weak.  My mind was spiraling.  Walking did my pace no good, registering 11min/km on my watch.

This next 6km back towards Expo was torturous. My legs couldn't lift themselves up for a trot and I felt breathless.  My heart rate remained still low.  My nausea and gastric discomfort started to amplify.  The summation of these- my mind started telling me stories.  All the classic signs of bonking were in full bloom.

"DNF? Yes yes yes..." my mind playing tricks on me

Wai Meng ever said, and later Geok Lin reinforced it, that the body would hit a wall at the 30km mark. For me, I was hitting mine at 11km.

Inn Inn ran passed me.  But none of her encouragement could hasten my pace. I found the sensation surreal. So his was how the cookie crumbled.  The mind was the first to give up, followed by everything else.  No amount of inspirational material I read about how to push your mind when it got tough worked on me.  My dropping heart rate corresponded with the cooling of the fire in my heart.  I just couldn't wait to see my Serene again and hug her.

The video that my children made and sent to me the night before flashed through my mind. I cried deep inside to think what I would have to tell them in disappointment. 

The 17km mark finally came.  The first person I looked out for was Serene.  The moment I saw her, I totally crumbled.

"Dar I cannot already!" and I retched and retched. "I really cannot already."

Ah Fat mentally kaput liao.

 
All the wives were encouraging me to just keep going and just continue walking. But my mind was gone by then.  I ripped off my time chip and passed to an official, gesturing to him I called it quits.
I was just glad I could hold on to Serene's arms.  And I sat down on the kerbside dejected.

Bobby going for his nth Ironman.

It was afterwards that I heard about Kelvin Kwek's story, how he loss consciousness just before the dismount line of the bike leg, and had to rest in the first aid station for one hour, before he insisted that he would continue running.  And how he made it back up on the run route just with sheer grit.  And how our brave Alvin had to lie down on the floor and sleep for 15 minutes before picking himself up and continued, living off will power.  And how Wai Meng even had to walk some parts in between.

"The last few kilometres were tough.  It was really tough," admitted Ann Kheen.

I was ashamed.  I didn't have the mental strength to push another loop.  But it was ok. Kwenchana-yo. I told myself, I would live to fight another battle another day.  I only felt that I had disappointed all around me who had so hoped that I completed.

"Ann Kheen Chew from Singapore - You ARE an Ironman!"

Bert Grobben taking a mischeivious dive at the finishing line.

All the good boys and girls one by one crossed the finishing line.  I was thrilled for them, especially for those few who were attempting their first full distance IM, and more so for those who have failed in their previous attempts at the IM.  This was sweet sweet revenge for them.  This bunch of guys and gals were a gutsy, ballsy bunch.  Many things that I could learn from them.

"Wai Meng Tan of Singapore. You ARE an Ironman!"

Post-DNF

Everything was a total blur.  Serene held me arms all the way and somehow we went walking up and down the slope that 1.4km to the transition to collect my bike, the T1 and T1 bags, and then back to the finishing line to collect my street gear bag, and in my confused state leaving my bike pump behind.

I didn't even remember the events leading off to me closing my eyes that night. Euphoria from a completion would have sent enough chemotransmitters through my neurons to keep me alive for the night, had the unthinkable happened that I actually completed.  But now, with my synapses totally jammed up, there was nothing left to uplift me.  Even that 20 odd gels with caffeine failed to give me relief from reality.

It was deja vu.  It felt like my first Putrajaya.  But it felt better. I really had a better chance this one round.  I just needed to train more, eat less, drink more, HTFU my brain cells.  And then I should be there.

 

Post Race Holiday in Seoul/Busan

The huge group finally broke up the next day after gathering in the lobby for one last time.  Some were en route to Busan while a big chunk of us headed towards Seoul.  Some had already flew up very early that morning.

I love Seoul.  And I couldn't wait to be back into her warm embrace and suckle in the sweet nectar of her food and Bingsul.

This was perhaps my only one consolation after the failure to deliver.  But hey... this was merely just another Korea trip.  It was not as if some ICBM was going to hurl down south from nowhere and Myeongdong and Gurye were to disappear overnight.  Gurye will still be waiting for me to eat it up next round. I hope.  

VIDEO: Gurye 06 - Yay! R & R in Korea!

Conclusion

So what have I learnt?

There was so much and it was too simplistic to just pen it down in a short story thus.  Many of the experiences were nuances that have been assimilated into my being, some have become brain cell memories that will only emerge as a reflex sometime in the future when the situation calls for them.

One thing I knew.  Like what Kai Sing said, I had undertrained.  And I believe I had been over-confident, a manic state brought about by a whole chain of events leading up to Gurye.  Like what my good friend Charles said, I just didn't get lucky in Gurye- I didn't train enough.

But what would life be without a little sense of adventure, a little bit of uncertainty?  I was just glad that I had the honour of being a part of this great bunch of crazy guys in their quest for some fun.

Till the next race!!!