Kinabalu Climbathon

At the beginning of the year as I was making resolutions, I came up with a fitness goal that I thought would challenge me for the year so I signed myself up for the Kinabalu climbathon.

Here is what I wrote during the start of the year...

Year 2008. Just started a new fitness resolution for the year. This year I want to run below the men's qualifying time for the Sabah Climbathon in Malaysia. Why this event? I am staying in Singapore currently and have always like the mountains. I figured to go below the qualifying time for this event would be a great achievement for me. It is difficult enough that it is a real challenge. I know to some who are reading, they might think it is not a tough challenge. But difficulty is a very relative measure, to me a beginner runner, this will be my holy grail for 2008.

How do I, a runner who barely runs 10k a week, train and develop the legs to run a 21k mountain run? How do I prevent injuries when currently I get leg problems only after 5km runs? Currently, there is relatively few mountain running plans for the absolute beginner. That is, at least, from what I can find. The best stuff I can find so far is on the Pikes Peak marathon and that event seems much tougher than the Kinabalu run. So I thought if I write down the training plan, it could be a guide for beginner runners like me to gauge how much training is required for this run or similar mountain runs.

Another disadvantage is that Singapore is relatively flat. The best hill to run is Bukit Timah which is about 1.5 hours away by public transportation. Much of my training will be on the roads around my house in Simei and the threadmills at the gym, which fortunately I have paid for in advance.

Fast forward to July 1, 2008. I have definitely ran more than I did in the beginning of the year. Still it shames me to say that I did not come up with a definite plan. Let me sit down and plan after finishing this blog. With 50+ days ahead of me, I need to do the max that I can do to get below the qualifying times without getting any injuries.

Another thing with these type of mountain races is that it is difficult to know how much is enough without experience. Will 30k flat be equivalent or will 20k run on the threadmill with incline be enough? However, one thing I know is that what I am doing currently is not enough. If you have any good running tips to help me train, now is the time to let me know. I will try to keep you updated on the running schedule, if you are interested and do not laugh about it.

Spanking New Skates

Just got myself a pair of new skates. They are in between speed skates and recreational skates. I wanted to take a picture of them before I use them. I think given my beginner skill level and the length of the frame, I will scrape them on the ground soon enough. Probably on the first few tries and they'll not be spanking new anymore. The people in the skate shop kept reminding me not to go to any slopes with them before I could learn how to stop. I definitely don't want to skate in east coast park with them till I get proficient in these skates. That way I don't get to see the smug smile of those skaters who beat me but are on kiddie skates. However, that'll mean many months as my focus will be on running for the next few months. Anyway, I think after a few weeks I won't care what they think. Let the kids have their satisfaction. As one of the speed skaters mentioned, you have to start somewhere.

This setup is quite an upgrade from my 78mm recreational skate wheels. 100 mm versus 78 mm. I am not sure if I can even stop with the heel brake. Still it is not full speed skate as the cuff is higher. But I guess it'll be quite close. This toy will keep me occupied for some months. For now the focus is still on running as the Kinabalu event is just around the corner.