Date : 20 December 2009
Time : 0700 (on the dot!)
Place : Bukit Kiara Equestrian Club (Bukit Damansara)
Terrain : Hilllllly...(437m of elevation)
Weather : Great!
Course : Challenging
Gun time: 1:00:35
The preparation for this race event by the Pacesetters was well organized, with smooth traffic movement, crowd control and distribution. The few snags was more on the collection of the race kit, as they did not allow collection from the Pacesetters office in Lorong Jugra anymore.
We were there at 6.15am, just in case there were no parking spots. We ended up parking by the slip road. There were alternative parking areas in Desa Seri Hartamas, from which the organizers arranged shuttle services. However, the trips back would only start at 10.00am. I didn't fancy hanging around for an hour (Actually, I was already back home by 9am, after having b/fast).
The gun went off at 7am sharp, with an accompanying countdown (first time since I've joined road races!). The initial part of the course was narrow and it took a bit of time to clear the timing mats.
On the onset, the course was uphill for the first 700m. Once we turned in Jalan Beringin, it was up and down, up and down. I was quite fazed by the time we finished the first loop and ended up walking about 100m on the last hill before starting the 2nd loop.
By the time we started the 2nd loop, we joined in with the back end of the 7km runners. With the wide roads, overtaking was no problem. Mentally, I kept reminding myself to keep up the pace, as most of the 7k runners were walking.
Although I was feeling much better in the 2nd loop, I knew I was running at a slower pace. I was thinking of the last hill that we need to overcome before turning back to Bukit Kiara.
With 3 quarters of the hill done, my HRT had jumped to 186. I decided to walk about 50m before continuing running to ensure I had enough to push to the end, which was downhill all the way.
I ended up sprinting the last 500m of the course with a bit more left in the tank.
Compared to the previous year's race, this year's run was definitely much more enjoyable due to the course, better organizing and good crowd and traffic control.
My wife finished a couple of minutes behind and seemed to have enjoyed the run as well.
Although I finished 1 second/km off last year's pace, the elevation was much more compared to last year's course (437m vs 330m). They should name this as the new "King of the Hill" road race.
If they organize the race again at this location next year, they can definitely count me in...
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