Melawati 10k run

Date : 29 March 2009
Time : 7.30 am
Place : Taman Melawati
Distance: 9.97km
Weather : Overcast, about 28deg C (Perfect!)
Terrain : Hills in the middle, flat at the beginning and end

As we arrived at the location, which was near the zoo, there were not many signboards on where the start point was. However, when we were close, I managed to spot a couple of runners with their bibs and they pointed me to the right direction.

The great thing about the location was that there were ample parking space close the the starting point. The low point was that there was only 1 miserable toilet near the location. Perhaps the organizers should make a point in getting a few portable toilets for the runners.

The event was pretty low key and participation level was about 400+. As usual, the usual groups of regulars were participating. Seems like there was a fraternity out there, which I was not aware of...


Apparently, this surpassed the organizers expectations as they ran out of T-shirts.

The event started more or less on time, which was great.

The route was interesting after the first 2km as we approached the hills. The first 5km was not that punishing with the gradient building up slowly. But as we started the route back to the starting point, it was apparent that it was tougher coming back in.

It started off slow but I gradually picked up the pace to 12.4km/h in the 2nd km. Moving into the "black zone" (seems that the 4-6km part of the race become more of an effort for me for some reason or another), I backed off and walked a minute to take a drink and bring down my heart rate down a bit. I was also developing some minor discomfort in my stomach in the 5th km. Maybe it was the gas in my drink.

I felt good throughout the run and finished with a 11.8km/h average, 0.2km/h better than my previous 10k's. However, it was short of the 5min/km pace that I was aiming for but I was satisfied with the result as the improvement was significant and I felt great after the run. Looks like all the miles training were paying off.

All in all, the organizers did a good job and things moved along smoothly, with all the basic stuff covered (except the toilet and lack of T-shirts).

Next run - BHP Orange Run.