2003 July - August

President's Column | Letters | Announcements | Articles | Results

PRESIDENT'S COLUMN

Eve of our 20th Anniversary
About one month ago I got a call from Jessie Chew, one of the founder members of the club in 1984. She reminded me that the club will be twenty years old next year and the birth day of the club was 20th May 1984. She also offered to hand over to me her files from 1984 to 1986 when she was a committee member of the club to provide some insight into the early days’ management of the club. I took over the files and went through the documents and found some interesting facts. I see the need for us to compile some of the history of the club as a special project for our 20th Anniversary. This project would have to start right away as we need time to source the information to produce a credible piece of work. We target to release this booklet by April 2004. I would like to call upon the senior members to share with us some of your pictures, which we intend to use for this booklet, and we would be talking to some of the senior members to research on this piece of PACM history.

While it is nostalgic to look at the past, we must also look forward to the next 10 years. The Exco had a heavy session in our August meeting when we discussed about the future and we decided that we should focus on two key areas; (1) Grass root athletic activities and (2) Event Management. Having set our focus or objectives clearly, we would need to build our capabilities such that we could achieve the objectives set out. I would briefly discuss the “how to” part as I go along. The club has been focusing on grass root athletic activities and we have been quite successful in it already. We usually have the largest adult group taking part in local road races and in the KL International Marathon 2003, we had about 130 members at the starting line out of the 521 who ran the full marathon. Of course grass root activities are not about marathons alone and we have activities from the breakfast runs for families, youth track sessions to the track meet taking care of members from under 6 to over 60 categories. During the recent Hatyai Nature Run, we had more than four bus loads going up with some senior citizens taking part in the 4km event while the seasoned runners took on the 21km.

Our Area Group System has contributed significantly to this grass root participation and we boast of a 1,000 members’ base. Organizing activities for our members and facilitating participation in local road races would continue to be our core activities to fulfill the grass root objective. Our Area Group model has proven to be a success as the new area groups such as Permaisuri, Subang Jaya and Gasing Hills have started to dominate the participation over the older area groups like Bukit Aman and FRIM. This was clearly demonstrated in the recent track meet when Subang Jaya emerged champions with Permaisuri and Gasing/Klang Combined Team as closed second and third. Permaisuri is a shining example of the adult grass root group while Subang demonstrate their youth power owing to the weekly youth training program at MPSJ Stadium. Somehow I feel the right combination of an even better model would be to combine the strength of both Permaisuri and Subang; ie each area group must focus on both the adult and youth grass root activities. It would be logical that each Area Group adopts a youth program in a local track or stadium. Currently, the Kampung Pandan Youth Training is actually conducted by members from the Bukit Aman Group (namely, KK Oon, Lian Bee Hoon and Carina Tan) while the Subang Youth Program is conducted by Subang members with a lot of help from Manisekaren of Gasing Hills Group. The FRIM Group is struggling to get their youth program started and they must persevere. The success factor here lies in the availability of a stadium or track as base and a few dedicated coaches or coordinator.

The second area of focus is event management. We are less ambitious here as we recognize that we can’t be fulltime race administrators. Therefore, we aim to be a niche player and focus on a few boutique events for the public that is within our capacity and capability. We already have the Nike Pacesetters 15km and the adidas FTAAA Pacesetters 4 x 3km to our name. Therefore, we would just hope to add one more; the Pacesetters 30km to be held on 11th January 2004, 6 weeks before the KL International Marathon 2004 on 22nd February 2004. We have sent out our proposals and by our deadline, we had no takers. We are disappointed but not discouraged. Later, we understand from the sponsors that they did not have their 2004 budget ready to commit. We have done the route charting, a 32km route start and end at Lake Gardens Tapak A, combining the Sri Hartamas and Double Hill Routes. In the meantime, we shelved the project (unless a key sponsor comes forward) but we would assure members that we would still have our 30km practice run on 11th January 2004 to help members prepare for the KL Marathon.

Communication Framework
Having decided the areas of focus, we examined our capabilities in all areas and decided we need to upgrade our communication framework. To begin with, we merged the publicity and communication functions into one, dividing it into internal and external communication. Internal Communication would cover the Footloose and the to be launched e-Bulletin. We see the growing importance of the e-bulletin to complement the bi-monthly Footloose as an internal medium of communication in the club. Today we have about 30% of our members with email addresses and we believe the actual number is more and growing as some did not update us with their email addresses. Hopefully in two weeks time, those of you with email addresses would receive your e-bulletin.

In the external communication we have our web-site and we are quite happy with the number of hits coming in. It has slowly but surely become the top local web-site for runners (both local and foreign) seeking information on races in Malaysia. Upgrading our site would be a constant affair and we invite IT savvy members to join our communication team to help us. In June, Jimmy, Lisa and I attended a seminar by OCM on media relationship and two week ago at the Genting 24 Hours Walk I saw the actual demonstration of the communication tools needed to deal with the media. Immediately after the prize giving for the Genting 24 Hours Walk, I met Ping Loong (Milo) and the Malay Mail reporter at the Awana Coffee House. The reporter has written the story on the notebook computer and Ping Loong has downloaded the digital pictures from his camera into the notebook computer. They were transmitting the story and pictures via the internet using a handphone back to the Malay Mail office in Kuala Lumpur. This process ensured that the story reached the editor for the next day’s edition. Likewise, we have to build such capabilities to be a serious contender in Event Management or just for promoting the club. We need to be able to reach out to the media quickly with our stories and pictures via the internet such that they could use our story if deemed fit. If we could achieve having our stories and pictures published in more newspapers, it would enhance the value of the event sponsorship. Naturally, we would then have the competitive edge over other event managers. We target to have this capability in place before the end of this year.

Indiscrete Members and Shoe Discounts
I have some bad news for the New Balance shoes lovers as the main distributor, Stream Enterprise has decided to reduce the discount from 40% to 30% with immediate effect. The reason behind this decision is due to some indiscretion by some of our members. According to the letter from Stream, some of our members have been revealing the special privilege of 40% discount to the public, thus affecting the business of the appointed New Balance dealers. Many dealers have lodged complaints to Steam Enterprise. In one incident I was told a certain member bragged loudly in public that he gets 40% and told his friend not to buy from the dealer who was trying to close the sale. It is unfortunate that such indiscrete behavior of some members would end up depriving us from enjoying the special discount. There is nothing much we could do but to appeal to members to be discrete and the same goes for the adidas, Brooks and Nike privileges.

Wan Yew Leong - 15th August 2003 | wanyl@alliancebg.com.my

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

E-Bulletin
We have sent out our first and second edition of the e-bulletin on 21st September and 26th November 03 respectively to more than 300 members. We notice we have a number defunct email addresses or over quota as the members did not clear their mails. The objective of the e-bulletin is to complement the Footloose as a source of latest information on coming events. We shape the contents as we go along. At the moment, we have 316 members or 30% of our members with email addresses. We believe the actual percentage is higher as some may not have notified us through the renewal process. If you have an email address but did not receive the e-bulletin in September, please notify Munning Jamaludin, at ceimj@pc.jaring.my quoting your name, PACM No and your email address.

Purchase of New Balance Products
Stream Enterprise (M) Sdn Bhd via their New Balance specialist shop at Bukit Bintang has reduced their discount from 40% to 30% (see President’s Column for reasons) on New Balance products with immediate effect at their outlet in Bukit Bintang Plaza (LGF 007, Lower Ground Floor, Tel:03-2148 9671). Please produce your membership card for identification.

Purchase of Brooks’ Products
We have arranged for Brooks to issue Loyalty Cards to all our members. The Loyalty Cards holders shall be entitled to 30% discount for Brooks’ products in designated outlets. If you did not receive your Brooks Card, please notify Jenny Lee, our Secretary.

Purchase of adidas Products
adidas is offering 40% discount on their products, except sunglasses and watches at their outlet at;

· adidas Active Arena, Lot 310, 3rd Floor, KLCC (Manager : Djal, Tel: 03-21623475) and
· adidas Active Arena KL Sentral, Unit 8, Level 1, KL Sentral Station (Manager : Marina, Tel: 03-2273 2775). Please produce your membership card for identification.

P/S – adidas has made some refinements to their rules; the 40% discount is offered only to purchases by/for the member. In the event the member buys for his family or friends, only 20% is given. The judgement would be made based whether the sizing purchased matches that of the member. (Example your size is US 9 and you buy a US 7, it is deemed you are buying for someone else or you wear XL and you buy a size S) This refinement of the rules is necessary as there were reported cases of abuse by our members.

Purchase of NIKE Products
NIKE is offering 30% discount on all NIKE products (except promotional items) from 3rd June to 31st August 2003 at;

· NIKE Factory Outlet Store at Wisma Conplant, Subang (12noon to 9pm, Monday to Sunday except Public Holidays)
· NIKE Employee Store at Damansara Uptown, Level 3, Uptown 1 (10.30am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday except public holidays) Tel: 03-7722 2459.

The extension beyond 31st August would depend on the response from members. At press time, Nike has not confirmed the extension if any.

BigShot Restaurant & Archery
BigShot Restaurant & Archery is offering 10% discount to members for food & beverage and RM3 for one dozen arrows (usual RM4 per dozen). BigShot Restaurant & Archery is located at LG30, Majau Junction Mall, 1001, Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: 03-26971606/2606, Fax: 03-2697 3606, email bigshot@tm.net.my & website: www.bigshotarchery.org

Sale of Power Bar & Gel
The club has been appointed an official stockist for Power Bars. We are selling at 15% discount from the approved retail price (Protein Plus Bar at RM7.60, Energy Bar at RM6.00 and Gel at RM4.60). As these are items with expiry date, only Jimmy Tong and Phoon YH are keeping them. We would normally bring them to sell after our Sunday runs. Area Groups may order them via Jimmy.

Renewal Notice
We have 254 Members with their membership expiring on June 2003. The renewal notices have been sent out individually in June 2003 and you should have received them. You are requested to renew your membership with your respective group leaders or direct to the club by mail. Members with their membership expiring June 2003 would have their Footloose discontinued after September 2003 if renewal is not received by then. It is not necessary to send your existing card for renewal.

Card Replacement
Members who lost their cards or want a new card during renewal instead of a renewal sticker label are required to pay RM5 for a new card.

New Membership Cards
There are several members that we have not produced their new cards because we have not received their photographs. Please send your photographs with your name and PACM number written at the back of the photograph to Jenny Lee, 3-8-1, Phase 5, Pantai HillPark, Jalan Pantai Dalam, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.

Pewter Key Chains
Pewter key chains at RM8 per piece are available for sale to members. The key chains were ordered in conjunction with the recent track meet. These are collectors’ items as we are not going to repeat orders for this design. Those interested can check with their Group Leaders or contact Sonny Ng.

Club’s Socks
We have limited stock of the club’s socks (men and women) for sale at RM6 per pair. The quality is comparable to the popular brands made from spandex material. They are available from Ken, Phoon, Jimmy and Lai Huat.

Nike Pacesetters 15km Shorts
A small quantity of the white shorts is still available at RM10 per piece (marked down price). Stock is with Sonny Ng/Ken.

Club’s 2003 Yellow T-shirt
The club’s yellow T-shirt for 2003 is for sale at RM12 per piece. Limited stock left, with Sonny Ng and Jimmy. We would like to see all PACM members wearing the club yellow T-shirt after the run and during prize giving.

Club’s 2003 Vest
The vest is bright yellow in color from Brooks (Dupont material) and retail at RM25. Limited stock left.

Water Bottle Belt
We have ordered 200 pieces of bright yellow color water bottle belt with the club’s logo (to fit 500 ml water bottle) to enable you to run up to 15km without worrying about dehydration. Cost RM13 per piece, available from Jimmy.

Advertisement in the Footloose
In order to earn some income for the club, we are soliciting advertisements for the Footloose. Our rates are;

· Cost of production plus RM160 – full page color

· RM200 – full page black and white

· RM120 – half page black & white

For advertisers who advertise a full page, they shall be given one opportunity to market their products during our functions such as breakfast runs. Interested advertisers may contact the editor. (The club reserves the right to reject any advertisement without disclosing the reasons) Those interested, please contact our Editor Munning Jamaludin (7982 8757 office) or Ms Lee Kim Ying at the same office.

Photographs for Sale
Chan Wing Kai has been taking photographs of the club’s activities and members during races. These photographs are available for sale at RM1.00 each for 4R size. Please contact Chan to view the photos and to order from him, or your Area Group Leaders if you are picking any photos from the Footloose. Chan can be contacted at 012- 399 0766.

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ARTICLES
Seremban Half Marathon 2003 - Race Report | Area Group Leader's Role | 15th World Masters Athletics Championship, Carolina, Puerto Rico | Still Winter in Sydney | My First Experience - Malakoff Duathlon | 3rd Pacesetters Track Meet 2003

Seremban Half Marathon 2003 - Race Report by Ronnie See

finally all my pressure it's all over liao...
B4 the race day, I really can't Zzzzz at all...
Keep rolling here and there...
Just Zzzzz 2 hours, then wake up oredi...

By 6.00am me oredi there...
With my friend driving like F1....
130km/p, damn! Really scary lah...
I think no next time liao...

6.45am, bang! the race start...
Dowan to kelam kabut myself...
So I start with a very slow pace...
As what Eric Chan told me...

After 5 minutes, my body is so panas liao...
Cannot tahan oredi, so turbo abit...
Keep overtaking those elite runners...

Then this Japanese lady was behind me...
So I asked her to follow my pace lah...
She asked me to go ahead...

Reaching 10K point, my time was 44min 48.04sec...
Wow! I'm so happy, coz it’s below 4:30 pace...
Quickly drink some water lah...
And continue my run...
Didn't have the sign of tiredness yet...
The Japanese lady still behind me...

After 12k,
Me and the jpn-lady managed to pace each other...

From that distance onward...
There was not many marshals liao...

Big bus, huge lorry balak, crazy motorcar...
Passing behind me, it's like makan habuk lah...
Saw the front runner go right, I follow right...
They go left, I follow left...
It's make me really pening kepala lah...
Those vehicles are moving so fast wan...
Banggang betul I...
But still, mana trafik polis???...

With 5km left, guess who I saw...
Miss Chong Yoke Foong, Law Llai Huat punya wife...
I'm so happy lah, becoz she is my main target mah...
She did quite well in pg run (1:38) mine was (1:42)...
Me jealous mah, coz she run faster than me...
Me and the j-lady overtook her at 4km point...
With the distance getting nearer and nearer...
So I tambah lagi vrrooommm....

At the 2km point...
There are 6 elite runners infront of me...
So gream, so I try to chase them lah...
Everyone oso go faster and faster...
Ayo, how to chase arr...

Then with 1km to go, so happy oredi...
Watching my watch, showing 1hr 26min...
I was hoping to finish within 1hr 30min...

Speed and speed...
How come the 1km, still belum habis wan...
Ayo, very tired oredi liao lah...
Watching at my time, 1hr 30min liao...
Wan to pancit liao lah...
Ayo...bila mahu sampai nih...

finally I saw there was a turning to the finishing line...
Wanted to speed wan, but habis energy lioa lah...
Damn!! Just tahan saja...
After finish, wan to angkat kaki oso cannot..
My time showing... jeng jeng jeng jeng....
1hr 32min 06sec...yaahooo....
Same time with the j-lady, she got 2nd place...
Chong Yoke Foong’s time was 1hr 32min 55sec...
She got 3rd placing...
So suprised! My placing was around 30 something...

So happy lah, I managed to do 4:30 pace...
Although not really actual 21km lah...
Actual wan is 20.5km mah...
I think the last 1km quite long lah...
Bodoh punya organiser, tipu gua...

Should I go back again next year???...

Cheers, the pAcEmAkEr...

Ronnie See

Editor: This one is only for Malaysians who will understand what the writer is trying to say. I did minimum editing so as not to lose the essence of the article. Not sure whether it was meant to be a poem or prose or ….

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Area Group Leader's Role by Han
If you use a computer at work, you'd probably have an IT person to take care of the company computers and network. Normally, most people don't pay attention to this IT person. When you need this IT person to install a new software, you’ll treat this IT person nicely. When the computer is not working, you’ll start taking your anger and frustration on this IT person. When the computer or the network is running again, you’ll forget about this IT person AGAIN. How many of us actually take the time to appreciate this IT person when the computer and network is running smoothly on a daily basis? I'm speaking from my own experience as a network administrator.

We, including myself, tend to complain more than we appreciate, if we appreciate at all. The person may have done 100 things right but if just one thing is wrong, we will pound on the person for it …..until...

Now, in the Pacesetters Permaisuri group, Phoon, Kelvin and Cherie volunteered and were elected to help grow the group. Do you actually know what they are supposed to do? I remember a conversation between Phoon (P) and one of the members (M) :

P: Have you registered for the XXXXX run?
M: No, I thought you filled out the form for me oledi (already)?
P: You are supposed to fill out the form yourself, not me!
M: I thought the area group leader is supposed to serve the group members?
P: I will collect the form and money and register for you, not fill out the form. When I do fill out for you, I'm doing it personally and not as a group leader.

OK, OK, maybe those were not the exact words used but you get the idea.

From my understanding, a group leader and his assistants are supposed to share information (activities, events, runs & marathons), register for runs/marathons, and get new members. I don't think organising rooms and transportation is part of their responsibilities. I think Pacesetters provides this as an extra service to the members. But I'm very sure of one thing: ORGANISING SIGHTSEEING SPOTS AND EATING PLACES ARE NOT PART OF THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES.

This responsibilty is a 2-way thing as well. One thing I learned is that as members, we have the responsibility to contact our group leader and the assistants for various information too. Don't always wait for others to call and arrange everything because some things don't come with the package! If you don't initiate anything on your side, you lose out and then don't blame others. Blame your own inefficiency and ignorance!

Back to the conversation with Phoon and the IGNORANT member and Han (H) was standing behind Phoon:

M: Then you should start filling out the forms for us in the future.
P: Ahh...
H: Aiya! How do you expect one person to do for so many members and so many details, and arrange transportation and book rooms. On top of that, you people always make changes last minute and MESS up the arrangements. Don't help and yet, create problems some more.

I know I might have over-reacted in that situation but I can't stand people who don't show appreciation and yet, complain out of their own selfish reasons (oops! I better not be one of those morons I talk about).

Anyway, I hope that I, along with you, can start showing more appreciation to Phoon, Kelvin, and Cherie for all the PERSONAL services they are providing to us. If you feel that they could improve in certain areas, tell them directly in a constructive way. Please don't talk to non-relevant people behind their backs.

One more thing, take time to thank the IT person in your company. You'll never know when you’ll need her/him in the future!

Han

Editor: The Area Group Leaders are the mainstay of the club, and yet, they are the least appreciated by the members. Let’s correct this situation together. Do note that they do not get any expenses from the club. They pay their own petrol, parking fees, etc, eventhough they are doing something for the club.

Acknowledgement – 3rd Pacesetters Track Meet

As Group Leader of the Subang Area Group, I would like to thank and extend my appreciation to all the volunteers who have put in effort one way or another in achieving this success. My special thanks to the President, Mr Wan, who is ever present at the training ground to monitor the progress; Manisekaran, for his untiring coaching efforts, Jason Thiang, the ever supportive team captain, George Lim, the disciplinarian; Goh Choon Aun, the fine athlete role model; Chen Kok Song, my reliable assistant; the evergreen Patrick Chong and the many others who came by to help.

Once again, thank you so much. Your efforts really make the difference.

Lok Chan Chuen

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15th World Masters Athletics Championship, Carolina, Puerto Rico: 1st - 13th July 2003
by Lee Shew Keng

The 15th World Masters Athletics Championship was held in Carolina, Puerto Rico, from 1st to 13th July 2003. Originally, the Championship was supposed to be held in Kuala Lumpur. Unfortunately, due to some misunderstanding with the World Masters Athletics Association, the Championship was transferred to Puerto Rico.

The four athletes from Malaysia who participated in the 15th World Masters Athletics Championship were En. Tamin Merican, En. David Williams, Ms Soo Chong Peng and I. Overall, the Malaysian athletes were placed in 47th position, out of over 120 countries with 1 silver medal and 1 bronze medal. Soo Chong Peng won a silver medal in the 40m Hurdles for women 40 to 44 years with a time of 1:06.92. I won a bronze medal in the 800m for women 45 to 49 years with a time of 2:42.91.

The final of my event was held at 3.45pm on 8th July 2003. Before the event, from 2.00pm to almost 3.30pm, there was a heavy downpour and I was worried that the final would be delayed. I had little experience in competing in the 800m, having only competed in two 800m events before. Both occasions were in 2002, the first in Chinese Taipei and the second time was in Dalian, China. Not knowing the correct pace to run, I set my target at 2 min 42 sec, which is 3 sec faster than my personal record, of 2 min 25.9 sec, recorded in Chinese Taipei in June 2002. My strategy was to run the first lap 1 min 20 sec and 1 min 22 sec for the second lap.

I was drawn in lane 2, and at the end of the first lap (400m), I was in fourth position with a lap time of 1 min 19 sec. After 500m, I was still in fourth position. I then quickened my pace and at 600m, I overtook the third runner, who is from Bulgaria. Over the last 80m, I could hear the roar of the crowd, as the fourth runner from Sweden, tried to catch up. I ran a little harder and won the bronze medal without too much trouble, with my best time of 2 min 42.91 sec. The athlete from Mexico won the gold medal and the athlete from Puerto Rico won the silver medal. I am very thrilled to have won my first medal in the World Masters Athletics Championship, having participated unsuccessfully in five earlier Championships.

The medical facilities for the Athletics Championship were excellent. A medical unit was located in the competition venue to provide first aid, massages and other medical assistance to the athletics. Prior to my arrival in Puerto Rico, I was carrying an injury to my right Achilles Tendon. Before my final, I sought assistance from the medical unit at the stadium. The medical personnel massaged and bandaged my heel, which relieved the pain. Without the medical aid, it would have been difficult for me to run.

The organisation of the 15th World Masters Athletics Championship was simple and efficient. The participants stayed in various hotels in San Juan and Carolina. To save cost, they arrived and departed in accordance with their competition schedules. Internal transportation arrangements were very efficient. All participants were met on arrival and sent to their respective hotels. Shuttle buses were laid out to transport the athletes from their hotels to the stadium and between the stadiums at regular intervals. Transport was also provided to send the athletes from their hotels to the airport on their departure.

Due to the large number of events (over 1,000) and competitors, competitions were held in three stadiums and over two sessions per day for 13 days. All the three stadiums have covered stands of capacities of around 2,000 people. The covered stands are only on one side of the stadium and there are no seats on the other three sides. However, temporary seats could be installed. The tracks in all three stadiums are in conformity with IAAF standards.

The management of the competitions were simple, but efficient, without any frills. Medal presentations were held about 30min after each event and the ceremonies were very simple, no flag raising or playing of national anthems. The electronic timing and photo-finish system was very efficient and low cost. There was a parallel back-up system running on batteries. As such, there was no manual back-up system, which saved a lot of man-power and reduced costs tremendously. The results were directly printed out from the system as well as linked to the internet, for the public to log on. The field events were also run off very efficiently. With the efficient electronic systems for both track and field events, the number of technical officials was much reduced when compared to athletics championships held in Malaysia.

The shuttle bus system was very efficient. Police outriders were provided to control the traffic so that the athletes could be transported more quickly. The shuttle buses used were the orange school buses, without air-conditioning. One of the buses was fitted with police sirens, which the driver could turn on, when traffic was exceptionally heavy. The police outriders in Carolina are very impressive, with their big bikes and their very macho uniforms. I always thought that our Malaysian Police outriders are very good. I find the Puerto Rican police outriders to be as impressive.

Puerto Rico is an island resort, with beautiful sandy beaches and blue water. Its main attractions are the ancient city of San Juan, the Salsa music and dance and the warm, sunny and windy weather. The people are very friendly and although Puerto Rico is part of the United States, Spanish is the main language spoken there, with English being hardly spoken. Another interesting feature is the size of the Puerto Ricans. I have never seen so many big, and I mean really big sized people, anywhere before.

What is the most memorable attraction in Puerto Rico? For me, it is the Salsa music, which is very loud, vibrant and hot. It was only Salsa music, everywhere and all the time. I enjoyed the Salsa music and the dance very much. Overall, I enjoyed the 15th World Masters Athletics Championship. Although the cost was high but it was worth every cent I spent. I met many old friends who I have known since my first World Masters Athletics Championship in 1991 and also made many new ones. Winning a bronze medal was an added bonus.

Lee Shew Keng

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Still Winter in Sydney by Viviene Kartsounis
The blossoms are out and as beautiful as ever, announcing the arrival of spring, but even nature seems confused as it still feels like winter in Sydney. The continuing snow on the mountains keeps the maximum temperatures in the mid teens and the nights hover just above freezing, or so it feels. The days are beginning to lengthen with the sun rising around 6.15am and then setting some twelve hours later. The land is still very dry and the occasional shower just waters the plants without penetrating the ground. They are predicting another drought this year, with a high risk of bush fires.

We runners are tired of the cold and the dark, and it's a real effort to slide out of bed at 5am and step out of the front door into an icy wind for a run before work (no wonder someone invented the treadmill!). But still we persevere, hoping that tomorrow will be warmer and that maintaining our fitness throughout the winter will not be in vain. And they say Sydney has a mild climate.

The past two months have been a very busy time for the family, as we have finally bought and moved into our own house. It has been very tiring and a strain on the back muscles and we promise ourselves, once again, that this will be our last move. We now live in a very hilly area and there are up hills when you leave and when you return home from a run. Good for building strong legs, but even with all that practice I still struggle to keep up with the Thursday morning guys. We are very happy to be settled and finally
our lives are unpacked.

My running schedule has changed a little over the past months adapting to the changes in our lives, and I am managing to run between 60 and 70kms a week. My first run of the week is on a Tuesday morning. It's about 12 km with interval training on as many flat sections that I can find, usually about ten - and it's a good way to start the week. My Wednesday schedule has changed and I no longer join the morning group and will only do so once they start the bush trail again. It is still too dark and dangerous, but should be light enough in about 4 to 6 weeks’ time. The ladies running group continues to meet on a Wednesday evening, with a wide range of runners, but the numbers are down due to the cold and dark, and we all look forward to the summer.

I have joined a new group for a Thursday morning run. It is organized by the Sydney Striders running club, and is always a challenging run on a variety of courses. The group that I run with consists largely of South Africans, and they wear me out every week as they sprint up the hills and relax on the downs. I really struggle to keep up but keep pushing as hard as I can. This run is about 15kms, as I run to and from the starting point, which is about 2 km from home. I am usually exhausted for the rest of the day! Then on a Friday morning I meet up with a friend of mine for a social run and to catch up on life, as we are both too busy with our families, school and jobs to meet at any other time. This run is about 12 km as I run to her home, about 4 km away, and then we set off together. She, as it so happens, is also a South African. In every running group here there will always be a South African, and usually more than one.

On Saturday morning I sleep in for as long as the children will let me and I look forward to this day all week. Sunday is for the long run, as it was in K.L. I can either join therunning club for their organized run somewhere around Sydney (a fast option); find a bush trail near home and run alone (my pace), or link up with the ladies from the Wednesday group (slow option). If the running club option looks interesting and is somewhere that I have not run before then I will join them and get to discover a new part of Sydney. Some days the call of the wild is just too strong and I head for the bush to
enjoy the scent of nature and the noisy calls of the wild birds high in the trees.

There have been a number of races around Sydney over the past few months. The 14km City to Surf, on the 10th August, was the largest, with about 60,000 competitors ranging from serious runners to families with small children in strollers. This is not my idea of fun and I headed for the solitude of the bush. Over the past 2 months I have run 2 bush races, which were very challenging and enjoyable, once they were over. The Great Nosh Run on the 6th July was a very tough 15 km course, with lots of slipping and sliding due to a previous rain shower. I completed it in 80:08 being the 5th female in. I was very happy with my time as it was just after our move and my running had not been very consistent. The second bush race was the Equalizer on the 20th July, which was slightly easier than the first race but ended with a very, very long up hill. This was completed in 72:17 and I was the 4th lady in. There is some very tough competition here with many in
my age category or older, so there is plenty of motivation to get me up early in the morning to train.

There are a couple of major races coming up in and around Sydney:

23rd August, Mount Wilson to Bilpin Bush Run - a 35 km run
14th September, Sydney Flora Marathon, Half & 10km Bridge Run
11th October, Fitzroy Falls Fire Trail Marathon - a very tough course apparently very poorly organized.
13th March, Blue Mountain Six-Foot Track Marathon - 45 km on a very tough course, so start training now!

With all the changes over the past few months I have decided not to run the marathon this year, and will probably do the Half Marathon on the 14th September. I say probably as Aus $45 is a lot to pay just to run 21.1kms, but races need to be run to keep the motivation there and the challenges keep us focused. Reading the Footloose I can see that there are a number of good races coming up in your part of the world. Good luck to those of you running any of these races, especially the P.J. Half Marathon, which is such a lovely flat course. I see that the Penang Round the Island Relay is on the 14th December, and I keep hoping that one day Pacesetters will enter a female team! How about it ladies? - Carina, Jenny, Kate, Tomoko, Gisela, just to name a few. How I would love to join you all, as my time in K.L. is still so close to my heart.

Well, time to sign off from Sydney. Tomorrow's Sunday run is somewhere down at the beachfront, so I need to study the map to find the shortest route there. At 5.00am every extra minute in a nice warm bed counts. And by the time I am finished with my run, you will all be gathering in the heat for the Malay Mail Big Walk. I have not seen a familiar Pacesetters face for 17 months now, except for in the Footloose, and I am still waiting for one of you to visit me so that I can take you on one of the lovely runs that there are here, whether bush or road. And I am hoping that it is the cold weather that is keeping you away, and that someone may be arriving this spring or summer. I wait.

Viviene Kartsounis (Sydney)

Editor: I was thinking it would be nice to run with Viviene, but after reading the distances and difficulty, I think I will just stay in bed if I’m ever around there! Brrr.. it does sound cold… and I was in Sydney earlier this year. Unfortunately on the opposite side of the city, and it was a big city, so no chance to meet her. Not to worry, will get to run in the bush with her one day … my target for this summer/spring. Then she can write about dragging me out of the bush when I collapse from exhaustion!

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My First Experience - Malakoff Duathlon Series 3rd Aug 2003 by Yaziz Md Isa
After years of running road races, I decided to give the duathlon, that is fast gaining popularity among local athletes as an up and coming sporting event, a try. The duathlon race is a run-bike-run format with typical distances of 10km-60km-8km.

After I signed up for the race scheduled on 3/8/2003, I bought a brand new road bike from Boon’s shop in SS24. The bike cost me about RM1,600 and was the cheapest in the shop at that time. It is suitable for a beginner, so I was told. I started to train immediately. I would squeeze the bike into the back seat of my car for 3 Sundays when I went for my morning runs. On those days, after I arrived from my pilgrimage to Petronas in Sri Hartamas, with a bike course map printed from the website, I went through the actual course. The intention was to acclimatize to the actual race course in order to plan my strategy, so to speak.

On Saturday, the day before the race day, participants collected race kits from the organizer in a hotel in PJ. There were a briefing, a video show on previous races, and some light refreshments provided. Each race kit contained 2 helmet numbers to be affixed on front and side of the helmet, bib numbers and an ankle band that had a timing chip inside. We were required to deposit RM50 for the ankle band. The bike frame number was given when we checked in our bikes the next morning.

Just like any other Sunday that I would go for my long runs, I woke up a bit early on race day, as I had to make a stop at a gas station to fill my bike tire with air. I stopped at the first gas station near my house. I tried to pump in the air, but to my surprise, instead of filling in the tire with air, all the air rushed out. So I had a flat tire and panicked.

I kept telling myself and hoping that maybe the organizers would put up a pump at the starting line for cyclists to pump up their tires. When I arrived at Lake Gardens, where I parked my car, I met Bruce who later introduced me to a guy who was in the middle of pumping his tire. That guy, Babu helped me with my tire and said that I would be having fun at the race. And surely I did.

I rode to Dataran Merdeka and immediately placed on the ankle band on my right ankle and checked in my bike into the transition area. We were required to place our bikes and gears in specific slots. Wow…. there are rows of bikes of different colors and shapes, and almost all looked sophisticated, speedy and expensive. Some bikes had cycling shoes already pre-clipped onto the pedals. I felt very inferior that my bike was cheap and a bit heavy.

Bruce was supposed to participate in the relays; unfortunately his partners could not show up as they were down with fever. However, being such a sport, he was on the starting line nevertheless. Vincent was there too to run the 2nd 8 km run leg for his team.

Generally, I could see the athletes were in quite a variety of attire, although most were in biking gears. I could see some wearing well-known team jerseys like Mapei and US Postal. I wore padded shorts although initially I wanted to bike in running short like runners used and liked to. However, wearing biking gear from the start would save time, as we did not have to change to running gear and vice versa.

The first leg of 10km run started when the starter gun went off at 7.30 sharp. The run took us through the normal 10km race route from Dataran Merdeka through Bukit Tunku, Jalan Duta round about and back to Dataran Merdeka. Most runners kept a cautious pace, probably to ensure conserving enough energy levels to complete the next 60km bike. As such, we did not push ourselves. However, for those who participated in the relays, and probably because they were only in the running part, they were very fast. At some points along the course, I was pacing with Lester Thum of Permaisuri who was running in a nice triathlete suit.

I arrived into the transition area and headed straight to my bike. We were advised to remember exactly the location of our bike. There was no place to change clothes and nudity was not allowed. I saw that Steven Loong was about to leave the area. We were required to fasten the chin strap of our helmet in the area, and were not allowed to start riding the bike while still in the transition area. As I left the transition, some volunteers handed over a banana and a soft drink. I saw a mountain of bananas on the table.

The cycling part took us through Jalan Kuching, right up to Jalan Duta, Jalan Parliament, in front of Wisma Tani, to Bank Negara round about, to Lake Garden, skirting Bukit Aman car park, Jalan Tanglin, and back to Dataran Merdeka. One lap was 15 km and we were required to complete 4 laps for a total of 60 km. At the end of Jalan Tanglin, there was an intersection where we had to make a sharp U-turn and then headed straight to Dataran Merdeka.

My first lap was manageable. I was probably still excited about making a debut in bike racing. I was still experimenting with my gears though. The roads were not completely closed from public traffic. Only the very left lane was bordered with safety cones so that we could ride within it. The course was marked with white paint on the road surface and there were policemen at junctions to direct traffic. It was a cloudy and windy day. Even one of the seasoned cyclists said that the day was a bit windy. Being a beginner, I though I was the only one who felt the strong wind.

I did not see any race marshals along the course writing down our numbers. We were informed the organizers placed sensors along the race course to monitor that we stayed on course. When I arrived at Dataran Merdeka to complete my first lap, Vincent was cheering me on. The ride in front of Dataran Merdeka was bumpy as the road was made of bricks. The MC announced our names as we passed and crossed the mats that would record our time. That stretch was where most of the actions were, as that was where the transition area and most cyclists, myself included tried to appear fast in front of the crowd.

As I started to feel a bit tired, my second lap was relatively much slower. The race became more intense as the stronger cyclists showed their true colors and started overtaking in their quests to get ahead in the race or made up for the time lost during the 1st run. There were a few foreigners who breezed passed in their speedier bikes and I could hear them closing from behind from the buzzing sound of their wheels as if they were saying, “make way…make way”. They were probably into their last lap while I had two more laps to endure.

In the first 2 laps, the cyclists were in clusters of 4 or 5 but quickly dispersed in the last 2 laps. We were forbidden from drafting or from cycling side by side. In other words, we were not allowed to ride close to someone else, either we pass or drop back.

I continued into my 3rd lap telling myself to hold on steadily. But the stretch of slopes after the Tennis Stadium wasn’t friendly. Ironman Sofian forcefully overtook me there. I saw him griming his face and holding hard to the lead. On the other side of the road, the traffic was crawling not because of the race, but because there were constructions going on. Once over the top, the ride down was easy. I relished the comfort and did not even pedal. I rode down smoothly and just hung on to the handlebars but intermittently applying the brakes just in case you know what. I was trailing further behind Sofian, whom I saw still pedaling even though he was going down the slope. In front of Parliament, one “mat saleh” was seen changing his flat tire. That would have delayed a few minutes of his time. In this competition, we were not allowed to receive any mechanical assistance. Otherwise, we would be automatically disqualified.

finally, I came to my last lap hoping to go all out to restore time deficiency since it was my last lap, so I told myself. However, my personal vengeance was still to catch up and over take Sofian who had by that time vanished in front. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out the way I planned. All my strategies went haywire. I was really tired and came to terms that I wasn’t going to be able to push anymore. So my last lap ended up like a “makan angin” lap. Just about any and every cyclist overtook me and I could not care less.

As if there would be any comfort, I liked to believe that I was not able to maximize my bike’s potential or was it that my bike was not able to maximize my potential; either way, my biking was “koyak”. Some bikers were able to ride faster and further using the least amount of energy, termed as biomechanical efficiency or bike fit, but not me.

I arrived in the transition area behind Mon, a seasoned triathele who had completed his first Ironman in Langkawi this year. He overtook me when we were just about to enter Lake Garden. After placing my bike in the designated slot, I quickly changed my running shoe into another running shoe.

After more than 2 hours of biking, I found out that switching to running proved to be no easy task. I somehow struggled to bring myself to running the way I used to. I met Lok Chan Chuen two weeks earlier when I watched the Malakoff University Duathlon Series (MUDS) at University of Malaya, and he shared with me the need to practice switching and only then I realized how right he was. I found out later it is brick workout whereby we train our muscles to get used to running right after biking.

We ran the 2nd leg of 8km from Dataran Merdeka to Bank Negara roundabout, Jalan Dato Onn, Jalan Tunku, parts of Kenny Hills, Jalan Parliament and Dataran Merdeka. By that time, it was past 11.00 am and we started to feel the heat. At this stage, if you could still run it would make a big difference as there would be runners who would have reduced their run to a walk.

I started to sprint to the finishing line from about 150m away. One runner who was walking in front; upon seeing me approaching, moved side way as if he was giving way to me. I chose to hold his hand instead and ran to the finish line together. We were given finishing medals and ice-cold wet towels courtesy of PowerBar. There were plenty of fresh fruits, soft drinks, free PowerBars and more bananas.

I thought the race was well organized and it was getting popular. There was increasing interest from local athletes. Some youngsters were seen proudly displaying their bikes near the starting line, although they were there as mere spectators. I thought too that cycling is a good form of cross training in addition to purely running. The race was one of a series of races that led to Powerman Malaysia scheduled for 12/10/2003, which itself is a qualifying race to Powerman World Championship in Zofingen, Switzerland.

Yaziz

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3rd Pacesetters Track Meet 2003 - Report by Ronnie See
Like usual lah, I only managed to sleep 2-3 hours. Haiyah, kept thinking about the track meet saja. After waking up, I quickly packed my things. By 6:30am I was already there with my friend, Mr.Toh.

At 7:00am they started the aerobics session. But I was still busy at the registration area looking for my group leader Mr. Law Lai Huat. Mr.Toh and I are under the F.R.I.M. group.

7:20am : Bang! They started the 3km Fun Run. Everybody was running like mad cows. I just followed from behind, with a 4:30 pace. To my surprise, I came back in 3rd placing!!

There were more than 200 runners taking part in the Fun Run. Whoever finishes, will get a free umbrella. It's a souvenir gift for everyone.

8:15am : 400m individual showdown. There were a total of 9 entries in my age group. As there were more than 8 runners, the race was divided into two rounds, 5 runners for 1st round, 4 runners for 2nd round. Mine was the 2nd round punya. Everyone was wearing track shoes, while I wore only sports shoes. So, malu lah I, and some more so nervous like hell lah.

On your marks..., get set..., bang!...Everyone was cheering for their group. My starting was quite slow a bit, too nervous mah. With 100m to go, my whole body macam ice kacang. Cannot go anymore, so just tahan until the finish. In the end, I was the second last.

Total standings, my time was 8th fastest out of the 9 runners. Ayo, luckily I still managed to beat somebody. But I was very disappointed with my performance. 1min 10sec, usually in training can do 1:09.

Then I saw some of the ladies who took part in the 400m. Macam running half marathon punya pace lah. Come back also can get medal, so bengang lah I.

10:15am : 100m showdown, I was not involved. But my friend Mr. Toh was in action. To my surprise, only 8 runners in the 100m showdown. I was so excited for him, and was ready to take his time. Once bang, everyone was moving like a rocket. I pon jerit, “Ah Toh! Ah Toh! Cepat! Cepat!” But so sad, he came back in 4th position (time 12.35sec). Those capati runners are so damn fast lah.

11:35am : 4x100m relay showdown. I have never been in this event before, not even in school. Masa kat sekolah, 100m pon sudah mahu pensan oredi. One thing that worried me was the baton passing. Kalau tersilap angkat, everybody gonna kill me. Mr Toh is the 1st runner, me the 2nd one.

Once the 100m started, I was waiting for Mr. Toh's baton. He got muscle pull at 90m, I was so nervous. So I was cheering at him, 'come on brader'. But no matter how much he was suffering, he dragged himself on to pass the baton to me.

After I got the baton, I ran like orang gila. Try to speed like Watson Nyamuk...hee..hee.. Once the 3rd runner got my baton, he managed to overtake 2 runners...WOW! Reaching the 4th runner, oh my gosh, there was some error in passing the baton. In the end, we finished only 4th placing. There were a total of 6 teams in this event.

Everyone was so upset and down. Even worse, Mr.Toh was down with an injury and the group leader had to find someone to replace him quick, because we still had one more event to go, the 4x400m.

When the race was about to start, everyone was in a chaotic state. finally, my group leader managed to persuade another runner to run with us. He was Mr.Cheong, also one of my running friends. Actually he came all the way to support us. Tak sangka he would run for our team.

12:40 noon : 4x400m showdown. Everyone looked so tired already, and some more so panas. Didn't really have hope for this event. One last chance to get at least a medal. I don’t want to go back empty handed. This time, I was still the 2nd runner for this event. Mr.Cheong is the last runner.

When the race was about to start, I prayed and prayed. Ke garisan.....sedia....boom! The 1st runner came back in 3rd placing and he passed the baton to me. It was my responsibility now, to chase the 2nd team. I managed to get close to him, so damn happy. Couldn't overtake him, only can pace with him saja. Until the last 100m, he pecut like hell. Me also like wan to pensan already. I just lost to him by 3sec, but my time had improved (1:06). Quickly I passed the baton to the 3rd runner. He also managed to pace with the 2nd team. But couldn't overtake them, also lost by 2sec sahaja. Still in 3rd position, the 4th team was just behind. Then to the final runner, Mr.Cheong.

Everyone was so nervous for him. He really hentam teruk to chase the 2nd team. Until the last 100m, also don’t want to give up. In the end we just lost by 1sec. sahaja. But it's oredi more than enough, medal! medal! medal! Everyone was jumping with joy like a monkey. Hip! Hip! Huray! Hip! Hip! Huray!

Mr Toh was happy for us too, although he didn't get a medal. But deep in my heart, I know he was very very sad. If I hadn't run the 400m individual, maybe I can go even faster, because there I already used a lot of energy. But I'm totally happy, because I dared to try...phew!...

Next year I will take part only in the team relay. Sudah pandai mah, kena beli track shoes already. Now my total medals is already 49 in countdown. Satu lagi to reach my 50th milestone. My next race is the Paya Indah Wetlands.

Ronnie See

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RESULTS
Click on the links to view results:
Pacesetters Record Holders | Ipoh International Run

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