BY This year, I decided to undertake the Standard Chartered Kuala Lumpur Marathon, held at the Merdeka Square in KL, Malaysia. It was my first overseas run of the year 2017 and I was determined to not go easy, signing up for the 21km event.
This year, the number of participants numbered near 35,000 from all over Malaysia and other parts of the world. It was still a surprise though, when we bumped into a few familiar faces at the race expo in Malaysia.
We pulled double duty and were manning the RUN Singapore booth at the race expo. However, we did spend Saturday relaxing a little and taking in the sights before going to bed early.
For a big event like the SCKLM, there is always that nagging thought of whether the whole event can be completed without delays. As I went to Pen 3 for my anticipated 2:30 race pace, the number of people made me worry just a little, but I saw no delays in the flag off.
Prior to the race, I had no idea what I was up for until I ran the route and I can say that there are major differences between running a race in Singapore and running in Kuala Lumpur.
For one thing, Malaysia’s participants are more enthusiastic and consistent about running. Throughout the entire 21km, I saw very few people who chose to walk the entire route. This was interesting when you consider that the route was much harder than expected, with many gradients.
Luckily, the race started at 5.30am, and it wasn’t too hot when my run was completed. It only rained after the event was over, which was great for us, as we were worried about how running in the rain would affect our performance.
The SCKLM was well-equipped to handle the number of people who were running the race route. This meant more portable toilets for runners to use compared to Singapore and first aid stations that were widely spread out. Friendly volunteers enthusiastically cheered for the participants while also giving out bananas and sponges throughout the race.
Bottlenecks did not occur throughout the race, as participants were motivated to run fast as possible to beat the fast rising sun. Another facility we were pleasantly surprised by were the mist stations at the 16-17km mark, which runners had to go through in order to cool ourselves down.
The atmosphere at SCKLM was great as well. At the 18km mark, I felt hungry and I was struggling to complete the race before sunrise. But my feelings and enthusiasm rose again when I saw volunteers cheering enthusiastically at the 18km mark and giving out jellies to cheer us on. There were a group of Honda cheerleaders that were motivating us to finish the course and 500m from the end, there were supporters, family and friends cheering for the participants.
The heat was bearable, and I believe I will come back for it again. Thank you SCKL for the wonderful event.
Some tips I learned from my maiden 21km SCKLM:
- Bring water if you can, the water points may be too far apart for your liking.
- Wear running shoes with thicker soles if you are running on hard tarmac.
- Bring some chews or gels to fill your stomach during the race.
- Have sufficient hydration before the start but don’t overdo it.
- Eat a light breakfast before the race. Your serious fuelling should have been done over the previous week.
- Condition and pace yourself, and be mentally prepared.
- Finish strong!
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