Happy Chinese Lunar New Year

I have been listening to TraxxFM (formerly Radio 4 RTM) almost everyday now. Short of the propaganda news and broadcast that comes on every hour, the channel is great without any repeated advertisements (that happens more often than songs playing). As I send my son to school every morning (for now), my timing allows me to listen to the TraxxFM's section from Dr. James Dobson. I find his sharing light, concise and touches on real life issues. The day before, they were talking about allowing the children to grow up at their own pace and not rushed into adulthood. And today (yesterday at the time you are reading this), it was about "Letting Go Of Your Kids".

It's inevitable and it will happen. This is his sharing.

More About Letting Go of Your Kids

I have found it very hard to turn my kids loose and face the empty nest. I know I need to release them, but it is so difficult. Can you help me?

Humorist Erma Bombeck described this difficult process in terms that were helpful to me.123 She said that the task of raising kids is rather like trying to fly a kite on a day when the wind doesn't blow. Mom and Dad run down the road pulling the cute little device at the end of a string. It bounces along the ground and shows no inclination of getting off the ground.

Eventually, and with much effort, they manage to lift it fifteen feet in the air, but great danger suddenly looms. The kite dives toward electrical lines and twirls near trees. It is a scary moment. Will they ever get it safely on its way? Then, unexpectedly, a gust of wind catches the kite, and it sails upward. Mom and Dad feed out line as rapidly as they can.

The kite begins pulling the string, making it difficult to hold on. Inevitably, they reach the end of their line. What should they do now? The kite is demanding more freedom. It wants to go higher. Dad stands on his tiptoes and raises his hand to accommodate the tug. It is now grasped tenuously between his index finger and thumb, held upward toward the sky. Then the moment of release comes. The string slips through his fingers, and the kite soars majestically into God's beautiful sky.

Mom and Dad stand gazing at their precious "baby," who is now gleaming in the sun, a mere pinpoint of color on the horizon. They are proud of what they've done--but sad to realize that their job is finished. It was a labor of love. But where did the years go?

That is where you are today--standing on tiptoes and stretching toward the sky with the end of the string clutched between your fingers. It's time to let go. And when you do, you'll find that a new relationship will be born. Your parenting job is almost over. In its place will come a friendship that will have its own rewards.

Remember: The kite is going to break free one way or the other. It's best that you release it when the time is right!

How does this relate back to today's posting?

Easy. With Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year just a day away, the Malaysians of Chinese descendant will be flocking back home for the reunion dinner. It is the single most important event for family other than marriage or funeral where family gather in numbers.

Many of us has left the "nest" so to say. Setting out of home, some just within 30minutes drive or nearer, and some perhaps even needing to catch a flight to seek greener pasture. 

When i heard the podcast, I could not help but to feel moved inside - for the day will come when my kids will leave, and if I am lucky, will get them to visit me and wifey once a year.

Which brings me to another sharing. The Bernas 2013 advertisement. 

damn those onions *sniff

For those of you going home to your family, drive safe. Have a good Chinese New Year from all of us at home.

They all grow up, too fast.

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Butterfly Kisses

We enrolled our daughter into a Ballet class. It was something she has explicitly said she wanted after (not helping) watching some cartoon on the TV. If some of you do not know, it is Angelina Ballerina.

The power of cartoon

Since we always wanted to provide for the kids as much as we can, we decided to sign her up for the classes about three weeks ago. Come last Saturday, it was her first class and i decided to record some of the moments where wifey got her prepared. To be honest, it felt as if she is getting married and i am giving her away as i snap the photos.

Dainty shoes

Bun up hair

Ribbon on Dress

Motherly love 

All Set

I guess the perks of being a young parents and seeing how the kids progresses and grow up sort of bring me to the reality that i am growing older as well. Seeing these, i have no regret re-prioritizing my life and seeking more balanced life-work as moments like these will not return. Love you Girl.

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Family Featured In Newspapers

The family had some exposure in the Mainstream media lately. First it was in The Star weekend edition under the Fit4Life pullout. This was in conjunction with Father's Day where the journalist covered three family men in their 30's, 40's and 50's. I am apparently, representing the Father's in the 30's. Thank you for the coverage The Star, and thank you Fiona, for making me look good. :) The honor was having the family mentioned along with two other man that is important in their organisations and vocation, as i am after all, just an engineer ;-)
Fit Dads

TWO FIT
By FIONA HO
starhealth@thestar.com.my

You’ll be surprised, but keeping active amid a dizzying conundrum of modern-day demands is not as impossible as it sounds. This Father’s Day, we catch up with fit fathers who have managed the feat while juggling their daddy duties.

THE advent of parenthood rarely heralds a period of optimum fitness for any working dad. Between dropping your kids off at school and grabbing lunch on the run, you are stuck on a busy work day that grows increasingly longer as you clock in more and more hours to support your family.

You are stressed, you’re constantly tired, and you’re left with little time for things like exercise and healthy nutrition.

While maintaining a work-life balance remains an elusive struggle for most working adults, keeping active and sticking to good eating habits amidst a dizzying conundrum of modern-day demands is not as impossible as it sounds.

We caught up with fathers who have managed the feat while juggling their daddy duties.

Lim has made his outdoor adventures a family affair. He encourages his family to lead an active lifestyle by taking them on regular trips to the park.

No excuses

Bio-fuel engineer, Lim Ee-Van, 36, makes no excuse not to exercise. “There are 24 hours in a day. You have to ask yourself what you really want out of it,” he says.

The lean father-of-two walks the talk. An ardent runner who participates regularly in marathons, Lim trains an average of three times a week, either before or after work, depending on his schedule.

“I usually have to be in the office by 9am, so I would wake up at 6am to go for a short run near my house in Damansara Utama on my training days,” he says. And by ‘short’, he means a good 30 minutes to cover 5km.

The course comes easy for Lim, who has completed the Ironman Triathlon three times (the Ironman is a long-distance race that comprises a 3.86km swim, a 180.25km bike and a marathon 42.2km run, to be raced in that order, and without a break within a time limit of 17 hours).

“The goal isn’t to run insane mileage everyday. You just need 30 minutes to keep your legs moving and your heart pumping and you’ll get faster over time,” he explains.

It was his training for the Ironman race that really tested his physical limits. “When I was preparing for the event, I trained vigorously. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, I would wake up at 4.30am to cycle about 17km, and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I would run a minimum of 12km in the morning, and up to 15km in the evening.

“You suffer during training, but when you’re out there in the race, everything is going to be easy,” he says with a smile.

He credits his unwavering discipline to his tough early education. Lim says he attended a military school where they could be “penalised for anything from the top of our heads to the tip of our toes”.

There, he learned to adhere to a stringent lifestyle, and also acquired a penchant for sports. “I was a fat boy in primary school, but was forced to live a highly disciplined lifestyle after I went there when I was about 14.”

Lim played competitive rugby, and later took up endurance sports like adventure racing, canoeing, mountain biking, and abseiling.

He progressed to triathlons in 2003, and has not looked back since. This year alone, he has participated in marathons held in Kenyir, Terengganu, and Port Dickson, Selangor, in March and April, and is looking forward to a race in Desaru, Johor, at the end of the year.

He does not run for the prize, but takes genuine pleasure in his journey to the finish line.

Lim has since made his outdoor adventures a family affair. So many of today’s activities for children are sedentary in nature, he notes. He encourages his children – Ryan, six, and Nadia, four, to lead an active lifestyle by taking them on regular trips to the park.

On weekends, Lim wakes up as early as 5am to run with his wife, Aileen Har, who is co-owner of the popular local boutique Cats Whiskers.

“It’s a little bit harder to train now that I have a family, but it’s made possible with an understanding spouse and a ready support system. My mother or her mother takes care of our kids when we go for a run.

“Usually, it’ll be around 8.30 or 9am when we complete our 20km run, and that’s when our kids will be up and we can spend the rest of the day with them.”

Lim believes that adequate nutrition makes up the other half of the health equation. His brief brush with iron deficiency prompted a complete change in his eating habits. “My iron levels fell below the average for about 11 months. It was so bad, I was hyperventilating after just one flight of stairs.

“I had to take iron supplements, and I made a full recovery this year. Now, I only take whole foods. Processed foods like white bread for instance, are a definite no-no.”

“I plan to do this till I’m 80,” he concludes with a laugh.In spite of the debilitating experience, Lim is determined to stick with his exercise regime. “I hardly fall sick nowadays. Whenever I’m feverish, I go for a run and sweat it out, and I’ll be okay,” he says.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The Second coverage is in Sin Chew Jit Poh Metro Pullout. :)

Unfortunately, i can't read Chinese and had to get my mum to read it for me. :) Essentially, they were mentioning about healthy living and how the whole family can get together to make the change. Thank you Sin Chew and SCKLM for the opportunity! The full excerpt can be found here

Courtesy of the PR company. A copy of the paper has been bought and kept. 

Many thanks for the exposure and we are pretty sure the kids will blush when they reflect on this in years to come. :)

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Running Like A Kid

The wonderful thing about running as parents is that you get to see your kids run. We are trying to make running or exercising a way of life very much like a few other running family that we know off (The Siah's family consist of Kevin, Karen and family and the Chan's Family consist of Jun Shen and family) that make healthy living an everyday affair. Growing up, i never had the opportunity due to minimal exposure and also cost factor. I never had a proper running shoe until i started working 13 year ago. My sports shoe used to be my school shoes, which still need to be kept clean everyday.
Myself and wifey decided to get the two kids (lucky kids) a pair of proper running shoe to start them off. We were looking for decent shoes and sadly, not many will make proper running shoes for kids. Priced pretty steeply, especially for those more predictable sports brand, we are often turn off by the fact the kids shoes are made more for fashion than function.
As we are Brooks shoe user currently (due to the pricing and functions, and a big factor in the retail staff knowledge in shoes), we decided to see if we can find anything from Brooks for the kids.
We were not disappointed.
Up on the shelf was mini version of Brooks Ghost 4 and Brooks Adrenalin GTS 12! That is almost the top shoes available in the store for adults even. A quick check got me and wifey impressed as they are really truly the mini version of the adult version down to the construction and material used.
Here is how an adult Ghost 4 looked like.

And this is how an adult Adrenalin GTS 12 looked like

The kids Ghost 4 and GTS 12, is an incarnation of the adults, with the exact build and quality. That is impressive.

Purple is Ghost4 and Blue is Adrenalin GTS12

We paid RM199 for each pair (with the adults' version about twice the price without discount) and it was really steep to pay for kids feet. Considering that we intend to make them at least jog on the weekend in the park, this is one investment we are willing to make - to protect their feet and to allow them to grow up loving to do so.

Kids see running as fun. Not as something they are made to do

We had previously let the kids run in multitude of different shoes and sandals, to see how they will react to them. Suffice to say, we noticed the differences when they wore the proper running shoes as opposed to the other shoes and sandals.

Youngest, but never gives up

Best way to teach them that life is not about losing or winning is to start them young

As you can see, they truly enjoyed it. Kids with their abundance of energy is a joy to watch. While some studies has shown that having kids doesn't really make you any happier, i beg to differ as you would have to be a parents to say otherwise.

Brooks, Asics and Barefoot - Family Exercising and Sweating!

I uses the opportunity during the weekend run/jog with kids to start running barefoot. Funny how we are getting the kids proper shoes and I am here trying to harness the benefit of barefoot running. So far, i have been transitioning to land mid and forefoot as that is how running should be before all the marketing guru in sports shoe says you will need a shoe with super cushioning to run faster. I sound to be contradicting myself here with the shoes for kids and me barefoot. Perhaps i am. But our concern for the kids to have better protected feet (rather than hurting themselves and start to hate running) goes above motivation to let them run barefoot. Time will come when they will do what I am doing as well.
But for now, lets just enjoy them growing up the way some of us adults never had the chance to.
I tell you, kids run super fast. I was chasing Nadia at about 12km/h in the first video below.

and subsequently, it was a mad 25 second burst of speed (almost sprinting for me) catching Ryan at close to 15km/h!

Our only hope is that they will grow up leading a healthy life and loving the simple pleasure of being outdoor than to be trapped at home watching TV or playing the computer games or mobile devices. We aspire to. We hope we can.

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Featured in Oriental Daily and Carbo Loading

I can now tell my kids that they were in newspaper when they were young. :)
The article, i was told, speaks about us having a healthy lifestyle. While we all have our sins with food and laziness, i sure hope the article (in the paper) gives an insight to our everyday's life.

On a separate and very related topic since it is 3 more days to go before SCKLM, i am going through some gastric issues and lack of rest. Just got back from wonderful Kuching (for work) and will be in Alor Setar and Sungai Petani for the next two more days. I am putting myself at a risk of not performing this Sunday with the lack of training and also planning of proper carbo-loading. The following paragraphs will show just how much i am not practising what i am preaching. It will serve as a good reminder for myself in the future.
Speaking of carbo-loading, many people did it wrongly, or has the wrong impression about doing any sort of loading before any major event. While some see it as an opportunity to "binge" on food, we must remember to fuel the body only with good food. We are what we eat. I've long forgo that i "live to eat" and would "eat to live". I am very very selective with the food i take and most of the time, i sounded anal about it.

Carbo-loading are typically done if you are going to embark on an endurance event of no less than 90minutes. And by that, the intensity and the purpose of the carbo-loading could differ from one person to another. This also meant that you should not justify carbo-loading just because you are planning to do a 10km run in 2hours or a 5km fun run in 90minutes. The most common mistake one could do is to carbo-load a day before any major race. The body could not convert the fuel to glycogen on time if you eat a day earlier. In fact, the usual acceptable timeline would be a week before the event.

Many people carbo-load wrongly as well, which could be demerits to the whole exercise of carbo-loading. Before one carbo-load, or consider to embark on doing so, they should exercise hard enough to deplete their energy or glycogen level to prepare the body for the upcoming loading. This state of "hunger" is important as our body sort of reacts to certain situation/abnormality when pushed to the extreme.

Then for the first 3 days, they will be on low carb diet with more protein and on the fourth day, they start to take in more carbo (high quality carbs yah) with low glycemic index (GI). What this meant is to take in complex carbs. Rice don't make it. So does pasta (a common mistake even by race organisers). The perceived starvation from the first 3-days of carbo-loading (which you aren't really loading anyway) will force the muscle to "absorb" as much carbs as possible on the last four days. This will effectively raise your serum glucose level (or blood glucose level) without raising your insulin (or getting the sugar high) or spiking your sugar level. You do not want to have an elevated sugar level as once the sugar has been used up, you will have what the athlete calls "Bonk". Your body will then crave for "sugary" food and your body will slowly shut down to conserve energy.

So what is good carbs? Aim for complex carbs. It is anything with whole wheat (full/whole grain stuff like oats, brown rice), fruits and even yogurt (plain variants) and milk (doesn't matter high or low fat). Basically, eat healthy unprocessed stuffs. Any food with GI less than 55 is good. Do some read up to find out more of food glycemic index (GI) value and you will understand what i meant. In fact, during the (only) three Ironman i entered in 2008, 2009 and 2010, i literally made my own energy food from expensive organic ingredient such as rice malt syrup and agave syrup. You can read them here : Homemade Energy Gel. Myself and wifey even made our own muesli as those available in the market are sugar laden and garners it's so called nutritional properties from SUGAR. Read about these wonderful muesli here : Homemade Muesli Bars.

Do complement the carbs you take with protein and oil too. An endurance athelete has to train his or her body to utilise protein and fat as fuel. While it sounded funny to be eating oil to burn oil, we are talking about good oil. The good virgin olive oil, the good grapeseed oil, the good CLA. Skip any animal (saturated) or peanut/palm oil. Load up a bit more on your salt and balance it off with banana (potassium in banana will balance off the natrium or sodium in the body). At the current point of time, i am a big fan of Chia seeds. Read about them in the Internet  my blog as well. :)

Remember to rest well, do some short runs, perhaps a 5km run at easy pace and learn to relax the muscle.

This last few days is important. There is really no time for last minute mileage for it will do nothing but burn you off within the first 10km of your marathon (42km ya) or 21km race.

Good luck and see all of you this Sunday!

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Nadia Turns 3 Today!

My girl is 3 today. I made extra effort to wake up earlier to go over and see her. Really misses them sleeping in the same room as me. She is attached to me and is much easier to manage compared to Ryan. But then again, that was what i said about Ryan at 3 as well.

The past few days, i kept having some notion if my kids will still love me when they grow up older. They hold my hands nowadays and gives me hugs and kisses. Will it end? Many friends has told me that changes will be inevitable and many told me to nurture them, be their friend and grow with them. Perhaps it's how i went through my younger days that has made me feel somewhat disconnected. Don't get me wrong, my parents love me to bits. I grew up with my mum being the strict mother that rules the house with utmost discipline (but she crumble and has spoilt her grandchildren). My dad, which worked so hard to make ends meet, 7 days a week, is someone i see only in the evening when he is back from work and he will then takes nap in late evening to recuperate from the long day.

I wished that he had spent more waking hours with me. But i grew up knowing that he did what he have to do.

I see the cycle repeating. With my long hours at work - i only see the kids for 2 hours at most (If i am lucky to be back by 7pm) before they retires to bed by 9pm. I've avoided working when at home. Keeping the laptop and BB where it should be - away from reach.

But still. I felt it was inadequate.

Today, when i see Nadia my heart felt mellow. She greeted me with her usual zest and hugged me. I then took a photo of her, with me.

I can see her growing up to be a very determined girl. Gutsy as well. Here are some photos of her, growing up over the past 3 years.

Happy Birthday Nadia. You will always be Papa's favorite girl.

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Allergic Reaction : Hives

Nadia woke up on Sunday afternoon nap with some insect bites on her cheek and her neck area. Looked like normal ants/mosquitoes bites that some Mopiko or Eurax can't solve.

She then proceed to play like usual and had a pool-of-a-splashing time outside with her brother.

Then, we proceed to dry her and put on her PJ. Ready for Dinner.

By 9pm, she suddenly complained that she was itchy. Naturally, i would had thought it was the insect bite in the afternoon.

When wifey and me removed her top, we were horrified to see patches of bites that are now looking more like patches of allergic reactions. We decided to rush her to the clinic as my limited medical knowledge tells me that allergic reaction can triggers amongst other thing such as :
1. constricting of the breathing passage
2. seizure

No point taking any risks!

While Wifey brought Nadia to the clinic, i put Ryan to sleep. I googled and found out more about what she could possible have. It is known as Hives.

The problem with parents nowadays is that information is so easily available and each one will be a medical expert with some googling. I am no better but i try to take what i read on the Internet with a cup of salt if i have to.

Nadia in Calamine Camo. Blends pretty well with furniture behind.

So, basically, there is no determined caused of the allergic that has caused this. For Nadia, it could be one of the following:
1. Insect bites during her afternoon nap. Could be mossies or carpet mites.
2. Dust kick up from house cleaning when we had the house cleaned in the afternoon.
3. Cold water from the vinyl pool we set up in the porch
4. dirt on the porch as she runs around in her tiny bathing suit, exposing the body to anything on the ground
5. insects/bugs biting her when outdoor
6. semi-dry just out of laundry towel that we used to wipe her dry, (exposing her to detergent?)
7. The eggs she took for dinner
8. The Choc with nuts and raisins she took after that.
9. The PJ she wore that was maybe had insect crawling
10. The change of temperature from outdoor cold water to warmer indoor

We could not pin point the cause or causes but we are certainly sure it is not the food she takes as this girl eats anything (delicious). No history of previous allergic reactions but that doesn't mean that she is not allergic to it now. So we have to monitor.

I recalled that i used to have these allergic to. What i had when i was 16 to 19 years old was something even more rare. It is called dermographism. What it does is that it makes my skin "imitates" what i scribble, stroke, scratched or even slapped.

Imagine me writing my name on my forearm and 2 minutes later, my name appear and will last another 30minutes before it subsides. Back then, the boys will give me a slap behind my back and their hand print will be visible as it will be raised and red. Kinda freakish i know. It lasted for about 3 years for me and never came back. Else, i would had "etched" TRIATHLETE" on my skin every time i race!

Back to Nadia. As of this morning, she still has the hives. While it is generally better compared to yesterday, being a 2years old toddler, she could not express her frustration for us to understand. And of course, myself and wifey being short of rest and sleep doesn't help when it comes to us and our patience.

I hope she recover soon. I so seriously need some night rest. It is affecting everything from life to work! Guessed now i know how much misery i have put my parent through when i was growing up having (apart from allergic reactions) these health problems!

Edited to include What To Do If Hives Happened
I missed this out.
OK. The doctor gave Nadia two type of medication. One is an anti-histamine and the other an anti-itch medication. If you can identify Hives from other serious allergic reaction, you can actually buy medication over the counter at a reputable pharmacist. 


I went to the pharmacist to obtain more calamine lotion and asked them for medication for Hives. The pharmacist offered me two options, which is just benedryl (antihistamine) or a combo of antihistamine and anti-pruritic (can't remember the name, which causes drowsiness).


Don't forget a bottle or two of calamine lotion to help cool and ease the itch. Calamine lotion has zinc oxide, which helps the skin to recover as well. One notion about the lotion though as it stain when wet. Zinc Oxide in the lotion pretty much mess things up when it is wet, so quickly wipe it away if it stain anything dark!

Other than that, the doctor told us that the hives should clear within two days, or will be better within 2 days. It is rare for hives to last longer than a week and if there are such cases, it points to more serious allergy reactions and need further medical attention.

So, the next time your kids (or yourself, like Adeline (pic above) got stung by wasp during The NorthFace 100km race), you know what to do. Get some anti-histamine and anti-pruritic and take them (per your weight, adults are 5ml each, kiddos below 5 half the dosage) and do the following:
1. don't scratch (with kids a bit hard to tell them, some adviced to let them wear gloves!)
2. don't wear tight clothing or diapers(hey, good opportunity to toilet train!)
3. stay cool and out of the heat (i.e. good circulation)
4. don't take alcohol (that is for you adults!)

If you have difficulty breathing(adults) or onset tiredness/nauseated (kiddos, usually can see if they are active and suddenly just limp) rush to the doctor or ER! Allergic reaction are often non-life threatening, but don't take the chances!

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Powerman 2010 Du-ing Relay Race Report

What a good race. To begin with, courtesy of Honda Malaysia, i had the Jazz for the whole weekend. It was a coincidence that it was also my birthday weekend. Driving to Lumut is like a yearly affair. Sometimes, it is more than just once a year if work brings me here.

Me and wifey first thought about joining Relay together when i asked her permission if i can race Powerman in November. Back then, the condition of my health wasn't very sure, not helping was that i struggle during PD Tri. She suggested that we tag-team and join the race. After all, what is running 11km and 10km on a Sunday?

We called ourselves E.A.R.N. It is the initial of each family member. Those that know us would know what each stand for.

As the day grew nearer, wifey had the usual panic attack about not able to run, or will make us to be the last team that finish the race. I kept assuring her that it doesn't matter, as we are there to exercise and to be with friends, not to forget to get away for a mini break (she is slowly buying the idea of "racing during holiday" concept).

The best part of a "racing holiday". License to eat before race. This one extra because also birthday dinner.

Unlike last year and the year before and three years ago, I sort of decided not to be a big hero and drive down at 3am in the morning for the race at 7.30am. I drove down alone through Road 5(Kuala Selangor - Teluk Intan-Lumut) three years ago, then with Mervyn two years ago (reached early enough to even help Mel and Adele to set up the counters!) and with wifey last year. I am getting old and my reflexes are also getting slower and no point risking a drive down just to save a couple of hundred on room stay.

Bonus was that we were guest at CK's staffs' quarter and we could not appreciate it more! After all, we just need somewhere safe to put up a night. So, Thank you Chief Kutu!

We pushed off from KL late Saturday afternoon to reach Lumut by 7.30pm. Then myself and wifey went to Kampung Cina in Sitiawan for some seafood. I last eaten at this area about 3 years ago when i was out on fieldwork with my colleague from Manila, Albert Payapaya. The owner of the site we did some work brought us to Kampung Cina and had some seafood. It was very reasonably priced back then i recalled and the food was good. Instead of going to the place i went the last time (Coconut Villa), we settled for a simpler setup Villa Restaurant about 300meters further. The place looked promising with almost all tables taken up.

Must be good. Go to where everyone go and you won't go wrong.

As we sat down on the table, i saw the whole bunch of friends happily and concentrating on eating. Kannan the Ultraman saw us and we walked over to say hi. I only know him and Alex Hay. We then sat down and ordered our food.

Mantis prawn kam heong style.
Choy tam stirred fried with garlic.
Oo-Chien (fried oyster on flour/egg mix)
Butter crab.

The portion that was served was huge for two person and cost us RM63 including two large pandan coconut. It was cheap and definitely better than those places in town (Klang Valley that is). The Oo-Chien was the most refreshing i've tasted as instead of soggy oily flour/egg mix, it was just egg white fried until crispy with thumb sized oyster thrown on top.

Half way while waiting for the food to come, Raymond Tomato, Mitch Looi and Tony Quay spotted me across the next table and came over to wish me happy birthday!

Boy was i embarrassed! But HAPPY!

Yippeee!

Alex and Kannan offered to get me a Guiness...but i had to decline as i don't drink. Thanks both and thanks Tony, Ray and Mitch!

Our food reached as everyone started to leave. We ate and returned back to the CK's place and call it a night. I had my bike setup from home and for this race, i brought my Ordu - my least ridden bike. I am still unable to tame her. Not helping with weak legs and all.

I was pretty charged up though i did not had a good rest due to some pulled muscle from my right arms to my right lower back - those "restless" feeling like you had a phantom arm type? Those that the more you try to rest them, the more they will twitch and felt even more tired? I had wifey massaging me and giving me deep tissue massage using her elbow to try to ease the pain. Worked for a while and i think i went back to sleep at 4am.

It actually started raining at 1.30am(i can't sleep though i thought i heard Shazly snoring from upstairs) and was still raining when i finally woke up at 5.30am. It was still drizzling as we reach the race venue. For once i thought to myself that Lumut will not be HOT this year. Phew!

By 7.15am, the organiser has requested that everyone move to the starting point. As usual, racing weekend meant congregation of many of us that know each other. I love this.

The Kalams

The Inspirator Emma and Mac

The Mum and the Tryathlete's Triple-S

The extended family

The Good Looking

The Racing Babes

The better lookings

And the item that make you look...fast, even when you are not moving.

The race for the full distance individual started off at 7.30am sharp. Relay gun off 10 minutes later and the this will be followed by the Sprint 10minutes after Relay and finally the Sprint Relay meant for Malakoff Staffs wanting to try to DU(as in Duathlon).

Hats off to Malakoff under AJ's command as he has ensured that his men and women stays healthy and engaged in sporting activities at least four times a year via major races. Kudos to Quick Release too for always organising world class top-notch races. They never disappoint.

The plan was that wifey run the first 11km, then i will cycle the next 64km and wifey finished it off with a 10km run. Somehow, i know she is not feeling too good and no point pushing her to do more and i gladly volunteered to do the last 10km run. I then realised that i am just 11km short to complete the whole Powerman distance and decided that i will just run with her the first 11km.

After all, if i don't, what am i gonna do for an hour while waiting for her?

We took a slow run to warm up as the gun went off and i know it is just a matter of 15minutes before the fast Sprint category racers come charging through. As the weather in the morning was super duper nice, the first 5.5km was completed in pretty decent timing of 40minutes. Key to long distance endurance race is to pace oneself. It is often very easy to get sucked into other people's tempo and then you bonk out and get left behind only to feel ultra-shitty after that.

I was not wrong to calculate that the faster individual racers (the Pros and the Strong ones) will overtake us and complete their 11km within 45 minutes. As calculated, at least 10 of them ran past us as we were running into the third km of our race.

I then realised that wifey could do her PB for 11km run. Her 10km has always been hovering at 1:20 and i know she can be pushed to do better. I picked up the pace and hurried her on, keeping the pressure and baiting her to go faster. It paid off as she finished our run in 1:16 for 11km - and that was her not feeling fully alright. Proud of you baby!

As soon as we enter Transition, i kissed wifey goodbye and geared up for the bike league. The last i actually cycled in a race was during PD Tri. The last i cycled after PD tri was two weeks ago. I so know i will be in for a surprise.

As i pushed my bike out and took some Powerbar Endurance drink, i knew it will be a long hot day and i knew i will be sweeping behind the race.

Being in a relay race put you in a spot where you are at least 10minutes slower than the last person doing the full distance, and 32km more than the person doing Sprint. That would meant the full distance racers will finish the race before you and 10minutes running could spell a good 2km distance away. This also meant the Sprint racers will be having their yearly taufoofar and cendol treats by the organiser while you are still hot on your bike seat.

But i was there just to complete the distance. It doesn't matter. I was happy my heart rate and i had zero fatigue feeling. I felt healthy and definitely much better than 1 year, or 6 months ago!

The 64km on the Powerman route could easily be completed within two hours or below. The route is pancake plate with a big banana bridge at the end. 

Don't let it bother you or you will end up like this dead monkey that rushed through the road to pick up a energy bar/gel dropped by some athlete.

Horrid, i know. I almost became part of the race statistic too if i am not too careful.

My first lap was done within an hour and by the time i touched the 60km mark, i decided to take things a bit easier and just spin. I could felt onset cramps on the calves. I caught up with a foreign worker on bicycle and cycled with him for a while before pulling away slowly. Guessed he was worried that this colorful chap wearing a sperm helmet was checking his rear.

My last 2km i saw a girl struggling to continue to cycle. But i can tell that she was very determined though. A bit of encouragement to pull her along earned me an unofficial friend.

I clocked in from biking in 2:20. Not too bad considering i now have a fresh pair of leg that won't go all jello when i start running the last 10km.

I heard Kannan announcing Juliana, Azmar and Yusran's name as i started my run. They have already finished their race in sub 4:10.

Needless to say, i spent almost 10minutes in each transition - taking things a bit too easy i supposed. You can even see racer pushing their bike home when i starting my run! Wakakakaak!

As i move out for the run, a quick compulsory peck on wifey's lips for luck and i was off. I then saw a familiar face waiting under the shade.

Hello Hot Mama Lizi!

I begin to make small run when the unofficial friend caught up and offered me a drink. She then told me that she will follow me (or rather my pace). Now i am under pressure to continue running! Hahahaha!

As i slowly made my way in constant 7:00 pace under the hot heat of 40degC, i noticed less and less people on the running route and more and more traffic plying the area. I know for certain that most people would finished the race within 4:30-4:45.

The unofficial friend walked and ran like doing interval training to catch up with me. I assured her i won't be running any faster than what i am already doing. 

Unofficial friend following closely behind

I found out she was doing this the first time, i did not ask her where she came from but judging from her speaking Cantonese, i don't think it is from Singapore! Towards the end of the first 4km, i checked my timing and it was almost 35minutes already. Having started the race 10minutes later, i knew whoever that wants to attempt to be known as a Powerman finisher (within cut off) will have to push it more.

It is such joy to see human pushing their limits. I constantly push myself and the people around me. In fact, if i have my ways, people that wants to work in my office should at least be able to run a 10km race; anything more than that is a bonus and sure hire!

The unofficial friend's friend came looking for her and accompanied her the rest of the way. I wished her luck and ask her to keep moving forward. 

On my second loop, Chief Kutu caught up with me. I have high admiration for this man. I have the same admiration for man like AJ. What we three have in common is that we are all trained for at least 2 years in Royal Military College. Age gap is not an issue as we are bonded by the sports that we do. I then decided to take things another notch easier by walking and running with CK to the finish! 

OP AJ

My last 10km took me 1:20. But it was all worth it. With the sweeper bus creeping slowly behind us while we chatted away and while CK's wifey, Jaja stopped every 50meters to provide coconut water and Coke for CK, we certainly felt like superstar!

Even the St. John Ambulance are sweeping their staffs away. LOL!

With whatever energy we had (actually, we had plenty still ;-)), we crossed the line in 5:51(CK) and 5:41(me).

We are both finisher in our own way, never mind that we did not earn the Finisher's shirt as we both got our medal and Team E.A.R.N and CK are Powerman in our own way.

We were the last. The organiser has packed up most items. The MC, UltraKannan concluded the race with the safe arrival of the two young men that held everyone up for 6 hours. :)

Thanks for reading and see all of you in the next race. Don't forget to say "HI!!!" to Team E.A.R.N!

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