Getting my focus put !

Focus

With so many things going on at the moment, I just gotta make sure that my mind stays focus on my academics Will have to bear this attention span for at least another 2 weeks before I break free temporarily from studying. Just need to get some motivation back to keep my mind rolling and not ‘halting’ randomly. I do not have problem missing races because I have my priorities right. It just pisses me off when I bump into wrong people who expects me to take part in all the races present on the annual race calendar. I know of people or friends who register and plan early to go for a race. Come 1 week prior to race day they become very busy piling up their mileage and call that training.

No Training No Race

To me, its simple,no training no race. But like some athletes (leisure athletes?) if there is not enough prep for a major race, either they skip it, do relay or have fun reaching the finish line.  Some of us or even myself sometimes go for a race for the fun and sake of doing it. Some have more noble intention; they go to support their friends..! My knee is temporarily out, an excuse to pull out from the upcoming Powerman. Though I would really really love to race, the most that I can do is go there to support my friends taking part. It doesn’t mean I am a sponsored athlete  ( well, at least for this year), I HAVE to take part in all triathlon, duathlon and marathons ! If like that every weekend I’ll be racing.In my current state I can’t continue to take part in races, especially my favourite ones  if I can’t train unconditionally. So Trailblazer, Ironman or Singapore marathon hafta be put aside for the time being. There are races every year, so what’s there to lose ! Plus, I’m still, ehem , young. I don’t see the point rushing and forcing myself to do races which I’m not prepared for.

You know when you have 2 race events back to back, and IF you were ever on a training program, you know the  training program for the 2 events may ”clash” in terms of the type and intensity of the workout IF you don’t plan your training/races well. They keywords here are : planning, and not being too ‘greedy & unrealistically enthusiastic’ in selecting what races to go for that season. And more importantly which training phase are you at, at that point of time. Say you are in your  taper phase for Ironman training, you don’t need to pound any more miles ! You should be enjoying the reduction of training hours. In the earlier part of the Ironman training are the prep weeks (20th to 17th week counting down to race day). But some, especially age-group athletes do just that !

Training Plans

For the Ironman prep phase(this comes before the base 1 phase) , you spend at most 10 hours a week to train. Not 15 , and not 18 ! There is no point pushing the mileage and training hours too early. When there is no training plan used and appreciated, people will start pounding the mileage too early, or too late.. Training plans are planned and used by athletes because they work.

You don’t have to make your own program, you can just look it up on the net. Read the sciences of training if you would. Some of you reading this may not be in the same boat as me,particularly when it comes to whether or not we believe in using any training programs  . My first Ironman was a big deal. Its an honour to be able to register, train and do the necessary preparations for it. Come 28th Feb, I just gotta press PLAY and of course, ENJOY. I have to admit, I did not use any specific program for the 2 ODs which I did before my 1st 1/2 Ironman distance and my 1st Ironman. Langkawi was when I seriously started using a program and tried my best to stick to it. Nobody had to tell me that I have to use a program. I just knew that if I screw up the training part, the bigger the chance that I’m not going to race well, and that I will suffer and  may even bonk. I got my IM program from http://www.beginnertriathlete.com. A 20 weeks training program designed for 1st time Ironman. but still can be used even if you’ve completed one.

Interesting observation

It is very interesting to see how people who don’t use training programs train. There are so many training programs which you can find and find from the net,magazines  etc.. be it for a 10k road race, a sprint du, Powerman, OD , half marathon , just name it ! I wouldn’t dare to do Ironman without any training guidance. And I couldn’t depend on other triathlete friends all the time to train because  they have various training schedules and styles! Especially when it comes to cycling training. Some pound the mileage too early, or sometimes too late. It doesn’t say in the training program you gotta ride a total of 200km per week.. Or you gotta do back to back long rides.. or you gotta brick too early in the training phase.. or you HAVE to do a full marathon before doing Ironman. I never did a stand alone full marathon (thats 42.195km), and from my reading it is NOT NECESSARY that I HAVE to do a full marathon before attempting Ironman. That is so false and outdated myth. There was once i was talking to a friend and when I told her that I am preparing for IM, she said ‘Ko gila ke? Pernah buat full marathon tak’? meaning: ‘Are you crazy? Have you ever done a full marathon before’. And I said ‘No’. She replied, ‘Ýou have to do a full marathon first, to get the feel of ‘endurance’. And I said look , its NOT necessary to have done a marathon before attempting to do Ironman. That conversation sorta pissed me off coz 1st; ‘gila?’ what kind of motivation is that. Other people can, and did..so why are you saying that I’m crazy? Is it because you yourself haven’t done any triathlons and now you’re getting back at me..? but anyways..

Tri-Myths

The other myth(s) about training for triathlons, especially the longer distance ones (1/2 , full Ironman), is that, oo you gotta really pound the mileage and total work out hours per week.. no rest, etc…thing is, if you start thinking anxiously like that without any references to credible sources, than you’re gonna treat preparing for a race like you’re preparing for dinner, ’sesedap rasa’ indeed you will train sesedap rasa. Sesedap rasa as in ‘as you like it’. I hope I am not starting to sound annoyingly bitchy about training appropriately using training programs here.. You may say, hey look, my training works for me, so what else? Even if you’re not the serious type of athlete, like me, duh!..haha.. you do need a program..and why is that ?

If we’re gonna be ignorant, stay ignorant and never willing to appreciate the effort put in by coaches, sportsman, sport physiologists in their quest of coming up with the best training programs, than too bad. We’re missing the edge. Seriously missing it. I just can’t imagine doing my first Ironman without any specific training program. I may be joining random group for swimming, another group for cycling, whose distance are all jumbled up throughout the training phase..and believe in the weekend long runs is enough to prep me.. humm.. just lucky enough I had that realization that a specific training program is necessary and utmost important. Why so important ? From what I’ve learned and experienced :

 

• to train specifically for the race
• to not under-train and not over-train; tell me what rules are there to tell you when you’re overdoing it? you can’t really tell. therefore, if you have a guide (your training program, then you know, since you have the experience of using one!)
• to peak at the right time for your training. You don’t want to peak too early or too late as you can exhaust yourself
• to decrease the chances of injuring yourself as a result of training without any program a.k.a overdoing it
• to learn the proper way of  training
• to grasp certain training concepts which you might have not known before
• to know what kind of nutrition plan to use (some people underestimate its importance..some people overestimate it too !)
• to gear yourself well so that you can finish a well-done race
• to get you psyched up and motivated to train, and to race !! (totally worked for me)

 

Other importance I plucked out from the net :

 

• just too many lah . please proceed to the www for more info ! From lay man explanation to scientific benefits of training properly, precisely !

 

Whatever it is, I wish all of us can become more optimistic and have an  ‘edgier’ outlook when it comes to training. Its not geeky or nerdy that you’re looking up for training programs and reading articles to know what latest training programs are there. Plus, it is a complete waste of time to go, especially for big races but not train properly. You spend a lot of $$$$$$$ for your gadgets, nutrition, attires and what not and  a lot of TIME training + sweat lost for wrong reasons (when’you’re pounding the mileage at the wrong time) just to BONK the race and SUFFER. Baik duduk rumah tengok Astro. (better just sit at home wand watch TV). Why some dedicated coach put so much effort in posting online FREE programs? Because they want the public to know how to train properly.. why some people PAY to get good coaches or programs? Because they want to race a good race. And if there are any target or goal to improve from previous races, the better. You can totally reap the benefits from using a training program.

Another interesting observation here, even though I am still considered as a newbie to tri-races and Ironman, some of us focus so much on talking, spending and talking. Talk about the latest gadget, since some of us can afford it..and then spend some money to buy this and that gadget. Fine, no problem, our own right to buy But unfortunately, not everybody fully utilize what they have. It doesn’t matter if you have the lightest helmet, the most expensive bike in town or the latest tri-suit. I can use a bike 3 times heavier than that lightest most expensive bike (I’m talking about my Yellow Submarine Giant lah..)..but still can play catch with a Cervelo (yeah Dennis, I’m talking about you !! LOL !)..

If you bother about performance..you’ll probably think (I’m assuming), that it is not in the end the bike. (Denis is a guy and he’s much taller than me). Come Powerman 2008, I was overtaking a couple of the top end bikes with my heavy cranky Giant. Then I passed Denis (that time I didnt know him).. A couple of minutes later, he overtook me again.. hahaah..and then my turn to overtake him again..all the way till the end of the bike leg. Moral of the story; train well.

Its not all about the Money, money , money..

Just click on 75% on your view option to get the whole picture here..its the training, the effort, the discipline , the edge.. its not the $$$..or the amount of time spent talking and bragging how poor your mileage is..unless you do something about it of course..  so if you were gonna chuck Faris al Sultan my brother (ehem) on my bike, .. and you put me on his super bike (smaller size la), obviously I can never catch him.. you put me on an Orbea, and you put Mariana Mohammad on my old HEAVY KHS, i don’t think i can keep up with her..She’s fast because she trains. She won’t be strong if she doesnt train properly. And that she’s strong and trains properly and races on a Cervelo, walla, i can just eat her dust !!! Take away the Cervelo, and ask her to race a 10k, still, you still see dust flying.. It’s the TRAINING. And not to forget the experience and knowledge which she have gained over the years pent training ‘properly’. The sesedap rasa concept, thus, don’t work for her because she’s a performing athlete. Being an age-grouper still don’t excuse us from training properly. Think about it……

Walking on the MEX highway..hahah !

Other fellow triathlete/runner  friends who inspire me :

 

• IM Kevin Siah ; cause he’s like so cool, smart and fast !!!! those glasses are cheeky as well..hahahah..

 

• IM Rahman (Navy) (he qualified for Kona but couldnt go because of $$, and no, he doesn’t have a fancy bike, yes he’s young, so are you !!! hahah!)

 

• IM Dr Fiona Lim (consistent performance and ever strong determination)

 

• Lian Bee Hoon (runner)(the old but young (races in senior veteran category; a.k.a she’s 45 years olf ++), friendly and STRONG; Mizuno 10k 2008 time : 45:43).  when I grow old I want to run like Lian Bee Hoon

 

• Shahrudin (runner)

 

• Emma Bishop (you can’t find the word rest in her neurons or any parts of her memory. 1 tough and cool chick ! I pray silently to God before I sleep at night for that level of will and determination Ms Bishop has !

 

• Simon Cross (what can I say.. he’s fast.. pheeww…I’m already sweating while choking dust on MEX highway while Simon and Sam zoomed by.. (coughs…)

 

 

• Ultraman Omar Yip ! (krazy , kool and brings sexy back)

 

Definition of smart training in this post : knowing your strength and weaknesses and focus on improving on the weaknesses while using a training program to improve your overall performance and training skills.

Definition of strength in this post: physically stronger, able and capable. having the physical endurance and  mental strength.

Definition of will+determination in this post: if you’re gonna keep triathlon ‘dry’, you can skip this part. Its not just about simply following the training program like how you would follow a baking recipe. You gotta put your soul into you training program for will and determination is not skin-deep. Its heartfelt. Ironman for example, is  very PERSONAL to me.

Definition of ‘fanciest/latest gadgets/gears‘ : Self-defined !

How I categorize training :

a)smart training + strength (athletic capabilities)+will+determination+ PLANNING+ all the latest fanciest gadgets and gears : VERY GOOD.

b)strength + will + determination + latest fanciest gadget and gears + all sponsor can give apparels + nutrition – smart training : NOT GOOD

c)smart training + will +determination + not so fancy gears + nutrition + some strength : MAY WORK and possible of  a PB/ great time  in 1ST IM. (hint..)

d)no proper training + fancy gears + some strength + will to meet cut off  : NEED TO WORK ON TRAINING PLAN. plan to fail, fail to plan. but if you don’t bother, I am surprised you read this article to this line already! hahaha !

Remember, every little thing you have gives you some sort of edge. If you’re a fast swimmer, you have an advantage. You have a good bike, you have an advantage. But if you really work on your bike and go race with your good bike, than you have the edge. Say you’re a good runner AND you trained well for the race, you got the edge baby ! Like the All American Rejects said on radio ‘a little bit of this and and a little bit of that goes a long way..’ I think he’s right. Start small, dream big. Don’t start big and dream small again, tri-falsampah of the day !

Anyways, all I am doing here is to share with all of you my 2 cents. Enter my site and read my ramblings with your own risk. Again, this is a personal website and I don’t offer unprofessional or professional advice to anyone here. There are plenty of reliable and credible websites you can look up, there are plenty of books or even magazine (and even online magazines) which you can access. Be creative in searching what’s best for you. Mere talking does not help. And so does mere visualizations of what is possible or  impossible to be done. You don’t just do it. You do it after you plan well what you wanna do. Follow that mere visualization with plan and action. So do it right and all the best in future races. God Bless.

Transition area; Ironman Langkawi 2009.

Carboloading dinner at Ironman Langkawi 2009. That's Denis next to me !

Swim. Done !

Bike leg - burnt under the scorching Langkawi sun ! Look how 'black' my hands are !!

Run Julie...Run ! And I ran !

All smile ! 1 happy jewelz

Shower- post race. Mak pesan, lepas bersukan kena mandi...so i showered. Beramai2...hahahahah...

Other then tri-life, there's also the camwhore-life. Quite fun ! Posing for Hermes!

me and my good friend, Shihming. bloody fast runner !!! Pic taken during her recent birthday party at Frangipani !

si Mary and si Julie : Ibu pesan, anak2 jangan gaduh. And I did. Jaja and I belasah-ed Mary with a surprise birthday dinner and movie after. Watched 'Law Abiding Citizens' starring Jamie Foxx. Talk about HOTness !

Girls just wanna have fun. MJ does it her way. Eat her heart out !! Oppss..mak pesan,if nak jadi kuat, kena makan.And so i ate, ate..and I ate ! All the 4 plates + 1 bowl u see in this pic was only for me ok. ahahah.. mmg kuat makan !!

What are you missing...? I missed time for myself..need rest..and time to think. and be happy, love and be loved ! Life is too short, too precious. Make the best of it folks ! And start to cut out those shit undeserving people out of your system. You don't deserve them. You deserve betta. God Bless. Amen.

A Little something for le Big Easy @ tsb

I don’t tri. I do
By Tuan Senang Besar aka TSB

TSB took part in his first triathlon back in July. His report epitomises all that encompasses the lifestyle of this sport. A self proclaimed ‘Teh Tarik tri-wannabe man’, TSB’s take on race day is inspiring, heartfelt and REAL.

I try to plan my swim/bike/run on the weekends around the family’s schedule. That includes going out very, very early in the morning. Never-the-less, it’s something that I choose to do. The key is to keep everyone happy. And so far, everyone is.

My friends always asked me this question. “Why do you take the trouble to get yourself involved in this sport of suffering?” My answer would be “don’t know but I just want to show how a fatso can finish a race he started.”

A short while ago, I became a runner by completing the KL half marathon despite citing that I hated running. This time around, I got myself into the pain fest again by signing up to do the PD International Triathlon.

The first task was to get through to the ‘The Wife’. For some apparent reason, she thinks I can’t swim, despite me swimming in the pool at our condo every other day. So I had to tell a white lie and told her that I was doing the relay.

Race Day: Woke up at 5.45 and wondered how did I get myself into this? Down at the transition area I saw familiar faces, got my body marked and made my way to the Power bar counter and chomped down a free bar. Took photos, everyone had a tri-top on except me, Kam & AJ. We were real men. We went topless. I decided to test the water. Seemed a bit choppy and murky, swam out for a bit and came back. The usual briefing from Mr. Chan who had to scream before a loudhailer was given to him. More photos, smiles and then, it were time.

I started with the second wave. Positioning myself towards the left where the line was out on the sea I did quite well until the first buoy, that’s when the choppy water came into effect. It took me forever to reach the next buoy for the u-turn. By this time I was zigzagging a bit and the female swimmers caught up with me. Made the u-turn and felt a bit bushed so I decided to take it easy, enjoying watching the yachts at the marina (yeah, right). Out of the marina and back into the undercurrent. I was now leisure swimming. Spotted Mac on the side and yelled to him. I could have a conversation with him. And then Bandit came alongside. He swam really well and that gave me the extra little push I needed to swim faster to the shore. Damn, that was one long swim. I didn’t know how long it took me because I don’t have a stopwatch, but apparently according to Bandit we did about 1 hour. That’s not bad, I guess.

Nearly all the bikes were out of transition. Ha-ha! Took my time to change and pushed my bike out, taking the phone from my old boy and rode off. I have never done a brick before so it took me a while to adjust to the different use of muscle groups. I didn’t’ push hard on the bike. On the rolling back roads towards Linggi I struggled on the inclines. I was so slow, I was yawning on the bike. Nice scenery. There seemed to be an Indian religious event going on. I wonder if they have banana leaf rice served. Then I saw this lady on a mountain bike. She had a flat rear tyre and was struggling to pedal. I came up to her and asked if she needed help (not that I could offer much since I didn’t have a spare MTB tube). She replied saying that she’ll be fine and would push. Amazed at her will I rode off towards the u-turn. At this point I seemed to get a second wind and started to big crank all the way. I was certain I was faster on the way back. No, I don’t have an odometer either.

Rode into T2, put my shoes on and walked off. I brought a bottle of ‘happy juice’ with me, just in case. By then, most of the field had come home to the finish line. I started my jog. I saw Adli and he encouraged me to keep going. Barath came by my side with his car. I asked him if he’s going to run with me like I did for him at ironman. He said he’ll do it in his car. Useless ****. So off I went. More runners on the opposite side are coming home. Almost all of them exchanged hand slaps.

It felt like the longest 5km run of my life. Major Kalam and Adni came past. I was approaching the Avillion and then the amazing Patsy overtook me. I couldn’t even pace with her. At the u-turn, I sipped drinks at the water station and headed back. I kept my pace but had to pee. Must pee, damn it! At a public beach area I ran to the public toilet and pleaded to the lady to let me pee without paying. Didn’t carry coins. With that done, I went on my merry way again. The traffic police truck was moving slowly towards me to pick up the cones. I walked for a bit then I saw this dude on a bike with a medal round his neck. It was Upiq! What a God send! He came back looking for me. He got off his bike, pushed it and walked with me. We spoke about everything and anything. That took my mind away from the fatigue. Next up was Julie & AJ who snapped photos of me. Julie even shot a short video and interviewed me. Adeline came on a bike not long after that too and before you know it, I was already at the junction of PD Marina. A few corners to go and I decided that I MUST run to the finish line. They were all waiting for me there. Stupe, Bandit, the old boys, Ish, Z, Mac, Adeline and Senn.

Damn that was hard. So why did I bother to do this? I don’t’ know. I don’t tri. I just do.

I’m not a triathlete. I’m just a fatso who can reach the finish line (albeit slower) just like the skinny guys.

What are you doing?

TSB

Circus of life : IM 70.3 Putrajaya 2009

With the fun and chaotic aftermath of the IM70.3 Putrajaya my mind was pretty occupied with settling the result issue, plus other things. In other words, a bit serabut up here.And new things and issues keep popping up every second of the day. And just now an old friend buzzed me on YM telling me his 2 month engagement is off. I told him, move on. If you look back too long, you  might stumble again on your next step.

Some of my friends have been telling me that too, from time to time. Move on. There’s no point pondering too long , not worth it, etc. Truly true. You gotta stay focus if you want to succeed in walking in and through this circus of life. The moment you need peace, chaos will come. The moment you thought you’re having fun, trouble steps in. Really bizarre and giving headache ! Annoying ain’t it?

Anyways, the IM70.3 Putrajaya was not exceptional. I did the relay. My team mates; Ish and AJ. Ish swam, I bike and AJ ran. All was generally ok for us, until the organizer published the unofficial result. My team DNFed. Wtf?…and then it nearly change to DQ (God knows why), but it didn’t. And on the official result posted on the web, the DNF status got retracted, and we got 1st place ! Circus bin Cartoon.. funny kan? and on top of that, they added a bloody 47 minutes to my bike time out of no where.. Confusing. I did 3 hours flat on the bike for the 90km bike course, timing on 1st unofficial result was correct 3:00:58.. The one on the official result was 3:47:00.. where in the world did that 47 mins came from ? This is so bizarre.

Anyways real official result team relay :

Pos	Bib	Fullname		Class	Country	Swim	Cycle	Run	Time
1	300	Ishal ,Julie,Ahmad Jauhari		Relay	MYS	0:57:03	3:00:58	2:04:48	6:04:54
2	294	Ubo Robert Weitz		Relay		0:41:26	3:32:55	2:39:42	6:56:56
3	291	Nurina,Hadi,Kash Kasiri		Relay	MYS	0:54:33	3:36:44	2:35:36	7:09:27
DNF	215	Khan Shiraz Mikael		Relay	MYS	0:54:27	3:41:42	2:37:53	7:19:33

My team got 1st place after unfairly being DNFed. No prizes at all for relay, no big deal ! But still tak puas hati because the organizr keep screwing up the results !

The headache and weirdness caused by the timing system used this time around by the organizer is indisputable ! My friend Siok Bee and Yip got DNFed ! Come on, these are not newbie athletes. They did not make any mistakes, followed the course correctly, and this is what we get… some screwed up result..

There were just too many mismanagement, mistakes and glitches by the organizer last Sunday. I can’t list them down just yet because I am already seeing stars as I type these paragraphs. But nevertheless , the sportsmanship and passion for triathlons and multi-sports saved me and the rest of our friends that day. We did have fun on the race course alright. I had fun too on the bike. Can’t wait to share it here. But in another post. Just a bit too tied up at the moment.

Congrats To :

Bandit

Ezer

Senn

Kash

Hadi

Jabbeer

Major Kalam

And many Thanks to all support crews and photographers !

All smiles !

Nurina, Hadi and Kash formed a team too !

MJ on the bike !

Passing IM70.3 spectators

Nice panning work here.

My friend, Bandito. 1st attempt on IM70.3. Congrats Bandit !

Team work. Team mate Ishsal passing the timing chip to me. (sorry pics are not in sequence!)

Fellow triathlete friends who were also participating on that day ; Ngae (Team Powerbar Elite), Elaine Wong Karyan, Julie (Team Powerbar Elite), Adeline Lee, Ishsal Ishak, Mahizzan

missjewelz with the boys from Bike Boutique; SK and Daniel

Don Khor, another Team Powerbar Elite member.

Bandit completing his final lap. Putrajaya lake at the background.

relaxing and supporting Bandit and Senn after the bike leg !

Stupe and I pointing at Geoff asking him to get his arse down here !!

More pictures will be uploaded in my next post.

p.s. : sapa main tipu masa kat bike/running course angkat tangan…ooooweee..i see quite a few hands raised there…. advice to you people, you only tipu diri sendiri. Anda yang rugi while blocking other people’s right to be ranked properly in the result sheet. If nak tipu, tak payah race lah. You don’t need to pay to tipu/lie..Duduk rumah, main kejar2 ok?

Young Endurance Athlete (YEA) Triathlon 2009

In NST a few days ago !

YEA Triathlon 2009 registration form

Kids of steel — children

2009/10/05

By Anis Ibrahim

PUTRAJAYA: Fancy seeing your son or daughter take part in a mini triathlon?

Budding athletes are invited to take part in the Young Endurance Athletes Race 2009 which will include a bike race, a swim and a run.

Open to children aged 7 to 15 years, the event will begin at 7am at the Public Swimming Pool at Precinct 6, Putrajaya, on Oct 18. There are three categories for boys and girls — group A (7-9 years), B (10-12 years) and C (13-15 years).

The distances covered will be based on the age group. Group A participants will swim for 50m, cycle for 500m and run for 100m. Group B entrants will swim for 100m, cycle for 3,000m and run for 200m while Group C triathletes will swim for 300m, cycle for 6,000m and run for 500m.

Organised by Perbadanan Putrajaya Bhd and The Yellow Bicycle, the event will be supervised by two-time Ironman finalist and regular race participant Major Kalam Pie and cyclist Amir Hashmi Ibrahim, who has undergone training in triathlon coaching skills.

A doctor and nurse will be present at the venue, together with life guards, marshalls and female assistant coaches. There will also be a group of volunteers made up of experienced national triathletes.

Children who cannot swim need not worry. They can use kickboards, arm floaties or other floatation devices. Lifeguards will be in the pool to assist.

Amir said any kind of bicycle can be used, including those with training wheels.

“It doesn’t have to be a racing bike. Parents, however, must ensure that their children use cycling helmets. Their bikes must also have brakes and the tyres must be well-pumped.

“Proper shoes must also be worn during the run. Children will not be allowed to run barefoot or in slippers,” said Amir.

There will be a workshop before the race on Oct 17 at 7.30am by the International Triathlon Union-trained coaches to introduce participants and their parents to the sport.

Fees, which must be paid at the workshop, are RM50 for all categories. Refreshments will be provided on both dates and water stations will be set up on race day.

For details, call Amir (012-219 5552 or ybicycle@yahoo.com), Kalam (019-271 2569 or kalampie@gmail.com) or Julie (017-332 3451 or missjewelz@gmail.com).

YEA Triathlon 2009 registration form

We’re open for :

• Participant registration
• Volunteer registration
• Sponsorship

Ironman 70.3 Putrajaya

“Duit ku sudah songlap ke…4 million from the government per year.. 2mil for each event.. Langkawi course lay out 20k.  70.3 reg fee = 350/individual..and relay myr600.. myr200 to swim 1.9km..wahh mahalnye..quality  ada baik ke..? you didn’t hear it from me. okay?”

[undisclosed source ]

Wuteva ittis, i think Powerman and mr Chan’s race lagi berbaloi. No, seriously..There’s no point putting up a pretty stage here with pretty actors and actresses on ‘em. Enter my personal  blog with your own risk.

TriFalsampah of the day : kalau hidup itu kerana mata wang, mati pon kerana mata wang. Hidup atau mati,mata wang itu amatlah penting.Nothing else matter. Kan ?

IM70.3 : registration. Registration was quick coz I came at lunch hour, time tak ramai orang. Despite the swift registration process, the aunty- aunty kat meja tuh don't know really know what they're dealing with doing. They were not even sure team relay registration fee is how much. And girl at bike check in tanya why untuk relay don't have age-group.. hum.... I don't blame the girl. She's just a volunteer who sincerely came to help her mum who is also helping out at bike check in.

Around the registration area. Powerbar booth.

Yellow Submarine hitting the PJ. 1st bike to go through check in, thanks Ah Thiam.

1st to check-in when the organizers are still busy tagging the racks. How's dat for a world standard race? That's Yellow Submarin, my beloved bike !! Comel kan ?! Like me laaa.. hahahaha.... I manage to ask the ane, aunty and also IM Soffian to help ensure dat my bike is at #300. Ye la, bike rack tagging pon tak siap lagi time ni ! I gotta rush after that.

Participant t-shirt.. material quality uncle Chan nyer race lagi cun the quality. ... by the way, this tshirt comes in 3 colours. can choose. white, dark red and green. ..

Inside the 70.3 tshirt..ahha..

The chocolate bar from the race kit... serious ? adoii... sponsor punya la banyak ......... ini dapat ?!

my race number.. bayar MAHAL.. 300 x 2 (rm600).. but quality.....kain ! gosh... very dissapointing !!!!!!!!!!

Kain = Cloth !! Even Pacesetters can afford more quality material race numbers !!! and we pay 1/6 - 1/8th or less of the 70.3 fee to enjoy a quality race . Pacesetters, Quick Release for Powerman as well XTerra do not use KAIN for race numbers ! Larian Bomba boleh lah !

That's the race number helmet sticker. Funny size and design.

Okay, enough of the rantings. If I don”t put it here, and simpan in my laptop je, basi pon you all tak tau. We triathletes pay because we want to race not just a race but an enjoyable AND quality race, both aspects which are vital for the organizers to consider.Have they ever ? I’ve always saluted Pacesetters for their quality and improvement. They’ve managed to mature and grow.. And they didn’t need politicians to jump in and run the show themselves. Malaysians and Klang Valley runners love their races and events because they’re good. 4000-5000 runners or more per event is not uncommon to them anymore. p.s. : I’m proud to say here I am a Pacesetters member ! Registered in 2005 baby !!

Great Eastern Pacesetters 30k 2009 : Spot me in my blue Adidas, and blue Buff 'shower cap'..eeee...comel nye ! (ya rite !!) hehehe..

For my maiden IM Langkawi this year, during its press conference in Nestle house, around a month before the race, not just myself heard this with my 2 ears, but also everyone who attended the press conference ; the media, athletes, organizers etc. Sri Ram openly said ‘I am a businessman’. A 4 worded sentence which means a lot especially when talking about the future of Ironman triathlon in Malaysia.  Mark my words.

Every athlete and organizer have to know a bit of everything. If you know only 1 thing, and that 1 thing is how to generate $$, and how to look sleek, clean, handsome and perfect teeth … payah ler..we can put majulah sukan untuk negara in my wardrobe and let cobwebs appear in no time.

Tomorrow I’m just gonna race. Enjoy it, and support my other friends who will be doing the race. God Bless and all the best to everyone taking part. Can’t wait to write my race report !! LOL !!!

Once upon a time (Satu ketika dulu). Ketika aku tanned and hitam. Ketika Upiq always kacau me saying 'Anak sapaaaa ni..?'

3rd Raya ; Ride to Lukut Pt 2

Raya Ride to Lukut : Part 2

century ride on th 3rd raya Enjoy !!

Port Dickson Triathlon 2009 – race report

Salam and Hello all, I guess the rest of my fellow tri-blogger friends have updated their latest race report. Here is mine.

Pre race week

1 fine afternoon...

I didn’t do much ! But  I did a couple of rides at MEX highway, one time alone, a couple of times with my friends, and one time with a support car !  I ran a bit, swam a bit. but I was resting more, taking it easy on the knees and body. More stretching sessions !!  I was, a bit anxious (eventho not soo excited). It would be my 1st OD Triathlon race post Ironman  (note:Ironman was 5 months ago!)

I can almost feel the morning of 28th February 2009 when I swam 3.8km in Langkawi (p.s. the carry over effect).  I safely put hope on my open water swim experience for the coming PD Tri. I had to 2 weeks of break (from uni) before PD.. but couldn’t find the time for an open water swim. well I guess, for a 1.5km swim the 25m or 50m pool is good enough!

Anyways, pre race week, was relaxed, which is the way to be, but only after you’ve covered you training with a ‘Well Done!’ or a B+.. but in my case, there’s no point of grading anything here because I was undertrained( tho I am not completely non-training). I’ve been taking all the measures to ensure that me left knee continues to heal !

Pre race day

SELAMAT DATANG KE PORT DICKSON (welcome to Port Dickson)

Left KL somewhere around 12. Drove alone to Port Dickson. Met up with the JB gang (Tarzan, Nikkie) for lunch after race kit collection.

A pretty relaxed afternoon. In the evening before dinner took sometime off at the beach.  The beach in PD  is ok, but not as scenic or as clean as Teluk Cempedak in Kuantan, Pahang or some of the beaches in Langkawi. It felt like a vacation looking at the fact that tomorrow is a race. I was completely relaxed, the pressure .. Slowly made my way after that to Admiral Marina PD where I met my other triathlete friends ; Steve, Puzi, Karoline, Awe, Iwata,Ah Thiam (Malaysian Kona qualifier),Abu,  Kam, AJ,  Mat Licin and the rest.

With friends; Iwata San, Steve Lee, Karoline Yee. Thanks Karo for the illegal water/shower !

This time around I came a bit late for the dinner, so no queue at all at the buffet area ! haahah.. Ah Thiam came late too, so joined him, Ayu and their daughter, Elisya. Nik from Johor also was there. A plateful of pasta, mushroom soup and some potato. Burp ! Prize presentation for the sprint category took place. Top winners were from the Hong Kong national triathlon squad. Race briefing followed.  This time around the briefing took place outside the hotel lobby. Run route has changed. Awesome.. back to the old route. More shady and not so boring !

Eve of PD tri – super relaxed, no rush, felt more like a vaca. !

Race morning

I woke up around 5.30am . Race starts at 7am.Showered, a quick breakfast and drove to event site. Powerbar around 40 minutes before race start.  Powergel 5 minutes before race start. There was 5 wave starts. My age group category ; 4th wave.

My oh my..look at the water !!! It was anything but the PD I’ve seen before the past 2 years ! Gelora ! (means big rough waves in the Malay language). And nothing like Desaru !

Race strategy and goal

Finish the race injury free with a decent time. No way I’m going to perform like how I did last year. I did my 2nd O.D. triathlon here last year with a time of 3:01. Year before (2007)  I did a sprint.

I planed to swim free style all the way, maintain a constant cadence on the bike and maintain a decent pace for the run. I gotta control myself, not to push, not to be too excited !! And most importantly not to bust the recovering knees.

Swim

WASHING MACHINE. yeah…even Desaru wasn’t like this la ! I underestimated the water. Try ask any of your friends who did PD this year..huhuh..But once passing the 1st orange Powerbar buoy, into the marina, the water is much calmer. a J or rather an L kinda swim loop. Only 1 loop for PD. Coming out of the marina was a wreck ! The big waves keeps coming and rolling me ..memang macam dalam a giant washing machine !

I overtook a number of guys, but I knew my time was still.. ermm..slow despite doing the swim in free style !! technique julie, technique…. aaarrghh… at one time…I got kicked on the fore head…damn… I thought Ironman Langkawi was the only place here in Malaysia where you can get free kick boxing lesson in the water.. but PD..?! ahaah… but what to do la.. I didnt know I came out of the water with. But through some fotos uploaded by frieds, I came out of the water with Jason Thiang, my Pacesetters friend, who also did his maiden Ironman this year with me.

T1

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention earlier on.. I wanted to take PD as my practice for transition. So quick transition at T1. Meaning..

1. Chuck aside my goggles and swim cap

2. Put on race belt.

3. Put on helmet.

4. Take bike off the rack

At the bike out line/area , mounted on the bike. Shoes already clipped on the bike and tied, so ‘fly mount’ for me !

Bike

The same route as last year.Again, no pushing.  Siok Bee passed me at the 7km mark (or there about) super fast lah weii…But I was surprised , Siok Bee is a fast swimmer..! Maybe she took some time at T1. Another friend, Steve, zoomed by shortly after shouting ‘All the way Julie’..! Inspired but this time I won’t be pushing more than I’ve planned. In fact, I don’t think I was pushing at all.

And this time around I had no aero bars on. I must admit I did not teach myself to become comfortable with aero bars. And I was not sure whether doing PD without aero bars will make any difference compared to having them on. Frankly, I just wished I had them on..!  I manage to keep the climbs steady and make full use of the following descend for another climb.

I’ve always loved hills, for both cycling and running. Yeap I do !!!!  Each cyclists will have their own preference of climbing style. Standing up, seated, or somewhere in between !  I’m seated most of the time !

T2

T2 , I don’t remember how long it took me (someone not making full use of her watch !!).  PD Tri this year I did set in my mind that I wanter to do some practise on my transition..

Coming off from the bike :-

1. Pushed bike towards the bike rack

2. Put the bike on the rack

3. Put on race shoe

4. Take off helmet

5. Put on cap (remember 1 second for each step..count as you do the things in the list so that tak kalut ! )

6. Grab that Powerbar gel and go !

7. Bump into Ish during the run start

Run

The bestest run ever for PD. Started slow, no pushing, easy on the knee. Picked up the pace a bit mid way through, and last 2km , home run/balik kampung.

I did not have problem seeing the people who are usually in front of me now ahead of me, I’m here to enjoy the race. I didn’t even bother to check my time !!!! But inside there was a slight tingle to know there and then what was my time for the run…the run was slow..well, i felt i was slow.. but anyways…..

The last 2km I opened my stride and finished the race, as usual…sprinting

Post race

Shahrom Abdullah & Juliana Ali.

1. Photography and huha session with friends !
2. Took photos/videos of friends who are still racing
3. Paced TSB and Bandit. Both doing their 1st OD triathlon and I’m very proud of them !

Split timing for PD 2009

00:47:14

1:21:43

0:52:08

03:02:06

Split timing for PD 2008

00:41:46

1:19:54

0:59:26

3:01:06

It was a guess game for me the next 4-5 days following the race. My estimation was a 3:10 – 3:08… My swim time was obviously sucky d/to the horrible , challenging yet fun water condition on race morning. Bike time… I wasn’t pushing at all… split timing shows an additional 2 minutes for bike.. But my MAJOR MAJOR BESAQ GEDABAQ surprise actually came from my run time…wth….? wth in a postive way lah… betul ke ni… (is this for real?)..aahhaha…

All in all, I would be stupid if I say I’m not satisfied with my time. The non-training, the knee, the this, the that…. aaa.. but seriously, I was taking it pretty easy this time around (talking about PD prep).My total time caught me off guard. It’s a sign .. that rest and recovery do play a role in your performace !!! You gotta balance it up !!

among the Powerbar Team Elite members who took part in PD Tri ; Shahrom, Major Kalam, Kuna, Juliana Ali

More race pics to be uploaded later.

swim start !

what a swim !

Bike start . mind the tongue.

Designer Bernard Chandran behind me (in pink tri suit). I didn't realize that he was behind me until I saw this picture!

missJeweLz making her way to the finish line.

Pictures courtesy of Jason Lee, Elaine and Rais. Thanks guys !

-missJeweLz-

Port Dickson International Triathlon 2009

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OF YOU WHO STARTED,

AND FINISHED THE EVENTFUL PORT DICKSON TRIATHLON TODAY !

Sorry I was wrong about the water.. I underestimated… but still, we took PD by storm today. And no storm can take today’s experience away from us. You guys rock . and Keep on rockin’ eh ?!!!

BANDIT

TSB

UPIQ

SYAZWAN (my junior!)

KAM

NIK

AJ

ARIF

SENN

ISH

AZMAR

SIMON

IWATA SAN

PATSY

MICHELLE

BOBBY

EMMA BISHOP

LYDIA

SHAHROM

AH THIAM

ABU POWER

DUSH

FARID

SIOK BEE

NGAE

and many more not mentioned here, CONGRATULATIONS !

To all volunteers and friends who came to support all us racers , Thank You ! (especially Puzi + Caroline;  for the illegal tap water! So illegally legally nice of you guys !!! hahhaha !!!)

Race report, happenings and pics tomorrow.

missjewelz n bandit

Port Dickson Triathlon 2009 and some TRI tips to try !

This will be my 3rd year doing the PD tri. 1st one was in 07. I am not  so very excited or looking forward to this race (even though I am going )! .The Ironman hangover was more than I would have imagined and I am still recovering my knees.. It is somewhere near 90% recovered. I can almost feel it.And since I haven’t been pushing too hard on training, (to supplement the knees) especially the running part, I won’t push during the race this Sunday.

For those who haven’t join PD Triathlon, and have no idea what the course is like, try to visualize this ;

swim

‘pretty calm’ and not too rough ! expect to swim in a J(or L)- shape loop

bike

nice rolling route, no major climbs

run

straight out, and flat ! imagine boulevard between Putrajaya mosque to PICC and back. straight, flat and hot too !!!!!

Strategy and plans (not that there are plenty!)

I can imagine how hot its gonna be on the run route on Sunday.. Which reminds me to bring my cap and ice water !  I am excited to check out how my physique and mind will score this weekend. But plan is to just pace myself and not push too hard.  I haven’t had any open water swim since Ironman. But I hope it won’t be any problem.Plan for quick transitions in both T1 an T2..Bike and run; keep a pretty  average cadence throughout,giving an extra effort on climbs,follow through on the descends.  Run; pace ma self. Watch out for potential age groupers ahead for me and not get too excited. Last year I missed Michelle Looi by a second. I ONLY saw her the last 100m , chased her, and caught up, but was a second too late. I’ve a foto of me chasing her. Boy, I looked so funny in the foto !

datz Michelle at the front. Spot me.

oohhh weee....someone marching and sprinting at the back !

How I don’t pressure myself during races

Just focus on the course, the race, myself. Keep up a cheery mood, having the energy to shout a Hi! to a friend during the bike course and  you’ll find the run course pretty relaxing. A quick transition would help too.. ! Don’t waste too much time at transition!

I never actually set a specific target (say, doing a sub 3 for OD, a sub 7 for 1/2 IM or a sub 15hrs for IM)..In my ‘not -too- bad’ to ’successful’ race results so far, I’ve always stick to this principle. I try to train smart, stick to the program. When it comes to race day, I should be ready after the weeks of training. Let the training speaks for itself now knowing that you still have some element of control during the race day itself.

It doesn’t (really) matter to have people overtaking you (unless you’re aiming for podium LOL!). I usually start slow on each leg. E.g. I don’t start sprinting the moment I get on the bike, or the moment I get out of T2(bike-run transition). Start slow, pick up in the middle and finish ‘em hard.

I just happened to be lucky that I did a sub 3 in A Famosa Tri last year, a 3:01 in PD last year and a 6:25 in Desaru Last year. Basically, when its my first time doing certain distances in a certain race event, I won’t put much hassle in having a target time. It is a hassle and mind obstacle then, when I put a target, and not achieve it. My 1st OD, 1/2 IM, 1st Ironman ; no target. But for Ironman, since there is a cut off for swim, I need to finish by 2 hours to be safe. That was my target swim time for IM. Total swim time for Ironman , 1hr 35mins. I know its slow compared to my other mutant swimmer friends. They swim like fish !  I swim like a tortoise ! But anyways, it was home run for me in Langkawi this year after I finished my swim leg even though (again) I had no specific target time for the Ironman distance. I had no pressures on me. I just totally enjoyed, or tried to enjoy the course.Same goes to the other races ,so far.

Ironman Langkawi 2009: out of the water. finally !

me checking out my time, for the 1st time ! Its a suspense ...

1 happy Julie ! 1hr 35mins ! Incredible enuff for me ! i was beaming with joy having in mind that i have another 180km + 42 km to go !!!

For my 3rd PD outing  , I would have to take it easy due to my condition now. So no pushing hard for me! Gotta remind myself that !

Oh yeah, usually when it gets pretty hot on the bike/run course, do make a pit stop at the water stations and pour some water on your head. The cooling effect has a tremendous positive significance to your  performance .Have a laugh too! yeah, sounds funny.. i usually laugh during my training, especially when there’s a serious dogfight going in between you and your training mate.You break the seriousness and tense by laughing ! makes me feel less tired.No, seriously ! it works! Laugh for a reason, or look for a reason to laugh . Its not that hard ya know..hahahah..

If you feel good during at the midpoint of a the swim/bike/run leg, safely expect that the second half would look good as well. Remember you gotta learn the skill of ‘controlling’ yourself, and how controlling too much isn’t as good as you might have thought it would. Push 1 ‘gear’ up, gradually.. don’t push from the 2nd to 4th ‘gear’ abruptly.. or else you might find yourself slowing down after that !

Another tip ; I’m not so techy and gadgety, but I can’t deny the importance of having gadgets.  A quick revelation here; I never owned a bike meter/ heart rate monitor until recently. I borrowed them from my ex ! That was until recently when I got myself a Suunto t3c. I do use these gadgets time to time for training and racing. But most time, I would not bother the meter on my bike or the watch on my wrist. I don’t do heart rate monitors as well.  I remember Powerman Malaysia last year, my 1st Powerman Duathlon. I had a meter on the bike,and I can’t help but keep looking at it every other minute. It is a distraction in a way.. I couldn’t concentrate on the race ! I tried not looking at it and ignore it. Boy , it wasn’t easy.I remember  going  for a long ride with Shazly, Stupe , Fong and Rashid.. I was wearing  my bling bling white leather Guess watch!  So unconventional? U may think so.. but I don’t ! 1st Conclusion to this paragraph; what ever you don’t do during/in your training, don’t bother doing it in a race. Its more of an annoyance, really. For my bike, training, usually I don’t have a meter on the bike.., so it doesn’t matter to me.. speed to me is subjective, tho time to time it is nice to check out what’s your average . 2nd conclusion : focus on the race and listen to your body.This is my point of view !

during 1 of my rides ! meter says SLEEP !

I don’t have to be conventional to have achieved what I have achieved so far in my sporting attributes.  You can achieve a certain peak by blending a certain amount of recipe.. and when you have achieved that peak, move on to the next level. Tweak that recipe. I’m tweaking mine for my next Ironman. And I am looking forward and pretty excited for it !

To all of you doing the race this weekend in PD, whether 1st timer or no, I wish you all the best. Don’t forget to say Hi! to me !!!!

Port Dickson Triathlon 2007, my 2nd Sprint Tri. photographer manage to capture me arse during bike-run transition.

PD Triathlon 2007 : a wet day ! but still need the wet spongy !

post ride pose ! hahah... thanks Adni ! I of my gila hours of training.... 2.30pm ...krazee ! I missed Langkawi alrite !!!

training how to become a hantu raya in broad day light !

just me,

missjewelz (emjay)

Settling down- for now

With the maiden XTERRA done last weekend (6/6 – 7/6)I can finally settle down doing my own things (as for now!). No more traveling for event promos and races and no more hassling the suppliers and printers. It a blast of an experience for being able to be part of the XTERRA Crew. I initially signed up in the age group cat only to be alerted by Shazly that he needs another person to help out. So there I was with the team, working together. As the work expectation builds up, I find less time for myself. Time as in time for training. How do I juggle this. Pretty different when juggling between academics and training. Nevertheless, I learnt a lot, and gained a lot. Getting to know my triathlete friends from the professional working side. To Zafrul, Shazly, Nadia, Geoff, Azmar, Stupe, Bandit, Nazri, Kharis, Senn, Aileen, Ariff and everyone in the team , thank you and congratulations to all of you !

I manage to do 3 races throughout my involvement in the XTERRA Malaysia.

1. NB15K (1:31) supa sloww,but love the hills la !

2. SAS Eco Challenge- Bera(8th place…body torchering mind blowing experience) and

3. JB City Eco Challenge (my team came in 6th).

Thanks to the organizers for allowing us to promote XTERRA at your event !

To all sponsors, athletes, volunteers and whoever is directly or indirectly involved in making this event a success, I on behalf of the XTERRA Malaysia would like to express our endless appreciation and thanks.

Personal note to my Kuantan friends who put in their effort to help out; Azrul, Aman, Fid, Bern, Abe Din and Alang. Thanks guys !!

To fellow athlete friends who took part in the race, I on behalf of the crew would like to apologize for all the hiccups throughout the event process. Your sincere and positive comments are highly appreciated and you can always email us at info@xterramalaysia.net or contact me at julie@xterramalaysia.net

Whatever happens after this will be improvement and improvement, insyaAllah.

missJeweLz XTERRA of an Xperience

1. Signed up
2. Some MTB training with lotsa crashes, monkey scare (i seriously thought I was going to die.. nearly got attacked by monkeys at Kiara trail. )
3. Tending to my left knee..some maltraking prob and plicae inflammation

4.Minimimal running

5. Busy making sure XTERRA Technical portfolio is covered..datelines, quotations, invoices, art design.. i never did these kinda things before ! At Trikidz I was only the treasurer and registrar !

6. Less time for training… i mean , lesser and lesser time for training …

7. fast forward to Wednesday last week, 4 days before D-day.. off to Kuantan..work throughout till Saturday…

8.Friday – still alive and kickin..blocked nose @ night. cant breath !

9. Saturday afternoon-feverish…blocked nose.. twist and turn to clear the nasal cavity !!!! Sat eve -  bike check in. Saturday night; fever getting worse. Had to make that ultimate decision ; not to race tomorrow morning. Even if I had the energy to finish the distance I don’t  think I would have enjoyed it. Right?!

10. Sunday. missed the race, but was rushing to Indera Mahkota and back to TC and back to Vistana and back to TC again… work lah weii ! some sprint workouts there. LOL !

11. my uncle was there to watch the race. surprised to see me there..and surprised to know I do triathlons !!! hahaha…

12. late noon, settled volunteers’  fee. returned podium @ Indera Mahkota; i drove the big van. had problem with the pressing the clutch. sakit lutut !! (knee pain). but still alive and kickin despite the fever

13. evening ; chill at the beach with Scott. night ; already zonked, bonked.. damn.. this is nothing like Ironman. I didnt feel tired after crossing the finish line in Langkawi !

14. Next day; drove back to KL. gave up at r&r Temerloh. dozed off for an hour in the car- engine and Aircond. on
yeah, driving alone is quite challenging..

15. next day; missed class.

I’ve recovered already now. Thank God ! And now, I’m so ready to get some balls rolling ! Yes, Im excited as you are ! (are you?).. seems like the Triathlon and Duathlon season is only kickin’ off for me ! ahaha..

My upcoming events

1.PD Tri
2. MUDS Series
3.Putrajaya/Desaru ?! I so havent decided lah !
4. oohh, i forgot… KL marathon in 3 weeks time. it’ll be my first full marathon outside Ironman. Before this I’ve only done 1/2 marathons (21K) and 30K events
5. Might consider Perhentian Island Challenge

Okay peeps, i think datz it for now. I had a great week in Kuantan. No doubt about it. I love my life, and will keep on ensuring this life will be lovable right to the end. Life is short, so make the best out of it.

Mmmuahhh !!!!!!

-missJeweLz-

Team Starkst - JB CITY ECO CHALLENGE. 6th place

bored jewelz

baptized @ Lembah Kiara ! Ouch ! Technical downhill gone absolutely wrong. Injury @ my hips, left knee, and arm. Other pics will not be uploaded. Sorry. LOL !

To the following names, nice to have met you in Kuantan. An honour to have all of you in my mom’s hometown. You guys kicked a** alrite !!!! Congrats !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1. Fauzan Hj Ismail – a big Congratulations to you dude !
2.Raymond Tan- nice to meet you !
3. Heero Yui
4. Zulhassan
5. Karyan
6. Adli
7. Team TAMAGO 5. you guys rock !
8. Yip
9. All my Kuantan Pacesetters friends
10. brothers from Brunei – you know who you are !
11.Jack from Miri
12. Upiq ! hope you had fun !
13. Zabil Ihram Zainol, congrats dude !
14. Shahrom , Ah Thiam Razani, Major and rest of the Team Elite members
15. Lydia Tan – congrats girl ! u sorang je in ur age group! lucky you !
16.Kash
17. Rais and kids !

You guys rock ! Dirty Duathlon coming your way. Keep tab.Ok, back to my reality, off line. Roger and out. Gtg to Powerbar, Totalfield and a few other places. Ciao !

Yazid, Mimi, Nadia, Osman, Saiful, Azrul - THANK YOU ! It wouldnt have been possible without you guys ! Rock on Kuantan !!!!!!!!! -kak Julie-

Mike Vine, Renata Bucher Win the Inaugural XTERRA Malaysia Championship

Press and Media Center

Mike Vine, Renata Bucher Win the Inaugural XTERRA Malaysia Championship

// Monday, June 08, 2009

Kuantan, Malaysia – Reigning XTERRA USA Champ Mike Vine from Canada edged Scott Thorne from New Zealand and Sam Gardner from England by less than a minute to win the first-ever XTERRA championship race in Southeast Asia on Sunday

“Conditions were near ideal – overcast and a few showers along the way to cool us down to just bearable levels,” said Vine.  “I led out of the swim and was riding well until a dandy spill launched me over the bars and I slammed hard on my side. No serious damage luckily (we’ll see tomorrow when it all seizes up though!) and I carried on.  Sam and Scott rode well together making up 2+ minutes and caught me with 12k to go.  A bunch of vicious attacks ensued over pavement, beach, and rooty slick jungle, and that carried over to the run which had 2 loops of a big jungle uphill with a beach section and a tour through the zoo. Top notch! This event was a huge success with big backing and major media too. Sold out early with 500 racers.  They really nailed it and for a first time event, just totally amazing. We even had The Royal Prince of Panang there who spectated the whole event.”

In the womens race Swiss great Renata Bucher finished 10 minutes ahead of runner-up Mieko Carey from Saipan (via Japan).  The victory was Bucher’s 15th career XTERRA Championship win in her 9th different country.

Photos courtesy XTERRA Malaysia.  Top pro finishers and official race report below.

Pl  Name  Country  Time
1  Mike Vine  Canada  2:13:42
2  Scott Thorne  New Zealand  2:14:28
3  Sam Gardner  United Kingdom  2:14:42
4  Takahiro Ogasawara  Japan  2:28:36
5  Yu Yumoto  Japan  2:36:39
6  Shahrom Bin Abdullah  Malaysia  2:39:24
7  Taro Shirato  Japan  2:47:56

Pl  Name  Country  Time
1  Renata Bucher  Switzerland  2:45:26
2  Mieko Carey  Saipan  2:55:08
3  Daniela Erni  Switzerland  3:18:1
XTERRA Malaysia technical director Shazly Khan brings us this report…

It was a day of spills and thrills as XTERRA USA 2008 Champion Mike Vine emerged winner of the inaugural South East Asia XTERRA off-road triathlon today at Teluk Chempedak in a closely competed race. Vine clocked in at 2 hours 13 minutes 41 seconds to edge out New Zealander Scott Thorne for the title of the first XTERRA Malaysia champion. Thorne crossed the finish line 15 seconds ahead of third place winner, Sam Gardner from England who took 2 hours 14 minutes 42 seconds to complete the course which covered 1.5 km swim in the open sea, 30 km mountain bike ride and a 10 km trail run.

In the Women’s category, 5-time XTERRA Saipan champion and XTERRA Europe 2009 winner, Renata Bucher led from start to finish in a time of 2 hours 45 minutes 26 seconds. XTERRA Japan’s participant, 31-year old Mieko Carey was second with a time of 2 hours 55 minutes and 08 seconds, followed by 35-year old Daniella Erni of Switzerland who rounded it up in 3 hours 18 minutes 14 seconds.

For the relay category, which was being held for the first time ever in any XTERRA race, the winner was team Rock Bottom 1. Team Pacesetters Kuantan 2 and Tomago Team 1 were second and third respectively.

The local challenge provided by Malaysian top ironman finishers and triathletes, Shahrom Abdullah and Mohd Hafiz Wong Abdullah were no less interesting. They put up strong competition, giving the professionals a run for their money with Shahrom finishing a very respectable sixth overall. Shahrom’s time was 2 hours 39 minutes 24 seconds. Hafiz’s time of 2 hours 51 minutes 44 seconds was enough to get him 18th overall placing and champion of the age category of 35-39 years old.

The anticipated hot Malaysian weather became a non-issue as the famous Malaysian tropical rain poured. The rain however, transformed the cycling track into a technical one as it became slippery and quite a number of participants tumbled over their bikes.

The gloomy, overhung skies did not deter the gathering of onlookers at the Teluk Chempedak beach for the first XTERRA Malaysia to cheer the 500 participants on. Spectators flocked to the area as early as 6 in the morning just to check out the activities and settings of the beach. The participants and spectators were not just locals; some 40 percent of the competitors were from overseas and they brought their families and friends along, adding to the carnival-like atmosphere at Teluk Chempedak.

The anticipation and adrenaline was so thick in the air that you could have cut it with a knife. The moment the air horn was blown by Tengku Mahkota Pahang Tengku Abdullah Ibni Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah to signal the start, the first wave of participants in the individual category rushed into the waters which had a surprise visit of jelly fishes due to the temperature change. The relay participants joined them 5 minutes later.

Vine who is from Canada led the pack in the swimming leg as he made it to the first buoy in less than 5 minutes. It was an easy task for the “Vineman” who is ranked second in XTERRA championship. Next out of the water was Taro Shirato who is also the President of XTERRA Japan. The third person out of the water was Scott Thorne of New Zealand who is among the youngest of the international professionals participating at XTERRA Malaysia.

Each participant then rushed to the mountain bike racks with a quick burst of adrenaline to change and also put on their biking gear as fast as possible. They could have taken their time but the biking leg gives the chance to the faster participants to distance themselves from the slower participants. And if done without a glitch, this would easily ensure them a higher ranking on the leader board.

However, Vine lost time in the mountain biking track as he hit a pothole and took a tumble. Thorne and Gardner caught up quickly and the race was neck to neck from there till the finish line.

With Thorne and Gardner nipping at his heels, Vine gave it all he had during the run and it was not till the final home stretch, sprinting down from the hill that Vine thought he had a shot at Malaysian glory.

Ironman report coming up !

heyya..dis will be like one of the most delayed Ironman Langkawi report. Been terribly busy the past 1 month after IM. Tomorrow I will finally be free enough to  sit down , share and do a write-up on my maiden Ironman !!

1 of the many things which I did in Langkawi ! hahaha...masak !!!

Ironman PC atand photo session with Powerbar athletes

More pics and stories to come. Can’t wait !!! And no, never too late for an update !!! Take care y’all and have a nice week ahead !!!

-mj-

1 month after Ironman

A  come back

Salam and Hi! again. Its been a month since Ironman Langkawi, and I kept to my promise for a full month recovery after the biggest triathlon race of my life ! Did not touch the bike, refrained from putting on the running shoes, and no swimming ! Total rest. At the same time, try to eat healthy.. but hafta cut down a bit as I don’t need to eat so much.  I had some knee problem diagnosed slightly before Ironman. Luckily I went for extensive physio just in time before I took off for Langkawi. Anyways, knees are better now, alhamdulillah. 1 month was a honeymoon for me and my knees. Kasi ais sama dia, apply Voltaren, urut-urut..hahaha…

Well, at least my body recovers. The mind was otherwise. Unfortunately ! But yeah, that’s part of the circle. I had a mind-torchering psychwar especially after Ironman. Starting from the pre-Ironman numbness to the post-Ironman blues to the  _ _ _ _ _    _ _ .  It’s not a battle per se, just a test ground and trial (trying to be optimistic here) . It caught me off guard though! But hey, I’m still alive. What doesn’t kill me make me stronger ! I totally agree with you Azmar, thanks! And to Goh, Stupe, Steve, Shahrol, TSB, AJ, Ayu ,Jessica, Huda,Ish and all of you who supported me with the needed moral boost and spirit, from the bottom of my heart, I wanna Thank You all. and alhamdulillah I’m more ‘calm’ now..huhuh….

Other than that I’ve been engaging on my free weight routine (lately), but not daily, just 2-3 times a week. Some core training, skipping,  as well as stretching. Physio rehab guy said my hamstring so stiff.. and my calf too, were stiff, especially after Ironman.. so, sttrrrreettcchhh !!!!!!! That was about it. No real training after Ironman, for a month..that’s why I call it ”total rest”! Some friends like Azmar, Steve and a few others have been hitting the road like a week after Ironman. Wow ! I TLC my body !!!  Hats off to those who manage to recover, rest and start training again in prep for Kenyir Triathlon and Singapore 70.3. Suet Fong ,Jason Thiang, Kam, Abu and Ariff went  to Kenyir.I’m not exactly sure who went to Singapore, except for Emma Bishop. She went to both Singapore and Kenyir. Hats off ! And she got stung by jelly fish too! (emma, i just realized u also got stung in Langkawi!…). I had a VERY near ‘encounter’ with a nice looking sea jelly ! LUCKY me it didnt bother to say Hi! to me on the 28th Feb by raising its tentacles to say ‘Hi Julie…’ hahaha.. .. My abs was like an inch or two from the jellyfish body! Anyways, I’ll save the rest of the story for my Ironman race report which has YET to be written !!  arrghhh….

So, yesterday I FINALLY did a come back run with a couple of friends.Yes, after 1 month tak lari okay ! No joke !! I told them ‘5k only ok.’ ,  and on top of that ‘we’ll go very slow ‘ !  I think we ended up doing nearly 7k end finishing less than 50 minutes. Not slow enough ! anyways, i went very slow.. . picked d pace up a bit somewhere after halfway point before turning back. And sped the last 200-300m with small quick steps. The grasses on the side of the walk/run path were very useful.. ran on them a bit , and practise some off trail running ! I told myself  (and my friends) ‘..this is for XTerra!! ‘.

after my 1st run since Ironman !

Delighted and happy to finally get the real SWEAT out of d system!

XTerra Malaysia

Xterra the Malaysia edition will be happening on the 6-7th June 2009. Where? I’m so proud to share this with u… its happening at my hometown @ kampung, in Kuantan ! Yes, Kuantan, Pahang Darul Makmur. If you have been following my blog updates, you might have noticed how excited I can be whenever I write and upload my pics and stories about my latest Kuantan outing ! err…what’s XTerra ? XTerra is basically off-road triathlon. meaning swim, then mountain bike on off -road trail, followed by  off-road/trail running !

According to the organizer, registration for XTerra Malaysia will be closed after they receive the 800th entry ! So, hurry on, go register ! I understand there will be 2 categories ;  individual as well as relay. For more info,please click here.

Xterra coming to town!

Next plan

Now I’m gearing up for my exams. Yeah… first paper happening this Sunday. And another 3 for the next 2 weeks. My Gunung Nuang trip will be on the 18th April, so feel free to join me and some friends.WALKing up only.no running, at least for me. huhuh…click on events for more details, or scroll down to check out the post on the invitation. Next big race? It has to be XTerra…hahaha.. i like to try new things.. ! I mean, why not ? Oh ya, not forgetting New Balance 15k run on the 17th May !

Volunteers needed

By the way, Pacesetters are looking for volunteers to help out for 2 running events; the Orange Run as well as the NB15k run!

Orange Run 11km

The Club will be involved in the coming Orange Run on 12th April 2009 as Technical Support and we will be manning the route and timing for the top finishers. As such, we are looking for volunteers as road marshal and timers at the finishing point.
If you are interested or keen to join in the event atmosphere, please email or sms to our Exco, Ms Tan Pek Moi (contact as below) giving your contact number and the duty you would like to be involved in.
As the event is round the corner, would greatly appreciate if you can respond latest by 29th March 2009 to Miss Tan Pek Moi .

New Balance Pacesetters 15km
We are targeting 2,500 runners this year and since this is a Club’s event, we need your assistance in all expects of the smooth running of the event on the race day, 17th May 2009, ie road marshal, water stations, food tent, medal distribution and finishing point.
Kindly revert to M/s Tan Pek Moi by 3rd May 2009 .

EMAIL

Tan Pek Moi
pm1228@gmail.com

Plenty more races in 2009

Whether you’re a MTB enthusiast or roadie or run-only kind, I don’t think worrying if there are enough races for this season should be the top of your worries ! There will be plenty of races for you to register and train for. You can register for as many as you want. I know a few people who does that okay. ALL the road race kena take part. Some friends opt to limit themselves to 10-12 races per year be it triathlon, duathlon or running. While some only go for races to enjoy ! So whatever it is, just make sure you have some time off for yourself, your family, your work, your..ermm..study, your loved ones…aa… sukan , riadah, yes healthy and very much encouraged, especially when you’re in that warm up process to get multisports as part of your lifestyle. And guys, (and gals), make sure you have enough recovery in between races. Don’t lanyak !!

Pacesetters Subang Orchids : me and my team mates. p.s. : they were all in form 4,5 .. a good 10-11 years younger than me... !

You might wanna tell yourself that you still want to take part in races with your kids when they grow older and with your grandchildren when you get older ! I, InsyaAllah, want to take part in Ironman with my children  at least !  We all get excited to have family members and friends to join us for training as well as races. Just keep up the positive attitude. From only having MAKAN as a lifestyle, we should also have SPORTS as a lifestyle. Come on,why not?  Nothing wrong with makan/eating. But don’t take it too seriously that you forget that your body needs more than just food. That is what’s wrong with our society today. A social stigma that is. Always giving unhealthy excuses just to not get off their butts of the couch/seat/bed..and only excited for MAKAN. I eat too okay, but I always try not to over-eat, over-indulge (skali-skala boleh la.. once in a while can !))

Dear athlete friends, please, do your part ya. I’m happy that a few friends, some juniors, and batch mates are interested in keeping fit and asking some tips from me. The least that I could do is share with them what I’ve been doing, though it may not be the best of training advices. So people, lets  together raise some healthy-lifestyle awareness okay ! Do your bit ! Brag about your evening/morning runs to your office mate. Get your manager or boss to  join the next 5k or 10k run ! and join me for Gunung  Nuang on 18.4 ! hhehehe….
Btw, if you could get your hands on Shape Magazine, April issue, Azura Zainal on the cover..look up page 54..huhuh.. Mariana Mohammad (national duathlete) and I , Nor Juliana Ali (the 1derer) was interviewed by the magazine.hahaa.. funny picture of me in there as well !

Some interesting races you might wanna look up :-

1. Orange Run 11k (12/4)
2. Larian Bomba 10k (10/5)
3. Bidor Half Marathon(25/4)
4. Standard Chartered KL Marathon (28/6)
5. New Balanace 15k (17/5)
6. Sun Down Marathon, Singapore (30/5)
7. XTerra Malaysia(6-7/6)
8. Mountain to mountain challenge (April-June)
9. Sabah Adventure Challenge (12/4)
10. Kapas Marang swimathon(12/4)
11. PD Triathlon (11/7)
12. Adidas King of  The Road (2/8)
13. MUDS- Malakoff University Duathlon Series (tbc)
14. Malakoff Charity ride kedah-thailand (tbc)
15. Desaru Long Distance Triathlon(1/8)
16. Putrajaya 70.3 (26/7)
17. Perhentian Island Challenge (10/10)
18. Penang Bridge International Marathon (29/11)
19. Powerman Malaysia(8/11)
20. Awana Genting Trailblazer(1/11)
21. Sarawak International Triathlon (28/11)

I will try to get all the forms for the above mentioned races. Do drop by these links to check out for some info youself .

http://www.pacesetters.com.my

http://www.triathlonmalaysia.com

Adios and have a lovely day ahead everyone,

-mj-

Special shout out

To all friends doing Kenyir Triathlon,

 I wish you all the best ! God Bless !

To 1st timers  Kash + Day O, cayok !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Port Dickson Triathlon clinic 2007 . spot me.

 

-missjewelz-

Nor Juliana Ali Ironman Langkawi 2009 Official Time

Nor Juliana Ali

BIB	AGE	STATE/COUNTRY	PROFESSION
651	27	MYS	Wonderer

 

SWIM	BIKE	RUN	OVERALL	RANK	DIV.POS.
1:35:45	6:43:57	5:10:03	13:42:27	290	6

 

LEG	DISTANCE	PACE	RANK	DIV.POS.
TOTAL SWIM – 3.8 km	1:35:45	2:31/100m	418	8
BIKE – 30 km	2:45:44 30 km @ 1:03:48	28.21 km/h
BIKE – 45 km	3:17:34 15 km @ 31:50	28.27 km/h
BIKE – 57.8 km	3:45:04 12.8 km @ 27:30	27.93 km/h
BIKE – 67.5 km	4:06:50 9.7 km @ 21:46	26.74 km/h
BIKE – 82.5 km	4:40:19 15 km @ 33:29	26.88 km/h
BIKE – 95.3 km	5:08:44 12.8 km @ 28:25	27.03 km/h
BIKE – 105.0 km	5:31:09 9.7 km @ 22:25	25.96 km/h
BIKE – 120 km	6:07:19 15 km @ 36:10	24.88 km/h
BIKE – 132.8 km	6:38:04 12.8 km @ 30:45	24.98 km/h
BIKE – 142.5 km	7:02:26 9.7 km @ 24:22	23.89 km/h
BIKE – 157.5 km	7:39:04 15 km @ 36:38	24.57 km/h
BIKE – 170.3 km	8:12:09 12.8 km @ 33:05	23.21 km/h
TOTAL BIKE – 180 km	6:43:57	26.74 km/h	388	6
RUN – 5.1 km	9:05:18 4 km @ 32:54	8:13/km
RUN – 9.1 km	9:33:25 4 km @ 28:07	7:01/km
RUN – 13.1 km	10:02:05 4 km @ 28:40	7:10/km
RUN – 17.1 km	10:30:27 4 km @ 28:22	7:05/km
RUN – 21.1 km	11:01:30 4 km @ 31:03	7:45/km
RUN – 25.1 km	11:32:36 4 km @ 31:06	7:46/km
RUN – 29.1 km	12:05:42 4 km @ 33:06	8:16/km
RUN – 33.1 km	12:38:55 4 km @ 33:13	8:18/km
RUN – 37.1 km	13:08:54 4 km @ 29:59	7:29/km
RUN – 41.5 km	13:35:24 4.4 km @ 26:30	6:01/km
TOTAL RUN	42.2 km (5:10:03)	7:20/km	290	6
TRANSITION	TIME
T1: SWIM-TO-BIKE	6:11
T2: BIKE-TO-RUN	6:31

 

missjewelz IML 09 debut @ 13:42 ! Alhamdulillah !

Detailed report coming up. To all Ironman finishers , supporters and volunteers,CONGRATULATIONS &  THANK YOU ! I had a blast of a weekend in Langkawi.