First Open Race/Night Run - Sundown Marathon 2014

The race pack... One of my favourite Sundown Marathon poster design :D

My experience from my first night run and open race....


Reason why I choose Sundown Marathon as my first race?
The reason why I participated in Sundown Marathon despite my lack of experiences in night running was due to it being on my birthday (and bigger reason for me to bring the Mister to run with minimal protests from him =X) and also it being held on a weekend. I initially wanted to participate in the 2013 edition after learning about it from my brother who was part of the crews back then, but it was too late as the registration was already closed and partly because I lacked proper training to prep for the race.

Training and Preparation as a First-Timer in Long Distance Night Run

My trainers that I also used for the actual race. Socks aren't that cute, used Nike Running Compression socks instead for the comfort and cushioning.

Well... Training was rather hard for me due to the multitude of events and weekend activities that we were involved in. It was really difficult to ask a non-runner dude to go for training with me since we are going to run together and I want to make sure that both of us had adequate training to be able to endure the mileage/at least able to keep up with each others' pacing throughout the race. 10KM to most runners is normal, and I don't deny that as well since I am more of run-walk kind of person for most of the time, but to beginner runners may not be. So... Yes, it took me lots of encouragement and persuading to convince him to train with me.

Throughout the short few months of running at ECP and the stadium, I learned many things about running and also some life lessons. Though I still need to work on planning my diet properly to ensure that I am properly carbo-loaded and also to minimise the chances of my gastrics acting up. Everything went well during the trainings, except that I keep getting hungry.

The Big Day (It was a total dismotivater, but I still managed to clear the race)

"BRING ON THE NIGHT!" Simple design, yet I love the shade of blue for this year. Not to mention that both male and female singlets are of the same colours this year. :D

The big day AKA my biggest mistake made ever from my little experiences in races. Skipped breakfast cos I overslept in the morning, and I got a little anxious with fueling up myself properly for the night. Ended up eating merely 1 and a half meal for the day, and I swear I will not do it again, my poor stomach:(

Fueling myself aside, another big boo hoo we made was not napping/sleeping during the afternoon, not much of an issue for me to last till the night since I had drank Red Bull before I go out, but the Mister was tired out by the time we ran finish and cooled down.

Next! It's another few mistakes that we made again,
1. Driving in the very last minute before road closure due to lack of planning before driving out. 
Ended up parking the car at the Esplanade, which is about 2km plus away from the F1 Pit Building. No issue for us if we aren't running late. But that 2km brisk walk was a bonus for us since it also serves as warming up for us.
Lesson Learned: Plan your traveling route in advance before you go out. Especially when there are road closure timings to adhere to and you are driving.

2. Getting stranded at the Start pen since we came in pretty late since the Start pen was opened for 10Km runners even before we arrived.
That was when we realised that despite our bad performance during trainings, we are still runners. Ended up at the second wave of 10km runners, the congestion was quite bad at the first 5-7km, there's not much space for us to filter our way out of the walkers at the front cos we wanted to jog the entire route whenever possible. Keep having to 'jam brakes' (ouch!) and we have to run on the road dividers for most of the time at the highway to Kallang; risking our footings from the invisible holes under the grass patches; especially the newly opened areas. Not to mention the tree roots, I have to keep my eyes peeled to gauge when I need to hop over the roots.
Lesson learned: Move to the front if you want to jog or run! And come in earlier won't kill, in fact, it saves us! (What I learned from my last race before Sundown)

3. There are many hydration stations at the first few kilometers, so just stop by and get some water (even when I am not thirsty)
There are at least 2 hydration stations during the first 2-3Km of the route, but the first one, I believed it was actually meant for the 21Km and 41Km runners, given the location.(I only realised this days after the race when I was writing this post!). But nevertheless, I was there to get some water, as the weather was really nasty. Skipped the second one though, cos I had started to feel the cramps from drinking water too early despite my 250ml spam of 100-Plus while I was walking from the carpark to the race venue.
Lesson Learned: Drink only when you need, don't just stop by to grab some for the sake of getting some.

4. Third hydration stop at the 7km area.
Was rather shocked to see the queue, but I had no choice but to join in queue as I was really thirsty. When I saw the mess on the table, I was wondering how many 1.5litres of 100-Plus were wasted from the spillage and the cup was literally filled the brim. Really nasty, I ended up drinking up the whole cup by myself since my partner was having a hard time clearing his as well. Ended up walking for the next 1-2km cos my tummy was rioting from the spam. 
Lesson Learned: Share a cup if you think the drink is too much for you to drink. That's what a running buddy is for! Hahaha

5. (S***, I forgot where this was) Somewhere at the 8-9km mark
Arh, finally non-tarmac roads. But the place was super dark, there are a bunch of blind spots that we have to keep our eyes peeled for. Especially there's one spot whereby we have to make a right sharp turn. Almost tripped and fell into the big drain leading to the canal as I tried to overtake the crowd of walkers in front of me, if not for my running partner told me about the trap.    
Lesson Learned: Not much, just have to keep your eyes peeled in night runs. To play safe, best to bring a small torch light, at least for me, would had fell into the drain if not for my partner's warning!)

6. Okay, not a mistake!Very Last Few Kilometers (that was so motivating for me after dragging myself to continue the run with my on off stomach cramps and gastrics)
No doubt that this is everyone's motivating stretch to give out their best shot. It's really fun, and self-satisfactory to know that you actually survived and cleared the distances! But the annoying strobe lights are really a pain. Especially when everyone is already tired out, etc.

Absolutely love this edition's finisher medal! Especially this year's Tronic theme. :D

Conclusion:
Despite the hoo-has and nonsense, the run in overall is a pleasant one for me. And kudos to the crews who sacrificed their time and sleep to help out! I will definitely join the next edition of Sundown Marathon; at least 21km or even 41km. Just that those strobe lights are seriously messing with me cos I got dizzy from the glaring lights before I even started running. And... I will not forget to bring some light sticks for the fun as well for my next night run. :D