Monday 26 March 2007

ERE Goes To The KL International Marathon 2007 ! (Part 1)

Deep Heat. That's the gooey stuff most of us were rubbing onto our legs in the break of dawn on Sunday 18 March. It's the morning of the KL International Marathon where some fanatical (and some possibly reluctant) ERE staff and friends have gathered to run the 10km race through the streets of Kuala Lumpur.



(L to R) Dat's me, Ann, Reggie, "Dr. Bala", Dylan, Samantha, Saw Hong, Shan Min and Raymond


At the starting line, everyone was in good spirits….there was Dylan, Reggie, Shan Min, Zai, Sam, Raymond, Saw Hong, Ann, Jason a.k.a.“Dr. Bala” and me. We cheered as a Kenyan jogged across the finish line to win the marathon, closely followed another Kenyan, and another Kenyan. After a white man (presumably NOT from Kenya) crossed the line following yet another Kenyan, the bang of the starter’s pistol signaled the start of our race. We were OFF!!!

I looked around, the gang was getting going. Zai’s already gone! Probably in the sea of serious runners swarming the road leading to Dayabumi several hundred metres ahead. We swarmed past the railway station and up the slope to Jalan Mahameru leading to the Istana…hey, someone forgot to close this road to traffic. Yeah, we had one lane exclusively to run on, but the sight of vehicles zipping by a few feet away was more than a little unnerving, not to mention buses bellowing black smoke into our faces. A couple running with matching vests (what is it with couples and matching clothes ??) pushing a pram brazenly overtakes me. There’s a kid in the pram, of course, getting his or her dose of fresh air.

Our CO intake reduced considerably as we turned towards Dewan Bahasa, and boy did we need every bit of clean air as we trundled up the steep incline we so take for granted when we drive here. Dyl’s right up infront of me looking strong, with Zai nowhere in sight. Still trodding on at a leisurely pace when we crossed Jalan Loke Yew heading towards Pudu Jail, grinning at the stalled traffic as the police kept them at bay.

By now, all sorts of people are running past me. The barefooted variety, a hippy in torn jeans and doc martins footwear, fat people and several geriatrics. Runners hooked up to mp3 players; is the race boring you? And then we were on Jalan Imbi, where the first water station turned up suddenly without warning. You know you can’t drink and drive, well apparently you can’t drink and run either. The water goes everywhere, your windpipe and out your nose, and your throat just wouldn’t swallow. So, drink station No.1 was pretty much a non-event for me.

Round the bend and it was Jalan Bukit Bintang, and leisurely run has now become a struggle in breathing. There is really a “bukit” in Bukit Bintang, no kidding here. Legs felt like lead as I took forever to pass Sg. Wang. The downhill stretch Jalan Sultan Ismail did not seem to help my cause as everything now seems uphill to me. I just kept me head down as I concentrated on negotiating this phase of the race. Looking at the road, I noticed lotsa and lotsa gobs of spit and phlegm. Ugh. There is so much spitting that I thought I was in the middle of a football match.

The scenery no longer mattered as I gasped for breath running the final stretch of the race. It didn’t help when I wiped the sweat off my face with my hand still having residue of deep heat. Now my face was burning and felt like I’ve been slapped a couple of times.

Drink station No.2 was a sight for sore eyes, and this time I stopped to make sure that some fluids actually trickled down my throat. The “second wind” never arrived and so I laboured on my first and only wind as I turned into Batu Road. The finishing line came into sight as I drew level with this butch of a woman. We stole a quick glance at each other, eyed the finishing line and made a dash for it. Screams of support from the ERE cheering section led by Fiza can be heard as I mustered my big finish.



Wheeeeee...!

A few steps into my “dash”, an official steps in front of me and told me to queue up to the finish line (WTF?!), as the butch was allowed to scamper across the finish line. This has got to be a first for a race, queuing up for the finish line. So along with other shocked participants, we showed the world how orderly and civic Malaysians can be by lining up to cross the finish line. Yea.



Ummmm... life's a queue


A grinning Zai has already collected his finisher’s medal, from his seemingly effortless morning stroll. Dylan and I picked up our race certificates, with all the gals finishing in medal positions. What a great effort! “Dr. Bala” also duly checked in and collected his certificate, a superb effort considering his 11th hour inclusion in the race.



Good morning's work..

I regained the sensation in both my legs soon after, and rejoiced with the rest of the gang. There were many Kodak moments with K and Fiza busy snapping away. What enthusiastic and great supporters they were! It may have been just a 10 km and nothing as heroic as the marathon, but every one of us can be very proud of our morning jog around Kuala Lumpur on 18 March 2007.

Peraturan Tanah

Alritie everybody, here are the Ground Rules for Contributors. Have fun!

Rule #1
This blog is strictly for FUN (Read: Makan, Relaks, Sukaria). Please, no mugging about work, colleagues, boy/girlfriends, sports club presidents etc. We also don't wanna hear about yesterday's unfortunate perm-parlour experience.

Rule #2
You are encouraged to blog after office hours (or during lunch).

Rule #3
That's about itlah, really. I'm not really a rule kinda guy.

Monday 19 March 2007

ERE goes to the KL International Marathon 2007 (Part 2)

the level of excitement was high at dataran merdeka.. as me and K arrived at the dataran merdeka, the 3km category for kids under 12 was just about to start. anxious parents are giving words of encouragement by the sideline as the kids get ready to hear the gun shot for the race to start. about 40 kids participated in the run.. and they look like they have the energy of a cheetah and they cant wait to start running!! as the big clock of Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad bangs to 8 o'clock, the gun shot was released. the kids started running for their lives..

by this time, the runners for the 10 km run have started to come to the finish line. we can see some exhausted runner who have just completed the run receiving medals at the finishing line looking proud of their accomplishment. K started to look at the runners coming into the last 100 metres for ERE staff member.. i was trying to find a good spot to snap the photos of the runners coming into the finish line.. hoping to get a good photo of them. *hint hint* unfortunately the organizer had a very funny way of making sure the participants details/number are recorded even before they cross over the finish line..
and suddenly, a familiar face came into sight.. zaime came walking leisurely to the finishing line queue as if he just woke up and run the 10 K run like a normal routine he does every weekend.. of course at that time when he saw me snapping away his photos, he just smiled and waved at me and K and he was off to collect his medal for being able to be the first 500 Men category to complete the race.
zaime was the first to cross the finishing line

there was still no sight of the other ERE gang.. i was really anxious to see who would finish the race next.. and it wasnt long before i see a familiar face in sight.. with matching red sleeveless/short running outfit.. K started to yell " GO BOON.. GO!!!! Ur almost there!!!!! GOOOO!!!! i think the photo speak for it self.. boon was really focused to finish the run and grinned as he passed by.. i guessed all the training, hard work and perseverance really paid off.. way to go boon!!!


"Mr President" came in soon after Boon.. i really have to take my hats off to dylan for being able to complete the race with very minimal training, also with his hands full for the highlands reports, and all the meat that we had during his birthday dinner..

my eyes started to wonder where the girls are... K was looking high and low for the rest of the gang.. of course by this time a sea of people have started to pass in front of me and K to the finishing line.. there was this sexy gucci mama complete with designer sunglasses and i-pod, an old uncle running without slippers and even some groupie looking school boys pacing each other even until the end of the race..

K began to shout " Here comes Regina!!! WHooooaaaaa, Go Regina!! and soon after shan min came into sight.. what a great effort they have shown running for the 10 km KL run.. the girls passed by me and K and made the final 50m run to the finish line.. however there was no sight of "Dr. Bala" passing by us to the finishing line.. it doesn't help either that K haven't actually met this Dr. Bala aka Jason. also we lost sight of raymond, samantha and regina's sister, anne.

We went over near to the finish line to gather up the rest of the gang.. These are some snapshop of the ERE gang after the finishing line, after they have collected their certificates and medals.

mr. cameraman congratulating a sweaty boon for his great effort.


the girls showing off their medals!!!

the first and second runner for a photo snapshot.

regina and anne

the macho guys of ERE, all smiles after finishing the race!

Mr. President posing with a medal in hand!! i wonder if zaime noticed his medal went missing..

after looking and gathering everybody, we headed off for breakfast nearby at tangling. this place is always full in the morning for their famous nasi lemak and you can Q for 10 mins to get to the delicious food at the end of the line.

a plate of nasi lemak was in order at the famous tangling nasi lemak corner.

not only is the nasi lemak self service, we also had to set up the tables. *note to dylan: use yoko yoko, to relieves back and muscle pain!

the nasi lemak plates were full to the brim with beef rendang, sambal sotong, fried chiken, eggs for some of the runners. *Name are concealed to protect the innocent runner's image after gulping down all those glorious food!!"

the whole gang post the 10 km run.

The above picture showing the look of their happy faces after a plate of nasi lemak and the satisfaction of finishing the KL 10 km run. i have to say, being a pom-pom girl for the day to cheer them on was one of the best way to spend my sunday morning. will be looking forward to the event next year. and maybe this time i'll bring the blue pom-pom with a hailer! :)

Regina's Party

There was a disturbance in the force last Friday. Regina had left the building (although for some reason she was still at her desk working the following weekend). So, with a little help from a lil' somethin called Long Island Tea, we made doubly sure that Friday nite was one to remember at a little Mexican joint in downtown USJ.

Wise words of the evening : "you know your time was well-spent when people actually miss you when you leave" - couldn't be more true than in this instance.


I vaguely remember someone saying "Shut up and take the photo"














Oh, you mean THAT bastard!

post #2 - dengar sini semua !

Lets try this. This blog will for the use and benefit of Makan Relaks Bersukaria staff, friends and family. Since we seem to be doing so many things that seem, well blog-worthy. Haven't figured out exactly how this will work yet, since its 4pm and my brain hurts, but would like to get everyone involved and blogging somehow. Ideas appreciated.

MakanRelaksBersukaria?

Hai kawan-kawan! In response to claims from certain Tourism Ministers that 90% of Malaysian bloggers are female, jobless or liars, I am starting a blog. While the subject nature of this so-called blog has not yet been finalised, we are quite certain that it would be somewhere along the lines of eating, relaxing and plain ol' having fun.Man,this is exciting !