Fat Old Man Running: Youth Carnival 2013 Trail Run

Le' Park Trail Run

After the MAKSAK run I was to take part in the Trail Run held at Taman Le'Park situated behind the Civic Centre. This was part of the Youth Carnival held over the weekend. Events included: basketball, futsal, volleyball, skateboarding, sepak takraw, mountain bike, remote control car and music fest. Tucked in there somewhere was a trail run. This trail run was made even more special as it was situated in the heart of the city. Runners could even go running at night as it was lighted and for safety there was CCTVs too. I had never been to the trail so had a bit of trouble finding it. When in doubt follow others. That's what I did. Since my physician had not allowed me to run I just went to support. I told the nice ladies taking the attendance that I wasn't participating even though I had registered. Many familiar faces were there from the Reservoir Park Running Club. There were matched by the presence of the army boys. Some of the participants from the MAKSAK run were also there. The unfamiliar faces would be the first timers.

Lots of picture taking followed. There were only two races I was interested in - the Men's Veteran and the Men's Open. Due to circumstance the route was shortened from 1.2km to 700m. The runners had to run laps around the course according to their categories. In the end I enjoyed watching all the races. The woman's race was particularly exciting as the lead runner was an expert at running downhill and the one pursuing her was faster on the straight. At the end the second runner nearly caught up with the winner as she stopped a stride short of the finish line. Luckily she managed to breast the tap in time. In that race the winner had given her all and just sat down from exhaustion and had to be lifted away from the running track. As for the veteran race it was a two-horse affair between Kaliani Rajamanickom and Leo Bin (aka Naruto Leong). However Leo could never close the gap and at the end Kaliani won comfortably. The third please finisher was never a threat.

As for the open category it was the army boys against John Lonhienne, a teacher from Belgium. John was in fourth after the first lap but slowly moved up till he was in second. However the lead runner was just too far ahead and increasing the gap. John finished far ahead of the third runner. All told the event was well organised. Many came to test their trail running skills. It was nice to see road runners giving the trail run a go. I am so glad I took my doctor's advice and didn't attempt this event. Now I have a whole week for my right foot to recover before Penang. How I wish more runners had taken part. It seems this trail run was lost among the other activities of the Youth Carnival. Even I heard about it at the last moment. The support amongst the runners was tremendous. The Reservoir Park runners worked tirelessly to help each other by giving water and advice. This is the sort of team spirit I enjoy seeing. Hopefully more trail runs will be organised in the future there. If the course were lengthened it would have been even more challenging.