Pacesetters 3030 Run 2014 - Updates!

PRESS RELEASE

The INOV-8 Pacesetters 3030 Run 2014 was officially launched at the Garden Mid-Valley Mall, Kuala Lumpur. Organised by Pacesetters Athletic Club (PAC) with title sponsor INOV-8, the event was officiated by Mr. Robert Lu, the President of Key Power International and Mr. Wan Yew Leong, the President of Pacesetters Athletic Club. With all 8 categories opened for registration since 16 July 2014, the event has garnered good response from runners. The organisers targeted to get 3,000 runners over the 3 distances - 30km, 20km and 10km.

Wan Yew Leong said that “PAC’s vision and aspiration is to be the leading running club in the country and region. To achieve this, we will organise three events that aim to be “best in class” in the region. The INOV-8 Pacesetters 3030 Run 2014 is the first of these three events. 2014 is the 30th anniversary of the founding of the club and having a 30km run to celebrate this special occasion would be really memorable. There are 10 marathons and several more half marathons in Malaysia, but there are no 30km events. This is a boutique event and provides an opportunity for those wanting to test their readiness for the full marathon. For seasoned marathon runners, this is a long run that is essential for their marathon preparation.”

INOV-8 Pacesetters 3030 Run 2014 is to be flagged off at Padang Merbok. Runners will get to experience some of the finest run routes in Kuala Lumpur, running through leafy Kenny Hills and Sri Hartamas. They will be well catered to, with 13, 8 and 3 drink stations on the 30km, 20km and 10km routes respectively.

“As a running club, we encourage our members to go natural in their diet as we feel the best fuel the body can get is from natural sources, therefore we aim offer fruit-themed refreshments. We will serve bananas before, during and after the run. In addition, water melons, oranges & apples will also be provided as post run snacks” Wan added.

“Our club’s tagline, ‘Setting the Pace Together’ will be printed on the finisher’s shirts. The INOV-8 Pacesetters 3030 Run originated from a 30km training run organized by runners for runners many years ago. We hope this event will inspire other running clubs in the country to have their own events in their towns. We have a vision of a circuit of runs organized by runners for runners across the country. PAC will provide the lead in co-ordinating a series of runs by running clubs in 2015.” concluded Wan.

Robert Lu said “The Ministry of Youth and Sports’ vision is to champion the empowerment of superior youth and sports development and to inculcate sports culture within the society by year 2015. Our focus includes exposure and opportunities for confidence building, engagement and activism for community development and to support and engage the youth of Malaysia."

This is our sixth 30km event and it is made possible by title sponsor INOV-8 in partnership with event owner and organiser, Pacesetters Athletic Club. Garmin is the official fitness watch and Running Malaysia is the media partner of the event."

For immediate registration, go to www.myraceonline.com Also see our facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/1507084776194776/ 

For further information, please contact: Wan Yew Leong 019-3569031, wanyewleong@gmail.com

Designs of The Inov8 Pacesetters 3030 Run Finisher Ts 

 

 

Medal designs of INOV8 Pacesetters 3030 Run 

Hello Kitty Run 2014 (Singapore)

Anyone want to run for Hello Kitty goodies?

Hello Kitty fans out there will be extremely excited about this event. The fact that Hello Kitty is not a cat, but a cheerful and happy little girl with a heart of gold, will not dampen their support. Yours truly as a cat lover always assumed Hello Kitty was a cat. However everyone in Japan knew otherwise. Since of course Kitty White, that's her real name has her very own pet - a 'real' cat named Charmmy Kitty. Kitty facts I learned along the way: She, the person, and not the cat, was born in southern England on 1st November 1974. She is a Scorpio and blood type A. She has a twin sister, Minny White, and lives in London with her father George and her mother Mary. So for her 40th anniversary Hello Kitty gets her very own run in Singapore.  The event will be held on 1st November 2014. Those wanting to know more and how to register can click here.

CJC 20th Thursday Night Run

5km and 10km Runs

Constant runners in Kuching will know that every Thursday night at MBKS the City Jogger's Club of  organises a run. The distances are usually 5km and 10km with the routes changing from time to time. All runners are invited to join these runs. It doesn't matter how young or old, or fit you are. Or whether you are a member of the club or not. What matters is your willingness to run. Those wanting to join need only pay an RM2 registration fee. Our CJC members will act as road marshals to insure the safety of the runners. Of course runners must play their part too and observe basic road safety measures. It is advisable for runners to wear bright coloured clothing and also use blinkers or strobe lights to enhance visibility at night. When running with children please make sure they run close to you too. Be sure to sign in before the run and sign out after completing the run. Otherwise CJC runners will have to go out searching for you. Having run this night run several times I can assure everyone that it is very well organised. Runners are entitled to drinks and fruits and sometimes even porridge and noodles after the run. Fellow runners frequently donate other goodies too from chocolate wafers to even beer! So each time a runner joins this event what awaits them at the finishing line maybe completely different. What is for sure is that the CJC Club takes really good care of their runners. The run usually starts at 7.30pm. There is usually a zumba session before that so it is advisable to be there by 7pm on 4th September 2014.

CJC 20th Thursday Night Run route

Malaysia Day Run 2014

Faces without Races

Nothing better to do on 16th September 2014, and wanting to show your love for your country and your fellow men?  Well, if you are a runner, and want to run in a group on that Tuesday morning, we in Kuching have just the run for you! Come just us for a run to Damai Sentral from the Amphitheater. If you feel the 34km distance is too much for you, having not run the full 42.195km at the recent Kuching Marathon, then you can stop at the Santubong Bridge for a 20km run. Then you will be driven to Damai Sentral. For those who want an even shorter distance, they can start at the Santubong Bridge itself and run to Danai Sentral to cover 14km. Then for those fun runners among us, they can start from the road entrance to Santubong Village and finish at Damai Sentral for a 4km run. Refreshments will be served at Damai Sentral. Approximate finishing times are between 7am to 8am. We will wait till the last runner returns.  Those wanting to register for this run can contact Jay Then at jay_then85@hotmail.com. Please provide your name, email address, distance, and t-shirt size (chest width: XS 38cm, S 40cm, M 44cm, L 46cm, XL 48cm). The registration fee is RM35, subject to a slight change, if necessary.  Water stations will be at Santubong and at the start point for the 4km besides the final one at Damai Sentral. The run guide will be provided. The dateline for registration is 3rd September 2014. T-shirts will be distributed to participants on or by 14th September 2014. I have been inundated by inquiries of whether there are medals and prizes. Please note that this is a patriotic run and not a race. The t-shirt is just for us to commemorate the occasion.

Flag off time:

3:30am from amphitheater for 20km and 34km.
5:45am from Santubong Bridge for 14km.
7:00am for 4km starting from road entrance to Santubong Villages

 

 

Special 34km Finisher T-shirt available!

The organisers of the Malaysia Day Run in Kuching have created a special 34km Finisher T-shirt for those runners who have signed up and completed the distance. They can purchase this T-shirt for a nominal fee having met these requirements. Interested parties can contact Jay Then. Please note no category change will be entertained.

 

 

The Great Race 2014

Royal Brunei Airlines' 40th Anniversary Charity Race

Yours truly must admit to smiling when he found out about this "The Great Race". It was like, why have I not heard about it before if it is a "great race"? Now I know why...  Lets hear what the organisers have to say, shall we? "In conjunction with Royal Brunei Airlines' 40th Anniversary, Royal Brunei (RB) is organizing a charity race for the public called "The Great Race", and it will be the anchor event for RB's Corporate Social Responsibility initiative. The Great Race will take place on Sunday 19th October 2014. With six different categories, The Great Race will be a different experience from other marathons as it is a marathon with challenges tailored with an aviation concept.  RB has appointed Green Brunei and Brunei Paralympics to be the beneficiaries for The Great Race 2014. The proceeds from The Great Race 2014 will assist Green Brunei to move forward with the Mangrove Rehabilitation Project along the Sungai Damuan at Kampong Bengkurong, and likewise, Brunei Paralympics with their activities."

First of, there is a Corporate Team Challenge. I guess we can give that one a miss. The events where the money is are the 5km Short Haul and the 10km Long Haul. There's 3km Happy Flight for the fun runners that of course comes with no prize money. What I do know is the 10km event comes with 4 obstacles. Online registration has already started. All registration will end on 19 September 2014. Those wanting to learn more can visit their website by clicking here. Those who want to register can click here.  Please not that this event is only open to Brunei residents with a Brunei address. Now it seems really ironic why they call it a great race. Oh well, those who want to run in Brunei can always join the inaugural full marathon there.

Charity Walk with Happy 2014

A truly happy walk for charity

Last year I joined the Charity Walk with Happy, and had an enjoyable experience. Click here to find out more. This year the charity event is back  and their target charity is S.O.S. Kids Kuching. Click here to visit their Facebook page. Registration ends on 6th September 2014. So those who have not registered for this 5km fun event please do so quickly. It will be held on 21st September 2014 at the Taman Le' Park (formerly Kuching Integrated Recreational Centre) at 6am.  RM20 gets the participant a t-shirt and lots of goodies, plus snacks and drinks. The Lian Hua Seng, or Happy Rice people, take good care of their participants as can be attested from last year's event. This charity event is ideally suited for those who are not ready yet to run 5km and want to give a walk a try. Those needing to know more can visit their website. The official registration form can be seen below.

Marathon Maniac #9696 - Nasa Zaidul

Kuching's first female Maniac

Yours truly was with Nasa Zaidul on the eve of her first full marathon, the River Jungle Marathon, on 31st August 2013. She had trained really hard for it, yet all the doubts were there. What I can tell you about her is beneath that diminutive exterior is one determined dynamite of a lady, who will face any challenge head-on, and do whatever it takes to succeed.  I promised to run with her the whole way, which I did, and she found that it wasn't as tough as she thought to run 42.195km, coming home in 7:10. However she had to admit this wasn't something she would like to do often, preferring instead to run the shorter 21km distance, which she did in several other races. However the urge to run a full marathon distance emerged again when the Island Ocean Marathon, the sister marathon to the River Jungle Marathon, was announced on 10th August 2014. The only problem was that Nasa had already signed up for the full distance for her very own hometown marathon, the Kuching Marathon on 17th August 2014. 

So what Nasa and I did for that matter was to take IOM as an LSD run. There was no intention to crack the 7:30 barrier. In fact we came in at 7:50, together with our good friend and running buddy Shin Wong. Told her there was no shame in finishing with such a time. The important thing was that she finished. Not many runners even dare sign up or start a full marathon distance, let alone complete it. That's what she had done, not once, but twice. However her next run, on 17th August 2014,  would be different as she had to run against the clock, since the Kuching Marathon had a 7 hour cut-off.  This time I had to rein myself in as I would be running the Starlight Ultra 84km Solo in Penang six days later. Nasa ran with our dear friend Mohan Marathon for up to 28km. Mohan really knows how to pace and motivate runners, so I knew she was in excellent hands. Then later it was coach Terence Poon's turn to takeover the pacing reins when Mohan had to take care of some stragglers. Suffice to say the experience of Terence, as well as the mental strength and never-say-die attitude of Nasa prevailed and she finished in a personal best of 6:47:02.

Nasa will next run the River Jungle Marathon for the second consecutive year. She is now Marathon Maniac #9696. For those unfamiliar with what the Marathon Maniacs are, they can click here.  Kuching now has many full marathoners. We also have a couple of Marathon Maniacs, including me (Maniac #7614), Philip Chua, the Kuching Marathon race director (Maniac #8255), Shannon Francis Bala (Maniac #8234), and George Chapman (Maniac #9478). Hopefully with Nasa being the first female Maniac from Kuching, other women might choose to follow in her footsteps. It isn't difficult to achieve that goal. However not every runner is cut out to be a Marathon Maniac and run many races during the year. That of course doesn't mean they cannot sign up as a Maniac, if they qualify for it. Am so looking forward to seeing Nasa wear the signature yellow singlet of the Maniacs  during a full marathon. Nasa dared to dream big and transform it into reality. So if she can do it so too can any runner out there.

Running the Hulu Langat route at RJM 2013

FMV no more at RJM 2013

Me, our friend Shin Wong, with Nasa at IOM 2014

Nasa running with Mohan Marathon at KM 2014

Nasa with her medal at KM 2014