We Made History At Malaysia Women Marathon

I HAD FUN! Yes, I had fun running 42.195km. It's like running from my home in Seri Kembangan to my office in Bangsar and back but yeah, it was FUN, FUN, FUN. All thanks to all the people involved in the run.
Especially these two, who woke up at weird hours, stayed awake, cheered and at the last 5km, accompanied me all the way to the finish line. Love them, I do. *muaks*
  • Great run, littered with crazy inclines. It's like 30% flat and the rest... The uphill felt looooong and the downhills were too short! *pant pant*
  •  Excellent water stations starting from KM4 and about every 2km after that. I drank and ate too much, I only needed 1 energy gel and a few energy chews to keep me going all through the run.  
  • Very energetic and friendly volunteers. They were all so chirpy even at 5am! Cheers aplenty from MSU students too.
  • Pretty much nice and patient Shah Alam drivers. There were some busy junctions where we had to negotiate ourselves (with MBSA staff just looking on instead of controlling the traffic) but no honking, no (not much) impatient driver. Sure beats Putrajaya drivers. You hear that Putrajaya residents? So, thank you Shah Alam!
  • Absolutely fun, friendly, crazy runners!
I started my run with a group of ladies, at 4.30am sharp, flagged off by Ms Kathrine Switzer; who is the first woman to officially run Boston Marathon. We ran together for 11km then I fall back... as I was taking way too much time taking photos and eating my first (and only) energy gel. Met them again (except the lady in white, who is a FAST runner, she did 4:52! Congrats!!!) at one of the Petronas station later around KM 14. 
 Got quite a bit of entertainment too...
Happy runners and volunteers are kinda entertainment too. You run with a smile when meeting such happy people.

It was around KM13 that I started to experience heel pain and it stayed on till the finish (and until today!) Each step after that was kinda excuriating. And I was praying hard that I won't get too badly injured as I still had 3/4 of the route to finish. *must soldier on* 

Was hoping for a spraying centre but only saw the Perskindol spray at Seksyen 7. Just one spray station. All through 42KM. Boohooohoo. Anyways, stopped there for a while but my pain didn't exactly went away.

It was around this strecth that faster runners started to loop back and I clapped and hooted to all my running friends. Yeah, they all ran faster than me and they all looped me. Spent more time darting to the opposite side of each road to take photos of friends especially the ones doing half marathons. And vice versa.
Andrew who was on volunteer duty cycled by and called out my name there. He was like "First Marathon Woot! Woot!" and I think more than a few runners got a shock at such loud noise. LOL Thank you for the motivation. ^^

Saw plenty of familiar faces at the water station. And FB/Twitter friends too. Plus total strangers who were totally warm and friendly. Getting hi-fives. Getting hi'ed by people by name. Sorry to those I kinda blanked out on your names. Thanks to Khairi for the shout and hi-five.
 This is a familiar face in races here.Me, on super high face.
 Neoh who was helping out at a water station.
Plenty of food here. I ate some deliciously cool grapes here. Plus took a whole lot of photos with runners who were enjoying a munch/a sip there.
2nd Skin team handing out cool watermelon, Hammer Fizz drinks and a water spray. Yup, runner got sprayed here with one HUGE spray bottle and it was invigorating! Thanks TriStupe and team!
and the famous Kak June and Mr Lee. This run sure seems like a run to forage for food! 

No wonder lah I was slow. heh heh *excuses* kakaka

I ran, I chatted with friends, I chatted with random runners, we waved to each other without knowing them, I drank, I ate and I cried. Yes, I cried. Not because I was tired but I got emotional.
As I was approaching the Persiaran Kayangan roundabout at KM32 or so, I saw a bus stop and got weepy. I suddenly thought of my dear, dear late grandfather who used to wait for me arrive from my boarding school at the bus stop. And this, at a time when there were no handphones and I took a bus from Bus Stand Klang to Shah Alam. How long did he wait for me all those times? He'd never say... But he's always there when I returned. *cry buckets*

But I wasn't weepy for long. Too many happy faces around to cheer me up. Can't help but smile to them. 
 
 
Love these signs! 

Actually, by KM30 onwards runners probably felt like they are running an LSD instead of a marathon if not for the water stations and these very, very nice people. OK, so the road was not partially closed for runners but then, this is Shah Alam. We can always run on the pavement instead of the road.

Traffic was getting busier after 8am, and at Seksyen 4 or so roundabout - runners have to cross the road themselves after coming down from Seksyen 7 because no marshall was controlling the traffic and drivers weren't exactly keen to stop for us to cross the road. But at most places it was OK so I'm not too annoyed with this.

I mentioned Shah Alam people are nice, right? Got my photos taken by several people - and they actually slowed their cars in order to do so! So funny! And by the lake area, there were a few people urging us to run. *super appreciate*

Because of all this, and the fact that I passed by my hubby & son three times during the run made me so happy. Never once did I fear about hitting the wall. Partly perhaps because I took it easy. I decided to enjoy this. Yes, I had hoped for a decent timing. Who doesn't? But I'm still OK with a 6:36 timing. More so because I didn't suffer too much post run so I consider it a success.

A BIG thank you to all involved in the marathon. The organizer, the volunteers (the ones seen and the ones not seen), the runners and especially this two guys who made it possible for me to run a marathon, with their staunch support.
Raimie wasn't supposed to tag along on Sunday because of the early hours but after meeting Kathrine Switzer, he requested to join his Daddy and support me.
We walked hand-in-hand to the finish line. He was tired and couldn't jog much so I didn't too. Never mind I was slow to finish. I finished with my Son! 
From KM37 to KM41. With Mommy. Just one more KM to go, Son!
Absolutely love this shot. The boy was tired. But thanks to the encouragement of other runners and volunteers, he ran the final 100m with me together with his Daddy. I felt like a CHAMPION that day. Thank you to PACat Adventure Team for the photos!

Training and running this marathon gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of generous people who are ever willing to share their experience and time to help out each other. For that, I am eternally grateful. One of the reason why I want to be a marathoner too. Marathoners are a cool bunch of people.
Don't you just love to be a part of these quirky people?

An oh yeah, this too...

Doubt if it ever get aired or anything since I just gave a lame answer. But still... ;p

Comments

  1. Congratz Kak Lina for finishing strong n in style yesterday... Gosh, u sure had tonnes of FUN doing your 1st FM... U are officially a Marathoner... woot2, so proud of ya... =D

    Yeah, Abang Zaini n Raimie were very supportive and patiently wait for you throughout the event... Super awesome cheering team aka support crew... So lucky of ya =D *Clap2...

    I`m sure U`ll run your Anniversary FM next year hehe... U`ve made history in Shah Alam, double yayyy... Looks like u r ready for BIM, Sis... Hehee...

    Wowww, it sure is a FM Food Galore along the FM route... I could see many kedai runcit n RnR along that route.. FM runners were so lucky... Hehee...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. FM runners are very lucky because fellow marathoners are a supportive bunch.

      That's what inspire my family in supporting, not only for me, but for other runners too. Maybe no glory, but the satisfaction of giving back after receiving so much is unquantifiable. *poyonyer* keskeskes

      Delete
    2. Yessss, couldn`t agreed more on that... Fellow marathoners and ultras people r very supportive bunch indeed...

      I could see there were lots of kedai runcits were open along the 30++km onwards, kak june, deo`s, 2ndSkinAsia too, goshhh.... Happening giler... Hehee Yayyy training kak lina selama ini membuahkan hasil juga akhirnya...

      Today not walking like a crab ek? Hehee... Ohsem FMV journey...

      Delete
    3. Hasil?

      not yet. I belum reach my target time lagi. But tunguuuuuuuu

      Poyo x? :-P

      Delete
  2. Wow, that's a great run!!! =]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed it was. :)

      Wasn't perfect but great nonetheless. ^^

      Delete
  3. I yg nangis baca ur blog post!!! Perfect recap kak. I truly truly enjoyed the run, with you, kak millie, kam and the other runners aka strangers. Terharuuuuuuu

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. WE DID IT Nannoor! Yeay to us!

      Hahaha jangan nangis. Emo I tawwww wakaka

      Bila start training balik nih? kekeke

      I pulled a tendon (yg start sakit masa sblm sampai Petronas), so Doktor advise rest seminggu. He told me it'll be OK since BIM is exactly one month from now. Heee Pandai Doktor. xD

      Delete
  4. aiyoh, such a happy event lah, and a good family bonding too!! tengok itu bunny ears on mommy, bee antenna on son and that cute polka dots XXX ears on daddy.. awesome!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm so touched they were sporting enough to don those headbands for "lina's" team. :)

      Delete
  5. i actually think those cheerleaders were way more interesting and attractive huh?? love all those banners they DIY, so catchy and so funny too!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yup, love those signs.

      Love those holding them too because they were so supportive. :)

      Delete
  6. but those Raimie and Zaini did were even nicer, got color somemore!! where is that "Oprah did it, so can you!!" banner??

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ada.

      Not shown here.

      In FB album can see. ;)

      Delete
  7. happy happy tangkap gambar here and there huh?? i like the last 3rd photo the most, what a cool family portrait!! but then imperfection lah, you should crop away those bunch of people on the right~~ :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The people there is lest as is, to show the mood mah... ;)

      Delete
  8. the last 2nd photo that bigger photo at the bottom left!! got a drag queen wearing pink sarong to run!! hahahaha, eih, where is your petai costume?? you kalah to him lah macam ni~~ :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That pink sarong man is Yim. I took photo with him and mentioned about him in previous post. :)

      Delete
  9. Proud!! proud Proud of You kak lina.. and other krazirunners too!! U are now officially a MARATHONERs.. congratss.. Memang sedih bercampur gembira baca this post.. pejuang 42km!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BET,
      You did well too! Congrats on another half-marathon. Masa terserempak dgn you tu, you pun nampak rilek jer. :)

      Jom lari lagi JOMMMMM!!!!

      Delete
  10. on air TV1, TV2, TV3, NTV7 or TV9 or Astro?? must record it down lah.. becomes celebrity already this Mak Rempinator~~

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ROFL

      Tengok2 sudah kena delete already. I gave boring answer la. Just finished running 42km that time, brain not functioning properly yet. ;p

      Delete
  11. congrats once again to kaklina the marathoner!! and also to abg zaini & raimie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Has.

      One day kita run one together. Deal? :)

      Delete
  12. Way to go Lina...Congrats!

    ReplyDelete
  13. That was an awesome thing to finish the line with your son!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was a priceless moment. I was so happy. :)

      Delete
  14. Hai kak lina..
    Congrats..sgt enjoy follow your running story.. admire u!

    *sy skodeng blog ni dr blog nannor..u all mmg superb! Admire kak milie too..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Liza *wave wave*

      Thanks. :)

      The ladies are awesome. Millie did extremely well, kan? So proud of her. And Nannor, Hanim (who did her sub5), Ejah, Farisha not to mention the half-marathoners Bett too. :)

      Delete
  15. Lina congrats on yout first FM, so glad I stayed on to watch you finish with your boys. They were so supportive on my course too so I really appreciated them. You are so blessed!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for supporting and staying back!

      Plus BIG congrats to yet another PB. You are UNSTOPPABLE! :)

      Delete
  16. wah lau eh ....nearly 50KM...Bravo!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. eh eh bintang film ka? kena interview?

      Delete
    2. Love the 3 in a family running together punya photo

      Delete
    3. Eh! How come I missed these comments?

      Maybe if add another 8km, I cry first la. LOL

      Delete
    4. 50km easy for u la...ahem...I heard doneone mentioned 100km *wink wink*

      Delete
    5. *look in innocence* LOL

      Delete
  17. Congrats on completing your marathon on such a tough route. I think all runners irrespective of distance are a cool bunch of people :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But I do think fun runners are the most kiasu type! LOL

      No offense. Just kidding! xD

      Thanks Nick. Looking forward to the next one. Never did once during the run, I regretted my decision to do it. :)

      Delete
  18. congrats Lina!
    To many more ahead ;)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Congratulation on your first Full Marathon!
    Hope your leg is doing fine, have a good rest and speed recover.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Neoh.

      And thanks for yesterday too. :)

      Delete
  20. Lina, congratulations girlllll!!!! You did it!!
    Sampai hari ni macam tak percaya that we actually did a full, complete marathon. Alhamdulillah.
    Zaini & Raimie, thanks for snapping pics of us..I pun rasa best every time nampak diaorang berdua..it was great to see familiar faces every few km.
    Minggu ni gantung kasut ye :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Super congrats to you and your awesome timing!!!! Sangat sangat kagum!

      Lepas ni sub2 HM at BIM! Yeay!!!!

      This race is great. Muka yg tak familiar pun so friendly, they all become familiar kan?

      Gantung kasut? Yelah... ingat main beskal "je" malam ni.

      p.s. Patutkah saya mengurangkan xtvt amek gambar utk dpt timing yg lebih baik? Hmmm...

      Delete
    2. Thanks Lina but haaaahhhh me sub2 for HM..?? Macam tak je huhuu...
      Haa apa kata cuba tak bawak kamera. And don't be tempted to use your phone to snap pics. Hehe. Mintak tolong hubby dearest je ambikkan :P

      Delete
    3. Tak syiok takde kamera. Masalah noi. wakaka

      Sub2 for you? Never say never. You have the grit to do it!

      Aim for the sky, Woody pesan. kekeke

      Delete
  21. Replies
    1. Probably could've better. Thanks :-)

      Delete
  22. Congrats Marathoner. Proud of you. Never doubt it, since you're one dedicated car park runner :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kahkahkah

      Carpark takde bukit bukau mcm Shah Alam. ;p

      Tengs Ultraman Ray ^^

      Esp for the bananas. I loike. ;P

      Delete
  23. Well done girl! Last at MPIB you were my target to keep up with. This time around I was glad to see you running with your bobby ears:D Good job for running till the end...your kid did well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No ears, nobody would know its me. Easy for random runners to say hi to. LOL

      You didn't run MWM? How about SCKLM in June? Another HM for you?

      Delete
  24. Wow! Looks like you had a fun and enjoyable run!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I sure did!

      Raring to do more now! :-)

      Delete
  25. Oh those signs are funny and creative!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They sure are. And make us smile too. :)

      Delete
  26. So this one was pretty well organized? And Shah Alam is better than Putrajaya?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. the route is harder but generally Shah Alam drivers are more patient than Putrajaya's. ;-)

      Delete
  27. Great of Raimie to finish the last 100m with you! Such a good boy! : )

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He actually run/walked for 5km with me. It's that final 100m, with the encouragements of others he ran to the finish line. :-D

      Delete
  28. SO this is your first full marathon? Congrats!! But running 42 km is way too much for me hahaha!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. At the risk if sounding pompous, running a marathon may not be for everyone.

      It does take a lot of commitment, training & time wise to do this. Need to be slightly mental too, to expect that you'll enjoy it. Kakaka

      Delete
  29. Congrats Sis. Running 42km, regardless what timing is crazy. Me pelan pelan 10k dulu

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Matjoe.

      All the best to you running too. Enjoy!

      Lps ni masuk race apa? :-)

      Delete
  30. What a great post: fun and joy and success sparkling in every word and photo. ^^

    Congratulations again, jungle woman. WELL DONE to you and COOL JOB to your family for supporting you so splendidly.

    PS: Yikes, and I thought running was suffering. You had way too much fun. ^^

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you fellow barbarian. :-D

      Well, with running you can actually combine suffering with fun. Too much pain until brain can't think anymore. LOL

      The boys were great,weren't they? Love them to bits :-)

      Delete
  31. Tell u what.. doing this kind of event much more fun then running lower then this distance.. klu buat ultra lagi best.. setiap org yg kita jumpa.. they will keep ask to keep moving.. encourage u sampai xda air mata dah nak keluar..

    Anyway.. congrats.. u are marathoner now.. keep believe on what u are doing.. Life Is To Short To Be Ordinary..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am definitely in awe with ultra marathoners. You all very committed and yet so humble and laidback.

      Thanks Arman.

      Big congrats and salute to your awesome wife too! :)

      Delete
  32. Looks like you really had fun, Kak Lina! (Yes I'm going to call you Kakak from now on because of my Kakngah hehehe). Wish I was there to support all of you too. Many2 congratulations, and please savor the triumph, because you are a definitely champ!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Erma! Lama tak dengar!

      Apsal tak join? Rugilah. Event best. Sure boleh terserempak dua-tiga kali. ^^

      Hari tu you join Brooks kan? Was hoping to see you.

      Thanks for the nice words. :)

      Delete
    2. I did actually register for HM hehehe... Just got back from umrah trip on Friday, went down with fever a bit so decided to skip this one. Masa Brooks tu I didn't see you or Kak Nannoor at all, I guess you all terbang? T___T InshaaAllah if I see your bunny headband again, I'll say hi!

      Delete
    3. Ooooo... No wonder xde.

      Brooks, I lari lambat sangat kot. Nno lak hari tu kemain laju... :-)

      Lepas ni apa race dh register? Kidney run masuk? :-)

      Delete
    4. Kidney run I tak join, the nearest run is KL road race this Sunday inshaaAllah, next would be SCKL. You will be doing 2nd FM in May kan? Gambattene!

      Delete
    5. Tak.... was planning to do my 2nd FM at BIM. X jadi la pulak since it falls on election day. Nampak gaya 2nd FM kena tunggu River Jungle Marathon lepas raya nanti. :(

      SCKLM buat HM. I nak improve on last year's timing. Cekononnya nak try sub2:20. hur hur.

      Good luck for KL Road Race! Enjoy! :)

      Delete
  33. lina, this is a great post. You finished 42.195km. huh! I imagined, 6 x 7 km = 42 km, meaning, I need to run 6 hours. Faint.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You did it. It was so touching when seeing Zaini and Raimie so supportive and running together with you to finish line. They are two great men.

      Delete
    2. 6 x 7km of hilly course. :-D

      Well, not to sound like I know everything but running a marathon really needs commitment and hard work.

      Yeah, my two boys are awesome. They were very popular with other runners too, who appreciated my boys support. :-)

      Delete
    3. Anyway, I actually ran more than 42k on Sunday because I keep crossing the road and take friends' photos and stuff. Even lepak at Petronas for a while. LOL

      Delete
  34. You make so many friends that day and you had so much fun, it will be a very memorable day for you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It wad a fun day & now I'm looking forward for the next marathon. :-)

      Delete
  35. You are now a celebrity runner! When Lina becomes a grandma and everyone will still remember you and your bunny ears! So many fans you have!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Not fans lah.

      Runners are always super friendly what. More so the ones doing longer distance.

      Ask Letchumi. I bet she agrees. :)

      Delete
  36. You cried on seeing the bus stop! So sedih lah!

    My wife also gets emo when she sees a cup of warm Horlicks in front of her!!! Funny ladies! LOL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shows we are in tune with our inner feelings ;P

      Delete
  37. alamak, malu jer for the famous lol
    you did swell, must tell u again and again!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are! You are! People do look forward to meeting you, not only at KM36 tawwwww. :-)

      You're one of my inspiration too. I forgot to mention to Jamie your name for his post 2moro.

      Runs...

      Delete
  38. Hi Lina! I'm from VirtualMalaysia.com. Would be lovely to have you as our article contributor based on your superb story to read and shared experience.

    Please refer this this link :

    http://www.virtualmalaysia.com/virtual-malaysia-contributor/.

    ReplyDelete

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