I can still run faster than her but I do not know for how long. I will no longer be the fastest runner in the family.

See you at the starting ling.

“Some people live their dreams
Some people live their lives
Some people’s destiny passes by”

Live your dreams, take those items off your bucket list.

Item 88. Run a marathon with your spouse.

Another one off my list.

See you at the starting line.

Running shoes for $29-$59!!!! That’s a real bargain even if the Singapore Dollar is still strong.

It was the the day before the Singapore Marathon and we had to make a detour to stock up on our running shoes.

See you at the starting line.

There a few good place to run in Jakarta. The best is at the zoo. Entrance fee is very affordable and there is a 5 km loop with little traffic if you start early. It is a popular place to train and the Jakarta Free Spirit running club has a weekly Saturday morning run for their members at the zoo. Later in the day the foot traffic can be unbearable as most of the general public start streaming in.

Once a year Jakarta Free Spirit organizes a 21k run in the zoo and many of the Jakarta based runners look forward to it. I believe it is the only half marathon in Jakarta. It is sponsored by Standard Charter bank and the winners gets free entry to the Singapore Marathon.

See you at the starting line.

This is my latest race report.

It was no contest. Flying is faster than running except for balloons.

Flying is more efficient because there is less contact with the ground and you can put more energy into moving forward.

When we run we loss some energy because we bounce up and down. The better runners bounce less and put more energy into moving forward.

I better stop analyzing why I lost to a bird. Flying is more efficient than runnning and I will never win against this bird.

See you all at the starting line.

It was a great day, a sunny day perfect for racing. This was the first time we were going to run at Ancol. Ancol is a seaside amusement park at the north of Jakarta. We don’t usually go north because of the traffic so this was a treat. We expected big crowd because we were told that 3,000 people were registered to run. But it looked like a small crowd. The 16.8K race had no more than 150 people at the starting line. It was nice to run in a small race with a big budget. I can imagine the big field in KOTR Manila. The race felt familiar. The stage, the starting line, the banners, the people even looked like Pinoys, But it was a bit strange listening to the announcements in Bahasa.

The race started at 6:15. It was 15 minutes late because we had to wait for the Governor of Jakarta to arrive and give a short speech. Luckily it was a short speech.

The race was relatively well organized and runners started pulling away from me as I struggled to keep my pace at 5 minutes per kilometer. I decided to stop looking at the watch and run by feel. I wanted to run as fast as possible without building up too much lactic acid. But by the time we approached the 10 km mark I knew I was well off my target pace. I could not resist taking a peek and split was 53 minutes.

My training had gone from bad to worse but I was still hoping to run 5 minutes per kilometer. You can call me an optimist.

We had made it to the turnaround and I knew We were on our way back but I was already hurting. I struggled and walked every now and then the rest of the way. I would take a break at each water stop to drink and pour cold water on my head. Runners were passing me, girls, a guy with shades, a couple shuffling past me. It suddenly dawned on me that the 5K and 10K runners had merged with us. No wonder everyone was passing me.

I finally crossed the finish line in 1;29:00. Maybe next y ear I will do better. I slowly walked back to cheer Tiffin and to my surprised she was not too far away and she completed the run in 1:42:05.

Next race is the Stanchart Half Marathon at the end of October.

See you at the starting line.

Sometimes I feel like I am running in circles. No matter how hard I try I always end up in the same place. I usually end up building base and dreaming of taking my running to the next level.

It gets harder as you get older. The latest Christmas morning just seems to be cooler and my waistline a little bit bigger. But thoughts of the next Condura run keeps my running spirit burning with desire. Early morning plantar fascitiis sometimes makes the morning runs harder.

Lifes demands have also made me miss so many workouts. It takes longer for me to recover. I guess the stress and tension of a of everything else in life has taken its toll on me.

My running cycles have gotten shorter and my rest cycles have gotten longer.

But running always comes back like persistent suitor, no that is a bad example it is like an addiction and it is too painful to leave behind and forget.

So I will be there running and getting ready to race, getting ready to test myself, getting ready to prove that not only am I alive but that I am ready to face all the challenges that the race has to offer.

Life is not about sitting down, but life is about running a letting your spirit push the body to its limit.

See you all at the starting line.

A clean well lighted place… Actually a clean, traffic free and car free place is the perfect place to run.

This is one run we really enjoyed!

See you at the starting line.

There are days when you need some motivation to do that long run, finish your interval session, stretch that tempo run or just plain wake up at 5:00 am to run.

I usually look at races to keep me going and stretching myself. Unfortunately there are very few races where I now live.

But I suggest you all go and reach for the finish line. Run your best and keep challenging yourself.

See you at the starting line.

One of the joys of running is conquering the elements. Running in the rain is one of the joys of running. The cool drops of water that wick away the heat is welcome in our tropical climate.

But there are a few things you may want to do to make sure it remains pleasant.

1) Wear a cap to keep the raindrops out of your eyes. People who wear eyeglasses will benefit from this the most. They don’t make windshield wipers for eyeglasses.

2) Since we live in the tropics I recommend running shoes that allow water to drain out. Water proof running shoes can be hot and the waterproof lining works both ways. It keeps water in, so if you step on a deep puddle or if water seeps in because of strong rain you are in for a sloshy run.

3) You may want to invest in some proper running sock that wick away the water. Purely cotton socks can be uncomfortable.

4) Always have extra set of clothes, shoes and socks so you can change and stay dry after the race. Most people forget to bring extra shoes of slippers.

My one and only 20K run was in the rain and the cool weather helped me race to a PR.

I hope you enjoy running in the rain and see you at the starting line.