InSaNeT@z

Sentosa Flower Festival 2012

2012-01-26T14:49:00.000+08:00

River Hongbao 2012

2012-01-23T01:36:00.000+08:00

Labrador Nature & Coastal Walk

2012-01-14T11:06:00.000+08:00

Labrador Nature & Coastal Walk is the latest attraction by nparks. This is actually an extension to the
is the existing Labrador Nature Reserve. The opening of this extension allows visitors to walk from Labrador Nature Reserve all the way till Harbourfront and Vivocity via the coastal path while admiring the the beautiful boats and yachets by Keppel Bay and the iconic private residential projects like reflections at keppel bay and caribbean by Keppel Bay and also the Keppel bridge.

Learn about your banana

2011-12-01T17:32:00.000+08:00

Marina Bay Transformation in 5 years

2011-11-26T21:48:00.002+08:00

Back in Nov 2006:

Now in Nov 2011:

Christmas Tree 2011: Toa Payoh Central

2011-11-24T20:17:00.000+08:00

Christmas Tree 2011: Inside Suntec

2011-11-21T20:16:00.000+08:00

Christmas Tree 2011: Outside Suntec

2011-11-19T20:14:00.000+08:00

A very real advertisement for all runners - Anti-Shoe Infomercial

2011-11-18T00:14:00.001+08:00

黄山前山的风景

2011-11-03T23:31:00.002+08:00

Scenery of Huangshan western side (Click to enlarge)

My Waterway@Punggol

2011-10-23T21:25:00.000+08:00

Heavy western teabreak

2011-10-19T22:24:00.000+08:00

Where it flooded not long after opening

TNF100 Singapore 2011: The slope that kills

2011-10-16T12:45:00.000+08:00

Lor Asrama .265 beside SLE across Woodland.

This is where I power-bathed, dug trenches, poo and pee and slept 15 years ago.

TheNorthFace 100 Singapore 2011 Route

2011-10-10T11:02:00.000+08:00

Click to enlarge

Simple traditional yet expensive tea break

2011-10-08T22:22:00.001+08:00

You know what shop is it from the wooden block

Skew Pig trotter......

2011-10-05T22:16:00.001+08:00

Somewhere in Kovan

Symphony of Birds

2011-10-02T21:50:00.000+08:00

@Bedok Reservoir

Project Love Sneaker 2011

2011-09-28T21:32:00.000+08:00

This time...I thinking hard if I will to donate my last pair of "proper" running shoes:

The Final March.......

2011-09-19T00:49:00.001+08:00

Thanks to roamingglass for capturing the final moment.....

Kway tiao Mee Goreng....

2011-09-10T21:39:00.000+08:00

Look nice but........

Nasi goreng istimewa......O country Club

2011-09-07T21:38:00.000+08:00

Another toes shoes coming to the market: Adidas Adipure

2011-08-24T22:40:00.001+08:00

Big brand challenging VFF?

more details at birthdayshoes.com

white white bee hoon but plenty of taste

2011-08-06T23:02:00.001+08:00

One hungry noon....colleague and I decided to venture out further from office and found this

You can find what I mean at:
http://foodiefc.wordpress.com/2010/11/28/sembawang-white-beehoon-sembawang-%E7%99%BD%E7%B1%B3%E7%B2%89/
and
http://lovesingaporefood.blogspot.com/2009/04/sembawang-white-bee-hoon.html
and
http://strawberrychan.blogspot.com/2010/01/you-huak-sembawang-white-bee-hoon.html
and
http://velleyeo.blogspot.com/2009/08/sembawang-white-bee-hoon.html
and
http://wensdelight.blogspot.com/2010/10/sembawang-white-bee-hoon.html
and there even have facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sembawang-%E7%99%BD%E7%B1%B3%E7%B2%89/283835041786?v=info

One hot day at a hot place.....took this for my wallpaper

2011-08-03T23:00:00.000+08:00

free flow of red red prawn............

2011-07-29T22:52:00.001+08:00

One day at a hotel buffet lunch......this is the only impressive stuff i found in the spread

I ate it all and found a good place to dump its head:

Trying another new released rubber: NB Minimus

2011-07-25T22:50:00.000+08:00

Finally, after months and years of speculation and marketing...this is finally out in our local stores called Running Labs..I was told that it just arrived that morning that I tried and I am the first to try it out there....asked for a size 12 which is my usual running shoes size...the sizing is alright..at least it felt much better than the other similar shoes I tried: Merrell trail gloves...The arch area does not felt restricted or weird...I was thinking maybe half a size smaller might be just right.....no time....maybe next time i go and try again...

So tempting....so tempting

so I decided to carry on thinking thinking thinking........

Route for Inaugural Adidas King of the Road Singapore 2011

2011-07-20T18:00:00.000+08:00

No Sheares Bridge after 19 years of SBR/AHM......

2011-07-17T17:59:00.000+08:00

It was called Sheares Bridge Run until some creative guy changed it to Singapore Bay Run and now after 19 years running the event, another smart guy took out Sheares Bridge from the route. It was my favourite part of the route no matter how the rest of the route are changed.

Should i continue running this?

Friday (Chad Vader)

2011-06-24T11:57:00.000+08:00

SATURDAY ( huh?)

2011-06-18T11:53:00.000+08:00

Friday (Katy Perry)

2011-06-10T01:00:00.000+08:00

Friday (Hokkien)

2011-06-03T01:00:00.000+08:00

Friday (Chinese)

2011-05-27T06:00:00.003+08:00

Friday (English)

2011-05-20T23:38:00.000+08:00

Rare sighting at marina barrage!!

2011-05-11T01:38:00.000+08:00

This is not the first time I seen a kite soaring our blue sky but this is the first time I saw this with my eyes in Singapore....place your mouse over the photo to zoom in:

Nicole Seah Party going for a run on polling day at marina barrage???

2011-05-09T13:24:00.003+08:00

Nicole Seah taking MRT to her Rally in her party coloured top. Put your mouse over her photo to see what happened on polling day at marina barrage.....

Handsome looking, Aggressive Claw -> Inov-8 Bare-Grip 200

2011-05-07T02:11:00.000+08:00

Inov-8 Bare-Grip 200 Review by Barefoot Running University

What you need when running a hot weather marathon?

2011-05-05T13:42:00.000+08:00

Water mist tunnel:

@ SSC

Upcoming minimalist shoes launch: Hattori (Japanese Knife?Samurai>)

2011-05-01T10:08:00.003+08:00

Hattori Hanzō (服部半蔵?, ~1542[1] – 1596), also known as Hattori Masanari (服部正成?), was a famous samurai and shinobi of the Sengoku era.[2] He is often a subject of modern Japanese popular culture, usually with greatly exaggerated ninja skills.

Ichiro Hattori, the Stubborn Craftsman who Never Compromises to any quality issues...His "Never Compromise" attidude to seek the finest workmanship has made him called as "World's Best Knife Craftsman". He was also honored to receive "Excellent Skilled Craftsman Award" from Seki Knife Industrial Association. When you hold his knife in hand and actually use it, you will know and admit that he really deserve it.

Creating another waves of attention is the upcoming Sauony Hattori:

From runningwarehouse blog:

"The new Hattori is a zero drop running shoe that sports a reported midsole height of 10 mm and weighs in at a reported 4.5 oz for a men’s size 9.0."

Mentioned in runblogger, barefootdaves, barefootrunningshoes.org, birthdayshoes.......

and intro videos on it:

貢 - to pay tribute to one's emperor

2011-04-29T13:37:00.000+08:00

貢茶 (Gong Cha) - Tea used as a tribute to one's emperor??

Alishan Mile green tea with pearl:

I don't taste anything good enough for the emperor...."Japanese Carp" is better

"Japanese carp" Cafe......can't find any fish there

2011-04-28T13:28:00.000+08:00

Where the fishes?

Only found a large cup of milk powdered green tea with lots of black pearls:

Koi Cafe

Video: Boston Marathon 2011 Slow Motion near finish

2011-04-25T16:27:00.015+08:00

Boston Marathon Men 2011 Men's Winner Slow Motion - World Fastest Time:

Boston Marathon Men 2011 Men's 3rd and 4th Slow Motion : Gebremariam and Hall

Boston Marathon 2011 Women's Winner Slow Motion:

Who is heel striking?

Video: Barefoot Running Style.

2011-04-23T15:05:00.003+08:00

A brief video developed by Dr. Mark Cucuzzella on the science and the art of barefoot running and what we are trying to teach- a Barefoot Running Style. For more information see Two Rivers Treads Center for
Natural Running and Walking Site www.trtreads.org

Blue Mountain too high!!!!

2011-04-22T01:10:00.001+08:00

@Mad Jack

A minimalist shoes patent which got Nike Free sued

2011-04-20T01:33:00.001+08:00

The Reebok Realflex is being marketed as "Natural movement. Perfected"

When I saw Birthdayshoes.com mentioned about the upcoming Reebok Realflex, something came out of my memory.........

4 years ago in 2007 when the term "minimalist shoes" was never heard off, Nike was sued by Reebok over its Free series which was first launched in 2004. Apparantly, Reebok got a grant of their patent for flexible shoe with segmented soles in 2007.

I did recorded this event 4 years ago HERE @"Nike Got Sued by ReeBok"

This was an innovative and interesting idea to design shoes which are "minimalist" and flexible enough to be collapsible into smaller size and to be dispensed for sale from a vending machine.

This idea was never implemented.

Interestingly, after doing a quick search, I actually found 3 similar patents filed by Reebok over the past 4 years:

1) 2007, Patent 7168190 Collapsible Shoe

2) 2009, Patent 7637035 Collapsible Shoe

3) 2010, Patent 20100095554 Collapsible Shoe

In the end, the 2 early pioneers of minimalist shoes did not continue to drive the minimalist shoes market but have to do marketing catchup now....shoes without cushioning is still not in their belief and too high a risk to their high tech cushioned shoes.

The latest launched by Nike:

Free Run+ 2

Finally, trying the new released rubber.......

2011-04-18T00:52:00.003+08:00

One day at Vivocity RSH:

Trying the Merrell Trail Glove On the Spot:

My shoes size is US12 so I tried a size 12 is too big...tried another 11 is still too big...shop closing so did try another one...I think size 10 will be just nice...Just walking around the shoes with a oversized shoes...the feel is the forefoot is wide enough for the toes to splay freely but the arch area felt tight when the laces are on...kind of weird for "barefoot" shoes...anyway, not going to comment further unless I can run with it.

Felt tempting to get one as it is definitely much better looking and cheaper than the 5fingers treksports (The equivalent to this).....

so still thinking thinking

15 Beautiful wallpaper to inspire your day

2011-04-16T21:37:00.000+08:00

Thanks to one of the reader who visited this blog. She have created her own Inspiration wallpapers to share with others.
You can find the rest HERE

ASICS Launches 33 : Trying hard at something they do not believe in

2011-04-14T21:35:00.000+08:00

at The ASICS Blog | ASICS Launches 33 By ASICS, A Minimal, Lightweight Footwear Collection

The GEL-Blur33 is a lightweight every day running shoe that provides cushioning through Rearfoot GEL® and a Solyte® Midsole

The Rush33 is a low mileage running shoe that has an EVA Midsole:

They started with this "ASICS introduces a lightweight, minimalist running shoe collection that encourages natural foot movement in its new 33 by ASICS™ collection"

Looking from left to right, up and down...nothing minimalist there.

Can see from the way these shoes are designed and the way they have described, they are still not into it and trying to convince the market that they are following the market demand for minimalist shoes.

Recommended for neutral runners who does not have the budget to own cumulus or nimbus.......

Defying the new trend: Hoka OneOne

2011-04-10T00:08:00.004+08:00

Hoka OneOne: Interesting Brand name...Interesting concept...looking at the shoes above...minimalist runners probably will go WAWAWA!!! Oversized Midsole...thicker is better is here.....interesting look at the technology page...

Apparently....ultramarathon champion, the famous speedgoat Karl Meltzer used it for this to run the Pony Express Trail (2064 miles) in 18 days 2h and 27min last year and for his other ultra wins.

Zero Drop Footwear: Altra Running

2011-04-08T23:55:00.002+08:00

In a heel strike, shock and ground reaction force are transferred from the heel to the knee joint, then to the hip joint, spine and finally to the neck. The knee joint absorbs most of the shock. Research has found that the heel cushion of a shoe cannot absorb accumulated shock for long time in a heel strike. Therefore, the knee joint and other joints are at higher risk of sport injury in shod running.

Another interesting brand promoting shoes for minimalism running......2 interesting models for Mens and Womens

The Adam (for men)

& The Eve (the ladies)

Learn how to run through their LTR Initiative website

Brooks PureProject: Another player trying minimalism

2011-04-06T21:29:00.000+08:00

Coming This Oct 2011

Official website

Is this true minimalist or just another marketing campaign? We will wait and see till the actual products are out....

Meanwhile, Here is an interesting article on Brooks' Marketing on this PureProject at runlogger

You never know what you get in your next poke

2011-04-03T16:45:00.000+08:00

Uncle Rojak

After 800km.....

2011-03-27T23:15:00.000+08:00

After 800km of running with this pair of rubbers...only on small hole that is circled in green (This hole actually appeared at about 600km). Cut a tiny piece of rubber outsole from my retired Nike shoes and used cheap superglue from Daiso(3 tiny tubes for $2) to stick the rubber over that hole...I was surprised this tiny rubber still intact after 40km of running last night....Daiso Cheap superglue is good!!

I guessing this pair of rubber is still good to go for at least another 100-200km......

New Running Ground - Lorong Halus Wetland

2011-03-06T22:56:00.002+08:00

The Lorong Halus Wetland opens officially on 5 -March 2011....I catched this piece of news on TV and papers..you can read the news report here

and video here:

What I cannot understand is, since this is officially opened? How come I cannot find a single map that described the location about this place on the internet? Unless you are staying in Sengkang or Punggol, I guess It can be quite challenging to find this Lorong Halus Wetland location....

I decided to explore my way to find this place and I drew a map below for those interested. There are 2 ways for drivers....first is to get to the western end of Punggol and find the entrance beside this big chinese temple tot eh visitor centre and walk your way along the punggol promenade towards the north along Serangoon River to cross a bridge across..or the second is to drive in from pasir ris farmway...see my handdrawn map below (click to se bigger picture):

I started my way at the bridge across Serangoon river at junction of Buangkok Drive and Sengkang East Drive, can see from photo below this part is actually not officially open..there is no lights at night:

The contractor board is still up near the entrance:

Entered the Park Connector and is quiet..there are some cyclist and runners:

One of the shelter along the park:

Fitness Station...still under wrapped:

Direction board and lightning warning:

Going Under TPE, Once across to the other side of TPE will be Punggol area:

The starting of Punggol side of Promenade and started to see more runners and strollers:

One of the few resting & lookout point:

But some people preferred to be closer to water:

The 2nd resting point and the started of wooden pavement:

The pavement are split into 2: The tarmac for cyclist and the wooden side for pedestrian:

There is a futsal court for rental:

Started to see cafe and resturants:

So I went up to take a look...wow..long queue:

found a nice alfesco dining place:

The carpark is full:

Back to the river side and it was crowded with families:

Toilet...the only one along the riverside:

crossing a small bridge:

and here comes the big bridge to cross the river to Lorong Halus Wetland:

Interesting map and intro on the bridge:

reachingt eh other end which is the entrance to the Lorong Halus Wetland:

There are the 2 important plants there that helps in the filtration process:

Some part look like padi field:

And my feet love the pebbles trails:

Photos of other part of the wetland:

This trail leads to paris ris along the water banks:

This is the other entrance to the wetland from paris Ris Farmway:

Wonder how to open this switch box:

Back to the beach as the sky turns dark:

Signboard:

This is found at the carpark at punggol side of the river:

Look for this temple If you are coming in from Punggol:

Hope this helps for those who are interesting in visiting or running to the wetland and along Serangoon River. Now is to wait for the punggol river park of the park connector to finish which will link all the way along the water banks to here....

New Competitor for Vibram FiveFingers: Fila Skele-toes

2011-01-27T15:45:00.001+08:00

Wow! News at birthdayshoes.com ...There is a new kids on the block for minimalist shoes...This time is FILA and its called Skele-toes....one glance at it and is....definitely Vibram FiveFingers look-alikes

Birthdayshoes.com gives a good sneak preview of it and you can read it HERE.
And certainly interesting to see the pricing to be much cheaper than VFF at cometshoes.com with wider variety of colours .

Vibram is master of making rubber outsoles...thus I do not think Fila's skele-toes outsole can be as durable as Vibram....but..no harm trying if it is available

But...will Fila Singapore bring them in???

Merrell Minimalist Shoes coming to Singapore!!!

2011-01-20T23:31:00.001+08:00

I was surprised by RSH commenting in my last posting on Merrell Barefoot shoes...at least our voices are heard by the retailers:

RSH Marketing said...: Hi Tekko and insanet@z,

Good news for you! :) RSH will be bringing in Barefoot and it will be available at RSH selected stores sometime in end April.

The price ranges from $139 - $159 and the selected stores include Stadium at Takashimaya S.C., RSH at Suntec City, and VivoCity.

Do lookout for it!

Cheers.

At least, the price is more reasonable than VFF & Terra Plana in Singapore.....

I wonder if RSH is willing to offer a pair for me to do review on it since I have ran 82km in MR trail with Vibram FiveFingers Treksports during last year MR25 Ultra...It will be a good comparison between 2 minimalist shoes....my email is insanetaz@gmail.com....hmmmmmmmm :-p

Merrell Trail Glove Review By Barefoot Running University

2011-01-13T23:22:00.001+08:00

Barefoot Running University runs good reviews on minimalist shoes...It has very positive opinion on the upcoming Merrell Trail Glove ...but will it available here in Singapore?

Vibram FiveFingers Ads in Runners' World

2011-01-06T12:56:00.000+08:00

Finally, we are seing Vibram putting more marketing $$ into ads...There is the pullout from Runners' World jan 2011 edition:

and they launched a new webiste called http://www.youarethetechnology.com/

Barefoot shoes making splash in 2011

2011-01-03T17:20:00.000+08:00

Just like the tablets are going to make a splash in the consumer electronic world, the Minimalist Running Shoes are going to try and invade the billion $$ traditional running shoes market.

Below are few which are coming out soon in 2011 :
GoLite Tara Lite Trail (Coming Spring 2011):

Our next evolution in Class 1 trail running is inspired by the Tarahumara tribes of Mexico, whose name means "those who run fast". These amazing athletes are best known for their superior running abilities while wearing minimal thong style sandals. The Tara Lite for men takes the best aspects of the Tarahumara sandal and adds the protection, stability and traction benefits of our Class I trail runners.

it says: DON"T GO BAREFOOT. GO BARETECH.

Merrell Barefoot 2011 Collections (Coming February 2011):

Men's: Trail Glove, Tough Glove, True Glove
Women's: Pace Glove, Power Glove, Pure Glove

Merrell Barefoot Collection: Let Your Feet Lead You

New Balance Minimus Series (Coming March 2011):

NB Minimus Life (MW/WW10), NB Minimus Road(MR/WR10), NB Minimus Trail (MT/WT10)

Vibram Fivefingers 2011 collections:

laced up Vibram FiveFingers Bikila LS , Five Fingers Jaya & Jaya LR, Five Fingers Komodo Sport and KSO kids

Completed 81.6km trail for MR25 Ultramarathon 2010 in Vibram FiveFingers Treksports

2010-12-29T23:23:00.002+08:00

5 Christmas ago...I did "My longest run in my life: MR25 12hrs ultramarathon"..I made a promise to myself..the next time I come back for this event, I will complete 8 laps....This year Boxing day...I extended my longest run by about 10km and fulfiled my promise made 5 years ago..

This year...50% of the route has changed due to some approval issue to use some part of the original route...as a result, instead of a looping route round the reservoir, it has changed to a out and back route...Which is much tougher because

5 years ago, it was 70% trail and 30% road/pavement but now is 90% trail and 10% road/pavement
5 years ago, it was 65% slopes and 35% flat but now is 90% slopes and 10% flat

However, weather was more kind enough to be sunny in before lunch and short heavy shower in the afternoon whereas 5 years ago, first 2-3hrs was super heavy rain pour and it was super hot after lunch. I used 2 pairs of shoes 5 years ago but this year..I only use a pair of Vibram fivefingers KSO Treksports

lap1: super crowded after a start for 253 runners on a single path trail...I just try to maintain my riddle of walking upslopes but run on downslopes & flats.
lap2: runners beginning to spread out..i was able to run without much bloackage and clocked my faster lap time of 1hr 08min
lap3: even less runners int he trail as can see about half stopped to take a longer break fromt he punishing terrain...I am still able to walk upslopes properly and run at substainable pace
lap4: when i started this lap, the lead runner just completed his lap 4...he is flying...less runners...overtook some
lap5: finished my first can of ensure meal replacement...started with tiring upslope walk but running still ok..seems like running is ok but walking is not ok...this is not normal....after 3-4km, legs felt good..seems that ensure works.Feels like runners' high is on me....
lap6: started to pour....I jsut went whacking the muddy pool unlike most runners trying to keep their shoes out of water...i stouted I am splashing to runners in front so that I dun get them dirty...walking get more difficult but still running easy on downslopes and flats
lap7: slowed down on walking significantly as legs get heavy climbing....but surprisingly, I am still able to run fast downslopes and flat which amazed some runners who saw me in there....ground still with paddle of water..not much runners in the trail now...
lap8: struggled to walk upslopes but continue to fly downslopes & flat which I also amazed by myself...finished still with energy left which i decided to stop as I cannot finished one more lap within the 1hrs 15min more to 7pm...not much supporters left...as we wait till 7pm to catch those front runners coming back strongly on their 9laps...

At the U-turn point after a stretch of foot massage on very rocky downslope

Coming in after 1st lap

With my finishing time after 8laps

Special cloth based finishing cert

This gentleman is my idol for the race because he ran his working shirt with a hydration bag and came in 91.8km in 11hrs 26min...and got 3rd position!!

Race Summary:
Overall Position: 15
Mens Position: 12
Total Time: 10hrs 41min 31sec
Food taken: 4x Bananas, 1x Shotz energy gel, 1x accel energy gel, 2x ensure
Footwear: Vibram FiveFingers KSO Treksports

official results

New Rubber on the road - 2nd Vibram FiveFingers Classic (Black)

2010-12-28T20:59:00.000+08:00

Thanks to a friend doing his PHd at Boulders, Colorado, he managed to grab this new pair from REI 20% off sale (that is half the retail price in Singapore!!)...This comes in time to replace my 700++km which may give way anytime soon..... The black colour made my feet look like black bear paw.....
classic walnut

The temptation of beautiful shoes - Adidas Hydroterra Shandal

2010-12-22T23:11:00.000+08:00

Although I have been running with VFF since Jan this year and donated all my running shoes to Running labs for charity.....It didnt stop my temptation to buy new running shoes...especially very good looking ones...

Here is one handsome pair which I got from somewhere 400+km from Singapore..is called Adidas Hydroterra Shandals.

Actually, I have been eyeing this pair since 6 months ago...unfortunately, there do not have my size here and the colour that is found here sucks (The blue part replaced with grey)

I will let the photos to speak for itself.

New Rubber for the rocks and mud

2010-12-06T21:13:00.000+08:00

When this was first announced, It got me excited and I thought this is perfect solution to the only problem I have with my VFF. To have a sole suitable for the rocks and mud in MR. I have been running in MR with my VFF Sprints and when it comes to muddy grounds, I have to be very careful not to slips due to the relatively flat outsole that does not grip on muds.

I finally have the guts to get one.....The Vibram Five Fingers Treksports

Looking forward to use it on boxing day..........lol

Learning how to run...........

2010-11-07T22:29:00.002+08:00

Learn to Run Barefoot with Lee Saxby and Terra Plana from GTB Goodtruebeautiful GmbH on Vimeo.

The most difficult part of Running in the Morning

2010-11-06T12:11:00.001+08:00

To get out of your bed?

To get into your running attire?

To get out of your house!!!

Ready for Project Love Sneakers 2010

2010-11-03T21:39:00.000+08:00

Finally, Project Love Sneaker 2010 has started...the above 6 pairs are prepared for this project

Project Love Sneaker 2010

2010-10-07T21:28:00.000+08:00

Finally, this is back........I gave away 9 pairs 2 years ago..(read more HERE).

This time....6 pairs!

Get disposable ChampionChip on Vibram Five Fingers Classic

2010-09-29T21:15:00.000+08:00

SEW IT ON!

KL Marathon 2010 finishing cert

2010-09-23T21:15:00.000+08:00

And it is LAMINATED!!

After a long slow run.......

2010-08-09T23:17:00.000+08:00

First half marathon with VFF classic - KL Marathon

2010-07-05T21:37:00.001+08:00

This post is more than a week late.............

Special event for me...becos of th following reasons:

1st time fly to KL
1st oversea race
1st oversea half marathon
1st half marathon under 2 hours
1st half marathon in Vibram FiveFinger Classic

Look at the route map below...i dun care..becos I dunnoe where all these palces are...i just need to keep my two feet moving till finish

We reached KL and went for race pack collection. Took LRT to titiwangsa station and hopped onto the shuttle....a chervolet SUV to the stadium

Entrance to titiwangsa stadium:

The racepack collection:

The race pack

After which we went to check into our hotel and went to our favourite restuarant for carbo loading:

Root Beer Float and waffle ice-cream:

Also coney dog and onion rings:

We went to the start line to survey the ground:

The route was good for me...lots of small slopes and smooth and rough surfaces....I managed to keep my feet on the move all the way in my Vibram Fivefingers Classic:

finished in 1hr 52min 55sec...which is a 10min improvement for my half marathon PB........

The birth of sgrunners.com

2010-06-25T06:00:00.002+08:00

5 years ago....a community was found from an innocent idea and trial
5years later.....the simple idea has exploded into a large and active community in the Singapore Running Scene.
Anyone who runs and use the internet will know of the website sgrunners.com and I believe most of you who are reading this entry...but how many of you actually know about the birth of this website, forum or community?

Here is the birth story......by the "mother", The Lonely Runner

The innocent idea (full story at "Singapore Runners' Blog" ):

I was wandering, it will be great that Singapore running bloggers set up a community called Singapore Runner’s Blog or something like that. And we have a logo to identify our presence in this internet world. Not only for identification of Singapore running blogger, we can have a mailing list that update each other on running events that happened in Singapore or overseas. And not only updating each other on competitions, we can meet up for a leisure run together during weekends. Since we know that we will definitely run during weekends, it doesn’t matter whether you run alone or not, but it is great to have a company of runners. And not only that, if there’s a running competition overseas, they can go together or met up over there. Isn’t that great? There are no membership fees or stuff like that, it’s all about running and running and running.

The trial that started (full story at "Singapore Runners' Blogger Community" )

Well, this is just a trial. I have made a Singapore Runner’s Blogging Community. This is exclusively for all the running enthusiast in Singapore. Made by the runner, dedicate for the runners.

The story of how SRBC becomes sgrunners at http://thelonelyrunner.wordpress.com/2005/08/02/singapore-runners-blogging-community-2/

The very first time photo I took with the pioneers.....this is during the New Balance REAL Run Trial Run at Sentosa

After the New Balance REAL Run Trial Run at Sentosa

The very first event that sgrunners' members have gathered after an event REAL RUN 05

and our second gathering at east coast can be found at http://run-to-live.blogspot.com/2005/07/sgrunners-run-east-coast-half-marathon.html

Happy Birthday to sgrunners.com

Sengkang > UPR > Sengkang 22km........longest with VFF

2010-06-21T22:18:00.000+08:00

It was 5am in the morning......a week before my half marathon in K....I finally decided to do this route again.....a challenging one....becos the whole route are slopes.......The last time I did this route was in 2006.....i finished in 2hr 8min

This morning was much earlier....temperature was low...lower than normal here....i thought i not in Singapore......probably 23-24 degree

I started smoothly and control my pace....becos of last the 2 weeks of illness has drained quite a bit of energy and i dropped 3kg in 2 weeks

It was a peaceful run.......my mind just think of the wonderful things in life....legs are not tired at all....reached OUTR....it was 6am.....still dark.....a few group of cyclist zoom past...

reached UPR gate and it was darkness inside...I went in bravely.....visibility was low....at least I cannot see how steep was the slopes...so I just went on and on until I reached the end....11km done in 1hr 5min

I decided not to stop and U-turned immediately....it was me and the tarmac road and the vegetations....the sound of birds and the rustling of leaves

It was cool..very cool..aircon road....probably low 20s degree....nvr ran in such cool ambiance.....still cannot see slopes as the sun still not up............i just went on and on and very soon...all slopes done and back to flatter OUTR......

more cyclist came...and a group of runners went by.....the sky started to brighten...temperature still cool...so I just went on and on......my hard panting, no screaming legs.....and i realised I din drink much

came back to CTE and reached Singtel centre....a think layer of morning mist was formed....beautiful as the sun rays shine thru.......back to sengkang fernvale.....left 2km.......i maintained my breathing but quicken my steps.....

finished in 2hr 5min......2nd half of 11km was an hour and my last 2km was done in 10min...

Still breathing normally and my tights are still fine....except for the slight strain on both calves.....my longest run in VFF...and my most comfortable and peaceful one

3 Reservoirs Run

2010-06-05T12:55:00.000+08:00

To many runners I knew ever since I started long distance running 5 years ago, this route is not unfamiliar and most of them have ran it before..but for me, this morning was my first...In preparation to the upcoming KL half marathon which expect to be slopy, my pair of legs and 3 others pairs decided to give this route a shot...

First time run OUTR and realised how vibrant this place is with cyclists and runners before 7.30am.....

We had a slow steady run to finished below 2 hrs for the 19km of several slopes...a good long run that I never had for a long time.......

Current Read: The Extra Mile - Pam Reed

2010-05-30T00:43:00.000+08:00

Runners' World ZA recommending Vibram Fivefingers

2010-05-28T22:33:00.003+08:00

Dr. Runner’s World and Mr. Hyde

2010-05-26T00:34:00.001+08:00

Christopher McDougall..author of the famous BORN TO RUN wrote an interesting insight articles on Runners' World behind the scene changes of opinion and direction about running shoes.....look like the billion dollar industry is in danger.....

Read the FULL Article HERE

The New Vibram Five Finger Bikila!!!

2010-05-24T00:22:00.000+08:00

Out of Stock within hours once is available on online shop in the States...left only the big big feet pair...want to try and get it now? Got $$ also cannot get

Great Savings from States

2010-05-22T00:16:00.000+08:00

A colleague went US for holiday and a fren who worked in the States came back for holiday has helped to get some stuff from States....the reason being...is much CHEAPER than getting it here......

From left to right:

(F) is Cost from US
(G) is Cost from Singapore

A total saving of close to 50%!!!!! I think I purchase online and ship them back also cheaper.
I felt like kena chopped BIG CARROT HEAD if I get it here!!!

New Rubber on the road!!!

2010-05-20T00:16:00.000+08:00

Finally, 1 month after the actual purchase, an old fren of my arrived back home and delivered my new set of rubbers...... It was by luck that we managed to get this pair....it was country wide out of stocks for common sizes in the States....All we found are sizes for shoes size US14 and above.....just happened that one day, my size M43 appeared on the website and my fren grab it for me immediately....it was stated out of stock after that....and at that time, the online shop is having 20% off retail price and the retail price in States is 66% the retail price here back home so I managed to saved a great deal on this pair....

Just out of the box which includes some instruction:

the most minimal for the fivefingers models....is called the classic

Comparing with the red Sprint which clocked 450km both on road and trail

Cannot see much difference, maybe becos of the colour

The perfect Fit

Went for a virgin run of 6.3km....some adjustment is needed and the fear of the heel slip out must be overcome....

Heel running in VFF

2010-05-07T20:26:00.000+08:00

Recently found a local VFF runner took part in the F1 Eq Nature Run. Interestingly, he is the one who overtook me less than 3km into the race and overtook by me at about 6km after the small drain....He was easily recognizable because he is the only one wearing VFF classic for the run.....

After reading his report, I was surprised and respect him for doing MR for the first time in a race and with his VFF.....I aws even surprised at the state of his VFF after the run and sometime strike me....the heels of his VFF are the ones that was thrashed!!! Very obvious that he is a rare breed in VFF running...a heel striker...probably the first I ever saw on the web...This was further confirmed when I saw his photos in his last year marathon report.

RESPECT!

400km milestone....high mileage?

2010-05-05T20:25:00.000+08:00

Last Nite run has made my VFF exceeded the 400km milestone...

Someone recently said she thought my mileage was quite high......hmmmm

Actually the answer is no.....as shown in the daily and weekly chart (all done in VFF) below...as you can see, my longest run is only 20km at MR last sat and I rarely exceed 15km per run....My weekly mileage was kept below 35km most of the time except for one of the week with a race.

Daily Chart

Weekly Chart:

Mileage will increase from this wek onwards in prep for half marathon at KL marathon next month...but weekly should not exceed 45km

The Evils of Strength Sucking Modern Shoes

2010-04-28T23:22:00.000+08:00

I like this title ever since I got my ITB and switch to Nike Frees and VFF...

Here is a good article on it and barefoot running and VFF:

Barefoot Training, Vibram Five Fingers and the Evils of Strength Sucking Modern Shoes

The new Vibram Bikila in Boston Marathon

2010-04-27T11:52:00.000+08:00

CEO Tony Post and Corrado Giambalvo at the Boston Marathon from Vibram5fingers on Vimeo.

F1 Eq Nature Run 2010

2010-04-25T12:59:00.002+08:00

This a old skool kind of race....no timing system...just plain stopwatch...other than the MR25 events...this is probably the only proper running event in MR.

And this is my 2nd running event in MR...first one was the MR25 12hrs ultramarathon 5 years ago.

This is also my 2nd running event this year and with my VFF Sprint.

I ran MR almost every sat and did a trial run on this route last Sat so no surprises...in fact, I hope for rain last nite so that the condition will be more challenging and it did.......

The race suppose to start at 8:05am...unlike last 2XU Run in Sentosa which was delayed by 15min...this start was brought forward by 5min...at 8am sharp.

The trail can accommodate not more than 3 runners running side by side so I decided to squeeze myself to the front right from the start......being conservative....until we hit the first big slope....a row of at least 10 runners began walking up or slowed down to a jog....I attack and overtook these slow pack...when I hit the top of the slope...more jogging/walking runners as they tried to recover from the challenging upslopes....I took the chance to push forward even further.....kept myself out of a pack of slower runners, I ran with controlled pace.....

It was towards the end of northern route out of the gold clubhouse that my stomach muscle strain came back (got it since tuesday's tempo run)......I was biting my teeth and slowed to a jog.....the pain got worst as I reached the ranger station....the rocky path was a torture for me....i slowed down almost to walking pace after ranger station and it was until I hit the drain where everyone was walking that I managed to feel better afetr a short rest while climbing up the mud wall..

Saw ultra runner Bernard with his VFF KSO carrying a camelbak in front of me....and saw this speedy jorn with his VFF Classic 2 steps ahead...my muscle strain recovered and the crowd slowed down a lot in front so I pushed ahead and overtook many runners walking up the killer slope along this stretch.....reached the rifle range road U-turn point and grab the wrist band and took a mouthful of ice-water and carry on.....then I realized that since the first upslope...I was able to push fast upslope..and recovered very soon along the down slope and before I hit the next upslope, my feet are fresh again to push for the next upslope.

Out of the rifle range trail and back to the normal route in MR was not good for me...it was a stretch of 3-4km of flat which I will struggle.....I jsut tried to put one feet forward follow by the other as I just tried to maintain constant pace for the flat....only 1 ang mo overtook me for this stretch...it was until the next killer hill that I got energized again....however, in order not to agitate my muscle strain again, I kept to conservative speed....

It was about 2km fromt eh finishing line that Bernard with his VFF KSO caught up and paced me for the rest of teh trail...I hit the flat road and there I struggled (as usual becos my big gear not working well)....and push on to finish in my personal best time in MR for 14km in 73min

My last run was 87 min which means 14min improvement since the last and if the route is 14km...average speed will be 5:17min/km which is my best for MR Trail as well.
Consider I slowed down for about 1km to almost walking because of my stomach muscle strain, I was very surprised by my timing when I finished.

But the best part of this event is the collection of the CamelBag (Hydration Bag) after the run.....for $38, you get a nice quick dry tee and a quality hydration bag...probably the more value for $$ race in Singapore. I paid $12 more for the bladder..

Nice Red bag which fit my colour theme, the blue wrist band is given at the rifle range road U-turn:

The mouth piece for the bladder is surprisingly the one that only exist for expensive branded bladder with the on/off switch:

The hydration bag even got a raincoat cover hidden in a small pocket in front:

It is also expandable by unzipping the side and it was a small holder for handphone at the waist strap:

It has a small pocket for keys and wallet and the main compartment for the bladder:

The back cushioning is placed at strategic location and to provide airflow when carry it:

Now I have 3 hydration bags...which...I havent event started using the new yellow one I got from Guangzhou. 3 different colours....3 different choices...I can use the one that fit my colour theme for the particular run...

That's a total of 360km completed in my VFF Sprint after this run....

The Most High Tech Cushioning for your running................

2010-04-24T10:43:00.000+08:00

Is it the Nike Air? Asics Gel? Brooks Hydroflow? New Balance,Adidas,Saucony,K-Swiss?

I will say None of these.....

My answer is YOUR OWN MUSCLES!!!

Your own Muscles got damaged and regenerated to become stronger and overtime, it is able to take more and more load....

The cushioning in running shoes got squashed and ability to take load decrease with time...10 years ago and 10 years after, the people who are selling these "HIGH TECH" cushioning said the same thing: You got to change a new one after you hit 400km.....

But your muscles? it got stronger after 400km.......

So start using your muscles to take your load for your running.............

F1 Eq Nature Run Race Pack Collection

2010-04-18T17:39:00.001+08:00

The F1 Equipment Nature Run Race Pack Collection was held over the weekend at the Orchard Central Shopping Centre Level 4. It was just a small setup for a small scale event

The race pack contains a nice bright RED event T-shirt,useless papers, event information, tiger balm plaster, a camo lanyard, a can of pokka sports water and supposed to ahve a pack of Go Gel which I past it tot he ultra marathon runner for her TNF 100 at Philipines:

The back of the event Tee actually printed "Tok Kong Runner" which I find it overkilling....without the words will make the Tee looks branded...

I went to Mercury 180, a sports shop which is also one of the sponsor and saw the map below pasted on its pillar....Forgot to take a photo of it.

The title of the map is "F1 EQ Nature Run 15km Route" but below the title is "( Actual Distance 14km )"......?????????

Can't they just call it a 14km Event?

2XU Compression Run 12km@Sentosa....crossing the 300km

2010-04-13T22:56:00.000+08:00

The first "proper" running event of this year for me and also the first event that I run with my Vibram FiveFingers. After this run, my mileage with VFF Sprint has crossed another milestone of 300km.

Satisfied with the result for this run as my timing for thsi 12km is the same as my 10km timing 2 years ago for Nike Human Race.

I kept my first 3.5km of the route conservative because it is totally flat..I started at the front end of the crowd and was overtook by at least 25% of the runners and pushed to the mid-pack.....I only pick up when I hit the first slope and start overtaking runners who have difficulty runing the upslopes. It was the same with the rest of the 4-5 upslopes and when I reached back to the flat beach side, I was already at the front quarter of the crowds.....able to sprint strongly for the last 400m and the result shows that I was came in 200th out of 1020.

This event however the management for this rest is a bit below par consider the organisers are not first timer:
1) Delayed start, the race is supposed to start at 7.45am but the MC delayed until 8am because a big stream of runners just arrived at the race site at 7.40am. Apparently, the shuttle bus cannot cope with the crowd and caused delay in transportation. Next time put 8.30am lah....No need to go toilet wait until want to go toilet

2) The race route was changed at the last minute. If you look at the map above, The yellow solid lined route is the original route posted on the website with the runners running clockwise. However, the arrows are added at the last minute causing confusion to the runners. As a result of this change, there are points of crossing over the other runners' path at junction at the beach. There was a small confusion afetr the first U-turn at the beach as well

3) No plain water at the end point. Only 100plus and concentrated 100plus that can cause diabetes

4) Stage at the hot beach. Most people kept themselves away from the unsheltered beach after running the hot sun for an hour....it was real hot after 11am whent he lucky draw starts....I din stay

........one more thing, D-tag on ankle straps works!!

Even the running shoes companies want a slice of the pie

2010-04-09T10:53:00.019+08:00

Barefoot Jason published an interesting article on the insight of running shoes' companies plan to try and get a slice of a pie for the rise for minimalist running market. The impact of "Born To Run" is far beyond our imagination. The surge in Vibram Fivefingers sale has caused alarmed in the traditional running shoes industry and they are not keeping themselves at one side of the fence.

Like what Jason mentioned, I also doubt that they will produce anything close to vibram...it will more of a "reduced" running shoes...

The original article can be found at
http://barefootjason.blogspot.com/2010/04/news-from-minimalist-shoe-front.html

My Most Serious Injury with Vibram Fivefingers

2010-04-07T23:50:00.000+08:00

NO cushioning and NO support with just a thin layer of Rubber...

A common question is "Didi you encounter any serious injuries running with VFF?"

My answer is shown in th picture above...just a black toenail...got it during my first evening/nite Run at MR...clumsy and not focus, I hit my pinky toes against a tree trunk...

This is the MOST Serious Injury I running with VFF

2XU Compression 12km Run Race Pack Collection

2010-04-05T21:35:00.002+08:00

The Race pack collection is a breeze...I reached and all the 10 counters are empty so I grab and go

Easily the MOST EXPENSIVE Race Pack in Singapore Race...The 2XU Compression Socks is retailed for $70 which is the race fee for both 2XU Compression Run and Newton 30km Run. The Newton Race belt also cost > $10.

Good Friday Torture...Bukit Timah nature reserve adventure

2010-04-03T16:32:00.032+08:00

Just as Tekko mentioned

While saintly people go to church and the more saner people slept in on a nice public holiday, 6 of us slightly cuckooed people decided to brave the rain and made our way to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve for our virgin run there. Fortunately, the rain did not came and so begin the longest ever 12km of my life.

Since the details are covered by Tekko, I should covered the unmentioned...(OK...I know that is laziness in blogging...) The original plan is to the followings:

The plan is to the blue loop first as warm-up..then the red to dairy farm park and the orange back to the summit...

But in the end, we only did about 50% of the planned route....

part 1, we did the planned route for warm-up

Then after the warmup...we decided to cut short because we took 1hr to complete only 5km...so we went

and we took 1hrs 30min to cover just 7km..... So the detail of the run are covered at Tekko's Blog

My Quads are aching today and have problem walking up and down the stairs...........

We should go again to conquer the rest of the 50% of the planned route....and we did not get to the summit also.......8-(

Garmin Forerunner 110

2010-04-01T23:40:00.031+08:00

Garmin recently just announced its new forerunner series watch called the 110. This is a basic GPS watch (heartrate monitor version included) with 1000laps memory and 8hrs of battery life and using the latest SiRFstarIV system (310XT 405 are using the older SiRFstarIII)....finally, Garmin decided to come out with a simple GPS watch for the non-tech savvy like me. It has omitted all the training tools and functions like the interval training and virtual partner that are included in the previous more expensive models in 405 and 310.
The RRP for heart rate monitor version is USD$249.99
The RRP for without heartrate monitor version is USD$199.99

more details at Garmin forerunner 110 page

more reports from engadget,
more reports from crunchgear

I like!!!

MR to kallang and back

2010-03-31T23:31:00.021+08:00

Weather for the past weeks have been very predictable.....Sunshine in the morning and after lunch, the dark clouds will arrived and heavy downpour will happen...followed by drizzling until late after and by 6.30PM, everything should clear.

The same happened last evening. The plan is to do the weekly weekday MR run....today's downpour was much heavier than last 3 weeks and the rain started after lunch and stopped just before I reached MR...I thought the trail will be quite muddy and maybe I should try other option...

And I decided and went for the route below:

I deposited my bag in MR locker and went for a 14.6km loop and back to MR for washup....The first half of the route from MR to Kallang River is actually quite OK with few stoppages, the bad part came after leaving Kallang riverside park..the route back to MR has plenty of traffic crossing and waiting...

But overall is a very good run...able to maintain at a comfortable pace and considered that I did a fast tempo the day before, I am not getting any aching or pain from the run...

This is the longest single run on the road that I have clocked using my VFF...........my calves are fine

Co-sponsor for F1 Sports EQ Nature Run

2010-03-30T23:17:00.000+08:00

Interestingly, looking at the sponsor page for F1 Eq Nature Run:
http://f1sportseq.blogspot.com/2010/01/sponsorship-opportunities.html

Vibram FiveFingers is the Co-Sponsor for this event!

Looking forward to see how many others are wearing fivefingers like me to run the trail on that day!

Ultra Runners - a snapshot of a day in the life

2010-03-29T23:55:00.000+08:00

Longest hard road run with VFF...and first time without calves aches

2010-03-27T23:01:00.026+08:00

My previous longest run on hard concrete/tarmac with my Vibram FiveFingers is 10.3km 2 weeks ago...and that is the only one run > 10km....

All these while, I have been running 8km or 6.3km...one of the reason to be so conservative is because of my calves.....whenever I run hard concrete/tarmac, my calves will also started to ache or strain or "burning" between 2km to 4km into the run....the last 10km started after 5km........it takes quite a lot of the calves to be conditioned to take the 100% of the load...

That is the reason why I am actually running twice in the MacRitchie Trail per week because in the trail, my calves does not feels anything!!!! In fact, at the time when I have extended my longest run to 13km (without any calves burning), I was able to run only 8km on the hard road and my calves are burning after 4km.

In consideration to the coming 2XU Compression 12km Run in Sentosa in 2 weeks time, I think I better try running at least a 12km before I going into the event.....so with a free friday nite, I decided to find a new route to run and decided to try this combination which I never tried before:

This route is similar to the 2XU Compression Run route in Sentosa such that the first part of the run is flat followed by slopes and the part part of the run is flat again.

I was glad to be able to finish the run in relatively good time and good moral!!...in fact, at a slightly faster average pace compared to my last longest 10.3km ......

runs goes on.............

100km of trail with the fivefingers

2010-03-26T23:06:00.007+08:00

Wed's 3rd F1 Eq nature route run marks an important milestone for my VFF Sprint...it has covered 100km of trails and 120km of tarmac + concrete pavements

Below table shows all the run done so far with my VFF Sprint:

The ones in red at the bottom of the table are the runs in the Trail............

Need to increase the mileage for the hard road to 12km in 3 weeks time to prepare for 2XU Compression Run.

.....more runs to come.............

3rd F1 Eq Nature Route Run.....

2010-03-24T23:05:00.000+08:00

The Sky was threatening to ruin the day...dark clouds for the whole afternoon and the weather report at one time reported that the world island will be under thunderstorm..it was an hour earlier that the report changed to only the eastern half will rain....MR was safe all along...

To be safe, I ringed up a friend staying just beside and she assured that the rain clouds has past and the weather turned great.....

True enough, it was bright sky when stepped into the park and started slightly earlier today....body was lethargic today...may be due to the long hours of working and the whole day of bowel detox

The first 4km seems slower than usual but turned out to be a minute faster than the last run.....

Sped up for the last 2km along lornie road pavement and finished 2min faster than the previous run...

No pain, no aches.......only happy feet after a nice hour of massage

Vibram FiveFingers in the news

2010-03-23T21:32:00.024+08:00

Running barefoot and running in minimalist footwear has hit this region...somehow..there are increasing amount of reports and articles in the media for this topics.....

Examples:
1. RazorTV covering barefoot running with 3 local runners
2. Mind Your Body in Strait Times has an article on "back to bare basics"
3. Channelnewsasia also covers on "Just do it barefoot: running shoeless is better"
4.The Star in Malaysia also covers running with Vibram FiveFingers
5. Another article in The Star on the same day covers on easing into minimalist footwear
6. Not related to running, divaasia has an article on "Barefoot comfort"

This is especially so hot mainly due to a scientific report publish on the nature journal and this research is originated from Harvard. The website for this research is at http://www.barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu/

The question is: Can this new wave of belief, research results and proven cases affect the billion dollar industry for running shoes???