Holiday!

Family trip to Langkawi

Secret Santa Christmas gathering at uncle's house in Ara Damansara

Team Hyper Gila Christmas dinner at Italiannies The Curve

Jason and Soo May's wedding dinner at Holiday Villa Subang Jaya

Ah Kong's birthday dinner in Raub

Good thing I have my Ironman training to keep me in shape ;)

I... need... rest...

I had a late night on Friday catching up with old friends from high school...

...followed by a Saturday long bike ride with Dr Ray, Tomato Ray, Mich and friends. 130++km of climbing the hills of Broga and Kuala Klawang from Ulu Langat is no joke! At one point I was cycling at 8-9kph, that's like jogging pace!

Then another late night on Saturday with the family and darling at my brother's Stingray Swimming Club Annual Dinner at Dynasty hotel. Karen was the emcee while Keith performed a dance. Dad was sitting at the VIP table as treasurer of the club. Mum, Li-Ann and myself just sat back, relaxed and enjoyed the show.

Hence, the 52 minute target (average 4:20 per km) for this mornings Malakoff 12km run seemed a bit ambitious with my jelly legs and strained body.

For my Christmas presents this year, I got myself a pair of Saucony Fastwitch 3 and Injinji toe socks from Uncle Choi.

I tried out the shoes for this run. It was indeed very light - 7oz! I found the outer sole a bit thin, because I'm used to wearing cushioning shoes. But they feel great and comfy as they're well ventilated and the inner materials are very soft.

Another thing I tried out for this run is my newly purchased Timex Ironman 100 laps Flix watch. It feels a lot lighter than it looks, so another light racing gear!

The run was held at Taman Rimba Kiara, 2 loops of 6km. There were two slopes on the route, we went through them twice. I couldn't push myself hard with the minimal energy I had. I saw Tomato Ray ahead at the first turnaround point, followed by fellow Team Hyper Gila cycling training buddy, Jason Thiang. I managed to overtake Jason just after the first turnaround, my time was 13 minutes plus then.

Coming back to the end of the first loop, I met Mich, Eugene, Bobby, Abu and Saiful on the way, along with Team Tri Hard members - Emma, Carmen, Simon, Siok Bee and Meng. Uncle Choi was there taking pictures. My timing at the end of the first loop was 24:34, I thought hey, I could do sub 50 minutes!

I managed to overtake Tomato Ray just slightly after the first loop but after the turnaround point, he caught up with me and we were pacing towards the finish line. Just about 500m more to go, he turned up his turbo engine and left me behind! I finished in 49:27, hmmm... somehow the distance seemed shorter than 12km...

I met up with Bobby, Keat Seong, Mich, Meng and Dr Ray after that. Dad came in soon too with a gun time of 67 minutes, well done!

That's it guys. I'm off the Langkawi for a family trip and a well deserved rest. Full Ironman training will resume on Tuesday! Merry Christmas!

So many!

I had never had so many of my pictures taken at a race, and considering this Chin Woo Biathlon distance would only take about 45 minutes, I'm really delighted with the picture coverage! Thanks, Mr Tey for the wonderful photos!

Barely 10 hours after I arrived in KL International Airport, my family and I were already at the Chin Woo Stadium... with myself, brother, sister and dad taking part. Mum was our faithful caddy cum cheerleader!

I skipped quite a few of my pre race rituals as I opted to give myself more sleep instead. However on hindsight, I could have done them after all, as there were many waves before mine with the younger children and veterans doing their swim first.

I did a rookie's error by bringing the wrong set of goggles, good thing dad was able to lend him mine. My wave started about 8.45am, 75 minutes past the first wave's start time. The Powerbar Performance bar I ate at 7am would most likely not give me any more power for the race!

I was in lane 6, sharing with Kevin Chan, brother of national triathlete Eugene Chan. My main rival for this event is our representative to the recent SEA Games, Ah Wei. He was in lane 18, so I couldn't see much of him from my end.

I managed to overtake Kevin Chan by a full lap in the 800m swim. Transition was pretty smooth, the secret is to not tie your shoelaces too tight! But mum was yelling that Ah Wei had just left the transition. My total swim time including transition was 12 minutes.

After climbing the steps out from the swim pool, I headed out for the 3 loop 7km run, and saw Ah Wei just about 50-100 metres ahead of me. The run route was around the Chin Woo Stadium. I'm so not used to running near vehicle traffic, inhaling exhaust fumes and risk getting knocked down at the same time.

Towards the end of the first loop, I met Doc Ray, Tomato Ray, and Ultra Yip manning the drinks and ribbon stations.

Fatigue got the better of me on the second and third loop, I gave up chasing Ah Wei and he got further and further. I was worried that someone would catch me from behind. But I was lucky, I reached the final hill and ran to my 2nd place position with a run time of 30.12 and total finishing time of 42.13, about 40 seconds after Ah Wei.

Kevin Chan just pipped Andy for third placing. While Sue, Andy's wife had a tussle with Eugene for the finishing. Sue came in first for the women category.

We stayed for the prize presentations and lucky draws, which finished at 11.15am. It was a good outing. Finally meeting the people whose blogs I have been stalking! And sharing this racing experience with my family. My brother won his category and also gave the boys in the older age category, who competed at ITU events, a run for their money. His average time per lap was also quicker than mine... the lil' rascal!

While my sister who never swam so far before in a swim pool, managed to come in 2nd in her category despite coming out 3rd last from the water.

See you all at the Malakoff 12km run this Sunday!

82 DAYS MORE!

Okay, maybe my tan mark isn't as obvious as I thought it was.

My last weekend warrior effort in Perth before the year ends...

Saturday - 120.6km ride, 4:17.09, 28.1kph average. Was really happy with this. I was only aiming for 27kph average as I did a measly 26.5kph the weekend before. The secret is to start slow and hammer at the end :)

Sunday - 19.88km run, 1:31.36, average 4:36 per km. Was hoping for 1.5 hours (4:30 per km average) but maybe I went too fast in the first 10km - 44:29, and was slower by 2.5 minutes in the second 10km. Oh well... any training is still good training.

See you guys at the Chin Woo Biathlon next Sunday!

No longer KPMG...

...at least for another year.

Ironically two weeks ago, I made a post on how much I LOVE KPMG. But last Tuesday, my partner in-charge told me about a one year a secondment opportunity as a Finance Manager at St Bartholomew's House, a non-for-profit organization, with aged care/mental health/homeless support services. I've been wanting a commercial experience for quite a while now, so I couldn't resist. And that job started today!

My first day at St Bart's was a bit of an information overload, with induction and all. But the people seemed nice and it is very different from working at KPMG. Smaller team now and more operationally inclined. The current Finance Manager was kind enough to show me around, introducing me to the staff and briefing me on my roles and responsibilities (hence, the information overload!). My roles include monthly management reporting to the board, yearly budgeting, handling auditors (being on the other side now), grant acquittals for various programs and many more.

Nervous? Yes, I am. But also looking forward to the challenge!

I'm very lucky that the CEO had no problems with my pre-booked holiday plans for Christmas as well as for the Langkawi Ironman.

...which reminds me, it's less than 90 days to go! And the past weekend's training of 20km run and 115km bike (I initially planned to do 120km, but was so fatigued in the last few kms) have gotten me really knacked! Hope for a better form next week.

I am cyclist?

*Edit* for pictures from official photographer and official results link

City of Perth Great Bike Ride, after two years of doing the 53km, I thought it was about time for me to step up to the plate and do the 106km. This would be my first ride over 100kms, which I would now build up in the weeks to come for my preparation for the Langkawi Ironman.

Target was to complete the two loop distance around Swan River in 3.5 hours, just over 30kph average.

I woke up before 4.30am with slightly less than 7 hours of sleep. I think I am less rigid with my sleep hours now. No longer needed the full pre race nights sleep of 8 hours. As long as I gave myself sufficient rest, it shouldn't affect my performance too much. I took about an hour to get ready... performed my pre race ritual - had my Nutri Grain cereal, necessary toilet visit, shaved my facial stubble and did my usual stretches. I got to my office building, Central Park, at 5.25am and rode about 1.5km to the race start.

Had my expired banana flavoured Powerbar Performance bar and did another round of stretches before visiting the toilet one last time. Our KPMG tent wasn't even set up yet. There were only 6 of us who were doing the 106km. Considering a turnout of about 1,000 riders for the 106km, I didn't expect to bump into any of us at the line-up.

6am - race start... I must have lined up in a quick wave, as the cyclists were just zooming past me. One of my partners, Graeme (who missed out this year due to a knee surgery) said that we should take advantage by drafting a group to do some good times. I'm so used to cycling in non-drafting triathlon races, hence I kept to my own pace most of the time.

The first 10kms were uneventful apart from several unlucky riders who already suffered punctures by then. I was already 3 minutes inside my target but I knew that there would be a few hills that would slow me down later, so I didn't get too excited.

Upon the 20km mark, we approached the infamous Mosman Mead's hill. There were many who dismounted and started pushing their bikes. There's where I met Brent, fellow colleague and national hockey player (who just missed out on the Beijing Olympics mind you!). He caught me from behind and overtook me. I thought there goes my chances of being the first KPMG finisher.

I still kept to my own race. Using the tri bars as much as possible, when it was safe to do so. I am much more familiar with the route now, doing this race for my third time now, and I have also been doing a lot more rides as compared to previous years (last year's race was done based on spinning training in the gym!)

By the 30km mark I managed to go inside my target by almost 5 minutes. I downed a Powergel, also expired, but found it oozing all over my fingers. I had to lick them off before I could place my hands back on the handle bars, must sayang my Ah Rui mah...

At the 40km mark, another KPMG colleague, Kate, overtook me. She was cycling in a pack. Darn! But I was making good times, so I couldn't have asked for more.

I completed the first loop of 53km in 1:38.00, which is almost 2 minutes quicker than last year's single loop! I thought to myself, if I maintained the same pace for the second loop, I could actually clock 3:16, way inside my target of 3.5 hours! But I reckoned I would be more fatigued in the second lap, so I aimed for under 3:20 instead.

At this point, the later waves of the 53km riders just started, so there was a bit of congestion for the first few kms of the second loop. Some of the riders in these later waves were pretty novices, riding with mountain bikes. So getting through the crowd was quite an effort!

Took my second Powergel at the 60km mark. Less messy this time. The weather was pretty good - a bit cloudy with light winds, not too hot. It threatened to rain but luckily the weather held. I actually had the urge to pee since the earlier parts of the race, but tried blocking it out. I sipped on Powerade every 10kms of the race.

Coming to the Mosman Mead's hill for the second time, I caught up with Brent again. I quickly sped off hopefully he won't catch me - and he didn't!

I only managed to cut down 2-3 minutes from my initial targeted time since the first loop. So I supposed maybe 3:20 was a big ask after all. Somewhere at the 80km mark, I overtook Kate. So things were still looking pretty good!

3rd Powergel was taken at the 90km mark, no mess at all *big grin* Call it psychological, but each time I down a Powergel, I somehow sped up for a couple of kms. And this time as the end seemed near, I just hammered it through!

Cycling on the freeway, there were safety cones which divided us cyclists from the vehicle traffic. One cyclist knocked over one of the cones and caused it to roll all over! Hope it didn't cause any accidents behind!

Only about 10kms left to go... I managed to cut down a few more minutes from my targeted time. 3:20 was definitely in sight, I was gunning for sub 3:15 now! Powering through... I hit the finish line in 3:13.27 (average 32.9kph)! My second lap was quicker by 2.5 minutes! For full results, click *here*

Dismounted and walked to the KPMG tent. Fernsy, Heggie and Craig were already there. They did the 53km. Come on, fellas! You guys beat me last year in the 53km and you're still doing the 53km? Soft, I tell ya!

There were many at our tent who have already completed the 53km and the 10km family ride. I helped myself to the feast - bacon and egg muffins, cinnamon buns, danish pastries, fruits and yoghurt. I wasn't keen on drinking more energy drinks, I didn't even finish my first bottle of Powerade!

Kate came in soon after that, but her timing was faster as she started later, oh welll... Then came in Rob, followed by Charlie and Brent. Apparently Brent really suffered in the second lap. Then came Louise and that completed our KPMG team of 106km cyclists. Louise and Charlie actually made a bet on who would finish first, and the odds were stacked against Charlie!

I hung around a bit to socialize, including seeing my division partner in-charge, Rob (also same surname as the other Rob) finish the 53km. I lent Rob (partner in-charge) my Avanti, he was pretty pleased with it. Other notable stories included recently engaged couple, Cade and Katie - Cade sped off leaving Katie behind after 10kms!

I also met Lydia who braved our cold Perth weather (in her words, hehheh) and did the 53km 4 days after she arrived in this foreign land for her visit! Well done!

First ride over 100kms done. Next Sunday's ride would be 120km. Let's see how that goes... 95 more days to Langkawi Ironman!

I LOVE KPMG...

No, this is not a post to suck up to my bosses but lately I have been spending a lot of time with people at work (including a couple of nights at the office past 7pm. Okaylah, I shouldn't complain - just being spoilt!). So after a while, one would grow to either hate or love the firm. I rather choose the latter, to make my life here much easier.

Last Friday, our division had our refresher day at Laser Corps, Oasis Resort Swan Valley. It's kinda like playing paintball, but without the pain. It was an interesting experience... shooting your managers and hearing their guns making dying sounds. I've played this before with the UWA International Student Service, which was so much different - the students were a lot more enthusiastic. This time round, we pretty much called the game to stop for lunch after an hour!

Lunch and socializing was ANOTHER experience. Watching my workmates getting more inebriated and talking less coherently by each glass of wine or beer they consume. Food at the Oasis was pretty average though.

Yesterday I received my race pack for this Sunday's Great Bike Ride. I was lucky to be first few ones to collect them, as they had limited bike shorts. Shirts they had plenty. So I've got the full suit.

I LOVE the awesome side prints...

And look at the cool interior design on the padding!

Looking forward to be burning the roads this Sunday!

Got power?

Power Station Triathlon at South Fremantle... 1km swim, 30km bike, 6km run. After having been able to do some reasonably impressive times at training for the past one week, I was pretty confident to improve on last year's timing of 1:43.52.

This year's race was held on a Saturday, rather than a Sunday. Reason - not too sure, apart from the organizers wanting to be able to enjoy a Sunday off.

Darling and myself arrived at the venue at 6.20am for the bike check-in and race bib collection. I had my expired Oatmeal Raisin Powerbar, did some last minute stretches and toilet visit. It was pretty cold, so wetsuits were allowed. Darn! But it's okay, I need to practise swimming open water without wetsuit for Langkawi Ironman anyway.

The swim was a straight line course along the beach. So we had to walk 1km out from the transition. Poor Li-Ann had to trot all the way with me to catch me starting and walk back after that!

I was tempted to do some warm-up swims but decided against it. The water seemed too cold and I didn't want to shiver while waiting for the start, which was about 20 minutes late.

The cold water and the delayed start made me feel wanting to pass water again... but it was too far from the toilet and too near to the start to be walking back. Hence, I did the most juvenile thing by passing water in the sea! Had to make sure no one was near me.

The swim was pretty alright. The water became warmer as we moved outwards away from the shore. I am happy to say that my navigation has improved, but then again, it is a straight line swim! There were no stings this time round, unlike the minor ones I had last year and the massive one the year before. Maybe it's the smell I am emanating from peeing in my suit!

I must say that although swimming is my best discipline, I don't enjoy it very much. I can't see how much into the course I am, or how far more to go. I can't judge my timing unless I stop swimming. We made a left turn and the last buoy. I touched the shore at 14:38.

A 250m run into transition, this is where I struggled a bit. Having done the last triathlon in May, which is the Half Ironman, I have forgotten the sequence of things I had to do. I somehow removed my bike from the racks before putting on my helmet. So I had to balance the bike while I struggled to fit my helmet on. Mounting the bike was a near disaster. I had trouble slipping my feet into the bike shoes, which were already fixed on the pedals. Looks like last week's transition practice was a waste of time! Total T1 time was 4:34.

I nearly had several accidents while I was swerving left and right while strapping on my bike shoes. The course had changed from last year. There were a lot more U-turns this time round. I wanted so badly to catch up the time loss in transition (as I now had a fast and sexy Ah Rui with me!) but slowing down for the U-turns made it almost impossible (my amateur cycling skills do not allow me to do fancy turns and swings without pressing the brakes). There was also a stretch of uneven gravel road that we had to pass. Good thing that not many suffered tyre punctures from the sharp stones.

I'm pretty happy that I'm starting to overtake others on the bike course now. And not just those who appeared like novices - a biased assessment made by looking how fancy their bikes and apparel are! Like for example, this guy below who has a Felt tri bike and wore the same Orca tri suit as I did.

Bike time was about an hour (average 30kph). My cyclecomputer stuffed up after I packed up, so I couldn't quite tell the exact time. Coming into transition, again I did not apply anything from my practice sessions. I just couldn't dismount without coming to a complete halt. Good thing I was still able to slip out of the bike shoes without tumbling over!

I also struggled a bit with fitting into my running shoes. Having the orthotics in them made the shoes tighter. But my legs felt good, so I was able to start my run strongly. I was quite surprised by this, as I usually feel tightness in the quads when wearing this Orca suit. The curse has been broken!

The sun was pretty bright but it wasn't too hot. I packed two expired Powergels on my race belt but didn't feel the need to consume them. I didn't stop at any of the water stations on the run course either. Even during the bike leg, I drank Powerade a couple of times, only towards the end of the course.

The run course was 3 laps, the first which I did in 9:02. I knew I would not be able to beat last year's overall time due to the time lost in the bike and transitions. But my first run lap was about 30 seconds quicker than last year. In fact, so were the second and third laps, 8:54 and 8:51 respectively! My total run time was 26:47, a full 2 minutes quicker than last year!

I finished in 1:46.04, more than 2 minutes slower than last year, 6/10 in my age group, 39/77 overall. But this year's winning time was 1:28.40, more than 7 minutes slower than last year's winning time. So I guess I have done pretty well in comparison!

Looking forward to the Great Bike Ride in two weeks time!

118... and counting...

With less than 120 days to Langkawi Ironman... and having read the many blog posts of fellow Malaysian competitors clocking their long rides to Port Dickson, running up the slopes of Genting Highlands... I can't help feeling a bit uneasy with my preparation.

Am I doing enough?

At the moment, I have yet to run any further than 10km or ride any longer than 80km. Swimming is a non-issue as I easily clock about 10kms of swimming a week with my swim squad. Some may say that I swim too much, and I should probably do more of the other disciplines. My argument would be... I'll use swimming to maintain my fitness, and it's the lowest injury risk of the three! :)

But ya, with my low weekly mileage in running and cycling, I cannot help but self doubt. Which I shouldn't, as this is how I planned it. I would only start my long runs and rides after the Power Station Triathlon this coming weekend.

I'm pretty happy with my cycling averages for the past few weeks. I was able to clock between 28.5kph to 29kph for my 80km rides, and there was once I even broke 29kph - 29.1kph! (marginal, I know... but hey, still break it what...)

Running has been somewhat slower... been running my 10kms just under 44 minutes, when in the past, I used to be able to dip under 43 minutes with ease. But I won't panic too much. When it comes to the ironman, it is not how fast one can run the 10km... it is how long one can last the marathon - after the 3.8km swim and the 180km bike! So better not push it and risk getting an injury...

Powerman Malaysia is coming up. Looking forward to reading some race reports to keep myself motivated (and hopefully not freak out with their impressive times)!

In the beginning...

*Edit* for pictures from official photographer

This year's KPMG ball was held at Sheraton Perth, which brings back memories... as it was this same place where darling and I shared our first dance at the Curtin ISC Ball two years ago, and I got charmed since... ;)

Li-Ann tried out some sophisticated hair curlers. This is the work-in-progress...

And this is the stunning result!

I think I have lost weight again, my suit somehow felt bigger compared to last year. Sigh... the effects of Ironman training...

The theme was Welcome to the Circus... we had an opening act, consisting of a stilt walker, some clowns and a pretty talented young lady who hula hooped a ring of fire!

But not many people were dressed according to theme unlike previous years. I supposed circus wear is not very flattering.

Alan, one of my senior managers and his partner, Sharon were in our table. And the four troublemakers, Pete, Ed, Shree and Dale. Daniel was meant to come with his wife, Elle but they didn't turn up. Good thing Sharon was around to keep Li-Ann company.

Entree was bread rolls and cateloni. Mains were either rib eye beef or barramundi fillet. You can pretty much guess what Li-Ann and myself chose, two very different tastes. For dessert, we had this mini fruit basket with ice cream.

Apart from the opening act, there wasn't much on the agenda. People just socialised and danced throughout, until midnight. But we had fun nonetheless. Seeing our managers and partners winding down, being able to meet their significant other. And watching my division partner-in-charge doing (or rather attempting to do) ballroom dancing and spinning twirlies... priceless!

Daylight savings started today, more sunlight! Yippee!