Woke up to a cold rainy day and attended my 3rd Mizuno Run today morning, but the state of organisation of the Mizuno Run was simply too pathetic to be mentioned here. (I'm betting that almost all running groups/forums are complaining about the state of disarray, lack of organisation and command & control this event had)
I was actually wondering whether to attend the run in the morning, stoning in front of my computer. It was raining heavily, and I was kinda sleepy. Tired, I dragged myself out of my house, took 59 and reached Tampines Poly in 30 mins (wow!). Actually, I had intended to take taxi due to the rain (and I was running late), but I couldn't find any taxis at all! (I'm not very lucky with taxis lor...) First time taking 59 and I was surprised to reach TP so early.
As it had stopped drizzling, I quickly made my way to TP, looking at the huge jam in front of TP due to cars dropping passengers who were going to run...It was seriously bad and I wondered why they did not allow the cars to enter TP to drop off the passengers.
Walking to the stadium was relatively easy, and as I neared the stadium I was stunned by the turn-out. It was really full and people were still streaming in! Gosh, I was wondering what is the total number of people at the event when the MC announced that there was over 8000 runners! I was like "WTF?!" as memories of the poor organisation and handling of previous Mizuno runs came to me. I was a little hesitant to place my bag into the baggage deposit truck also, when I noticed that there were only 2 pathetic trucks loading the horde of bags. What made matters worse were that they just dumped in the bags with no apparent system of tagging or marking out of the bags in the truck, which meant that the bags would be unloaded in a bulk!
Walked around the stadium to find the registration spot (yea...never mark out...no signs...WTH!) and saw Zhan Wei, his friend and Henry.
The queues for the toilets were also super long, and at the start of the run, I was super far from the starting line (or balloon) lor! Tsk. And barely 1km from the starting line, there was already a chokepoint. Gosh. The route gets worse on entering Bedok Reservoir, where the gravel path had formed puddles of water, and muddy paths greeted the runners. Spent most of the time jumping around and trying to squeeze past the slower runners.
Furthermore, I was told that the end point of the running event was at the reservoir instead of TP! Quite shocked at the last minute change. Managed to finish the run with a raw time of 53 minutes, but the time did not seem accurate given that I had practically walked from the start till Bedok Reservoir.
At the end of the run, I saw Lionel (Muscular) and went to collect the goodie bags with him. Having no signs, we walked up and down till we saw people holding those Mizuno bags, and asked for directions. And the queue(s) were super long! We were a queue, and were shocked to know that it was the queue for Fun Runners only! It's really bad to not have signs, but the command & control of the event was sorely lacking! We went to find the Competitive Goodie Bag queue, only to see 3 queues! OMG. We had to queue for half an hour for the goodie bags, and all we got was a shoe bag and a singlet. I guess the saving grace was the wonderful ORANGE singlet! Haha.
Walking around, I realised there were many more people I know who attended, like Heng Hong, Hwi Bee, Jonathan, Lionel, Qiu Rong, Sandip, Sarah, Yi Si, Zhiwen.
Went home with muddy shoes (heart pain!), caked calves and a smelly running kit. I'm seriously considering NOT joining future Mizuno races...getting from bad to worse.
Had an afternoon nap and met my cousin Cynthia to go out and get some of my clothes for the upcoming exchange - Boots and Socks. Intended to get my soft shell rain-proof/wind-proof jacket, but there was either last piece/no stock.
After spending some time walking around here's a note about the different stores I've went to:
- X-trekkers (Velocity) do sell decent equipment from brands like Mountain Designs (Australia) and Black Yak (Korean). The staff were pretty knowledgeable, but I found them slightly pushy in terms of selling their items. Got my boots and socks from them.
- Adventure Gear Post by BOAC (South Bridge Road) sells mainly China brands like Kingcamp. Again, the sales staff is pretty well-versed with his equipment, though it relates more to personal experiences.
- Adventure 21 (Chinatown) is a shop which deals with fairly mid to high ranged equipment from European brands like Mammut and Trezeta. Prices are kinda steep, cos of the brands.
- Campers' Corner (Capitol Building) is a little outlet tucked away in Capitol, along the main road. Sells via online also, and carries brands like Leki, Marmot and Arcteryx (all expensive brands! But I must admit, Arcteryx is worth the price)
- Outdoors by World Of Sports carries the Columbia and Hi-Tec brands. Columbia, for its rugged outdoor jackets, fleeces and boots. Hi-Tec, for the boots. Limited range though.
Current Mood: 
Sleepy
June asked me whether I'm stressed...
Somehow, I'm unsure whether I am. Maybe? Because I need to settle my SEP stuff (e.g. flight, accomodations, mapping) and also handle the upcoming Rovers Camp.
Things seem ok so far...kinda slow to take off and somehow it just gets tiring to go to school everyday, travelling a long 1-hour journey to school (and another hour back). For those who stay in the east, I doubt I can (or should) complain to u guys cos u travel an even longer journey to school! Gosh.
Just hoping that all goes well. Wondering if I should get a year-long flexi ticket or just a 6 months ticket since my SEP is not confirmed.
Ideas, anyone?
Sometimes things come your way when you least expect it to.
What a day!
Ran with the Kraken peeps in the morning at MacRitchie, then had a shower and blazed down to NUS for Candice's Commencement (or convocation), saw Lin Yen in her graduation gown, and Yi-Shyan for the 2nd time in 2days! Then went off with Jorin, Lai Yee and Wanling to Vivocity, while dropping off Kheng Hui there as he had to meet some friends. Fun at Vivo, with nice food at Kim Gary's, then a stroll around the mall (which is full of people on a Sunday, gosh what a difference from a weekday!). Got a wonderful surprise from the 3 gals, and then moved on to Beach Road to gather some tents for Rovers. Then zipped to Bedok, had Siglap bak chor mee, scouted the Geylang network and had you tiao there, then went to Changi Village to see the bak pok (damn chio!!!)
What a day!
And I've gotten a pair of gloves (yay for winter time!!!), a box of wonderful handmade cookies and another box of Primadeli cookies. Gonna sleep...tired...
Thanks for all the time guys! Really really appreciate it. Plus the numerous sms-es which I've received...thanks a bunch! :)
FOC BECKONS!
Nice cookies! Choc chip!
Current Mood:
HappyCurrent Music: Zhuo Wen Xuan - Liang Shan Bo Yu Zhu Ying Tai
Guess what? I came home...and I saw a parcel reminiscent of an overseas package on my desktop...
Interesting...
I love my brother la!!! OMG...it's from overseas! For my birthday!!! And I think I'm still swooning over it now...It's an Oakley Half Jacket! OMG OMG OMG.
Went to bathe after a period of being 'high' and this was what I got...
Dang...time to get a new pair of specs
*Scribbles down*
Current Mood:
SUPER DUPER HAPPY!Current Music: Lee Ann Womack - I Hope You Dance
Hmms...things I think I would need *hint hint*
1) Winter Jacket (Leather based? For cold...)
2) Goretex Jacket (for the rain in the winters of Netherlands)
3) Trek shoes (u know, salomon that time of trekking all-terrain shoes)
4) Cargo pants for trekking in the day (e.g. like cargo, but way lighter and much better for cool climates)
5) New laptop (XP based) -.-
6) New camera which runs on AA batteries, has rather good zoom, and basically I can take good pics!
7) A watch...probably something which can withstand the cold >.<
Dang...I need to get my air tickets and accomodations sorted. >.<
Been wondering why did time pass so fast?
It's barely 2 weeks since I attended Engine Camp, and I realised I still have loads to do.
Not to forget the upcoming Rovers Camp 2007 - Juntos, Matriculation Fair and AGM.
And to juggle my SEP application, which seems half-here and half-there. And I wish I can really do my Design I module there, for if I come back, I'm taking the new syllabus version.
Which kinda sucks, I guess.
And how about an early arrival at Eindhoven? Probably not, since I need to settle some of the Rovers stuff for handover before AGM, and it's highly likely that the AGM will happen after I leave. Gosh.
So many things, so little time
*tick tock tick tock*
So many things to do, so little space to maneuver.
*tick tock tick tock*
Maybe it's better if everything was last minute. Then, you'll realise that some things shouldn't have been that way all along.
*tick tock tick tock*
It's high time that the engine gets rumbling. If yours hasn't, it's time to do so... it's time to make the impossible happen :)
*tick tock tick tock*
I wish time were on my side...and maybe fate had allowed some things to happen earlier than now. Gosh...I feel like I'm in melancholy.
*tick tock tick tock*
Or maybe, just maybe... but I dun wish to have anymore maybes. I gain some, I lose some? Or will I still have the chance after I return?
*tick tock tick tock*
My mind's in a blur...Dang the 豆沙饼.
Current Mood: 
Pensive
Current Music: Redwan Ali - Would You Be There