Presenting...The Sundown Marathon Pacers

On May 27, 0030hrs, you will be accompanied by the Official Sundown Marathon Pacers who will provide the steady, optimal paces and guidance for you to hit your target finish times.  There will be 4-5 pacers in each pace timing group for Half Marathon (2:00h, 2:15h, 2:30h) and Full Marathon (4:00h, 4:30h, 5:00h, 5:30h and 6:00h).

Who are these Sundown Pacers and how will they help you achieve you goal of Beating The Sunrise in  your desired completion times.

Presenting...The Sundown Marathon Pacers 2012

Click on the picture for the Full Bio/Profiles of each individual Pacer & Pace Groupings

Here's a chat with some of this year's Sundown Pacers, where they share the reasons why they have become Pacers, the training journey and the preparations they have made to be ready for Race Night.

New Sundown Pacers (c) Official Sundown Marathon Singapore

What inspired them to be Marathon Pacers and what attributes would make a good Sundown Marathon Pacer?

Why Be A Marathon Pacer (c) Official Sundown Marathon Singapore

Race Night Tips: What plans and positioning will the Pacers adopt on race night, and how do the Sundown runners identify and follow the respective Pace Groups?

Experienced Pacers (c) Official Sundown Marathon Singapore

Is there a meeting point on Race Night to meet with the Pacers?
There is a Sundown Pacers & Runners Meet-Up on May 26, 10:30pm at the Sundown Pacers booth (near to the main stage).  Runners will collect your Pace Bands (with timing splits) and light sticks and have group photos with the Pacers.  The Sundown Pacers will walk to the start line with their respective pace group runners and line up in the respective timing pens.

Please RSVP HERE for the Sundown Pacers Meet-Up 

Recognized - Friend Of Water

The unannounced parcel that came in the Team FatBird mail was a pleasant surprise - in recognition of Team FatBird's participation at the Singapore World Water Day (WWD) Celebrations.  We had lots of fun at the Celebrations Run from FatBird Statue below UOB Plaza to Marina Barrage - read about the morning's celebrations HERE.

We are honored to be invited as a community partner of World Water day Celebrations and recognized as a Friend Of Water, to be able to do our little bit to promote the importance of water resources and the many Active, Beautiful, Clean (ABC) sites that have been put in place by PUB, our water authority.

Team FatBird would like share this special gift of recognition with all FatBirds who made the time to participate in this meaningful run, and also those who have supported and helped to manage the whole event - of a nice photo plaque, CD compilation of the many beautiful photos taken at the WWD activities, a nice plush toy of the WWD mascot, and importantly, the recognition from PUB and the WWD organizers of our team's active participation in the celebrations which contributed to the success of World Water Day Singapore 2012.

Ops NightHawk #10 - Tapering & Race Expo

It was the final Night Training Run before the NightHawks taper and go into race on May 27.  After a busy day at the Sundown REPC, the Sundown Pacers were at ECP with the 100+ NightHawks for an Optimal Paced 18km (HM) and 28km (FM).  The Kookaburras, who were in their fifth week of training, and the 3^rd Group session with FatBirds were also doing the same distances and routes, albeit still at basebuild territory.

The briefings were kept short, and within 15min, the trainees were into their respective optimal paces, tackling the ECP stretch which will now be a feature of the Sundown Full Marathon on race night.  The groups held on their paces well, with many a NightHawk trainee now more conditioned and better equipped for the tasks at hand.  The race plans were put into practice, factoring in water stops and walk breaks where they apply.

The respective groups held steady optimal all the way to Sailing Centre, before the HM turned back for their final 6km.  The FMers continued on strongly till the u-turn at Changi Coastal Road.  The night was windy at certain sections of the route, while generally it was still humid.  We had to contend with cycling groups plying the park connector.  At places where we dropped paces slightly due to distraction, we were able to gingerly recover lost ground to maintain average optimal pace.

This run was a final trial of sorts for many of the runners as all were aiming to sustain Optimal Pace for about ¾ of the race distances in a night run.  The starting paces for all groups were well maintained and with tracking of pace at each km mark, there were regular moderation of the paces to averages close to the optimal targets.  Race day lighting and visibility markers were also put to the test – with groups of runners in similar lighting codes, it was pretty visible compared with the use of balloons (which are not really useful in the darkness of night running). 

We were happy to hear that most of the runners were able to sustain the prescribed distances at optimal pace, lending to the confirmation that the NightHawks have been toughened and sharpened as marathon runners in a short span of 10 weeks.  For the few who were not able to sustain the final few km, it was mainly due to the long day on our feet at the RunSwimBike Expo – yet another confirmation of our advise to runners not to spend too much time on their feet (at expos, shopping, visits) one or less day before any marathon race.

As we packed and left the C4 Shelter before midnight, there were still lots of chatter and discussions of the night’s run, interspersed with tinges of anticipation and a sense of deprivation as we enter the tapering phase (a lot less mileage, although the intensity will be maintained)…and some runners were even wondering if they would suffer from ‘withdrawal’ symptoms from the lack of fun group runs after the Sundown Marathon.  


That is sure testimony of the seriousness and dedication of the NightHawks towards the game of marathoning, and again, it is heartening to all the Sundown Pacers and FatBird trainers to see this kind of positive responses and commitment to training, speaking volumes of the care and guidance of the NightHawk Training Team.  With this final night training run lock and loaded, the NightHawks will be all ready on Sundown Night.  Sundown Marathon 2012, Here We Come To....LIGHT UP THE CITY!

Revised NightHawk Training Video, credit FatBird Ronnie Goh

NightHawks 2012 - LIGHT UP THE CITY!

It has been 10-13 weeks of structured training for the Sundown Pacers and Operation NightHawk participants, going through various terrain and weather conditions in basebuilding long runs and pacing sessions.  The Sundown Lead Up runners became part of this journey during the 3 progressive runs we shared.  Here's a look at the roads, hills, trails, paces and elements the NightHawks have braved in our Sundown Marathon journey.

When Dusk Comes, The NightHawks Will Emerge!  

Join us for our Sundown mission on May 26-27 to Light Up The City!

Sundown Lead-Up Finale: The Heat Was On!

It was to be the finale of the Sundown Lead-Up RunSeries, the 3^rd and longest LSD with distances of 21km for the HM and 30km for the FM...it turned out to be the most challenging training run we have had to face in the past 3 months of training for Sundown Marathon.  250 runners and Sundown Pacers were presented the ‘Optimal Pace’ plan and brief introductions to the respective Pace Groupings at The Playground @ Big Splash, all staged up with the Sundown tents, signage, posters along with the presence of hydration support from 100 Plus and Nutrition from Maxifuel.  The arsenal was well stocked up with enduro-tabs and Viper gels to be able to sustain us for this final long run, before we begin tapering from next weekend.

After the lighter moments of the group photos (it was quite impossible to fit all of the runners in there, but we managed quite a good one at the end), the respective groups were flagged off to the sound of the air horn.  The stored up energies of the runners were unleashed on the parkway, albeit with help from the SundownPacers to keep to pacers to sustain the fuel.  Because the runner groups were large, we confined ourselves to the narrow pathways along ECP and taking care to alert runners and bike users of our presence, helped in part with whistles and shouts from the pacers for traffic control.

The paces for the first leg towards NSRCC were a tad fast, but the respective groups soon moderated their paces to the optimal pace targets we were aiming to achieve.  Because of the various abilities and objectives of runners even within the same pace group, we had pacers within each group to cover the front, mid-section and to sweep the tail of the group in order that as many of the runners can benefit from the pacing.  It sure was a challenge for us as we were faced with the heat from 'Brother Sun' who decided to rear himself In spite of earlier weather forecasts of rain in the morning.  The Maxifuel station was kept very busy and ‘business’ was exceptionally good (as opposed to the 2^nd lead-up run 2 weeks ago in the rain).  Thanks Team Maxifuel for your ernest support, for without your fuel and hydration, the majority would not have been able to sustain for ½ the distances we set out to achieve.

There were long queues at the NSRCC water cooler as the runners topped up their empty fuel/hydration bottles, with perspiration dripping down all the way to their legs and shoes.  The return back to Playground was a lot better for the HMers as they headed home for completion.  The FM runners were containing their enthusiasm as they knew there was another good 15km or so remaining.  Viper gels were downed with more enduro-tab drinks, helping to keep the spirits of the runners high enough to reach the 21km point, all while conforming to the Optimal Pace plans.

The hydration/chill-out point at the 21km was just too much for some of the FM runners to bear, as they decided to join the HM folks in the Shelter to cool off their ‘frying’ brains.  Surprisingly, many of the FM lead-up runners picked up their resolve (probably knowing this will be their final LSD before tapering) to go with the Sundown Pacers for the 2^nd 9km leg.  The paces were better maintained at that stage, since all were tiring and not as ‘springy’ compared with the first 21km.  The Optimal Pace strategy does allow for some ‘fade’ in the second half of the race, and knowing that we were able to main the first 21km at pace did help us to persist to sustain that pace for as long as possible.  It was sheer delight as we approached the Maxifuel point yet again.  A number of us rushed to the toilets at SkatePark to ‘cool off’ with water on our heads, before making our way back for the remaining 4.5km.  

In spite of the challenging conditions, there were not many walkers outside of the planned walk breaks.  Stops at the water points were also brief such that the momentum could be kept up.  A few of the runners had signs of overheating and minor cardiac drifts of heart-rates, and were wise to call an earlier stop to prevent any unwelcomed damage to the bodies.  It was before long when we finally completed the 30km back at the start point, and many who completed, did very well to sustain their paces all the way.  There were a number of surprises too, of runners who were not that conditioned but completed their longest training run in such conditions 0 probably due to the encouragement and pacing provided by the dedicated bunch of Sundown Pacers, as well as the energies derived from running as a group.  

As we wind down with debriefs with the various lead-up run groups, the FM NightHawks went for their final 5km to fulfill their requirement for the longest LSD in the 12-week structured training program.  Already, many of the lead-up runners were looking to do their tapering weekend runs of 18km (HM) and 28km (FM) at Optimal Pace, preferably in the night for some ‘conditioning’ as advised by us.  Our observations of this batch of lead-up runners were that they came really well prepared for the training runs, and many of them have good foundation and base to boot.  We are happy to note that many of them joining us on race night should be able to do well as they have already shown they were able to meet the challenges of such an ‘extreme’ morning of LSD.  If it were to turn out to be cool and windy on May26/27, we could well see many good timings and Personal Bests for HM and FM runners.  Here’s wishing all the Lead-Up and NightHawk Runners the best on race night where we will be there as one to LIGHT UP THE CITY – SUNDOWN MARATHON 2012, WE ARE READY!


Photos from Official Sundown Marathon

Photo Slideshow of morning's events by CK Chin

Facebook Photos from Min, Alan

Operations NightHawk & Kookaburra: The Wild Night Run

It was slated to be the longest night training LSD in the NightHawk Program, and turned out to be the most challenging as well.  The initial conditions were rather cooling as we ran alongside the green lung of OUTR, but once out onto UTR, we had to contend  with a few traffic junctions and some heat generated from the road traffic.  There was some relief when we hit the connector road along Mandai Road and it was rather nice pacing all the way to Mandai Lake Road, the entrance to the Zoo. 

The HM folks reached their U-turn point at Yishun Ave 1/Mandai Rd at a good average pace of 5:40min/km.  When they turned back, they would be trying for a slight negative split, running slightly faster in the second half if their conditions allowed and their fuel tanks have been economically managed up till then.

The FM group turned left onto Mandai Road for that longish stretch towards Mandai Zoo.  The group was rather tight knit with about 8-10 runners bunched up running at comfortable pace.  A quick gel, drink and regroup later, the group was back on the return for the remaining 15.5km.  Groups 2 and 3 quickly surfaced from the distance, telling us that they probably were running at quite a fast initial pace.  Group 1 runners and pacers were rather bunched up with 2 main sections, 1 going at about 5:20min/km, and the other 5:35min/km, not too bad since we could cater to the different running targets within the same pace group. 

The Kookaburra Program was into its 3^rd session, and with basebuilding in mind, the Kookaburra trainees were all too happy to go along with the running guides doing 16km and 25km distances.  Because the group is smaller, they were able to keep together within their respective timings and eventually completed 26km, not too bad for only the second time they were running with FatBird.

The key lesson for the night must surely be the sudden change of weather to one with humid conditions 1.5hrs into the run.  That made the return leg of the runners much more challenging, and there were a few incidents of ‘loss of power’ through fatigue and dehydration.  Although many brought along their fuel belts and hydration packs, they were not prepared for those levels of humidity and warmth.  The humidity got on to some of the runners who had emptied their hydration ahead of plans, and there were really no water points along that longish stretch of Mandai Road for replenishment.  By ¾ of the journey, paces were dropped in Groups 1, 2, 3 and 4, with a number having to take more walk-breaks to recover and gain a second wind. 

With a strong base built up over the past few weeks, the trainees were able to eventually overcome the challenges of the Wild Night, although many were drained by the heat and felt quite exhausted at the end.  It was a good experience for all the Nighthawks to understand how their bodies perform for night running, the humid conditions leading to rapid loss of fluids and electrolytes, the low visibility causing the mind to tell the body it is tired and wants to go to sleep, etc.  If not for the groups that they were running along with, many of them would have stopped and walked all the way back. 

 

Back at MacRitchie Amenities Centre, there were more time spent this evening on debriefs and feedback on the feelings of the challenges of running at night.  We have learnt much about night running and that it poses different challenges from day running.  The NightHawks and Kookaburras can be proud of themselves that they went through the Wild Night relatively unscathed although some had encountered difficulties along the way.  It is through toughing it out at such runs that we can be conditioned better for race night - the mantra of ‘Train Hard, Race Easy’ never rang so true with the NightHawks & Kookaburras until this evening. 

We are glad we got to experience the tough conditions, which will serve to strengthen us as well as not to take the marathon/half too lightly, esp. one that is run at night.  We now enter the final stages of marathon training with the culmination of the longest LSD next weekend, all 21km-35km of running  glory, this time in the morning and going at Optimal Pace.  Till then, we will have a good rest while reflecting on the lessons we garnered from The Wild Night Run at MR.

Photo Slideshow from CK Chin 

Sundown Marathon 2012 - Lead Up Run #2

It was a much anticipated lead-up run for many, and we were not disappointed - what with the showers of blessings and the additional mileage which we managed to hit on target pace (in fact, was slightly better than even pace).  In spite of the twin marathons of Bali and Run350 this weekend, there was still a good turnout of nearly 90 lead-up runners with another 80 NightHawk trainees to boot.  Along with the Sundown Pacers, the 200 of us were a standout at the relatively quieter ECP this morning.

The Sundown Marathon organizers were already there before dawn, setting up the staging area when we arrived.  There was a hive of activity as the Pacers received their final coordinating instructions, and the participants queued to sign-in.  Many of them came prepared for a good workout, although some have not had much of a base-building phase before this.  Nonetheless, we were going for even-pace running after a brief introduction to pacing for the audience.  The Sundown Pacers, in their distinctive green tops, were all ready to set the pace for their respective groups of HM (2:00h, 2:15h, 2:30h) and FM (4:00h, 4:30h, 5:00h, 5:30h, 6:00h).

After the briefing and group photos, the respective pace groups were flagged off to the sound of air-horn and whistles, and that got their adrenalin pumping and energy levels up for a good start.  Maxifuel (the official nutrition sponsor for Sundown 2012) were on hand with 2 fuel stops to fuel-up and energize the group for this 20-28km run.  The lead-up runners and Pacers were steadily pacing in groups, all very uniformed and smart-looking.  The first 9km was covered with much pleasure, getting to know one another, and avoiding a faster-than-required pace.  The first F2 Fuel-Point was met with much excitement as cheers welcomed us, although we were not feeling too thirsty because of the cool weather, and the drizzle that was starting.

To keep the momentum going, we stopped for less than a minute, getting sufficient drinks before moving back towards The Playground.  By then the rain was rather heavy.  Since there was no lightning, and the various pace groups having checked with the runners of their comfort levels (many of them could not have felt stronger in that cool weather), decided to continue on to the delight of all who made the effort to come all the way just for this preparatory LSD.  The mid-point was reached with most of the groups banking in a few minutes because of a slightly faster 1st half.  Bananas, gels and isotonic drinks were served at the Playground fuel point, before the runners moved on towards Fort Road for their second loop.

 The cool weather, coupled with the good nutrition support, allowed most of the runners to be able to sustain the good pace in the second half of the run.  It was thanks to the Pacers’ regular reminders to stay on pace that prevented the groups from running too fast and splitting up.  The runners stayed close together till the 18km mark before the HM groups turned back at C4 to complete their 20km.  The FM groups continued on with their target paces to the F2 Fuel Station for the second time.  

Spirits were high as the motivated runners kept on to their targets to complete the remaining 6km from F2, for a grand total of 28km for the FM groups.  Many were elated when they heard they had achieved a bonus of 3km from the intended 25km, what with maintaining the good paces they had targeted.  The weather and pace group support helped lots, resulting in a happy and thankful bunch of lead-up runners and NightHawk trainees (who went on to do 31km for FM).

The Official Sundown team of photographers and support crew were at the finish line to greet and welcome all the runners back, and as they ran past the Sundown Banner Posts in what felt like a race-day finish, the sense of satisfaction in having completed the long run was just so enriching and motivating for the soul.  Discussions of why some of us were able to complete the long run and yet feel good continued in the midst of planning for the finale Lead-Up Run of 30km on May 6.  

A large number of lead-up runners are already preparing to return for what might be their longest run before Sundown, and we certainly look forward to having an even bigger and better run than what was experienced this morning.  As we cleared up by 11:30am, and walked merrily from The Playground, we could still hear echos of GO, GO, SUNDOWN, the whistles blowing, and the imagery of our strong runs lingering on in our minds long after for the rest of the day.  Thanks for all who participated, especially the organizers Sundown Marathon, the Sundown Pacers as well as the nutrition support from Maxifuel.  We all made SUNDOWN EXCELLENCE HAPPEN!

Official Sundown Marathon Photos
Photo Slideshow from AC LEONG

Facebook Photos CK CHIN, TAN KIM LAI