In aid of the Be Frank campaign to raise funds for cancer research and awareness, Frank ran his third 89KM Comrades Marathon at South Africa on 1 June 2014. Back home, Saucony played our part in supporting our ambassador by taking part in the inaugural Frankathon event. And here's a look on Frank's race report from his own words.
By Frank
My fourth visit to South Africa, my second year as the
Malaysia Comrades Marathon ambassador, my third Comrades Marathon and also
second "Down" run saw 9 Malaysian standing in the chilly temperatures
of 10c at the start at the Pietermaritzburg City Hall on 1 June 2014.
Race gears with the Saucony Kinvara 5.
Sleep was critical and just like last year, I woke up
feeling good with about 5 hours sleep despite suffering cramps on my right
calf. Just my bad habit of stretching after waking up. Must remember not to do
it anymore. I started to prepare myself
breakfast which consist of coffee, muesli bars and some meat jerky.
I also tried to clear my airway of phlegm as much as I could while cleaning and
freshening myself up. By 3.15am, I met
with the others at the lobby. Group picture and off to Pietermaritzburg with
Chee Kong driving.
Group photo with fellow Malaysians.
We arrived an hour later at Pietermaritzburg and there
was a slight hiccup upon disembarking from our vehicle. Everyone was trying to
hard to put in last minutes gear check. Mine was literary all ready hence I
helped out to tear open the hand warmers as the temperature was chilly about
10c and also took in a GU Roctane gel to give myself a jump start. Myself and
Susanah lost touch with the others as we approach the starting coral but were
soon reunited for a group photo together. And once all wishes were made, we
headed to our respective starting pent. I was with Susanah at the G coral.
I remained calm and with the clock ticking away till the
start at 5.30am, the atmosphere became alive. And then, it finally started with
the South Africa national anthem Nkosi Sikelel Afrika being played followed by
Shosholoza and Chariots of Fire. I sang along and then, it was silence for a
moment before the cock's crow from Max Trimborn. This is where I started my
chrono and soon, the cannon went off to
signal the start at 5.30am sharp! The crowd went crazy as we started to move.
As the start at Pietermaritzburg is narrower than Durban,
it took me 7 minutes to cross the start gantry. That was about a minute faster
compared to year 2012 when I was seeded H. I removed my t-shirt which kept me
warm earlier. My gloves remained on with the warmers in them. A Kilometer in,
I had the urged to pee and off I went to the side where many runners were
as well. It must have been the cold start that caused the urge. Once done, I
tried to look for Susanah as we agreed to meet back somewhere in the middle of
the crowd. I spotted her easily and we continued on. However shortly later
after the first junction, she asked me to go ahead. I knew at that time her
foot was starting to hurt already. I would have continue with her but knowing
her that when she asked me to go ahead, I had to go ahead. And at that time, a
decision had to be made and hence I surged forward after wishing her a safe and
good run.
Surging ahead through the crowd along the narrow path, I
caught up with Susan and exchanged a couple of words before I surged ahead
again. The locals were already out cheering and supporting the runners while
some poor villagers were asking for our unwanted tops. The urge to pee once
again came at about 6KM and this time it happened near Polly Shortts, the place
where I stepped on "human land mine" back in year 2012. I chose my
spot wisely this time as I did not want to soil my spanking new Kinvara 5 and
relieve myself. There weren't a lot of pee actually, just that the cold weather
kept weakening my bladder.
The descend at Polly Shortts and Little Polly didn't
bother me much as day began to break. And before it got too bright, I went
again to relieve myself at 14KM. And it was here that I finally finished my
tiny 300ML bottle of GU Roctane Brew I had from the start. I been sipping small
amounts in at every 20 minutes interval to keep the nutrients flowing in my
system and also to avoid the human traffic at the earlier water stations. Soon
I've arrived at Lion Park, where the first timing mat was. I knew there was a
video cam somewhere hence I continued running. Hahaha... Here, I've managed to
passed a pretty huge number of runners already and hence has broken free from
the main crowd. I've also passed all the 11 hours bus (pacer) and hence will be
building buffer to ensure that all of them or at least one of them will stay
behind me.
Next was the approach towards Camperdown and when the
smell of chicken which was pretty nasty came, I knew I was near. I spotted
Johan Grassman and took the opportunity to have a short break while catching up
with him before resuming my run. Then I spotted the lady in pink wig and tutu,
Caroline. Johan too caught up and we had some photos and chat together before I
went ahead. As I arrived at Camperdown, I tried spotting to Mei-Ee but like
year 2012, I failed to do so. I wanted the sun block lotion to apply on my
shoulders. I even missed my first salty potato here as I went ahead too fast.
No point turning back, I took my first pack of GU Roctane gel here.
So far so good on the legs and energy level, next to
tackle was Cato Ridge, a pretty mild area before arriving at Harrison Flats.
And if I remember correctly, this is where I cross path with Kai Yuan. Both
areas are filled with supporters and this kept runners going. However not
entirely to be confused with the word "flat", this part has actually
pretty small nasty climbs, bumps I will say. The weather was slowly getting
warmer as I hope that it will not be a repeat of last year. Took in in my first
pack of "bak kwa” here and although I made sure I chewed properly before
swallowing, it resulted in stomach cramps. Trust me it did not happen when I
tried it back home. And with the constant coughing since the start, it made
matters more uncomfortable. Sigh... But Ethembeni School came into view shortly
after completing Harrison Flats as I began to high five the underprivileged
kids. I believe that not only they felt good, I personally felt great and honoured
too for it gave a little energy to withstand the pain as I rain. And at the end
of this stretch, a major nightmare awaits, Inchanga, the descend into Drummond.
For the "Up" run, Inchanga is a long winding
climb and hence I knew it will be painful and demoralising to run down. I took
walk breaks in between my runs and had my second GU Energy Gel here hoping to
recuperate. And while my legs and body does the job of making a single step at
a time to get closer to Kingsmead, my mind was fix elsewhere.
And like last year, I once again bump into David from
Singapore here. It seems like we just like to meet at Inchanga and snap a
selfie of ourselves. We ran together for a while though sometimes we are just
not able to keep up with another. I finally arrived at the halfway point at
Drummond in 5:11:42 hours.
I arrived on time as I've told Manette that I shall be there between 10.30am to
11.00am. And yes, she was there at the same spot as last year and she offered
me a can of Coke and bottle of water. Am really thankful for her kind gestures
as we chatted a little and had a photo together before I continue on after
spotting David. DANKIE Manette!
Next was Arthur's Seat and I was surprised that no
flowers was given out this year as back then, each runner will get a flower to
wish Arthur Newton a "Good Morning Sir" by throwing flowers into the
seat as the saying says that we will enjoy a stronger second half of the race.
I however, gave the plaque a tap and said the message. Whether a stronger half,
that depends for as long I did the tradition, that was the important part.
Drummond is located in a valley and hence climbing out
will be a real challenge. And the route to take us was via Alverstone. A 11
hours bus came and both myself and David was following it. However, the driver
was going to fast and at one point even climb 2 hills consecutively. David
managed to stay with him but I played safe and held back as I felt he was
certainly going too fast. Even a fellow runner was cursing him and told other
to hold back and not to be suck in. I am pretty sure I am still well below the
11 hours finishing time and hence played on my own strategy.
I spotted Willie on a climb and caught up with this
friend of mine. He was having difficulty with one of his foot and hence was
walking. Although it was nice to have chatted, I couldn't stick with him for
too long and hence carried on with my journey passed Kearnsey College with the
students coming to cheer for us before I entered Botha's Hill. At this point, I
would have conquered 50KM or so and my legs were starting to give way. Though I
managed both my calves well as these are the 2 muscles that normally cramp
first, both my adductors and right piriformis was in a sorry state. They were
not only sore but painful with every steps.
I took my third GU Energy Gel while trying to shake off
the pain at Botha's Hill hoping the nutrients will do some good to the tired
muscles. This area is once again filled with supporters and the climbs were all
right. I've managed to grab some ice cubes from the locals supporting from the
side which I am really grateful as I massaged them into my adductors and
piriformis. It helped sooth the pain for a while to allow me to run, but not
for long and hence I kept looking for ice cubes.
Exiting Botha's Hill and into Hillcrest, yet another area
filled with huge number of supporters, I spotted a familiar back. It was Selva
and I ran beside him. We paced each other for a while before eventually one of
us drop back. It was not easy for us to follow each other at this point when
the legs were thrashed so badly already. We both however had a funny moment
when we crossed the Winston Park timing mat. I spotted it from afar and told
Selva that there will be a video cam there, hence we needed to run. And run we
did and made funny gestures and eventually we were caught on camera. That's one
for the album! Hahaha...
Next was the long stretch beside the N3 Highway as we ran
towards Kloof. It was pretty hot here as there were minimal coverage of trees
as I took my fourth energy gel to ensure replenishment of electrolytes I've
lost. But as we entered Kloof, things changed when the Nedbank Green Mile came
into view. Everything was green here with plenty of tress. Even the Energade
served here was green in colour, apple I assume. Cheerleaders welcomed the
runners while some were dressed in Scottish bagpipe blowers kept us
entertained. Some puppeteers were there too. This is one place where I find it
hard to walk as the supporters just kept asking us to keep running!
Running into the Green Mile.
At the end of the Nedbank Green Mile, I was once again
back on the open highway. And this will probably be the toughest descend into
Durban for the winding Fields Hill awaits. The descend was so steep that I had
difficulty running straight and hence went zig zagging. I stopped numerous
times and I recalled cramping at a certain spot back in year 2012. And if that
is the spot, yes I did stop once again to stretch by the wall as others
bombarded down Fields!
After conquering Fields Hill safely, I arrived in
Pinetown at about 66KM into the race. Like Botha's Hill and Hillcrest, this
town is filled with supporters. And with my adductors and piriformis still
acting up, I've asked for ice cubes numerous times from the supporters and they
were kind enough to provide me. It was pretty obscene when I started rubbing my
right glutes and both my upper adductors with the ice cubes. But at this point
of time, it didn't really matter already. And as I approached the fourth
cut-off point at St John's Avenue, a group of people called out tome. It was
the folks from Saucony South Africa! WOOHOOoo... Thanks guys for the support!
Next up,the final tough climb at Cowies Hill. To protect
my legs, I used the run walk strategy and successfully conquered it. And at the
top of Cowies, to my surprise, I spotted CP and ran to him. He was struggling
with cramps and I notice he was only wearing a pair of socks. We ran together
for a moment passing ice cubes to each other to ease our discomfort. I slowly
pushed forward as we approached Westville, yet another open area on the
highway. It was hot and dry, and I took in small sips of water as I did not
want to cause my stomach to bloat. The remaining water, I used it to wet
myself. The roller coaster terrain here was still madness but the supporters
kept cheering on us which kept us going.
Finally, I arrived at the final cut-off point 45th
Cutting at Mayville. I had 49 minutes till the bronze cut-off time with 7KM to
go. With the legs thrashed, it's going to be a very tight battle for it. But as
the saying goes, "It ain't over after it's over", and hence I battle
forward after taking in my final fifth energy gel. It was smooth sailing till
the final 4KM where my right calf locked up and cramped! Not sure if it was the
after effects from the cramp I suffered in the morning but as I had 4 water
sachets with me, I quickly punctured each of them and watered my calf hoping
the coldness will help ease the pain. My world came into daze when it all
happened as I hop to the side to support myself on the highway barrier. I
looked at my watch and it was 27 minutes till the bronze cut-off. The bronze is
slipping away as I quickly try to shake the cramp off. I did a quick massage
and immediately started walking away, limping more like it. A local runner came
along side me telling me that I needed to run a 6 minutes pace should I really
want the bronze. At that moment, I told myself that I WANT IT and I will try.
With the near cut-off experience back in year 2012, I
used it once again this year to run my fastest final 4KM on the N3 Highway at
Berea before entering Durban city. It was all done below a 6 minutes pace. I
took one final sachet of Energade followed by water sachets to wash myself up
as I finally entered the city. It was a flat final 2KM stretch into Sahara
Stadium Kingsmead. Then the final turn into the Toyota Mile and that certainly
felt the longest stretch before entering the stadium.
And as I entered the Sahara Stadium Kingsmead, I had 4
more minutes and I knew I will make it should no drama of cramping or crawling
happens. Out came the Jalur Gemilang as usual and like many would say, the pain
and tiredness will disappear once stepping on the grass of Kingsmead. This
time, I agree as I approach the finish line. I spotted Manette by the spectator
stands and pointed out to her as a gesture of appreciation! And finally, the
finish gantry as I raised my Jalur Gemilang and successfully completed my third
Comrades Marathon with a time of 10:57:34 hours shattering my year 2012 "Down"
run's time by an hour and last year's 2013 "Up" run's time by 27
minutes and earning finally the bronze medal!
Completing the gruelling world's largest and oldest road ultra marathon.
The bronze medal.
Team Saucony back home at the Frankathon event.
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