Green Corridor Run 2016

After a late invitation (early bird rates long gone) by Chuan Heng, I decided to attempt the Green Corridor at last and in fact, for the first time. I was definitely excited to have the chance to race as part of the competitive MacRitchie Runners 25 team, having seen them often at MR and during races. 

With Chuan Heng as the team leader, we met at 6.45am (so early for a 8.00am start!) at Tanjong Pagar before proceeding to the race site, led by Kek (Dan Gao). The group was a friendly bunch, comprising of both veterans and junior members.

After depositing our bags, we proceeded for a simple warm-up before forming up about 25 mins prior to flag off as the crowds were gathering quickly. I was pleased at the ability that we possessed in securing a decent starting position, within metres from the start line. Looking around, there were representations from various running groups (F1, Singapore Shufflers) including speedy individuals (like Kenyans).

We were promptly flagged off at 8.01am, with a huge pack heading off to the a blistering start while I attempted to remain conservative. It wasn't hard to avoid too fast a start as the circumstances - terrain and participants - demanded it. I was pretty comfortable for the first km passed in 3:57, though I was a little hesitant if I could keep it up for the entire course. I gradually realised that I certainly wasn't back to premorbid (IT band syndrome for the last quarter of 2015) and that this was complicated by the flat though slightly uneven and shifty terrain.

I had options - to push hard early and try to hang on or to play it conservatively. I decided on the latter as I this was my first race in awhile and I was a little doubtful of my fitness. Furthermore, bearing in mind my uncertainty of the course (first and last run ever at the Green Corridor), it seemed wise to recognise my mistake early. 

As always, I gradually caught hold of some runners. I could see Chun Hong consistently about 30-50m ahead of me. I noted some familiar faces though I admit I was a more focused on conserving energy to run instead of greetings. There were however, multiple photographers along the way. I knew that I couldn't race this in a brilliant time, hence I tried to maximise my photogenicity (its success was debatable) while maintaining a respectable pace (no star jumps for me).

Looks like I've still got some work to do. Credit to RecoveringAddict Runner.

Around the 7km mark. This one's not much better either. Credit to Running Shots.

I registered a particularly slow split for the 8th km. I have no idea why... maybe it was the flyover stealing the GPS signal.

Towards the last portion of the race, I noted the presence of a lanky F1 runner and two Shufflers ahead of me. I decided to speed up and surprisingly, I managed to do so pretty convincingly. I began a kick just as I caught up to the F1 runner, continuing past steadily before proceeding towards the Shufflers. By then, the finish was in clear sight (150m?) and I knew I had to kick hard now, lest they decided to hang on to me. I did exactly that, passing them with 50m to spare and sparing them no chance to respond.

First, the F1 runner, with about 500m~ to go. Credit to Running Shots.

Time to fly while others shuffled (very quickly). Credit to Pictureart.

(I feel like I'm writing some inspirational race commentary. But that was quite certainly the best experience of my race today.)

Thereafter was the collection of a towel, the finisher's medal and a bottle of water. Last but not least, a cool-down with some MR-25 guys (I could sense a cramp coming - thankfully we quickly concluded it) and photo-taking.

Proud to have run alongside this friendly team (: Oops we're missing Jesper...

Hmm now we're missing Kok Soon...

Strava data available here. Missed a GPS-registered sub-40 10k by a bit!

With regard to the course, there were some stretches of poorly lit areas such as under flyovers. As the non-existent pack I was in was pretty spaced out, the rays of light seeping in were sufficient, though I imagine those running in a bigger pack would require some definitive lighting to maximise safety. Other than that, there were slippery portions though nothing in comparison to the previous Compressport Rail Corridor Run earlier in the year. Distance markers were appropriately positioned at every 500m (if I recall), so great work by the organisers. I was however rather disappointed that there was no chilled hydration, let alone isotonic hydration available along the route.

For now, we await official results. Hopefully the team will place well! Congrats to Thomas and Chuan Heng for running another of their many existing sub-40 races and Chun Hong on a great PB!

*Update. Official results are out and we did indeed place pretty well :) We were initially 4th but a member of the originally 1st-placed team was disqualified, hence they dropped to 5th and we were elevated to 3rd!

Results promptly released the following day :) A very strong field!

And our little reward ~

Do also feel free to check out my post on JustRunLah! here :)