The year was 2007. I was but a 25 year old working at Toshiba. I had started Toshiba a few years earlier as an intern. At the time my boss was an avid triathlete, during lunch times he would run through the national park. He managed to convince myself and another grad to run during lunch, one run led to another, and before long he had convinced us to sign up for a race, the 2007 Sydney Morning Herald Half Marathon. Training was actually quite enjoyable, of course back then I had little idea what I was doing, it was just trying to run as much as possible before the race. I remember running 20 odd kms from Earlwood to North Rude, instead of driving one day just to test the legs out. In actual fact, the old boss gave me his old running watch which was my first wearable. That watch would eventually be stolen while in Brazil, on Ipanema but that's another story.
So fast forward, 15+ years later, and this time another colleague. Not an endurance athlete, a guy that just likes to run a half marathon once a year convinced me. Well, not really convinced, he merely said that he was going to sign up because he liked to train for a race once a year. This was enough for me, I too, signed up, giving myself 3 months to prepare myself for another 21 kms. 15 years later, my body is definitely not as fresh as it used to be, my ankles and knees aren't as supple, my heart is definitely not the same, but I'm not starting from zero. I have been running here and there, just as a form of cardio so figure it would be a good way to challenge myself. So what were my goals for this run, well one, to train for something competitive (ie: compete against myself), to enjoy myself, well, but more to see if I could go sub-2 hours and if possible, beat my previous personal best (well my only 21 kms) of 1 hour and 55 minutes. I mean there's got to be a reason why there's so many middle-aged men who are endurance athletes?
Training this time around was enjoyable, I used the Garmin Half Marathon training plan, there were definitely times of enjoyment and moments of frustration. Injuries, weather and motivation all playing some role in a disjointed training block. There were moments I felt fast, moments when I didn't want to run. In the end I really enjoyed training for something, having structure and discipline in my life was really welcomed, not to say that I don't usually have that, but there were times when I did not want to put on my shoes and run, but I still forced myself, and felt great after. Great learning moments. I also dialled in the training. 15 years later and there's a wealth of information online about half marathon plans and nutrition. Big emphasis on zone 2. In the end it brought me back to when i was 25 and the advice my old boss would give me, was still the same, I just didn't understand the purpose back then and probably wasn't disciplined enough.
So, how was it? I loved the run, amazing way to see Hong Kong. I was left a bit frustrated with the crowds, there were a lot of runners, but all an excuse. I managed to get a new PB of 1 hour and 52 minutes for a fairly tough course. But the track from Kowloon through the harbour tunnel back into Victoria Park was amazing. Here are some shots below of the start and finish lines and the carb load!
