42K Photos of a Marathon Like No Other in Singapore

With budget airlines in Asia and their seasonal ticket sales now oftentimes a dime a dozen, travelling for business and leisure (including running marathons) have never been easier and more doable in the region.

Singapore even has a no-frills Budget Terminal servicing the 7 million passengers a year that chose to fly Asia's budget fare airlines, very near to the cavernous Terminal 3, the home of Singapore Airlines' fleet of Airbus 380s.

Arriving in Chiangi Airport on Friday, December 3, 2 days before the race, after an early hotel check-in, we claimed our race packets at the overseas runners collection area at the The Float in Marina Bay. Local runners had already claimed their gear two weeks earlier at a much grander marathon expo.

An army of young volunteers efficiently manned the place and, as I was later to find out, many other race support systems - hydration stations, first aid stations, cheer leading joints, medal and finisher tees claim areas, including marshaling the race route.

With first part of the race business done, it was time to be locally entertained. And Singapore gives you plenty of entertainment choices - from a package tour to Sentosa Island, with an option to reach the place via cable car and see cruise ships docked along the bay,

A museum tour depicting the history of the country and how it was built on the shoulders of four peoples- Malay, Chinese, Indian, and Eurasian - working as one and succeeding in becoming one of Asia's tiger nations,

To the very high-tech nighttime show 'Songs of the Sea', that we braved to watch despite the intermittent downpour, featuring an impressive amalgam of light, water, dance, and song. 

The day before the race, Saturday, was a day for show business and more entertainment at the Universal Studios Singapore, a theme park within Resorts World Sentosa that had its soft opening in March, 2010, attracting over 1 million visitors in the first 6 months.

With an area of 20 hectares and at least 16 major attractions including the popular show Shrek 4D Adventure and ride Revenge of the Mummy, there is more than enough ground to cover in one day.  One has to be careful though, Frankenstein roams the place!

Surviving the near-Franken-strangling, it was also the time for some Asian-style carbo-loading- a plate of traditional dry Asian rice noodles with vegetables and a bowl of spicy and uniquely Singaporean/Malay dish - the laksa- more than served the purpose.

Tired from two days of standing and walking, the race gear was assembled early Saturday evening - an Under Armour body compression, Asics race singlet, Brooks shoes and shorts, Running Free visor, Injinji compression socks, Zenzah compression leg sleeves, and Oakley split jackets.

The giant electronic billboard near the Full Marathon Starting Point in Orchard Road proclaimed the event as a race like no other- 60,000 runners in all, 19,000 of them running the full marathon or 42.195 kilometers! Never had I ran in as big a race as this before!

Arriving by taxi at 3:30 AM, runners were welcomed by blue lights reminding them of Christmas.  The color-coded corrals, designed  to house runners based on expected finish times were mostly still empty.  I was to be in the green corral- along with others expecting to finish in 4 to 5 hours.

The two emcees were already beginning to work the crowd and the runners as they began to arrive. The race they said was historic-  this was the first time marathoners would race down Orchard Road. Running music blaring from the huge loudspeakers added to the excitement.

In one corner I could see bright yellow-clad pacers, no doubt veterans all, with assigned race times pinned to their backs. I was hoping to run with one of them as a backup plan in case my Garmin FR 405 for some reason, as in Indianapolis, accidentally timed out.

I came in early and had time to visit the different corrals.  At the yellow one intended for those expecting to finish in less than 4 hours- my sub-4 dream that I hope to achieve to be able to run Boston- runners were deep in concentration or already limbering up.

The two-dozen elite runners seemed equally divided between the sexes.  Mostly Africans with a sputtering of Caucasians and nary an Asian, they had their exclusive corral in front of the pack.  The group included winners of recent marathons as well as up-and-coming runners we were told.

By the time the starting gun was fired at exactly 5:00 AM, my green corral was fully packed. From their faces and the language they spoke, I knew my co-runners came from different lands and backgrounds.  Today, however, they were just one.

The first few kilometers of the marathon took us along Orchard Road, the Istana Park, Fort Canning Park, Clark Quay, and Chinatown. I ran a 4:30 finish pace, coincidentally bumping at 5K into a couple of fellow at Marathon Maniacs- among the few club members in Singapore and Asia.

And as if two MMs weren't enough, I bumped into a third Marathon Maniac as we approached Singapore's iconic landmark- the Singapore Flyer- touted as the world's largest observation wheel that we visited two days before.

I continued running at a constant pace as the sights of Singapore whisked by.  At 16K, we encountered the lead pack, already on their way back.  The group included Toronto Waterfront Marathon winner Kenneth Mungara who would later win the men's race in 2 hr 14 min 6 sec.

Dawn had broken as I reached the 18K mark.  At 21K, the halfway point, I glanced at my Garmin. I had been running for 2 hr 7 min.  Not especially fast, but definitely on pace for a 4:30 finish.  I smiled knowing at this point, it was too early to tell and things can still go either way.
We were running along East Coast Park now- bearing witness to Singapore's lush greenery and the abundance of running and bike paths that went both ways. Who ever said that common areas for physical activity and exercise can't be had in a big city? 

At around 25K, I saw a kababayan running with the 4:30 pace group just ahead of me.  I overtook and snapped a photo- nobody had taken any pictures of runners thus far so I thought recording the strong run she was having would be the least I can do as a registered member of takbo.

Right from the starting gun, cheer leading groups and ordinary Singaporeans had been egging us never to stop but run all long.  Near 28K, I came across a sub-4 hopeful posing with a group of cheering youngsters.  I hope this pit stop didn't cost him the sub-4 goal.

And there were lots of hydration stations- roughly one every 3 km that alternately offered an electrolyte drink and mineral water.  There were enough drinks in each one and I made sure to stop at about half of these stations.

But there was only one electrolyte/energy gel station in the entire course - at around the 23K point.  I was glad I had brought along my own gel supplies or else the marathon wall would have been very very happy to welcome me.

By the time we ran uphill near at the 30K mark I had already lost the 4:30 pace group and was feeling signs of a left leg cramp.  I walked for several stretches and checked the time- 3:18. With 12K to go, a 4:30 finish was becoming less of a possibility.

As I passed by the table holding the special drinks of the elite runners, I again could only wonder what magic concoctions those colorful bottles contained.  I surely needed some magic at this point, but no magic was forthcoming.

Instead, as I turned along Marina Reservoir, two young ladies in medic gear offered me a gooey medicated rubbing gel. I applied a generous squeeze on both my legs, only to regret this move later when I used the same still unwashed hand to wipe sweat off my eyes...ouch!

The view across Marina Barrage was astounding.  One could see the intricately designed Marina Bay Sands, a giant entertainment/

convention center/casino/shopping/hotel complex. Opened in June 2010, it dominated Singapore's skyline.

Finally, after 34K, it was time to head back to the city via the Marina Bridge.  I was actually waiting for the more famous Helix as advertised but didn't notice us ever passing through it. It was now exceedingly hot and cramp signs were bothering me on both left and right legs.

The next two to three K saw us passing the Marina Bay and heading towards the East Coast Freeway.  At this point the 4:30 plan had become very unlikely but a 4:40 was still within reach. But then, without warning, the damn broke!

At the 36th-37th K, all runners- 42K, 21K, and 10K merged into 2 lanes of the East Coast Freeway.  Too much human traffic! It was too late when I realized that the pace I had been running placed me right at the peak of convergence for all the 3 races! 

Boom! As we again passed the Singapore Flyer, Lord Alfred Tennyson might have written:

Walkers to right of them, Walkers to left of them, Walkers to the back of them, Walkers in front of them, Into the Valley of Death walked even the fast marathon runners!

The difficulty in running very congested lanes where everyone else was just contented to walk took its toll on many full and half marathoners.  By the time the runners of the 3 race distances were again segregated at the final 2-3K mark, hardly anybody was running as far as I could see.

The finish time recorded by my preset Garmin watch was 5:00:31- close enough to 5, my lucky number. But my official time was 5:01:52, a full 6 min slower than my virgin marathon time, but, amazingly, still in the top 17% of all 42K runners- with 12,391 of them still behind me!

Heading to claim the finisher medal and t-shirt, I wondered if I should have raced a bit faster and a lot smarter. I dismissed the thought.  Come on I said- today, December 5, is your birthday, you just ran a 5 hr marathon, you are strong still, uninjured, and fit to run another day. Shouldn't you be happy?

And so to the various booths I went, content to just walk around the expansive finish area to relax those tired legs.  There were lots of freebies alright- drinks, medicated rubs, bags, promo coupons, and the like. A designated meeting point reunited families and friends.

Then there was the free massage service- an exclusive treat for full marathon runners!  Though the queue was long and the massage time short, the massage therapists did a wonderful job! No pain in my legs the following day, thanks to this visit.

Finally, there was the customary photo-op. I chose one with the city skyline in view. I had been in and had flown through Singapore dozens of times before. But today was different. It was the first time I had ever ran a marathon on my birthday.

The city could have been Macau or Las Vegas, both of which were also holding marathons on the very same day. Instead, I chose Singapore as the host city for my 6th full marathon in 7 months.

The medals have all been beautiful and, in their own way, very special.  Each has a unique story to tell.  When my registration for this event was confirmed last May 20, I couldn't help but smile. To most, this was going to be 'a race like no other'.  To me, it was going to be 'a race like no other on a day like no other'!

How's that for an ending?