Finally, a HM in Johor state..

Educity Sundown Malaysia returns in its second edition following its successful debut last year. Being adventurous as usual (I’ve never run a race in Johor state despite its’ close proximity to SG), I decided to take part in this years’ edition – given the chance that I could strike off Johor on my to-run-Malaysian-states-list (I’ll explain more later) . There were only 2 categories in the Malaysian edition – 21.1km  and 12km. Unlike its sister edition, the flag-off timings were more convenient at 8pm and 8:30pm for the 21.1km and 12km respectively.

Getting there…

The race was held at Educity Sports Complex, situated about 5km away from LEGOLAND in Johor Bahru, with both categories following out the Nusajaya Highway. Getting to Nusajaya can be a nightmare if you do not have a personal transport as public transport service to LEGOLAND and Educity Sports Complex is limited. Even if you do have your own transport, parking spaces are limited.

However, this year saw the kind organizers providing shuttle buses (two-way trip) for Singaporeans wanting to venture over the border to experience the Malaysian race scene. I was told that the shuttle slot bus were fully booked. The pick-up point was Jurong-East Station and despite hiccups – things went smoothly eventually.

Upon arrival to Mall of Medini, I quickly collected my racepack (REPC timing was officially extended for those outstation local M’sian and foreigner runners like me) and took a 10-min two-way shuttle bus from LEGOLAND carpark to the starting point.

Race experience

There were sufficient amenities at the race venue – baggage deposits, plenty of portable loos and various food stalls/trucks for those wanting to grab a quick bite and ‘last-minute’ carbo-load.

At the starting pen, we (participants) were greeted with thunderous, energetic and rhythmic percussion performance before being flagged off. As the starting airhorn blew and runners started to surge forward , we were again treated with wonderful displays of fireworks.

Like most Malaysian highways that I’ve ran, Nusajaya highway was wide and generally flat ( a good chance for those wanting to hit PB). Of course, there were (minor) elevation along some parts. Being a night race, some sceneries were barely visible and unremarkable. That however, does not mean that the energetic and cheerful volunteers were stingy in showering participants with words of encouragement and hi-fives. Volunteers did a great job at their respective water station, drinks were aplenty and at some stations, watermelons, gels and bananas were given out.   There were also various multi-ethic performances along the way.

Majestic view

Being a HM participant means you get to run through and witness the majestic night view of Dataran Mahkota  (administrative center of Kota Iskandar) around 8-9km mark. Runners were treated with the scenic panoramic view of one of the iconic landmarks of Johor.

(No photos of Dataran Mahkota as I always run ‘naked’ – meaning I don’t wear or bring along fancy gadgets. Personally, I find it unnecessary and subtracts the fun part of running. All EVENT photos here were from the Official Sundown Malaysia Facebook Page)

Post – Race.

At the finish line, participants who crossed the line within the cut-off time were handed out finisher medals (HM participants were also handed small coupon to be exchange in order to receive their finisher tees at the stadium ticketing booth.

I didn’t hang out that the race village for long as I had to rush back to LEGOLAND (via the shuttle bus) to board up the bus back to SG.

Overall Experience

Pros

• Water stations were well-manned and well placed (at every 3km). No complaints of running out of drinks.
• Cheerful and encouraging volunteers
• Wide running route – no bottlenecks.
• Getting to run and experience the majestic view of Dataran Mahkota
• Smooth collection of finisher items
• 2-way shuttle from LEGOLAND to race venue. This means runners do not have to walk additional miles.
• Shuttle service to/from Singapore. Great initiative as it allows those without personal transport to experience the running scene in Malaysia.
• Reasonable flag-off time.
• REPC extended to cater to SG runners coming via the SG shuttle bus.

Cons

• There were public driver who were unaware of the road closures -causing traffic delays around certain section of the route. Organizers should advise drivers on alternative routes to take.
• Facebook Media page should have been well-managed. Inquiries from participants (especially on the SG shuttle bus issues and delayed REPC) went unreplied
• Long lines @ baggage deposit (post-race).
• SG shuttle bus delayed departure times.

Given how everything went smoothly (even though there were minor hiccups). I’ve got to say that I am impressed with organizers for setting the benchmark for Malaysian races. I hope to see more Singaporeans taking part in the next edition.

(This is my 3rd HM and first night race in Malaysia. )

And finally, Johor is off my list.

I’m on a mission to run at least one race in each states and federal territories of Malaysia. So far – 4 down(shown colored).I did 3 states in 2015. Next up? Alor Setar HM 2016 in Kedah and hopefully – Borneo Marathon in Sabah.

Stay tune in my #runMalaysia adventures.

The Haze Does It Again

4th October 2015 0600hrs – What should have been the start of another run in KL turns out to be the start of my return back to Singapore on a flight booked immediately after the announcement of the cancellation of the race. It was probably a tough decision to call but one which was made in the best interest of runners.

Registration Jitters

The initial sign for this event bold well – probably for the first time all categories were sold out in 4 days – 2 of my running buddies actually missed out on the slots and were resigned to this trip being a makan trip Then in a way, it  went wrong. To coincide SCKLM with the Malaysian Sports Day – a decision was made to shift SCKLM to a week later! This decision didn’t go well with the runners both local and foreign due to the arrangements made according to the original dates – some local runners had also signed up for other runs on that weekend while the overseas runners had already booked their flights! Eventually sense prevailed and taking into account the online furore – the runs reverted to the original date. But somehow the damage was probably already done as the organisers were seen as been wishy washy. The only good thing coming out of this was that they actually conducted a ballot for slots and both buddies who missed out on registration got their slots!

Fast Forward

September saw the haze scuppering a few events in Singapore and it seemed SCKLM would be the next one. However, on 2nd October, the organisers made the announcement that with the improvement in the Air Pollutant Index the race would go on as planned. While this was the confirmation that most overseas runners needed to begin our journey, this announcement was not entirely well received amongst those who felt that it was not safe to run and lamented the organisers call. This was actually when I started to feel for the organisers – because had they decided to postpone or cancel it there and then, they would get the brickbats as well. The more sensible runners agreed that the organisers did the right thing to proceed and allow the runners to make their own decision to run or not.

Off We Go

So on Saturday the trip was made to KL on one of the earlier flight. Making our way into KL – we saw for ourselves what some of the runners had spoke about with regards to the safety of the event carrying on.However as optimists, we told ourselves of strong winds that would soon clear up the sky. As with last year, a short LRT from Sentral to Masjid Jamek brought us to where our stay was – at Swiss Hotel. This ‘gem’ of a place to stay is probably known to most season SCKLM runners and the number of runners walking in and out on Saturday is proof of it.

After a quick check-in, we headed to Dataran Underground for our race pack collection. Probably because it was already the last day of collection, there was only a small crowd and we were done in a jiffy. SCKLM half marathon runners should note that Honda Malaysia has been offering a free t-shirt to half marathon runners on a first come first serve basis. You only need to pre-register beforehand and the tee is yours!

Done with our collection, we headed for lunch and a quick dash to the supermarket for drinks before taking a short break. I even manage to squeeze in a swim with another friend who was putting up at another hotel!

Sadly, as the evening drew near, the dreaded announcement was made – the race would be cancelled. Not even postponed but cancelled. As with the earlier announcement, there were mixed reactions – some applauded the organisers for their bravery/pragmatism while others criticize them for the last minute cancellation. To us, it was a logical move given the conditions and we immediately made arrangement for our getaway from KL the next morning – grabbing for of the remaining 7 seats out at 0845hrs. We also made news plans for the night – given that our sleeping time would be push back by a few hours! We had a very filling meal costing less than 50SGD before we splitted up for movies and to catch football.

‘Race’ Day

So on race day, we proceeded to the Dataran – not for the start but for the post race entitlements. While some may question why we even bother – but to me it is something to remember this event by – of a race that didn’t take place! From there it was a race to the airport – LRT to Airport Express to Check In and then to the boarding gate. Thankfully we made it with time to spare for the 0845 departure.

Some of my friends ask me(even laugh) as to whether this trip was worth it. But I think it is a redundant question. My view is that as a runner (jogger) – we do not give up. If we could we probably would have waited till 0300hrs for a decision to be made. As always it was an experience and a trip made with friends and bond over food and drinks! The draw of KL is the cost which I actually managed to reduce from last year(probably due to the exchange rate)

Registration Fee            46

Hotel                                35

Transport(Singapore)  6

Flight                               90

KLIA Express x 2          23(70)

LRT x6                            2.3(7)

Meals x 4                       30(90)

Misc (Drinks+Snacks) 13.3(40)

Total                               246

Cut Them Some Slack

Credit must be given to the organisers – other than the flip flop in dates – who gave hope to the runners to make the trip and also for taking the hard decision to cancel the event. They should also be applauded for making the arrangements to have the race entitlements given out on race day, getting the emcees in as well to create the atmosphere and even extending the hospitality facilities to those who turn up to collect their entitlements. To anyone wishing to complain or lament about the decisions – the choice to participate was yours, if you are not prepared for such calls then you might want to reconsider signing up for such events. Remember – live to run another day!