Rolling around in the mud

This is another boring running related post. Might cause sudden cardiac arrest due to lack of stimulating elements to keep the heart pumping.

Honestly speaking, today was a mad day. It started at 7am for me. While that is not that early on it's own (I wake up at 6 for school), you do feel the effects of sleeping at 3. Ok, so that was my fault, but I just stop myself from checking on World Cup results (no Astro for me) and chatting with long lost friends on MSN.

Anyway, I had to wake up at such an ungodly hour, for a Sunday at least, because I need to drag my butt over to the Youth Park aka Taman MPPP as the bureaucrats prefer to call it. The reason? My participation in the Cendana hikathon, organised by the sadists at the Penang Adventurers Club (you will know why they are sadists in a moment).

It was actually a nice day with perfect weather, especially for a gruelling 8km jaunt through the jungle and over rolling terrain at that. First, let me give you a lowdown on the race. In normal running terms, 8km is like a walk in the park for a trained distance runner. However, Cendana is anything but normal. Atypical for a running competition, the run has all the heart-stopping moments and danger worthy of a Hollywood thriller. It has calf-burning climbs, abrupt hairpin turns that just pop out on you, jagged rocks, vertigo inducing precipices, crevices that will swallow you if you put a foot wrong. You name it they got it. These conditions are often exacerbated should there be a downpour before or during the race. In my 4 years experience of wrestling with this race, it has never been dry. All these dramatic terrain features are merely supporting characters though in making life difficult for the hikers. The real backbreaker is the hill on which it is run. I estimate that the highest point in this race is about 350meters above sea level, after which it is a straight downhill dash to the finish. Oh yeah, and did I mention the course will not be exactly the same, year in year out, just so to make sure regulars don't get too comfortable.

As I mentioned earlier, it was a perfect day for some hiking. However, I neglected to say that it will be anything but perfect conditions on the course, for the day before, the skies decided to unleash a massive storm lasting more than half the day. Therefore, it is safe to say the course will be appropriately 'softened up' for our torment.

This year, I will be running Cendana with my kid brother for the first time. Since I am the old hand among the two of us, I had to give the obligatory advice, telling him to be careful of old codgers who like to dash downhill like madmen, slippery rocks and whatnot. I basically handled him with kid gloves. Thankfully enough, he did not seemed deterred, yet.

After getting there without a hitch, I proceeded to stake out my competition. If there is one thing I have noted about Cendana every year, it is that while the field doesn't seem increase, its level of competitiveness has. According to the guide paper, the course will be markedly different too, in the beginning at least. Deviating from past editions, the course will lead straight up the hills from the get go.

Not long after, we were started off. Five minutes in, my calves were already burning from the navigating the relentless uphill path. It was then that I remembered. You see, I have always had a love-hate relationship with Cendana. I love it because it is something different from your ubiquitous road race. I simply hate it, because the difficulty level is insane, especially on the descent. Ah, speaking of the the descent, the daredevil old codgers I mentioned just now, is not a figment of my imagination, they WILL run you over if you are not fast enough to avoid them. I have had my fair share of run-ins with them over the years, and many a time swore colourfully at them too. These demented dudes simply aren't fast enough to keep up on the ascent, but they still beat me just because they are better at running downhill, which sucks. This year, I have a contingency plan though, instead of throwing useless words at them, I am prepared to use bodily force, whatever the consequence.

I was jarred out of my reverie when I was confronted with yet another steep gradient. Funny don't you think, that I was thinking about my terrible descents when I am going up. I guess the primal emotions of pain and anger are the same in any situation. Even when I was doubting myself though, I knew there was no way back, backing out simply isn't an option. The next few kilometres were a blur. I ran by feel, and I was aware of how every step on the hard and rock pocked trails hurt on my sole, how every slip in the rain softened mud burned my thighs and sapped my energy.

In spite of the pain, I made it up the uphills parts quite fast, all the while cursing the PAC guys for setting such an unforgiving course. It was now time for the downhill. Even though I was buoyed by my fast ascent, I soon found out what I have known all along. I am hopeless going downhill. Competitors whom I smoked on the way up were blowing by me like I was a curtain over an open window. I tried my best, and all I got was shooting pain up my soles every time I stepped on a jagged piece of rock and mud caked shoes. There were even a few close calls. Once a guide rope snapped when I put my weight on it, but I managed to hang on to the end that was still in my hand and avoid doing a faceplant on the mud. Another time, I was holding on to the line when the person in front suddenly put his whole weight on it, and I was literally clothes-lined. Luckily I managed to hold on again. I was thanking all the core exercises I ever did after that.

The final part of the course is a run on flat, tarred road. This is the part where I had hoped to perform well. I did not take into account that this stretch was preceded by a descent on steps, however. I am now glad to add that I have burning quadriceps to add to my set of burning body parts after that. As a result, I did manage to pass a few weaker runners, but certainly still performed below par. The initial euphoria of completing the race quickly gave way to the pain and soreness I was feeling in my body. Adrenaline failed to mask the pain of a swollen toe and a strained arch, forcing me to limp for the next few hours.

All in all, it was quite a good race actually, not as bad as it sounds, since I didn't have to elbow anyone and my brother and I got home in one piece. Now, I just have to deal with the soreness...