KLIM 05 Part 2 - Me Against The Tarmac

Beginning Point Woke up about 3:30am. Downed a black forest donut with generous serving of chunky peanut butter, washed with a cup of coffee. Marinated myself in Piz Buin sun block and did the usual lubricating ritual. Smeared a generous amount of Petroleum Jelly between my toes, feet, underarms, between my thighs and not forgetting my nipples. Bleeding nipples are not a pretty sight. Yeow….they hurt too! After the lubricating ritual came the warming ritual. Rubbed Sloan Analgesic on my feet and calves. Warm and wonderful! Walked out of the hotel about 4am. Saw two booty-licious girl marathoners in the lift. Greeted them. Bumped into two Sarawakian runners at the entrance of the hotel and took a stroll to Dataran Merdeka. Chatted with them along the way. No stress. No hassle. Wonderful! Saw lots of people at Dataran Merdeka when I arrived. The Sultan Abdul Samad Building was brightly lit up and looked magnificent. We were set off at 5am sharp (I didn’t hear the ding dong sound of the clock tower...perhaps the clock need repairing). Last year we got fireworks to start the event. This year we got tribal drum beats from Rebana Ubi….The runners charged like warriors into the war zone. I felt high. The running crowd dispersed quite quickly, unlike in Singapore Marathon where we had to jostle for a distance before we could actually start running. My MP3 player was playing Britney Spears’ Me Against The Music (G&B Club Mix). I was not against the music, I was against the tarmac. Slow and steady I stepped to the beat…First 20 km was a breeze. Enjoyed the scenic run. I could see KL Twin Towers “winking” at me from the distance at the earlier part of the run. I must say that I loved the Nike mist station. One is not enough. They should have like thousand of these mist-generating fans along the marathon route. Hahaha! Very der Kiasu! Muscle cramp and fatigue began to set in at 30km. Knees began to feel like tau foo fah and the leg muscles were screaming for oxygen. I took each step with pain, short of crying at the pavement like Paula. I had no choice but to walk the last 12km. DNFing is not an option. To add insult to my injuries, I was harassed by the sweeper van around Jalan Parlimen. I felt like a helpless man on a dessert, with vultures hovering above; waiting for him to devour his meat. The van was trailing so close behind me that I almost tripped and fell. Come on guys! Let me finish my marathon! I would crawl to the finish line if I had to. But let me complete my marathon with dignity. I almost gave them the finger but being the polite and gentle person that I am (Ehem!), I gave them the “I-will-scratch-your-eyes-out-if-you-don’t-leave-me-alone-stare” instead. They got the message and drove pass me to harass someone else. Sheesh! Some people!