Imagination Running Wild

The race is two days away but here I am wide awake at 2am brimming with excitement and anticipation with a dash of anxiety. I believe most people get the pre-race jitters, me included, and I don't think I've ever had a good night's rest before all the races I've participated in. It doesn't help much that races usually start at the ungodly morning hours. It's always the same scenario on the eve of a race: me lying in bed tossing and turning, adrenaline coursing through every veins, the mind playing imaginary clips of me running the route especially in the last few kms when it's all about the mental toughness, and finally when I triumphantly cross the finish line in a respectable time or even chalk up a new personal record.

I doubt it'll be any different for the upcoming Standard Chartered Kuala Lumpur Marathon (SCKLM). This race has an added sentimental value for me since it'll my first time running in a hometown race. I wish that I had registered for a full marathon instead of the half marathon I'm in now since I feel that I'm physically and mentally ready to go the whole distance. Oh well, there'll be plenty of other races for me to make my full marathon debut. As for SCKLM, my target is to finish the half marathon (21km) under two hours. In my last half marathon about two months ago my time was 2 hours 14 mins. To shave 15+ mins off in such a short period of time is a tall order but can certainly be done. In a 15km race about a month ago I posted a personal best of 1 hour 24 mins, which translated to a pace of 5:38 min/km. It means that if I can somehow maintain the same pace for SCKLM I can barely squeeze in under 2 hours (1 hour 58 mins to be exact). That 15km race in Putrajaya was the best run I've had thus far and I hope to have a repeat performance this coming Sunday. Boy, I can already imagine running down the home stretch on Jalan TAR toward Dataran Merdeka with the throngs of crowd cheering me on and the finish line within sight. Anyone who's run a race before knows exactly what I'm talking about.

Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about where to run my full marathon debut. I had wanted to do it in Berlin since my arrival there nicely coincides with the Berlin Marathon (last Sunday of September) but by the time I found out that I'll be going to Berlin the registration was already closed. What a bummer! Berlin Marathon is one of the premier races in the world and it's where the current world record was set in 2008 by Haile Gebrselassie (2 hours 3 mins 59 secs). What other options then? At the top of my list right now is to run the original marathon in Greece from the town of Marathon to Athens but I have to find out when exactly is this race and if it overlaps with my stint in Europe. Other options will be to do either Rome or Amsterdam Marathon. If I end up staying in Berlin longer then I might do the London Marathon in April 2012. Or I might even find an excuse to go back to the US and run the NYC or Chicago Marathon or the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington DC. If all goes according to Plan A, which is to move to Australia by March next year, then I can definitely see myself running my debut marathon in Down Under. In short the options are aplenty and it's up to me (and my financial wherewithal) to choose the best one to pop my marathon cherry in.

But first things first. This Sunday will be my third half marathon in three months, which means that I already have the experience under my belt and know what to expect. It's not just about finishing the race but to do it in a decent time. I also think that it's now the time for me to start running the full distance since it's the natural progression and I have to bite the bullet sooner or later. I'm hoping for sooner. Anyway, I'm so psyched for this coming Sunday!

Postscript: After a brief look online now I'm torn between the original Greece Marathon and the Amsterdam Marathon but I'm definitely leaning toward Greece. The Greece Marathon will held on November 13 while the Amsterdam one will be on October 16. Either way I'll decide next week after I run the SCKLM tomorrow.