South Africa Travel Plans...

By Frank

To keep it short and straight to the point, I'm just glad that my travel itinerary for South Africa is finally finalised by Chee Kong. Though I do not know of any places of interest to visit, but at least I do know where am I heading to. As mentioned previously, I will be leaving for South Africa on 29 May 2012 and will be back home on 11 June 2012. That's close to 2 weeks, a well deserve holiday after working since 15 July 2011.

A South Africa map...

I won't be bringing a lot of money there as I will be relying on credit card. Reason behind this is because the currency used there which is known as Rand (ZAR) can't be exchange here locally. For your info, RM1.00 is almost equivalent to ZAR2.69. Hence therefore, Chee Kong will probably be my "banker" over there.

South African currency, the Rand...

Anyhow, here's what Chee Kong has planned out for our trip:

29 May 2012, Tuesday - Flying on board Singapore Airline SQ5329 at 9.45pm to Singapore Changi Airport Terminal 2. And after laying off there for about 3.5 hours, to resume flight on board Singapore Airline SQ478 at 2.10am to Johannesburg for a close to 11 hours flight. *gulps*

30 May 2012, Wednesday - Arrival at Johannesburg and expecting a pick-up from Chee Kong to his place. Upon settling down at his place, a planned visit to the museum.

31 May 2012, Thursday - Still at Johannesburg, a visit to Lion Park in the morning while noon to night is free for all.

01 June 2012, Friday - An early morning 600KM drive to Durban. A planned breakfast at Harrismith before checking into our accommodation at Belaire Suites. From there, a planned visit to Pietermaritzburg for the Comrades Expo.

Belaire Suites at Durban...

02 June 2012, Saturday - Comrades route tour and exhibition with the organisers.

03 June 2012, Sunday - Comrades Marathon 2012 race day!!!

04 June 2012, Monday - A 600KM drive back to Johannesburg and checking in back at Chee Kong's place.

05 June 2012, Tuesday - 1500KM morning flight on board Kulula Air to George. Putting up at Mossel Bay at Santos Train, a train theme hotel that looks really interesting. Will be renting a cross-over vehicle from here and the planned vehicle is a Nissan Livina X-Gear simply known as the Nissan Livina Range at South Africa! A planned visit to an ostrich farm at Oudtshoorn, some 77KM away is on the list for the first day here.

South Africa domestic airlines, the Kulula Air. So green...

Santos Train Backpackers...

Ostrich racing at Oudtshoorn...

06 June 2012, Wednesday - A drive to Cape Agulhas some 280KM away. Putting up at Cape Agulhas Bakcpackers for a night here.

View of Cape Agulhas Lighthouse...

07 June 2012,  Thursday -Drive to Hermanus and finally Cape Town with a total of 240KM. Putting up at Green Elelphant Backpackers. Hopefully Phil who is now working there will be able to join us. A planned visit to Table Mountain follows.

Cape Town...

08 June 2012, Friday - Planned visit to Cape Peninsula, Kalk Bay, Simon's Town, Cape of Good Hope and Hout Bay.

Cape Peninsula...

09 June 2012, Saturday - The Old Fisherman Trail Challenge from Fish Hoek to Hout Bay at Cape Town. Another 21KM of running on trail. Chee Kong will be leaving for the United State of America after the run and I will be left with Mei Ee and Phil here.

10 June 2012, Sunday - Goodbye South Africa! Flying back home on board SQ479 at 11.35am to Johannesburg first before to Singapore. And finally on board SQ106 at 8.35am the next morning, it's back to Kuala Lumpur.

As above, most of the important travel plans has been pin pointed out by Chee Kong. Of course there will still be other places to visit and things to do, but we will see how it goes on the actual day. It won't be easy after running the Comrades Marathon and hopefully, we won't be limping around too much. But still, with 18 days to go, I'm so looking forward to this trip! :D

The Final Push...

By Frank

Finally seeing the sunshine (and rain) out of the box and plastics, this morning, I tested almost all the race gear that I will be using on 3 June 2012 for the Comrades Marathon. The only thing that I left our was my BV Sport compression calf sleeve which I am pretty confident off. From top to bottom, almost every single gear except for my heart rate monitor is new for this race. Even my race brief is new! And for the cause I'm supporting for a cancer free tomorrow, I even had my shoe laces customised to be of purple colour. For those who didn't know, purple represents the awareness for a cancer free tomorrow.

Here's a breakdown of my race gear:

1) K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run - This is actually a second pair and not the one I've used during Twilight Ultra Challenge back in March 2012. Stress tested it the past 2 months and I'm happy and confident that this shoe will give my legs all the much needed. The only difference now will be the elastic shoe laces.

2) K-Swiss tri top and short - Brand new design for year 2012, I've been wearing triathlon apparels for the past 2 years of running and am absolutely happy with it. No worrying of chafing, I can even choose to unzip up to chest level whenever the weather gets hot. Sponges fits well on the shoulder and I even can store essentials in my rear pocket.

3) Polar RCX5 G5 - My trustworthy chronograph, heart rate monitor and GPS tracker, this have been my training companion since I purchased it last October 2011. And this will track my progress on the big day itself.

4) Drymax Running Lite Mesh - Absolutely loving my Drymax socks due to its dryness but the search was not easy. Torn between this and the Hyper Thin Running, I chose this due to the slightly thicker padding to it.

Despite less than 2 hours of sleep, the run this morning was of 30.85KM in distance covering major hills at Kinrara till Equine Park and back. I'm glad all the gears worked flawlessly. I even tested the exact flavour of the nutrition supplements I will be taking on race day minus the Pepsi of course. The run was did with Roy and we started really early at 4.10am. Started well with cool weather on our side (began to drizzle at 8KM onwards), but legs began to feel tired at 22KM hence went into economical mode. At 28KM, I increase my pace a little to finish the run strongly.

Details of my run as per recorded on Polar Personal Trainer can be viewed here.

Overall, this final push is really tiring but it was needed and I felt satisfied with it. After analysing the data from my Polar RCX5, I'm in fact very happy with my heart rate reading and also pace. I certainly hope everything will go well like today on race day. Will continue to wear the gears for a little while longer before they goes into my luggage for race day packing. Oh and yeah. It's 22 days left!

Pressure, Stress and Everything Else...

By Frank

After my lack luster run yesterday night and while waiting for my hair to dry before going to bed, I was chatting with Chee Kong. And we chatted of course about our upcoming Comrades Marathon.

He told me that I was putting too much stress to myself before the big day as I have been running for almost every night now after work. Well... I do not deny that as I'm putting all extra effort in now even if I have to run late at night upon returning late from work. Even with a new "challenge" currently where a family member needs each and everyone of us to be around, I still took time to run, the reason behind very late night runs. To me, it's that every small little thing that I do now that will make a difference and I do hope its for the positive.

I was careful though to make sure I won't injure myself or even over do it. Recovery is absolutely important and I paid extra effort in making sure recovery supplements are pumped into my body within 30 minutes after my workout to speed up recovery. Weekday runs after work is mainly about 5KM or a little bit more around my neighbourhood. These runs are mainly done at faster pace.

On weekends, a long run is in the menu normally ran at my intended Comrades Marathon race pace which is about 6:45 minute per kilometer. However, the sad thing is that since weekend runs are always around 5.30am in the morning, I have failed numerous times already in dragging myself out of bed. It's not easy to leave work late and with minimal sleep, running in the early hours is pretty tough for me.

So, with 25 days to go till the Comrades Marathon, am I stressing out myself too much? The hype is certainly building up all over and I sometimes hope that the run is actually tomorrow. The pressure and stress is building day after day as the run approaches. "One step at a time. Time is still available. Just make good use of it, the smart way and The Ultimate Human Race will be my playground". And this I kept reminding myself.

Going Fishing at Cape Town...

By Frank

After the Comrades Marathon, I will be taking some time out over at the beautiful city of Cape Town together with Chee Kong and Mei Ee while meeting up with Phil who is currently working there. And while there, the first thing that came into a runner's mind is that whether is there any interesting running events there and so, this entry is all about it.

Just a day before leaving South Africa from Cape Town on 10 June 2012, I will be participating in my second running event there, 6 days after the Comrades Marathon. It's basically call the Old Fisherman's Trail Challenge, a trail half marathon, bringing runners from a place call Fish Hoek to Hout Bay. Do check out the website at the link given for some absolutely breathtaking photos of the event.

It was Chee Kong's idea to participate in this and while learning about it and going through some past event details, I was thinking, "Why not?". The scenery is absolutely spectacular, and it will be a good recovery run. Trail and road running is very different and therefore, my legs should be able to take it, I HOPE.

The only thing that came to me as a surprise was the compulsory list of adventure and survival gear that runners have to bring along. And it's a list that requires the runner to be able to withstand the conditions out there for 5 HOURS! I was like, a half marathon on trail at that amount of time don't sound too friendly. Hmmm...

However, as my mind was made, both myself and Chee Kong included ourselves into the waiting list and we managed to register ourselves on the first day upon opening for registration as this event is always a fast sell-out. A very popular event indeed. Damaged to the credit card was surprisingly mild for an event of this scale and I'm happy I chose to participate in it.

Now the problem, I have to get myself a trail shoe!

A Month Left...

By Frank

It's now officially 1 month aka 31 days left till the Comrades Marathon 2012. Time certainly flies. It was jut like yesterday when I tried to qualify myself at the Penang Bridge International Marathon last year. A month from now, I will be standing on the starting line at Pietermaritzburg in the chilling weather awaiting for the start. Yeap, as this blog gets automatically publish online, my run will also start at 11.30am Malaysian time on 3 June 2012.

Training hasn't been ideal though this has some similarity with my 84KM Sundown Ultra Marathon 2 years back. At the final 1 month till race day then, I went into panic mode and put in all the effort I could after having "rested" more than the usual and this resulted with a personal best time which I still hold till today. Probably the rest has allowed my body to heal and recover from any past fatigue and the determination to run a good run fueled me at that time. I certainly hope this will happen again though this time, I have the retail fatigue to tackle with.

It will be a case of determination and will power, and my cause of having to run for a cancer free tomorrow. Time is ticking and it's time to rev things up. I hope within this 1 month, something in me will come roaring forward. After 10 ultra marathons thus far, let my experience shine in this ultimate human race. 31 days. Every run, every step, every food and drinks I consume, let's make it count!

Outrunning Cancer and Comrades...

Come this Thursday, 26 April 2012 at 7pm, there will be a talk regarding cancer and also the Comrades Marathon over at Running Lab, Tropicana City Mall. This is of course held in conjunction with the The Ultimate Race for Cancer Research.

Ms. Yoon Sook Yee, Genetics Counsellor and Seniors Manager from CARIF (Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation) that I'm closely working with will give a talk regarding cancer and also the much research being done to it. And not forgetting of course the story of CARIF on their part in helping out in this field.

My part will of course be emphasizing on Rhabdomyosarcoma, my medical background and also the Comrades Marathon. My medical background has never been made public at this scale yet and this will be my first time facing live audiences. Hopefully no butterflies in my tummy.

The talk is of course free for all but as the store can't accommodate many seats, the first 40 successfully registered will get a guaranteed seat and complimentary door gifts too. For the rest, perhaps just make yourself comfortable. The talk's duration won't be as lengthy as a football match. The details are as stated on the following diagram.

There will of course be Q & A sessions coupled with light snack and refreshments. Oh, and did I mentioned that the light snacks will be a healthy one too from our very own Karen Loh, celebrity runner, chef and super mummy! So if you want to know more about anything from cancer to myself and also the Comrades Marathon, feel free to drop by at Running Lab this 26 April 2012 at 7pm. All is most welcome and I hope to see many faces around.

The Days Of Treatment...

By Frank

Continuing my story of where I left off the last time about Rhabdomyosarcoma, I'm here to share about my treatment days and also the method that was used.

In western medicine practices, surgery will always be the first choice in removing the main tumour. As tumour can sometime grow rapidly and even into hard to reach places within the body, an alternative option will always be there to hopefully completely remove them. In this modern world, chemotherapy has been widely regarded as the second choice.

Through intravenous therapy, cytotoxic chemo drugs will be administer into a patient's body hoping to kill off any remaining tumour. Being a cytotoxic drug, it also kills off any healthy cells and tissue, hence causing further health deterioration during that particular period of time where extra care towards the patient is needed. Some of the common side effects are skin damage, sore mouth, hair loss, nausea, vomiting, bowel discomfort and constipation.

Intravenous drip...

In the treatment of Rhabdomyosarcoma for me back then, if I did not forgotten fully, there were a total number of 4 main chemo drugs that was administered on me:

1) Vincristine - A clear colourless liquid that is used the most during my treatment. Common side effects includes hair loss, tissue burns, constipation, loss of appetite and, leg weakness.

2) Cyclophosphamide - A clear colourless liquid. Common side effects includes bone marrow depression, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, hair loss and sore mouth.

3) Actinomycin-D - A clear yellow liquid. Common side effects includes nausea and vomiting, bone marrow depression, hair loss, mental depression and skin eruptions.

4) Adriamycin - A clear red liquid. Common side effects includes pink urine (not blood), nausea and vomiting, bone marrow depression, hair loss, fever and sore mouth. Adriamycin was probably the last chemo drug introduced to me and was administered slowly as the side effects if administered wrongly can be deadly, as it does damage to the heart cells.

There were other drugs administered too, basically to help relieve pain:

1) Ondansetron - Either through intravenous or in tablet form, it's one drug that I relied and thankful off during back then as it help with relieving pain by blocking off the pain receptors.

2) Morphine - Carefully administered to help relieve pain. Administered very late into treatment stages as the pain was getting out of hand that even Ondansetron is no longer strong enough.

Halfway through chemotherapy, I was then required to do radiotherapy treatment which lasted one whole month. Radiotherapy is basically where high energy radiation is used to kill off cancer cells that cannot be surgically removed. Some common side effects includes fatigue, loss of appetite and skin damage. My left arm was marked with masking tapes and also marker pens to guide the radiation rays to where it is suppose to treat. The whole process only lasted less than five minutes per session and the side effects will only start to show after a week or so of treatment. And when all is completed, I resumed chemotherapy treatment.

A radiotherapy machine...

The whole treatment process took about 2.5 to 3 years. And when it's all done, the first 10 years was critical to ensure that there is no relapse on the especially on the joints, head and neck areas. An annual check-up is done to make sure of this.

* Surgery was performed at Maria Specialist Centre, Johor Bahru

* Chemotherapy was administered at Singapore National University Hospital

* Radiotherapy was administered at Singapore General Hospital

TURCR Crosses Borders With New Mechanics...

With the Comrades Marathon slightly less than a couple of months away and with The Ultimate Race for Cancer Research fund raising campaign happening since February 2012, CARIF upon request has managed to step up the campaign to yet another level.

CARIF has many friendly friends who has expressed interest to assist in this fund raising campaign and therefore have widen the field to anyone who is interested to also volunteer to sign up a sponsorship drive and act as an "ambassador" in helping raise funds whether at your workplace, among friends and families or even the public.

Next, as per request by many of our outstation and oversea friends and potential donors, CARIF has managed to set-up a donation payment gateway made available via Maybank2U (M2U) and also PayPal with immediate effect. This will really make the donation drive much friendlier especially for oversea donors.

Next, anyone interested can also volunteer to sign up as a sponsorship drive and act as an ambassador in helping raise fund whether at your workplace, among friends and families or even the public.

The below is the information about the newly implemented mechanics to this fund raising campaign.

1) Register with CARIF and start a sponsorship drive at your workplace or with you friends and family to raise donations for this event. Please contact Katrina Low at 03-56391966/1874 for registration details.

2) Purchase the Special Edition campaign T-shirt at RM60 each, available now at CARIF, Running Lab (Tropicana City Mall) or via online. T-shirt is available from sizes XXS, XS, S, M, L and XL. Additional courier charge of RM10 is applied to delivery within Peninsular Malaysia and RM20 for East Malaysia.

If you are a Maybank M2U user:

1. Log in to your M2U account

2. Select Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation as the Payee Corporation under 'Zakat & Charity'

3. Enter the donation amount you wish to contribute / cost of the t-shirt

4. Send an email to info@carif.com.my indicating your name, contact number, address, date and amount of donation, preferred size of t-shirt

If you wish to purchase via PayPal:

1. Log in to your PayPal account

2. Enter info@carif.com.my at TO column

3. Enter your email address, donation amount you wish to contribute / cost of the t-shirt

4. Click Purchase of Services

5. State 'The Ultimate Race for Cancer Research' in the message column and indicate your preferred size of t-shirt and postal address

Should you want us to courier the T-shirt to your postal address, kindly enter RM70 (Peninsular Malaysia) or RM80 (East Malaysia).

For those residing over at Singapore, you can also purchase the t-shirt by contacting Ms. Kelly Lim by hitting the link HERE for more info.

3) Donate directly to CARIF - cash or cheque (payable to Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation)

4) ‘Like’ and share the official Facebook page at The Ultimate Race For Cancer Research (www.facebook.com/TURCR)

Please do also show your support by chatting with Frank or dropping a comment on his blog, http://www.runnerzcircle.blogspot.com/ which also records updates on his race preparation.

Tune in to BFM 89.9 for the live interview with Frank and Prof Dr Teo Soo Hwang, Chief Executive of CARIF. You can call in with you questions between 4.00pm to 4.30pm on Tuesday 17 April 2012.

For more information, please contact Katrina Low at 03-56391966/1874.

Refreshment And Aid At Comrades...

By Frank

During an ultra marathon, food and water intake is an important element that will decide the overall outcome of the run. Unlike running the marathon distance where we can rely basically on energy gels and water, in an ultra marathon where it can take up to more than 8 hours of running and unless you are a fast runner, solid food intake is required.

Back during my 84KM days, I relied heavily on energy gels and raisins. At last year's 100KM distance, gels came to a stop at the halfway point. It just won't go in anymore and small snacks like preserved fruits, fresh oranges and gummy candies help a lot. Some light solid food like muffins may help too but I still find raisins to be the best for me. Easy to consume, rich in nutrition to keep me going and don't cause any bowel movement, I trusted it since I found out 3 years back.

However, as Comrades Marathon is being held at another part of the globe, the food and water served will be different. Therefore, caution will be needed to make sure I won't end up running to the toilet. And for those who frequently run with me, you know about my weak gut. And the following is what I found out which will be continuing till next year's edition and this includes some aid included too:

Pepsi Cola, Mountain Dew and Mirinda - 38,000 litres

Water - 2,000,000 150ml sachets

Energade - 660,000 150ml sachets

Mega Load - 62,000 units

Energade Sports Jellies - 300kg

Bananas - 600 boxes

Oranges - 784 bags

Mageu Number 1 - 10,000 150ml sachets

Chocolates 1.2 tons

Biscuits - 800kg

Vaseline - 240 tubes

Sunscreen - 300 tubes 500ml

Arnica Ice - 600 tubes 500ml

Loobit - 600 tubes 500ml

Potatoes - 7 tons

Water served in 150ml sachets...

I will say that the organising committee of the Comrades Marathon has really planned the amount near to perfection for the 18,0000 runners. And with the above total spread throughout the entire 89KM race course with stations appearing at approximately 2.5KM, we runners really have to watch out for over hydration instead.

I been practising on Pepsi on a few runs and I found that I'm facing difficulties with it. The recent run, drinking it with my favourite GU Roctane resulted in me running to the toilet. Therefore, there will be still some trial and error. However, based on the list above, there are some items which I have not heard of and therefore will play it safe by bringing some of my preferred and trusted food and aid. Consumption of energy gels will probably stop at the marathon distance and from there, will rely on GU Chomps as my supplementary glycogen and electrolytes intake while the solids will play their main role.

Locals helping to serve Pepsi...

And yeah, I still have 53 days left to sort this department out!

THANKS For The Concern...

By Frank

It has been a hectic month of March 2012. Being the last month of Running Lab's financial year, it's of course also time for audit. I've survived through the toughest part which is stock count but it kind of left me lifeless. Besides from the retail side, I was super tied down as customer traffic flow suddenly hit the high note.

Karen invited me to her house on Saturday evening for Lawrence's farewell gathering. I couldn't make it as I can't leave my dad back at the store especially on a Saturday evening. And apparently I heard from Karen saying that my name was one of the topics brought out during the gathering. But hey, why me since it's all about Lawrence?

Yes, I been super tied down with work that I have hardly any time train. And whenever friends sees me, I look half dead with my "panda" eyes. Even 3 pimples broke out a week ago! Nevertheless, I'm still hanging on to it and I hope the worst is over with audit month now almost history, well at least for this financial year.

Yesterday, Karen gave me a courtesy call and just earlier today, Pui San paid a visit to my store. Was really kind of you ladies to show the care for this friend of yours. Don't worry, I'm still alive and I sincerely THANK YOU for all the concern shown. But also not forgetting to friends like Yim, Shine, Jamie, Paul, Lawrence and others who have asked about me. How I know? It's because Karen told me so that you guys asked. Really thank you all for these and I do hope that I will see you all soon on the road as I really need to hit it with my ultimate road race looming in the next couple of months.

Slicing Through 715KM...

By Frank

After slightly more than a year and running distance at about 715KM, my first pair of K-Swiss Blade-Light Run has finally settled into retirement after this morning's 21KM run. When it was first released in late year 2010, it was a revolutionary performance running shoe that some will find it odd looking. But don't judge it by its look as upon putting it on, one will know of its benefits. Read about it in my review here.

The K-Swiss Blade-Light Run which I received last February 2011 courtesy of K-Swiss and Outdoor Venture Pte Ltd has been my high mileage work horse since then, accompanying me for one marathon, one 50KM ultra marathon and numerous running distance for my long runs as I trained for Sundown Ultra Marathon last year. Going through thick and thin, mud and rain, sweat and soreness, I guess it's about time it gave way. The EVA is starting to "harden" and the comfort level is definitely dropping with the air pockets in the EVA slowly vanishing into thin air.

715KM and 0KM outsole...

Comparison of the forefoot outsole area between old and new...

When I first received the shoe, I didn't had much confident that it will hold up judging on how the outsole looks like. It actually looks fragile with the lack of carbon rubber but with 715KM worth of running distance proven on the road, it certainly is a proven performance model that weight just at about 252 grams for a men size US9.0. And judging from the current state of the outsole, I must say that it actually held up pretty well. Looking at it closely, the tread designs are basically still there and although some of the "blades" are showing signs of shredding off, honestly speaking, it isn't really that bad considering what it has gone through. And evidence of me striking mid to forefoot is there if you pay attention to the amount of carbon rubber that is still present on the outsole at the heel area.

The predecessor meets the successor...

My very first pair of K-Swiss Blade-Light Run deserve a retirement break now and I will use it for my day to day walking shoe. A newer colour of the same make has just been sent to me courtesy of K-Swiss and Outdoor Venture Pte Ltd for my Comrades Marathon 2012 training and I'm sure it will continue off the legacy of the first pair. Let's hope it will slice through the 715KM!

Tickets To South Africa...

By Frank

Finally, after a long planning with Chee Kong, I have finally purchased my return flight tickets for my trip to South Africa. On a 11 days trip (excluding the many hours I'm going to stay up in the sky), I will be leaving on 29 May 2012 on board Singapore Airlines from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore for a 3.5 hours transit there. Any friends want to meet up? *hint hint I was suppose to fly direct on Malaysia Airline but out of a sudden, the flights were all cancelled off. Then it was Air Emirates, but then, I had a shock when I learnt about the fare. It was just too much for me to bear. As this is my first time on board Singapore Airlines, I do hope it will be a pleasant one unlike my recent scare on board AirAsia. On the positive side, is that Changi Airport has lots of variety there and I think I can make good use of my time there before going into a long slumber on the resuming flight to Johannesburg.

With the Comrades Marathon 2012 being held on 3 June 2012, this will give me enough time to settle down there. And after the race, I will have enough time for some sight seeing over at Cape Town meeting up hopefully with Phil there, and maybe even for 1 more shorter race. From Cape Town on 10 June 2012, I will then board a late morning return flight back to Singapore for an hours transit before back home to Kuala Lumpur.

Overall, I'm just happy to finally settle off both my accommodation which I will be staying with Chee Kong and my transportation issues. It's always the headache part when planning for a trip to a far away place. Was lucky that Chee Kong helped a lot with it. However, I still do not know much about the whole itinerary of the trip there as there are still some unconfirmed things that Chee Kong will need to iron out. Till then, it's 75 days to race day. GULPS!

K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run...

By Frank

K-Swiss has finally entered the "barefoot" shoes segment! Their first attempt at it, the zero drop K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run. Following the tradition of the very successful Blade innovation, expect some radical changes to the shoe design and how we run in them. And after thrashing it out at the recent Twilight Ultra Challenge 2012, I felt more confidence in giving it a review of my own.

The K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run...

Back to basics, the zero drop of the Blade-Foot Run refers to the difference in heel to toe drop. A traditional shoe will have at least 8mm to 13mm differences and with this pair, your feet will feel flattish in them. No support and minimal cushioning, the shoe's primary duty is to protect the feet from the harsh environment like the rough tarmac and pebbles.

Lateral side of the K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run...

Medial side of the K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run...

The outsole is still based on the Blades. However, some changes were made to place the Blades in a different way to simulate a more barefoot feel and this gave even better traction than before. It felt much firmer now hence providing a more efficient and responsive propulsion with every toe-off. High wear and tear area were reinforced with Aosta II rubber compound for extra durability and I must say that the wear rate is rather impressive! The shoe's flexibility itself isn't as flexible as some other minimalist shoes out in the market. However, it was acceptable and to my surprise, it even does have a "springy" feel to it, where the shoe will flex its way back to its original form. And notice the original form of the shoe's toe box. It's curved upwards very obviously and this has really proven to help a lot with forefoot landing.

I've no problems with the fitting of the shoe. The shoe wrap up nicely on my arch, providing enough protection on my Achilles region and the toe box was wide enough to have my toes splayed. A clever design on the toe box, the area where the metatarsal meets the tarsal has been widen resulting in a more natural fit. Even the laces were asymmetrically designed to take the shape of the contour of our feet's upper.

Asymmetrically placed laces moves with your feet...

Noticed the stretched out area at the sides...

Some of K-Swiss key features were retained in the Blade-Foot Run. The ever popular Flow Cool System to ensure fresh air entering the shoe to keep the feet cool and to dry off any moisture that may have accumulated in it. Stay tied laces, where no more worrying of laces coming undone. And finally, the pulley on the tongue and heel tab to allow fast entry and fitting of the shoe.

However, as much as I like the Blade-Foot Run, I would have prefer if Ion-Mask is implemented to allow a water repellent upper. It has become a technology I adore so much that I'm really missing it in this model. Next will be the drainage system on the outsole of the shoe. I was very surprised that it has been excluded even though the midsole is perforated. It has been a key feature in K-Swiss performance model and I can't understand the reason for its "demise". Perhaps an upgrade in the next future model.

All in all, I'm very happy overall with the new K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run and am confident enough to take it as my race shoe of choice for my upcoming Comrades Marathon 2012.

The K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run is now available at Running Lab, Tropicana City Mall Malaysia and Running Lab Singapore retailing respectively at a recommended selling price of RM399.00 and SGD159.00.

Twilight Ultra Challenge 2012...

Event: Twilight Ultra Challenge 2012

Venue: East Coast Park, Singapore

Date: 11 March 2012

Time: 12.00am

Distance: 10KM loops (maximum distance in 16 hours)

Shoe: K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run

By Frank

Looks like I'm not cut for commando style running events. Again, I struggled at Twilight Ultra Challenge (TUC), resulting from sleepiness and indigestion. Though offered a place to stay by Ian and TS, I have to decline as I will need to maximise my time at KL due to work commitments.

Waking up at 10.30am on Saturday, many things happened. I had to travel a bit to see to one of it and it was one that I did not regret doing for it was a painful teary moment.

Early dinner before leaving for the airport. Nice shirts I must say. *grin*...

Then in mid noon, I loitered with Chee Kong and Mei Ee at an eatery outlet before proceeding to the Low Cost Carrier Terminal to await for my flight to Changi via Air Asia. The flight got delayed 20 minutes, so it wasn't too bad. But 5 minutes after taking off, 3 rows in front of me, a passenger heard something which sounded like wind gushing in. Everyone panicked and moved away. At that moment, I thought that was it. The cabin was leaking and the plane is going to drop from the sky and number 1 for TUC 2012 is a no show due to plane crash. But then, the problem was found. Some sort of insect was in the cabin making some sort of noise that sounded like wind gushes. OK, I will be reaching my destination after all. Phew...

Upon arrival and getting lost a bit in Changi Terminal 1, I finally met up with Chee Kong at Terminal 3. We quickly settled down for our dinner at Pastamania which turned out to be turning point for my run later. And while dining, I felt sleepiness and I know the chances of hitting 89KM will be tough. We changed into our race gear, flagged down a cab and off we went to East Coast Park.

Arrival at the race site was a big HOOHA for me! Ben announced the arrival of his number 1 runner (number 1 on bib only) and even the volunteers were eager to see who I was while giving out my race pack. Some volunteers even came over to greet me knowing what I'm doing for cancer research at the upcoming Comrades Marathon 2012. I was in a way famous and I hope its for a good reason. *Thick skin here a bit*

As it was Adam 1ArmRunner's birthday, there was a lucky draw session before run's flag off too. I was lucky enough to get a prize and when Ben announced it so loudly that I was bib number 1, I guess the whole race site kept their eyes on me. Remember to give me a paper basket to cover my head the next time.

First individual and last entry for TUC 2012 The bib number tells the order...

After meeting some old and making new friends like Ford, Kai Wei, Asree and some others, we were flagged off at midnight. I settled down mid pack with Chee Kong, Roy and Paul nicely. Pace was rather consistent at 6:30 minutes per kilometer and my new K-Swiss Blade-Foot Run zero drop minimalist shoe worked brilliantly.

However it was at 15KM, that I felt sleepiness taking over and I had trouble with my gut. I felt bloated and I knew it was from my pasta dinner due to my burping. I told Chee Kong to go ahead without me and he literary found an extra gear and went for it. By the next 5KM or so, he already made his way into the top 10 runners and is the fastest Malaysian runner at that point. I'm sure many of you who only heard of him but never seen him in action is amazed by this friend of mine.

Nice shady route to run (photo courtesy of Chee Kong)...

I continue on till 35KM with a time of 05:14 hours before deciding to take a nap. And it was instant black out for me even by sitting on the plastic chair for 2 hours. Upon waking up, although it cleared my senses a little, the legs just refused to carry on. I let out a big burp and that helped with my gut too. I took down a banana hoping that gastric will not be my next problem. I pushed very slowly till about 41KM when I caught Chee Kong and David at McDonald's having their breakfast! Joined them for a while before resuming. Not much running and instead it was just walking side by side with Chee Kong while chatting about our next ultra adventure. And when by the time when we got back to the race site where I hit 45KM and him 60KM, we decided to call it a day after clocking 09:23:40.

The conqueror's medal...

Calmed down before heading to clean ourselves up. Chee Kong decided to check himself into a nearby hotel to rest up before his flight back to South Africa at 2am later. Myself, I hung out at the race site witnessing other runners running through the pain barrier till about 3pm before heading off to Changi Terminal 1 with Malcalm. We parted ways at later as I was to meet up with Carey and Karen at Terminal 3 for dinner before heading home. I arrived late at the Budget Terminal and got a sounding from the officer there. I ran for my life to catch my plane and I think that busted my left upper feet a little. It's swollen now! DARN!

Overall, though I did not manage to run the 89KM distance, I still enjoyed my time at TUC 2012. The great hospitality and race management given by Ben and his Running Guild management team is something which runners don't often get in events. And I'm still glad I get to run, try out my race gear and to meet old friends and to make new friends. Till next year's TUC and I don't think I will be doing commando style again. It's just way to taxing!