To be honest, this event had superseded my own perception on road ultra that it doesn't suit my 'snail-pace' in many ways possible as compared to the trail ultra. People always mentioned that road ultra are different in its approach (plus the preparation) since commonly it is a known fact that the overall cut-off (COT) time is much faster than the trail ultra. As a quick comparison, my last 50km BBTC's COT was set at 12hours and this R68 challenge for the 84km COT was 16hrs. So, a whooping 34km that need to be completed within 4hrs. Perhaps it's not that difficult for the elites but for me as the 'marhaen' of runner, doing a double road FM at one go was pretty challenging though quite enticing since it's something of uncharted territory for myself.
My preparation for this challenge was largely depended on the weekly long run (including the LSD in the SCKLM2018) plus the trail workout that i started to include few weeks prior to the event. So, there's not so much varieties in the routines although i did add up some strength training at home here and there within the weekdays. The rest was all routine including my weight and my meal intake 😜
When i first arrived at the flag-off area that Saturday afternoon (i've already done my REPC a week before at IKEA Cheras..thanks Mayi!), surprise surprise, my cousins were there as well joining the same 84km category! Alhamdulillah! At least now i've got somebody to teman and buddy2 throughout the night until morning along that creepy and pitch black old Gombak - Bentong road (and it's not funny ok if you are alone especially after you've heard many 'stories' from the previous years race).
After few preps (including a leak at the loo) plus many poses in front of the camera, we were then being flagged-off sharp at 5pm for the race. I myself had already wore the head-lamp since the weather looks a bit cloudy and who knows, it might dark earlier than the usual 7pm timing.
For the first 5 - 10km, i could see many runners were a bit conservative in their pace which for me was quite understandable since we all knew for the first 15 - 16km, we would traverse a subtle inclination until we reach the famous Genting Sempah checkpoint at 16.5km mark. Me myself also set the same with only at the fastest of 6:50min/km when running at some of the flat area within this first half. The rest was controlled within 7:00 till 7:45min/km of pace.
But it all changed quickly after we moved away from that Genting Sempah CP (A3) at around 7pm-ish. The reason was quite straight forward. It was all downhill for the next 15 - 20k or so. And with our fuel still on a high, me and my cousin just let go off ourselves from thereon, CP by CP until we got to A7, the Hotspring at 35km mark (at one time, i just looked at my watch and it's read, 5:45min/km - gila). In between, we did stopped for the prayer and fuel up with the usual stuffs served at each of the WS, the fruits, Coke, ice water etc.
As we reached A7, me and Hafidz were still feel ok though as the road becoming flatter and there were less runner in front and at the back (plus the dark), our legs start to tire a bit. Well, siapa suruh turun bukit lari macam tak ingat? 😖. So, we just slowly continue with a 3mins of run and 1mins of walk combo until we reached the U-turn mark at KM 42, the Waterway Villa (A8). And it did feel good as well, since we realized there were not many who had made that U-turn run. Only a handful of runners (including the 100miles) which in my estimation would be less than 30 runners until we finally arrived A8 within 5:30 - 5:40hrs. Not bad at all!
From the outside, A8 CP looks lively with all those lightings and sound from people karaoke-ing. Well, what can you expect? A resort in the middle of nowhere and you think people would just come to sleep and then go ah? Of course, the patrons need to do something fun (although it kinda made me think, why in the first place they decided to spend their off-time here?). But whatever it is, for me, the most important thing when reaching this CP, was to freshen up, eat, drink and do the toilet visit.
I spent my time quite long here in A8. If i could properly recall, it was close to 30mins (I had 3 hours buffer). So I ate the mihun goreng they served there although only managed to finish half since it was a bit dry (was expecting to have hot Maggi Cup but there were none), replenished myself with ORS and did a lil bit of restocking to my bag. Felt a bit refreshed and ready to go, Hafidz then waved at me to run ahead as he needed more time to fix his leg/foot. And so i continued...
Returning to the starting point, it was all the same and routine except that now i passed by many of the 84k runners on the opposite side of the road trying to reach A8 before the COT at 1am. While it did motivated me a little to see many of them passes by, but knowing that MANY of them still running towards A8, at that point of time i already knew that i'll be running most of my time back to Gombak, alone in that dark and quiet night...damn it!Hahaha..
Luckily for me, as i got to KM50 where the route started to turn uphill again, i could clearly see few blinkers coming from the runners in front, walking up the incline in numbers. And without hesitation, i pushed myself a little bit just so that i'll be in their close vicinity...hopefully until the end.
Within that long and hilly 50k until 68k mark, it was all about counting the road markers. And in a very disciplined manner as well 😋. For every 2-3 markers (which separates about 30-40m each), i slowly move myself with that walk and jog combo again. The legs were already worn-out but not the sort of pains or injury where it totally stops you from moving. Plus, mentally, i was a bit on a high knowing that i've passed that 60k mark and what i needed to do next was just to reach the Genting Sempah CP and then, it'll be all downhill again until the finishing line.
And so i did ....at around 2.30am plusses and with many of the crews marshalling the CP already napping under the blanket. Oh bestnya!
But i didn't stay long there to join the napping party. Instead, after fueling myself with the 3rd sachet of the ORS and swallowed some of the watermelon slices there, i continued walking up the last incline until i got to the over-pass where i then saw the road changing its elevation again...only this time, the long awaited downhill road..and for the next 14 - 15km or so too....fuuuhhhhh...
For many runners, a downhill route before the finishing line seems like 'sap sap sui' or 'win-win situation' or even better, a god-given gift after all those elevations. But for those in better experiences, the kill-joy of this after you have gone thru a 60 - 70km worth of 'damage' and tiredness, was that you probably will either running down happily and steadily till the end or even worse, you'll run down with even more pain as the knees and feet struggled to contain the heavier 'breaking' and pounding onto the road. So, depending on your physical condition, you have to carefully choose on how you gonna approach that final long and winding downhill. Or otherwise, you'll just injure yourself easily.
Owh..there's also one more problem..funnily enough, as i reached that earlier over-pass section, the runners i ran together from KM50 were already gone ahead..and again, i'm left alone. Haih..
The next 2-3km or so, was all the same to me i.e. run and walk except that now i'm being more and more accompanied by the 'intriguing' forest/bushes sounds as well as weird stench smells in some of the sections along the road. And it did get to me at some point, where suddenly, there's this sudden loud and continuous approaching steps at my back and it keep coming closer until i could totally feel there's somebody or something just next to me (and i'm pretty sure there were nobody else at the back and there were no indication of other headlamp light either 😟). But of course, why would i want to stop and look back right? It's a no brainer. The only 'given' way forward for that kind of situation was to just run as fast as possible (even if your feet were in pain/sore) until you are back with other runners in front. And Alhamdulillah, i managed to catch up with some of the runners, 400 - 500m in front of me..😅😅
But that very situation didn't just end there unfortunately...
The last 'test' 😥 came out when i was within the last 5k (after the last CP) till the finishing line at around 4.30 - 5.00am. Although this time i was already with few of the runners, side by side walking but still, it came-out out of nowhere really.
We were jogging slowly passing a corner until we reached a waste dumping area on the right side of the road. It was totally dark in front of us until our head-lights caught up with some kind of white entity in the middle of that dump area. At first it was pretty vague but as we were approaching nearer, then it becoming clearer that the white thingy looks like a half-bodied guy and without a face. Our heart almost stopped but of course our legs didn't. Hahaha...But as we looked closely, we only then realized it was a guy mannequin that were thrown out by somebody or maybe someone thought it was funny to put it there and scared the hell out of everybody that was using the road at night. Haiyo...talak otak ini olang~
And that's about it really. After that few incidents, it was all about keeping it steady until the finishing line and in the end, Alhamdulillah, i managed to finish the race under 13hrs (and with silver medal also - top 50!) and when it's just about to Subuh prayer 😇😎. Hooray!
The volunteers were very friendly and they even setup a proper place for Muslims to stop and pray in some of the strategic CPs. The foods and the drinks were all sufficiently served though maybe at the A8 CP, it would be much more appetizing if hot soup or Maggi cup were being served for the runners. Other than that, the road marshals were also helpful and diligently did the checks along the route and i've no complain at all (am i being too nice here?..hehe)..And owh, the distance between CPs were kind of lavish in honesty. The furthest distance was only 7km and that was between the A7 and A8. The rest was all either within 4 to 5km in between. In a way, it was a bit 'finisher-friendly' kinda setup to all the runners. Unless, they want to change it next year yer...:P
So, will i come back again next year? Probably, since the organizer have decided to make a 100km category instead of 84km. And by the experiences that i've got here, i would totally recommend this Route 68 challenge to you guys out there who wants a 'moderately-challenged' road ultra (as compared to TITI Ultra) in Malaysia's ultra event line up...
And last but not the least, keep training for better fitness and push for further distance guys!
Ciao..
My preparation for this challenge was largely depended on the weekly long run (including the LSD in the SCKLM2018) plus the trail workout that i started to include few weeks prior to the event. So, there's not so much varieties in the routines although i did add up some strength training at home here and there within the weekdays. The rest was all routine including my weight and my meal intake 😜
When i first arrived at the flag-off area that Saturday afternoon (i've already done my REPC a week before at IKEA Cheras..thanks Mayi!), surprise surprise, my cousins were there as well joining the same 84km category! Alhamdulillah! At least now i've got somebody to teman and buddy2 throughout the night until morning along that creepy and pitch black old Gombak - Bentong road (and it's not funny ok if you are alone especially after you've heard many 'stories' from the previous years race).
 |
| Before flag-off. Me and me cuzzies. |
 |
| All set-up and ready |
After few preps (including a leak at the loo) plus many poses in front of the camera, we were then being flagged-off sharp at 5pm for the race. I myself had already wore the head-lamp since the weather looks a bit cloudy and who knows, it might dark earlier than the usual 7pm timing.
 |
| Off me go side by side with Pokcik Api aka Bro Alman (my left) |
For the first 5 - 10km, i could see many runners were a bit conservative in their pace which for me was quite understandable since we all knew for the first 15 - 16km, we would traverse a subtle inclination until we reach the famous Genting Sempah checkpoint at 16.5km mark. Me myself also set the same with only at the fastest of 6:50min/km when running at some of the flat area within this first half. The rest was controlled within 7:00 till 7:45min/km of pace.
 |
| Happily traversing the elevation |
But it all changed quickly after we moved away from that Genting Sempah CP (A3) at around 7pm-ish. The reason was quite straight forward. It was all downhill for the next 15 - 20k or so. And with our fuel still on a high, me and my cousin just let go off ourselves from thereon, CP by CP until we got to A7, the Hotspring at 35km mark (at one time, i just looked at my watch and it's read, 5:45min/km - gila). In between, we did stopped for the prayer and fuel up with the usual stuffs served at each of the WS, the fruits, Coke, ice water etc.
 |
| Slowly and focused |
 |
| 😍😍😍 |
As we reached A7, me and Hafidz were still feel ok though as the road becoming flatter and there were less runner in front and at the back (plus the dark), our legs start to tire a bit. Well, siapa suruh turun bukit lari macam tak ingat? 😖. So, we just slowly continue with a 3mins of run and 1mins of walk combo until we reached the U-turn mark at KM 42, the Waterway Villa (A8). And it did feel good as well, since we realized there were not many who had made that U-turn run. Only a handful of runners (including the 100miles) which in my estimation would be less than 30 runners until we finally arrived A8 within 5:30 - 5:40hrs. Not bad at all!
 |
| Gelap bak hang~ |
From the outside, A8 CP looks lively with all those lightings and sound from people karaoke-ing. Well, what can you expect? A resort in the middle of nowhere and you think people would just come to sleep and then go ah? Of course, the patrons need to do something fun (although it kinda made me think, why in the first place they decided to spend their off-time here?). But whatever it is, for me, the most important thing when reaching this CP, was to freshen up, eat, drink and do the toilet visit.
I spent my time quite long here in A8. If i could properly recall, it was close to 30mins (I had 3 hours buffer). So I ate the mihun goreng they served there although only managed to finish half since it was a bit dry (was expecting to have hot Maggi Cup but there were none), replenished myself with ORS and did a lil bit of restocking to my bag. Felt a bit refreshed and ready to go, Hafidz then waved at me to run ahead as he needed more time to fix his leg/foot. And so i continued...
Returning to the starting point, it was all the same and routine except that now i passed by many of the 84k runners on the opposite side of the road trying to reach A8 before the COT at 1am. While it did motivated me a little to see many of them passes by, but knowing that MANY of them still running towards A8, at that point of time i already knew that i'll be running most of my time back to Gombak, alone in that dark and quiet night...damn it!Hahaha..
Luckily for me, as i got to KM50 where the route started to turn uphill again, i could clearly see few blinkers coming from the runners in front, walking up the incline in numbers. And without hesitation, i pushed myself a little bit just so that i'll be in their close vicinity...hopefully until the end.
Within that long and hilly 50k until 68k mark, it was all about counting the road markers. And in a very disciplined manner as well 😋. For every 2-3 markers (which separates about 30-40m each), i slowly move myself with that walk and jog combo again. The legs were already worn-out but not the sort of pains or injury where it totally stops you from moving. Plus, mentally, i was a bit on a high knowing that i've passed that 60k mark and what i needed to do next was just to reach the Genting Sempah CP and then, it'll be all downhill again until the finishing line.
And so i did ....at around 2.30am plusses and with many of the crews marshalling the CP already napping under the blanket. Oh bestnya!
But i didn't stay long there to join the napping party. Instead, after fueling myself with the 3rd sachet of the ORS and swallowed some of the watermelon slices there, i continued walking up the last incline until i got to the over-pass where i then saw the road changing its elevation again...only this time, the long awaited downhill road..and for the next 14 - 15km or so too....fuuuhhhhh...
For many runners, a downhill route before the finishing line seems like 'sap sap sui' or 'win-win situation' or even better, a god-given gift after all those elevations. But for those in better experiences, the kill-joy of this after you have gone thru a 60 - 70km worth of 'damage' and tiredness, was that you probably will either running down happily and steadily till the end or even worse, you'll run down with even more pain as the knees and feet struggled to contain the heavier 'breaking' and pounding onto the road. So, depending on your physical condition, you have to carefully choose on how you gonna approach that final long and winding downhill. Or otherwise, you'll just injure yourself easily.
Owh..there's also one more problem..funnily enough, as i reached that earlier over-pass section, the runners i ran together from KM50 were already gone ahead..and again, i'm left alone. Haih..
The next 2-3km or so, was all the same to me i.e. run and walk except that now i'm being more and more accompanied by the 'intriguing' forest/bushes sounds as well as weird stench smells in some of the sections along the road. And it did get to me at some point, where suddenly, there's this sudden loud and continuous approaching steps at my back and it keep coming closer until i could totally feel there's somebody or something just next to me (and i'm pretty sure there were nobody else at the back and there were no indication of other headlamp light either 😟). But of course, why would i want to stop and look back right? It's a no brainer. The only 'given' way forward for that kind of situation was to just run as fast as possible (even if your feet were in pain/sore) until you are back with other runners in front. And Alhamdulillah, i managed to catch up with some of the runners, 400 - 500m in front of me..😅😅
But that very situation didn't just end there unfortunately...
The last 'test' 😥 came out when i was within the last 5k (after the last CP) till the finishing line at around 4.30 - 5.00am. Although this time i was already with few of the runners, side by side walking but still, it came-out out of nowhere really.
We were jogging slowly passing a corner until we reached a waste dumping area on the right side of the road. It was totally dark in front of us until our head-lights caught up with some kind of white entity in the middle of that dump area. At first it was pretty vague but as we were approaching nearer, then it becoming clearer that the white thingy looks like a half-bodied guy and without a face. Our heart almost stopped but of course our legs didn't. Hahaha...But as we looked closely, we only then realized it was a guy mannequin that were thrown out by somebody or maybe someone thought it was funny to put it there and scared the hell out of everybody that was using the road at night. Haiyo...talak otak ini olang~
 |
| Arriving at the FL with bro Suhaimi |
 |
| That candid moment... |
And that's about it really. After that few incidents, it was all about keeping it steady until the finishing line and in the end, Alhamdulillah, i managed to finish the race under 13hrs (and with silver medal also - top 50!) and when it's just about to Subuh prayer 😇😎. Hooray!
Overall
So, how was it in overall? From my most sincere and the bottom-heart kind of feedback, i would say the event was spot on in every points although there's only one that could possibly bring down the attraction of R68 in the future which is the parking spaces for which i believe can be mitigated if the organizer made in compulsory for all runners to use the bus from NU Sentral (both outstation and local runners) if participation keep growing in the coming years (unless the numbers in each categories is being limited). The rest was fantastic from start till the end.The volunteers were very friendly and they even setup a proper place for Muslims to stop and pray in some of the strategic CPs. The foods and the drinks were all sufficiently served though maybe at the A8 CP, it would be much more appetizing if hot soup or Maggi cup were being served for the runners. Other than that, the road marshals were also helpful and diligently did the checks along the route and i've no complain at all (am i being too nice here?..hehe)..And owh, the distance between CPs were kind of lavish in honesty. The furthest distance was only 7km and that was between the A7 and A8. The rest was all either within 4 to 5km in between. In a way, it was a bit 'finisher-friendly' kinda setup to all the runners. Unless, they want to change it next year yer...:P
So, will i come back again next year? Probably, since the organizer have decided to make a 100km category instead of 84km. And by the experiences that i've got here, i would totally recommend this Route 68 challenge to you guys out there who wants a 'moderately-challenged' road ultra (as compared to TITI Ultra) in Malaysia's ultra event line up...
And last but not the least, keep training for better fitness and push for further distance guys!
 |
| And keep smiling also... |
Ciao..
