Friday, October 26, 2007

Leaving on a jet plane...


I'm off to Vietnam in about 8 hours! Sms me if you wanna get anything. I can't wait to check out the tailors! Heard the quality of fabrics are good and workmanship excellent! HO CHI MINH! WO LAI LE!!!

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Ying Xiong II







HEROES Season 2 has started! Woohoo! I know I'm a little late, but it's a good thing that it's back cos I can't wait to find out what the creators have up their sleeves in Volume 2! OK, the word's out that there are a couple more characters who will be introduced. New Heroes Maya and Alejandro are brought into the story, each possessing a power; Maya produces a potent and lethal illness, while Alejandro's is the antidote. They run from the law towards America, where they hope to find help from the author of the book Activating Evolution. Unaware that Chandra Suresh is deceased, they pick up a half-dead stranger lying on the road (a powerless Sylar), who happens to know the author....

Ok, too much to know for now. (it's all Wikipedia's fault)


Fishmonger

*SuperPoke*


I've recently joined the bandwagon and started up my very own Facebook account 2 weeks ago. What is facebook? Check it out on your own here - www.facebook.com It started off looking as another Friendster-like interface but I soon realised it contained so much more when I began installing these fascinating applications. There's one which allows you to see how your name is written in Japanese and another which allows you to ka-cheow others by "superpoking" them. Sigh... I wonder how I ever find the time to get started on such things. The only true benefit I see out of this is the opportunity to reconnect with old friends. I've had some interesting conversations with several long-lost buddies. It's great to be able to link up with them again. I guess they're all happy now with my change in status (err... it's something that shows up on my Facebook profile now).

If you haven't already known, Fishmonger hauled in his biggest catch in 29 years of his life recently. She is pictured above, attempting to give him a *superpoke*.


Fishmonger

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

MACCA WINS!


Wow.. what a day at Kona! This is the first time I was catching the race "live" on video streaming and it was certainly a blast! With Faris Al-Sultan and Stadler out-of-action due to a stomach virus, I knew it was going to be Macca's day!

The race proved not to be an easy one for Macca though. He wasn't featured in the Top Ten at the start of the bike leg. He had emerged from the swim slightly later than the lead group and was in something like 15th position. 40km into the bike, he caught up with the others and was now part of the chase group hunting down a very fast Chris Lieto. His lead lasted for a while until bike specialist, Torbjorn Sindballe decided to step up gear and opened up a wide gap between him and the others. I wanted to see for myself how fast this man, also known as "Thunder Bear", could ride and maintain his lead into the marathon leg. He is known to hit the wall early on the run because his big body frame causes him to overheat easily. I heard he had a heat management plan in place. I guess that translated into a white long sleeve top and extremely high heat compression socks. It did made him look a tad nerdy though.


I will NEVER wear anything like that to race. Not even if the scorching sun begins to melt my body. No way, never.

Macca ran an amazing 2:42 marathon to overtake Chris Lieto and Torbjorn Sindballe. He was hotly pursued by eventual 2nd place winner Craig Alexander but Macca's blistering pace gradually opened up a 3mins lead. In fact he was so fast out of T2, he did 16mins over 5km. Now, that's FAST. I could never do that even if I was running a 5km time trial. It's inhuman. But that's Macca for you. He never dropped his pace. He kept the stride on, beaming to the fact that he was now living his dreams. He looked up to the sky every now and then, pumping his fist in the air as he ran the final 2 miles of the marathon. He was already basking in the glory of winning his first World Championship title.


Macca's plan was executed to perfection. He has been training so hard for this and finally got what he desired.
Well done Macca! You've been truly inspiring.

Fishmonger

Friday, October 12, 2007

The Big Race


The Hawaii Ironman World Championships are just round the corner. In just about 1 day's time, to be exact. I'm really looking forward to see who'll be the first man to breast the finishing tape. Will it be the battle between the Germans (Stadler and Al Sultan) and the Australian (Chris McCormack)? Or will anyone among the pack of Ironman champions steal the show? It's hard to predict really, especially when everyone has an equal chance at winning the World Championship.

Among the top pros, very little seperates them among one another. They are brutally fast in all 3 disciplines. True, some may be stronger in a particular discipline, but the rest make up for it in the other two disciplines. What wins the game is a matter of strategy, will power and sheer speed. Technically speaking, the first person who gets out of T1 and manages to maintain and extend his lead on the bike leg can create enough lead time to comfortably run a fast, but not world-beating marathon pace to cross the finishing line first. That was Stadler's strategy last year. Macca's strategy will probably be to push hard on his new Specialized Transition Pro and then run like the wind in his pet discipline, the marathon. It will be an exciting race and I'm going to monitor it closely.


What's the buzz over Hawaii really? Well, if you are a triathlete, there is no bigger day in this sport than the Ford Ironman World Championship. It is the race that defined the sport as it came of age, and continues to be the defining race for any avid triathlete. To get to the starting line in Kona, you must either be very lucky and get yourself a spot through the lottery, or very talented, and win yourself a qualifying spot at one of the qualifying events held around the world. Tens-of-thousands of triathletes try to get one of those coveted Ironman spots every year. Only 1,700 succeeded. That means 1,700 "lucky" people get to test themselves on one of the biggest challenges the sports world has to offer ... 2.4-miles of swimming, 112-miles of biking, and a 26.2-mile marathon run through tough ocean waves, and challenging lava-covered terrain.

While there are thousands of triathlons around the world, it is this one that truly defines the sport. It was this race, first run in 1978 as a dare by a bunch of Navy Seals that put triathlon on the world's sporting map. It is triathlon's Super Bowl, Wimbledon, World Series, World Cup, and Tour de France all rolled into one. What makes this event so unique is that "average" people get to compete alongside the best in the world.

It's a dream for me to compete in the World Championships. I hope to one day, through the lottery that is. =) As for now, I'm gonna place my bets on Mr CHRIS McCORMACK, a world champion over the Olympic distance and virtually every other distance this sport has to offer - a true legend.


Fishmonger

Saturday, October 06, 2007

The Return of The Fishmonger


Yep, I'm back again after more than a month of inactivity. It was a time to rest, wind down a little, focus on new developments in my life and attend to a pretty packed work schedule.

A quick update since my last post on the Aviva 70.3 Singapore Ironman. It was a great first half-ironman in Singapore and I thoroughly enjoyed the race. I was feeling good on race day and aside from the choppy East Coast waters, the bike course was pretty fast and I pushed hard in the first 3 loops. I was doing some fast speeds of 37-38km/h and I guess it took a toll on my legs on the final loop. I was prepared to go full out on the bike leg so I was happy with how I lasted in the first 3 loops. I cruised down the final lap and was feeling a little tight in my quads and calfs so I was careful not to push too hard. I was determined to do my half-marathon under 2 hours, so conserving a little for the run was necessary!

My transitions were pretty quick this time round and I got out of T2 in a flash. I was cautious in the first loop as my quads were beginning to tighten up. I shouted to my 4 supporters if they had Deep Heat and their reply came almost unanimously - "NO!" I was hoping they would get it for me when I began my second loop. Thankfully I found some along the turnaround point and that eased up my legs a lot. The start of the second loop was a lot more tiring (and hot!) but I increased the tempo a little as I was concerned I would slow down . There was a point in the run where my right hand stiffened up and it totally affected my running form. I was relieved when it eased up after I walked a bit at a water station.

The final loop at the esplanade brought much joy and relief and I was all smiles as I ran down the finishing chute. I'm glad I came in better than my targeted time of 5:30 - a personal best of
5:20:58! I'm satisfied with my performance and am already looking at beating this timing at next year's race!

Thanks to Shirley, Huimei, my bro who has just been simply fantastic supporting me all this while and to Eunice, my dearest supporter and ardent fan!

The racing buddies were wonderful too and I really do look forward to our next race together. It's the company that makes each race for me so meaningful, special and warm!


Fishmonger