Operation Sunbird 2010: GRAND FINALE

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Photos by FatBirds DO, AC

The weather was great for a fitting finale of Operation Sunbird 2010. After 15 sessions of on-the-ground training runs and many more on-the-side meetings for gear, food, and get-togethers, the Sunbirds were all ready to go for their final LSD as a full-rehearsal for The Singapore Marathon (SCMS) on Dec 5.

More than 130 Sunbirds turned up bright and early (before 7am), and immediately got down to catching up with fellow team-mates and collecting their Sunbird race singlets, a symbol of their having successfully completed the 12-week Sunbird Marathon Training Program. Many immediately don the 'finisher' singlets for team and group photos.

This part of training is always the most enjoyable since the hardest and most challenging runs would have been done, and those who are still standing would feel a sense of achievement of having gone through the mills and survived....yes, the Sunbirds are all survivors of the 12 weeks of progressive mileage buildup, often times contending with the unpredictable elements, with many going beyond themselves at times to complete the tasks at hand. They deserve all this respect for having gone through the training program, notwithstanding having to just touch home on race day. Qualifying Sunbirds will be recognized with a nice Certificate Of Attendance to recognize the effort and commitment you have put into the training sessions.

Families and friends of the runners were also present to celebrate the occasion with many photos for the family and team albums. A special word of thanks to the family members who have supported and provided encouragement to the Sunbirds in their training, having to bear with their early morning runs, and being back only when the Sun is at high noon. Thank You.

After final briefings for race day preparations and meet-ups, the various timing groups were flagged off with Marathon Pacers and Sunbird Runners in tow. It was an impressive sight to behold as we saw the various groups flying in formation, and moving as one towards a common goal. The happy faces with broad smiles and easy breathing told of how far these Sunbirds have come, and the sense of achievement were evident in the way they ran, and the pride they held with their chins up high. The sunny, but cooling weather made for a fitting run-past along the 13-18km route, sharing the same runway with many of the other running groups and friends.

As the Sunbirds recorded timings for their final test run and received their specially-designed pace bands, they crossed the bridge of The FatBird Nest, looking forward to a good race next weekend. All doubts and concerns about completing their respective marathons were wiped off at this Finale session. All that remain will be the 'skills' and 'conditioning' they have built up to accompany them to the battlefield. On race day, they will not run alone; the Sunbirds will fly in groups, guided by their Pacers and fellow pace-mates, with the sole objective of crossing that finish line in fine form. The Sunbirds are ready, and we can hear echos of 'GO, SUNBIRDS, GO!' in the air. And to that, we give a confident and resounding reply of 'Follow Our Pace, Win Your Race!'

Facebook Photo Albums from Mohan1, Mohan2, JacQ, SC, Dan, DO, AC
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Ops Sunbird #10: Tapering Begins

.This is the period where all Sunbirds have been looking forward to...having done the longest training runs in the past 2 weeks, this weekend would have us begin to taper down and yes, rest and allow the body to recover some. The SCMS Race Expo also drummed up excitement in the lead-up to the Dec 5 race day, and many runners are already planning and signing up for marathons and ultra-marathons in 2011. That said, Team FatBird have also launched Ops Kookaburra to train runners for Gold Coast Marathon and also planning for Ops NightHawk to prepare runners for the Sundown Marathon 2011.

The sun was out early this morning, but compared with last week, the air was cooler and there were hints of wind along the running route. Having just come out from last week's experience, many Sunbirds were mentally and physically prepared for this morning's 24-28km run at target race pace. Most were careful not to 'rush' initially, taking their time to settle into pace and run as groups. A number of the Sunbird Running Guides and trainees were doing the Penang Marathon as their make-up (understatement) for this morning's LSD.

A few Sunbirds rightly opted to U-turn for 24km, choosing to run a good 24km distance rather than 'pushing' for the longer 28km. The front groups went on to do 28km, but even they were taking it at race pace, which set the correct tone for this tapering training. The Happy Group spent quite a long time to get some sun-tan and sugar-cane juice, but they looked cheerful (as usual) when they completed the 26km.

It was a good morning of training, and aside from a few reports of muscle-tightening, and muscle aches, the Sunbirds are generally fit-to-complete the Half and Full Marathon at SCMS. As advised by the trainers, this is the time to rest and let the body and legs recover from the toll of the past 10 weeks. The toughest part of the training and conditioning has been completed, and this is the time to lower the overall mileage by lots, and put in a couple of short runs at tempo and race pace to keep the engines well-oiled. Flight SUNBIRD SB10 flew great and had a smooth landing this weekend.

Thick and Thin 2010

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Team FatBird is proud to be a partner and supporter of this amazing program:

Thick and Thin 2010
Climb Mt. Everest and K2 with Dan Mazur
Surf Indonesia and Hawaii with Jackson English
Save Lives with Dr. Dave Jenkins of Surf Aid International

Event site: www.equatoradventures.org

Get your tickets TODAY!

RUN GOLD COAST 2011

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RUN GOLD COAST

Running the Gold Coast Airport Marathon – be it for fun, for relaxation or achieving your personal best is a shining moment for every runner ! The fast, flat course runs next to the beautiful white, sandy beaches and Broadwater of the Gold Coast. And July is the perfect time to be on the Gold Coast for your run - the air is cool, crisp and refreshing !



OPERATION KOOKABURRA

Tourism Queensland, in partnership with Team FatBird is pleased to present “OPERATION KOOKABURRA”, a marathon training program designed to prepare runners to compete & complete the 2011 Gold Coast Airport Marathon.


A 6Day/4Night RUN GOLD COAST travel package will also be launched at the Singapore Sports Expo 2010.

For more information, please visit the “Gold Coast Airport Marathon” Booth C4 during the Singapore Sports Expo from 19th -21st November 2010.


Special Meet-Up Sessions @ SCMS Race Expo

Dates : Friday(19th Nov), Saturday (20th Nov) & Sunday (21st Nov)
Time : 2.00pm-4.00pm
Booth : C4, Gold Coast Airport Marathon booth
Singapore Sports Expo 2010 (SCMS Race Expo)
Venue : Singapore Expo Hall 5

Hear from Gold Coast Airport Marathon representatives, Team FatBird and seasoned marathoners as we share with you more information about OPERATION KOOKABURRA & “RUN GOLD COAST” travel package.

Email your queries and/or indication of interest in OPERATION KOOKABURRA to OpsKookaburra@teamfatbird.com, stating Name, Contact, Race Category.

See you, mate !

..........

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Sunbird Marathoner Volume 5: The Sunbird Road

The Sunbird Marathoners, video courtesy Sunbird Joe Tan

Sunbird Road, take us home,
To the place, we always train,
Eastern Flats, Mountains West.
For The Win, Sunbird Road!


Check Out More SUNBIRD Videos HERE!

Ops Sunbird #9: The Longest One

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Sunbird Photos #9 by FatBird AC
Facebook Photos #9 by Sunbird Jacqueline

It was planned as the longest run in the 12-week marathon program, before tapering comes in ahead of race day. A large group of Full-Marathon Sunbirds and Pacers started earlier at 6am in a bid to complete the targeted distance of 36km before the sun comes up. The main group assembled at The Nest by 7am for the morning's briefing before setting out for the longest run in the Sunbird Program.

A number of Sunbirds were donning the training tops which they worked hard to 'qualify' for. Because the main group was smaller, we were flagged off as a group and immediately got down to testing out the FatBird Optimal Pace Strategy. The sky was cloudy, but the air was still and very humid. As usual it felt comfortable maintaining the pace for the first 10km. After a number of pace training sessions, the groups were able to fall into place easily, with the trainees running alongside Pacers & Running Guides in tandem.

The bigger groups are in the 2:30h Half-Marathon and 4:30h-5:30h Full-Marathon distances, with the 2:15h Half-Marathon and Happy Group (6:00h) making up the second largest group. The long stretch at the Coastal Road provided the 'mental challenge' of the day. At the U-turn shelter, many of the runners were already feeling the effects of the heat and humidity. Coupled with the long stretch of road and the rising heat from the sun, the target paces were taking a hit on the return. Recovery from last week's 33km were not really complete, and that added on to fatigue for many of us. It was a good challenge from then on to complete the longest run in trying conditions.

Visits to the toilets along ECP were the order of the final 10km, as the runners were dousing their heads with water in bids to cool down the over-heating engines. Walk breaks were thrown in to help bring down rising temperatures, which led to paces dipping by 15sec-30sec/km. The good base of the runners allowed them to continue moving on, albeit slower; such were the strong mental attitudes of the Sunbirds to want to complete the mission, regardless of the hardships being faced in the final kilometers. This will go towards building up the resilience and strength required for completing a marathon, even in difficult conditions.

The peak challenge of the day was having to go another 3km (after 33km) at The PlayGround support point. After taking iced-cold Gatorade and 100-Plus, with fruits and cakes to boot, it made for very strong resolve to want to finish the final bit. Many of the Sunbirds did complete 36km, with the bulk of the Full-Marathoners completing 32-33km. This must have ranked as one of the toughest run experienced for the Sunbirds to date, and congratulations go out to all who completed 18-21km (Half-Marathon) and 30-36km (Full Marathon).

With the longest run accomplished, we can officially declare Tapering to begin, surely good news to all of us who have put in so many long runs for the past 10 weeks. It will be a time of recuperating from all the stress and tiredness, including injuries sustained from the high mileage during training. All Sunbirds are encouraged to R.I.C.E. and go easy on the bodies from now, and to avoid doing too much ahead of race day. Preparations and stocking-up on race day essentials should begin to sufficiently prepare ourselves. Full-dress rehearsals will be conducted the final 2 training sessions to rehearse and iron out final kinks, and putting race day armor to final tests. The most important now will be to review the past training sessions and build up a good mental state for race day. SUNBIRDS ARE READY!
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Ops Sunbird #8: For The Win, Sunbird Road

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Sunbird Photos #8 by FatBird AC
Facebook Photos #8 by Sunbird Jacqueline

The rain in the middle of the night chased away the slight haze that was accumulating in the evening. The early birds at The Nest had to roost for a bit longer as the rain continued unabated. By the time the main flock arrived, the rain had trickled down to 'run-able' levels, and the large turnout in spite of the rain was the only surprise of the morning....it could be that all have been preparing to put in their longest training LSD to date, and have been preparing for the past week in anticipation...so a little bit of rain will not a dampener in our spirits be.

Then there was the glee in collecting the Sunbird training top which the trainees have worked hard to attain, with a few parading their new 'feathers' and some even wore it for a dry-run..hehe. Group photo-taking was in parts as there weren't sufficient distance to capture the complete group. With already a few 'Pace' sessions in the bag, we started off as a group and had the various pace teams with their trainees fall into place within 1km. Aside from the run-walk strategies to be practised, there were minimal start-stop sessions and marshaling on the ground as all were adamant to run through their respective paces for as much as we could.

The last-minute route-change due to the weather added an interesting dimension to the session, with the various pace groups passing one another several times, cheering and encouraging one another. With the many pairs of eyes, there were a lot more motivation to keep running and focusing on achieving the training objectives. The weather was cool and breezy for the initial 2 hours of the run, which helped us glide through the first 15-22km on target pace. It was only when the sun came up did it put on a slight challenge to those 'warmed-up' wings. The Half-Marathoners were definitely enjoying themselves while the Happy Group was in fine form and cheery mood this morning. As we watched the various Sunbird pace groups running in formation, the notion of 'Birds Of A Feather Flock & Pace Together' seemed so apt a scene painted across The ECP.

The entire flock completed the run within flight limits of 4hrs, registering good improvements in pace and distance conditioning. Although the aches and muscle-tightness were apparent (as always in such long distance runs), most of the Sunbirds have completed their longest runs to date, and the endorphin levels were way high in a number of the birds. As we move into REDCON 2, it is most important to RICE from the long run and keep the engines well-oiled and systems maintained. Any tightness and defective parts would have to be treated and reconditioned. As we prepare ourselves for the longest run in 7 days, all Sunbirds are advised to rest, hydrate and fuel-up well.

Sunbird Road, take us home,
To the place, we always train,
Eastern Flats, Mountains West.
For The Win, Sunbird Road!

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