FatBird Marathon Training: Friday 13th

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Facebook Photo Album by FatBird CK Chin

After a few days of heat, Friday 13th afternoon brought with it showers of blessings to cool the night for the finale night training for Operation NightHawk, and the midway mark of the Operation Kookaburra training for Gold Coast Marathon. Despite the heavy traffic caused by showers across the island, more than 100 trainees and pacers made it for this important night in the Sundown and Gold Coast Marathon training calendar.

Checkpoint C4, the start of this evening's 18km-28km Night LSD was a hive of activity by 8pm, with the NightHawks getting their finisher vests and donning them proudly, the Kookaburras collecting their teamsales orders, and the Sundown Pacers trying out their race night gear and equipment. The runners were in high spirits as they have prepared well throughout the weeks of basebuilding, strengthening and conditioning, and now are into the tapering and final phase. With the weekly tips and routes planned out, the briefing was brisk and to the point...only part to watch was the U-Turn along Changi Coastal Road.

All the runners were lined up according to their targeted pace groups, and were flagged off promptly at 8.30pm. The first 10km was 'steady pom pi pi' as the groups, illuminated with blinkers and light sticks, coasted along according to the Optimal Pace the Running Guides were setting. The runners looked smart in their white finisher and pacer tops, and were visibly keeping pace in their respective groups. The flow continued to the U-Turn along Changi Coastal, and as per FatBird Training SOP (Standard Operating Procedures), the runners acknowledged one another with applause and waves as we pass one another, perking up as we received encouragement from fellow trainees and friends.

Half of the runners were able to keep up with the Optimal Pace through to 18km, while the rest were not too far behind after dropping off to even pace. The cool, but still humid atmosphere made the run a lot more bearable compared with the 'Hottest' last Sunday where temperatures hit 35.5C. The conditioned NightHawks and strengthened Kookaburra runners were able to make the most out of this paced LSD, finishing in good form and with respectable times.

When Max Run Time was up, all the runners have made it back to CP C4, many carrying smiles of achievement and pride in their faces. Pacers and Running Guides were seen doing mini-debriefs of their groups and dispensing advice and encouragement to the trainees.

The NightHawks Are Ready For Sundown!
The Kookaburras Are Moving Towards Gold Coast With Strength!
FatBird Runners have overcome the Friday 13th Challenge!

What better way to show the journey of the NightHawks than with a short clip of the Prelude To Sundown, nicely done by FatBird Joe Tan (resident in Malaysia with his heart still with NightHawk and Kookaburra training)...We Will Beat The Sunrise! See You At The Start!

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