Thursday, July 29, 2004

Track season is finally over.I learnt so much during this season.  Nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it.  Yesterday's 1500m was really thrilling.. once again i stepped on the starting line worried about the other competitors which kenneth told me about.  ronghua.. jeffrey.. just to name a few.  I was starting believe that coming in top 8 might be alittle too ambitious.  i wanted to break the 4.30 barrier which meant improving my pb by at least 6 seconds.. which seemed quite far-fetched at that point of time.

The gun went off and i found myself at the behind 15 other runners.  No surprise there.. my starts are horrible.. as Mr Bongard would always tell me.  Then as i made my way up the pack.. nearing the last 300m.. i realised that i was'nt too far from actually coming in within the top 3!  So i heeded leon's advice and literally sprinted like mad.. haha.  Too bad jeffrey had that extra burst in the end.  Never mind.. i'm satisfied with my performance yesterday.. did a 4.29  :D  Coming in fourth was certainly not in my plan a few months ago.. just didnt have the confidence in my ability. 

Failure is not defeat until you give up.
The national stadium is really significant to me.  Exactly one year ago i was a spectator..  looking at all the runners and wondering whether one day i would be in their shoes.. competing to win infront of the massive crowd.  One year ago i barely could complete a 800m run.  But the national stadium is where it all changed.  Thanks to the doctor at the sports medicine clinic there.  He was the one who found out about my problem.. and i can't thank him enough.  I wanted to say hi to him yesterday but they closed at 4.30pm.. hmph!

Thanks to everyone who came down to support the track team.  Thanks Leon.. your words just before the race were really beneficial.. those words focused me on the task ahead when i was so nervous.  Thanks seb for cheering during the race..  and thank you Lord for guiding and empowering me during the race.

end||4:57 PM

Friday, July 23, 2004

Ecstatic.
Even though i didnt manage to step onto the podium this year, i proved myself wrong today.
I stepped onto the track with little confidence in my own ablity.. with intention only to come in within top 8 positions today.  Almost everyone in the finals today had beaten me before in all the other minor competitions.. so to say i was nervous is an understatement.  Thanks kenneth for talking and imparting all your knowledge of sprints to me before the dreaded race during warmup.. it really helped to calm me down.  I dont think i could come in within the top 5 today if you hadnt advised me to start sprinting at the 300m mark.
 
My first year running for the school in track .. i think 5th isnt too bad.  Felt like one of my better races today.  The start was just nice.. although mr ang said i should have moved ahead.  The last 300 just felt great.  I dont recall having the energy to push so hard for a track competition before.  Perhaps it was the atmosphere.. the competition.. the runners around you.  The pressure to perform and give off your best. 0.06 seconds seperated me from the 4th guy.  sigh.  Well.. these things happen.
 
The most important factor who spurred me on is God.  Before the race i prayed that he would let me just enter the sacred region of top 8  :p (sorry la.. i never come in top 8 before).  And he blessed me with a 5th position.  I prayed that i would break the 2:10 barrier which i have been trying to breach for soo long.  And he blessed me with a timing of 2:09.  about 4 seconds better than my previous pb.  and for that i... thank you!
 
 
Anyway.. good job leon.. you made our best friend puke  ;)  and   good job seb for your 3k.. sorry i couldnt be there to watch the race.. got schoool :(  durh .. haha

 




end||4:54 PM

Wednesday, July 21, 2004

end||8:36 PM

Tuesday, July 20, 2004

mmm.. 1500m is fun.  Not just because xide muraly and me reported just as the 1500m runners were heading for the 200metre mark.  The official even threatened to add 5 secs to my time! hahaha..  We honestly didnt hear the call to report.. bah.  And we didnt have to stay in the air-conditioned reporting room which reeks of 'deep heat' spray and sweat ;)  I dont mind doin it again if i had the chance.. :P 
 
For the first time in a race i felt i was in control of the race.. and not controlled by it.
I could decide who overtakes me and who should run on the outer line.
At the starting line my heart wasnt going into overdrive.  For once the menacing task ahead didnt seem to bother me.  All that was processing in my brain was the lap times  i planned to do.  For once running a race was actually quite enjoyable. 
 
THe best part is all three of us qualified!
 
And i know why.  Because of Him.  Thank you Lord for guiding the team today... as you always have.
 
Good job guys and girls.  Now lets show them what teamAC is capable of in the finals!
  
 


end||7:32 PM

Sunday, July 18, 2004

Wooohoo.. selling drinks rox~! hahaha..
Spent 3 hours selling drinks for drama night.. damn fun.. tiring too.  Our class sold all our drinks!  Made 230bucks.. which goes to the 118 fund.
 
Marcus and I decided to walk around and sell drinks.  We carried that flimsy tray of drinks around.. persuading people to buy.  haha.. super funny sight to see everyone holding a can of drinks.  Saw so many people there... Mr Bongard and his friend :P .. hahaha... plenty of unknown people too.. just go up to them and ask ' would you like to buy a drink? ice cold! for the school fund!'  Marcus is pro man.. lol he talk cock until so many people buy.  i think some of them quite pissed that he asked them over and over again for like 4 times.. even though they bought quite a few cans already :D
 
Then i decided to carry the drinks to parents waiting in the cars cos we were desperate to sell all the drinks since the interval was over.  Excellent service eh? haha.   
 
yawwn.
 
 

end||12:02 AM

Thursday, July 15, 2004

23 runners.
8 lanes.
800 metres.
4 heats.
Do the math.

Arrgh. Todays 800m race was exhilerating. Never have i run alongside so many people during a track race before. Probably cos i havent run in nats before.. haha. Daunting. The sensation just before the gun goes off. Mind blowing. Thank goodness i managed to qualify =D

Bah. You know whats the worst part? THERE WERENT ANY DRINKS AT THE FINISHING LINE!! PEOPLE PAY GOOD MONEY TO ENTER THE RACE AND NO DRINKS! OUTRAGEOUS!

anyway. Big thanks to all those who came down to support AC. Seb.. Leon.. acjc guys. Your undying support really helps the atheletes out there who are fighting it out. (:


DONT READ THIS PART. ONLY FOR MY PERSONAL REFERENCE
1st 200m: 30 sec. too fast... i need to tweak that alittle
2nd 200m: about 35 sec. cruised alittle to conserve energy cos of my first 200m
first 400m timing: late 1.05.. just nice
last 400m: sprinted at 200m mark.

Just need to refine the first part alittle. As Mr Ang said.. dont be impatient.. I'll try man. During the finals.
end||9:28 PM

Tuesday, July 13, 2004

Scary stuff... O level Chinese oral exam tomorrow. 800m heats the following day. And thats just the beginning. Chinese oral is so freaky... especially for someone who rarely speaks Chinese! argh. im so dead tomorrow. I wonder if my heart can survive 2 frightening events in a row.

Your palms get sweaty. Your heart is knocking against your ribcage violently.. as if its gonna pop up anytime. Your legs suddenly stop functioning and turn into jelly. Your mind goes blank and you are just scared shit-less. Suddenly even under the scorching sun your whole body freezes up. Yep. Thats what i feel whenever i'm standing at the starting line... or in the auditorium waiting for my turn for the chinese oral to start d:

Sad isnt it? 24 hours is what seperates the o level exam and the 800m race. Both are gonna take place around the same time in the afternoon. Both require merely a few minutes to complete.. yet they inflict fear which consumes me. Fear that steals time. The more you try to avoid letting it slip into your thoughts.. the more it haunts you.
Its inevitable.

I wonder what life would have been like if chess club instead of cross country. No pressure. No fear. No need to sacrifice so much just to run one race. Booooring. Join some sissy sport to give up this rollercoaster ride? naahhh.


I will try my utmost best.. no matter what the result might be at the end.. ( well preferably i dont screw up my oral and i qualify for the 800m finals :P )


goosfrabah.

end||5:41 PM

Saturday, July 03, 2004

Good Samaritans do exist man. Honest and kind people who leave 15 bucks, 3 dollars worth of coins, my ic, ezlink card, even a charity donation ticket.. all intact. Not a single cent missing.

It all happened today at Toa payoh mrt station after the SWIFT race. A certain SOMEONE smsed me and distracted me! Thus i dropped my precious wallet at the station i guess. Then at city hall i realized my wallet was gone!! Missing! I was like ..Shit! I sat down in one corner at the station.. Desperately searching for my wallet in the midst of the rush hour crowd. I must have seemed like a madman..

Damn sad la.. Cannot find. So I took the mrt all the way to Changi where i was supposed to meet my parents. I couldnt go out.. like durh.. no card. Then the people who worked at the control station were so helpful. They immediately let me out.. got my particulars.. then instaneously... the guy at the computer asked me. Are you Kevin Ng? Did you lose your wallet at toa payoh? Is there a SAFRA card and 10 dollars inside? i was like.. YES!! THANK YOU!!

So i trekked back to Toa payoh and i have my wallet with me now. Nothing missing.


To the anonymous passenger who found my wallet and returned it with everything intact:

THANK YOU! YOU dont know how much inconvenience and money you have saved me!! If only i could repay you somehow..
end||10:11 PM