OMG....

Taiwan Ironman-70.3

This is sooooo OMG

Was searching for the Bintan Half Iron Man race then I realized that it was on 31 August, when I'd most probably be in USA again for training, so I probably won't be able to join it even if I wanted to.

Then I came across this gem......

Taiwan Kenting

2 November 2013

70.3 - Half Iron Man

It will be epic if I could join this... 

I can even give up StanChart Marathon for this

But the chances of joining this race is close to 0.

1st, It is a grave sin to go TW without vacationing. It is not possible to do vacationing before or after 70.3 since it will probably put me in bed for a few days after the event. It is also not feasible to lug the bike around TW.  (unless it is a bike-around taiwan holiday; this is even more ridiculous even though I'd absolutely love to do it if I have a chance, but it is not possible to combine this with a race of this magnitude)

2nd, annual leave is precious. It should be spent with family rather than burning calories and rubber. Bringing family out for a vacation is ok. Leaving family at home while I'm out enjoying myself alone - NOT OK.

3rd, $$$$$

4th, Triathlon is just a hobby. I shouldn't be overly investing too much time, energy and money into it. There are other more important things in life that I have to take care of, and are more deserving of my resources and attention.

Too bad *shrugs*

Andy Lau's song comes into mind: 

我和我追逐的梦，擦肩而过，永远也不能重逢。

我和我追逐的梦，已在错过，只留下我，独自寂寞。却不敢回首

(this is overly dramatic though)

Damned. I should go karaoke again soon.

Aquathlon

Completed the Aquathlon today with a satisfactory timing of 45:15.
A rather significant improvement to last year's 51:20

Swim: 18:27 (750m)
T1:   2:12
Run: 24:35 (5km)


Did a pretty relaxed swim, focusing more on gliding through the water instead of bashing through with hurried strokes. Maintained at a "1 breath to hyperventilation stage" speed which worked quite alright.
Quite happy to be able to overtake a few guys with a higher stroke turnover just by simply gliding pass them. Gotta focus more on improving stroke efficiency in the water rather than just pure stamina/strength.
My sighting skills have improved significantly compared to last year.
Still not too keen to jostle too much with other swimmers but perhaps I can try to move to the mid of the pack during the start to avoid being blocked by other slower swimmers.

Transition was ok as usual but could still probably improve with faster shoe slip-on.
Maybe I should try running without socks? Bare foot is still no no at this stage..

Managed to do a negative split again for the run :)
Ran a consistent 5min/km pace for the 1st 2km.
Slowed down a bit till 3km at about 5:20min/km to stabilize the heartrate.
Walked for about 5 secs to finish off a drink at about 3km.
Managed to kick into a higher gear for the last 2km at probably about 4.40min/km.
Still had enough in the tank to sprint for the last 200m to the end point.
Took a gamble on 5km run being too short for conserving energy, so I went all out with gun blazing and it paid off.

The tempo runs that I had been doing for the last month has shown results.
I ought to do more tempo runs during the ramp up phase rather than just focus purely on LSD runs to build stamina all the time.
Need to find a good balance.

Going back to reservist tomorrow!
Maybe I'll need to take the ippt in camp this time.
Maybe I'll regain my Gold again...

Mish mash of thoughts

1st ever CNY celebrations for Ryan and time just passed quickly and we are back in the usual rat race.

After 外婆 has left us, now the only place to visit during 初一 is at Ah Mah's place.
Glad to see Ah Mah is still relatively strong for a almost-centenarian.
Her eyes and ears aren't really clear, but she still speaks with strength so it's always good to hear her talk.

Bro is going to move back to SG for good.
I'm glad that he is coming back to spend more time with the family and probably settle down.
Kept psycho-ing him that he should not miss out this best part of the kids growing up phase, for it will never return.

Going for the MetaSprint Aquathlon in 8 hours time.
I'll probably skip the MetaSprint series sub events next year and just focus on full Tri events.
I won't be able to participate in every single event. Gotta pick and choose my battles.


Watched Ah Boys to Men II on Friday.
Quite strangely, apart from the usual army stuff, the stuff that resonated with me was on the father and son relationship.
Though it is still a long long way to go before Ryan grows up and enters the army, somehow the part where the father was so immensely proud of his son showing signs of maturing, standing up for his own believes, that really touched me.

As I watch Ryan growing up bit by bit everyday, sometimes I'd secretly tear with joy at simple stuff like seeing him laugh, feeding him, watching him learn new stuff, playing with him, giving him a bath, changing his diapers, patting him to sleep, bringing him out for walks.
There are so many things that I'll want to show and teach Ryan
天下父母心，我终于明了

Nothing much ado

Empty mind begets rust and tardiness in mental prowess.

Nah

Just read an article that showcased 3 relatively successful entrepreneurs, out of which, 2 are at 32 years old this year. Coincidentally same as me.

What am I doing now? Where am I going? Where will I be in 10 years time?

Has all the daily hustle bustle blurred my eyes?

Too preoccupied with dribbling the ball, but not looking up at where I'm going or where tackles are flying in from?

Think think think

Take some time out to do some self reflection. Plot the charts. Where I want to go, What I want to do.
Of course now the situation is different.
Ryan and dear will be the most important consideration.