But, that was different from four Augusts ago. I joined a race for 10 kilometres as well as to celebrate my birthday. LOL.
AN AWKWARD RACE IN MY OWN CITY
What was even more memorable about my race this time, because I participated in a running event in my hometown in a series of district birthdays. Being used to being an immigrant in Jakarta, I feel more relaxed in the middle of a big event with a massive number of people.
It was different when I joined the race this time. I was also alone, and for some reason I wasn't very confident. I knew the route and terrain for the 10k category, but the elevation gain made me a bit insecure. It's not too high, only about 70 metres, but, it's already quite high for me. Ha ha ha. But what's a competition if it's not challenging, right? So, here I am
3 AUGUST RACEPACK COLLECTION DAY!
Happy birthday, me! Today I prepared to take the racepack to the designated location. What a thrilling D-1. I made an appointment with my friend, Zaza...
Once there, after collecting the racepack, Zaza arrived. Zaza didn't race but he was the one who diligently accompanied me. Thanks, Za. After that, we broke down and ordered some food because it was lunch time. I took a picture first with my BIB number. Heloo, I'm Titis with BIB number J10006. After eating and sitting for a while in the district park, we decided to go back home.
I also had to prepare my energy for the race tomorrow morning.
4 AUGUST RACE DAY!
I woke up before dawn, or around four in the morning. I took a shower, then prepared my breakfast before the race. I ate one hard-boiled egg and two scoops of grains as well as 50ml of milk. It's actually a bit experimental for me to consume milk before a race. My tolerance for lactose is very low. I usually enjoy drinking coffee with sugar and eggs and bananas.
After breakfast and prayers, I was ready to go to the venue. The distance from my house to the venue was about 15kilometres, so I rode my motorbike.
Once there, many participants were already present, and I still had about 30 minutes before the flag off. So, I used this time to warm up.
RACE STARTED!
Flags off according to the scheduled time!
All participants started running in the order of 10k general category, 10k master category, and the last category was 5k. I ran with enthusiasm and enjoyed the fresh city air. Occasionally there were vehicles passing by, but it was still conducive. Indeed, the organiser had announced that the course was not 100 per cent sterilised. However, since this is a cosy small town, I felt okay with it.
The first water station was at kilometre 3. I grabbed an isotonic drink and took a sip. Up to kilometre 7 I felt fine, but at kilometre 8 I felt something was wrong with my stomach. I felt a pain on the left side. I immediately remembered about the milk I consumed before the race! OMG... this is really happening, isn't it?
However, I tried to give a positive suggestion to my body, if I would run the remaining kilometres to the finish. Somehow, the pain didn't decrease, but it didn't increase either. So, I passed kilometre 9 with my energy still okay, and my stomach under control. My breathing didn't feel problematic either, and I finally made it through my critical kilometre well.
01.06.00 FINISH!
Hello... this is my personal best as a beginner runner. If in every training run before the race I always got one hour and fifteen minutes, this time I managed to finish in one hour and six minutes or 66 minutes. And I got a potential winner in 9th place in the 10 K female general and master category.
OMG, this is my first time as a potential winner. Even though I didn't get the poodium title, I feel that this is the result of my hard work and consistent training. I felt grateful to God, as well as to myself. After finishing, the pain in my stomach disappeared instantly. LOL,
After getting my medal and refreshments, I met Zaza and we took a picture together.
What an amazing experience! So, I went through my special day with a special medal as a potential winner! Thanks for reading my story, runners in the world!. stay healthy and fit!
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