Because the title of the event is a friendship walk, many people do not know that they have actually a 10Km competitive run! As a result, some “lucky” people could win the podium in Singapore. I was one of them in 2023 and now competition got tougher as more and more runners know about this competitive run.
10km Run 5Km Walk
Having these 2 categories really attracts the best of both worlds, people who don’t really exercise get to do a small 5km walk around the bay while those more of the hardcore challenge can sprint towards the stadium for the 10km. I take this race as a good gauge of where I stand in my 10km now since SG races are so expnsive. This 10km run is only $30 for early bird and when I went for the race pack collection, they had even more run slots going at $25 bucks. So I invited my friend Sally to sign up as it is a true deal. For $25 you get the real race feel, a goodie bag with Skechers sling bag, tee shirt and finisher medal. Not to mention those small freebies you can get at the end of the race.
Race Pack Collection
As usual the Race Pack collection is a week before the race, so this time 23-24 August at the Velocity ground floor the main square. This was where I also found out the $25 bib deal for the 10km run and texted Sally about it. She was excited and got her friend to join her also, the good thing is they get to collect the race pack on the race day itself, no need to make extra trip. The goodie bag is quite good for a $30 race, beside the event tee, there is a good Sketchers handy bag and also some samples. Vouchers and discounts to Skechers items and also sponsored items.
Race Day
Jumping to the race day, the events at 7am at the Marina Barrage, the format is similar to Income Eco Run where the run and walk start at the top of the Barrage. The 10K run flags off first and go over to the Tanjong Rhu area while the 5km goes towards the Marina Bay Sands site. So this time there will be no clash of the runners and walkers.
Actually the race has many really fast runners and chill walkers just to immense in the fun of the event, thus making it very suitable for families too.
The route is the usual tortoise route, but all the way to the end of Tanjong Rhu connector and u turn, as I was doing it as my time trial , I really did not notice the number of water points that showed up. The route is flat and only the barrage part is a little slopy. Had a really heart popping run and was overtaken by 2-3 guys this time. I was slower than last year but managed to keep below the 50 min. Maybe its because of a lot of injuries and pain lately, but in any case , I was glad! Saw many friends there too like Mei Hui and Chelsea. And one fast Philippines lady from the Singapore Runners club.
Had a very good run and was hoping to catch Sally and her friend for the finish but I guess I was too blur. The drinks given were gatorade , water and banana and finishers get one medal too. There were many small booths around for games and if you collect the stamps you can go for the lucky draw. Bouncy castle for the kids and also free Vitagen and more banana from Sun pride. We had a few cameo with Sally and her friend. Then I went to finish my cycling mileage. Ended the day with clocking more miles for the Swim Singapore event by Singapore Disability society and met Jon Fong with some Running hour folks at the Bedok Heart Beat, was quite a nice Sunday spent exercising all the way. I think I will make the Sketchers run a yearly affair to make sure I dont drop standard.
