There is always a start in many things, I guess many of the running enthusiast in Singapore will start to take part in races when they start to achieve better timing and clock longer distances. So now, here I am , looking back at my journey, I will be posting one by one my little take aways from the races, local and overseas. Seems like a long way to go. I had better start off somewhere. So what is best than to start one with local.
In Singapore, there are only 2 full marathons which takes places in Singapore yearly.
THE SUNDOWN MARATHON
Usually taking place at the end of May or early June, this night race starts at night and runs through the wee hours of the morning. To prepare for this race, one really needs to train a few times in the middle of the night to get accustomed to the late night running.
This year in 2015, they have changed the race to be in July, it could be a measure to avoid the rain that’s why. The Sundown Marathon usually runs through the City and into East Coast Park. There are also half marathon, 10 Km and 5 Km distances available. Do check their website for the detailed race route.
http://www.sundownmarathon.com/
THE STANDARD CHARTERED MARATHON ( also known as Singapore Marathon)
The standard chartered marathon is a marathon that takes place in December ( usually 1st week) every year. The marathon is usually very popular among the local Singaporeans and many of the local running teams will train hard for this event. The route is also about the same as Sundown Marathon, but usually at the end, there is a run up the Sheares Bridge which can be really the killer. This is especially so if the weather is very hot. Even though December is a rainy season for Singapore, it seems like on the marathon, it is always never rainy 😛 To me, this marathon is one to see and mingle with the crowd. The subscription is really quite high as it is a popular race regionally. The start point is usually at Orchard Road and it ends in the City Hall Padang area. This race also has 21km, 10 km, 5 km versions. There is also a Kid’s dash for children to take part in. That being said, this race is also not easy to get a personal best. I guess it is because of the hot weather in Singapore and also the sheer number of people joining the race, this makes it exceptionally difficult to run especially towards the end where everyone will be rushing towards the finishing line. Ironically all the distances will be finishing at the same location, The Padang. This makes it very crowded to dash at the very end.
This race is still spectacular for running, so do join if you can!!