Just like we all experience “bad” runs on any given day, we can also find ourselves coming off a “bad” race. Maybe things just didn’t come together as you had hoped. There are a lot of factors that go into racing well, some of them we can control and some of them we can’t!
The morning of the PD Coast Run, we got there a little early in order to collect our racekit, and to my surprise, our racekits were missing! According to the volunteer, someone has already taken it….WoahhHH! We were like a ball, being kicked around. Anyhow, they managed to issue a “manual” on the spot registration. I was supposed to run 11 KM, but at the very last minute I changed my mind and decided to just run the 8 KM run. Demotivated and feelings of rejection and neglection made me decide this at the last minute……Boooo Hooooo…
The race started at 7.25am for the 11 KM and 7.33am was the 8 KM flagged off. It’s always fun seeing the runners start. The start/finish area was set up at Pantai Cahaya Port Dickson. It’s the perfect venue for a race amd they had their sponsors such as MILO, REVIVE etc all set up in the area. However, we were unable to use the bathrooms before the start because it was all locked. So, I had a pep talk and told my tummy tum tum to behave and be kind to me…..But I could see lots of the other runners who were in dire straits….OH OH!
The race was getting the food set up for the runners which was various items such as Nasi Lemak, Coffee, Revive, Milo etc. With that we were ready to get in line and run. The course is run on various surfaces including road, grass and sand. I seriously had no plans for this race since I arrived at the starting race venue. There were hills, mostly the roadside but nothing too large to worry about. The course was somehow lacked of Marshalls and proper signages.
I sighted one or two police cars to help stopped traffic for the runners but along the route, the organisers did not have proper safety measures such as cones or dividers or even Marshalls to guide or lead the runners.
Soon, we were on the beach side. It was really nice to run, we crossed lots of holiday makers along the beach side, the sand was soft, I rarely run on the beach, It was indeed a nice feeling. It was runnable route in the area. One of my favourite thing about this course is the various terrain. I love that it switches up from road to grass to sand and back. It made the time go by so fast. Before I knew it, I was already reaching the finish line.
Then, we were running the opposite of the 11 KM runners. There was a little out and back that we had to go in order to get back to the finish. Here, there were lots of confusion, controversy and misunderstandings happened between the lead runners/winners and the organisers.
It was now time time to run back to the finish line where we started the race. We were finally ‘back to the beach” and you could hear some of the spectators cheering on the runners. We were also mixed in, at that point, with the 11 KM runners on the same course. More confusions,more protests, more unhappiness happened among the runners and winners.
Anyway, as we headed towards the finish, we crossed a timing mat where the race was
announcing names as we ran to the finish….(NOT!!) How I wish that could happen…LOL…If only that could happen, it would make a special ending for the finishers..something to look into, dear organisers. With that, we were finished. When I checked my endomondo, it was only 5.89 KM..WHAT?????
AID STATIONS
There were several aid stations. They were stocked with the necessites. Thumbs up for that!
FINISH AREA
The finish area is the same as the start area. Organisers used timing chips on the bibs for this race, even with these, so much of controversy and dissatisfaction among the runners and winners. Timing chips are used as it makes it much easier and much professional. Somehow,the organisers failed badly in this area. Something to seriously look into. I felt sorry for the volunteers as they had many complaints/arguments among the runners.
AMENITIES
For your entry, you received a custom race bib, a T-shirt and a Bag (Somehow, the bag was “out of sight, out of mind”) The medal for 11 KM (As well as the 8 KM) was really disappointing. It looked like a school sports day medal. The design..hmmm….the size…the quality….Ah yo yo yo yo yo…
ORGANIZATION
A very disorganized race. The set up at Pantai Cahaya Port Dickson was a perfect area for a race and the route was unique given the various surfaces. The website/FB pages gave all sorts of information so that we know what’s going on, which was good. The start/finish area were not well planned. No proper sound systems, No warm up sessions etc, the flagged off was delayed and the Volunteers did not know what to do. Overall, it could have been better!
chrisywong.com 