There's no better feeling than coming home from a 135k bike ride with my watch only reading 9.40am. I woke up at 4.15am this morning and set off close to 5am, riding the usual Saturday western loop alone. The Cycleworx guys are in Port Dickson for a Cyfora race... so it was just me and my bike out there today. Started out feeling really sluggish, as I only had about four and a half hours of sleep. But as I rode on I felt much better. Had a five minute pit-stop at NTU to refill my water bottles and was off again. Somehow 135k alone seems to pass by more quickly than riding in a group. (Other than when the wind is howling in your face and all that's coming out from your mouth is some funky gunk and curse words.)

And so, I have the whole day ahead of me now. There's no worse feeling, though, knowing that I have to work.

Had my bowl of Special K, the air-con's up, jack johnson's playin and I'm all snuggled up now.. good night.

Oh by the way, my dad changed the tap in the bathroom and somehow increased the flow of the one in the kitchen. Yippeedeedoodah-yaye.

Things to thank God for today:

1. Sleeping in on an off-in-lieu day.
2. Special K cereal (with raspberries and yogurt pieces) with ice cold milk.
3. Getting my laundry done.
4. Lunching with Ji Wen at my favourite sandwich place, The Food Barn, and satisfying my smoked salmon sandwich craving. Ji Wen's a bag of fun, pity he's leaving.
5. Cutting my hair 1.5 inches shorter so that it doesn't slap my face when I run.
6. Corn bread.
7. A (painful and slow) 22k run at Macritchie in the drizzle. Legs still jelly-like from yesterday's hard bike.
8. Washing my hair in the sink.
9. Being asked by an NJC year two girl if I'm a student.
10. Fish 'n chips, chicken chop, root beer and good conversation and laughs for dinner.
11. Chunky chips with vinegar and salt and tomato ketchup.
12. My cozy room.

My dad changed the spouts of the taps at the kitchen sink and bathroom sink. From wonderfully fast-flowing water sources, those two taps have turned into trickles. He calls it "water-savers". I call it plain rubbish. How can it save water, when, with that kind of gush, it makes me wash my hands for longer cos I feel it's still not clean? Just to get philosophical here, "water-savers" are like good intentions, sometimes. You intend to help someone or a situation, but sometimes what you do or say just makes things worse. Not that anything like that has happened to me recently. I'm just trying to add some philosophical shit to this blog to make it sound more like some blogs I've been reading out there. Haha!

Anyway, I digress.

Today my buddy Chih Bing qualified for the British Open at Carnoustie, Scotland, after finishing second in the International Final Qualifying Asia event at Sentosa's Tanjong Course. I was just speaking to him online last night at about 10.50pm, telling him to go to bed for today's big day. But he said I'm way too excited for him, and that if he got so excited about every tournament, he would have had a heart attack by now. He said he treated the qualifying like any other tournament. Well Chih Bing, your qualifying was quite the heart attack I'm sure. And Zhi Qun woke me up from my beauty sleep just to tell me, "eh Jeanette, your good friend qualified for the Open. he's going crazy here.". I wish I was there. I covered the first day yesterday, but was off today. Chih Bing, proud of ya!

I've been reading this book "On the Shortness of Life: Life is Long If You Know How to Use It" by Senaca. It was given to me by P Suppiah, a lawyer I had interviewed at a golf event earlier this year. He was the oldest golfer in the field, but he moved with the agility of one half his age. Amazing I tell you. Just sitting down and listening to his life stories was truly intriguing. (Another thing I love about my job: you get to meet people you wouldn't usually.) He sent me the book, because during the course of the interview he was talking about it and asked me if I had read it. I said no, and he promised to get his staff to courier it over. True to his word, I got a call the next day asking for my address, and it arrived soon after.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

"Most human beings complain about the meanness of nature, because we are born for a brief span of life, and because this spell of time that has been given to us rushes by so swiftly and rapidly that with very few exceptions life ceases for the rest of us just when we are getting ready for it...

"...Life is long enough, and a sufficiently generous amount has been given to us for the highest achievements if it were all well invested. But when it is wasted in heedless luxury and spent on no good activity, we are force at last by death's final constraint to realize that it has passed away before we knew it was passing. So it is: we are not given a short life but we make it short, and we are not ill-supplied but wasteful of it...

"...Why do we complain about nature? She has acted kindly: life is long if you know how to use it."

I biked 100k tonight. I burst into a furious speed ever so now and then, weaved in between cars and biked like it was my last ride. Damn, it felt good. Life is long if you know how to use it? Here's my tip: Tri and feel alive.

Finally, to round off a long, bizarre post, here is a random pic from the weekend. Chris, Lyn Sze and I at Muse Bar at the Singapore Museum.

pic: BT

THESE ZIPP TEAM CSC WHEELS ARE A GODSEND!

Don't be fooled by their deceptive 28-spoke front, 32-spoke rear setup. These clincher training wheels are rockets in disguise. Lightweight at 700g front, 780g rear, but super-hardy. Today's 135k ride was fast, thanks to these babies! For more info, check the Zipp website here.

Oh, the sweet sound of ceramics. :-)

Bike ride aside, I've been upping the intervals in my swim and run seshs. Need to get some speed in my slow-twitch legs, cos I plan to do some shorter distance races like ODs and duathlons.

Training aside, this week I had an affirmation of why, as much as I hate my job sometimes, I'm going to stick with it. I wrote an article about national cyclist Low Ji Wen -- it came out in ST on Thursday -- about the 17-year-old quitting school to turn full-time. He's heading to France next week for a six-month training stint. His decision was sparked by his Grandma's passing last December. She had always wanted Ji Wen to pursue his passion, and she left him a $25,000 inheritance to do so.

Ji Wen's a friend of mine, so it made the story a little more special, because I kinda told myself to put some extra effort in the story to make it unforgettable. It seems it created some impact, from the feedback I got. I have never received as many compliments for my stories before. But it wasn't the ego-boosting that I enjoyed. It was the fact that these people told me that the story inspired them to chase their dreams too. Which is why I love my job. I can change someone's life and shape his thinking. I can make a difference to this society of ours with just a swig (or two) of my black felt-tip pen. It's a scary thought -- the power journalists wield, and the readers' ignorance of the effect we can have on them.

Of course, there are lazy Saturdays like this -- when I put my legs up after a hard 135k ride, snuggle in bed and enjoy the cool of the air-con while listening to the soothing sound of Norah Jones -- that I contemplate being a bum for life.

But journalism, it seems, is my calling.

When life gets you down, here are some of my own remedies to pick yourself up:

1. Forget aerobic workouts. Throw in hard-ass intervals, crank up the heartrate and let all the steam out. Swim till your arms ache, run till your legs burn and bike till your ass tears. Ooh yeah. (And don't forget to use your spanking new Nike+iPod kit for the runs and the super smooth Zipp Team CSC Issue wheelset for the 100k bike ride.)

2. Wash all the lactic acid down with a Veggie pie (cous-cous, feta cheese and sweet potato) from Piper's Pies or a Cajun Chicken turnover from Spinelli's, and an ice-cold glass of Coke Light (or two).

3. Do your laundry. Throw them dirty linen into the washer and put in huge amounts of washing detergent and softener. Wait till it's done and immediately throw the clothes into the dryer. Wait till that 's done and take out your nice, warm freshly laundered clothing. Take a whiff of the floral scents. Fold. Place in cupboard.

4. Visit your buddy at Nike Singapore and pick up some cool stash.

If it doesn't work for you, too bad. It certainly worked for me.

Groggy-eyed and grumpy, I pulled myself out of bed this morning... and I'm glad I did. Ride went well, and even took a few pulls at the front. 125k felt good. Had a bun, a bowl of cereal, then drowned myself under the duvet and soaked in the cool and cozyness of my room. Couple of hours later had a ham and cheese sandwich. No fuss, just the way I like it.

Meanwhile.. I think I need a new shoe cabinet.

...And those are just the Nikes. Still got me multiple pairs of Campers and Birkenstocks.. and other random brands here and there.. If only I had more feet, I could wear them more often!

So yesterday's planned 25k 25th birthday run turned out to be a 16k run instead. It was raining at 7pm, just as well, cos Shem and Chris were running late. By the time they came, the rain had stoppped and I decided 16k was enough, as that was only part one for the night's celebrations. (Plus, a lot of people say I look 16..). The run was good and relaxed.. Chris, Collin and I ran together, while Shem went ahead. Towards the end of the run the pace started to pick up. I hadn't worked my legs like that since Ironman Langkawi.. so, while it was a tad painful, it felt good to be panting again!

We bathed at the shower-less Macritchie toilets. I stuck my head down the sink. Thank God Shem and Chris had shower stuff, cos I had forgotton to bring mine. Felt sooo much better after the bath.

By then it was about 9.45pm, and we drove down to Timbre at Stamford Road to meet Ching and Hansel, and Mel who was there with her colleagues. Had four awesome floppy, thin crust pizzas. Mmm Mmm Mmm. Loved the one with shrimp. The live music was good too... acousticly awesome. Darryl arrived soon after from his company farewell dinner. Then Mel came over after her colleagues left. We had drinks (me, a latte and coke light), good conversation and loads of laughs. Schweet.

Here are some pics (thanks Ching!!):

The very original birthday card.
Filled with smoochies (yes, the guys wore lipstick) and a pic of Faris Al-Sultan (although I'd very much prefer Peter Reid, thank you..)

One of the many little pressies I pulled out from a very nice topshop tote. Other things included: PINK lip balm, PINK tweezers, PINK bath lily, Strawberry PINK body lotion, PINK shaver with refills, instant pedicure cream, a black v-neck Mango top, PJs from Women's Secret, and of course, a lacy frilly thong from Victoria's Secret.

The AAA bunch (from top-left, clockwise):
Mel, Shem, Darryl, Ching, Collin, Hansel, Me, Chris.
Love you guys!

So that's how I spent my 25th, in addition to a 3k swim in the morn, yong tau foo for lunch, and looking at some droolworthy bikes at Athlete's Circle at Boon Tat street. By the time I got home, it was close to 1am. Tired but happy.

Today I went for a photoshoot at Nike, then went to Cycleworx to wash my bike, return the bike bag, and buy a new one. Then went to Uncle Rob's to return him the Zipp Z3s, and look at those droolworthy bikes again. Damn, no, I cannot buy another bike...

Well washing my bike was a bad idea. Went for the 7pm Cycleworx ride tonight and it got all dirty again from the wet ground. Drats. The usual ride was extended because a bunch of them will be racing soon, so they wanted to clock the mileage. By the time I got home I'd done 100k. Felt good to be on the saddle again! Only my third ride after Ironman Langkawi but I'm feeling good. I just wish I could chuck those damn heavy Campy Vento wheels and my old Campy Record parts. The wheels are waaay too heavy and the parts are heavy and don't shift well anymore after five years of usage.

I need to make more money.

It's my birthday and you're invited to my party. Here are the details:

When: Today, March 13, 7pm
Where: Macritchie Reservoir (meet at carpark)
What: A celebratory 25km run for my 25th birthday. Party hats and birthday suits welcome.

Gifts not necessary, just good running company and a nice, easy pace. Breakaways not allowed. Birthday powerbars and gels for the cutting during the run will be provided on request.

Wanted to do a 250km bike but no friends would oblige. Sigh, so much for being the birthday girl.

Anyway, see you there!

When I was younger, during my late primary school days, I used to lust after Nikes shoes. Not Reeboks, Adidas, Sauconys or Avias, but good ol' Nikes. I don't know why, perhaps it was because all my cool friends had them and I wanted to be like them. Or perhaps Carl Lewis flew so high and ran so fast in them I thought I might be able to be like him. But for a good long time of my early athletic days, I used to run around in dreaded Etonics. I hated them, but I had no choice -- with a dollar a day in allowance, what could I afford?

When I got to secondary school it was worse. Loads of cool folks had them Nikes, even those who didn't run an inch. It was a fashion statement. It was a sign that they were better than those Bata BM2000s I wore and had to painstakingly paint white ever so often. Those RGS girls were rich, after all. I was in the Track & Field and X-Country teams, but my feet felt like the dumps. I had to get them Nikes. My dad had an Air Huarache, and my bro an Air Zoom Spiridon. And when they weren't looking or weren't at home, I'd slip into their shoes -- albeit two sizes too big -- just to remind myself how good they felt.

At the end of secondary one, I begged/convinced my Dad to buy me the Nike Airliners in pure white -- then the hottest shoes in school. Man, they felt good. I felt like I was walking on air. I'd keep them spotlessly clean. They were worn to death, till there was a hole in the PVC near the toe. My next target was the Air Max, and somehow I conned my Dad into getting that for me too. It was in white, red and blue, the USA Track and Field edition. I wore that shoe till the end of secondary school, and it saw me through miles of training and races. In sec three, a few of my friends and I managed to convince our netball coach to get Nike Air Terra Humaras as our team shoe, instead of those dreadful Converse hi-top baller shoes. Along the way I also got a couple of Air Jordans, which I believed helped me fly on the netball court.

Also in RGS -- who were at that time sponsored by Nike -- I received my first pair of running spikes. Air Zooms in hot pink. Those became my lucky spikes all the way to JC, and I still keep them in my shoe cupboard today. They saw me through personal bests, and a few national schools medals, including an 800m bronze, 1500m bronze and 3000m silver. In fact, I wore those spikes in University and it helped me get the Sportswoman of the Year award.

By the time I got to junior college, I was playing netball for Nike netball club and for the National U-19 netball team, which was sponsored by Nike at that time. Not only did I have loads of stash now, I got a lot of them for free or at half price. Pure joy, I tell you.

In 2005, Ernest, a dude working at Nike, approached me through my Nike-sponsored buddy Ben Pulham. It was then that Nike began supporting me, showering me with all sorts of goodies ever so often.

Multiple ODs, three Ironmans and thousands of miles later, my feet are indebted to Nikes. Air Huarache, Air Max Moto, Air Pegasus, Air Pegasus TC, Air Zoom Katana, Air Zoom Percept, Air Zoom Moire, Shox Swift, Air Rift, Sprint Sister, Waffle Trainer... my feet have been there, used those.

This morning, as I woke early for a 6am run, I remembered again how good it feels to be running on Air.

Thanks Nike.

Man, this has been a long time comin', but yes I'm alive and kickin'. Just been bogged down with work since I returned from Langkawi, and getting my body tuned back from triathlete to journalist mode. Also had to settle getting a new SIM card and phone, because those idiotic buggers (aka housekeeping) at the dodgy hotel I was staying in at Kuah, Langkawi, were kleptomaniacs and couldn't keep their hands off my very beat-up Motorola V3. Die, suckers! Anyway, thanks to them I got meself a real techhie phone, the Nokia E65. Cool cool cool.

Training has been blah, I rested for four days straight after Ironman Langkawi (a first for me, I have never rested that long!). Got back into the swing of things last Thursday with an easy 3k swim, a 10k run on Friday, a 50k spin on Saturday and a 30min swim-50min run brick at Sentosa on Sunday. Rested again yesterday, and did a 3k swim and 50min run today. Just trying to mix things up, have fun and give my body a l'il break. Active recovery. that is. Physically I feel good, the only thing is I'm shedding worse that Goldmember after being exposed for 12 hours to Langkawi's scorching sun...

Now, if only that were real gold!

Yep, that was just the skin off my lower back. My entire back is peeling, but one photo is enough to gross everyone out I reckon!

Anyway, listen up listen up listen up (and listen good), cos here's something that will surely be music to your ears and a beat for them running feet...

Today I test ran the Nike+iPod -- the dopest device that will soon be in Nike stores here. Nike and Apple have brought those who love to play music and play sports together with the Nike+iPod. And thanks to Nike, I've got my very own set to play with now!

Here's my setup:
Nike Women's Air Zoom Moire (US size 9)
Nike+iPod Sport Kit (including the sensor and receiver)
Nike Sport Armband for iPod nano
Apple iPod nano 2GB Silver

How it works is simple. Nike's Air Zoom Moire is a well-cushioned and lightweight running shoe -- just the way I like my shoes -- only smarter. It's the first shoe designed to incorporate a pocket for the sensor. When used with the receiver, it allows you to receive instant performance feedback including distance, time, pace and calories burned, directly to your ears through your iPod nano.

I'm not one to run with music, but I might just convert now. The 50-min test run on a treadmill at the Nike office yesterday went by like the breeze. The thumping tracks on the nano put body in tune with music. Michael Buble, Gwen Stafani, rock, pop, jazz, hip-hop... you don't stop. You just keep movin' to the beat. Awesome. Tune. Run. Sync. Sweat, Enjoy. Feel good, look good. Stay Healthy. If you think running is a bore and just need motivation, or you're already a runner heading out for a lonely 40km run,... the Nike+iPod is for you.

The Nike+ shoes, Nike+iPod Sports Kit and Nike+ compatible apparel and accessories will be launched on April 1. Look out for it! For more details, check Singapore's Nike+ website, or the US Nike+ website.