On 26 May 2012, I took part in the Sundown Marathon as a runner in the 10km race category.
Sundown Marathon is an event opened to Singaporeans as well as non-Singaporeans. Being the only night race held Asia, it has definitely attracted a lot of tourists from around the globe to take part in the event. It was evident as many runners around me were not local.
Sundown Marathon have generate much media coverage, with the aid of the government stressing the importance of healthy living.
Having been part of the event, there are a few pointers that I came to conclusion with, and I shall categorise them according to their strengths and weaknesses.
For one, I felt that the whole Sundown Marathon was a positive experience right from the time I registered till the time I left the venue.
Registration was very easy and quick, and within ten minutes, I was done signing up for the race. Sundown Marathon is for charity, and I especially liked the portion where one could choose their bip number with a charge of $50, of which the amount would go to charity. I personally would have done that but the amount of money left in my bank didn't allow me to do so.
Next up was the collection of race pack. And again, I think the organizers have done a good job in organizing the whole collection process. There were volunteers around to help and guide the traffic flow, so once again, I did not have to wait long to collect my race pack.
And finally on that day itself, I was excited but I would say, I was not prepared for the race. Nevertheless, I was determined to run the race to the best of my ability. Gathering at Nicoll Highway was a first; the other marathons I took part in had starting points at East Coast so it was a thumbs up to my experience, because a new place meant a different race route; I couldn't wait to start running!
There were a few flaws in the race routes of which I would mention later in the post.
Fast forward, I saw the finishing line an hour later, and was happy to be greeted by many stalls of yummy food such as the candy floss and popcorn. Best of it all? It was free of charge! Me and my group of friends were especially thankful that it was free since none of us carried money with us. However, we were a little disappointed that we couldn't get to purchase the yoghurt and ice cream since we did not have cash and the baggage area were quite a distance away from our ending point. And us being lazy bums would obviously not walk back to the baggage area to collect our bags and then returning to the food zone! Oh well....
So what I have just mentioned in the previous few paragraphs were strengths of the event and now, I will list down some weaknesses.
First and foremost, I think what made a lot of runners upset and frustrated was the change of routes that was only announced two weeks before the rest. Honestly, it didn't affect me a bit since I am one who does not do research on the routes and would let the day itself surprise me. However, I felt that it was a little irresponsible of the management to do so. But again, they had their reasons for they were finding alternatives till the very last minute and only made the decision when they were left with no choice. Whether they were really at fault? I will not comment. However, it was good of the management that they made a learning point to sort out such issues earlier in the future to avoid such issue from happening again.
Next, I felt that the routes at certain points were an issue. Yes, the slopes and all was definitely an issue to me since I had a hard time running up that, but on a more serious note, I felt that more lighting could be placed near to the routes which were completely pitched dark. This is to ensure safety and the avoidance of sharp objects or nasty cuts. It is especially critical to the runners running barefoot.
Overall, the event has been a really enriching one for me, and I would definitely be back again next year!
