BBQ No.1: Farewell Run With Cool Running Gangs

My last weekend in Melbourne is finally over and just a couple more days before heading back to KL. I had my final group ride on Sat and yesterday was my final run with the Cool Running group. I've already been through a few runs with them and with their friendly & "must have" coffee session right after run makes it so much easier for me to blend right in.

Bennie suggested a new running trail for us, Canning Reserve-Brimbank Park. It really feels great to see different parts of Melbourne through running (or cycling). The trail runs along the Maribyrnong and it offers a really scenic view. His wife, Ruth, even agreed to prepare some food and drinks for post run. Grace, came to pick me up in front of the apartment in the morning, together with her husband, Kevin and her two youngest children. She has 7 kids mind you and a real fast mother indeed. She did a 3:45 in last year's Melbourne Marathon and now she is preparing herself for Boston Marathon April next year. However, due to her injury, "a pain in the butt" she refers it, she couldn't run with us. Hope she recovers soon. There were a lot of mountain bikers who shared the same trail as us but road was wide enough for a passing manouver.

There were 9 of us, Di, Morley, Warren, Michael, Baz, Bruce, Bennie, Terri and me who ran that day with Grace opting to walk with her husband and two children along the river bank. Bennie's wife, Ruth and their 2 children joined in later bringing the food from home.

Chit chatting session as a warm up before the run

Michael's not only good in giving running advice but on how you should drink water from the tap

The big climb

Now, for the main event. Yeah, running was just a side show.

We have plenty of food & drinks on the table, homemade pancakes, fruits, homemade breads, crossaints, coffee, juice, etc. We took a group photo before we left, but still waiting for Bennie to post it up before I can download it.

To all Cool Running Runners that I got to know in such a short time: It was fun running with you guys and will surely miss the Sun morning runs and the coffee session after. Who knows our path may cross again one day.

Running with the Training and Coffee Group

Ever since reaching Melbourne, I've been searching for a group to run with. I don't mind to run by myself, but at times running in a group can keep your motivation up, especially on the longer runs. I've done a few runs with the Melbourne Marathon training series group, usually on Wed evenings. Think I've done 3 runs with them on Wed nights and 1 on Sun morning run. However, the best group runs I had were with a few runners I met through the forum of Cool Running Australia website (link). Got in touch with Michael, a 51-year old runner who has vast experience in marathon running. He has done sub-3 hours marathon time and has plan to do it again soon, however, not for this coming Melbourne Marathon (MM). Not all are sub-3 runners, but they are very easy to get along people which i like in a running group.

I don't think I got all the names right, as most are known by their nicknames in the forum. But Im sure of the names of Michael, Grace, Baz, Bruce, Michelle and Michael, as I've run with them for the 2nd time. Well, I've only done 2 runs with them. The first time was a 34km run, which they were about 15 runners turning up for the run.

I had a hard time waking up for yesterday run as the Daylight Saving Time (DST) for Australia started at 2am. That means I lost an hour of sleep due to that. I can't understand why don't they just stick with one time and do away with the DST. Before I went to sleep I adjusted the time and realised Im sleeping around 2.30am and not 1.30am!! And I need to wake up at 7am. Anyway, dragged myself out of bed and was there by 8am.

We ran around 5 laps of the Tan Tracks before we head for the usual coffee catch up at a cafe in the Royal Botanic Garden. Too bad this is the final run as Im not too sure whether they will get together for a run after the MM.

Michael (middle) and Baz (Right)

From left: Alisson (white cap), Grace (black cap)

From left: DiJ (forum nick), Michelle, Marcus, Bruce, Flick (forum nick)

(From left after Flick) Bennie and Adam

Guess this is officially my last long run before the MM this coming Sun. I can't expect a good time, but I'm pretty excited about the run. Better than how I felt when I first reached here. I guess running in group really helped. The catching up after runs, sharing stories of the ups and downs in the race or training, the experience, something most runners look foward to after a hard run.

Laptop is Back ON!

Thanks to my cuz, Huey, my computer is ALIVE again! However, there's still this niggling sound from the inside of the laptop. It could be the hard drive or could be the fan. I don't know. Need to get it check out when I go back KL.

Being without a computer for a week can feel quite "cacat" (handicapped). Usually I will feel like that when I don't have my handphone with me but then here in Melbourne I don't use it much. Gone were the days where you write mails and send it to your friends, families or your loved ones using the "snail mail". Those days World Wide Web (WWW) was not even widely used or even owning a computer. I never owned a personal computer till 2003 I think. During the days in university, had to rely on lab computers (which do not give access to internet) and a laptop which I borrowed from my sister to do most of my coursework. Anyways, I am glad that my cousin Huey managed to fix the bug!

Last Fri, rode with my cuz, Andrew to Black Rock along Beach Road. Total distance covered with him was about 35km. Twice he sprinted, one just before th U turn back and the second near the end. Both times I was nowhere near him. I didnt go for a longer ride with him as I had to head back, grab my stuff and head off to meet Geraldine at her place at around 11am. It's about 22km to her place. Reached around her area but couldn't find her place. So had to find a place to stop and call her for SOS. Guess what? It's only about 300m from where I was stopping. Reached there and she was already ready to run, so we went out for 10km run. Even stopped by her children's school and she took me for a tour. We had lunch at Glen Waverly at a Chinese Restaurant which I suspect is a Malaysian or a Hong Kong owned. After lunch, went to grocery shop next to it and you can start hearing people talking in Hokkien dialects. Sounded like Northern Msian Hokkien dialect. Headed back to her place and had to ride back home again. Took another route to go back but the hills are a killer, when you've done a 60km ride plus a 10km run.

Shops at Glen Waverly

Geraldine with her children



The Sunflower that greeted me in front of Jee Koh's place

Some of the Beautiful flowers @ Jee Koh's garden

The fish and vege dinner I had at Jee Koh's home last week

The next morning went for a late morning run at the Tans track and saw there were a lot of runners with bibs running aroudn the track. Oh, this must be the Tans Relays. I just went for a slow 1 hour run but seeing them competing made me have an itch to compete too. Somehow, middle distances appeals to me more than longer distances events.

Sun morning at 7am, I had made an appointment to run with a few runners I met in the Cool Running forum. Met up with Michael, Bruce, Basel and 2 other lady runners. We ran 3 laps around the Tan track before meeting up with other runners at 8am. We joined the other group and from 6 runners it turns out to be 15 runners in the end. A big turn out! We headed out to another route around the Yarra Main Trails. I ended up running 34km but with a lot of drink stops. Lucky for the drink stops as my legs were starting to feel really sore. All of us went for a drink at the Royal Botanic Garden and chatted for a while. I didn't stayed out too long as I was starting to get cold.

That night I cooked rendang for dinner and invited my cousins, Alissa and Arina over. Bought the rendang mixture from the Asian grocery shop. Alissa cooked the vege. Well it's Hari Raya, so since am missing the curry and rendang back home, why not cook it and have it here. The rendang turn out pretty good.

I had lunch with Grace, my schoolmate from Form 6. I finally had my Vietnamese broken rice with pork chop today. Yummy. The shop is called Mekong and is located in Swanston St. After lunch called my cuz, Huey and checked with him whether he knows how to fix computer bug. He wasn't sure what the problem was so he won't mind checking it out. So I headed home and quickly took out my bike and rode to Jee Koh's place to let Huey have a look at my computer. It took a while but it was worth the wait and finally got it fixed. I stayed on for dinner there before heading home.

And this is DINNER! Yummy!

The Groves family (from left): Jee Koh, Uncle Derham, Grandma and Huey

Since my computer is fixed (well not completely), here I am...updating my blog.