13 July 2018, Friday, 5.3km, Parelloop Vasse

4 days after hiking the Semois and Oster in Belgium (a combined 48.1km trail running, with elevation gain of ~1584m, we thought, hey, an anaerobic punch this week would be nice.)

Hmm Yeah… and here we are. The Parelloop Vasse of 5.3km (yes, an interesting distance).

It was a 1-looper, circa 70% tight sands, 30% asphalt route. These information was never useful to me, until i experience the difference between road and trail/ sand run. The choice of what shoes to put on, what strides to pull, and what run-time to expect. I have switched from a Newton TriRacer to a Brooks PureCadence5, as a form of experimenting with new soles as i become more conscious and aware of different running terrains here in Nederland. Malaysia running was always on asphalt, and i never really have to get all too worked up over what shoes to put on. In this terrain, the TriRacer would be too light weighted, and sole too thin for me to comfortably run in them. Form wise, i have to consciously swing my arm wider so as to extend my stride. The sand ground is heavier and it takes more effort to lift up the legs and upper body and build momentum. And the uneven surface requires one to focus on where to land, and retain momentum.

In this race, i ran 3 min 7 sec above my PB recorded @ Banthumloop. (Mehhh…) Not splendid, but expected. It came as a surprise to be placed #3, and meeting some nice runner, Laura Kotte and her “Snelle Jelle” fun team. She came #1 in this category.