WE MADE IT!

WE MADE IT! We finished the 100KM in 33hours 0 min. I am SO HAPPY! Even though we were 3-hour behind our schedule, I am satisfied already. We (4 of us) finished it together.

We took a cab to the starting point. Actually, we were quite rush. We arrived at the starting point after 8:30am. The race starts at 9am. We need to get our number cloth, do the registration, fill up our water bags and bottles and do stretching.

In fact, we didn't really start at 9am. We walked slowly to the starting point. I was telling my team members to hurry up. But Adrian was walking really slow! I was trying to control my temper. I dont want to affect myself and others when it just started. Then, I asked Adrian, "What's going on? Wake up!" He then said that he was worried about his knee as he got a bit of knee pain and got to walk slowly to warm up. oh I see! (Adrian, I know you would read this blog! :D I am not blaming you here. I just wanted to tell the truth! hehehe)

Ben was walking really fast in section 1. Yvonne, Adrian and I walked slower. I actually had a bit of knee pain on my right as I hurt a bit of ligament. So I just wanted to walk a bit slower to warm myself up, too. While we were doing section 1, Yvonne just realised that she forgot to bring her headlight. AH! We should carry headlight or torch with us as we expeccted it would get dark befor we met our support team in CP3. Luckily, Adrian has a small backup torch. Thanks to Mrs Cheung (Adrian's wife) who always pack for Adrian! Yvonne called our support team and checked if they can find a torch for her and passed it to her in CP3. Supporter suggested to buy her one right away but Yvonne thought that it would be a waste and didn't want to do so.

The weather was so hot! Section 2 was not too difficult. But the sun was really killing us. I sweated a lot! I kept drinking water to avoid heat stroke. Some people actually stopped and hide under trees. We had lunch in Ham Tin as planned. We saw Lam Mo Tak (the composer). Adrian thought he was his friend's friend. Then he said, "No. I am Lam Mo Tak." He was also doing trailwalker, too. Oh yes! We saw Adam and Franscio (Team 120, other team from my company) on the way to Ham Tim. They just had lunch in Sai Wan.

I kept seeing Alex in 1st and 2nd section. Alex is my HKU alumni. His team target is about the same as mine, 30 hours. We also met our colleague, Amanda in CP2. She was with her dad and other friends. Their target was around 20 hours. I am sure they could make it at that time. Because they started 2 hours later! But they have chased us up in CP2 already. You can imagine how fast they were.

We had some hot soup and fruit in CP2 and then started to do section 3, the toughest! I didnt know why I was very slow there. It was so hard for me to move myself forward. I have done this part for many times but I wasn't sure why I didn't have energy to do it. I wasn't hungry but my energy just dropped. I kept kicking rocks. That meant I was tired. I saw Pauline (another HKU alumni) in the middle of section 3. Her target was 20 hours. Again, she started 2 hours later than us.

Our support team waited us at CP3. It was about 6:30am. It is on our schedule. Team 120 (other team from my company) just left the checkpoint when we were arrived. Yeah! We could have dinner there! They have prepared tomato beef rice, lemon tea, coffee etc. yummy.. I was so hungry! Stanley didn't come along but he has found a headlight for Yvonne. Thanks Stanley! We took about 30 mins break and then we walked to the check-in counter of CP3. Once they scanned my bar code. Those people said,"Congratuations! you are the 1000th person to register here. You got a prize.. APPLE! " haahahha.. I was holding this apple and said, " Yeah.. I am full of energy now!" hahhaha. I am actually holding this "Lucky Apple" in my hand til the middle of section 4. :)

After the meal or after I got the lucky apple, I really felt my energy was back. But my left knee felt a bit pain. I knew why.. same problem. My muscle were so tight which made my patella lean outward. I stopped at some places to do more stretching. Ben said that he didnt feel well, he needed to take a longer break. We took a 10 to 15 min break in one of the pavilion in section 4. He had a very bad headache and felt that he was having a fever. Some trailwalker worker was there, too. He was suggesting him to drop and said that someone can pick him up there. But we didn't say anything and Ben said that he was ok after 10 mins rest. He took a panadol, too. We started again and finally reached CP4. We ate some bread and hot drinks there. I got encouraging SMS from my friends... so sweet! Ben went to medical center to take some rest and put on some pain relieving cream on his legs. While I was waiting, I think it was no harm to ask them to tape my knees too as I was suggested by my physcio to do so. But once those physcio saw my knee, they told me that it actually swelled. oh no.. I just felt a bit pain only. So they did a bit of massage on my left leg as my muscle was so tight and then put on a pack of ice on my knee and then wrap my knee. I really felt better after it.

We started section 5. I wasn't too familiar with this part as it was closed due to landslide. It reopened again 2 weeks ago. I just went there once before the race. Ben and I walked to a wrong route. Once we heard some dog barking, we released that we were on the wrong route so we turned back. But then we found some other people came, too. The guy told us to follow him. It was in fact a short cut. wow.. really! I didnt believe it at the beginning. But when he told me that this was his 11th time to do trailwalker, I have to believe him. Oh yes! it was really a short cut! Yeah. I was really lucky after I got my lucky apple! hahhaa..

We didn't prepare to see our support team in Lion Rock Pavilion. But we saw them sitting in the little grocery shop. What a surprise! They told us that they just met Team 120 there. We just talked a bit and they gave us 2 bananas and we continued again.

After Lion Rock Pavilion, this was the part I hate as there were so many down big steps. That's really hurt my knees. Oh yes, the guy that we met earlier who brought us to a shortcut, told us there was another shortcut in this part. hehehe. we found it and walked that, too. shhhhh.. dont tell anyone... We reached CP5 and took some rest.

We were tired and sleepy. it was 3:30am at the end of section 5. We were 1 hour slower than last time we did training on section 1 to 5. We were also hungry, too. We started section 6. Gosh. there were so many dogs barking.. so scary! Oh yes. we finally saw our support team. Oh yeah.. we can eat again. They got us rice congee!! nice. I also asked them to bring me some ice so I can put them on my knees. wow. it really helped. thanks for the physcio's suggestion in CP4. I dont know why... I think my energy was really back.. I felt pretty good. We quickly checked in at CP6 and continued.

Section 6 was an easy trail. It was around 5am. People were doing morning exercise there. When they saw us, they would keep saying "Add Oil!".. I felt so warm! I walked pretty fast in this section. And I was pretty good in section 7 (needle hills), too. We finally met Team 120 in CP7. They were about to go. I also saw Johnny Mak (HKU classmates) there. We had some instant noodle and hot drink and started again to walk to the Tai Mo Shan, section 8.

Section 8 was another tough trail. But I like this very much. I always did good in this section while training. I was doing ok on this morning, too. You know what I was thinking if I would see snake there. But then I thought I shouldn't. There were just too many people passed by in these 2 days. Can you believe this? I saw a snake again! It was a bright green and orange one. It was just 3 to 4 m apart from me. I was shocked. My team members were a bit far behind me and no people around me neither. Again, I was alone.. so scary! We took some rest in the Tai Mo Shan Pavilion and then started to walk concrete roads. I was so sleepy. I tried my best to open my eyes. Again, we found some ribbon along this trail.. hehehe.. shortcut again. :P

Yeah.. Finally.. we met our support team in CP8.. yeah.. just saw team 120 about to leave. they were always 1 meal time ahead of us. Yvonne and Ben went to medical center again for wrapping their knees or feet or taking care of their blisters. They got some blisters. Luckily, I didn't since I put a lot of vaseline and I kept changing socks. Suport team brought us hot drink, noodles, sandwiches. Some ex-trailwalker told me that we won't feel like eating in CP8 as we would be very tired.. well.. guess we were exceptional. We were so hungry! I also had a can of red bull.. Hope it can help me to wake me up! Oh yes! Jhun was so nice. He massaged Yvonne and my back.. wow.. so comfortable. And Jhun even helped me to take off my socks when I was sitting down and put ices on my knees. He was SO NICE!! All of us changed our shoes as most of section 9 and 10 were concrete. We could wear something more comfortable than our hiking shoes.

This was the final part. Adrian and I were trying to run a bit. We were so tired. legs and feet were sore. After we checked in at CP9, we still had 9.8km to go. Ok. I cant really wait. I walked very fast in this last section. During training, we took about 6 mins in every 500m in this section. I was trying to keep this pace. I walked and ran. I kept counting the post.. Post 180, 181, 182, .... 190.. starting to have some sign and told me that I got 3.5km to go.. 3km, 2.5km.. I got calls from my friends and family, too. My family was actually checking my progrss from the website. They have been turning on the live broadcast since 3pm. You know when I got their calls, I almost cried. It was so warm to get calls from family and friends.

I got a call from Ben. He asked me where I was. I was a bit faster than they were as I really couldnt wait anymore. I really wanted to finish it ASAP. I told him that I was in post 191. They were at Post 186. I told him that I would wait them at Post 193 or 194. I called our support team to bring us our company T-shirt before the finishing point so that we could change it and take pics. I got call from Yvonne. She was asking me where the exact finishing point is. As it wasn't Post 200. It was actualy around Post 194 and turn to Perowne Barracks. I thought I was about 20 mins ahead from them. They were trying to catch up and finish it before 6pm. I thought that they couldn't as they were just at post 186 when I was at Post 191. But it was amazing, they made it. I was waiting them at the bottom of the last stairs before finishing point. They were arrived there at 5:57pm.. we still have 500km to go. We ran and ran and ran.

Yeah.. We made it.. We arrived at 6pm! I am so happy! It took us 33hour 0 min. :D

Oh yes.. a little secret!.. Adrian, don't let your wife and son to read this blog. :P Whenever Adrian met a checkpoint and saw Jhun (our supporter), he would ask him for cigarette. Can you believe this?! He still smoked during the race!!!

My colleage drove me back home. I was carrying all my bags and still wearing my Bloomberg T-shirt with number cloth on. I was so dirty and smelt stink. A women was with her son and we were waiting for the lift. They were looking at me and whispering. Guess.. they must be discussing why I smelt so bad!! hahaa..

I took a shower right away and jumped into my bed with my wet hair!! I was exhausted!!