Sunday, April 2, 2017

Sundown Marathon vs 2XU Compression Run

I had the opportunity to receive free slots to participate in both Sundown Marathon and 2XU Compression Run held back to back on March 26 and April 2 respectively. I signed up for half-marathon for both races.

The highlight of these 2 races was the presence of RockRunners. They were so supportive; look at all the smiles. Cheering one another at the finishing line. The saying goes "if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." This run journey has been made more fun because of my new RockFam. Glad I found them.

Sundown Marathon

2XU Compression Run
Going to do a simple post-mortem of both the races.

Race Pack Collection
Sundown: I went on the first day and everything was in a mess. New race pack collection procedure. Long queue. Weather was hot and there was no shelter. Had to wait close to 2 hours. I decided to leave when a friend offered to collect on my behalf. (0)


2XU: Collection point was inside Marina Square. Even though the wait was about 1hr on the first day, the air-conditioned environment made the wait more bearable. (1)


Goodie Bag
Sundown: Nothing fanciful. Registration fee: $80 (0) 
2XU: Nothing fanciful, but it came with an additional Polo tee. Registration fee: $75 (1)

Race Day
Sundown: Flag off at 1.30 a.m. 3 start pens. (0.5)
2XU: Flag off at 4.30 a.m. 8 waves; 10 minutes apart. (0.5)

Route
Sundown: Start towards Kallang, Sports Hub, Kallang PCN, Gardens by the Bay, Garden Bay East, Fort Road, Republic Avenue, Finish.
- The last 3km was a killer because of the Fort Road slope leading to Republic Avenue.
- Directions signs were not clear. (0)

2XU: Start towards Republic Avenue, Kallang, Sports Hub, Tanjong Rhu, Marine East, ECP, Marine East, Marina Barrage, Gardens by the Bay, Esplanade, Finish.
- Route was pretty flat with a few expected slopes. Many runners managed to hit their PB in this race.
- A few bottlenecks due to stairways and narrow paths. No complains for me as these gave me opportunities to take a breather.
- Clear direction signs at diversions. (1)

Hydration Station
Sundown: Well-placed at about 2km interval. Drinks and isotonic well-stocked. Gel and bananas were also given. (1)
2XU: Hydration stations were well placed at 2km. Would have preferred paper cups to plastic ones. No gel. Bins for cups were placed opposite the hydration stations; had to zig-zag to throw the cups. (0)

Volunteers
Sundown: Enthusiastic volunteers cheering and quick at the hydration station. (1)
2XU: Minimal cheering and volunteers were slow in filling up cups at the hydration stations. (0)

Medals
Sundown: Disappointing... Light, small and the strap was unusually thin... (0)


2XU: Nice design. Solid feel and the strap was beautifully designed. (1)

Photos
Sundown: After the race pack collection saga, Sundown wanted to give complimentary photos to all runners. This was what I got... The pic was so dark that I could hardly recognize myself. I would have given a (0) if it was not meant to be complimentary. No extra effort to make sure the runners receive something decent. (-1)


2XU: At the time of this write up, I have not seen any pictures from 2XU. There was a photographer at the finishing line. However, I am not expecting much as there was a huge crowd crossing the finishing line together, unlikely to get a decent finishing pic. (0)

Final Score
Sundown: 1.5
2XU: 4.5


Sundown... Sleep Can Wait... I was totally exhausted after the run. Had to go home and find my sleep. Had to nurse my legs due to cramps. No finisher tee for HM finishers.

2XU... Let Your Heart Set The Pace... HR shot to 183 at one point and I slowed down to "calm" the heart. Finished the run with no cramps, no aches. Not only was there a finisher tee, we were also given cold towels at the end of the run. It was so refreshing.


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