Relay with RSC

Assalamualaikum,

Relay.

When was my last relay?

Baton.

I have not heard or see a baton for what seems like forever. But I can confirm that I have passed a baton - a long, long time ago. It might be during my primary school; the fittest time in my life. I was younger and you can push me towards anything - bola jaring, bola baling, 100 meter, relay, lontar peluru, lompat jauh, rounders - I'll just give it a try. Walaupun memang tak berbakat langsung dalam semua yang dicuba. Bakat satu hal. Niat pun tak begitu murni - just to complement my academic achievement.

Sebab tu memang teruja bila dengar Revert Sports Club (RSC) akan menyertai PAAA Annual Round the Island Relay 2014, untuk kali keduanya. 72.7 km, 8 hours, 12 runners, 1 team. Sounds exciting to me! All the while, we run individually. This is a team run.

Tak pernah terfikir pun nak berlari untuk RSC. I thought it would be cool to be a part of the effort - manager ke, penjaga barang ke, pemandu ke, or at least supporter je. Having me in the team would add countless seconds to the time. But soon I realised that after I completed my 7 km fun run, 'No' is no longer an option. Walaupun masa boleh dijadikan alasan kedua selepas jarak, they just tell me to complete the distance and not worry about the time.

And I just can't say 'No'.

Diberikan check point nombor 7 berjarak 5.91 km. Katanya mudah saja - turun bukit. Tapi bila survey jalan dengan Miss J sehari sebelum relay, we were speechless to see that it is actually a combination of flat and uphill route. Well Miss J was speechless, I was laughing hysterically. There were no words to describe the feeling. Berlari di jalan rata pun sekadar berlari je. Mendaki sedikit masa PBIM pun dah cramp abdomen segala. Terhenti segala imaginasi. Hahaha.

Pasrah saja.

The R-Day

Menanti baton...

Masa ni semua positif saja. Hahaha

Bangun pagi dengan perasaan cemas bila tengok banyak mesej di WhatsApp. Semoga tiada sebarang masalah. Alhamdulillah, everything looks great and I love the picture of the first 3 runners. Walaupun masih sarat dengan rasa risau, rasa lebih bersemangat dan lebih positif. Allah sahaja yang tahu berapa banyak kupu-kupu dan dinosaur dalam perut. Sampai nak habiskan sebiji epal dalam perjalanan ke CP7 pun tak tertelan.

Warming up alone at my check point, I told myself that everything will be fine. I can do it. I can complete this run. It is just 5.91 km. I can do the uphill run - erk! - terus rasa cemas datang macam empangan yang pecah. Hahaha. Sampaikan warming up pun tak rasa panas. Pun begitu, mental masih tetap positif. Rasa lebih okay bila Bro R sampai.

Then I receive the baton from Bro S.

I ran... and unfortunately I left half of my focus and positive thoughts at CP7. 3 minutes and everything is all over the place. My breathing was out, my pace was out, my form was out. Hukumannya - cramp abdomen. The root cause: terlalu risau - risaukan masa dan risaukan nak mendaki di hadapan. I always say that mental is not my problem; I clearly did not know what I am talking about. Especially in competitive run. I have miscalculated the pressure and was not prepared for it.

Bro R, Bro S and Mr. A were so kind to accompany my run. Tapi dengan keadaan mental macam tu, rasa sangat malu. So I asked them to just wait me at the next check point. In other words: "leave me alone to face this and I think I will recover and finish the run". Of course they know better, because Bro R decided to be my pacer.

Rasa sangat bersalah dengan Bro R. He was so sweet and patient and every single thing he said was true and valid. It is usually not difficult to motivate me, but I was so broken that whatever he said did not have much effect on me. Setakat boleh dengar je. I was near tears when I apologized and admitted that I am in that negative state. Huhuhuhu. Masa tu dah mula sampai ke kawasan mendaki yang menjadi kerisauan besar sejak mula berlari. I walked all the way. Langsung tak dapat gerakkan otot untuk berlari.

The route... Mine on the left, Miss J's on the right...

Sebelum relay, aku tertanya-tanya kenapa peraturan tak benarkan ada pacer. Tapi sepanjang perjalanan dengan Bro R, I can see how having a pacer could change a lot of thing. I think I can finish the run alone, but I can't be sure that I won't be too broken in the middle of the race. For example, at one point I actually asked to stop for a while. All Bro R said was "No" and asked me to keep walking and to take longer strides. So I did what he told me. Without him, I am almost certain that would stop.

And then I saw Miss J! Oh my oh my I am almost there! If I remember correctly, Bro R said that I must run to complete this race. So I gather what's left in me and run towards Miss J. Lepas serahkan baton, terus terduduk.

Terus tengok jam. Alhamdulillah, berjaya selesaikan larian dalam masa 1 jam. Official time: 00:59:42, Which is impressive, at least for me. Sebab aku dan Miss J revise estimated completion time kepada 1 jam 30 minit lepas survey jalan.

Relay Lesson

My second medal. Yeay!

Number one, never ever underestimate the pressure of competitive run; tambahan lagi kalau berlari dalam satu pasukan. Memang berbeza dengan fun run. You have a lot on your shoulder and in your mind. Lepas relay, Bro S siap komen yang aku tak tahan dengan tekanan. Haha. Terpaksa setuju, sebab aku memang tak pernah hadapi tekanan spesis ini. Banyak nak kena belajar ni.

Number two: Together is a nice word. Walaupun tim RSC dapat tempat ke-24 je, semangat satu pasukan tu memang terasa. In individual run, it's just you. You run and you go home. Kalau nasib baik dapatlah jumpa ahli yang lain. There is less chance for team building. But when you run in a team, the feeling is different. You are in it together. You share the moments. You get to know each other. It was a wonderful experience for a new runner like me. Lebih positif dan bersemangat nak sertai larian yang lain. 

Future Plan

Training. Dah rancang macam-macam dengan Miss J.

More running, inshaAllah. Dengan recovery rate yang agak perlahan, perlu rancang aktiviti larian dengan baik dan selari dengan latihan.

Lose more weight for more kilometers. This is the toughest mission. One word: discipline. I can do it once, I can do it again.

Gemba Kaizen RSC

Agak menyesal sebab pada mulanya ambil ringan dengan inisiatif penubuhan RSC. RSC ada potensi yang bagus dalam dunia dakwah. It is possible to take RSC to the next level. Tapi jadi pihak yang melihat potensi sahaja tak cukup bagus. I need to walk in that shoes - or in RSC case, I need to run the miles to understand the core values and the most important power: the good people.

So, run 'Aini, run. Bismillah. 

It would be great if I can have a brainstorming partner who is already a part of RSC...

Wassalam.