Morning run at 5.30 am

Today I started the morning at 5.30 am. My son woke up at 5.00 am and decided to wake me too. I decided to start my early morning run, because I knew today with a meeting and work stacking up, all the signals was pointing to a day where I might just miss my run. The last 4 weeks when I left my home at Punggol for work, I was amazed to find runners on the road, pounding the streets at 7.00 am. Serious runners of all sizes training for a race and keeping fit. When I reach the famed Bidadari cremation site, I will see one of the fittest soldiers the legendary gurkhas doing their run. Nearly hit a car, for losing my focus and looking at the runners, as the cars pile up to a jam. 

Lately in the last few years, the spouses of these Gurkha soldiers have started to run as well. Many years ago, you will able to sight the reluctant housewives in their traditional sarongs doing a run or a brisk walk. What a funny sight, and I would just laugh over it every time I see them doing that. As of now, they have progressed quite a bit, in their runs. They are running really fast, in their Nikes and Adidas and dressed in their sports attire. And they are really fast too. My guess they will be able to outrun some of own boys doing their national service in the military institutions.

Today' s run was invigorating to say the least. I also met my climbing friend who once held my life in a thread, on his new Cervelo bike doing his morning ride. Mike will be having his 3rd kid soon and any temptation to go to KL with me and my son to watch the tour de langkawi, was a no no. This is us now, fathers and corporate rat racers, who can only train in the windows of the  early mornings or at night. Finished a 6 K run and got home just in time to shower and send my son to school. 

What was I doing? I am influencing my son, not through words, but through actions and deeds. What are the gaps that we grapple with every day. Do our words match what we do? Are we telling our kids or are we modelling behaviour for them to follow? I watch my son a lot and he wears his watch on his right hand, though he is not a left hander. Where did he pick that up? He picked it up from me. As fathers. if we only knew the impact we make on our kids, we will think many times over why we have not done enough. Have you done more that you can for your child, think that over and perhaps today, plan a day with your child. 

Life trials

Today I have decided to blog again after a prolonged silence where I was chasing work and trying to make sure Teamworkbound survived the challenges of 2008. We did make it through and It includes momentous firsts since we started this company 2 years ago. I got my driving license after 3 months of lessons at Comfort Delgro. We did not purchase a brand new vehicle instead we found a 4 year old van a very decent lady was about to give up. Yvonne who was 56 was wrapping her business for good to retire and It really felt good to purchase the peouget partner from her. It was beaten up with scratches all over and the rear had hit a tree. She was honest to say the least and we purchased this van for this primary reason. After $2000/- worth of repairs we are finally up and running with this van. This van symbolically was the fruit of one single mindset, never to give up even how tough the circumstances around you can be. I remembered the days when I worked shifts in SIA. On one night shift, I was caught in a rain and I completed the work at night drenched, I was using the hand dryer in the toilet to dry my socks and my underwear, to stay warm. On one shift I skidded on my bike during an emergency brake and I rushed to work with my shirt torn and my hands bruised. The manager for the flight control centre stood behind me and incidently he was also a nominated MP then and all he could whimper was how long it will take for me to photo copy. 

Let me relate to you my first job interview. I attended the National Institute of Education interview panel as a 19 year old to apply for a job as a PE (physical education) teacher. The interview panel were less then generous and in parts of the interview they even laughed and asked what I hoped to achieve in 5 years. I was not able to say much, did not have the financial support to pursue a degree hence I just looked at them blindly, not knowing what to say. It has been 20 years now, the very Institute that did not accept me for their diploma program, accepted my application many years later for a stringent Master's course, in Instructional Design and Technology. I completed this program in 2 years 6 months, sponsoring myself in this pursuit. In my class of 40, most of whom who were teachers had the ministry that sponsored their pursuit of this master's degree. 30 of my fellow classmates, who were mostly teachers, decided to to complete their master's program by undertaking 2 extra modules. They have since become heads of departments and perhaps in time to come they may become VPs and principles and that will be an irony. The short and sure way to the finish line to complete this course. In fact they graduated 3 months before me gleefully stating and 

boasting about the mini thesis they completed. 

Myself and 9 other classmates took the route of writing a thesis, a research paper in lieu of the 2 extra modules. Master's program graduates who gleefully insist that they did a mini thesis by completing two modules is an absolute farce, because what what they wrote sits at home whilst a research thesis sits in a library referenced by master's students and undergraduates. I left my full time job to complete my master's thesis over a period of 6 months and I did graduate. Of the 10 heros who went the thesis route, only 2 have since graduated, whilst the 8 are still trying find a way to clear this program. I owe my heartfelt gratitue to my supervisors, Michel Dale Williams and Lim Cher Ping also known as Cherp. Cherp was not my supervisor, but I had to approach him to help me when I needed advice. Sanjana, who helped me to vet my thesis, is one person I owe a lot. 

Life trials are at best a moment a defining moment where you can make a choice to give in or just do all you can to get around it. I struggled to swim 2 laps using front crawl once upon a time, I have since broken barriers, by swimming 20 minutes non stop using the front crawl stroke last week. I have since transitioned to become a coach as well, coaching my son in swimming. The lesson I want my son to take with him, is not to give up. However painful it can be whatever the circumstances the environment can throw at you. I ran 10K last Sat, after sending my son to his Madrasa classes, and finished that run in 65 minutes, as a young 15 year old, I did the same distance in 48 minutes. I need to revisit the days when I ran like a gazelle outrunning other boys. 

When 2 lives were nearly lost

This experience I had is one I wanted to write for a long time but I just did not had the time to do it. Its about 2 lives that nearly ended in an accident. It is about being at the wrong place at the wrong time, but somehow, the hand of providence gently nudged you into safety. Here's a recount of that incident that happened 5 days after my daugther Zahra was born in 2003.

Fatimah Zahra, came to us that year and we brought her back to our home on July 27th. It was with much relieve that I got accustom to having another child at home. It was particularly blissful for me to have a baby girl. That faithful Saturday, many of my relatives and friends called and came over to our home. I had a tiring week that time, and decided to go for a run that afternoon, even when folks were coming to visit. Not too polite right, but I decided to just do that run anyway.

Back then, we stayed in Bedok Reservoir and my usual runs were usually done at Bedok. That afternoon, I am not sure what came over me when I decided to take a route that took me past to Jln Eunos finishing at Kembangan MRT station. This was a route that I have never taken before.

I wanted to check out a bicycle shop there after finishing my run. When I reached the bike Shop, the famed up your nose owner of this shop did not make me feel welcome when he realized I rode a 10 year old carbon bike. I left the shop, to make my way down to the MRT station to catch the public transport back home after being snubbed by a rear of a donkey also known as Ah Boon.

There was a religious school behind me as I walked towards the traffic lights to cross a major road. Walking beside me was a 6 maybe 7 year old girl who looked blissfully angelic and like me was waiting to cross this road at the pedestrian crossing. Runners usually make a quick turn to look at the traffic flow before stepping out to cross the road, even if the green lights have changed. As cars on the road stopped, I turned instinctively to my left, .... in slow motion, I saw this girl stepping out of the pavement and into the road oblivious to a speeding Black BMW that was going to hit this girl. I shouted at the girl to stop and pulled her back, failing which that car would have definitely rammed against her and me. The other Chinese pedestrians behind me shouted expletives at that driver and looked at me in amazement for having stopped this girl from crossing. I was at the right place at the right time and I did not know why I took that running route that I have never taken before for a run. That car nearly hit me too.

I turned and in anger I chased that black BMW car until the next traffic lights, that was about 300 m away. The lights were turning from green to red and that car had no choice but to stop as there were other cars that had already stopped in front. Having reached there, I stood before this car and I asked the lady to come out of the car as I furiously told her that she nearly hit me and a little girl. She very defiantly refused to come out and insisted that she had done no wrong as we were not hurt. The very same defiance I have seen many times before, when caught with the hand in the cookie jar. Standing in front of the car, I called the Police and accounted what had taken place. I was told to let her go, because the Police assured me that she will be stopped by the Police officers on patrol near by.

The reckless driver was stopped and asked to account for beating the traffic light and nearly hitting 2 pedestrians that day. I gave a police statement a week later and she was duly charged and fined for what she did.

That was me being at the right place at the right time. That innocent angelic girl, wearing a head scarf, walking carefree, was a sight I still think about frequently. Because that day when I watched and admired her, I was thinking of my own daugther Zahra. In retrospect, this kid, saved my life, cos I was looking at her that day, whilst crossing the road and that averted a near miss. This girl must be about 11 or 12 years old now, I wonder if she still remembers, an Indian guy who ran after a car that nearly hit her.

What has all this got to do with ironman training, .... hey dude, it was a momentous run, that I don't think I will forget.

Audacity of Hope

Today I just want to write about HOPE and Barrack's Obama's take on this. He even rode a book based on the same title. If you have a chance to hear his speeches, you will be amazed how words can be articulated so charismatically. He spoke about hope when Hillary Clinton mocked his speeches as only just empty rhetoric, McCain has started to do the same in his speeches. What amazed me was Barrack's background, a seemingly innocuous small build black man taking on the big boys in American politics without the pedigree heritage of being part of a political clan, like Bush or the Kennedys.

Hope is a perspective on how you view the circumstances around you. The one single optimistic frame of mind that you bring to chaos and challenges that swirls you. Hope was the very rope I held on to when I founded Teamwork Bound then. Between then and now we have reached milestones one after another. What amazes me more about Barrack, is that his campaign unlike all other Presidential hopefuls in the past and inclusive of Hillary and McCain, is not funded by any lobbyist or special interest group. From a little known senator from Illionios, Barrach has stirred so much interest in me, that I am following the American Presidential campaign and with an e-mail update from their website. Tonight, I received an e-mail from the Barrack's campaign team. They have since surpassed 1 million donors who have donated between $5 and $25 dollars each and this includes the 10 straight victories he has achieved against Hillary. This excites me even more to read about this man. And within the pages of this book, "The audacity of hope" lies the story of a simple man, who made it past a struggle to perhaps become the next president of the United States.

Simply amazing.

Short Fast run

Yesterday evening I decided to get a feel of how my knee is acting up. I went for a short run that took me behind Punggol to the temple, MRT station and back. That run was invigourating. Some how when I run fast, the pain on the knee is minimal. The reason being, the contact time between the right foot and the ground is fast before I stride forward with the next foot. The timex heart rate monitor worked really well. I switched my zone training zone to 5 as I averaged 169 on the number of heart beats per minute.

I finished the run in 23 minutes and for once I felt like a runner I was many years ago. No more a struggling runner, but a runner striding forward in style. I am trying to gain mass as well. I am making sure I am eating right with the correct intake of proteins, so that I do not lose weight. For this month and the next, I plan to run short distances with gym work outs to strengthen the muscles.

On the biz front we are taking on great strides, for last week we finished a 1 day training program, for Institute of Technical Education lecturers. The youngest of whom was 49 and the oldest 59. They had at least 20 years of teaching experience amongst them. I was really worried about how we will make an impact on their team building and strategy planning program. Our program was a resounding success as out of the blue one teacher initiated 3 cheers for us when we finished this program. The teachers in this instance surprised us with their thoughts about education, responsibilities and their commitment towards making a difference in a kid's life. I would like to express my admiration to all of you in this blog.

Surviving accidents

Not too sure why I am writing about this, but I felt it will be good to pen 2 near accidents that impacted me whilst I got into the regime of training for Triathlons. In 2004, when I joined Valuair airlines as the Manager for Crisis Planing, I was training earnestly for my first triathlon. That year I joined the tri familiy club for training sessions on Sundays. That year, I spent quite a fair bit of my time traveling and I was attending night classes at Nanyang Technological University as well. Swimming became my least practised disciplne, given the hectic schedule I had.

On one of these sessions the tri familiy folks arranged for a training session that had an 800 m swim 30 K bike ride and a 5 K run at Sentosa. That morning I arrived early at Tanjong Beach to join them for this training session. I was so cocky, I did not even bring a pair of googles with me me that day. I was excited, this was my first triathlon technically and I was all prepared to do well. When the swim started, all of us rushed into the shore and started the swim session like pros. I knew the distance was only 800m so I was keen to push hard that day. In the back of my mind I also wanted to reward myself after this training session with a pair of new wheels I had wanted to purchase. Between the front crawling pros and me a breast stroker, there was a fundamental difference. They had the stamina and skill, whilst I lack both the stamina and skill and compensated these critical competencies with absolute stupidity convoluted on andrenaline. I was sprinting just to keep pace with the other swimmers as we swam away from the shore line.

To describe my swim, I can compare it only to a run, where you sprint out in sheer madness for a 10 K race only to stop at 100 metres to catch your breath. Well I was catching my breath 100 m from the shoreline, having drank water, panicking and sinking into the water like a leaking canoe, there was nothing there to stand on, except, a sudden drop into the base of this lagoon.. I saw the marker as I struggled to breath in air and water .. it indicated 4 m. I sank in again and I realized, this time I may just drown. I will not forget this moment for at that momentous point, my son, my girl and my wife flashed across my mind. I had to stay calm and I knew that the sea will take me in if I panicked even more, I struggled up again and drank in more water, until I started to tread. I swam towards the shore until I could feel the sand below my feet. I looked in front, perplexed and relived as the other swimmers have already swam away and were on their way back. I was the only guy at the back. Made a decision to just swim slowly to complete this training session. No one knew what happened that day, as I became the last guy to come out of the water and rode my bike for 30K. I had a young boy who rode behind me. Finished the ride in good time and ran the 5 K distance slowly.

It felt good to finish a training session and I rewarded myself with an upgrade on my bike with asesories that cost me $1500. I took a cab back that day from Sentosa, and I also realised I was spared that sunday morning. I nearly drowned on that fateful day.

2 Good Bike mechanics

I have been riding a racing bike ever since I was 21. Between then and now, I have ridden 3 bikes, the latest being the Leader frame I am using now. For over 12 years I have also visited practically most of the bicycle shops in Singapore. There is Ah Boon in Changi, who will only want talk to you if you are willing to spend 5 grand at his shop. If you have not parted with at least a fair bit of yr bonus he will think twice before even fitting a speedo on your bike. I think the cyclists in Singapore who ride Orbea will know him.

Then again you have Jerome and Jasni, two bike mechanics I found at TEFbikes shop at Thomson road. These are the two chaps who fixed my bike. I knew Jerome from way back in Bedok when I new him as a family friend. Not many guys would have made sacrifices like him. He worked right after school so that his elder brother could make it through to the University. He fixed my Cadex when I entered the powerman race in 2004. And every time he leaves one bike shop for another, I will track him down so that I can get him to fix my bike. He is fit too and he rides very well.

Jasni and Jerome from TEFbikes

Well, Jasni was involved in getting my Bike fixed and he did a very good job at it. I asked him to cut my bull horns and he hesitated. He did not go ahead with it even after 4 days when my bike was left at his shop. I was so glad he did not cut it. For today, I rode the new frame for 60Km and it flew. My speed was in the range of 28km/hr to 35km/hr and I was able to maintain my aero position for 60 % of the distance, from Punggol to Pasir ris, Changi Vilage, Coastal rd, Fort road and back to Punggol again. A morning ride that started at 7.30 am in the morning ended at 9.30 am when I was able to get back home.

Both Jasni and Jerome come without any airs, much to say about Wilson (owner) too. A decent chap and ex cyclist who will do the right job for your bike irregardless of who you are. Not your Ah Boon or Ah Tan, the famed conster who sold Italian Sammochini frames in the 1990's and we all know the only thing Italian about that frame was the sticker. More importantly, both of them are riders too. You don't need to part with a bug or two to be treated well here. These guys are genuine and I respect both of them for what they have done for my bike. Cycling is something that I do that is close to my heart and these guys did a great job in piecing my frame and bike parts together. In finding TEFbikes, I found good folks I can say are also now my friends. I will vouch for these two guys anytime.