My first major crash off my bike

Since it's plastered all over FB, here's the story to follow the pictures.

This was a week after the Singapore marathon, in Bintan to cycle the Tour de Bintan stage 1 route.  Distance for the day : 156km, so go at your own comfortable pace.  My plan was slow and easy since I caught the flu, plus post-marathon muscle aches.  So I was usually a distance behind the front pack - mostly alone or nearby Corrinna/Gracie - roughly the same speed.

This was perhaps 80km mark, about half way through the ride.  I remember we had just restarted after a short break, so the front van wasn't in front yet.  It was a quiet part of town when a motorcycle appear alongside me and I felt a hand on my right breast.  I only recall yelling at him and the next thing I knew, I was lying on the floor, a pool of blood forming at my chin.  I looked up and tried to yell at Corinna/Gracie (perhaps 60-70m in front) in vain.  In the meantime, I just lay there staring at the blood pool grow increasingly bigger until Clarence came along.  Then James and Sin appeared, then the van appeared.  The driver - a great guy called Ah Hui first took us to a rather dodgy looking clinic but was told we needed stitches, so we detoured to the Bintan Naval hospital where I had my jaw X-rayed and the gash stitched. Thankfully Hooi Yen was with me since she speaks Malay and so I wasn't alone through it all.  I asked her to watch everything to ensure new needles/etc. and she watched like a hawk, though at times I can hear her wincing - think quite gory during stitching.

Injury list - gash on my chin (3 stitches to close it), a grazed/bruised left cheekbone, cuts on my upper lip, a sore jaw (not broken), 7 fractured teeth, bruised wrists (left side still hurts), bruises on my right knee.   Guess I got away lucky, could have been far worse.  Speedier's injury - deep scratches on pedals & on right side shifter.  Nothing major visibly elsewhere.  For a bike that has never fallen - poor Speedier has now endured 3 (1 tragic, 1 SPD and 1 slip) - sorry baby!

That axxhxxx pervert went on to grope Corrinna so hard, she was sore and traumatized.  Thank God she didn't fall off her bike.

Despite the awful fall, a lot of people were really kind.  I was most blessed.  From Ah Hui our driver who was so worried, to the fantastic nurse Hendrik who stitched me up good, to the fellow cyclists - who were really nice.  James/Sin who were with me at the hospital.  Hooi Yen who stayed with me and saw them stitch the wound - that's gross!  Zi who wanted to shower me and regurgitate food for me and resisted sarcastic comments for that day.  Simon who wanted to cook me breakfast at Bintan, brought Speedier home for me, washed him, fixed up his bent dropbar and then brought him back to me.

 

It has been 12 days now the healing continues, jaw still has limited mobility while the roots of the fractured teeth needs to heal more before the dentist can do crowning.  So the dull throbbing of the face and the achy wrists continues.

Part 2 - I got back on the bike last night.  It was wobbly.  The more fearful you are of falling, the more wobbly you get.  While waiting for the others, I thought I should practise my clipping since my shoes/cleats are new.  Despite the bike leaning on a lamp post & my right hand holding onto that damn lamp post : fall no.1 of the night.  Kahhoe loosened my cleat tension after that, and we set off.  At the NSRCC gate, again I was afraid clearing the dirt path & somehow the wheel came parallel to the kerb, slipped and again I was on the floor.  Sitting there rubbing a really sore left palm, I was totally unnerved.  I sat there with 4 fellow cyclists just waiting - I must say that's very comforting.  No choice, need to exorcise the ghosts, I cycled scared and wobbly all the way to Shell petrol kiosk uneventfully.  Concerned faces asked if I wanted to skip Selarang hill and return via Loyang.  But it was a night of war -  I had to face my fears.  I'm glad I did, the return ride gave me back the joy of riding & a little confidence.

And in all things, bless God.  I am thankful that I got to see kindness and my injuries aren't serious to cause lasting damage.

Merry Christmas and a great start to 2012!

During this happy season of Christmas, Elmo & Rae finally visited Singapore!  They were here for a whirlwind 3 day tour of Singapore.   I am proud to say, they spent a lot of $ here (a boost to our economy) and they loved Matty (who wouldn't?)!

This year we skipped our traditional midnight mass for Christmas day morning mass with Matty!  He was good (mostly) for the mass.  

On the downside - during this season,  my teeth/jaw really ached for days.  I'm trying to get a dentist to see me soon (like today!).  I'm tired of the dull throbbing!

Also my lousy cousin has yet to call me back on the travel insurance.  Not pleased yet she's family and I can't do anything but to grin and bear - ok bad pun.  





Cute how I use Matty's happy and sad photos to highlight my point.  I'm so creative!  Clap clap! (Self applause always works on your own blogsite!)

Looking back on 2011

Looking back, it has not been too bad a year.  If anything, it's been quite a rollercoaster ride all year.

On the jobfront, I rested for a while, started and restarted at 2 different places.

On the friendship front, I continued to be traumatized by Moo and then later on Derek.  With both I feel I really tried - especially with Derek.  But in every relationship it has to be mutual, both have to want to fix it to work.  In Monica's case, this has sadly never been the case through the years.  But she's now  happily in a relationship and I wish her every blessing from Him. 

I'm going to just go easy from here on.  I know it sounds awful, but if you don't extend too much of yourself, there is going to be less fallout when things go awry.  If you overextend, then fall out, perhaps it might be better that you weren't even close enough to be in a position to fall out?  My new strategy.  Be cold(er).

My old friends has been great though.  Bearing through the good and bad times together.  I truly appreciate and pray for them.

On the sports front.  It was a good year where the invested time and effort paid off (unlike with human relationships).  I took part in a herculean effort of 6 events : Singapore Duathlon, OCBC cycle, Passion Run 25km, Adidas Sundown Marathon, Army Half-Marathon and the Singapore Marathon. Am pretty pleased with the timing I clocked, especially the personal-best timings in both marathons.  I made 2 dive trips : Sipadan live-on-board where we had a manta ray dive with us and a refresher dive at Palau Aur after 5 years of not being in Mersing waters.  My cycling has made great  progress too, extending to a new Cervelo carbon bike.  Alas, I also finally fell off the bike in a big way causing damage that has not yet gone away (a chin gash requiring stitches and a mouthful of fractured teeth).  Nontheless, considering the distances & places I went to M'sia and Indonesia, and the calculated probability of falling, I'm very blessed.  Through this accident, I got to see the kindness of friends, family and even strangers.

On family.  I've never been closer especially after the accident.  Mom and I are much better as long as Matty is around.  I can't ask for more.  Thanks Jesus.

My targets for 2012 :
1. Focus on work - specifically my new job.
2. Stay close to family.
3. Stop acquiring too many friends, lest life gets complicated.  Return to the loner (that I am anyways).
4. Do less events this year : perhaps these 5 Singapore Duathlon, Sundown Half-marathon, GoldCoast Marathon, Army Half Marathon, Standard Chartered Marathon.
5. Travel a little more.  First country : Taiwan.  Perhaps US next?

Starting anew in the last days of 2011

I started at Green Wave Reality today.

Got a small desk right in front of the MD's office.  Great, talk about being in front of the lion's den.  He seems nice though, hardly talks, very recticent compared to the rest of the management staff.  I like the other 2 directors - very straight forward, nice folks.  Unpolitical. 

But then again, I liked Motorola and I even liked Katherine from Seagate in the first weeks.  So perhaps, I should reserve judgement for a couple of weeks.

I declined 3 lunch invites from the new co-workers.  Yeah yeah, anti-social from go!  I still need soft foods and just didn't want to manage that plus make small talk... I really hate small talk besides.

Maybe tomorrow. 

My boss is in the US, I like that.  And he's on Xmas break already.  Fantastic!  Haha.. Great time to join!

It's December already?

This year is pretty eventful.  I toggled from unemployment to being an aunt (I love you Matty) to breaking into a new office environment in Seagate, to finding a new job and in between cycling like mad and also running long lonely miles!

So in a couple of hours, I will be running my second marathon this year.  On reflection, I realize my last Standard Chartered marathon was in 2005 and that was my first ever marathon!  It took me like 6 painful hours to finish!  I hope to do better tomorrow.  More importantly, I just want to have fun this race.  Enjoy it and finish strong.  With God's grace and His strength, I will succeed!

I would also like to pray for my friends who are also racing in the Standard Chartered race this year.  Thanks for running with me this year : Manly, Jo (my best buddies), Peter, Alex, Hooi Yen, Simon, Kah Hoe.  Run like Nike (the Greek god, not the sports brand!).

Ode to Speedy

Finally sold Speedy last night.  Which was in itself both a relief and yet a sad moment. 

Thank you Speedy - you taught me so much!  From pedaling technique to how to cycle in a paceline, how to draft safely, how to fall comically... So much memories, from max speed of 26km/h (bringing Speedy back to Rodalink to find out why I'm so slow!), to being able to draft at 40km/h all the way from Changi to ECP F2!

Since I bought the Cervelo (Speedier) and the ensuing bike woes, I've had a list of components to sell off due to modifications for Speedier.  I have since sold off, one by one - seatpost, rear hub, seat, and the dropbar.  All's that left are the spokes/nipples which I will pass to Zi.

Still need to sell Speedy's Ultegra wheelset, which should be an easy sell.

Perfect.  I am glad.  Thank you God.

Here's some pictures of my beautiful Speedy (to be honest, I am glad my new bike isn't white - wiping and cleaning is easier after each ride).  Still Speedy is so white, he's gorgeous!

2 weeks to Standard Chartered Marathon!

12 Tips to a Terrific Taper

http://completerunning.com/archives/2007/04/25/12-tips-to-a-terrific-taper/

Springtime is here, and with it come a multitude of spring marathons. If you’re closing in on an upcoming marathon, your actions during the final two weeks before the race are crucial to your performance. From that point on, it’s all about the taper.

 

Tapering is a period of “active rest” when your body recovers from all those weeks of hard training. It’s a delicate balance between running and resting that brings you to the starting line fresh and ready to go.

 

The process is tricky. If you run too much, you’ll be overly tired on the starting line. If you rest too much, you won’t feel sharp on race day, and may not run as effectively as possible.

 

In other words, there are lots of ways to screw things up. So here’s a list of suggestions that have worked for me, to help you maximize your chance of race day success.

 

1. No more long runs: Your final long run should be no less than 14 days before the marathon. If you’ve missed some of your scheduled long runs, it’s too late to make up for it now. Anything above 15 miles now will most likely hurt your performance on race day.
2. Cut back the mileage: Decrease your total weekly mileage by about 40 percent starting two weeks out. During race week, reduce your overall mileage by at least 60 percent. For example, a runner whose weekly training mileage peaked at 60 miles should run 36 miles the week before race week, and no more than 25 in race week. During the last four days before the marathon, don’t do any runs of more than three miles. If you’d rather take the last two days completely off, that’s OK too. Don’t worry about mileage during race week—you’ll get your fill on Sunday morning.
3. Maintain the intensity: Even though you are cutting back on your mileage, it’s important to maintain the intensity of these workouts. Run at close to marathon pace, so your body is accustomed to the effort level you will demand during the race.
4. Avoid the hills: Don’t run any hills during race week—it helps your legs recover more quickly. It’s just like with the mileage: you’ll get plenty of hills on race day.
5. Choose your weapons: Decide what clothes you will wear on race day. Pick comfortable shoes, socks, and running clothes that you’ve already worn on a long training run. DON’T wear anything new on marathon day, unless you want to have a graphic chafing story to tell your family about afterwards.
6. Gain a few—but not a lot: Since you are running less, pay close attention to your diet. It’s normal to gain a few pounds as your muscles stockpile the glycogen they will need during the race. But gaining more than five pounds will make you feel heavy and sluggish. Eat a bit less than usual, with well-balanced meals, and don’t start any fad diets.

 

Remember, carbo loading doesn’t mean overloading. The night before the race, just eat a regular sized meal with a higher percentage of carbohydrates than usual. On race morning, eat a small portion of a bagel, banana, or oatmeal to top off your tank—but don’t load your stomach to the brim. Twenty-six miles is a long way to run with a stomach cramp.

 

Wake up early: If you’re not accustomed to running in the morning, try a couple of morning runs, so your body gets a taste of exercising at that time of day. Marathon start times are frequently at 7 a.m.—and if you’ve never run at that hour, it can be a bit of a shock. You might as well get it over with prior to race morning.

 

Eliminate extra activities: If you do any cross training activities, don’t do them during race week. Don’t do any unusual activities that might cause muscle soreness afterwards. This isn’t the time to catch up on housework or repair projects. If you have extra time on your hands, just get more rest or take a nap instead.

 

(I know this rule isn’t popular with spouses, but I’ll take the heat on this one. Tell your spouse I said so, and he or she can write me an angry e-mail instead of venting at you. After the race, however, you’re on your own.)

 

Cut your toe nails: Do it five or six days before the race. Trust me on this one.

 

Be paranoid: It’s fairly common for runners to get minor illnesses while tapering, so stay away from sick people. Wash your hands after touching anybody. Just make like Howard Hughes for a couple of weeks, and you’ll be assured of staying healthy.

 

Visualize success: The mental side of marathon running is extremely important. Beginning today, picture yourself running relaxed and strong, and having a great race. Repeat this scenario each day. Be confident in your ability to succeed!

 

Enjoy yourself: Yes, you should take the precautions above, but don’t get so overwhelmed with worry that you forget to enjoy the experience. Think of how far you’ve come in your training, and resolve to have a great time on race day.

 

And then all that’s left is to go out and do it!

This has been quite a slog year

Just received an email from Runkeeper congratulating me for accomplishing 1000km.  This includes some cycling and really I have not been too diligent about logging every event. 

Nontheless, it is probably fair to say that 2011 has been way more active than the last couple of years combined. 

Clap clap!

I'm friggin running to...morrow

First chance to catch SEA Games live! Run tomorrow morning la!

OTG - is the air fresher?

Did you watch Terra Nova?  They had gone back in time to when the Earth is not polluted, but needed to stay within guarded city walls against dinosaurs and wildlife.  OTG is a reference to life outside of these gates. 

And that's where I am heading.  Outside the safe gates of a big MNC.  I've been in big corporations and I do admit I like my company big.  But I could not resist this small startup.  Drawn to the brains and vision like the tune of Piep Piper.  And I already feel an affinity with this company after finding out that the CEO is the same guy who founded the consumer notebook team in HP where I was based for 3 years.

So truly all I can say is He is good!  And his timing impeccable.  This way, I can now focus on my marathon since I start over at Terra Nova mid Dec.  Perfect.

You rock God, I am in awe of You.  Amen, amen amen!

I am full...

Bought 3 curry puffs from Serangoon Gardens hawker center.  As usual, this office is full of dieters.  No one wanted any. I ate 2 & was so done - begged a guy to eat the last one.  Still warm and crispy yet no one wanted any?

Had a great Indian meal with my colleagues.  Washed down with masala tea.  Then OD-ed on excessive sugar - I doubt I will ever develop a taste for Indian sweets.

Came back to work on a full satisfied belly.

Someone gave me a slice of birthday cake.  Ate it.

Jin bought me my fave soft tapioca kuih.  Gobbled it down.

Right now, I can barely even drink water.

And I wonder why my marathon training is not effective in weight loss.  *shrug*

It's a long weekend!  Where's my Katy Perry Friday song?

LOVE, FAITH, AND RITUAL - RON ROLHEISER, OMI

2011-10-30

It's not easy to sustain love, at least not with constant emotional fervor. Misunderstandings, irritations, tiredness, jealousies, hurt, temperamental differences, the familiarity that breeds contempt, and simple boredom invariably chip away at our emotional and affective edges and, soon enough, fervor gives way to routine, the groove becomes the rut, and love seems to disappear.

But we can easily misread this.

First off, just because the surface of a relationship seems clouded with misunderstanding, irritation, and hurt doesn't mean we don't love each other. Love sits at a place beneath the ebb and flow of irritation and boredom. You can be willing to die for someone, even as at that very moment you are seething with anger at him or her.   

John Shea, in the brilliant series of homilies published through Liturgical Press, gives us a wonderful example of this. He shares the story of a woman who took in her aging mother to help her while she was recovering from a stroke. The daughter was painstakingly attentive to her mother's every need; yet, at a point, a dreadful fight broke out - over a trivial incident regarding a hard-boiled egg. In the middle of their war of words, the mother asked her daughter: "Why are you doing all of this for me anyway?"

Her daughter responded by listing her reasons: "I was afraid for her; I wanted to get her well; I felt maybe I'd ignored her when I was younger. I needed to show her I was strong. I needed to get her ready to go home alone; old age, and on and on. I was amazed myself. I could have gone on giving reasons all night. Even she was impressed.

"Junk, "she said when I was done.

"Junk?" I yelled. Like, boy, she'd made a real mistake with that remark.

"Yes, junk," she said again, but a little more quietly. And that little more-more-quiet tone got me.  And she went on: "You don't have to have all those reasons. We love each other. That's enough."

Irritation, anger, and boredom within a relationship do not necessarily mean that love has died, as this story illustrates. Love rests at a deeper place. But how do we touch that place inside less-than-idyllic feelings?

We do it through ritual. Our lives together within every kind of community are sustained by small and big rituals that keep us together, keep us respectful, and let us wait in patience throughout the ups and downs of shared life. For example; sometimes we greet each other with real warmth and sometimes our greetings barely mask our irritation or boredom. But, we still greet each other. Saying "Good morning" is a ritual act, an important one. It says that we love and care for each other, even when that isn't exactly what we may be feeling on a given day.  That's also true of the perfunctory peck on the cheek as we greet or say goodbye, the ritual hug, the sign of peace in our churches, and (especially) our commitment to sit down with each other at regular times for meals and other get-to-gathers. These are important rituals that say with our action and our commitment what our feelings sometimes cannot say, namely: "I love you! I'm here for you, even when we are both too tired, too over-familiar with each other, too pre-occupied and busy, and too irritated by our differences to feel much fervor in our love at this moment." Ritual speaks for love, even as it needs always to be undergirded by love.

The same holds true for faith.  In faith, just as in love, there is a surface and there is an undergirding. The deeper reality is in the undergirding and we should be prepared for lots of shifting ground on the surface.

In our faith journey, there will be moments of fervor, of emotional warmth, of warm security; but there will also be periods, long periods, sometimes bitter ones, where on the surface we will feel only dryness, boredom, a sense of God's absence, and perhaps even a positive distaste for the things of God and faith. This doesn't necessarily mean we lack effort or that we are suffering in our faith from the familiarity that breeds contempt. We can, as Chesterton classically suggested, try to look at things familiar until they look unfamiliar again, but that won't, as the mystics assure us, always cure the problem.

Faith, like love, needs to be sustained through ritual, through ritual acts that let our commitment and our action say what we cannot always say in our words and our feelings. And our faith tradition provides these rituals for us: reading the scriptures, participating in the Eucharist, praying the office of the church, praying the rosary, praying from various kinds of prayer books, sitting in silent centering prayer, and, most important of all, simply showing up regularly for church. All of these say what the woman whose story we shared said to her daughter: Beneath all this, we love each other. That's enough!

*****

I guess I can't complain today that God ignores me all the time.  Well not today at least.

This message is pointedly too direct for me.  Let me explain :

Prior to Deepavali, we had some growing tension with a friend, let's call him P.  On Deepavali's early morning climbing session, P flipped out and had a mini-meltdown because we had gone to breakfast without him and somehow missed his SMSs (he had wanted breakfast too).  He threw a huge hissy fit at us.

Because I was already unhappy with him prior to that, when he started yelling in a very belligerent tone, I walked away. 

So yes, I was upset, I felt P was rude, inconsiderate, only had himself in his mind.  But yet, beneath the misunderstandings, suspicions and accusations, yes, there is love amongst us.  Sigh...

Happy birthday! Now please give blood?

It's day 1 of November.

National Blood Bank sent me a text message wishing me a happy birthday and that a good birthday idea is to donate blood on that day itself.

Hmmm...  No!

Happy All Saints Day!

It's All Saints Day again!

Glad to be able to celebrate this day in Singapore where there are masses held all day (morning, noon and evening).

Maybe Michy is right afterall.  That I am very rooted to Singapore despite me not feeling so.  I always thought I am born Singaporean but global citizen.

I picked to go Our Lady of Lourdes (the church in Little India), then swung by for my Indian fix. 

Satisfying - spirtually and bellifully.

Most painful run this season...

My farthest distance this season (Stanchart training).  Ran with Kah Hoe & Simon and so had to keep pace with the 2 guys - pushed me to a faster pace than my usual lazy pace. 

First 10km - 1.14
Second 10km - 1.12
Last 10km - 1.25

Running with these 2 wasn't too bad.  Pushed me onto a good training session.  And there were perks : Kahhoe gave me a banana before the start while, Simon was a true gentlemen.  Gamely cleared the way with the aunty contingent near the Treetop walk sections & chivalrously ran ahead of me when there were monkeys in our path.

And I love Macritchie this time of year.  It's soooo cool and the air smells fantastic.  Some stretches were so picture perfect, I wanted to stop to give thanks to God.

That last 5km was painful.  My calves and shoulders ached like hell, yet amazingly my ITB was perfectly fine.  I need to visit Big John again, sometime this week.

Washing up at the Visitor Center afterwards, I was absolutely knackered and overheard some veterans chatting (I assume MR25 runners) about some of them still on their 100km run.  My wobbly legs almost gave way... 100km means 10 loops of Macritchie hills/rocky terrain and upslopes.  I am impressed.  姜还是老的辣！

Omigoodinuts - that really hurts!

Followed Zi to a sports masseur called Big John.

Innocently, I sat there and said, I have 1. ITB & 2. my lower back right-side hurts. 

After that, it was all a blur of pain.  I don't recall too much other than the fact that he made me scream "stop" more than once.  Before John, I have probably only ever stopped a masseur perhaps once ever (excellent & very strong masseur in Taipei). 

Big John found "waste crystals" deposits in my shin muscles - then rubbed very hard to "pop" them... Ow, ow!

Hopefully the pain goes away by Sunday morning cos I need to clock 32km under my revised plan.  (I felt the version 1 didn't build up and taper well enough towards the later weeks).

Question is where to run this Sunday? 
Macritchie - been rainy, so it'll be messy inside. 
East Coast - entire Fort Road to NSRCC unavailable due to Newton Run
Changi Beach Park - CV to end of Coastal Road loop ~ 19km but, uncertain of water points/toilets. 

Drawn...

Like Pied Piper of Hamelin's tune, I have been listening to the CEO talk and totally blown away by the brains.  In fact, the entire company.

I pray and surrender to Christ's overall plan.  But still excited by being around so many smart people.  It has been a while.  Sadly...

Starting off the week on a good note

Returned from a Batam cycling weekend sore and sunburnt - but it was really fun. 

On that note, I started Monday morning driving mom to Ian/Michelle's place where she resumes her grandma duties after being on holiday in Europe the last 2 weeks.

Mich had made marble cake over the weekend (while clutching Matty to her hip - skillful mummy skills!).  I had a big slice and coffee while holding a rather squirmy Matty.

Very nice.  Love the kid

My old job

Just saw on Monster.com the job I had while at Motorolo.  I wonder what happened in the almost 1 year since I left.  Did Panda (codename for the 2way radio I was preparing for launch) ship on time with the new ODM?

I have been back in Singapore 1 year and 3 months.  Sitting here and thinking back, I do have a list of blessings.  And if I nit-pick and skip counting the material things then I still have family & friendships, and Matty. 

I miss Matty, been 3 days since I last saw him...

Some calming words

Copied this off a link from Alex "hur hur hur" Ang's Facebook account this morning :

People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway."
— Mother Teresa

Serves as a good reminder for me because I've been increasingly annoyed with the running program leading up to the year end marathon.  It's hard enough as it is to motivate yourself to do those long runs.  When people around you hold you back or keep you from doing what you need to do - it's got me flustered.  So yeah, good reminder, that "in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway".  I will let it all go.  Ommmssss....

Everyday I'm Shuffling...

The global economy is starting to head south... Companies are freezing headcounts.  Suddenly no more interviews.  It's harder to keep going mentally, feeling the toil take effect increasingly.

Now on the Cervelo.  After the cheapskate in me realized that I had already paid $250 in GST non-refundable, I decided to keep the bike.  Eventually I accepted the 150pounds Evans Bikes gave me as compensation.  To add mistake upon mistake, I trusted Soon Watt to remedy my missing hub cap problem.  Mave at Soon Watt (probably on seeing the Cervelo) took the opportunity to sharpen his knives and sold me high end hubs - a pair of it, when all I needed was front hub.  And I paid labour of almost $100 to prepare the bike (adjust brakes/align the gears) and he did not even do a good job.  I've now placed a bunch of components on Togoparts, hopefully God blesses me with ready demand so I can recoup the $ lost.

SO, the question everyone wants to know.  How does it feel on the Cervelo?  I must say it is very responsive, quick acceleration is something I now can do, climbs are also easier - all due to 650c wheels.  Yet, I can't maintain speed on the straights.  Not sure why.  The minute I ease off the gas (e.g. air pedal), it decclerate rapidly.  Strange.  On my last ride, I actually slowed to 25-28km/h returning along Coastal Road.  A big drop from my usual at least 31-33km/h on my old clunky Rodalink.

I've only done 2 rides on the Cervelo.  But it's now been bike-fitted and all, not sure why there is no speed increment.  Or have I been expecting too much?

It's lunch.  Turned my colleagues down for lunch - not in mood for small talk.  Will just grab a quick bite in solitude. 

Typical.  It's always a dog's life.  Why does fortune not smile on me?  天啊!

Inactivity & inability

I have not cycled nor run all week!

And I have yet to please my boss with a positioning slide she wanted. I'm still unsure of the intended audience & purpose of it. I'm going to cover EVERYTHING now. Do it up covering every damn angle. She can pick & choose.

Most of all, my Cervelo is in pieces literally.

Arghh! What a horrid week.

Lessons From Geese on team work

Lessons From Geese was transcribed from a speech given by Angeles Arrien at the 1991 Organizational Development Network and was based on the work of Milton Olson.

Fact 1: As each goose flaps its wings, it creates an “uplift” for the birds that follow. By flying in a “V” formation, the whole flock adds 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew alone.
Lesson: People who share a common direction and sense of community can get where they are going quicker and easier because they are traveling on the thrust of each other.

Fact 2: When a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of flying alone. It quickly moves back into formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.
Lesson: If we have as much sense as a goose, we stay in formation with those headed where we want to go. We are willing to accept their help and give our help to others.

Fact 3: When the lead bird tires, it rotates back into the formation to take advantage of the lifting power of the bird immediately in front of it.
Lesson: It pays to take turns doing the hard tasks and sharing leadership. As with geese, people are interdependent on each other’s skills, capabilities, and unique arrangements of gifts, talents, or resources.

Fact 4: The geese flying in formation honk to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.
Lesson: We need to make sure our honking is encouraging. In groups where there is encouragement, the production is much greater. The power of encouragement (to stand by one’s heart or core values and to encourage the heart and core values of others) is the quality of honking we seek.

Fact 5: When a goose gets sick, wounded, or shot down, two geese drop out of formation and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with it until it dies or is able to fly again. Then, they launch out with another formation or catch up with the flock.
Lesson: If we have as much sense of geese, we will stand by each other in difficult times as well as when we’re strong.

Vroom! Formula One is a huge rush!

I attended last year's Formula One race thanks to Vivi.

This year, thanks to Zi, I got to experince the huge VROOOM of the F1 cars up close and personal.

We even had dinner (she bought!) before the race started.

Thank you Zi.  Fantastic tickets : Pandang grandstands, just by the the concert area, and the tickets comes with free food/drinks!  Awesome!

She's somewhat knowledgeable about F1, so I can ask my duh questions (need to endure the 'Fel!' yells and the dramatized roll of eyeballs though).  And Zi - Toyota used to race in Formula One!  Right until 2009! 

To top off a fantastic night, Linkin Park played right after the race ended with Sebastian Vittel winning this year's race.

Unbelievably awesome night.

Elephantic Epiphany

It was a dark cloudy night.

We just turned out onto Coastal Road, I settled into a steady 32km/h with my best friends behind me. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw the shadow of an elephant.

I accelerate to 34km/h, definitely an elephant's shadow.

I dig in, 35km/h, elephant comes into view on my right.

The entire elephant, trunk triumphantly up, appears.  Prooot!

I was eating elephant dust.

Disappointed with self, I descended back to an earthly 32km/h.

A thought forms...

Just what does it takes to keep up with a flying elephant?  Is it technology or is it me?

Only 1 way to find out.

Stay tuned.

Good weekend

Saturday

Morning - nice climb with the gals.  Also nice that Belle is back climbing cos we get to use her sui-sui black rope to lead on :)  And I mustered up the blue route without hang-dogging.  Can't ask for more.

Afternoon - half hour nap then met up with Garin & Vinny.  Would've been just like old times, except Garin brought his wife and kid in tow.

Then I swung around to the 6pm Novena.  And that was really good.  I had not been going to Saturday Novenas in a long time. The church was very crowded, yet, some folks left midway through and I managed to get a seat next to a very nice lady who shared her booklet (forgot to take mine out of car) so I didn't have to strain my brains to recall the words to the hymns.  

Evening - bought Popeye's fried chicken & 贡茶bubble tea, then popped by Ian/Michelle's for dinner.  I love Matty - he's so cute!

Sunday

Woke up at 2am thinking it's already 6am.  Blasted bubble tea!  By the time I had to wake up for our usual morning run, I probably slept 3 hours - groan!  Peter picked us both up and we did 16km of Macritchie hills.  Today, Peter ran faster than both Zi & I!  I know - what happened right?  I created a monster.  Yeah - proud of it too :)  Franken-Peter.

It was not a particularly fast run, I felt tired towards the end and could not do the sprint to the finish with Zi (sigh!) but since it's my first long run since the AHM, it was a great start.

Getting home, I managed a short nap before rushing out to mass (sorry Lord, a little late) at St Mary of the Angels.  Afterwards, I dropped by Pa's niche for a bit.  Sorry Pa, it's been a while.  I lit 6 candles from the family including Matty for the grandpa he never had a chance to know.  Sob!  One day in heaven, we will all be reunited.

I'm now very full!  I ate lunch & dinner within 6 hours with just a nap in between!  

As I sit down to prepare the messenging matrix Katherine wanted, I notice that the show-off Danny did it up for China - and it is so different from what I had in mind.  And she replied to say yes, but repeat the same for all the other countries.  Eh?  Should not our messenging be same through Asia Pac (hell, worldwide ideally!).  This is so hard.  I can't predict what's in my boss's head.

Perhaps I should've gone cycling after all.  Feel so frustrated every time I think of work : my inability to predict what's in my boss's head is killing me.

I want a husband/driver

Recently a friend wrote on her FB wall that she wanted a wife/cook to prepare her recovery foods from her crazy racing schedule.  You rock, Manly - 3rd place at Megatri! 

So I want a husband/driver so I can read/think in the car.  I find I think best in the car, unfortunately, it occasionally interferes in the tedium like watching out for traffic or needing to stop at traffic lights.  To that grey car who I had to cut in front of abruptly to make my turn, sorry!

Yes, either implement those self-driving highways that the Germans and Californians have been testing forever (now even Google has jumped in these tests)  ; Or, a driver will be nice so I can safely ponder my game plan on how to find market size for a restore/recovery software intended to boost hard drive sales.  Hmm...

After the AHM, comes the....

And as always, the AHM marks the beginning of training for the Stanchart marathon. 

My motivation in doing Stanchart marathon was to stay fit & have fun at it, since I already did the Sundown marathon - which satisfied the whole rigamole of training and then running to a plan.

I did not even intended to do up a training plan, until Peter pressed me for the plan last night.  He wanted to know what my plan since he intended to run with me.

Now that I have the plan mapped out, the mileage intimidates me.

So as requested, I sent this plan to Peter via FB message and he replied with 3 simple words "ok, no problem.". 

Really?  I wish I had the same confidence.  I think I'll skip the opener run, and do 20km this Sunday.

Emotions & Jesus

Matt 14:22 to 33 - The Walking on the Water.

Then he made the disciples get into the boat and precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.  After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone.  Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.

During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified. “It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.

At once [Jesus] spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”

Peter said to him in reply, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.

But when he saw how [strong] the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”  Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

After they got into the boat, the wind died down. Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.”

This was a passage given to us during last weekend's retreat by Father Vaz.  I feel too much of late, insecurities, work frustrations, anxiety, nervousness... I have let fear overcome me - much as the disciples did, to the extent of failing to recognize Jesus (it is a ghost, they had exclaimed) & sinking into the water.

Refocus I must.  My peace and calm is in the Lord.  Deep breaths!

Implications of HP selling of it's PC business

My initial thoughts was wow, Taiwan & Singapore economies are going to be affected...

Here's the expert's analysis:
http://www.eetasia.com/ART_8800649877_499489_NT_e6a6bc24.HTM

Currently I am wondering how this affects Seagate drives and how I can push this as good news...  Hmm..

Change - the only real constant

First Google (who denied ever wanting to be in the hardware business forever) suddenly acquired Motorola mobile.

Next HP's CEO (who was asked to leave from SAP due to poor performance) announced plans to sell off/spin off PSG and to kill off tablets running WebOS (which was purchased at a ridiculously high price from the Palm acquisition).

And today, Steve Jobs retires from Apple.

What a week!

Overnight, Motorola is hip again, HP steps towards impending doom and Apple could run dry of ideas soon?

I love the IT industry, woot!  (not).

A daily struggle

Romans 7:15

What I do, I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate.

Now if I do what I do not want, I concur that the law is good.  So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh. The willing is ready at hand, but doing the good is not.

For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want.  Now if [I] do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 

So, then, I discover the principle that when I want to do right, evil is at hand.

What do you need in a job?

What do you ask for in a job? $, a good & fair manager (a mentor), a role you enjoy, nice teammates, good company.

I am now aware of what I want in an ideal state.

Counting my blessings on a Monday morning

Been feeling "yeesh" for quite a while.  The last 3 Sunday sermons were really good at SFX, really like Fr Bosco and yesterday we had Fr Eugene Vaz himself.  Wow!

So I will take their advice and focus on the good things I have, to be grateful for the blessings I have been given.

In no special order
- family.  Being back and with family I can appear before in 10mins for dinner is really nice.  Matty is a bonus.  Cousins gave me some recycled clothes last night.  I love family - especially when you stand to gain.

- sports.  Was a little deprived in Taiwan.  Now I have so much sporting events, it's throwing my life out of control.  I recall sitting at a weekday mass and thinking to myself to have to tone down a little.  I love all the opportunities I have, but just need to regain a little more control.  The more important part is having hard-core friends.  Friends equally crazy, possibly more!

- church.  I miss aspects like reading at mass & Fr Cary's fantastic sermons in Taipei.  But today I have my old ministry which forces me to sit and talk/think/dwell on my faith once a week, there's daily masses I can attend within easy access, multiple Sunday masses to attend giving me huge flexibility.

- job.  When I was without, it was really awkward.  Now, while it's not the perfect role, the company is pretty ok and I love that I am 10mins drive away from Ian's house - so I can tabao lunch over and play with Matty for a while.

- Singapore.  There was a time I didn't care whether I lived in the country or not.  Now I have to admit this place is pretty darn liveable, except for the weather and possibly too many foreigners.  On the cusp of national day, I must say this, Majulah Singapura!

Guess what came in the mail?

Surprise 1 :
A fridge magnet, roughly the size of your palm.  Personalized with my name, photo & run times.  Thank you Passion Run organizers for sending me this!  I love it!

Surprise 2 :
So I ordered wheelsets on Tue morning and guess what.  I received an SMS from the friendly neighbourhood postman on Saturday afternoon asking if anyone's home for him to make a delivery.  CRC delivered in 4 days.  Amazing. 

I promptly brought it down to Rodalink.  No more pinched tubes from now on!

Skipped tonight's ride cos I'm tired - chose to nap a little & have dinner with Matty and his parents.

BTW, Matty can flip over from belly to front and vice versa.  Comes complete with sound effects, "eeeeeeeh!".  Simply adorable.

Wheels - good and bad news

Speedy's (my bike's name) back tyre had deflated yet again Monday late in the evening.   I've had the rim tape changed, tyre changed and countless tubes replaced, yet it persistently pinches itself.  Angry!

Had to rush to Rodalink before the ride yesterday, Mickey wasn't on duty, dang.  Herman checked it perfunctorily, pronounced it pinched, then proceeds to pull a new tube in.  I saw red.  Started whining about how many tubes I have spent on this back tyre - enough to have funded an entry level wheelset which is still better than the stock wheels I currently have on.  So Herman was nice enough to offer me a spare wheel while he tried to pinpoint the fault with the errant wheel.  Incidentally that spare wheel is much lighter than my own.  As it turns out, I will need it :)

Just setting off on the ride, I already felt ominously sluggish.  At the end of Coastal Road, I was broken from the peloton by traffic lights.  Dragging the remaining guys behind me, with great effort I chased and slowly closed the gap but it was not until that last steep slope before the Shell petrol kiosk rest stop did I succeed.

On the return, again, I found myself with only JC.  Swinging turns to drag & holding 33-35km/h.  Not sure if I was tired or hungry or the headwinds too much, but I started to see stars - literally.  Fearful of falling off the bike dizzy, yet reluctant to give up the partnership, midway through Coastal Road, I had to give up - gasping at JC to go ahead.

And then like a Godsend, from behind came a train of Weeli dragging Paul, Zi & Roger.  So glad to see them, I immediately joined in the drafting all the way back.

Soon I can practise dragging on my Ultegra wheelset (yeah, I did it finally! Prompted to action by anger that Monday night).  Perhaps swing turns to drag as JC suggests.  I learned last night that drafting is not only mental, but physical!  My legs were burning, I could barely hold myself upright, I was mashing away, forget pedaling technique!  I was so tired, I was dizzy!  Yet the next instance I was back drafting, I could almost immediately recover yet keep their pace.

A new route to work

A colleague just shared a new route to drive to work.  It sounded so convoluted when I first started here that I dismissed it.  But when I heard it again yesterday, I tried it and it really is much smoother - I maintain 50-80km almost all the way, minimal stops.  And it works like a dream both ways - morning and evening rush hour.

The route : Lornie Road, turn off at Braddell towards CTE, turn onto CTE, get off at AMK Avenue 5.  It's strange eh?  Instinctively, if you want expressway, you'd take PIE-CTE ; and if you were eschewing expressways, then it will be Lornie-Marymount-AMK.  This route is a combination of both.  Like hybrid.  Like the hybrid drive I am supposed to market.  Groan.

Hardship trip to Pulau Aur for the weekend

Philip was leaving Dell and wanted a dive trip.  After eliminating various options : no leave, too far, too expensive.. we reduced to 1 destination - Aur/Dayang/Tioman weekend getaway.  Essentially just to clock some underwater mileage.  It was touted as "hardship trip", so everyone else duly backed out.  I felt a little obligated, cos no one else was going to go, and besides since I have not been to Aur/Dayang for at least 5 years, so WTH, hardship diving, here I come!

The journey there was uneventful, Philip and I chatted all the way to Mersing in a comfortable AC coach, we were then transfered onto a boat that had en-masse sleeping pads, everyone could lay down flat, albeit a little squashed.  Since I brought a warm fleece blanket, I could sleep fairly comfortably. 

First instance of 'hardship' was when we were on the little transfer boat to the resort and Philip shone his flashlight into the dark and muttered : staghorn coral.  The tide was really low and the boat was scrapping bottom, we had to jump overboard and wade in, yes, stepping on staghorn coral while carrying our luggage to make it to land.  It was hard cos the coral is uneven and sharp, it was 4am and pitch black, I was wearing long pants and carrying luggage.  While staggering in the 30m into land, I ended up with a cut on my left heel, a deep flapper.  Damnit.

Not sure if the eruption of  Mount Lokon in North Sulawesi was a factor but it was cloudy skies the whole weekend.  Which made for lousy vis.  I barely took any photos.  Instead took the time to practise my kicking underwater, need to learn to fly to chase big creatures.  Truth is, Philip and I hoped for a glimpse of a passing whaleshark - in vain.  Seriously, even if a whale shark did pass us by, the poor vis would have shrouded it!

The highlight of the trip were the doughnuts from the Divers Lodge - served as afternoon tea.  I ate 6 and almost puke the next dive.  Worth it, nontheless.  Actually the food per se, was excellent. 

Or it could also be the time when I let Philip shower first since I was still digging for clean clothes etc.  Now the generator only starts running at 7pm.  I was shampooing in cold water and wondering what time it was, when suddenly the lights and hot water kicked in.  Perfect timing! 

Did we see anything special in the waters of Pulau Aur?  Hmm... actually the marine life and condition of the corals is quite bad.  From my last dive 5-6 years ago, much deteoriation.  The only plus is that the water is cold, 26-27degrees, so hopefully the corals will start to flourish soon.  Bleaching is rather bad at this moment.

Me smirking for the camera

It was not that bad a trip afterall.  Other than some wounds : beside the heel cut - which hurt the whole time since the booties would touch it.  I also cut my right knee while washing gear after the last dive cos my flesh is softened from soaking in the sea.  Also sustained a small bump on the side of head after I was thrown off balance sitting on the boat & struggling to pull my 5mm thick wetsuit on.

Besides that, the transfers were smooth, diving was safe and food was good. 

More pictures : http://www.flickr.com/photos/8062670@N07/sets/72157627220886454/

Mid week rambling

Amazingly I had a pretty hectic week thus far.  Should stop saying this place is slow-paced!  Back to back meetings, then last night was on a conference call til about 12:30 midnight.  This morning back in office at 8am for a quarterly update session.  I need more sleep!

Found myself talking to a HK software vendor just now and he started off the conversation in Mandarin.  Both of us struggled during the conversation.  Wonder why we can't just switch to English since Mandarin is still a foreign language to him.

Cycling.  Reprieve.  Have excuse to go slow tonight since my colleague Jasmin & also CY (he just bought a road bike on Sunday) are coming tonight.  Will need to accompany them cycling within the back pack.  Think I can pretty much volunteer to be sweeper, unless Monica is coming - she'll be slower than them and I will leave  her behind.  Hee hee...

We are all dispensable... really?

You've heard it numerous times over, no one is indispensable in a company.  Especially true during bad times when retrenchments happen.

Yet, once in a while, along comes a person like Rupert Murdoch.  He stood by his editor so much, he closed a 168 year old newspaper?

Sure there's more in it that they reveal, but nontheless, I never expected this outcome.

From the New York times today :

A Tabloid Shame, Exposed by Earnest Rivals

By DAVID CARR

Published: July 10, 2011

In America, newspapers have been seen as an expensive hobby for Mr. Murdoch, the bane of the News Corporation’s shareholders, but as it turns out, the newspapers in Britain may end up being more costly to him in the long run.The phone-hacking scandal that is mushrooming in Britain, with arrests, skullduggery and influence peddling, would be a delicious story for The News of the World if it were not about the newspaper itself. Instead, the hunter became the hunted, and last Thursday Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation summarily slid the 168-year-old News of the World under a double-decker bus. Its final issue was Sunday.

So useful in wielding influence, if not producing revenue, his newspapers are the very thing that brought his company into the cross hairs, and delayed, at least temporarily, his efforts to expand it by gaining full control of British Sky Broadcasting, the largest pay television company in Britain.

Logic and fairness would suggest that it was folly to concentrate so much power in the hands of someone who already controlled many national media assets. So where was the outrage? Well, check who owns the megaphone. The News Corporation has historically used its four newspapers — it also owns The Sun, The Times of London, and The Sunday Times — to shape and quash public debate, routinely helping to elect prime ministers with timely endorsements while punishing enemies at every turn.

Don’t take my word for it. After David Cameron was elected prime minister, one of the first visitors he received at 10 Downing Street was Mr. Murdoch — discreetly through a back entrance — and Mr. Cameron spoke plainly last week about the corrosively close relationship. “The truth is, we’ve all been in this together,” he said.

“The press, the politicians and leaders of all parties.” To which a dumb Yank like me might say, “Duh.”

The only thing Mr. Cameron didn’t do was point to Mr. Murdoch himself. But he didn’t really have to after the tactical ruthlessness of Mr. Murdoch’s familiars was laid bare for all to see.

Newspapers, as anybody will tell you, aren’t what they used to be. Part of the reason that the News Corporation was willing to close down a paper with a circulation of about 2.7 million copies every Sunday was that its revenue was under $1 billion. (The News Corporation’s heir apparent, James Murdoch, has always seemed eager to shed some of the company’s newspapers, though I doubt that putting the nail gun to this paper was what he had in mind.)

Still, how did we find out that a British tabloid was hacking thousands of voice mails of private citizens? Not from the British government, with its wan, inconclusive investigations, but from other newspapers.

Think of it. There was Mr. Murdoch, tying on a napkin and ready to dine on the other 60 percent of BSkyB that he did not already have. But just as he was about to swallow yet another tasty morsel, the hands at his throat belonged to, yes, newspaper journalists.

Newspapers, it turns out, are still powerful things, and not just in the way that Mr. Murdoch has historically deployed them.

The Guardian stayed on the phone-hacking story like a dog on a meat bone, acting very much in the British tradition of a crusading press, and goosing the story back to life after years of dormancy. Other papers, including The New York Times, reported executive and police complicity that gave the lie to the company’s “few bad apples” explanation. As recently as last week, Vanity Fair broke stories about police complicity.

Mr. Murdoch, ever the populist, prefers his crusades to be built on chronic ridicule and bombast. But as The Guardian has shown, the steady accretion of fact — an exercise Mr. Murdoch has historically regarded as bland and elitist — can have a profound effect.

His corporation may be able to pick governments, but holding them accountable is also in the realm of newspaper journalism, an earnest concept of public service that has rarely been of much interest to him.

The coverage last week, on a suddenly fast-moving story that had been moving only in increments, destabilized the ledge that the News Corporation had been standing on. James Murdoch regretted everything and took responsibility for almost nothing. What looked like an opportunity for him to prove his mettle as a manager of crisis might yet engulf him.

Andy Coulson, the former editor of News of the World who became the chief spokesman for Mr. Cameron, has been arrested. And Rebekah Brooks, chief executive of News International and previous editor of The News of the World, responded by saying that it was “inconceivable” that she knew of the hacking

Sunday

Sunday July 10, 2011 was a really fulfilling day.

6am - woke up to run with Peter.  His planned route this week was 1 loop of Mount Faber - hill training!

4:30pm - Matty's baptism.  Like a little trooper, he performed brilliantly until the much bigger kid in front of us started bawling, affecting him. Michelle quickly started to pat him to sleep and he slept from midway through his baptism right through the evening mass that begun after.  So our little Catholic boy attended his first mass (albeit in his sleep) :)  The whole baptism is quite mayhem-ish.  The priest, to his credit, just keeps ploughing through the proceedings.  There were people taking photos all over the place (including me & Ian), quite messy really.

7pm - Back at Ian's place.  We were all tired.  So I went out to Chomp-Chomp, bought dinner for all of us : stingray, carrot-cake, hokkien mee, satay, satay bee hoon...  Super greasy!

10pm - washed car and decided I'll do a quick wax job.   Biceps sore from carrying Matty for 1.5hrs or I'd be quicker.  Took me 45mins.

11pm - Cold Storage to buy milk for the week.  Picked up a hunk of bread (not the sliced soft bread that Singaporeans like, but a hunk of multi-grain bread) & some aged Gouda.  Originally wanted to get brie, my favourite, but the Gouda looked good.  This will be lunch Monday.

Well accomplished day.

After-note (Monday)
- wax job was still blotchy.  Dim lighting at the car park not good enough.
- wolfed down my sandwich.  Fantastic.  Gouda tasted great!

Symphony of gears whirling

The cards were for a slow ride yesterday.

1. Invited 2 newbies : my cousin (who just bought a new Scott road bike but fearfully riding alone along Clementi PCN to build up confidence and skill with the cleats) & Jasmin, my colleague. But both declined me last minute.
2. Climbed too much Tuesday night.  I did perhaps 7 (relatively easy) climbs but still, 7!  Egged on by Jo - she was on fire!  
3. Still sleep deprived from last week - so bad I overshot my ECP exit (always a first time!) and had to turn around just before Changi airport. 
4. Hectic!  Need to rush home.  Need to pick up Speedy from Rodalink.  Get to East Coast by 7:30pm.
5. Very strong headwind.  Conversation as we cycled along the PCN leading to Coastal Road needed to be held at a shout to be heard!

Then,
- Traffic was not too bad, made it home early enough, wanted to pick Zi up, but she MIA.
- To Rodalink.  I left Speedy there since Sunday evening to oil the sticky gears - the left side gear was permanently stuck to the bigger gear and I need the smaller gear for hills!
- Got to East Coast 7:30pm on the dot - despite my missing the turn.

How it become my fastest ride :
The ride started out smooth - we were bunched up to shield each other from the wind, so it was really nice.  I tried moving to the front and with just the lead cyclist blocking me, the wind was pretty bad -  dropped back down to the middle pack.  At Shell, we first noticed Anne.  She was bitching about how she was cycling alone, unhappy that her group's missing.  Simon went over to talk to her and she joined us from there on.  The return was fast.  At some point, I found myself leading & pulling the group at 34km all the way from one of the traffic lights along Loyang until almost Coastal Road.  After I faltered, Peter gamely took over.  But he too was tired & something's wrong with his gears, it was ticking loudly. The calvary came up : Paul, Bryan, Isaac, Kah Hoe, Simon and Anne.  We bunched up again.  Nice.  Nearer to the fire station, we met Grayson!  He intersected through the group to friendly greetings, then fired off.  Splintering the group.  I got dropped.  Holding 33-35km, I was dropped.  Kah Hoe, Anne, Isaac and I tried but failed to chase the leading pack - later I found out Paul hit 53.8, Bryan 51km!   Back at F2 carpark, Anne and I exchanged FB accounts - she's 1 cool cyclist!  She's apparently a friend of Simon's friend.  And she did start off with our group from the start!  Guess she somehow followed a wrong group mistakenly cos it was a pretty crowded night last night along the Coastal Road.

Either due to headwind or the crazy speeds, there was no conversation even though we cycled bunched up (2 or 3 abreast).  All I hear is the whirling of our bicycle chains roaring away.... sheer music!

I didn't expect to be able to go so fast consistently.  Think Speedy was nervous cos I had no time to pick him up - he slept 3 nights in the shop.  The longest time he spent away from home.  Decided he'll prove himself a fast bike to me.  Haha!