Flippity Flap down Penang Hill

I wasn't too happy with my hike up Penang Hill last week. So this morning I revisited it a gain in an attempt to improve my time and feel better about myself.

This time around, I started at the Moon Gate rather than tackling the tar road head on. The weather was great. Cool and windy. And I was making good time too, but alas... as I was about to reach the 84 stop point, my shoe gave way. The sole came off.



So 'flap, flap, flap'... That was how I made my way back down. But halfway through, I was so annoyed with it that I ripped the whole thing off.

Damn! And this is the same pair of shoes that I use for court games and for gym as well. I guess all these activities will have to halt till I get a new pair. Any sponsors out there? :)

Five minutes too late...

This morning, I joined the Penang Hill Climb competition organized by Kwong Wah Yit Poh. The climb starts from Youth Park and ends at the top of the hill.

The number of participants was astounding... much more than the Hikathon which I participated a few months ago. But a very large percentage of the participants were school kids, so it reminded me of my school time cross-country events. :)

YB Lim Guan Eng made the special trip to the Youth Park to flag off the competition. I guess his popularity is still very high among Penangites as there were thunderous claps when everyone saw him. A few even tracked back to snap photos with him.

We took the tar road all the way so the climb was a bit mundane, but it was challenging as there were many steep sections. The first part was (up to 56) was particularly challenging, which left many of us (myself including) gasping for breath as we took a rest. After an arduous climb, with numerous rest stops in between... I did make the whole climb up to the top. In 125mins... 5 mins later than the 120mins limit set by the organizers for certification. What a bummer!!!

{I did get a cert, actually... maybe I looked so pathetic that the officials took pity, or maybe the officials just gave out all the certs that they have already printed to everyone who completed the climb. I strongly suspect it is the latter).

But looking back, I only have myself to hold responsible for being 5 minutes too late. I managed to push myself to complete the task, but apart from the sore thighs from the steep sections, I also had to battle a lot of negativity can cropped up in my mind. At one point, I was already planning to give up when i reached 84. I even thought of a title for the entry in my blog... "Tackled 56, Defeated at 84". Sounds catchy, right?

But anyway, the point I wanted to make was that I have the willpower to attain what I have aimed. But not a strong enough mind to banish the negative thoughts that arose in the process of achieving what I have set out.

In retrospect, I achieved my goal of reaching the top. With or without the negative thoughts of giving up. Wouldn't it have been a better achievement had I maintained the confidence of reaching my goals throughout the process? 5 minutes is not a long duration. I could have easily shaved it. I wouldn't have taken so many rest stops or the rest stops could have been shorter had I not had to battle the devils in my mind.

And I would have returned being more proud of my cert.

Pantai Keracut & Turtle Hatchlings

Hiked to Pantai Keracut last Saturday with Wai Lian, Soo Sean, Wooi Kip, Hai Seong and Mei Yee last Saturday.

We had planned to start early, but unfortunately some folks came late… Can guess who ar?
Anyway, I had not been there for quite a while, and was truly surprised at how nicely the place is now. It is now a National Park, with a Park Office and all. We had to register at the office before starting our hike.

I must say that my fitness level deteriorated a lot….. A few years ago, I was part of the organizing committee for a teambuilding whereby we organized a treasure hunt through the trail. At that time, I hiked the whole trail 3 days in a row. Once to explore the place, the second time to place the treasure hunt clues, and finally during the actual event itself. I don’t remember the trail being that challenging at that time. But this time around, I found myself out of breath during the many steep stretches of the trail.
Time to buck up and get more physical!!!

But the hike was definitely worth it… Not only was the beach nice and clean, there’s a turtle conservatory there as well. We were quite lucky as a new batch of turtles just hatched that very morning, and were placed in a container before being released. And we were doubly lucky that the park ranger allowed us to pick up and handle the little hatchlings. They were very cute… and extremely active!!!


Posing at the jetty while waiting for the late comers...


Finally, made it up and down the hill, through the jungle and to the beach.



The gang that made it...



Egg Mayo sandwich never tasted so good and satisfying


At the jetty


With the hyper-active baby turtles




After resting a while (and many photo sessions), we hiked our way out again and had lunch at Fatty Loh Chicken Rice before heading back home.

Once back home, I had a bath and what else…. Take an afternoon nap lah!

Hikathon

I'll be taking part in a Hikathon next Sunday.
It is supposed to be a 3hr hike starting from Youth Park.

As I have been leading quite a sedentary lifestyle for the past few months I am now on a tight schedule to get back in shape. So far I managed to swim 10 laps at Pisa last Tuesday.
Tomorrow will be to hike up Penang Hill (till 84). Sunday will be swimming again, this time at Pearl Garden Condo.

Will try to squeeze in one Hiking session up Bukit Jambul and a few more laps at PISA before the Hikathon challenge starts.

Wish me luck!!!