Writer Gan Heng Chye was determined to avenge his previous unsuccessful race at the GCE-Elmina Duathlon recently.

The GCE-Elmina Duathlon was my comeback race to avenge my unsuccessful finish (DNF) last year.

Despite a hazy morning on the Guthrie Corridor Expressway (GCE) in Selangor, it was not a deterrent but spurred me to greater determination to complete the race this time.

The full duathlon started with 10km of running followed by 60km of cycling and finished with another 10km run, spanning the highway from Bukit Jelutong and Lagong.

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The race started off with the slightly flattish run route within Elmina and it was nice to see a lot of familiar faces. I had prepared for this duathlon with a slightly different training plan this year, focusing more on building a good base.

Coming into the cycling leg, it became familiar territory the GCE is a cyclist haven with their motorbike lanes. I also regularly ply this route with my cycling club, PCC Malaysia therefore, I knew every nook and cranny and how to strategise my ride.

In retrospect, I feel that I should have extended my cycling training plans for an additional 30 minutes. Most of my training rides were only about 1 to 1.5 hours.

I felt good in both running legs as I did quite a few long distance runs during training. However, my glute muscles did take a toll on the second leg because of my new Trisuit. The suit is more suitable on a TT bike instead of a road bike. Oh well, lesson learned. Additionally, I feel that I should add a bit more weight training to strengthen my leg muscles for the bike leg.

In the second run leg, I almost came to a stop as my gluteus muscles were hurting badly. ‘Pain is only temporary, ‘No podium no return’, kept running through my mind.

I kept this mantra, and the thought of my family at the finish line kept me going.

Little did I expect to finish in the top five as my second run was quite slow compared to my first. But luck was with me.

In the final 2km, I managed to overtake few runners after all the positive chanting in my head.

Once again, it was a very good duathlon, well organized, safe and fun! Roads were closed off from motorised vehicle so that runners and cyclists could go all out to race! There were plenty of water stations with COLD drinks which was perfect for the second run leg on a hot day. Till my next race!

More about the cyclist

Gan Heng Chye always tries to outdo himself and enjoys success beating his own PRs. He also aspires to be even stronger as a runner and cyclist as his age increases.