Last Sunday morning, the Safra Singapore Bay Run and Army Half Marathon took place. 
Returning after the pandemic
Jointly organised by Safra and the Singapore Army to promote an active fitness culture and strengthen bonds among national servicemen and their families, this is the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic that the race is making a return in a full-scale physical format. 
The physical event comprised of a 21.1km run, 10km run and an 800m Families For Life challenge and flagged off from the Singapore Sports Hub.
I ran the 21.1km
I took part in the 21.1km category which started at 4.30am in the morning. I arrived at the Sports Hub at about 3am. 
There were already runners hanging around at the early hour. Due to the large scale of this race, some of my friends had strongly recommended me to show up early if I wanted to get to the front of the start pen.
There were toilets near the drop-off point, but there could have been more to cater to the large crowds at the event.
Start Pen opens
The start pen opened around 3.45am and I made my way into the start soon after. The walk to the start pen took us on a tour around the circumference of the Sports Hub. I would estimate the total walk to be somewhere around 1 to 1.5km before we arrived at the starting arch.
There were four groups of pacers for 1:45hr, 2hr, 2:15hr and 2:30hr. I guess there are many fast Army boys taking part in this event. For the majority of local running races, the fastest group of pacers are 2hr. 
I was able to catch up with some friends at the start line. It felt as though the whole Singapore running community had come out to support this running event.
There was another small block of portable toilets near the start pens. I took the chance to go because there was no queue when I saw them. 
I always love hearing Ross
I heard the familiar voices of my favourite emcee Ross call out “Pris Chew” when I was inside the start pen. It is always very welcome to hear his voice and I always look forward to it. 
I start running
The race was flagged off at 4.30am with plenty of fanfare and I started my own run around 4:32am.
The route was a scenic and flat run around Marina Bay and East Coast Park before finishing inside the Singapore Sports hub. It was a very pleasant route to run and quite enjoyable. 
High humidity
I tried to start with the 1:45 pacers and see how long I could last. My current fitness level indicates that the pace should not be too challenging for me to maintain for a half marathon. But the first few kilometres felt quite humid and my heart rate was already rising very fast. 
At first, I had thought the high heart rate may have been due to the adrenaline and excitement of race day.
But when the heart rate continued rising and it didn’t go down, I was thinking that I should ditch the pacers and keep my heart rate under control if I didn’t want to overcook myself. I was already feeling so wet it seemed as though I went for a swim rather than a run. 
Checking my Strava record after the run, the humidity had been 92% during the run! Could this have been why the running felt so much harder than it should have?
I eventually lost the 1:45 pacers after 7km at the water station. The pacers didn’t stop and I was caught in the crowd when trying to grab a cup. If I wanted to catch up with them after my drink, I would probably have to run at least 4:30 min/km pace, which sounded like too much effort. 
Hydration was good
The hydration stations themselves were well-stocked and serving either plain water, or both water and 100PLUS. The beverage was ice-cold. But it would have helped if there were longer tables to grab the cups, so that runners would not crowd round and create congestion and difficulties to those who needed a drink. 
The humidity levels felt more bearable when we hit the second half of the run at East Coast Park. There was also some sea breeze. However my pace has slowed by this point. By now, I was focused on simply completing the race in a decent timing.
Cheering on runners
What I really liked was that many of the Army units had come out to cheer on runners with performances and songs.
They really helped to create some energy and atmosphere in the dead of the night and this was very motivating to me as a runner. 
As well, some costumes had also come out, such as a human-sized banana, August the Merlion and Baymax from Big Hero 6. They brought a smile to my face. 
In addition, running groups and runners who were not taking part in the event had also come to show their support. This too, was much appreciated.
I also saw a mist tunnel for us to run through and stay cool. In the high humidity levels of Singapore, these small measures are always greatly appreciated during a running event. 
There were large distance markers positioned at every kilometre. They were very pronounced and easy to spot, which was a plus point.
The final third
In the final third of the race, some of my Coached running buddies caught up with me. They helped to motivate me to pick up the pace to the finish.
The final stretch of the race saw us run down the Tanjong Rhu park connector and then exit via Stadium Way to return to the Singapore Sports Hub. The finish line was right inside the Stadium itself.
My finish
I finished in an official gun timing of 1 hour 48 minutes 18 seconds. The course measured 20.5km long according to my Garmin. 
I had been expecting to do one full lap of the track to hit 21km but the finish line was positioned less than 100 meters after entering the stadium.
It felt good to run into the stadium. I always look forward to doing this as it makes me feel like a national athlete. 
Finisher stuff
After finishing, we were ushered over to collect our finisher entitlements which included our finisher medal and tee, a bottle of water, a can of 100PLUS and a banana.
The finisher tee shirts were unisex for this race and the smallest size, 2XS, was still a little bit on the big side for me.
Having separate male and female tee shirt sizes would definitely have been welcomed. 
Race carnival
There was a booth selling cute Army-themed teddy bears at the race carnival inside the Stadium and other Army memorabilia, amongst other booths. As well, a massage tent for runners and a bouncy castle for the children and families. 
A few photo booths and props were also around, and it was great fun catching up with and taking lots of photos with friends after the event. 
My favourite booth had to be the free flow of cups of ice cold 100PLUS at the race carnival. I lost count of how many cups I drank because I was feeling so thirsty and dehydrated. 
Outside the Stadium was the baggage claim area. I had not used bag drop but I heard from friends that it was efficiently organised and well-managed.
I got changed and headed off with some friends for breakfast soon after. It was a great way to catch up after completing a race. 
Overall thoughts
As a whole, the event was definitely a well-organised running event. It did not disappoint. Everything had been managed very smoothly and seamlessly. 
Despite the large crowds of runners taking part in the event, I did not encounter any issues with congestion or overcrowding. Thank you to Safra Singapore Bay Run & AHM for putting this together. I definitely hope to be back again.
Leave a Comment