Same Distance, Different Struggles

Not what I expected – this is becoming the theme of this season of running. Things did not go as planned again, and I encountered some unexpected setbacks. But still got a PB!

Kerry Hong Kong Streetathon (Half-Marathon), November 2025

Just a week after my 5K race, I was back on the starting line. This time I had a half-marathon to run: Kerry Hong Kong Streetathon 2025. Once again, the target was to beat my personal best. For a half-marathon distance my personal record is from almost exactly 10 years ago: Amber Expo Półmaraton Gdańsk, October 2015. I finished it with 2 hours 7 minutes and 56 seconds. That was a fast course – flat and in cold, Polish autumn weather.

Streetathon, however, was a different beast. On paper, it looked somewhat manageable – with just two major climbs. I had hoped the 7 to 17 km stretch to be relatively flat and allow me for some steady cruising. Well, it wasn't like that at all!

This graph vastly undersells how hilly it was. The route was a combination of tunnels and flyovers forcing runners to climb ramps again and again. So, yeah, not flat.

Did I mention tunnels? We had to run about 7 kilometers in the tunnels – nearly one third of the total distance. It wasn't pleasant – stuffy, hot, and always ending with a climb back out.

What else? – 4 am wake-up. That wasn't fun.

But okay, now that I'm done with excuses, how did I really do?

I beat my PB!… by a minute. I mean… it sounds so small – but it's still something. Considering more challenging conditions and 10 years of extra baggage – it's not bad at all! And, come on, a PB is a PB.

My Garmin Forerunner 970 was showing 1:58:13 at the half-marathon mark, but its GPS clearly struggled in the tunnels (that final stretch you see on the map – it definitely wasn't a straight line). My official time was 2:06:51.

Breaking two hours (chip time) would have felt much better, no doubt. Maybe next time. For now, I'll take the new Personal Best.

Standard Chartered Singapore Half-Marathon, December 2025

And that next race came just two weeks later. My final race of the year (though not of the season!) and my first taste of "running tourism" – traveling for a race as a main event. Exciting!

But wait! – again, let's start with excuses first.

The conditions were tough. It was hot – 25-27°C with high humidity. The race began at 4:30 am to avoid the worst heat (yeah, for Singapore 27°C is still not the worst!), which for me meant a brutal 2:45 am wake-up. And to make matters worse, I caught a cold the week before. By race day I was better, but not yet fully recovered.

All that said – I did not do well. I knew I was in trouble as soon as my warm-up. My hotel wasn't far from the starting line, so I decided to jog there. 1.7 km only, but I already felt that something was off. This short stretch at warm-up pace should have felt like nothing, but my body was already telling me that we're not prepared for this.

My feelings were confirmed when the race started. I tried to keep my conditions-adjusted target race pace, but managed to hold it stable only for the first 5 km. From then on, I was just surviving – and you can see on the chart below how I gradually got slower and slower.

I got to the finish line completely drained. When my wife came to meet me she said she had never seen me so exhausted.

Unsurprisingly, I was not happy with my finish time. I was way slower than what I had hoped for.

That said, it wasn't all doom and gloom. One positive thing I take away from the Singapore race is that I ran it all the way through, without stopping. For the Streetathon, I admit I had some walking sections, particularly when I got really tired climbing the hills. But Singapore was all run (the black downward spikes at the pace chart are water stations, had to meaningfully slow down there). Mentally, I handled Singapore better, even though my physical condition lagged behind.

Coach Bennett says to measure success in as many ways as you can – and don't focus just on what the numbers on the watch say. I'll take that advice. Sharpening my mental fortitude – that's a win for me.

But yeah, pretty much the only one there!

Overall – 42.2 km, two races, one PB, and one mental victory. Let's see how the next race goes!