Rewards Of Running In Singapore Bay Run

Rewards of Running In Singapore Bay Run 2009

As some of you may know, I completed the 10-kilometre Singapore Bay Run 2009 recently. What are the rewards of running in the Singapore Bay Run 2009?

The tangible rewards of running in the Singapore Bay Run 2009 are obvious. The SAFRA Singapore Bay Run Army Half Marathon runner's medal, the certificate of completion with your timing recorded for posterity (yet to be received), lasting memories captured on digital camera and some souvenirs that you can grab at the post-race expo at the padang.

The intangible rewards are harder to describe. I would say the completion of running 10 kilometres is nothing to crow about. There's always the Army Half Marathon, or even longer distances to conquer. How about the running speed and run time? If it were purely the timing that gives someone a high, then why not just run around a 400-metre track and time your run more precisely.

So what is it that attracts thousands (excluding army conscripts) who turn up year after year for the Singapore Bay Run and Army Half Marathon? Perhaps some runners get a natural 'high' when they run long distances. Perhaps it is the sense of participation in a nation-wide event that inspires runners to come together. Perhaps is the sense of friendship or togetherness that draws others to this event. Or perhaps it may be no simpler answer than 'because it is there'.

My 10-km run may not be the Mt Everest of running for many of you or even for myself as I have done longer runs before in my younger days. But as I am not growing younger, each year that I achieve a respectable distance in running is a mini-cause for celebration.

What rewards motivate you? Share with Seen This Scene That in the comments below.

See more places. Live more life.

Seen This Scene That

Related reads:
1) Singapore Bay 10-KM Run 2008
2) Singapore Bay Run Pre-race Thoughts
3) Singapore Bay Run Race Expo 2009