Running in Bidor

Although Bidor is not my hometown, running in Bidor always gives me a nostalgic feeling. I felt transported back in time to my childhood days growing up in a little squatter area in KL with my nanny and her family. We stayed in a wooden house which housed about 3 to 4 families. Friendly neighbourhood - everyone seemed to know and care about everyone. Nowadays we're all wary of strangers and quite rightly so.

While I was running, one old fashion yet evergreen song came to mind which aptly describes my feelings then.
WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD BY LOUIS ARMSTRONG
I see trees of green...red roses too
I see them bloom for you and me
And I think to myself...What a wonderful world!

I see skies of blue and clouds of white
The bright blessed days and dark sacred nights
And I think to myself...What a wonderful world!

The colours of the rainbow so pretty in the sky
Are also faces of people going by
I see friends shaking hands, saying "How do you do?"
They're really saying, "I love you!"

I hear babies cry...I watch them grow
They'll learn much more than I'll never know
And I think to myself...What a wonderful world!

Yes, I say to myself..."What a wonderful world!" - Louis Armstrong

There are a few reasons why I enjoy running the Bidor Half Marathon :
Organizers
This marathon is organized by Bidor Runners for runners and it's friendly. Friendly because there's no prize money but I could still see smiling faces everywhere. I was told that the numbers grew from 200 participants few years back to 1,600 last Sunday. The increase in number of participants surely speak for itself of how a race in small town is being so impressively managed. Bidor Runners certainly deserved the support. Bravo!

Race Course
The race course is good and never boring. Running pass kampungs and estates, it brings runners closer to nature. It is also a good escape for me to get out of running in the city. Distance markers were placed at every kilometre and refreshments were adequate.

Post Race
Everyone who finishes the race gets a medal and it is one medal that I would care to collect and keep. Over the years, the Organizers put a lot of thought and effort into creating the design of the medal. Every year we get a different one and the collection get better and better. Thumbs up to them for creativity!
And I also received a trophy for finishing 6th. Thanks!
We were all treated with a generous post breakfast after the run and unlike other bigger races in the city, they do away with the coupon system. I honestly feel the coupon system is a waste of time and lack common sense. Of course, after a good workout we can all eat to our heart's content but how much more can a runner consume immediately after a race?

Well, Bidor is a town famous for its food...duck soup noodle, wantan mee, Pun Chun yam puffs, chicken biscuits etc. It is also famous for all kinds of hybrid jambus and fruits like guava, mango etc. 90% of Pun Chun, the shop that we ate were occupied with runners that Sunday.

It was a good weekend outing for us and more so, when we got to watch London Marathon 'live' on Astro when we got back that evening.

Run - Eat - Sleep - Watch TV. Ah, what a life!