India

Just been to our company's treasure hunt last weekend to Penang and now I am in New Delhi, India supporting a project here.

I have to freeze my leave and will spend at least 10 days including Christmas in India. I am already missing my family.

This is my first time in India and I am sure I will share some interesting photos and stories later. There are also some topics/ideas I wish to write about, but I have to wait until later.

Oh..yeah, in case you are curious about the hunt that I went last weekend, it had a Christmas theme "Jingle All the Way". And Dominic mentioned that because of the theme and the fact that we won theSun hunt, he had set a higher level of difficulty. I think some first-time hunters must be blaming us for the difficult hunt. Perhaps I can share some questions later. But first, teasers here:



Hopefully can get some of you thinking along the theme for the Charity Xmas Hunt on 29/12/08. I will not able to make it for this hunt although I wanted to earlier.

Where you can have intercourse and not feel bad

Q. Where you can have intercourse and not feel bad.

You maybe excited to find out the answer. Mmmmm........intercourse, not feel bad. Where? Well, you have to wait awhile.

First consider this question from the recent theSun Motor hunt, in the open category.

Q31. What a dog and cow have in common?

A31. Centre Circle @ Centre Circle Galeri Audio & Visual

I shot this photo when I was near the sector with my camera phone.

For the explanation, if you read the question literally you will think of answers like "animal", "four-legged" etc. I showed this question to a non-hunter, and the answers are the ones stated earlier. But experienced treasure hunters are trained to think laterally first, then literal. In fact, this way of thinking has been a norm for many regulars.

Thinking laterally, the common thing about the word "dog" and "cow" is the letter "o" in the middle. So scanning the sector, you will find the signboard above, Centre Circle Galeri Audio & Visual. Note that an "o" is a "circle" also (although for most handwritten "o" are not exactly like a circle shape).

So, if we remember this (unwritten) rule, most treasure hunt questions are designed to trap hunters who tend to read it literally or take its surface/obvious/common meaning. When CoC (Clerk-of-Course) set the questions, they did not indicate what their intended meaning was. Therefore you cannot tell which is the right line of thinking. Actually, I should not say right, but the intended line of thinking of the CoC.

But if the surface meaning is too common and general such as this Q31, the danger is that, there could be alternative answers out there, besides the intended one. If there is an alternate answer to the literal meaning of the question, can it be accepted?

I was near the sector of Q31 a few hours ago, and I captured this photo here.

This signboard was found within the same sector for Q31 & before Q32.

Now, consider this literal answer:

A31. Haiwan @ Kedai Haiwan Peliharaan Puppy Cottage Sdn Bhd

The words "Kedai Haiwan Peliharaan" are found on the top left side of the sign. The keyword here is "haiwan", the Malay word for animal. It fits perfectly for the literal meaning of the question.

So the question now is, what is there to say the alternate answer above is wrong, or not accepted? Is it because there is an unwritten rule for the hunters to laterally first? Or is it the lateral answer is more sophisticated than the literal answer? Or simply put it, it is not the intended answer of the CoC, period.

Now, back to the original question I have posted at the top.

Q. Where you can have intercourse and not feel bad.

The question above is a classic question for a hunt that I joined many years ago.

Now, let's apply the lateral thinking first. Wordplay, umm.... the keyword or indicator here is "bad", definitely an indicator for anagram. So "not feel" bad, go look for anagram of "not feel" and in that sector, you may find this common sign below.

A. Telefon

An "intercourse" can mean a conversation, communication. So the answer is definitely fitting.

Now, consider these alternative answers:

Hotel Gembira

Rumah Tumpangan Ceria

Of course, the intercourse that normally takes place in hotels and rumah tumpangan can be of a different kind, e.g. between a couple. I remember we have a good laugh for one or two minutes when the "interesting" answers were shared to all by the CoC.

Back to the lateral versus literal issue again, what is stopping the alternative answers above as a valid and correct answer to the question?

While the lateral side of the question forms a good anagram clue, the literal side of the question was vulnerable. Overall, this question/clue was not tight enough. In this case, perhaps the CoC should cross-check thoroughly and make sure there is no literal and valid alternate answers available within the sector.

Similar (I say, similar) issue came to light during the recent virtual hunt organised by a well-known critic. I followed that posting and I applauded the way that the master handled the issue. The master acknowledged the blunder for leaving room for alternative answers, then listened to the alternative answers and explanation, seek advice from peers (masters), followed the rule of cryptic clueing, his principle and being fair when he made his decision in the end.

Holiday in Cameron

I have been busy lately. But I'd planned a holiday with my family long ago. And it was a holiday that I looked forward to for a long long time.

We went to Cameron Highlands and stayed in an apartment during last weekend. It was our first time staying in such an accommodation in Cameron. It turned out to be a good choice as we could cook while it was raining every night we were there.

Ashley and Ashton enjoyed the outing as we visited tea farm, strawberry farm, butterfly garden, and cactus farm.

Anyway, apart from a good holiday with family, here are two photos to share:

Crystal Guava

Crystal Guava, the outer layer is a semi-transparent layer, inner core looks similar to that of a normal guava. The taste is sweet. I have yet to research more about this fruit.

Another one here, the first time I see a big pumpkin with my own eyes. This one must be over 10kg. It measures about 2 feet in diameter.

Big pumpkin

Treasure Hunt for Olympics?

Treasure Hunt to be an event for Olympics Games.

Some may say it's crazy. Some may say it's impossible.

I'm dreaming for that.

Treasure hunt has grown to a popular recreation sports for some Malaysians. Gone were the days when treasure hunt is part of the British army's pastime. No more counting of coconut trees and lamp pole in Jalan Bangsar. Treasure hunt in Malaysia today is an intellectual challenge, where teams work and compete to decipher cryptic clues.

Well, in this posting, I am not going to talk about the history or the cryptic clueing of treasure hunt. Rather, I will write about the treasure ecosystem today and maybe ways to take the sports forward (hopefully).

I have tried to put into a simple ecosystem diagram of treasure hunt here.

Simple diagram of treasure hunt ecosystem.

In this diagram above, we can see that there are many parties involved in the ecosystem. I will try to explain the roles played by each party here.

1. The community. The community here refers to the context of the treasure hunt event itself. The community can be the general public for a open hunt. It can be staff of a company for a company event. It can also be the target marketing segment of the organiser of the hunt. The community can be beneficiaries of a charity hunt.

2. Treasure hunters. These are the people who take part in the treasure hunts. They may be first-timers, regulars, masters and CoC. The hunters may take part for many reasons e.g. for fun, to win something, as team/relationship-building, for charity, etc. Some hunters with very good command of the language with strong cryptic-solving skills are called masters (note that the definition of a master is debatable to some). I would like to think of the masters as mentors. Those who with great skills but also can see the win-win paradigm are the ones who knows that by sharing knowledge/know-how and making others better does not make them less competitive. But rather, it will increase the size of the pie and good for the sports in the longer-term. Some hunters are more passionate than others and they join many hunts and we may call them regulars. Some regulars eventually learned through many mistakes and experiences to become masters. Some treasure hunters also became Clerk-of-Course (CoC). CoCs are the question-setter and the event manager of the hunt.

3. Organisers. Organiser can be a company, a society, a school etc. The purpose maybe to reach out to the community for a commercial/marketing, social, or charity cause. The organiser may need the support of sponsors and media to make the event more successful.

4. Sponsors. Sponsors are important to the treasure hunts. Most hunters now are likely to be attracted by cash or good prizes. Of course, sponsors will get the attention and marketing reach from the community and hunters alike with the support of the media and Internet.

5. Media and Internet. Media and the Internet are the important means to reach out to the community and form a bridge between the other parties in the ecosystem to the community due to its extensive reach and connection.

So there you have it, a simple model of the treasure hunt ecosystem. I may be missing something, please comment then.

Is there anything we can add to this? Maybe a governing body for the treasure hunt sport? What is required to take the sport to a higher level? Sort of like an association to look after the hunters, the CoC, ensure the growth of the sport?

I think there are pros and cons about it. Some may agree, some may not. Those who agree may want a body to regulate/govern treasure hunts in Malaysia. Those who against may have reservation and feel that there is nothing immediate or urgent that requires such a governing body now (since treasure hunt has grown to what it is today without it).

Of course, there must be a charter and purpose for this body. Rather than inventing that purpose, it must be discovered. If there is a need for a body for a long-term good of the sport, I think it will be found. Hopefully, it can be a tiny step towards treasure hunt for Olympics.

Not yet good bye

"Not yet good bye" this is the title of the email that my friend sent out today to inform everyone that he is leaving the company after close to 14 years.

It has been a sad day for me. He is a very close friend of mine and a mentor. We know each other for about 12 years now. He was my supervisor on two separate periods. He was one of the two reasons that I came back to work in my first and current company. He was the one who talked me into joining my first road race. He was the one who indirectly influenced me to join my first gym. He was the one who introduced me to Yoga and spinning class. He is my lunch mate, coffee break mate etc. Professionally, he is the one that I respect and look up to. He is also very capable and reputable in the company. For me, it is hard to see him leave.

Although I know that we will be still friends. But the fact that our direct contact will be reduced from daily to once a week or once a month, strike me the most. It is through these daily contacts and interactions that we share each other experiences as co-workers, our role as father, and many more that made our relationship as it is today. Yes, we can still call each other, email or interact via Facebook, but it is just not the same. Many of us depend so much on technology to keep us together with our friends that we have ignored the importance of simple human interaction that really build relationships.

Relationships, to me, is the most important thing in life. We have family, friends, colleagues and others. It is through these relationship that we learn, share, grow, and perhaps find purpose of our lives. Having good friends around me is something I cherish the most outside of my family. And good friend does not come easily.

I know he made his decision based on what he thought is best for him. It has been a very difficult decision for him. William, I know you will excel in whatever that you do, I wish you all the best, and friendship forever. It is indeed, "not yet good bye."

Ashley's birthday

Ashley chose this Oreo Cheese Cake. It looks simple from the outside, but tastes great from the inside.

It's Ashley's birthday today. Happy birthday, Ashley. It's a great feeling to think back all those good moments since your birth. I love you.

theSun hunt 2008 - Brilliant Q25

The answer (or should I say question?) for Q25 was staring at me.

Q25 (bolded). Bays?

A25. Vocal Station @ Golden Sun

I thought this was a brilliant question.

It was a Double Jeopardy question. The question itself was the answer. And hunters were required to find the signboard that could be a question for Q25.

There are not many signboards that the CoC can use for Double Jeopardy. Basically you need some key words in the signboard for this type of question. Naturally, I think, CoC would be tempted to use Double Jeopardy whenever they have the chance.

I've never liked short clue, Q25 has just one single-syllable word. It didn't tell you much. Figuring out the CoC's intention was like finding a needle in the ocean.

We scanned this long sector on foot but didn't manage to get it. I was looking for a word that could mean "cry", "howl", "space" etc. I didn't find any.

Why I say this was a brilliant question? Because the presence of the question mark, "?" It disguised itself as a direct question, rather than a Double Jeopardy question. So many hunters (including me) were led thinking elsewhere.

In the end this was what Dom was meaning to say:

"Station" can mean "base." "Vocal" can be sounds-like indicator. "Bays" is a homonym of "base". Therefore the intended answer, "Vocal Station."

In the IOI run this morning, I was near this sector. I went back to this sector and took photo of the board (see photo above). I've seen the board earlier during the hunt but the light bulb remained off that time. Argh...

But I still think this was a solvable clue. And it was solved by a few teams only according to Dom. We were running out of time (during the hunt) and the sector was badly congested. We decided to move on and try to get the rest. I didn't want to give up on Q25 but I remember we made the decision as a team to move on. Come to think of it now, it was another wise decision that we'd made.

IOI Community Run 2008

With my running buddy and friend, BP at the finish line.

This morning I went to my first IOI community run in Bandar Puteri, Puchong.

The route was within Bandar Puteri and it was hilly, but not as hilly as the route of Mizuno Wave Run. This was only my second road race. I finished the 7.3km race in 45 minutes, better than my target. I set a modest target of 50 minutes due to insufficient training.

The event was more like a community event (than a pro race) to the people in Puchong. Therefore I was surprised to see some African runners in it! Other activities held at the same time were Street Ball and Futsal challenge.

This time there was no timing chip used and the medals were awarded only to the top 20 of each category. I didn't finish in the top 20, so I could only manage a certificate of completion.

I felt that the event was badly organised. The run itself was delayed for 15 minutes and the crowd and traffic control was not good. Good thing about the run was, we didn't need to line up to cross the finish line.

This time I didn't suffer (as bad) like in my first run. I managed to improve my pace, but it was challenging. I was running over my anaerobic threshold over the last 2 km, meaning I was pushing hard until I was almost out of breath.

My running buddies, BP, Janice and James done well too. They came in about 48-52 mintues. Janice got 22th placing in the Women Open Category and just missed out on medal by just 2 placings. Good run!

UM EE 96 mini gathering

It started as finding ex-classmates on Facebook, then came the idea of meeting up face-to-face after 12 years since we graduated.

We have our gathering of the class of UM EE 96 on 8 Nov 2008 in 100 degrees Steamboat Teppanyaki and BBQ restaurant. The restaurant is located in NZX commercial area in Ara Damansara.

Most of the guys I haven't seen for a long time. Some of them since we graduated. There are a few of the guys came from Singapore just for this.

I was the one who organised the event. Firstly I need to get the contact number and email address of our ex-classmates, which was a challenge. Of course the date and time was something that not easy to get consensus too.

In the end, only 12 people attended. Not too bad, considering we have guys came from outside of KL. The others that couldn't attend were based in Penang, Ipoh, US and UK now.

When we looked at the gang after these years, most of us were showing signs of aging. Apart from that, we looked and dressed like the same bunch of undergraduates going for lectures.

We have a good meal and chatted over drinks after that. Everyone talked about their working and family lives. Some talked about investment and joked a lot about other stuffs.

It was a real good feeling to catch up with my ex-classmates after 12 years. Everyone has been busy with their own lives that we didn't even make efforts to meet for a reunion. I hope the next time we meet will not be another 12 years.

Ancora imparo

I am still learning.

This beautiful sport of treasure hunt.

(Flash back to immediately after theSun Hunt 2008 Leg 2 submission)

I was asking myself, "Did we do enough this time?" "Did I do enough this time?"

Every time we joined a treasure hunt, I always remind the team, that the one competitor that we were up against was the CoC. It was the CoC that we were supposed to beat.

I knew we didn't manage to best the CoC this time. We didn't solve all questions. We left money on the table.

I did everything that I could to motivate the guys since the day I enrolled the team for the hunt. The aim, this time, as I put to them, was to win it, and the message was, "We can win it."

I was in pensive mood. I didn't talk much. It was the guys who came to me and said, "Just chill." "We have done our best... given the limited time that we need to manage in the end."

(Flash back to the year 2006)

In 2006, we got an opportunity to form a team to represent our company in the inaugural Corporate Hunt. This was the first time Sath, Raj, Doug and I worked as a team. It was the strongest team combination I could thought of at that time. I remember that was one of the toughest hunts we have ever been to. We started the hunt with high hope but received a baptism of fire in open hunt and was placed 18th.

Although we were well-defeated in the Corporate Hunt, but I felt that the team could perform better. In that same year, I got to know theSun Motor Hunt. I convinced the guys to join this hunt. Contrary to Corporate Hunt, the team morale was pretty low before the start of the hunt. I wanted to motivate them and promised to bear the entry fee of RM360 if our team finished in the top 10.

-The prize for 10th place in 2006 was a DVD player each.

The team did well to finish 10th among more than 200 teams in the Open category. I could see the happy faces and confidence grew.

(The year, 2007)

That year we joined quite many open hunts. We were selective on which hunts to join mainly due to team members availability issues. Competing in the field of masters, we managed some top 10 finishes in open hunts. The team confidence was high and we aimed to better the 10th place finish in theSun hunt the year before. We were looking at a possible top 5 finish. This time there was no need for me to promise any incentive like the year before.

We finished 9th and left pondering what could have been in 2007.

We finished the hunt in 9th place. In terms of points scored, we didn't improve. We made mistakes that we shouldn't have. We could have been in the top 5 or even top 3. And we were left pondering what could have been.

(Fast-forward to the prize giving ceremony, theSun hunt 2008)

"The runner-up in the Open Category is... Micro Focus" announced Dom.

It was a special moment for me and the team.

I was holding back tears of joy, and Sath was quick to notice and say, "Hold it..."

It was a special moment for me and the team. I did promised the team, after the heartbreak in theSun hunt 2007, that as long as they believe in me, I will captain them to an open hunt champion one day. That day has come.

"...and the champions in the Open Category, Lanun Inc."

theSun hunt 2008 - Sneaky Q8

Q7 (not bolded): I can make them a restroom, But they can make you drapes.

A7: Letto curtain

Q8 (bolded): From a starlet today and then blind, such may fall if the answer you don't find.

A8: Letto curtain

(The adventure posted below happened during the first leg of theSun hunt 2008, and it is extracted from my hunt log book.)

We went back to Sector 3 and dropped Raj there to look for Q10, "The Lady with the Lamp!!” Sath, Doug and I then went back to Sector 2 for Q6, Q7 and Q8. Here we got Q7 quickly but faced problem with Q6 and Q8 (both bolded). Here was the problem, Q7 was found at middle of the sector. So Q6 and Q8 can be either side of the signboard found for Q7. We spent some time here walking and were still stuck. In Q8, there’s a word “blind” in the clue, I was pretty sure I was looking for a “screen”, but there was nothing there to suggest that, except the word "curtain" in the answer for Q7, “Letto curtain”. Then I examined the question again and found the letters “let to” in between some words in the clues. Then it became clear to me, this was a sneaky question. Treasure hunters were so trained to find one signboard for one question and the CoC never mention the same signboard can be the answer for two different questions. And it can.

I called Sath quickly and met up with Doug. Doug also cracked this independently and he also thought the logical answer for Q8 was the same answer as in Q7. Here was another issue we faced: with answers of Q7 and Q8 being the same signboard at the middle of the sector, Q6 (bolded) could be either way, and that was a long sector. I have to say this again: this Q8 was a sneaky question, it didn't make the bolded Q6 any easier (if you got A7 and A8 first) because it didn't reduce the scope of search. By that time, I had to write down quickly some possible answers for Q6, to be discussed with the team later, and we moved out from that sector. This proved to be a wise decision later.

It's special

Team Lanun Inc. - theSun Motor Hunt 2008 Champions for Open Category.

It's special.

Our team's first ever open win.

On my birthday.

We have been working hard for a win.

We have a win, finally.

I'm very proud of my team mates, Raj, Sath and Doug. You guys really believed we could do it and gave 100% efforts with no regrets. You guys were great.

We can improve further from here. If better is possible, good is not enough. And we are still learning this beautiful sport of treasure hunt.

First open hunt win

This win has not fully sunk in yet.

I will write more about the hunt later.

theSun Hunt 2008 Dinner & Results

Dinner just starting. We'll be presented with answers & results soon. Also, there will be lucky draws, hehe....

theSun Hunt 2008 final briefing

Some 275 teams listening to the briefing before flag-off this morning.

Birthday gifts

I celebrated my birthday (on my birthday eve) with my family. We just went to small Italian restaurant a named Pizzeria Bella Italia in Subang Jaya. Ashley made me a special birthday card, and my wife got me a nice little gift. Thank you, I love you all.

Early birthday present

I received this mountain bike just now. Thanks to my good friends, WW, BP, CT & Mohana. I'm touched and like the present very much.

Early birthday wish

I got a pleasant surprise Friday afternoon when my colleagues in my department brought me a small cake to celebrate my birthday. It was an early birthday wish for me. Thank you all.

theSun Motor Hunt briefing

Hunters collecting the goodies bags, each weighs about 4kg. Then seen here listening to Dominic's briefing on the hunt format.

Pintasan Travel Treasure Hunt

The final briefing in the morning. Zahrol, the CoC from the Fun Hunt People giving final instructions to hunters.

This hunt was our warm-up to theSun Hunt on 2 Nov. It has been a while since my team last hunted. Last hunt was LexisNexis Hunt back in August.

Firstly, let me put up the overall results (Total=102 points; 50 from route questions+50 from treasures+2 bonus points):

1. Raya Hunters (Sallehudin Yusof, Kheirul Nazib, Fong Choon Kit, Jamal) (98=48+50+0)
2. 2 Sneakies+2 Innocents (GTK, Claire, et. al.) (98=48+50+0)
3. Pen Rosak (VK, Vincent, Michael) (98=46+50+2)
4. Sesat Hunters (Venka, Buvanes, Theresal, Sakthivel) (90=50+40+0)
5. No Inkling Nuts (Ramesh, Kok Seng, Lim Kong Yew, Teoh Cheow Teong) (90=48+40+2)
6. Team #12 (Info NA) (90=48+40+2)
7. Huntsolo (Info NA) (88=48+40+0)

The 2 bonus points were given to teams that hand in the treasures at mid-point station AND got more than 3 treasures right.

We arrived just in time for the final briefing. The hunt format was made known to all earlier. There were 25 route questions and 5 treasures. The route question each worth 2 points and the treasure 10 (yes, 10 points each).

So obviously, we need to focus more on the treasures. That's why we quickly scanned through the treasures questions right from the start. It was a mass flag-off. But we took some time planning and tried to solve treasures early. We only managed to crack one quickly and literally picked up the treasure (daun kering) from the ground. We were struggling on other treasures. In the end we spent 20 minutes stationary at the start station before leaving. We were the last to leave.

We proceeded to the route questions and breezed through the first two questions until we got stuck in one slow traffic light in PJ old town. It was definitely not a road that one would clerk for any hunt. We spent another good 10 minutes for maybe about 200m.

The next few questions were quick ones and caught up with some of the hunters in Section 14 PJ. Here we got two toughies, we got one and finally had to "tembak" the other and moved on. (This was where we didn't think on the correct path to solve Q12.)

At this juncture, we still don't have 4 or more treasures. So we decided to hand in our treasures at the finish station. Mid-point was the Pintasan Travel office in Section 17 near the Rothmans roundabout. This was where all teams must get a stamp from the organiser office.

Our team moved on to the next few questions in Damansara Jaya. This was where we made our next mistake. We knew very well what to look for, but four pairs of eyes were not good enough to spot "Klinik Pergigian Lim". We settled on another clinic with the name "Lim" in it. We must be more careful when we scan question sectors next time.

The final few questions were in Damansara Utama, Uptown area. Here we dropped another question, that was to do with "wassab!"! Again, the thinking line was off, and we took another board as answer, even though we were not fully convinced by it. Argh.....

In the end, we dropped two more treasures. Both treasures we came very close to submit them, but decided on something else and submitted wrong treasures. This mistake was painful and it gone down to the method of resolution of different opinions in our team.

Overall, the learning from this hunt was valuable for us. Our team was not classified as the one of the podium winners (Top 7) in this hunt. We will learn from our mistakes to improve in future hunts.

Venka and his team did well in this hunt. Looks like they were the only(?) team who got all the route questions right. For me, they are the favourite for the Open Category for theSun hunt. In fact, I was surprised that Venka (& his team) was not inducted to the Hall of Fame this time. They had won and topped a strong field of hunters in just a short span of less than two years actively in open hunts.

In this hunt we tried out new things and hunt strategies. Most of them worked well, some of them needs adjustments. We will come back stronger for theSun. See you there!

No Pain No Gain?

Timing chip on my Adidas Adizero running shoes. This photo was taken just before I left home on Sunday to Padang Merbok for the Mizuno 10K run.

They say, "No pain, no gain." That is true for me from the Mizuno Wave Run last Sunday. I am recovering from cramped calves and strained knees (pain). I finished the race within target and got a medal (gain). But come to think of it, I could have avoided the pain (and still gained) if I:

1. Run/practise more on tar road and uphill course, adapt to the heat.

2. Prepare myself early, e.g. start my training at least 8 weeks before the race. I would have build up my stamina and leg muscles more.

3. Warm down longer and don't stop abruptly. I have to say was partly due to the fact that (most of) the runners (including me) were required to queue before the finish station. I lost maybe a few minutes there (added to my final time), and it was not a good way/time to warm down standing in queue, knowing I have not officially completed the race! By the time I went through the queue and the collected goodies bag, the damage was already done.

4. Get those Powerbar or Powergel, like I saw some experienced runners got/took. Those things I heard are like "legal dope", that you can take and it gives you extra energy during the race. Basically it is like snack with high sugar or carbohydrate content for your body to convert into energy quickly in the anaerobic metabolism process.

5. Wear knee support. Aiya...let me remind myself, I am not 18 year-old or 28 year-old anymore, ok...

By the way, I have to pay tribute to my friend BP, who injured his toe one day earlier and still managed to complete the race in about 70 minutes. He was basically putting most of his body weight on one leg to run.

WW also did a good job by completing the race earlier than BP. He also had not done a full 10km before. But still come through the home stretch confidently. The cycling tours that he has been doing made him a tough man. He is probably the one who suffered the least among us.

James breezed through the race, but I have no recollection of his time coming in. But I know he didn't trained for this as well.

Janice, a girl possessed, finished 10km within 60 minutes (?), and I didn't even notice she passed me. Really, fitness and youth are both assets. She was the fastest in our group, 150+ in Women Open category. Bravo!

I may run again soon in the coming IOI community run. It is just a 7.3km course but it is hilly. My participation will depend on my recovery rate. Haha...

Mizuno Wave Run KL 2008 roundup

The morning started at 5:00am when I woke up and prepared myself. I ate a slice of bread before leaving to meet my friend in Bukit Aman car park.

I arrived at the car park at 6:00am, meet up with WW and we walked to Padang Merbok, the starting place. When we arrived there, there were only a handful of runners there. All the booths were already up and the runners arrival rate reached its peak at about 6:45am. We met the rest of our gang, BP, James and Janice there.

We waited and did some stretching and proceed to the starting point at about 7:15am. Here I managed to see (the newly-promoted master treasure hunter) Cornelius (who ran a half-marathon a week before and flew in from Api-Api for the run) and quickly met up with him. I thought it was quite hard to locate him among all the runners. But as I told him earlier, I will see him in this run and I did.

The 3100+ participants were flagged off at exactly 7:30am. The start was an easy climb and I picked up a bit of pace on the way down the small hill. Then came to the U-turn at Lebuhraya Mahameru and we were going up Bukit Tunku. I was doing quite ok at the earlier part of the race. Then came a few more climbs and I reached the mid-point mark at about 8:00am. I could sense that I was on track to finish the race in 70 minutes and possibly 60.

After I stopped and took a sip at the water station, I kind of lost my rhythm. The pain in my calf started to set in. By this time, the heat from the sun was having effect on me as well. Not sure if it is the water that I took, I started to feel something at the right side of my abdomen. At this point onwards, I backed off from my initial pace and the under-60 finish was fading away.

At the last 3km, it was basically mind over body. I was telling myself to go on despite the pain and tiredness. I guessed the spinning sessions that I have since July really helped me. It helped me to fight the pain and kept me longer near my anaerobic threshold. At the last 500m and with the finish station in sight, I was being passed by half a dozen of runners from behind. I just pulled through the last few hundred metres and finished (according to my Casio) in just under 65 minutes.

The blogger (you can figure out which one in the photo), was still pushing at the last 400m to the finish line.

I was handed a card with the number 764. This was the overall position of all male runners. I thought this would not be good enough for Top 500 finishers in Men Open category to qualify for a medal. To my surprise, when I got my goodies bag, I found a medal inside.

This was my first open road race. I have not even been a consistent jogger. I could even feel embarrassed if I called myself a jogger or runner. I have just started training on treadmill 2 weeks before the run. On the indoor machine, I have only completed 10km once and never trained outdoor for this 10km run. I know that running outdoor will be very different compared on a machine. But I just didn't find the time to train outdoor.

Running outdoor, you will experience harder impact on the knees and lower back. Also the weather and environmental factor will be something the runner needs to adapt to.

After the race, I was basically a spent force. My calves were cramped and my left knee strained. I quickly got myself some fluids and light breakfast. And I met up with my friends at the finish line and rested a while. We left the place about 9:40am.

Overall, it was a good experience for me. Running in my first 10km after only training on the machine for 2 weeks, then being rewarded with a medal was a good feeling. My body is taking the punishment now. But I know the pain is temporary. The memory from this run lasts longer, if not forever.

Quick update on Mizuno Wave Run 2008

I've managed to finished my first ever 10km road race in 65 minutes and got a pewter medal as top 500 finishers in Men Open category. More on this run later.

Best Fish Head Bihun

This is the best fish head bihun I've tasted so far. It's located at Taman Desa, Off Old Klang Road. Chui Ling had been there also.

Mizuno Wave Run 2008 Race Pack

I've just collected my race pack for the run on Sunday. I will train for 5km today and rest tomorrow. My real training only started 2 weeks ago. So my target is to finish 10km in 70 minutes. Wish me luck.

10 reasons why I love Treasure Hunt

I thought of this posting many weeks already. With theSun Motor Hunt coming up, I guess the timing is right to declare my love openly for the sport.

My first experience with treasure hunt was in year 1999. Then came a few years of idleness. I started joining actively again in 2004. I've been quite active in closed hunts and not-as-active in open hunts. I've managed to win some closed hunts, but not open hunt, at least not yet.

Why I am passionate about treasure hunt (in Malaysia)? Well, I can share my list of reasons with you here:

1. It's fun. Treasure hunt is a team sport. It involves using your problem-solving skills, working with people, performing the challenges and competing with other teams. Putting all these elements together, we have a fun experience.

2. I meet new friends. Joining the treasure hunt community, I can meet many new friends who share the same interest and passion.

3. I go to new places. Some outstation hunts can take you to places you never been to. For example, I never been into Johor all my life. But for a hunt this year, it takes me to Desaru for my first visit to Johor. There are also opportunities for hunters to get to know new makan place as the tulips may take them to new territories.

4. I win prizes. Normally treasure hunt prizes are in the form of cash, electrical products, hampers, holiday/shopping vouchers etc. For a few hours of good work, it can be very rewarding. I remember my top winning was RM3200 worth of shopping vouchers per team, that was RM800 for each share. There may be also lucky draws in some bigger hunts for everyone to stand a chance to bring home something.

5. I can go for holiday on treasure hunt. Now the outstation hunt destinations are mainly interesting places like Melaka, Penang, Lumut etc. which are of tourist's interest as well. If I didn't win, I can still relax and enjoy the good scenery of the beaches or the special local foods.

6. It helps me to see things differently and solve problems. Lateral thinking is an important element of treasure hunt. Almost all questions are designed to trick hunters who believe the literal/obvious meaning. If you believe the surface meaning of the question, then you could never get the answer. You can get so stuck in it, and the only way out is to think out-of-the-box.

7. It's about teamwork. You'll never hunt alone in a treasure hunt. There is teamwork at play here. We need good team members and synergy to maximize the potential and result. Working in a team to achieve a common goal is definitely better than doing it alone. Because it is not only in treasure hunt, in daily life, we need to work in team too.

8. It improves my English. It certainly helps to remind me that my English is not that great and this is sure a good way to improve it. In fact, I am starting to teach Ashley anagram now. She has joined me in some family hunts before. I believe this will generate interest and improve her command of the language as well.

9. It provides opportunity for me to know about new products/services. Some treasure hunts are part of marketing campaign for public to get to know new products/services in the market. Normally, there are kind companies to sponsor the hunts. Samples of products are distributed as goodies to the hunters. There is no obligation for the hunters to buy. But it sure gives the hunters good opportunity to test out the products before deciding if it is good to have/buy. Too add to that, most sponsors will sponsor their products as prizes.

10. Everyone can hunt regardless of age, race, religion etc. There is no restriction on who can hunt. There maybe parental consent needed for those that are under 18, but I don't think any other restriction applied. All people from all background are welcomed to the treasure hunting sport and community. This is where we can meet and interact with each other.

Terry Fox Run KL 2008 T-shirt Design

See here for the T-shirt design, front & back. It costs RM25 each. The money collected will go to CARIF (Cancer Research Initiatives Foundation) Malaysia.

The sizes available are, XXXL, XXL, XL, L, M, S, XS, XXS, XXXS, Size 4 (four YO), and Size 2 (two YO).

For anyone who is interested to contribute or join the run, please contact CARIF at 03-56391874. Your contribution will make a difference.

Spinning

Well, this year I started to go to gym. One of the things that I do is "spinning". Spinning here refers to doing a group cycling exercise programme. Normally this is conducted by a trainer using various musical tracks.

In the photo below, you can see that my spinning class is about to start. My trainer, Mr. Chandra, is a certified fitness trainer, a.k.a. "ironman", employed by National Sports Council (according to him), to train our Olympians bound for Beijing.



In an hour of this spinning programme, you can burn up to 800 kilo calories. Also your heart will operate up to 85% to 90% maximum heart rate. This can be achieved by cycling in different body/hand positions, varying resistant and speed.

I can tell you this: this is a real and complete workout. If you are aiming to lose weight or work on your heart muscles, this is definitely recommended.

Ashton's first stage performance

Ashton got his chance for his first stage performance today in his pre-school concert. He is only 3, but he performed very well. I must say, I am a proud dad.

Terry Fox Run KL 2008

It is unfortunate that this run clashed with theSun Motor Hunt this year. A run for raising fund for cancer research, it has been held all over the world since 1983.

If you don't know who Terry Fox was, see here. You will see how can an ordinary young man, stricken with cancer, made a difference that would touched so many hearts and made that change he knew how.

More information about the KL run here.

Run

I just typed "run" in Dictionary.com and I got more than 50 entries of what "run" means when used as a verb without object, many more if used with objects or as a noun. Ahem... maybe an idea here for treasure hunt CoC.

So I was just casually talking with my colleague and the next thing I know, I have enrolled in this run:

Mizuno Wave Run 2008
Date: Sunday 19 October 2008
Time: 7:30 a.m.
Venue: Padang Merbuk, Kuala Lumpur

I have to say I have not run 10km before. This will be my first try. I haven't started my training yet. Join me if you are interested.

Rock Climbing

I promise myself I will learn something new each year. For 2008, I've learned more than one new thing. Rock climbing is one of them.

My first experience with rock climbing came in the GISF 2008 Treasure Hunt. One of the challenges was rock climbing. Some of the hunters will remember the image below very well.



The challenge back then was to climb up and touch the flag the mid-way of the wall. I was the one who volunteered in my team to perform the “stunt”. I was scared at first but determined to reach the half-way mark. I did. I’m glad that I did. I almost fell at the last step to the flag. But I took a leap of faith to use my last burst of strength to reach the flag. Eventually our team finished fifth in GISF hunt.

This rock climbing facility is in SynarGym, located at Sooka Sentral, just a few steps away from KL Sentral. I happened to join this gym later in July this year, about 1 month after the hunt. I took the opportunity to learn rock climbing.

During my first few attempts to summit the top, I failed. It was the easiest trail among the rest. It was the same trail I took back in the GISF hunt. I know I can reach the top, not just half way. I stopped to watch the experts. I learned the right techniques. I realized I lack upper body strength. I worked on those. Finally I managed to scale to the top at my 4th climbing session. The feeling was… unbelievable. It felt good. This is easily 5-6m (about two-storey high) vertically and the view from the top was terrific.

Following my success to the top of the first trail, I proceed to try on the other trails. First few attempts failed. You can probably imagine why by looking at the photo below.



Some trails were designed to slant outward from the ground. This makes it harder to climb because you need more upper body strength to support your whole body weight.

I failed many more times here. I bruised the back my hand near the knuckle. The wall is made of glass fibre or some kind of resin, and the surface is as rough as sand paper to mimic the rock texture. One wrong move, and you could bleed from scratching the surface of the wall. The scars are still visible here.



Now I have scaled to the top of all the trails in the gym. It was a really satisfying feeling to say the least. Had I had the belief that I cannot reach the top, I would never have reached the top. I would probably stop half way or after a few failed attempts. But instead I believe I can make it to the top, I imagine the view from the top, I never gave up, I didn’t lower the par, I raised it from half-way to the top and from the easiest trail to the hardest. It is because I have this belief, I strive my best and improve my abilities. Eventually I got the results.


There were some other climbers around me that were better than me, some females included. I didn’t mind that, it was not them that I wish to challenge. It was the top. I know that if I can make it to the top, I can do it again and again and again. And I can challenge harder trails in the future, if given the opportunity.

I believe I can.

The 5th Role

For completeness, I need to highlight the 5th role in a treasure hunt team.

The 5th role is the pivotal role of the captain/leader. The captain’s tasks start before the hunts, continue during and after the hunt.

The captain can assume any role (driver, navigator, passenger 1 or 2) during the hunt. Of course he must first work with team members to agree on the role most appropriate for all.

Role: Captain/Leader

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Organise team. To get the team members. To enroll team. Getting logistic arrangement (who provide car, food, dictionary etc.) sorted before hunt. Assign role to team members.

2. Moderator. Often during the hunts, there will be arguments or disagreements. The captain has to make sure it will not go overboard. The captain has to make decision based on the already-agreed method to resolve differences.

3. Motivator. There will be times that the team members will be discouraged during the hunt. This can be caused by reasons such as inability to get the answers/treasures, behind on time etc. The captain has to lift the team up and if possible, bring the fun factor back to the car.

4. Financial controller. The will be expenses incurred by the team in a motor hunt. The captain has to seek agreement first from team members on what cost needs to be share and how to share it. Then he/she has to keep track of expenses, and who had paid for it. In the end, the captain has to work out, the share of the cost to be borne by each member. If the team performs well, there will be rewards/prizes/winnings to share as well.

Attributes to look for: Good leadership skill, good financial-keeping, calm under pressure, good people skills, resourceful.

Roles & Responsibilities in a Treasure Hunt team

From my past hunts experience, I compile here my version of roles and responsibilities in a motor treasure hunt team. I hope it can help you to prepare for the upcoming hunts.

Normally in a drive hunt, a team is usually consists of 4 persons maximum in a car. Each team member has his/her own role and responsibilities to play. Normally there are 4 roles, namely: Driver, Navigator, Passenger 1 and Passenger 2. Here I explain their responsibilities. Primary responsibilities refer to essential tasks that he/she has to perform well. Secondary responsibilities refer to extra tasks that this person is encouraged to perform, or only when not compromising his/her primary responsibilities.

Role: Driver

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Drive the team safely from start to end. The driver has to think safe and drive safe. Treasure Hunt is meant to the fun. Remember treasure hunt is not meant to be a race. Driving recklessly and irresponsibly, endangering people in the car and on the road is not accepted.

2. Control the pace and timing of the hunt. Driver must keep in mind the hunt finish time and keep the correct pace in the hunt. Driver must drive the vehicle at the correct pace when in question sector. Driver should aware of the time needed (plus buffer) to get to the next sector, or to the end station. In the event of the team taking too much time in one sector, the driver should alert the team of the time. This is to avoid rushing at the end when finish time is near.

Secondary Responsibilities:

1. Spotter. Driver can assist in spotting the answer, if the answer is straightforward or shout out the candidate answer to team members while scanning the question sector.

2. Solver. Not many people can do this. Keeping concentration on the road and still thinking about the clues and how to crack it. But in the event that the driver is out walking with the team in a sector, then he/she can be a bonus to the team if he/she can help to solve clues.

3. Challenger. Since driver is not required to solve clues primarily, he/she can question the validity/suitability of the answers proposed by other team members. This is to make sure answers are to not taken for granted as there may be red herrings.

4. Navigator. It is good if the driver can read tulips as well. In the event of wrong turn made, or plan route, driver can discuss with navigator what is the best way to proceed.

Attributes to look for: Responsible, Good Driving skills/experience, good sense of direction, good concentration/focus.

Role: Navigator

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Read tulips and navigate the team from start to finish. Navigator is probably the most important role in the car. If the navigator lost his/her way, it will cost the team precious time. Navigator needs to alert team mates when the question sector is near. When arrive at beginning of the sector, it is always a good practice to shout out how many questions in the sector and for how far.

2. Keep time. Together with the driver, navigator has a good sense of how long distance left and hence the time needed to solve the remaining questions and get to the finish station in time. If the team is taking too long to solve a sector, the navigator may be entrusted with the final decision to drop the question(s), if the other team members are too involved to let go.

3. Plan route with driver. Some hunt tulip will start with a tulip that is far away from the actual start station. Or sometimes there may be a better route to avoid traffic jam to get to the next sector, the navigator must work with driver to explore other options for the best route.

Secondary Responsibilities:

1. Spotter. Navigator can assist in spotting the answer or shout out the candidate answers to team members while scanning the question sector.

2. Solver. Keeping concentration on the tulips and still thinking about the clues and how to crack it is not easy. This is especially true in local hunt when the distant traveled is around 50km with 30-40 clues to be solved. This leaves little time between sectors for the navigator to read the clues. But in the event that the navigator is out walking with the team in a sector, then he/she can fully concentrate on solving.

3. Challenger. Since navigator is not required to solve clues primarily, he/she can question the validity/suitability of the answers proposed by other team members. This is to make sure answers are to not taken for granted as there may be red herrings.

4. Driver. In a normal local hunt, the driver needs to drive about 5-6 hours. In outstation hunts, it can be up to 7-8 hours long. If needed, the driver and navigator can switch role.

Attributes to look for: Good sense of directions, good time-management, good adaptability.

Role: Passenger 1 and 2

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Solver (including research). The solver has to read the clues and break them. Once the solver has an idea on what to look for, he/she has to inform all team members on what to look for. E.g. if the clue is a sounds-like clue, he can ask all team members to look for some words that sounds like the intended meaning indicated in the clue. There are also treasure questions that need to be solved. Passenger 1 & 2 needs to coordinate on how to divide/share the tasks on the road and treasure questions. E.g. who is suppose to do research on internet, dictionary, thesaurus; who is suppose to take care of the treasures; who is suppose to etc.
2. Challenger. As there are two main solvers in the car, the solvers have to challenge each other’s thought and agree on the answers. If there is no agreement on the answers, then the candidate answers must be written down. Then the decision needs to be made after discussion with all other team mates. At the end, when the answers are written down by one, another person has to double-check them before submission.
3. Spotter. Since the passenger 1 and 2 are fully focused on the clues, they should shoulder the main responsibility as a spotter as well. Of course, all members in car can be spotter as well.
4. Buy treasure. This task seems obvious but you will be surprised that some people just didn’t manage (or forgot) to buy the treasures even though they can crack the clues. A good practice is to work on the treasures early and buy them as soon as possible.

Secondary Responsibilities:

None.

Attributes to look for: Good analytic/problem-solving skill, good English/Malay proficiency, creative, attention to details, good observer/spotter, resourceful.

One Utama Walk Hunt Question - Che?

Q4. Recall the words spoken between a man and a woman.

Answer: Guy Laroche

This question caught me early as I suffered from mental block at the beginning of the walk hunt (like in most hunts).

Keywords here are "recall" and "between". Looking at "recall", the question directs us to look for a word that means something if read backward. The word "spoken" can mean verbal, oral etc.

In the word Laroche, there is laro. If read backward, we have oral. Then this word is in between Guy and che. There you have it, the answer intended: Guy Laroche.

But if you check carefully, che (in Malay or English) does not mean woman. Che sounds like cik, which can be used as salutation of a (unmarried) woman (or even a man/woman that you don't know well) according to Kamus Dewan.

So technically, che doesn not mean a woman or anything that relates to a woman. If it is intended to be a sounds-like clue, there is no sounds-like indicator in the question. So what do you do? Under normal circumstances you will choose this answer anyway, hoping the CoC has equated che with cik.

This kind of adaptation (select best answer based on a technically wrong question) is one of the skills that hunters should have. Probably it has been accepted that not all questions are perfect.

For this question I didn't got the answer right. Spank, spank, spank.

Neighbourhood Fun with theSun Walk Hunt - One Utama

theSun has been a strong supporter and sponsor for the treasure hunt sports in Malaysia. Every year, theSun organises theSun Motor Hunt and some consider it to be one of the biggest hunts of the year. theSun also organises smaller walk hunt event in its Neighbourhood Fun with theSun.

On 20 Sept 2008 (Saturday), Neighbourhood Fun with theSun moves to One Utama. This hunt is not open for the Masters. It was more for the family and casual/novice hunters. I enrolled in the hunt with family as the registration was free of charge. Well, it was a free tuition/warm-up for the biggy (theSun Motor Hunt) to come. Why not? In total, there are 70+ teams participating. Noticably, the winner of the Discover Smiles Treasure Hunt with his gang were there.

This hunt is a medium-difficulty hunt, i.e. not too hard, but not too easy. Good mix of questions with anagram, container, replacement, and observation. Only one treasure question is a bit vague and some consider it hard. I may post my comments on the questions later. But let's see the result here (full point 60 points):

1. Team # 47 (Song Eu Jin, Joanne Tan Lin Chao, Lenny Wan and Tan Tean Poay) scoring 54 points
2. Team # 48 (Teoh Seok May, Hong Jing Hann and Hong Jing Qi) scoring 51 points
3. Team # 35 (Edwin Ong, Lee Kin Fui, Siow Choo Yan and Goh Chiou Yuh) scoring 47 points
4. Team # 37 (CP Tan, AK Tan, Ashley Tan, CH Tan) scoring 47 points
5. Team # ?? scoring 46 points

Our team was position 4. Tie with 3rd place with 47 points, but lost out because coming in later. THe champion walked away with RM500 cash, RM100 SUSHIGROOVE voucher and lots of 7-up Revive. 2nd place got RM300 cash plus the rest (the same with champion), 3rd place RM200. 4th place to 15th place received RM100 plus other goodies.

I was satisfied overall with result from this hunt. Due to the fact that my family is not my usual team mates in open hunts. Basically, I have to do almost all the cracking of the questions. This was quite a stressful situation when I have to break the clues and at the same time, teach my team mates to break clues and spot the answers. Overall, I felt it was a good hunt since my team mates (family members) have only hunted about 5 times.

Hopefully, I can train my darling and my daughter more, so that we can be a stronger team to challenge the CoCs (note that I am not talking about challenging the regulars or masters). Watch out!

Yoga, some like it hot

It is public holiday in Selangor today, but I work in KL. To have a day off, I need to use my annual leave. So I did.

The day started with my darling and I went to try out the Hot Yoga session in True Yoga. Well, I am a beginner in Yoga, just started to learn in July. I have promised myself that I will learn something new every year. Yoga is one of the new things so far. (I may talk about my other new learning in my later blogs).

The special thing about this Hot Yoga is that the class is conducted in a room that is heated to 40 degrees Celsius. What Hot Yoga claims are many benefits, including better flexibility, reduces stress, helps to improve many conditions due to illnesses etc.

The instructor was a guy from India, he has a very strong Indian accent. I have difficulties understanding what he said in the beginning, but slowly catch on later.

The class was quite full with many people from all ages. It was nice to see many people in a class. It really motivates you.

I have been attending regular class in my gym. I was trying out this class to "sample" it.

Anyway, the class was not too tough, but I still have some balancing and flexibility issues. The instructor even come to my aid and literally "bend" me with one foot on my buttock while holding my up-stretched arms. (Sorry no illustration available). I guess I need practice, a lot of practice to improve.

In the end of the class, I sweat a lot. My T-shirt was really soaking wet and my darling told me that I really "smell" like a man. :-)

Maybe I will go try it out again later. Hope to post some photos later. Stay tuned.

"If you dream as big as you can dream anything is possible." - Micahel Phelps

I just watched the last swimming event in Beijing Olympics. I'm sure a lot of people followed that too. Michael Phelps just broken the record with his 8th gold in a single Olympic Games.

To be frank, I was not 100% sure he can do it at the start of the Games. The feat seems so diffcult to archieve. But as each event went by, my confidence in him was growing. By the time he came from behind to finish 0.01s ahead of Cavic in the 100m butterfly, I am already convinced he will achieve what he dreamt of ahead of the Games.

So many people thought that Mark Spitz's record of 7 golds in a single Olympic Games will be impossible to beat. That's the paradigm that we were believed. But Michael Phelps believes otherwise. He dreams big, he has his own paradigm, he has great courage and belief, and now he is a legend, a new paradigm for us all. I'm sure after Michael's feat, a lot of young swimmers will be inspired to dream big or believe their once-impossible dream.

14 gold medals in 2 Games, is that the limit? I'm sure most of us will be convinced it will never be matched or beaten. Then, a new young man or woman will arrive and prove us wrong, again.

As Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei prepares to win Malaysia's first ever gold in the Olympics Games, I hope he will step on the court with big dream. Everyone in Malaysia is dreaming of the first gold. Give all your best, all. Leave nothing on the court. No regret. Dream big and do great.

Prologue to a new start

This is my first blog posting in more than one year. I was blogging in www.mblog.com.my before. In July 2007, I lost it suddenly. My purpose for blogging was gone. It took me some time to get it back, a long time actually. Now I'm back. A new start is here.

In this blog, I will write about myself and my family, my friends and anything interesting around me. I've promised myself to write without judgement, just presenting the fact as it is, and share some interesting stories around me.

I hope you will enjoy them.