Polar Loop : Unboxing Review

It's here folks!

After it's announcement last year, the new Polar Loop is finally coming to Malaysia soon.

I had the privilege to test a unit out for a few months and it has been awesome so far.

PS: The author was so super excited that he unshamefully squealed when he got hold of one.

Here is what the new Polar Loop is all about. The Polar Loop is a 24/7 daily activity tracker that tracks your daily activities and feedback the benefits via your connected Apple devices (eg. Iphone or Ipad) or from the bracelet's LED screen. You wear it like a watch and this hip, fashion forward gadget will definitely be the talk among your peers. I could definitely vouch for this as I got A LOT of attention and people inquiring me about the gadget.

For Android users, fret not. You still will be able to have a summary of your daily activities when you transfer your data to your computer via the provided USB cable.

This is the first Activity Tracker in the market that is waterproof (up to 20M) & also the first to be able to connect with a Heart Rate Transmitter (via Polar H7). You could just bring this baby anywhere and fret not about getting wet!

A more detail review of the Polar Loop in my next blog post. Let's have a closer look from the unboxing first.

The Polar Loop comes in a sleek, minimalist packaging that includes the following :

- A Polar Loop Activity Tracker Bracelet

- A Polar Loop USB cable 

- Wrist measuring chart + Buckle detachment tools

- Instruction guides

The Polar Loop comes in one standard universal size and users need to cut and adjust the strap accordingly. This is great as you could custom fit it accordingly to your wrist.

First of all, you need to determine your wrist size with the provided wrist measuring chart. For in my case, it shows "5 & 4". That means I needed to cut off 5 & 4 indicated sections on each side of bracelet strap.

Then you need to unhooked the buckle with the provided special buckle detachment tool. Once the buckle is removed, proceed to cut the silicon strap according to your measurements. The sections are indicated as holes at the side of the bracelet.

Here are a few tips before cutting so that you wouldn't make any mistakes.
- I recommend that you cut the strap slightly "bigger" first before going any more shorter. This is just a safety precaution and you have better custom fit of the bracelet.
- Instead of scissors, use a sharp blade, steel ruler & cutting board to cut the silicon strap. You will have a much cleaner cut that way. But if you only have scissors, make sure they are larger ones and sharp.

Do make sure that you often check the length of the bracelet strap by wearing it often as you cut. Just make sure it isn't too tight or too loose. It should be a perfect fit like your favorite watch. After all, you want to wear the bracelet with style and comfort and NOT the other way round.

Once you have your custom fit done, don't forget to charge it! Your first charge would be around 2-3 hours.

The Polar Loop charges with the supplied propitiatory USB cable charger. Just plug it on your laptop. It also doubles as a data transfer. Just make sure you have Polar Flow installed in your laptop before proceeding any further.

Attaching the USB cable to your Polar Loop for charging and data transfer is easy. You won't go wrong on which side to attach. It fits like a jigsaw puzzle and it's secured with it's magnetic hook. 

The bracelet would start charging as per indicated on the LED screen of the bracelet. 

As of to date (accordingly to the unit I'm testing), every new Polar Loop should have a new update upon first connection to Polar Flow; the mobile and web service app for Polar Loop. So far I've already had 3 updates on the Polar Loop during the last couple of months of testing. It provided me with more information of my daily activities and goals in my Polar Flow account. Pretty awesome, right? ;)

I'll be following up with an in-detail review of the Polar Loop in the near future.

In the mean time, here are technical specs of the Polar Loop:
Activity guidance
24/7 activity tracking
Activity Guide
Activity Benefit
Activity zones
Smart Calories
Steps
Sleep duration and quality
Distance measured in activity
Inactivity alert with Polar Flow mobile app
Advanced activity analysis at Polar Flow mobile app and web service
Training diary at Polar Flow web service

Heart rate guidance (with optional heart rate sensor)
Heart rate in beats per minute
EnergyPointer

Waterproof for swimming
Custom-fit bracelet
Time of day
Display texts in English
Data transfer via custom USB cable or Bluetooth Smart via Polar Flow mobile app
Memory capacity 12 days activity data
Rechargeable battery with 5 days continuous use
Web service compatibility with Mac OS X 10.6, OS X 10.7, OS X 10.8, or later, and PC Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8, or later
Mobile app compatibility with iOS 7 (iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5C, iPhone 5S, iPod touch 5th generation) or later

For more info of Polar Loop, click on this link at Polar Loop's official website.

Fore more images, click on this link to my personal FB fanpage.

Polar Loop is going to be launched soon in Malaysia and pre-orders can be made at Athlete's Circle Malaysia (Jaya One). Do call 03-7960 2313 for more information.

Malaysia Women Marathon 2014 : Race Report & Photos

The day was great.

Everyone was pumped and ready to go.

The weather was incredibly great the day before.

And then the haze decided to come and pay a visit early that morning.

Nonetheless, the 2nd Malaysia Women Marathon 2014 is still a go but with a few changes. With a heavy heart and the most sensible decision made by the race director, Karen Loh and the organizers; the race is to proceed but will be changed into a non-competitive race. All cash prizes are converted and donated to charities and prizes from sponsors are converted to lucky draw items.

Runners are advised on the weather conditions and still will be able to get their finisher items if they wish or not to race. All the beautiful women & kind gentlemen in the midst responded well to the situation and the weather did not dampened the spirits of everyone. The start time for each category started as per scheduled and without a hitch.

The day went well as everyone returned with smiling faces. Good job and well done friends!

I didn't race but I felt the emotion and excitement with my fellow runners and friends.

Worry not as we shall conquer again next year fro MWM 2015!

For more photos, please do browse through the following links :

Album 1

Album 2

Feel free to tag photos but do remember to photo credit if you wish to use the images for personal use.

We've reached 1,000+!

It's incredible!

As of yesterday, Moving on AC has reached more than 1,000+ athletes in FB.

What started out as just a personal journey to record all my adventures and whatever gibberish; has lead into so many followings.

Thank you for all your kind support and let's keeping moving on to great things and keep the positivity alive.

See you guys on the road! ;)

Kevin Lin - "Expedition in the World" Talk + Trail Workshop at Bukit Kiara.

Just recently Kevin Lin, a famous Taiwanese Ultramarathoner came to Malaysia recently to talk & share about his experiences. A trail workshop was also conducted by Ray Lee at Bukit Kiara after the talk. This was one of his many sharing sessions during his 3 days visit here. Sharing and workshop is conducted at Bangunan Bakti Siti Hasmah.

Here is a brief history of his achievements so far.

2006. RacingThePlanet 4desert Champion Grand Slam.
2007. 7500KM/111days run across the Sahara desert, Senegal to Egypt Red Sea.
2011. 10000KM/150days run silk road, Istanbul to Xina China.
2013. 2400KM/40days run across the Gobi Desert (SOLO)
Entertainment 
2013. Lyrics, “Dream”. Jay Chou 2013new Album Opus 12
2007. Movie, Running the Sahara. Producer by Matt Damon
2008. Move, beyond the Arctic. 
2013. Special Actor, The Rooftop. Director by Jay Chou.

For those who missed his talk, here is a video recorded during his visit here. Please do excuse all the sudden shakes as I was holding the camera and I didn't use a tripod.

Brooks Half Marathon 2014 : Run for Life - Photos and Winners

Winners - 5K Women

Winners - 5K Men

Winners - 10K Women Open

Winners - 10K Men Open

Winners - 10K Jr Veteran Men

Winners - 10K Women Jr. Veteran

Winners - 21K Senior Veteran Women 

Winners - 21K Golden Age Men

Winners - 21K Senior Veteran 

Winners - 21K Jr Veteran Women

Winners - 21K Junior Veteran Men

Winners - 21K Women Open

Winners - 21K Men Open

For more photos, please do click on the following :

Album 1

Album 2

Album 3

Album 4

Album 5

Feel free to tag your pictures and do credit the photos or ask for permision if you intend to publish them for personal use.

Dragon Back Run 2014 : Race Report

Welcome to the Dragon's Den!

That was what I have been hearing for days leading towards the event day.

Having registered earlier on to as a tune up race a week before 2XU SG, it was meant to be a slow and easy run. Conquering Dragon Back is not an easy task. Talk about 16 rolling hills in the 15KM stretch! Decided not to take up the 23KM category as it defeated my purpose in my 2XU Half Marathon plans.

The morning started extremely early for me. Woke at 3am so that I just could be at the race site by 5am. Klang is really far from where I stay and I needed at least an hour to get there. But it's worthwhile as I love the Dragon Back route; having done it once back in 2012 with the Klang runners. If the hills doesn't kill you, it will still reward you with breathtaking sceneries. Here is the link to my previous experience at Dragon Back.

Met many running kakis; most of them were doing the 23K (smart move!). 15K is way harder anyways. We had to do the dragon twice! Gun off was slightly a bit late due to some technical issues. When it was our turn; we were 3 minutes behind schedule.

I just remained calm and stayed at the back of the pack cause I didn't want to burst my heart rate before I hit the hills.

The first 1.5K was generally flat and saw many started to sprint ahead. And in true fashion of chiongsters, most of them went flat in less than 2km. I kept a steady pace following my usual marathon pace and made sure my heart rate was not more than Zone 3. I started over taking many quite effortlessly due to the fact majority of the runners didn't have headlights! Yerp.... some part of the road were pitch black and you definitely need a light source and a blinker. I learned from my previous mistake. And I was enjoying my new Black Diamond Storm headlight.

Some areas were pitch black! Photo taken just right after the Dragon's Head (U-turn)

After the 1.5K, we turned left and we met the dragon.

The first hill itself presented the first handful of walkers as the hill itself is between a 25-35 degree angle climb. I swear some might be even close to 40! I steadily climbed it reminding myself not to push too soon. The 200m climb was a struggle but it was a good motivational push. I was aiming to finish the dragon to and fro before the sun rises. I just didn't want to visibly see the road later and see how many more hills I have to go!

The journey to the head of the dragon was pretty straight forward. I over took as many runners as I possibly can and soon enough I was quietly running with just a few others who were pacing along. Closing towards the U-turn point (about 2 hills away) , started seeing the leaders heading back in blazing pace. Feeling a bit motivated, I picked up the pace a bit.

The crack of dawn and the last hill!

From the way back from the Dragon's head (U-turn point), I reminded myself about sunrise. I blasted my music through and sped up again wherever possible. A small dim light started to rise and I could see the sky appearing. Around this time, I mentally calculated I should have 3 more hills to go. Not too long after, the leaders from the 23K started passing by and I tried to follow suit as much as I can. Alas the last hill was a killer but I kept pushing and not wanting to stop so I wouldn't break momentum. A few of the photographers were stationed here and I jokingly ask them if they wanted to take pictures of runners suffering at this part of the hill. We shared a short laugh and soon I was on top of the last hill!

I carefully ran downhill and knowing the way back is a flat road. I tried to maintain a 4:30-5:30 pace whenever possible. Traffic was getting a bit heavy and I tried to avoid them as much as I can. In less than 1 km from the finishing, the traffic might had lost a bit of control as there was a "cluttered" jam. I did whatever I could to sway away from cars who were impatient and I saw Julie from a distance. I just sped from there onwards knowing the finishing is just around the corner. Crossed the finishing at a decent time of 1:37 but I secretly would had love a 1:30 but nonetheless I was still satisfied and happy. I previously did a miserable 2+ hours.

Here is a quick summary of the event:

Great things :
1. Excellent route. Dragon Back has always been a favourite for runners looking to do some speed training, hill training or looking to do a scenic weekend LSD.
2. Sufficient water station and well planned. Water and isotonics well spread out.
3. Race site is big and enough to accommodate. (But not so on the car park management)
4. Runners were treated to sufficient food and water after finishing.

Room for improvement :
1. Runners should at least be informed to bring their own headlight and blinker for own safety. Majority of the roads are really dark and no street lights.
2. Great to have race pack collection on the race day itself to accommodate runners who couldn't pick it up during REPC but could at least managed the counter better when the queue got tremendously long.
3. 15K route was slightly under distanced (about 300m) but I think I understand why judging from traffic conditions. Perhaps the organizers decided to make the U-turn earlier instead at the usual traffic light at the end of the Dragon's Head; probably due to the heavy traffic on the connecting main road.

Overall the race was a success and hearing the feedback from many; it was very satisfying.

Definitely would give Dragon Back Run a go again next year. Perhaps try the Viking would like to try 23K? ;)

 For more photos taken at the event + photos of the prize giving ceremony, click on here and here.

Nathan VaporCloud Men's Liter Race Vest "Unboxing" Review

This year is REALLY the year for Ultra-marathons as we see many of these races booming up.

Nathan VaporCloud Men's Liter Race Vest. Back View

And at this time, I had the honour and privilege to review and use the new Nathan VaporCloud Men's Liter Race Vest aka. Hydration bag.

First and foremost, a great big thank you to Key Power Malaysia letting me review this new product.

This blog entry is just the "Unboxing" review and in-depth review will follow once I've given a few good use on this baby.

Nathan's NEW Running Vest/Hydration bag is used for long distance running, trail running and etc. This vest is claimed to be UTMB capable as well.Here are some brief looks of the hydration bag up close.

2L Hydration bladder made by Hydrapack.
If you know your stuff well, they are the same makers of Salomon and Columbia products as well.

Front View

Back View

Storage - front

Emergency Whistle

Rear View - Grey Edition

Front View - Grey Edition

Brief Specs and technical details:

- 11 liter storage capacity with 2 liter water bladder.

- 360 Degree Reflectivity 

- Bounce Free

- Vented Mesh

- Large Side Pockets that holds up to 0.75L

- Rear External shock cords for increased capacity

- Equipped with Trekking Pole Clips

- Insulated Bladder Pocket to block transfer of body heat to liquid content

- Dual Stabilization system compresses bladder and load

- Multiple zip compartments

- Two front bottle pockets compatible with 22oz/650ml bottle. (Nathan Tru-Flex bottles recommended)

- Hidden internal back pocket for optional ice pack. Amazing for those hot, humid runs!

- Draw cords to Bladder Control System to minimize sloshing of overactive bladders.

- 3D cooling channels.

Currently available for sale at Key Power Malaysia (2XU Gardens, Mid Valley) & Athlete's Circle Malaysia, Jaya One.

Available in both Electric Blue and Grey. 
Size : S/M or L/XL

For more images, click on to this link.

For more info on Nathan products, do click on this link.

And now, let me just seasoned this baby out and I'm gonna grind it for Xterra next February!