Sunday, April 15, 2007
one more time
It's the race we've been killing ourselves for. All those tedious hills, all those slaughtering 3.18s and all those gruelling time trials. Just for today. Paid off. I dun really know wad to say. But i've never felt so emotional for a long, long time. I dunno how much the cross title meant to the other schools. But i know that we wanted it. Badly. Very badly. All the sacrifices we made, all that we've done. I can't say that the rest didnt want it as much as i did. Every training the desire i see in everyone's concealing eyes. Every training someone will mention about winning. Every training someone lets his desire take over and burn himself. Just to make history. Just to get acsi into cross country's hall of fame for once. Just to show that deep desire. Even now someone must be crying elatedly. I'm certainly crying. I've never cried happily for so long. Never so many tears. Never so uncontrollable. Never so strongly. No, not even track. Cross is what i really wanted. To get that legacy started. To get the ball rolling. We wait no more. The legacy starts. And it will drag.
Right now i just wanna let everyone know the team that made it possible. The team that will be hailed legendary.
elliot eu. our national champion. who would've thought this chao ang moh 19th 2 years ago to beat the unbeatable jeffrey? i certainly didnt. even after what i saw in him. even after the comeback he made. even after he pulled himself into another level from the rest of us. But elliot delievered. strongly, gracefully to the finish. contrast to that of the ex champion. passion, desire, delievery was elliot.
leon wai. There couldnt be and will never be a better captain than this bugger. The one person who will be remembered by acs as the spearhead that led the legacy. The one person remembered by this team as the best leader in the world. The leader everyone loves. The leader that instilled the desire and passion in us. The leader that inspired, encouraged, uplifted and certainly responsible for the victory. I'll never forget this captain. acX team captain 2004, Leon Wai.
peter chan. I never used to like him. But now i cannot like him enough. I think peter certainly wanted it the most amongst us. I think its hard to see the real side of peter. the ever wilful, stubborn, playful bastard was definitely a mask. the passionate, caring side of him is his underneath. i dunno abt the rest, but i've seen it 3 times. during the race, peter certainly pumped strength into kev and it was he who architectured the ac quadragon that dominated the gravel. Peter certainly showed what desire was all about when he burned the last stretch shake-head-and-scratch style. My mysterious senior, peter chan.
kevin ng. Our blur chiongster who really helped especially me alot. Many thought kevin didnt have the passion. but i think not. he just doesnt show it like us hypocrites. kevin is pure, but one contrast spot lies in his thoughtless mind. desire to win running. My best partner to run with when i didnt have passion, and also the best to share my desire with. kevin contributed loads and loads to the bond we all share. my dear brethen, kevin ng.
low xide. last but surely not the least, mr low. those gep brains were never made this strong. i've seen how he trains, especially 2 weeks before the big one. those 400s were carved from sheer will. his hills were fantastically pushed. and the team's testis brought plenty of laughter, peace and joy to the team. his 23rd actually suprised me. i expected him to be far behind avery. but xide proved me wrong and as he always does, busted my ego. my comrade in hand, low xide.
Of course, there were the others who made it possible as well. These are not in order of importance, because they've all been equally important in the team's growing. they've all a hand in this kick-ass event.
Simon Bongard,The one person the team cant stop making fun of. The one person the team cannot stop respecting. And the one person who acted like the team's superglue. Without bongard, i wouldnt have found my love for running. i was forced to run and run and run until i started to love running. Without bongard, there would be around 2 ppl coming down for trng. He was always there for the team. Always trying his best to contribute, giving his all. He allowed us to concentrate on getting the job done, taking care of everything else for us. We love our teacher in charge, and so does he. When the big man cried after we won, he showed what teachers in charge should be like. He showed to us that he is the best you can find, and that he is one factor we can actually thank the senior admin for.
senior admin. Really want to thank drong and friends for giving us bongard and actually having a cross country cca within the school. And also their undying disbelief in us that kicked our arses so hard.
steven quek. our 2 day coach that coaches the commonwealth cross team. thanks for calling us the home econs team that would get commonwealth boot prints on our butts. That one boot print of his was unparalleled to the many prints the senior admin bestowed upon us. That was the gear we couldnt find.
paul tan. Our big, friendly giant assistant coach. encouraging, motivating, and really tried his best to squeeze whatever he could from us. Wishing him all the best in his many many years to come.
lawrence ang. The coach with the shades. He inspired, strengthened, rapported. The 3.18s that's behind every ac champion is his signature rock that sharpens us runners. He forced my tears out of me with his inspiring words many times. His training methods are the best i've run across. he rapports like there's no such thing as generation gaps. good coach.
c div. They all played a well done role of the new blood. especially our block head captain sebastian. i wanna see this team carry on the legacy. bring the stuff.
lucas ting. acX's biggest fan. our dear beloved senior that runs to live. our senior that everyone grew to love and respect. that guai lan face and unsurpassed humour that never failed to make us laugh our heads off and roll all over. the senior that supported us all the way, helped us in everyway. Thank you so very much.
God. Last but not least, and in fact the most, the lord our God. He answered my seven prayers, sent the drizzle i always asked for, granted my pacing, and let us show that his faithful children always do better.
But when i think of how this team will be split up because of o levels that will send everyone everywhere, the ib that will imprison our comrades, i cry. I love the team deeply. I trust the rest do as well. Nothing comes close in terms of unity. The times when we played lan after trng, when we eat lunch and call each other gays, when everyone starts squirting water all over each other, when we raced together and ecstasize together, when we shared all the deep moments of sadness, when we made kevin surrender macdonalds meals in exchange for his underwear's modesty, when we laughed at kevin's hair, xide's head, leon's uncanny resemblance to see teck hock and his thank-you-allahs, and that we've never quarelled at all despite the closeness will be remembered in my heart forever. I hold all this dear to my heart. I hold this home to my heart. team acX. rock on.
You might think this post is familiar and why i post it again. well i just all of us to remember how tough it was to get there. but we did. 3 out of 6 of the teammates are still here. i dont see why we cannot do this again. remember the joy, suffering we had all these years. come down in just one last race. how much do you all want it? its just 3 more days. come on.
champions. just one more time.
%: acX all the hardwork. one more time
% acX : ~fuNgI` still running at 5:09 AM