On Saturday, 6 January 2018, I took part in the first ever Transformers Run in Singapore. There is only one distance category in this event, which is 5km. As a fun run, the event welcomes runners from all ages.
The race pack collection was held from 28 to 31 December at Kallang Wave Mall. The collection process was smooth without any queue. Inside the drawstring bag were a wristband, a Transformers tee, a water bottle and two small boxes of milk.
Getting to the Event
Getting to the event venue at Palawan Green, Sentosa, was hassle-free. Runners were entitled to free monorail ride from VivoCity to Sentosa.
My friends and I took the monorail from VivoCity and alighted at Beach Station in Sentosa. After we exited the station, there wasn’t any signage pointing to the direction of the race village. But it wasn’t a big deal because I already knew the location of Palawan Green.
Carnival
The carnival started at 12 noon, while the flag off of the 5km was scheduled to be at 4:30 p.m. The first thing that caught my attention when I entered the event venue was the big inflatable slide that seemed to be a favourite among the kids. There was also an inflatable boxing ring.
The mass warm up was held at 3:45 p.m. where we danced to a couple of songs. After the warm-up, we hydrated ourselves with free drinks from the 100Plus booth.
Then, we went to the Passport Redemption Counter to redeem our Carnival Passport. On one side of the passport, we had to fill in our particulars. At the other side of the passport was a 3×3 matrix filled with various booth name. A chop is earned by visiting the booths and completing certain tasks. After collecting 3 chops that form a line (horizontal, vertical or diagonal), the card is considered complete and valid for the lucky draw.
Even though the clock was already showing 4 p.m. and the emcee was telling runners to head to the start line, we were determined to collect the chops before running. We played various games and performed different tasks, such as shooting static targets, throwing ping pong balls, taking photos with cardboard cut-out, throwing balls, as well as requesting for chops from volunteers a the 100Plus booth. Collecting chops were so fun that we missed the flag off by a few minutes.
5km Run
The route brought us running at Siloso Beach, Imbiah trail, Merlion, Orchid Connection, Palawan Beach and eventually back to Palawan Green. Despite having run a couple of times in Sentosa before, this was my first time running past Merlion and through Orchid Connection. I’m glad that I got to see more of Sentosa Island through Transformers Run.
There were 2 hydration stations along the route. Both stations were serving chilled and refreshing 100Plus isotonic drinks.
Most of the route was barricaded with metal railings, except the portions at trails and Merlion. Since distance markers were not present, I used my watch to estimate the remaining distance.
The crowd size at Transformers Run was quite manageable. It wasn’t overly crowded, and there were opportunities to run, except at the narrow paths such as Imbiah trail and Orchid Connection.
In no time, we arrived back at Palawan Green. We collected a medal, a can of 100Plus isotonic drinks and a bottle of mineral water.
Post-Race Activities
There were numerous fun post-race activities at Palawan Green after the run. At about 5:30 p.m., there was a stage games. The emcee was giving out prizes for runners who could bring items that start with letter T, R, S and G. The participants were so creative in their answers, we couldn’t stop grinning.
Then, it was the performance by The Annoying Brothers, a group of two talented guys performing circus tricks and making thousands of people laugh. During the performance, the lucky draw winners (not top prizes) were displayed at the Carnival Passport Counter.
Eventually, the lucky draw winners for top prizes were announced at around 7 p.m. As usual, I didn’t win 🙂
Event Overview
- A fun event that comprises of fun run and fun carnival.
- Many prizes were given out for the stage games and lucky draw.
- Getting to the event was hassle-free.
- Road closure, hydration points, traffic marshals were great.
