From left to right.

Way Wong (alternate, not used), Muhammad Khairul Sofri Bin Osman(20), Peter Wong Jaw-Nan (44), Samantha Thian Tshi Hui (12), Sandy Snakenberg (45), Bertrand Chew (15), Guest of honor Mr. Teo Ser Luck, Lim June Liang (17), Manee Chantakett (40), and Jansen Tang (31) .

By Sandy Snakenberg

This was the first event of its kind in Singapore. There were two events running simultaneously at the Singapore Expo. One was the 24-hour 8-person relay world record attempt and the other was the 24-hour indoor skate carnival.

The 24-hour relay comprised of eight persons - two women and six men - all of whom attended tryouts for participating. One person would be on the 352-m track for one hour each after which a hand off comprising of a relay push would take place and the next skater was on the way. Each skater had three chances on the course. The total distance covered was 587.136 km. Although this distance was not enough for a world record, we did establish a Singapore record. The skaters in the order of hand-off were Samantha Thian Tshi Hui (12), Bertrand Chew (15), Peter Wong Jaw-Nan (44), Lim June Liang (17), Manee Chantakett (40), Jansen Tang (31), Muhammad Khairul Sofri Bin Osman (20), and Sandy Snakenberg (45). We would like to extend an honourable mention to Fed Low for hanging out most of the night and early morning pacing the younger skaters while he was on the inner track.

This event was not just a world record attempt but was also open to the public. A 24-hour indoor inline skate carnival or skate-athon was held concurrently. The public as well as groups came to skate with us. They would skate on the inside track while the record was being attempted on the outside track. It was almost like a skating slumber party. With a sound system provided by Sound Image Productions, there was no shortage of accompanying music. The Salvation Army’s Gracehaven came with forty kids (many whom I had coached).

One month before the event, I was not sure that it would even happen. With a shoestring budget (coming out of our pockets) to work with, limited resources, unconfirmed venue and no timing system, I was about to throw in the towel. Then, Wavex Technologies volunteered to provide the timing system and personnel to run it. The venue was subsequently confirmed and things were finally coming together. Still, I had a lot to do. It was a house of cards. If one piece were missing, it would all fall apart. It was prudent that I was in charge and did not have any disruptive external influences or other objectives to meet. Instead, I had a dedicated team of people to work with as well as a devoted team of skaters all harmonized towards our common goal.

The day before the event, I had to make sure everything was set up and even the speed team pitched in to help with the barriers. The course was officially measured and everything was in place. The RFID timing system and the music was ready. Now it was time to get some rest.

The next morning, Mr. Teo Ser Luck, Parliamentary Secretary for Community Development, Youth and Sports was there to kick off Fitness Asia 2006 and our 24-hour event. We all wormed up on the track and it was time. The horn blew and Samantha was on her way. Now it was a matter of everything going according to plan (which never happens). Around midnight, the lights in the hall went out. I ran to the security room to get them back on. Then around 3 am, the fire alarm went off and the ventilation system kicked in. I thought we would have to evacuate but luckily that was not the case. Although I was disappointed by the lack of participation from the skating community in the skate-athon, those that did come had a good time. A few falls did occur but no serious injuries were reported.

All in all, I think it was a great success. All objectives were met even though we did not set a world record. We did establish a Singapore record leaving a benchmark to overcome the next attempt. The recreational participants had a good time too.

I would like to thank the supporters and sponsors that made this event possible. The 24HR Indoor Skate Carnival was endorsed by Roller Sports Singapore and supported and sponsored by the Singapore Sports Council, Micro, HVPER Sport, Ole Energy Drink, Choices magazine, Advance Interactive Technologies, Wavex Technologies, VIP Broadcast, Sound Image Productions, Singapore Weightlifting Federation, PowerBar, and Singex Exhibitions. This event was organized by Essential Sports Marketing (Colin Ong) and AG Sports (Sandy Snakenberg, John Li and Joel Chan). We owe a special mention to the youth volunteers of Gracehaven who hail from Nanyang Junior College and Raffles Junior College.

From Michelle:

We're all from Raffles Junior College (RJC),

Our role in the event was basically to help coordinate the flow of traffic, to ensure that the path was unobstructed for the skaters, and also to direct the people who came to watch or participate in various events. We also helped in the teaching of the kids, either from GraceHaven Children's Home or the public how to skate, and we too had the opportunity to skate in the main ring and have fun ourselves.

Overall, the event was an enriching experience. As it was a record-breaking event, it was a proud moment for all of us, as it was a rare experience taking part in such a large-scale event. However, it was good as it was not only record breakers who had fun, but the public too had a chance to take part and have fun (e.g. we had a chance to skate)

This whole experience nurtured patience and endurance through teaching of the little kids to skate, as it was not an easy task. It also allowed and provided a platform for us to give back and help the community. For us volunteers, it helped to mould our character, teaching us vital skills such as leadership, and it also promoted class bonding.

Here are some excerpts from the insights and reflections that the people who took part in the event did:

“Created an opportunity for sports-lovers to gather and share about their common interest” – Wangxin

“It taught me to give back to the community” – Jin Wei

“It was a good test of patience and endurance” – Justina

“Through the teaching of kids how to skate, as well as helping to coordinate stuff for my class, it has taught me vital skills such as leadership and communication” – Michelle

More pictures here. Attach is an article about one of the skaters in Asia Magazine