Happy Running!

Before the Race
I got up at 4am to eat a bit. I ate a banana and a KFC brownie and drank a bottle of vitwater (blue) and half a bottle of Gatorade. I made sure I put bandaid on the places on my feet that tend to blister and then got my bag, which I had prepared the night before. I left at around 4:50am and got to The Fort at 5:15am.

There was a long line at the nearer parking areas so I decided to park at the back of Pancake House at BHS so I could spend some time warming up and stretching. Then I headed for the race area where I met Carlo and his friend Francis who were both also running the 15K. It was actually Carlo who convinced me to run the 15K instead of the 5K. I figured that I might as well make the most out of the weekend.

I didn't notice the portalets so I had to go back to the BHS comfort room, which was much better anyway. It was a quick jog so it also served as a warm up as well.

During the Race
It was my first 15K race so I knew I had to start slow. I started my stopwatch as soon as the race started so I would be synchronized with the official time of the race. Upon reaching the first kilometer, I checked my watch to check my pace. 7 minutes. It was a good pace since I didn't feel any pain and my breathing was just right. I continued this pace until the first U-turn before entering the Heritage Park.

Even if I had slightly increased my pace, I was sightseeing at the Heritage Park. Everything was still and the view was great. There was a group there playing some music and I thought it was wonderful. Even the native dances were entertaining. But it was in Heritage Park that I started to feel a bit of a strain on my legs. I was getting a bit tired, especially because of the incline on the latter part of that leg of the race.

Moving out of the park, we made our way back to Lawton. I heard that Mckinley Hill was part of the route so I decided to conserve my energy and maintain my pace. On my way back to Lawton I noticed that the water station at the corner of Lawton and Bayani Road had run out of plastic cups and was giving away 1 Liter Bottles of Hidden Spring instead. I considered taking one but I though carrying a liter was too heavy.

The descent upon entering Mckinley Hill was quite steep. I worried a bit about my knees because running down too fast would definitely hurt them so I took small steps downward. As I made my way up to the next U-turn I could feel the strain again on my legs. This was one tough route! I slowed down again trying to get out of Mckinley Hill. Upon reaching Lawton, I felt exhausted from the climb so I took some time t catch my breath.

When I reached Essensa, I decided that it was time to go all out. I quickened my pace for a strong finish. At the finish line, Carlo and Lara were at the sidelines. Lara took a picture as I ran into the finisher's chute. My official time was 1:34:52 and my average pace was 6:19/km.

After the Race
It was quite festive after the race. There were a number of booths giving away items. All in all, I took home a free haircut stub from Grupo Barbero, a banana, Enervon C samples, and a Timex discount coupon. I was not able to get the Men's Health magazine because they ran of copies by the time I finished and I chose not to have my blood sugar tested. In the end, I can say that this was a good run. Personally, I felt good about my first 15K and how I performed.

I am also starting to think that I should choose my races well. One big factor from now on will be to check if the race will be organized by Rio dela Cruz.

The PSE Bull Run 2009: Takbo Para Sa Ekonomiya

I was a bit turned off when I, along with my running buddies, registered for this run. We registered early to avail of the lowest rates then. Let's just say that the people in charge were not so nice and the singlets and bib numbers were not yet available so we had to. The singlets and bib numbers only became available the week before the race. Perhaps the registration blues should have warned us of what was to come.

On the day of the race, as expected, I noticed that a lot of runners had shown up. The portalets had long lines and the check in area at the starting line was really full. I ended up at the back of the pack because the middle and front areas were so cramped. The 10k race started on time, but I walked for the first 40 seconds after the bell rang.

On the first kilometer, I found myself trying to make my way to the middle of the pack. I found it a bit tiring just weaving in and out trying to pass runners. Something was wrong. I didn't feel as strong as a felt during the UP ICTUS Run. Nevertheless, I maintained my pace, which I felt was somewhere around 5:30/km. It helped a bit that I tried to take deeper breaths.

I think I stopped to walk around 3 times on the way back just to catch my breath. I was pushing it a bit because I was targeting a 3-minute improvement in my time.

When I got to The Essensa, I quickened my pace and made it a point not to stop. But then, as I turned the corner to the finish line, there were 2 long lines of runners waiting for their turn to cross. I quickly joined the nearest line, but then I noticed that the runners there had red bib numbers (the 5K bibs!) so I moved to the next line at once. By then, around 7 or 8 runners had already moved into the line before me. I looked at the time on the finish line: 57 minutes. The time on my stopwatch was still at 56 since I started it as I cross the starting line.

I started wondering to myself. How will they know exactly when I cross the finish line? What could be taking such a long time? I heard from someone that they would adjust the time. How? What would be their basis?

It was a good run actually. I just wanted to make a strong finish, but then I couldn't. I'll always remember this race as the one that was "bitin".

To the organizers of this race, I hope it will be better next time.