The night before I drank a glass of Gatorade and had a heavy dinner. Right before the leaving my house, I ate 2 donuts and drank the blue variant of Vitwater. I got to The Fort at around 5 A.M., but I was only able to park after 15 minutes. After quickly stretching my lower legs, I ran to the assembly area, which was already packed with runners. I found it somewhat difficult to find the 21k check-in area so right when I got in, I barely had time to look around for running friends when I heard the gun go off signaling the start of the race. I was at the back and by the time I crossed the starting line, around 35 seconds had already gone by. Actually, there were so many people that I felt it was still so crowded after 2 kilometers into the race and I had to watch out lest I bump into someone or trip on somebody's foot. It was only upon reaching Buendia that I felt that I could really run without having to worry about other runners so much.
Unlike many others races, I was pretty familiar with the race course so I knew I had to save my strength for the inclined portions such as the Kalayaan Flyover to Buendia and the Skyway on-ramp. It was only upon running on the Skyway that I realized that the Skyway itself had portions that were going up and down. To keep myself from tiring out quickly, I made sure to drink enough at each water station since I am the type that perspires a lot. From time to time, I'd check if I was still perspiring to make sure I would not dehydrate. I also brought two packs of raisins just to help me keep going. I took one pack right after making it to the Skyway and the second pack right before getting off the Skyway.
The Skyway portion was just great! I made sure to look around and savor the experience. There were even times when I'd run backwards for short periods just to see all around me. At one point, sponges with ice-cold water were given away. At another, runners could cool off under a shower provided by what I think was a fire engine!
I began to feel tired as I passed Reposo on the way back. One thing I noticed was that there weren't as many water stations going back to the Kalayaan Flyover. My legs were like rubber by the time I got to the flyover that I had to take a 15 second walk on the ramp upward. I made sure I ran as soon as I could because I feared that it might be harder to start running again if I walked to long.
I finished with a time of 2:15 (unofficial). Not so good, but then not so bad either for a first timer. As I entered the finishers' chute, a lady put the finisher's medal around my neck and another lady gave me my loot bag. I immediately went to the nearest water station and then I looked for my friends for our usual photo session.
The Condura Run for the Whale Sharks was a great race indeed. The mood was festive and everyone I saw looked happy. I also met a number of friends I didn't know were also into runnung. To the organizers, congratulations! I hope we raised enough funds to help the Whale Sharks and the Children. Hmmm... I wonder what race to join next... Cheers!
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