Globe Run for Home 2010 would be part of my training run in preparation for my first full marathon in May. Barely a year into running, I decided to take THE leap and register for a full marathon. Of course, I had to register hubby as well. He did say he wanted to train hard and join a full this year, he failed to tell me that he would be ready to run his full mary by the END of this year. Well so much for being fully prepared. =)
As part of our program, we needed to do long runs every weekend. The only way we can do this is if we join races as we tend to procrastinate. At least if we joined weekend races, we would be obligated to do the long run training.
Globe R4H would be my 3rd half marathon so I decided to help pace Noy for a PR. I promised him that we will cross the finish line together, hand-in-hand. Noy had doubts but I was determined to prove him otherwise.
Pre-Race Jitters
Unlike any previous races, Noy actually woke up earlier than I did. I was negotiating with my alarm clock as I felt really lazy to get up. Me…lazy for a morning race? What was up with me! Truthfully, I had pre-race jitters as I was scared to feel this annoying pain on my right leg. Stubborn me, didn’t want to take time to see a rehab/sports doctor.
We rushed to Makati and had an easy time finding parking. Ahhh…the benefits of being early.
After the photo opps by the finish line with the Takbo.ph peeps, stretching and some exercises, psyching myself that my right leg won’t act up, the countdown began and off we go.
Race Proper
The unique course took us along Ayala, Dela Rosa, Greenbelt tunnel, Makati Ave then finally Buendia. I told hubby to stay close and keep pace with me. Apparently, he didn’t do what he was told as I lost him less than 1km in the race. I had to wait for him by the Greenbelt 5 tunnel. Noy stayed with Pepsi, Carina, Julie and Marvin instead. The girls (+1-Marvin) were reproaching me for not waiting for Noy as I initially committed. Oh well, I learned my lesson and stuck to my man from the onwards. By the time we reached the Kalayaan flyover, enroute to Fort, we lost sight of the girls +1. Hubby wanted to catch up with them so he ran full speed ahead and left me. The nerve! I waited for him only to be left behind? I don’t think so! But I kept my cool knowing that he’ll run out gas soon. And it came, sooner than I thought. I caught up with him before reaching Burgos Circle.
Ahhh…the familiar grounds of Fort. Fort is my playground and I just love running on a familiar route.
Before reaching Heritage Park, we saw my halimaw Tito Jombet already on the way back to Makati. Results were out as of press time and he was able to beat his PR ending his HM in 1:55 mins.
When I was a kid, we lived near a cemetery. As I visited my dad often in the cemetery, it became a recreational area to me. I used to bike, skate, and have picnics in Eternal Gardens. I felt relaxed and at peace while running inside Heritage Park. Noy was already struggling at this point. We saw Jet and Rod taking their time inside the cemetery. Jet was wearing spanking new Nike running shoes, an impulse buy he said.
So far, so good. My right leg wasn’t giving me any problems. Noy’s right calf, however, started to cramp near NBC tent. By the time we got to Buendia, we had iced both his calves thrice just to alleviate his pain. We saw Morgan struggling as well so we handed him our leftover ice. He later told us that this was what kept him going =)
I was itching to sprint to the finish line as we were crossing Paseo de Roxas and tried to push Noy to run with me to the finish. But his cramping legs prevented him from doing so. So instead, I waited to him and hand-in-hand, we crossed the finish line with a time of 2:56, a PR for my hunny!
- Success! 🙂
I learned a few things after this experience.
- You need not to aim for a PR on a race to have fun.
- Running can actually be a team sport where you motivate other people to run and receive the same from others.
- Makati is pollution free during wee hours of the morning. Trust me, I thought otherwise.
- Use Ice for immediate relief of cramps. Must be the numbing sensation. I never had problems with cramps and I don’t want to experience it.
- Sponges are actually cool (literally). It was my 1st time to use this…please don’t laugh =)
- I really don’t mind running with bandit runners and they’re actually not too bad…until they start to litter the streets with cups and Powerade bottles which they shouldn’t have drank from in the first place!
- I will never run with hubby again…..well from now until Tuesday next week anyway.
Takbo.ph peeps
How did I find the race?
I give it 4.5/5
- Race route was unique and very challenging.
- There were enough marshals to make me feel secure.
- Powerade and water cups were aplenty.
- Race started on time.
- Free Women’s Health Mag.
- 20% discount on NB apparel which I plan to use next week 😉
- Use of timing chip.
BUT…
- No medals?…then again, proceeds were for building homes for the marginalized.
All in all I enjoyed the experience. See you on the next race!
My first experience doing support for runners was one of the toughest experiences I had. Read it all in https://gailcons.wordpress.com/2010/01/26/supporting-the-titans/. No sleep, lack of food, no immediate access to clean toilets, lack of water, fatigue were just a few things I had to go through during the BDM Simulation Run. So when I was asked if I can do the real thing, I naturally said…YES! 🙂
Planning, Pre-departure
I was asked by Abby to be on of her support crew. Since I didn’t want to spend a weekend without hubby (and I needed someone to drive as well ;-)) I asked (more of begged) Noy to come along.
Abby’s support crew
Noy and Gail – Ultra drivers
Carina – Race Director
Julie – Entertainment Head
Joni – Nutritionist
Z – Photographer and cheerer
Pepsi – Asst Race Director (LOL)
After many planning sessions, we agreed that we would leave Manila on the morning of March 6, Saturday. The team initially wanted to leave 7am but Julie (Hotlegs runner) and I felt it was too early. I had a mini HS reunion Friday night so I knew that it will end early. We then agreed to leave at 9am.
After a series of unfortunates, (Thursday, my van didn’t want to cooperate; Friday, Julie learned that she had practice so she had to drop out; I had to move the scheduled departure to 10am as I needed to attend to some personal issues; supplies were stuck with Carina so we had to load everything in the van) we finally left for Bataan at 1045am.
Enroute to Bataan
EDSA traffic was BAD. It was barely moving from Ortigas to past Cubao. We got to Mcdo Munoz to pick up Joni and Abby past 11am, so much for being early.
The drive to Bataan was uneventful. It was a smooth ride with hubby behind the wheel. We got to Mariveles in no time. Noy and Abby rested while I dealt with some office/work drama that made Pepsi, Carina and Z irked as I was on the phone from 3pm to 530pm. We prepared some sandwiches, boiled eggs and bought some ice to make sure the drinks were cold. Carina, Joni and I even went to the local church to say a short prayer for our runners. I made sure I took a shower as I knew that it will be a LONG 24 hours without bathing.
Goofing around the resort
Chilling
Let’s the games begin
Finally it as time to go. We left the resort at 9pm. There was a sharp decent going to km0. Noy was telling us the story of the Bataan Death March, how many soldiers died during this march. He’d tell Abby, imagine mo na lang na may mga hapon na simusunod sayo para mas bumilis ka tumakbo then he’d switch off his headlights so we would see how dark it was. Waaaaaahhhh! But then Noy would then tell Abby not to worry as we will be there the whole time. (But he does this AFTER he scared Abby half to death :)) Hahahaha!
Can you see the excitement in Abby's face?
We arrived at km0 at 930pm. The atmosphere was festive. Excitement was in the air. After a series of photo opps, we left to position ourselves at the km3 marker while waiting for the runners to start arriving.
Happy feet runners present at the BDM
By the starting line
Things people do when they're bored
At the km2 marker
Here they come. Whoa! They were fast. I expected to see runners saving their energy for the tough climb but no…they were all running fast. I guess they saw all the hapons behind them?
Running from ghosts =)
Look at the steep slope
The ascent was not terribly dark as the support crew made sure that they were not too far behind their runners. Our headlights gave them ample light to make sure none of them would get into an accident by falling off some ravine or getting hit by another vehicle. Our girl was doing fine.
Km 7 and beyond
After the steep uphill, we decided to wait for Abby every 2 kms to make sure we provide her proper hydration and nutrition. Noy had this grand plan of asking us to take a photo of him at each km marker, something that he took to heart until he got tired and sleepy.
Here goes Noy...
and yet again...
...and again...
At around 1am, my eyes were getting tired. I had to remove my contacts soon and endure being “blind” for 4 hours until my eyes have rested enough to place my contacts again. Since I was virtually useless, I decided to get some sleep at 2am. At around 330am I got up as I needed to take a major toliet break. Since there were no restrooms open at this hour (Imagine, gasoline staions there close at 10pm!) I used Abby’s improvised balikbayan box portalet! Nice! Hahaha!
in dreamland...
Past 4am, we were already at the km32 marker waiting for Abby. They have been running for over 5 hours now. And I can feel that most of them are getting tired as my batteries are running low myself.
Pepsi waiting for our runner
I went back to sleep. Half awake, half asleep, I would hear Noy getting excited while he gets Pepsi or Carina to take his picture at each km marker he sees. I could hear Carina preparing Abby’s flask; Joni preparing Abby’s food. Z and I slept. Z had flu so she really needed rest.
no he's not part of our support crew...that's rodel taking a break 🙂
Finally it was time to wake up. It was already 6am (km 42) and I wanted to relieve Noy from his driving duties. But he declined saying that he still had energy for the drive.
Km 46, we saw Argo struggling to keep his pace. He told me that he was feeling a stabbing pain on the lower anterior medial portion of his right leg and upon examination; I saw that it was mildly swollen. Z and I decided to give his legs a massage to alleviate the pain. He told us that he had to finish the race as his dad was waiting for him at the finish line. (Argo’s father passed away, exactly 9 days prior to the BDM race day)
Caring for the Argonaut
At around 7am, Abby reached the halfway point marker, km 50. Instead of stopping to rest, she decided to continue to run. The support crew was (that means us :)) so we decided to do a short pit stop while cooking our runner’s food (Pancit Canton).
abby passing the km50 mark looking strong as ever
It was a HOT day the sun was up and was shining its bright and hot rays on our runners. At km52, Abby decided to change. But since she didn’t want to stop, she did this while walking. How did she do it? Find out below.
That's our girl!
Nice! Yan ang mobile dressing 🙂
We were at km56 by 8am. Abby told us to stay close as she was starting to get really tired from the sun. I was thinking to myself this terrain, this kind of heat and this experience was really something I don’t think I want to experience ever. But then again, that was what I said before I got hooked into running.
Km62 at 9:13am…Abby wasn’t smiling anymore. She requested us to stay within 200m. We started to provide her sponges dripped in ice cold water. We were running out of ice so we had to stop twice to buy more. Abby refused to eat. Good thing she was too tired to argue with Joni who fed her with GU, bananas and a tuna sandwich.
Abby looking really tired 😦
By 11am, Abby km 72 and was able to catch up with Luis. From km 72 to km 74, they were neck on neck. I can’t recall at what point did Abby lose Luis but beyond Km77, Abby was closing in on Argo. I was impressed with Rodel. He was in high spirits and even managed to run a bit under the hot, hot sun. Abby being such a girl felt that she needed to brush her teeth so right then and there while walking under the hot sun, she did just that.
Luis looking tired as well 😦
paparazzi shot
talk hygiene OC-ness =)
By km 79, Abby got her second wind. She was smiling again and was rocking to the tune of Sex Bomb (I wonder why she was so happy (wink*wink*).
happy abby
1:30pm, we were already at km85. Less than 20km to go! Abby wasn’t happy. Her second wind died down and she was just really tired. She was already walking most of the time at this point. I told Noy to take a break and let me do the driving. He agreed on the condition that we continue taking pictures of his precious km markers. Lol!
unhappy abby 😦
Km88, Abby didn’t feel good wearing a wet shirt so she decided to change again.
At km94, Noy got up resumed his km marker picture taking activity. It was 3:13pm. We met up with Abby’s parents at km95. They were so excited for Abby. You can see that her parents, especially Abby’s dad, were so proud of their little girl.
yehey for Abby's parents!
4:19pm, we finally reached the km100 marker! Only 2 more kms to go and a lot of time to spare before the 5:30pm cut-off. By 4:23pm Abby was crossing the Welcome to San Fernando sign. Somewhere between km markers, we got lost. We wanted to buy some peach mango pie form Jollibee for Abby so she has something to eat upon reaching the finish line. However, we found ourselves in this really narrow street and we lost way. Good thing hubby was there to save the day using his GPS, direction finding skills; we found our way back to Abby. By the time we go to her, she had overtaken Argo and a bunch of other runners. Hurrying much?
At 4:43pm, our “chicken” (Noy coined this as an alternative to Manok =)) crossed the finish line! She ended her 1st ultramarathon by bagging the most coveted 69th place award (bagay Abby! Hehe)
Abby crossing the finish line...she still managed to jump a bit 🙂
Four minutes behind Abby, our dear Rodel/Argo crossed the finish line carrying his dad’s photo. Awwww…that was so sweet!
Doc Art crossed the finish line at an amazing time of 4:51pm! Wow!
Luis crossed the finish line at exactly 5pm. So proud of you mayor GBM! 😉
Mark Herz crossed the finish line at 5:03pm.
Sam the Running Ninja at 5:09pm.
Rod Apolinario right behind at 5:09pm as well.
Doc T at 5:10pm. (According to Doc T, dami na humahabol sa kanya while they were running. I told him that maybe people thought he was Bong Revilla. Yun pala Bong Revillame. Hahaha!)
Coach Poj/Mar crossed the finish line at 5:19pm. Go Coach!!!
To the rest of the BDM Ultramarathon participants, you guys are the bomb…the true Gods of craziness! Congratulations to all of you! Hats off!
To all the support crew, our job was tough but seeing our runners cross the finish line made it all worth it! Cheers!
Takbo.ph class pic...some runners were too tired to stand up to pose by the finish line...LOL!
Keep on running! No barriers…
Thank you to my co-ultra supporters Carina, Z, Joni, Pepsi and to my loving hubby/driver (LOL!) Noy…you guys are the best! Mwahhhh!
2:30
2 hours 30 minutes was the answer I got every time I would ask HM runners what an acceptable time for a person to finish a 21km race was.
2 hours 30 minutes, this was the (secret) goal I had in mind when I ran my 1st half marathon during the Condurarun. Unfortunately, I failed. It didn’t matter. I was happy with the experience…happy enough that I decided to run 21k in the Century Superbods. Hubby also agreed to give long distance running another shot.
Race day
Noy and I lacked sleep as it was Yno’s prom the night before. The alarm went off at 230am and 3am but apparently I didn’t hear both. Noy woke me up at 344am. I hurried to take a quick shower, dress up and wait for Noy in the car as I always do. I prepared everything for him. I placed his timing chip on his shoe, charged his ipod, cooled his Gatorade, and prepared his outfit, just so we wouldn’t be late. So far, so good.
We got to the venue at 5am. One thing I forgot to do was to pin Noy’s race bib on his singlet. While I was helping him put it on, we heard the countdown. Could it be? Was that the 21k gun start? I panicked and rushed to the starting line only to find it populated by 10k runners. It was impossible to squeeze our way in. Noy decided to push aside a loose steel barrier so we can weave ourselves through the crowd and off we go!
I hate being at the tailend of my category runners. But I was surprised to find it quite pleasant. The road and water stations were not crowded. I can actually hear myself breathing J I saw this middle aged fellow that looked like Tito Mark. But I knew he couldn’t have been Mark as he was wearing a hydration belt and tights something I think Tito Mark wouldn’t do. Just thinking of my running idols (Tita Tiff and Tito Mark) placed a smile on my face. It’s been almost a year (May) since this pair got me hooked into running. They registered me for my 1st 3k race. And now, I’m running my 2nd 21k. Has it been that long?
Road to Darkness
Our route included the long road to IS and Kalayaan. On normal days, Noy and I used to hate this part as the smog from the vehicles here were thick, making it more difficult to run.
The air was cool (well cooler than my evening runs), but the route was dark. I could barely see the route signages. By this time, I managed to catch up with some 21k runners and was also joined by fast 10k runners as well.
En Route to Lawton-Bayani Road
Finally peace…this is where the 10k and the 21k runners part ways. Running along Lawton is something very familiar to me as this is my training route. I was happy that I didn’t feel tired and that my ankles and feet seem to be cooperating.
Upon reaching Bayani road I saw Takbo monsters Ellen, Bryan, Doc Pinky, Rod etc running back to Fort. I was that late…actually they were that fast 🙂
As I reached Heritage Park, I decided to take it slow. My legs were tired and my hyper-acidic stomach was really acting up. I wanted to approach one of the marshals to ask if they had an antacid. But oh, 2:30 was beckoning me. I decided to trudge on.
Finally…on the way back. I was tired. My legs hurt and my left ankle was starting to complain. I started to verbally motivate myself (I must’ve looked crazy to people who could here me) by saying, don’t quit now…you can do it…2:30 gail 2:30…
When I saw the 1km to go marker, I felt so relieved. Yes! I am almost there! Then this guy approached me and told me that I still had 500m to go…HUWAT?! 500m…argh! I was really tired. I kept thinking to myself…How could I survive a full marathon if I could barely survive a half? I was starting to doubt my capabilities. Finally as if the Lord had listened…I saw him…Tito Mark look-alike. I got hit by an inspiration. I need to run faster than this guy. I need to finish ahead of him. If I can’t be at par with Tito Mark, at least I can beat his look-alike! LOL!
I finally see the finishline. TMLA (Tito Mark Look Alike) was 20m in front of me. I had to push hard, I had to beat him. Then….another inspiration hit me. I saw myself on a huge LED screen, racing towards the finishline, over taking TMLA…then it was all over! I beat TMLA!!! I had to raise both my hands in triumph! I was so happy that I forgot to check the time to see if I was able to take hold of the elusive 2:30. Disappointment flooded by senses as the clock read 2:36. Dang, I missed it by a mile. I was expecting that the chip time would be 2:32. I remember telling myself that I will catch 2:30 in my next HM race.
TMLA eat my dust! 🙂
Julie and Julie’s fiancé, Mike de Mesa (who I think is one of the best actors in the world and having one of the best actresses, Cherie Gil as a sister is a major plus for me! I am totally a fan!), and Carina were by the finish line waiting for other Takbo peeps to finish. I hanged out with them while waiting for hubby to arrive. Julie was telling their very disappointing tale of losing her way due to some race marshal who pointed them to the wrong direction…what a disappointment indeed. However, I feel that she still did well for her 7.8km 😉 Congrats Julie!
Julie, Mike (my idol), Carina, myself
Finally Noy arrives looking like a stud wearing his aviator shades. Naks! I’m totally loyal, I didn’t even check out those HOT, gorgeous male models handing over cups of Gatorade and water…nope not me…I didn’t check them out from head to foot…no siree…Hubby shaved an amazing 17 mins off his previous 21k time! So proud of him! After an hour or so, hanging out with the gang, falling in line for the freebies and Century corned tuna shopping (it was buy 1, take 1! What a deal!), Noy and I decided to go home so we can have breakfast with the kids. I missed the Takbo.ph post-race breakfast again but I did enjoy a noisy brunch with my boys 🙂
Stud hubby with me 😉
*Thanks Carins for the pictures 🙂
Oh and by the way, 2:30 is elusive no more…Century Superbods results: Gun time: 02:35:09 Chip time: 02:30:56 …too bad it’s under Noy Consolacion as they mixed up our race kits 🙂
Century Superbods:
9/10 – Would’ve been perfect had it not been for the lousy management of traffic and the misguided 10k runners. My heart goes to them.
Coach Rio, I still think you rock! It was definitely an experience running a race you’ve organized. Will definitely be there on the 2nd leg of Runrio 2010. I just hope I can still run that time as that will be a week after my 1st full.
February 7, Sunday, CONDURA RUN. This was the day I will run my 1st half marathon 21k. I was anxious, nervous and at the same time excited. I knew I lacked training as I only had 1 long run on my belt (only a tad less than 19km) and this was months ago during the Philippine International Marathon. But I cannot resist the temptation to run on the Skyway. Yes, this was the selling point for me. The 1st time I ran on top of the Kalayaan Flyover, I was in love. I knew that flyovers were my thing. I love the view and I love the fact that you can only do this one in a blue moon (well, until I found out that most races have the Kalayaan flyover as a normal route J)
Race Registration & Claiming
The registration was a breeze. I registered Noy for the 10k race but he changed his mind (or was forced to change his mind) to run the 21k instead. I emailed the Condura secretariat and they allowed him to upgrade.
Claiming of the race kits was uneventful. I was in and out in 8 minutes tops. They were really organized.
D-Day
The Pink Ladies (and 1 singit mascot)
Lally, Noy, Julie and I decided to run together. It so happened that we were all wearing pink hence the name pink girls. Dyules, Lorie and Yan were in their “monster” zone so they decided to run ahead of us. Initially we were suppose to do a 4:1 Galloway’s but decided to try 5:1 instead (5 minutes run: 1 minute walk). Supporter Rod ran with us.
Enjoying the run along Buendia
The route to Buendia through the Kalayaan flyover was pitch-black. I have night blindness so I really couldn’t see a thing. I looked out for reflectorized shoes and gear plus followed the white street markers. Thankfully, Buendia was well lit. It was an easy run towards the Dela Rosa ramp of the Skyway.
The Skyway
Going up the Skyway
My much awaited SkyWay. Most say that this was a difficult route but I have to disagree. Nothing can beat McKinley and St. Martin’s Hills. I have to admit that this was the most enjoyable race I had. I was singing Beyonce’s Single Ladies while running, strumming my invisible guitar while listening to Aerosmith’s Crying and shaking my bootie to Patron Tequila. I even had the energy to scream “Go Tito Jombet” to the top of my lungs 🙂 I kept on telling Julie and Lally to look at the beautiful Manila cityscape with the sun rising behind it. BEAUTIFUL. I was even able to take photos of my 2 lovely pink girls. I was enjoying the run so much that I kept on running way ahead of my posse only to turn back and continue to run with them. I am their designated time keeper any way.
I can't wipe the huge smile on my face!
I'm super happy 🙂
On the way back, I saw my dearest hubby who we lost while we were only at the Kalayaan flyover. I told him that I will wait for him at the finish line. I saw my idol Tita Tiff who I ran with for a few meters but declined to accompany her as I cannot leave my posse behind.
Bodily Problems
Julie was having ankle problems. She also had chaffing issues that I regretted not carrying my BodyGlide with me. Lally had side stitches so we had to slow down. Julie decided to just run ahead. Lally then told me to go ahead. After catching up with Rod, he told me to run ahead as well. The sun was up and it was getting hot that I decided to just run ahead and go back for them afterwards.
En route back to Fort (Thanks Eire for the pic)
Way Back
Buendia en route back to Fort, was a loooong run. I was bored not having anyone with me. My legs felt like lead. I was cheating on my Galloway’s method by stopping ahead of the my designated rest time. Oh what joy to see the Takbo.ph aid station! Finally, familiar faces! McCoy offered me a massage but I politely declined as there were other runners more in need of his services. I grabbed a banana and went on my way.
Banana's anyone?
I saw Tito Mark (Mark’s V02) and managed to run alongside of him for about 400 meters. That’s already an achievement for me as he is super fast! By the way, he capped his 1st full marathon with a time of 4:07. WOW…
Kalayaan flyover going back to Fort. I know I said I love flyovers, but this is one stretch I really hate. The incline is steep, comparable to Mckinley Hills. The stretch was quite long at 200-250m approximately. By the time I reach this point, I was exhausted. But I had to finish strong no matter what. I pinpointed a male runner and tried to mimic his pace. Thankfully, I managed to continue on running following my Galloway schedule.
The last 200m felt like the longest 200m of my life. It wasn’t that my energy was zapped but my legs felt like steel. They were so heavy! I finally managed to count myself down towards the finish line ending my 1st 21.77k in 1:41. I was a bit disappointed that I didn’t hit my secret 2:30 goal but was pleased that I was 4 minutes below my 2:45 goal.
Wish I was like Usain Bolt sprinting 200m
I rushed to get a cold drink of water, get my medal and ran back towards the Kalayaan flyover to wait for Lally and Noy. A few minutes later, Lally arrived. She looked tired so I asked her to give me her hydration belt so she can move quicker. Hubby was nowhere in site. I was worried. Was he injured somewhere? I moved towards the flyover hoping to cheer on some of my friends who ran the full. I saw Raffy looking strong as always, Ellen, Argo chatting with Luis, Prince, Sir Jess from Happyfeet, Roselle not tired at all. A few more minutes, I see my hunny. He looked so happy to see me. I got his hydration belt and ran beside him. Major cramps from km 13 onwards made him really slow. He even have to stop 20 mins from the finishline 😦 He ended his 1st HM in 3:22 and made the cut-off! Yay! I’m so proud of him!
Hubby was exhausted...but fulfilled 🙂
By the finishline, I chatted with some friends. I didn’t want to leave yet as I haven’t seen Carina and Tracy finishing. I needed to be there when they cross that finish line. I saw how these 2 trained so hard and I want to be there to share their victory.
Carina, Tracy etal cross the finishline in 5:19. WOW! For their 1st time full marathon, that was pretty fast! So proud of them!
Happily medaled...hahaha!
Class Pic 🙂
Thank you Julie, Rod, Jinoe, Edu, Ace, Eire for the pics 🙂
After my 1st half marathon experience, I can say I am truly in love with running! My heart, body and mind crave for it. Hubby and I just signed up for another 21k and also for our first full marathon on May.
Today was the day I fell and I fell hard in love with running…
I Heart Running! (As Abby once said...*$#%*& &^@ ano 'to?!)
Keep on running…No barriers…
I am certain all of you would agree that the best things in life are free. Here are my top 10 “free” picks:
1. Free Races
I love free races. So far, I’ve joined two. One was a group run turned race by Team CB. I wasn’t present in the actual race but I did a make up and they gave me my medal 🙂
My Team CB Medal
The other one was Mommy Milkshake. It was a great race, very organized, lots of giveaways and raffle items plus it was FREE! 🙂 I ran 5k and took home loads of items from Nivea.
Mommy Milkshake, a great free race 🙂
2. Free Magazines
Top of my list would be The Bull Runner Magazine. Sure, I love reading TBR’s blog (which I do read regularly) but being able to take an actual mag with me while traveling is a major plus. In addition, I like the fact that they are able to provide adequate information in such a small footprint.
TBR in Print
3. Free running shoes
My sister gave me a pair of Red Nike Lunar Glide last Christmas. I LOVE it! Thanks sis!
4. Free Raffle Items
I got free phones last year during event raffles. I won a Road ID from Takbo.ph for my comment on their new site (the randomizer loves me :)). I also won a Phiten bracelet from the recent iamninoy’s get together to celebrate Tita Cory’s birthday last January 25.
Happy 🙂
5. Free SIM Singlet
I love my free SIM singlet given to me by Ellen 🙂 It’s one of the very few ones I regularly wear.
Yes, Tito Caloy (the celebrity) and I have the same singlet 🙂 - Luis, thanks for the photo
Not worthy to be beside Tito Caloy...
6. Massage from hubby
Massages and back runs from hubby are great! He’s the best masseuse ever 🙂
7. Kisses from my kids
I have a 16 year old, 12 year old and a snubbish 4 year old. All BOYS! So kisses are kinda hard to come by.
Even the croc gets more kisses than I do...
8. Free DSLR
My brother gave me the coolest advanced birthday gift ever last year! A Nikon D60 DSLR. Thank you Kuya Edge 🙂
I LOVE my DSLR
9. Gifts, gifts, gifts! My favorite gifts:
Bible from my Papa. I’ve been reading this bible on a daily basis since 2007.
iPod Touch from hubby. A surprise present from hubby last Christmas 2008.
Bags, bags from my boss. Yearly gifts from my boss. I guess he knows that I love bags 🙂
Thank you Papa!
10. Free travel
Asian Cruise, Barcelona, Brazil, Bali are some of the places I’ve been to due to my work. There are perks and downsides as well. Due to the frequency of my trips, I missed Chito’s 1st day of school, his 1st independent steps, Ben’s PTA etc. Thankfully my schedule now permits more time for my kids. As my dearest boss would say…Family first 🙂
Indeed free is great…free is good 😉
I picked this up from Happy Feet’s e-group. It’s a message from Pat Con. Please read on:
Dear Condura 21km and 42km runners,
Greetings. Unfortunately, there was an error committed in printing out the race bibs. Some race bibs have a bar code and some do not have one. Do not worry as you will still be able to run your event and you will still be timed accurately. We have corrected this situation already with race bibs that have not yet been issued out.
For the race bib that have been issued out such as yours, may we kindly request you to do the following:
1. Write down your bib number on the perforated stub located at the lower left side portion of your bib.The portion that says: “Give to finish official at the end of the race”. “Do not pin spindle hole”. For example. If your bib number is 123, please write the number 123 on the perforated stub. Please see attached sample.
2. Please write clearly, legibly and accurately.
3. Please use a PERMANENT MARKER. Color BLACK. Be sure that it does not smear when wet as this will be exposed to water and sweat. Do not use a pencil, ball pen, or white board marker. Only use a BLACK PERMANENT marker. (water proof if possible)
We are very sorry for this basic error. We are sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you. We are hoping for your kind understanding. Upon receipt of this email and upon making the necessary changes kindly email us at secretariat@condura.com or text us at (0908) 880-8354. The Condura Run Organizing Committee.
I am certain the organizers didn’t want this to happen. Murphy’s Law struck again 🙂
Follow the instructions carefully
Mother of Democracy
To celebrate Tta Cory’s 77th birthday, the iamninoy runners did a quick run around Bonifacio High Street, wearing their iamninoy shirts and holding yellow balloons. It was a simple gesture of thanks for all the wonderful things Tita Cory, mother of Philippine democracy, did for her countrymen.
The assembly time was 530pm. Runners will run around BHS from 6-8pm. However, I missed the start of the run as I arrived late. Hubby was sick so I had to go alone. I was worried that I wouldn’t know anyone (except for Jamike Lopa who sent the invite). Most of my co-iamninoy runner friends were still at work. I was wrong. Pio Sugay, Ka Totoy were there. It dawned on me that I have more than 100 friends in my running circle that I would certainly see a familiar face.
Pio and I paired up. I guess he has been running a good 2km before I arrived. We decided to rest after 3.5km of race pace run. Oh how I thought it will be a relaxing run 🙂 After running, I said a short prayer asking God to bless Tita Cory.
We all proceeded to 180 degrees bar and resto near S&R after our run. We had the entire place to ourselves. There was a huge disco ball by the entrance. I haven’t seen one of those in ages. It again dawned on me that I rarely or more of don’t go out clubbing anymore. It can mean two things, I am getting old (tanders, my hubby and I would call it) or I am your classic health freak (no drinking, no smoking, no late nights). I guess I am a bit of both.
Group Pic
Phiten had a huge sale that night. Everything was 50% off! Since we just walked to the resto, I only had P500 in my phone case, just enough for dinner. Darn! I was tempted to go to the car and get my wallet. Just when I was deciding on doing that, they started the raffle. They had 7 Phiten bracelet to give away. I think God was telling me to give shopping a rest as I was the winner of the 7th draw. Nice!
I won! 🙂
It was past 10pm when most said their goodbyes. I had fun meeting new runners, chatting with TBR and taking crazy photos with Pio and Jed.
Jed having fun (Pio took this shot)
To Tita Cory, you gave hope to all Filipinos. I am honored to be a part of this day where we commemorated your would be 77th Birthday. Rest in peace with our Creator and know that Ninoy did not die in vain and that your memory will always be in our hearts forever.
The Titans (Greek: Τιτάν – Ti-tan; plural: Τιτᾶνες – Ti-tânes), were a race of powerful deities that ruled during the legendary Golden Age. They are a race of godlike giants who were considered to be the personifications of the forces of nature. For me, the Titans are those who participant in Ultramarathons. They have power, guts and faith in themselves to enable them to cross the finish line.
Everything started with a text from Marga (aka margalicious). She invited me to be part of the support crew for Takbo.ph runners who will participate in the upcoming Bataan Death March 102k challenge. There will be a 50k test run from Mariveles, Bataan to somewhere out there. I was intrigued and I wanted to experienced how it was like to be part of a “moving” support team so I told her to count me in J I had my son’s driver prepare the van for a long drive.
Details of the trip
Meeting time: 2am
Venue: Mcdo Munoz
Support crew:
2 vans
Marga, Tere, Angel, Carina and myself (+ my driver Eric)
Runners:
1. Mar
2. Rod
3. Doc T
4. Rene
5. Dhentz
6. Abby
7. Sam
8. Athan
9. Joen
10. Totoy
11. Wency
Friday night
I felt guilty being away for a full day from the kids. Saturdays were meant for chilling with them at home or in the mall and cooking their fave lunch and a special dinner. However, there’s no way I could miss this opportunity to support my running family plus I knew I needed to get build mileage for my upcoming HM debut in Condura and there’s no better way to train than to be with the Titans. I decided to take Yno and Ben, my 2 older sons to watch a movie with Noy. We decided to catch Sherlock Holmes at 1050pm in Eastwood as Yno was already there with his friends. I prepared my stuff for the trip and proceeded to Eastwood.
The film ended at 110am. I realized that if I wanted to be in the meeting place on time, I had to grab my bags and leave as soon as we got home. However, I felt that I needed to shower 1st as it was going to be a LONG day. I took a shower, grabbed my gym and camera bags and rushed out of the compound. I realized that I had forgotten the pillow I was suppose to bring, a jacket which I can use as a blanket, water for the support crew and the food I prepared for the runners L I only had 2 bags of chips!
I arrived at the meeting place at 210am. Wow! Everyone was there. We organized the coolers and their bags and headed out of Manila. Must have taken us less than 8 minutes to prepare everything. Thought balloon: Wow! They are an excited bunch 🙂
The drive to Bataan was uneventful. We were in and out of sleep. I don’t think anyone had a decent slumber.
Mariveles, Bataan
I was surprised to find that the roads to Bataan were quite developed. I realized that the last time I was there was during our 2004 company summer outing.
We passed a spiral downhill road going to Bataan PEZA Zone in Mariveles. It reminded me of the road from Tagaytay Highlands to Midlands, steep and rolling. I was hoping the runners wouldn’t have to pass this road.
Finally, we arrived! 🙂 We got there an hour ahead of the scheduled 6am assembly time. Nice! It was freezing that morning. I stayed inside the van as I didn’t have a jacket. Even if I doubled my shirt, it was still too cold. It was a good thing Abby had an extra jacket. Lesson of the day: even if you’re rushing, stop and asses whether you have everything you need before leaving the house.
Runners started pouring in to join the BDM 50k test run. Sir Jovie (Baldrunner) arrived and started to orient the group. The support vehicles were to station themselves at km 7 and every 5kms after that. Carina was due to run 20k, strictly following her training program. Tere and I decided to run the 1st 7km taking this opportunity to gain mileage. The dreaded steep uphill climb will be part of the 1st 7km, dubbed by Baldrunner as the toughest part of the whole 50k. I thought to myself…”Great Gail, what have you gotten yourself into”? After a few photo opps, the event begins.
Running with Ultra Abby
Carina and Tere decided to follow their race pace while I walked/run with Abby. She decided to conserve her energy for the long haul. We chatted and enjoyed the scenery. I took pictures although lousy ones as the phone I brought along didn’t have a great camera. We were comparing ultramarathon runs with shopping. Girls can spend HOURS walking around the mall so why can’t they do the same during ultras? To think girls normally carry heavy bags when they shop and yet manage to stay in the mall for hours! I remembered shopping with my sister during the Christmas rush last year. We were in the mall for over 9 hours! I developed a major migraine after that. Noy almost had a heart attack when my bills came this month. Hahaha!
Start of the grueling climb
Abby Ruling the Hills 🙂
Steep incline
Upon reaching km7, I told my driver to meet me in km10 instead. I wanted to make sure Abby had company before leaving her. It was a good thing we caught up with Carina and Tere and it was also a blessing that my driver drove to km12 instead of 10, a cool 2 extra kms 🙂 Upon reaching km12, I got my pair of shades, lent it to Abby and bid her, Carina and Tere adieu.
Inaccurate Markers
I needed to switch places with Marga as the lead vehicle. I proceeded to km 17 to provide support to lead runners. I passed by Ka Totoy, Doc T, Rod, Wilnar but none of them seemed to need anything. We then proceeded to km 22. However, we didn’t notice the km22 marker so we accidentally stopped at km 23 instead. I hanged out with the BR and his wife while waiting for the other runners. That was when I got a call from Marga. She said that Dhenz needed our help. He was in km 22. We backtracked a bit until we got to Petron where the km 22 marker was. Puzzled that I couldn’t see Dhenz anywhere, I decided to call him. He said that his Garmin was saying he was at km 23, which was odd. And that was when I concluded that the km markers were actually wrong! We drove towards kms 21 and that was when we found him. The markers were off my 2kms. Yikes! Dhenz was pretty ok. He just needed his refill of water.
At this stage, Marga wanted to switch. We will now be the sweeper instead of the lead vehicle. After servicing Sam and company, we proceeded back to km 22 to wait for the others. Finally, Carina and Abby arrives. I told them about the inaccurate markers, which didn’t surprise Carina as her Garmin registered 24km+. Abby went on ahead as we had to pick up Mar in km 20 as he experienced major cramps. We offered Jonathan/Athan a ride back as he already had blisters on his feet and shifted to wearing slippers. He politely declined. I remembered saying to myself, wow…this guys has guts and is probably crazy 🙂
Km 27 to km 37
We parked somewhere near the km27 marker. The view and ambiance around us in km27 reminded me so much of provincial life. There was a farmer tending to his carabao, the sound of people enjoying Saturday midday by indulging in karaoke, the smell of fried fish, people taking a bath outside their homes in their “daster” and “pambahay” clothes (house clothes). We enjoyed the cool breeze and the fact that the sun fortunately decided to hide behind forming clouds. We turned off our engine and listened to some BEP’s I’ve Got a Feeling and Meet Me Halfway plus other hiphop and R&B tunes. By the time my iPod played Patron Tequila, we all fell asleep. About 30 mins or so, DocT arrives to get his supplies. We again took a good 20mins nap. I realized that we’ve been in this spot for more than an hour already. I was worried that I haven’t seen Abby yet. Ultra Abby was not this slow. I had a feeling that she passed us already. This was confirmed when I saw Coach Roel with one of his students. They were way behind Abby.
We had to proceed to the next stop km30. Upon reaching km30, we finally saw Abby, she told us she was fine and to proceed to km 34.
Km34…37…40
In km34 (obviously:))
Km40
Dead cat by the km40 marker 🙂
Carina and I wanted to run with Abby during her last 10k. I wanted to take pictures by the finish line so I decided to run km40-km45 only. We had to pass through town so it was pollution galore as expected from the passing tricycles and jeepneys. People were staring at us and saying things like “Nakaw, naunahan na kayo ng kalaban nyo”…”Bilisan nyo”…”Takbo!” If they only knew where these runners came from…
Finish line
I went ahead to the finish line with our support van to take pictures. I was so proud of the finishers who were already there and who were slowly arriving. Even a local ice cream vendor was there to cheer on the runners 🙂 I made sure I used a telephoto lens so I can a photo of the finishers from afar.
Dhenz and Rod at km50
Here comes Abby! Abby was flanked by her posse Tere and Carina. Tere backtracked to meet Carina and Abby.
Go Abby and her entourage! 🙂
Ultra Abby at km50
Here comes Doc T! The Takbo runners and support crew who were present gave Doc T full support by gathering by the imaginary finish line forming 2 flanks so they can all cheer on DocT as he approaches to finish 🙂
Here comes Doc T
Dami fans 😉
BR and Ultra DocT
Post Test Run
We ended at around 3pm. Everybody was famished! We had taken no breakfast and lunch. We had to survive with whatever chips I brought along. Thankfully, there was a Jollibee nearby. After a hearty mid-afternoon lunch, we headed back to Manila.
I realized that being part of the support crew in an event like this was not easy. But it was definitely worth it. Seeing the smiles, hearing sighs of relief whenever runners see us, made me realized that this is something that I would want to do again and not expecting anything in return (I don’t think I will be doing an Ultra anyway…hahaha!)
To all the ultra runners out there, you guys are CRAZY and AMAZING!…. I am in awe…You guys are truly the TITANS!
Cry
Come to me and cry
I know, I know, I know it’s not easy
Your heart is aching
But so is mine,
How can I tell you
Why
For so long, so long, so long,
I’ve been thinking
Now I know
I can’t live a lie
They say true love lasts forever
If we want it
There will be waiting
A second chance
Baby but now we need time
Time to learn
Time to understand
Where we went wrong
‘Cause I feel so strong
We are cruising for bruising
My Baby
Go
I must let you go
Don’t stop, don’t stop
’cause it’s better now
When I still love you
Don’t say goodbye
So bye for now, don’t let it die
’cause we can try some other time
No this isn’t about Basia’s song, but I do love to blog about it 🙂
I did it! I signed up for my 1st 21k half marathon! The event shall be Condura’s Run for Dolphins Feb 7 Race. I need to start my serious training stat! Problem: Business travels for me start early every year and normally lasts until mid year, tapers on the last weeks of Q3. And this year, it starts with a 6-day Asian Cruise, an incentive for our valued partners. Photographer, Babysitter Gail signing in. With only less than 6 weeks before race day, I wondered how I can squeeze my exercise regimen during this trip.
Yey! A jogging path!
Jan 9, we left Manila early to fly to Singapore. Was able to board Legend of the Seas (Royal Caribbean) past 1pm. I was famished and the lunch buffet was sumptuous. I gave in…ate as much as I can and promised that I will burn what I ate in the gym. I had hoped that the ship had a jogging path (most do) where I can run as to not interrupt my training. As soon as we finished lunch, we checked out our statesrooms, dropped off our stuff, freshened up and explored the ship. I headed directly to the upper decks where the pool was to see if where I can run. Thankfully, the ship had a jogging path on the upper deck! 😀 It measured about 400m per lap (4 laps was equivalent to 1 mile). I promised myself I will run 1st thing tomorrow morning.
Jan 10 (Sunday)
Running on board
Running on board
I woke up 630am and got ready for my morning run. I was so excited to run onboard a moving ship. Upon reaching the upper deck, I realized that it was still dark and the deck was wet. I was worried that I might slipped while running and injure myself then I noticed that I wasn’t alone. There were 2 early morning runners and they looked hard core 😀
Surprisingly, even if the deck was wet, it wasn’t slippery at all. I enjoyed the relaxing pace. My Garmin’s GPS was screwed up of course. I was on a moving ship. It would’ve been a great thought if my pace was indeed 1.3m/km and I did 24k in about 30mins+. Haha!
After 5k or so, I had to stop as I needed to do my morning duties (eg plan for today’s schedule etc). The sun was already up and it was a beautiful day. I woke up my girls/kiddies (people who I babysat), set their schedules and decided to run a bit again before breakfast. Ivy took my picture during my 2nd run.
Jan 11 (Mon) No runs for me. We had to wake up early as we headed to Phuket.
Jan 12 (Tues) Managed to squeeze a 2k+ run. Was exhausted from the night before and had to leave the ship for Langkawi at 815am 😦 Wall-climbed.
If you can't run, wall climb!
Jan 13 (Wed) No runs. Disembarked for KL. Went to the sauna, swam and wall-climbed.
Takbo.ph on board 😀
Jan 14 (Thurs) Departing at 8am for Singapore. Departed for Manila by 5:30pm.
Great…now I am totally screwed. Condura’s only 3 weeks away and this has been my lousiest training history since I started running. Well, tomorrow’s another day. Time to put training face, mind, body, soul and everything else to work. Wish me luck!
Another late blog…
Due to my hectic November/December schedule (and the persistent kulit of Noy to rest from every Sunday races), Noy and I opted to take a hiatus from my target of bi-weekly races. In fact our last race was a short 3k relay during Race and Shine. I wanted to join the Runnex Exec 10k run as my year-ender race but they moved it to next year. Since I wasn’t training for any major race (my mind wasnt’ made up yet on joining Condura’s 21k that time), my 3x weekly training became once a week. I would slack off and opted to go Christmas shopping or have dinner with friends. I guess Noy felt he had to stop me from spending too much that he actually convinced me to sign us up for the Celebrity Run and chose 10k. I didn’t hesitate to sign us up as I wanted to take Max (my Red Nike LunarGlide) on his 1st road race.
Race day
As always (more than usual), hubby was extremely SLOW in preparing to leave for the race. Since we were running the 10k, I believed we had to be there by 530am. I believe we got there 545am. Much to my delight, the race has not started 🙂 After a short warm up, I weaved through the crowd of 5k runners waiting for their turn behind the 10k group. Hubby wanted to take it slow so unlike most of the races where I opted to wait for him during the 1st half, I told him that I will run ahead and just see him in the finish line. I wanted to see how fast I can run with Max. I secretly wanted to target a sub-60 (yeah right!). And I secretly wanted to be in Argo’s deathlist (wahahaha…this I am certain I won’t achieve).
Race Proper
Since we were late, I had to start at the back on the 10k runners. As soon as I cross the starting line, I began to increase my pace. If I wanted to hit sub-60, I need to keep my pace at 5:30m/k during the 1st 5k. I was aiming for a positive split. I seem to be more exhausted during negative splits. The run from BHS to Mckinley Hill was a familiar one. BHS and McKinley Hills are my regular training/playground together with Takbo.ph peeps. I was comfortable with my speed until the U-Turn in Lawton and down to McKinley Hills…and that’s when i felt it. My left knee was in pain. I had been suffering from Patellofemoral syndrome (Runner’s Knee) since I was 16. I hadn’t experienced this problem since I started to run but then again, I never ran full speed on downhill courses as I knew that I would regret it. Listening to my body, I decided to slow down. I will not let a past condition go from bad to worse. Sub-60 can wait when the terrain is flat 🙂 Hehe!
Running uphill back to BHS from the Mckinley Hills-C5 U-turn, I noticed that most of the runners have a colored blue string bracelet. I looked at mine and I realized that I only had brown and green (if I remembered correctly). Drat! Did I just miss the marshall giving away the bracelets? Is that for 10k or possibly for the 21k runners? I slowed down to walk and looked around for friendly faces to ask where they got their blue tags from. Finally a friendly face! Rico (aka Sheerwill) passed by and after asking him where he got his blue tag, he told me from the Mckinley Hills-C5 U-turn. Ack! I had a dilemma…Should I turn around and go back? Or do I just run ahead? I was walking now worried…thinking…I know deep down that I followed the route, I didn’t cheat but I was concerned about what would other people say, they might think I cut corners…what do I do? Thankfully I overheard some people saying that there was just 1 marshall handing the blue tags, she ran out and left to get more. I decided to not go back. I though to myself hey, it wasn’t your fault they ran out of tags. I was behind schedule. I told myself that I would be lucky if I beat my previous 10k PR of 1:10.
Nelly and Kelly Rowland's Dilemma
I was already near NBC tent when it started to rain. I kept on thinking about Max. I didn’t want him to get wet. Max was an early Christmas present from my younger sister. She just started working as a GP in some hospital as she just graduated from med school and just passed the boards as well. With her hard-earned money, she bought Max for me as she knew I had been wanting to buy a pair of Lunar Glides since forever. I needed to finish the race so I can get to a shelter for Max. I pushed hard and finally reached the finish line. I looked at my Garmin and was pleasantly surprised to see a 1:03 time for my Celebrity Run 10k (official time was 1:04). Yahoo! I didn’t get my secret sub-60 goal but I did break my PR.
Post Race
After saying hi to my Takbo.ph friends and taking photos with Ronnie Rickets, I decided to look for a tarp I can use to shield Max from the rain (Yes, Max was still top of mind). I was contemplating on going to the car but I had to see Noy finish the race. Finally, hubby arrived and was happy to have broken his PR too. So proud of him! I am sure he would even do better had the terrain been flat.
We bid our farewells to our friends and headed home. We wanted to have breakfast with the kids. It was a happy day 😀
Noy and I Post Race Pic
Noy and Ronnie Rickets
Tracy and I
Thank you Doc Marvs for the pics.
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