With three more PT sessions left, I decided that it is about time that I started training again, even if it involves running short distances only.
This morning, I was able to do a 5k walk and a 6k run. Instead of running in the MOA complex due to the volume of the participants in today’s GMA Kapuso Fun Run, I ran towards the PICC area and then went home.
Runners (or walkers ?) on their way to the Mall of Asia Compound
More participants along Macapagal Avenue
When I reached home, I felt really good – I haven’t felt like this in weeks
Oh by the way, the lock laces are really good – you can wear and remove your shoes quickly.
At the starting line of last week’s “A G.O.O.D. Run”, I was asked by one of the big bosses where I work from if the emecees get paid . I said I think so . He then said that may we should organize our own race so that we can reap the benfits of the current running boom in our country ; I said we should think of a great name for our race ….
I think it has almost been two years since I last joined a 10k race; the reason for which is practicality: I needed to do long back to back weekend runs – and of course the cost.
I joined this one because we have been sponsored by one of our office’s Principals – they would pay 500 bucks : this means that I only had to pay 100 bucks to join the race.
Another reason is that I haven’t ran in almost 1 month due to my injury (my therapist advised against joining this race) – running this race would be a welcome against the monotony of staying indoors during the weekends.
What they say about being “de-trained” is true – I had a hard time finsihing this race – the panting was so heavy that I had to to take walk breaks all through out the course – not that I am complaining, after all I can’t run as fast as I want to due to my injury.
I finished this race with a chip time of 63 minutes.
Race Result
On another note, I have just recently acquired a pair of lock laces which I used on my Asics GT 2140.
As I look back, I remember the first time I asked my sister to register me for a race. I eventually didn’t participate in the said 10k event because I was too lazy to wake up at 4am so that I could simply run. I quipped ”Why should I change my routine?”. I usually wake up at around 6:00am and do my 2.1km jog around The Fort area and more recently, around MOA. I even remember a female colleague telling me this: “Ano ba yan, papahirapan mo nalang sarili mo, magbabayad ka pa!”
I eventually joined my first race (which covered a distance of 10km) wearing my very old Nike cross trainers (the shoe’s sole had been replaced with locally available soles since the original air sole has already leaked).
… and here I am, 11 months and 3 running shoes after –> running my first ever full 42KM marathon.
What can I say? I didn’t even plan joining this event until 5 weeks ago. I was undertrained .
Thanks to the effort of ultra runner friend Isko who patiently trained me in such a short time, I was able to complete this run together with another running friend, Ian.
The concept of running SCTEX at night was very appealing to most of the people who participated in this event, after all, you can’t run along this route on a regular night (pun intended).
This could’ve been a next to perfect race except for the following:
• No water for four consecutive water stations – I think that the water stations were more than 2.5kms apart, so you could imagine how thirsty the other runners were when they came to our support vehicle (the white van with the team hardcore tarpaulin) asking if we had excess water /Gatorade/bananas/ hard-boiled eggs. We were able to help some of the runners since we have packed a little more than what we needed but our supplies were spread so thin that even we ran out of supplies and had to go thirsty and hungry ourselves. There were even times when some runners would approach me and ask me if they can have some of the contents of the Gatorade bottle I was carrying, I sympathized with them and gave them half of what I had – I really can’t stop expressing my disappointment on this aspect of the race. Where do they expect the runners to buy water in the middle of the SCTEX ?
• Lights – Although I came prepared because I have brought a headlamp with me – I experienced running through the darker parts of SCTEX since we returned the head lamp to the support vehicle after the Dinalupihan exit, not knowing that it was pitch black after that. We had to rely on the headlights used by the other support vehicles in order to find our way through the darkness.
In summary, I will never forget this race as this was my baptism of fire with a time of 5 hours, 34 minutes and 10 seconds. Too bad though that I and a lot of runners suffered from dehydration.
After the race, resident birthday boy and eponymous honorary member of NandN runners, Ian – treated us to a sumptuous feast at Aristocrat’s Restaurant.
We left Subic a little after midnight and arrived at BHS at around 2:30 am and slept in the parking area so that we can participate in the Adidas King Of The Road run which would start at 5:30 am. I participated in the 10k event (21k sounds tempting but I might injure myself in the process) – less than 9 hours after I finished my first marathon.
After what I have done, I hope I still have the stamina to join the Philippine International Marathon 42km 2 weeks from now
Adidas KOTR Finish Line
Jonel Mendoza and Jeff Abenina
Before The Run
GU .. Check! Shoe Laces .. Check
I'm getting ready getting ready .. oh boy what a day ...
I should have gone to bed already for the 10km run for the Milo Finals the next day…BUT since I ate a lot for dinner, by request of BUTTERFLY, I had to stay up for a little longer while drinking a lot of hot water to help me digest (”crazygrace logic” kicked in). Carbo-Loading (although not applicable for everyone) is usually done the day or the night before a run BUT I think I’ve had more of iron and protein from what I ate than carbs!!!! Just WRONG! Went straight to Kopiroti to consume tea (no Coffee Bean and Teal Leaf this time cos I’m cutting down on expenses haha).
October 11, 2009: Milo Finals
This was the first 10KM run I was able to fully participate in since my “vacation” and I actually got a bit nauseated by the thousands of runners around me. Here I was at it again: no training, and well…there was a bit of sleep, tho…but not much of what I needed, but yes, I just had to proceed. It took awhile before the 10KM run actually started, and I saw one of my professors from Benilde hosting the event (Mr. Jag Garcia). I did not try getting his attention anymore, but hollered on his facebook wall later that day instead…and so the race started.
At The Starting Line!
I couldn’t really remember much as I was more focused on breathing in and out deeply, and that if I had taken my proper dose of inhaler for my asthma half an hour before the race started (as prescribed by the doctor– running/slight consistent panting that’s a probable effect of running can trigger an asthma attack, from what I understood). First Gatorade tent, I stopped to get a cup and waited for about a minute before I was able to get one, half-filled. About another minute waiting for them to fill it up to the top (yes, I knew the time because I was singing a song in my head to calm me down). The girl did not fill it up, which I find illogical. The other runners would drink up the half-filled cups and ask for the same cups to be [half]filled-up again, equating to one small cup (or even more, as I have seen). Here I was, saving the girl some energy, by pointing to my cup, and she just wouldn’t fill it up to the top. Imagine that.
Never look back. I actually noticed that turning my head to see how many runners are eating my dirt (hahaha please don’t kill me for that) takes about the same amount of energy I would put out to run 100 meters in full effort. Yeah, well that’s still “crazygrace-logic” doing its job right there. Anyway, I got to the turnaround point at around 38:48:something-seconds, and since I take longer at finishing the second half (which I think is called negative split), I finished the run at [insert number here] … yes, I’m not saying it! BUT I’m proud of it in a sense that I was able to finish without training and without the much-needed sleep I was supposed to be banking on.
At the finish line, I later sat on the bleachers and saw Jerry barefooted walking towards us to greet us! I know it’s rude to stare (haha) but (!!) finishing a race like that was just legendary!
Waiting for Bolt to finish his first 32-kilometer run with Kuya Isko took about a couple of hours and did not occur to me as the most dreadful part of my life…at first! When I saw members of Team Hardcore and Camanava crossing the finish line without my brother, I almost screamed in panic. What the heck was I gonna tell my parents when I get home and asked where my BIG brother was!? Of course, I tried calling him several times. Panic is not usually my initial reaction, so I tried (really hard and with 100% effort) to calmly ask about Bolt. Haha. Here’s a picture of them before the turn-around point (I think).
Thanks to Decipher for the photo
Jonel of Team Hardcore looking out while my brother struggles (haha) to get to the finish line!
Talkin’ Talk!
The uh…half-marathon finisher slash marathon did-not-finisher-er? Congrats! Woohoo!
My first run was with Joanne, Ava, and Irene in the PSE Bull Run back in January 2008. Never really trained for it…just woke up one day, went to the race and tried to finish it. Haha.
Gotta work on discipline tho, cos until now it seems that I’ve never really stopped doing that for a race. Ugh.
The trend in 2008 to present: running era with my ladies -> work-indulgence -> running-after-working-hours -> foot operation -> lsd-ing with my brother and his friends -> and yes, work indulgence again -> hospitalization a little more than a couple of weeks ago.
My training? Sleep whenever I can, and some positivity.
Tomorrow (or later…in a matter of minutes) would definitely be a reunion. The ladies will be there, some of my batchmates from college, my officemates, and my brother and his friends. Everyone will be joining in on the “chip” fun.
Quite a hectic schedule for me too. After the run, I’ll be meeting up with some of my friends back in college (whose wedding we’re currently coordinating), the son of my cousin’s birthday party in KFC (woot!), and head down south to watch Wanders (thanks to Miss AJZ and Mr. GV for the passes–yes, they gotta be in codes)!
I don’t mind if it rains tomorrow because I’ll be running again so tonight is with feel-good vibes, and I’ve been listening to Jamiroquai’s “Corner of the Earth”: “Little darlin’ don’t you see the sun is shining just for you, only today. If you hurry you can get a ray on you…”
Tomorrow is a long day, so I’ll start heading home now: to the direction of the bed for a little bit of sleep, and making sure all the alarms go off on time.
I woke up this morning remembering the last Mizuno run I participated in last year, and realized…haha! I ran 10KM there and I’m still running the same distance today.
I’ve always believed that when you want to do something…the trick is to always believe. That’s what got me going for awhile now, but this time, I know the sequel to that is: consistency is the key.
Race started at around 6:00am and as usual, I got to open the race kit in the car already, after waking up from a 3-hour nap. Yes, a nap. I usually sleep light before a race…and it’s only usually before a race that I do get to sleep.
Mizuno - Infinity Run Time Trials 2009: 10K Race
The killer word: Kalayaan! It never occurred to me that such a liberating word could actually trigger something traumatic from the past. Haha. The first time I joined an event with this route was in Adidas King of The Road in 2008. The words that came out of my mouth after: NEVER AGAIN will I join any race passing through this flyover. Then again, if you’re the type to never check the map online before having yourself registered for a kit…then never say never Botak was the second for me passing through Kalayaan (some of my so-called-rantings can be found somewhere in this so-called-blog har de har har) and my only reaction: I shook my head and wished I’ve put sunblock on.
So I decided to not complain and just finish the race as soon as I can. I got to the turn-around point at about 00:34– beating my personal time for previous 5K races, but a little after that, I think I had what they call a “side stitch”. Yes, I can feel the hard-boiled egg I swallowed at around 0430H trying to be digested and this was the part I wished I brought a sports drink (being the stubborn and youngest of us and not wanting to carry anything while running). I could have screamed at myself for that — but thought better of it because that took a lot of energy. Besides, I wouldn’t wanna amuse people while they see me doing a “monologue” like what my brother, Bolt, is so good at. Haha!
Then came the Kalayaan Flyover…never have I loved Coppertone. Although, like what I’ve been thinking on the last Botak race, I would prefer putting on a nice tanning lotion next time a 10km route was made this way again. At least, I’d have a nice orangey-brown glow without having to go to the beach
I reached the “3KM left” sign, and I looked at my watch and saw that an hour hasn’t passed yet. I actually convinced myself that if I ran the remaining distance, I could bring my PR to somewhere between 1:10 to 1:20. Okay, so that part was a bit delusional, so I just started walking
There was an aid station after the flyover and I don’t remember myself crossing to the other side to get water. I should make it a habit to be “self-contained” … meaning I should really listen to what my brother tells me to do: that includes SLEEP and TRAIN more (yezzur!)
I was walking and jogging for the rest of the distance left to cover and sprinted near the finish line. The only irritating part was when I got to the tight area where the ropes on each side of the walkway could only occupy one runner at a time (a little after the finish line) was that a guy was pleasantly taking his time (yes the redundancy of the words used in this sentence aims to imply just that) in walking to where the girl (who gets the race tags) is. Wow…seriously? What’s wrong with him?
Starbucks Gift Certificate - Ultimate Coffee Break
So by the time I got to the Gatorade station and they had absolutely no bottle to give to us, I was more than infuriated…well, a little. Patience is what I have tons of, but I did not mean to ask the woman in a bit of a raised voice where the water station is, so I apologize for that Gotta love the free Starbucks treat and of course, the overflowing cups of water! Woohoo!
So I said to myself I’m never gonna progress to anything higher than 10k unless I finish it in less than an hour. Wrong, Bolt said. Endurance comes first before speed so if I want to finish fast and finish strong, I should run more than that. Fine, then. Everybody say it with me: never settle
I did not have any music gear this morning cos I thought it was gonna rain but had the song below running through my head! Listen up for all you Coheed and Cambria fans reading this. Enjoy
I remember last year when a runner colleague of mine reported for work with colds. He told me that he got it from participating in a road race the day before. He quipped : “You see the race pushed thru even if it was raining like hell”.
Back then, I couldn’t understand why would someone do such a thing.
Last Sunday, I got my answer.
I woke up at 5:00 am – “I’m gonna be late!” (I thought the race would start at 5:30)
I asked myself, now why would I want to run today ? I have a deadline and I still need to report to work later and it’s raining outside-I would just end up getting wet … then I realized that even if it wasn’t raining , i’d get wet anyway, and besides … I haven’t experienced how it feels to run in the rain yet.
The way I see it, if there will be only a few runners today, then I would have a better chance of winning that laptop. Before I knew it, I was already in the parking area near the starting line of the IE8 race.
This is a well-organized race : THis is the first time that I saw sponges in a short distance race. There were lots of food and even cheer leaders in the aid-station .. talk about feeling like a pro! But wait … that’s not all: they even gave out coke in the last aid-station at the foot of the Kalayaan flyover!
I finished running 13.4Km (I was also suprised at the distance) at 1:23 on my watch. My shoes were wet but what the hell, nothing beats running in the rain!
In a nut-shell, I would give the organizer of this race very high grades!
Hmmm...where?
Too bad tho, I didn’t win the laptop. I wonder when Microsoft will launch IE9 ?
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air which is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud.
Hmmm … “rotating column of air” -> that would best describe the DJs on the radio show that I am forced to listen to when I commute to work. I think those DJs are very popular with our jeepney/FX drivers so no matter which form of public transport you choose, you’ll end up listening to them everyday. It’s a good thing though that all I will ever experience is the figurative definition of what a twister is. (or so I thought)
We left for Clark last Saturday so that we can meet my friend, Isko at the jump-off area of The North Face 100 to give him some of the supplies he needs for the 2nd 50k loop. The weather was very warm and humid that day that everybody was wearing summer clothes; I didn’t even entertain the thought that I might need to bring my North Face Gore-Tex jacket for the next day’s 20k trail run.
And so it happened: it started with a drizzle and then when it got stronger we decided to take shelter in one of the tents adjacent to the starting line. We were all surprised to see that the starting line fell on the technical committee’s command center, ruining it and almost hitting the people underneath. It was like the entire structure was trampled by an invisible raging Mammoth!
I think I see dead people ... No...mammoth tracks...!!!!
The next few minutes happened so fast, I remembered that the entire place suddenly turned dark and I had to run away from the tent I was in since it was also crushed by the beast!
We all took shelter near a cement wall (it was the only thing left standing), wary of the debris that might hit us.
At this point, we were all drenched, my trail running shoes included. Luckily, the rusty mountaineer in me instructed my sister to put our cell phones in a plastic bag before kingdom come or else that would have been a costly encounter.
We finally met Isko and company at the jump-off site; they were also delayed because of the storm. It’s good to find out that no one was injured because of what happened. We stayed around a little bit longer before we headed back to Clearwater to prepare ourselves for the next day’s 20k race.
Before I slept, I stared at my wet shoes and wondered … “How many blisters tomorrow?”
We arrived in Sacobia, Pampanga on Saturday, May 23, 2009, a little after lunch and went straight to Clearwater Resort where we reserved for a tent good for four people.
Clearwater Resort in Sacobia, Pampanga | Tent T-104
After unpacking, we walked about 500 meters to the jump-off area in Expo Filipino Parking Lot and checked out the place, as well as waited for Kuya Isko Lapira and his friends to arrive at the base camp from their first 50k.
North Face Sacobia, Pampanga | Start / Finish Line
The clouds seemed perfectly placed high up in the clear blue sky, just before it hit.
My brother, Bolt: North Face Sacobia, Pampanga | The Calm Before The Storm
Unfortunately, we didn’t bring a waterproof camera or else we would have been able to take a footage of it. Just took pictures and a video of how it looked after the storm!
North Face Sacobia After The Storm in Expo Filipino Parking Lot 2 | May 23, 2009
We moved away from the tents to try and look for Kuya Isko, a short distance from the wrecked Start/Finish Line, as he had texted earlier that they were already near. Picture of him holding the Gardenia and Adobo we brought him. Haha!
Kuya Isko's return to base camp in The North Face Sacobia, Pampanga after the 50K distance covered.
The rain has just subsided, and this is me wondering if the 10k trail is gonna be as muddy as the North Face Trail Running Event I participated in Talamitam, Batangas last year…
"How's It Gonna Be?" looping around in my head
Some pictures of how the jump off area looked after the storm!
It wouldn’t be a rocking and running event for us, siblings, without any music we can actually relate a day’s worth of activity to. So here’s Creedence Clearwater’s Proud Mary — the song running through my mind as we walked back to the tent after buying our stash for dinner in Parkson, Duty Free. I’ve been confined in Manila most of my life (thanks to our strict parents) and I dint know that prices there are in dollars slash pesos. Har de har har.
I just got home from a birthday celebration way up north and by the time I continued packing and decided to write this entry, I’m pretty sure the race for 100K solo has already started. So, let me go straight to the point because I have several other people to check on and a tight schedule to follow for the trip to Sacobia, Pampanga.
I’m the youngest in the group and I find it ironic and at the same time, traditional, to play the role of reminding everyone in the group of what to bring for a trip. So, like an adviser during homeroom when a class of semi-buggers decide to go on a field trip, my things-to-do include double-checking stuff my friends have to bring!
Nope, no image. Sorry, and I took the liberty of not making you go through the agony of looking at the actual list itself
We should arrive in Pampanga later, 10am at the most. We have prepared food for Kuya Isko to eat: chicken adobo and rice! Yeyy! We will also be giving him a bag of Chocolate-Flavored Gardenia Bread when he leaves for the second half of his 100K solo.
Last year, when I attended the first event in the Philippines of North Face Trail Running, my officemates and I arrived just after Kadangyan finished their last set, if I remember it right. Hopefully, there would be another group of musicians performing tonight, which I think would really be something worth looking forward to.
North Face 10KM Trail Run - Bib Number
I’ll be bringing along my gray Redrock Equipment bag/purse I’ve had since college (I don’t really know what it’s exactly called).
At The Starting Line!
Thanks to Decipher for the photo
Jonel of Team Hardcore looking out while my brother struggles (haha) to get to the finish line!
Talkin’ Talk!
The uh…half-marathon finisher slash marathon did-not-finisher-er? 
Congrats! Woohoo!
Yes, we love cameras 
