Greenfield Sunset Run

This was my 3rd race of the year, I have missed a lot of good races and was able to join only at Condura Run and Globe Run for Home. I wouldn't let this race pass as this was located within our neighborhood. Likewise, the greenfield run was my second run last year where I did a 10 km run finishing at 1:13:10. This time I did a 21k and my plan was to meet sub 2 hr.

In the last races, I opted to do a 21k run as part of the long weekend runs. After the holy week, we were not able to do any long runs and obviously, since most of the GRC members are within Laguna we joined this race.

I felt that I can do a PR on this one as I have seen some progress in my runs. I was able to peg my fastest 10k in 56:48 days before the race and that gave me confidence to run strong in this race. Indeed it was a good race, I was feeling strong in the first 10km where I hit 56:39 (9 seconds better than my training run). I was pacing with Jay until the 12th km, but I started to slow down and cant keep up with the pace. Jay was trying to pull me as he remains steady with the target pace for sub 2hr. I just had to let go since my calves started to get stiff. I made a recovery at km 14-16 but after that I started to slow down again. I was trying to lift my legs, but I can feel the stiffness. I was glad that I came strong in the first half, I was hoping for a negative split, as I usually experience getting stronger at the second half of my run (but that was for 10k), however, I just dont have the leg power to do it. I managed to sprint in the last 200m and finished in 2:08:12 (chip time at 2:07:45). Got a new PR, 8 minutes away from sub 2hr and I believe its within reach. I am happy with the result, I ranked 85th out of the 435 runners which was in the top 20% of the total runners in 21k.

Thanks to Photovendo for these photos.

Globe Run for Home 2

This is a late post but I’ll still post anyway and share a bit of our Globe Run For Home experience. I’ve been busy and had no chance to write, there’s more to share and will try to post in the next blogs.

I was not able to join any other race since the Condura Run, I have skipped the Century Bods Run, and Unilab Run, but at least I was able to maintain my running and biking activities to keep me fit and help prepare for the next races.

It has been a year since we started joining official races and Globe Run for Home 2 serves as my Anniversary Run. I remembered when I invited my friends to join me in the Condura Run at that time (March 21, 2009) which was also their first official race. I was with Jay, Noemi, Allan, and Ronald. From then on, we joined more races and as you may know, we have established the Gone Running Club.

We were around 11 runners in GRC who joined the 21k at Globe Run, Jay and I decided to pace with the team since we underwent a hard workout the day before the race. Most of the members planned to achieve a target time of 2:25-2:30, (5) of us was able to finish between 2:19 – 2:33, (4) finished between 2:42-2:48, while the two finished more than 3 hrs. Gilbert (2:48) and Egay (3:02) completed their 1st official 21km. It was good to see more of us are running the 21k distance, we hope that we continue to improve our time as we move along. Likewise I was glad that everybody finished without any injury. It was a good race overall, distance was a bit longer but it doesn’t matter, it’s better than short in distance. I enjoyed this run and had no complaint.

Here’s some photos (with photovendo shots).

Rodney, Raymund, Allan, Jay, Vince, Val, Cherry, Me, Noemi, and Neo.

Thumbs up! Not struggling that much.

Me, Jay, and Val near the finish line.

Sprinting near the finish line.

Egay on his 21km debut. Great Job Man!

and so did Gilbert finishing at 2:48.

Father and Son.

Gene, Allan, Val, Vince, Jojo, Neo, Egay, Noemi, Jay, and Ronald.

Condura 2010 - Half Marathon

What a fantastic day it was! Condura Run 2010 was indeed a success. About 8,500 runners participated in this much awaited running event of the year. For some it was their first run, others did a mileage level up from their last year run, and many have set their new Personal Record (PR). The introduction of the full marathon in this year’s event made it more exciting. Though there were some new highlights in the race, there were still some problems that frustrated some of the runners.

I have been preparing for this event hoping to get a new PR for my half marathon. I was hoping to run the 42km but since I just recovered from an injury, I did not risk it and instead trained for a 21km. It was full determination and excitement that pushed me to take on the challenge and focused on meeting my target time which was 2:15, I finished the race at 2:18:31 (official time). I was practically running at an average pace of 6 min/km in my first 10km which lead me to another PR hitting it in 61 minutes.

I was steady in my first 14km and started to slow down to recover at the 15th km. As I was approaching the Kalayaan flyover, I planned to walk, luckily Val (fellow GRC member) caught up with me and started to run with me. My legs were already fatigued but I was not ready to give up especially when I was close to achieving my goal. As I reached 21km in my garmin, I already hit 2:14, but it was 700m to go at finish line. It took me another 3-4 minutes to reach it. It was a good finish for me obviously as I hit two PR's in this event.

Truly, preparation is key in achieving my goal. I was glad also that my injury had fully recovered. Will continue my training as I am yet to meet my target time that I set for this year. Here are some highlights/lowlights of the event.

Highlights

1. Fireworks at the start line
2. Cheering squad and bands playing at designated area to cheer the runners.
3. Sufficient water stations.

4. Banana supply at Takbo.ph and Reinier aid station.
5. Portalets were situated in designated area as well.
6. Different finish line for 3k/5k and 10/21/42k

Lowlights

1. Street lights were off at the Kalayaan Flyover.
2. Medals were not available to some runners . Refer to Condura’s announcement here.
3. Long waiting time at the 10km finish since runners were queuing at the end of the strip.
4. Distance was excess of 700m (at least from my garmin).
5. Results were not accurate, some were timed later, while others were earlier. Hope a timing chip can be included in Condura 2011.

It was a successful event, hopefully next year's event will address some of the areas for improvements that were raised also by other bloggers/runners. Next year would definitely something to look forward to. Meanwhile, back to training for other events.

Gone Running Club with Junrox (Tigerboy)

With Val who gave me a push in the last 2km. Thanks man!

With Junrox discussing his new full marathon PR (3:40!) and giving some tips on how to improve my running.

Ronald and Noemi, while waiting for the rest of the group.

With Bald Runner, met him at the finish line.

With Natz (I2runner) and his friends. You were fast natz! Great Run!

With Mike, finishing his first 21km. Congratulations!

Welcoming Jay at the finish line. He was late by 23 minutes at starting line but still managed to finish strong.

Jay discussing his skyway experience.

Another group photo.

Gone Running in Makiling

Two weeks ago, I invited the GRC group to join the Makiling Nature Run in UP Los Banos in Dec 13, 2009. We have decided to join this event since some of us missed the Makiling Challenge ’09 in September. The race started a bit late, If I recall it right the 16k runners started 15 minutes late from the planned start time at 6:00 am, followed by the 10k runners and 5 k runners with an interval of 15 minutes. The course was challenging since the route will go up to Jamboree Road, Pook ni Maria Makiling, and National Art Center. On the way back, though you expect all downhill, there was a last uphill climb going to forestry with turnaround after the Infirmary hospital going down to women’s dormitory.

I was not supposed to run since I declined 3 days before the event due to my muscle tear in my left calf. I intended to just provide morale support to the group. However, when I got to the site Sunday morning, I felt the urge to join and do a 10km. I was just so stubborn to ignore the pain and didn’t mind what will happen at the end of the race. After the 1st km, I was seriously thinking of stopping and getting out of the race due to the pain on my left calf and shin and that it might aggravate it further. I took a walk break to shake it off on the first uphill climb at Kanluran Road, after a while the pain has become bearable so I decided to continue.

The event was not as big in terms of participants as compared to the races at the Fort, but I must say that the organizers has done a good job in carrying out their task during the event.

Some of the good points were:

1. Sufficient water aid stations,.
2. Marshalls were assigned on designated area to guide runners on the right direction.
3. Marshalls on bike were there to monitor runners and provide support as needed.
4. The route was good since runners get to run at Mt Makiling. 16k runners were able to go to National Arts Center.
5. Distribution of singlets were orderly, sorted per sizes.

Negative points

1. Late start
2. No km markers
3. The distance was short of 1km for 10k, and around 1.5km for the 16k runners.
4. Race bib was made of oslo paper/thick bond paper. It easily tear off as it gets wet. At the finish line, the runners need to shout their number as the time recorder manually record the result.

The event was good, I think attendance reached around 1,000 runners or less. The weather was good and everybody seem to enjoy their run. I hope more races are held in UPLB and try different routes.

Some Photos during the event.

Waiting for gun start: Ronald (16k), Greg (10k), Jun (10k), Raymond (10k), Jay (16k)



About to start


Jun (finishing 10th) and Greg (finishing 5th)

Raymond Canta

Knight Runner

Jay Chavez

Ronald Valdez

What an inspiration! Nothing is impossible with strong will and determination. This man finished his 10k run. At the last 25m stretch, he hopped until he reaches the finish line.

Raising Hope for Cancer

The NB power race was an important race for me as it was a personal advocacy of mine to support any cause that raises hope for Cancer. This was supposed to be the race of my choice for this year (prior to the BKK marathon) and would have wanted to finish strong in this event and probably an improved 21km time. This event was postponed due to the typhoon Ondoy and was actually a blessing for me since I could have missed the event since I was injured at that time. I knew that this run will be more challenging since I was recovering from my first marathon a week prior to this event, and that the 21k course was very challenging as it will pass the Mckinley hill. But still, I thought of hitting a 2:30 finish as compared from my last run at QCIM where I finished at 2:48:11. Unfortunately, I struggled in this race which got me too exhausted after crossing the finish line.

Jay was also recovering from the BKK marathon and told me that he will pace with me and help me reach my target time. In the first 10km, we were still on target with our pace, but after that, I began to feel the stiffness in my left hamstring. It was hard for me to catch up with Jay as he was controlling the pace, I was practically slowing him down since I can’t keep up with the pace (to think that it was a slow pace). I was trying to psyche myself to avoid any negative thoughts during my run and focused on the advocacy for cancer patients. But “will power” is not enough if your physical strength is just not there. More walk breaks for me after the 13th km and found myself wondering why this was so difficult than the full marathon that I did. Was it fatigue? By this time, I was also feeling pain in my right hamstring. On uphills, I opted to walk as I don’t want to risk my ITB since it just got well after 2 months of healing. It was torture and I was just feeling so tired that I can’t motivate myself to move on. The only thing that was motivating me was to finish the race for the cause. If cancer patients can overcome the pain that they are going through, then this temporary hardship should not stop me from giving them hope. In km 19, I was beginning to have cramps in my right leg and can’t finish a whole km run. In the final stretch, I tried to jog until I reached the finish line and was limping already due to cramps. I finished at 2:47 together with Jay who decided to run along with me until the finish line.

I would also like to mention that this race was Kay’s (my fiancée) first official 3km run together with Tyrone. They finished the course in 27 min (unofficial time). Hopefully they get to run their first 5km in the Mizuno Run in January 2010.



Though I ended up exhausted in this race, I am glad to have been part of a cause that was meaningful to the beneficiaries of this event. May we all continue to bring hope to all cancer patients and that we become part of their healing process as they have become part of our strengths.

After this race, I will give myself a good rest in order to recover fast. I hope to get back on training in 2 weeks.

Some photos:

Jay, Me, and Kay

Won a t-shirt from the bring me contest, Tessa Prieto asked for a pair of NB shoes, luckily I was wearing one.

Kay, Me, and Noemi with coach Rio.

*photos by Tyrone Lombos

My First Marathon

It was 4 months ago, when Me and my friend Jay threw the idea of joining an International Marathon. It was 4 months after we joined the Condura Run. At that time, we were just joining 10k runs and starting to build mileage together with the rest of the Gone Running Club members. I immediately said Yes, and off we went and prepared our training plans. We have chosen the Standard Chartered Bangkok Marathon held in Nov. 22, 2009.

Prior to the Marathon day, I only managed to build 498km in mileage due to the series of injuries that I was struggling with. The 16 weeks training period was dwindling down so fast and I have yet to do a consistent long run. I was still nursing my injury and it has given me a lot of pressure since I have declared that I will do my first marathon on that day. I have committed to do this task as scheduled and there was no turning back for me. I honestly am having doubts a week before the event if I can really make it. Good thing my knee were getting better as I have been attending my Physical Therapy as mentioned in my last blog.

My goal was to finish my first marathon without injury. I have planned to do a run-walk strategy (9 min jog @ 7:30 min/km and 1 min walk @ 10 min/km). This would make me finish at 5:22. Though I wanted to finish with a good time, it was least of my priority. My only wish at that time was to finish below 6 hours without any injury.

Jay and myself at the site around 1:30 a.m.

There were two race starts for the full marathon. One is at 2:00 a.m. for those finishing between 5-7 hours and for female age group between 60-64 and male 65 and above. (No wonder I was running alongside a lot of elder who were really fit and fast, I admire them). The 2nd start time was at 3:30 a.m for those finishing within 5 hours. However, for the 1st start time, a lot of runners finishing below 5 hours have joined the 1st group.

During my first 12km, I was consistently following my 9-1 strategy but I was going fast since my virtual partner in my garmin was showing that I was ahead by 8 min. You just can't resist when you feel strong and that no pain is occuring on your past injury. But I had to control myself and conserve my energy. I was focused with my 9-1 strategy and before I knew it, I was done with my 21st km. The next km after that was my farthest run so far. I began to pray that the Lord will give me the strength and the will power to finish the marathon. At this point I began to become nervous and concerned that my Injury will come out anytime.

At km 22, I started to monitor my pace every km and forgot the 9-1 strategy. At km 25, my legs were so stiff and my ITB had slight pains but were manageable. It was good that there were free massage at selected aid stations, did some stretching and off I go again. I had to take my hammer gel every 30 min for the first 2 hours. I stopped at all hydration station and made sure to drink water and gatorade in order not to "hit the wall".

I was eager to reach the 30th km since I will use that as my motivation that the remaining 12km should be manageable since my body is aware that I can finish 12km without any trouble (crazy motivation huh?). But it worked for me, as soon as I reached the 3oth km, I again hydrated myself, did some stretching and conditioned myself that I will start to run a 12km race. But the next 12 km was so hard, I had more walk breaks but I still focused.

I intended to take more photos to highlight the race, but I was so stressed out and just remained focused to finish. At km 36, I needed to pee, I can't find an open establishment where I can go. Luckily there was a gas station and I took a detour went to look for the toilet. Then I went back and started to jog. At km 37, the 10km runners who came out from another street finally joined the group and they were all so fast and too many. The crowd became lively again, before they came the marathoners were all far apart. The 10k runners though made it appear that I was too slow (yes I was) and that I am being left alone as I was running too slow.

Then it was down to 5km, I was excited and at the same time struggling. But the elders motivated me, I even saw lady on her 60's whose pace were faster than mine in some point. The elders both men and women were just so amazing. How I wish that we can all be as fit as them someday. At km 39, I happen to run beside a local thai maybe on his late 50's. He talked to me in local thai and I just said, "I don't speak thai", he continued to converse with me and looked at his garmin and made a sign language "3 ", meaning 3km left. We then ran side by side, there was a time he had to walk and I continue to jog and vice versa. At the last km, we ran side by side and he demonstrated again that its 1km left. From then on we run together and finished at the same time. We shook hands at finish line and he said "Thank you, Thank you" and so did I. We both finished at 5:43:16 (unofficial time).

This experience for me was really amazing. I have learned that anything is possible if you only put your commitment and dedication to it. Believing in your own capability and the ability to find ways to resolve the constraints that might stop you from proceeding is a key indicator for your success. This is an achievement that I will treasure as I was able to accomplish it the way I wanted it to happen.

The event was well organized. Here are some observations:

1. There was a defined schedule for the start time per category. At the finish line, the marathoners, 10km, 5km runners were arriving almost at the same time. There was a dedicated lane for the finishers for 5k runners, 10k runners, and marathoners. In below photo, the right side is for the finish line of full marathon, and on the left is for the 5km and 10km.

2. Sufficient water aid station.

3. Mobile Toilets (I was not able to take a photo).

4. Massage on selected aid station.

5. Fresh banana on selected aid station.

6. Volunteers from a community prepared drinks and fresh watermelons. Very nice gesture. At the same time they were cheering the runners.

7. Some students cheered the runners as we passed by in front of their school.

8. Flags of participating countries were raised. The night before, Jay and his nephew went to the place for an ocular, (I was resting then). He saw our flag raised with the red color on top, he immediately called the officer in charge and told him the meaning of red color on top (which means in war). The organizer immediately apologized and change the orientation.

9. Eye catcher runners.. Batman here finishing his marathon.

10. There were medical support team after the race. Free massages, medical attention, ambulance in place both at the finish line and at the selected aid stations.

11. Timing Chip

12. Announcement of names as you approach the finish line.

13. Video live feed.

14. As soon as the race ended, the crew immediately take off the main signages. Very well organized and disciplined.

14. Nice finisher t-shirt.

Some more photos:

Jay making his new marathon PR, finishing at 4:41

Noemi finishing her quarter marathon at 1:18

Gone Running in Bangkok!

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