#NatGeoRun2014 - Marathon #8

I've always supported NatGeo races and believed in their advocacy. This year's edition is a special one as it is the first time the event introduced the marathon category. It was a very welcome change for runners looking for a 42k event, having been disappointed by the cancellation of this year's Condura Skyway run.

It was marathon #8 for me, and I was targeting at least a sub-5 on this race. I did my usual pre-race preps (massage, stretching and chiro) days before the race but for some reason, I think I overdid it. My body, instead of getting relaxed, became more tired coming into the race. I also regret having worn a race belt during the race, with the sole intention of it carrying my mobile phone for event photos. I was not used to running with this worn on my waist, and I could only sigh as it became heavier and heavier as the kilometers progressed.

At an early KM25, I walled. My left calf was screaming with pain as cramps attacked. It didn't help either that the 42k route is just a loop of the 21k route. And to top it off, the merge with the sea of 21k runners during the 2nd loop became a big headache. The roads of BGC just couldn't handle the sheer number of participants. (Of course it is a different story for faster runners who did not experience merging with the lower categories.)

My finish time? 5 hours, 4 minutes and 1 second. Another blah marathon performance. But I finished it injury-free so I still have something to be thankful for.

So some notes from the event:

• I love the 12mn gun start for the marathon category. It was a hot and humid summer day but at least we avoided the sun.
• Hydration was overflowing.
• The finisher medal is simple and the design is ok. (My runner friend Wyatt's medal was detached from the lanyard by the way.)
• I'm not a fan of route loops but the organizers made the most of what BGC can offer as part of the race map anyway so I'm not complaining.
• The only improvement item for me - the finisher shirt. This is the first time I received a finisher shirt that had 21k|42k both printed on it. It was soooo generic, it doesn't even make the marathon finishers feel special.

And now to some photos to remember the race by:

The "Mamaws" (photo courtesy of JP)

Me and Boki Wyatt

With Cholo, Wy and Rolly

With Ryan and Hazielle (who paced and finished together until finish line) and Rolly

Breakfast at Yellow Cab. Nice meeting you Nik! And thanks, Hazielle for the pizza treat!

Hope NatGeo offers the 42km category on their 2015 race! Great job to NatGeo and Event King!

Marathon #8: RUPM 2013

Surreal that I just finished my 8th marathon at the Run United Philippine Marathon last October 6. Eight 42k runs in a span of three years is quite a feat!

Just a bit of humor - I found this funny (yet very true) video on the web - The 8 Stages of Marathon Running - to celebrate the 8 crazy marathons I finished:

The 3am gun start of the race only means one thing: adjusting my body clock to sleep very early both Friday and Saturday. I need to be up 11pm Saturday to have my "breakfast" (ooh boy what a weird time to have breakfast) and start my preparations. I need to leave the house 1am, which would mean me arriving at the Mall of Asia about 1:30am, park my car there, then ride the shuttle bus to the starting line at BGC.

I arrived as planned but what I didn't anticipate is the number of runners on queue at the shuttle boarding area and guess what? No shuttle buses! The queue kept getting longer and longer. I was hearing one of the marshals saying there was a shortage of buses and we were just waiting for the initial set of buses that left to go back and pick-up the runners on queue. I think it was about 2:15am when the buses arrived. Whew, what a buzzer beater. 

Long queue at the shuttle bus boarding area

Arrived at BGC around 2:35am, I had a few minutes to do my pre-race rituals - take my Roctane, do a few warm-up exercises and take a pee break. Met with the usual suspects - Ryan, Rom, Marte and Joshua. I turned on my Soleus GPS watch and got nervous as it took a long time before getting any signal.

Warm-up area at the BGC parking lot with Ryan, Rom and Marte

We were located far back at the 42k assembly area. I'm on pacer mode again with three of my companions being first-time marathon participants - Rom, Marte and Joshua. Strategy was to take it slow, probably a 7 to 8 minute per kilometer pace only.

Group selfie just before the race started. Haha!

And then we were off! I pressed the start button of my GPS watch and it went on INDOOR mode! That sucks! My watch failed me. But I could no longer do anything at that point so I just shrugged it off. I'm not on race mode anyway.

The initial part of the race was quite crowded, as we went around the streets of BGC. The runners began spreading out when we reached the Kalayaan flyover all the way to Roxas Boulevard.

RUPM 2013 42k race route

I don't remember the point when we lost Joshua but it was somewhere along Roxas Boulevard already. As for Marte, he had to go to a urinal break so only two were left with me - Ryan and Rom. We did ok until KM25. After this we were already having frequent walk breaks and we took our time on hydration stations as the sun was up early and the heat was becoming brutal.

Still running strong

I assume this was between KM28 and KM29

At KM29, we had our traditional "taho" break. Haha! We were probably getting a lot of glances from fellow 42k runners who were overtaking us as we were devouring our taho. Just the right kick from sugar needed at that time.

Passing by Mall of Asia and seeing the finish line but still doing the final 10 kilometers was really a killer. We already saw the fast marathoners approaching the finish line (4-hour finish time), but we still have a long way to go.

Walk, walk, walk - the story of the last 10 kilometers of this race. Haha! The sweltering heat was not helping at all. The Macapagal Avenue road, dilapidated and runner-unfriendly, was torture.

The good thing is this is a Runrio race - hydration's always a savior. Ice-cold water was abundant in all hydration stations amidst the heat. One can literally take an ice-cold bath.

As we approached the final U-turn at Sentosia and headed back to Mall of Asia, it was a bit of a relief that we are now on the final stretch. The intervals between the kilometer markers seemed to go longer and longer on the final 5 kilometers.

When tired, take a photo. Haha!

Arriving at Seaside Boulevard, we were still walking, reserving energy for the last hundred meters.

Walkers caught on cam!

Ruuuuuunnnnnnnnnn! Last few hundred meters!

As usual, all the pain went away temporarily as we crossed the finish line. 5 hours and 41 minutes, one of my slowest marathons, but it was a fun experience nonetheless.

Happy finishers!

One of the innovations Unilab Active Health thought of, which made the finish of marathoners sweeter, is passing under the elevated race village stage and being greeted by spectators and band performers on stage. But due to the grueling heat, we had to pass by the area quickly, claim our loot, and go directly to the post-run recovery area.

Finish Line moment captured by Photo-Ops!

The trilogy is now complete. Thank you Unilab, Unilab Active Health and Runrio for staging another year of great races.

At the 42k Photo Wall

Congratulations to my running buddies Ryan, Rom, Marte and Joshua! Let's do this again next year!

*** Photos courtesy of Ryan Santos, Running Photographers, We Run for Good Health, Tsinelas Runner and Photo-Ops. Official race photos can be downloaded at http://photo-ops.ph/

Milo Marathon 2013: Pacer Duties on Marathon #7

Never have I thought that I'd be able to pace someone on a marathon race event. Yes, I have been able to become a pacer a number of times on 21km races, but doing pacer duties on a marathon is a totally different story.

Joining the Milo Marathon was a last minute decision. Actually, the 42.195km category was already announced closed when I finally convinced my crazy self to join. I had a tip though that there would be a few marathon kits to be sent back to Riovana BGC (probably from sponsors or schools). I told myself if I get my hands on one of those few remaining kits, then it was really meant for me to run my 7th marathon. And so I did get a slot.

I knew I was undertrained, only inserting a few 3-kilometer treadmill runs on weekdays and occasional half marathon races on weekends, but these are never enough for a marathon prep, that is, if I'd like to get a strong, decent time (sub-4:30 perhaps). Since I'm sure I'll be running RUPM on October, Milo Marathon would at least prepare me for it, and hopefully my legs would retain the memory of the marathon pain. Haha!

If I was going to take it easy, I wanted to have some good running company. And so I dropped a tweet during the first week of July to Mish, asking her if she's game to pace with me. She readily agreed, and I was excited to learn she was thinking the same thing - of asking me to run with her. Yay to a marathon running buddy!

Fast forward to July 28, race day. With the early 3am gunstart, I was already up and doing my pre-race rituals 11pm of Saturday. Left home at about 1:20am, arrived at Mall of Asia just before 2am, and got my usual nice parking slot. I called up Mish but she was not responding. Uh-oh! Seems like my running buddy's still asleep! I sent Mish an SMS instead, telling her I was already leaving my phone inside the car, and told her I was wearing a red singlet and a green buff on my head, so she could easily spot me at the assembly area.

When I reached the race village, I spotted familiar faces - JP, Jaycee, Cholo, Bee, Tong and Sheryll. We had our usual Photo-Ops (no pun intended). Though it was announced the day before that Photo-Ops will not be covering the Milo Marathon, much to expecting runners' disappointment, we were still fortunate Tong was there to grab some shots in support of Sheryll and friends.

With Jaycee, JP and Cholo - Pink, Red, Pink, Red! Haha!

JP beside me and Sheryll and Bee on the rightmost (Sorry wasn't introduced to the others)

Lucky Jackie passed by while doing her warm-up and still had time to get a quick snap with me.

We proceeded to the assembly area, and a number of 42k runners were already there. The usual program commenced - an invocation, the playing of the national anthem, and a warm-up led by Coach Jim Saret. With the volume of runners increasing, I already gave up looking for Mish at the sea of runners wearing green. I began psyching myself I will be running alone. The race route video began to play and then the countdown to gun start. We were sent off, in a blast of confetti and noise.

I started with a light jog, while excited runners overtook me left and right. I had to control my pace. One important thing six previous marathons taught me is to reserve energy and pace myself properly, else suffer the consequences at the latter part of the race.

Then along Macapagal Avenue, I heard someone shout my name behind my back. It was Mish! She spotted me! I then had to switch from "loner mode" to "running buddy mode". I then became conscious of our pace, and planned of trying to maintain a 6:30 min/km pace, as long as we can. There were times that Mish would speed up (I felt she's getting bored of our pace haha!) but I still managed to make her follow our target pace. Sub-5, but no expectations - that was our mantra.

At the Roxas Boulevard flyover, taken by Wesley

We were doing quite well, at least until halfway point. At the second half of the race, we did frequent walk breaks, longer stops on hydration stations, and more chit-chats. Haha! We joked a few days before of doing "chika pace" anyway, and so we did.

The crucial part of the race was the last 10 kilometers. The "rainy Milo Marathon" forecast was a hoax, as the heat of the sun was already felt starting 7am. I was getting drained and I felt Mish was too. I kept a positive attitude and kept reminding Mish we're almost there (even though we're not, haha!). Mish' favorite line at the final 5 kilometers was "Wala na ako sa wisyo!" I was afraid of what would be the consequences of that statement. Peace, Mish! :p

Still in good running form!

On route back to Mall of Asia, at the final 2 kilometers of the race, we spotted a famous barefoot runner, running at the side of the street. Barefoot Loyce. And so two became three, pushing each other on the final stretch of the race.

Red 1, Green 2, Blue 3

Go, go Power Rangers! Haha!

We crossed the finish line together, ecstatic to have finished strong and injury-free. We congratulated each other as we wore our finisher medals proudly. We conquered the Milo Marathon!

Sweet, sweet victory

All smiles! The joy only a marathon finish can bring.

After saying our goodbyes, met runner friends from Team Titans at Fitness First. I felt sore all over, and I had to do some stretching. I was feeling a slight pain on my left foot, but I knew it was not a bad injury, just something I needed to rest.

With Team Titans Ryan and Rolly

The race was definitely the biggest race I've participated in this year - with a reported 42,000+ runners! Can you just imagine that? But since it was handled by Runrio, it was as perfect as it could be.
- Hydration was overflowing, ice-cold water and ice-cold Gatorade.
- Bananas and sponges for marathon runners were abundant
- So love the Milo jingle playing at certain parts of the race route. Not sure with the others but that jingle definitely gave me the boost!
- Mentioned this at the start but I wish Photo-Ops could have covered the event. The quality of their photos is just top-notch, and would have complemented one of the best and biggest marathon events of the country.

Plotted our race performance and what I got is on the below photo. Don't remember what happened in KM22 which slowed us down that significantly, an extended chat while walking perhaps. Obviously, a positive split but way better than my previous positive-split marathons as far as the deviation of speed is concerned.

What happened, KM22?!?

Marathon #7: Milo Marathon Manila Leg - 5 hours, 15 minutes, 15 seconds. 1158th out of 2268 marathon runners.

First ever marathon pacer duty's a success! RUPM you're next!

*** Photos courtesy of Ryan Santos, Cholo Reynes, Jackie Gutierrez, Wesley Orana (WAFUphotography), Running Photographers and Tong Pascua ***

Tokyo Marathon 2013: Epic Awesome!

There are things you've done which you still can't believe have really transpired. It's been two months since my trip to Tokyo, Japan. It was one of my dream travel destinations, and running in the recent Tokyo Marathon was just an icing on the cake.

It all started with a blog site I frequently visit - Patrick Concepcion's Runningshield site. Early 2012 he was making blog entries on his race preparations. He had everything documented until race day, which I was excitedly anticipating to read. As I read his Tokyo Marathon 2012 experience, I told myself someday, someday it will be my turn. I just didn't think it would be that soon. The universe conspired.

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The man behind the inspiration to run Tokyo Marathon - Sir Patrick "Runningshield" Concepcion (Notice his photo, and one of my photos later, hehe!)

I knew it will take crazy luck to participate in Tokyo Marathon, as it involves a lottery, what with the sheer number of runners who'd want to run in Tokyo soil. The first of August, 2012, the lottery opened. I submitted my entry.

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My lottery entry

All I can do is wait and pray for the odds to be ever in my favor. I kept thinking "The Secret". I even changed my various account passwords to Tokyo2013 (crazy huh?).

The registration ended at the end of August. The statistics were then released via email - a total of 303,450 submitted their intent to join the marathon, with only 30,000 available slots to be given. 10% chance. I sighed realizing my slim chances.

26th of September - I got a text message from my running teammate Jesy that he got an email indicating he's in. I was driving that time but I got hold of phone, keyed-in my yahoo account credentials, and nervously waited for my email to show. I had one email from the Tokyo Marathon 2013 Entry Desk. I clicked on the email and there it was, the only word I wanted to read - CONGRATULATIONS! "The Secret" worked!

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Best email ever!

After all the celebration, it now dawned on me that there are a lot of preparations that I need to do. It will take an awful lot of cash damage, as we all know that Tokyo is the most expensive city in the world. And of course, the difficulty of getting a Japan Visa. I worked on the requirements and submitted them to a travel agency January 2013. My Team Alpha1 teammates Jesy and Eugene backed-out due to personal reasons so I was left alone. I just couldn't let this opportunity pass. A couple of days and I had my Japan Visa stamped on my passport.

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Moshi Moshi! Japan Visa approved!

Airline booking, hotel booking, shopping for race gear, packing winter clothes, itinerary and budget preparations. I was dead nervous. It's my first time traveling alone to a non-English speaking country. I was reading and re-reading Tokyo travel guides. I kept staring on maps, familiarizing myself with the different area names and landmarks and tourist spots. I need to maximize my 5-day stay in the city.

And just like that, February 21 came. Had my 4-hour flight to Narita Airport, an hour train ride to Tokyo, a quick check-in to the hotel, and I'm off to the race expo at Tokyo Big Sight! Took me less than 5 minutes to claim my race kit.

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Tokyo Marathon 2013 Expo at Tokyo Big Sight

I've never been to a race expo of this magnitude. Can't help but drool over all the merchandise from participating brands. I bought an Asics shirt and the official Tokyo Marathon 2013 poster (made up of the names of the 30,000 participants forming the marathon race route, which was waaaay too cool to pass up).

By the way, 2013 marks the year that Tokyo Marathon became part of the World Marathon Majors. It now joins London, Berlin, Chicago, New York and Boston - the biggest and best marathon destinations in the world.

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World Marathon Majors

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Photo Op at the Race Expo - Bib Number H38199

The trip to Tokyo would not be complete without some sightseeing. I was at awe at how beautiful Tokyo is, and at how easy it is to go around the city due to its very organized transportation system. Here are some of the highlights of my "side trips":

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Diver City Tokyo and the 30-foot Gundam

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Tokyo DisneySea - the only DisneySea in the world, and still the happiest place on Earth!

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The Two Towers: Tokyo Tower and Tokyo Skytree (the highest functioning broadcast tower in the world)

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Meeting Hachiko at the Shibuya Station

I was on a mission to get my hands on a variety of KitKat flavors, and my hours of store-searching did not go in vain. The green tea and wasabi variants are my all-time faves. I gave these away as "pasalubong" to friends and family.

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KitKat Hunt: Mission Accomplished!

February 24 - Race Day. Forecast is fair weather with temperatures ranging from 2 to 7 degrees Celsius. This would be the coldest temperature I'll be running in (previous was HongKong but that's around 18C). Gun start is at 9am, but it will still be freakin' cold! My gear is ready, but am I?

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That's a lot of gear!

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Ibis Hotel Shinjuku - had my photo taken by the receptionist. I was scared of the cold weather outside.

The assembly area was a few minutes walk away from the hotel. I did not have difficulty finding it since I just had to follow the sea of runners walking outside. My excitement just keeps building up!

One of the things I was really looking forward to see is how the organizers will handle the logistics of a race with such magnitude - 36,000 participants! I was overwhelmed by what I witnessed. As I was walking, directional signs were everywhere - there were easy-to-follow signs, depending on a runner's wave, and baggage trucks were numbered and all lined-up at the side of the street, with each truck being manned by a dozen of friendly, smiling marshals.

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Baggage Truck #38

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I just had to take a photo with this ever-smiling race marshal

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With the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Buildings at the background

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Long queue at the portalets - I think it took my 10-15 minutes before I got my turn to make a pee break

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While walking, spotted this runner in costume. He happily obliged when I told him I'll take a picture of him.

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The long wait to gun start

What few minutes to gun start felt like forever - waiting in the cold, cold roads of Shinjuku. I had to squeeze my way in the crowds to find an area with sunlight. It helped a little to warm me up but the winds that day were brutal. The breeze was chilly and I just couldn't wait but to get my legs moving.

It took around 12 long minutes before I crossed the starting mark from gun start. As a passed the starting line, I removed my jacket and threw it at the side of the street, together with all the other disposable jackets of other runners. Lots of jackets wasted that day.

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The marathon race route

The next photos you are about to see are the official photos from the race which I purchased for a whopping amount of 11,000 yen. It's the most pricey set of photos I've ever purchased so forgive me for the vanity, LOL! I just had to post the best of the best pictures here.

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with the Tokyo Tower at the background

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By the way, did I mention this is the first time I'm wearing compressions? It definitely protected me from the cold.

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I'm not particularly sure what this clock building is, but it's one cool shot!

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More than mid-way - at KM23. Love the Mexican-inspired attire of the runner at the back.

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Spot the Tomato Heads

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My favorite Tokyo Marathon shot - makes me look like I'm ahead of everyone else.

At KM31, I just had to take a pee break. Unfortunately, I was not aware that following the toilet signs will lead me to a subway rest room! It took me a while to get there, and going down and up the stairs was hell! I wasted 8-10 minutes of my time just to relieve myself.

Surprisingly, this is the longest I've ran without walking. Usually, I hit the wall at KM26 to KM28 but since it's too cold, I still had the energy to continue running. And the cameras didn't even catch me walking at any point of the race. (Thankfully I did not have a picture of me hoarding a lot of M&Ms at one of the hydration stations haha!)

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Now what's that head gear supposed to be? A chicken?!

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There were moments in the race when I just closed my eyes andprayed to God to help me finish injury-free. I think this photo captured that moment.

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And there were just times I'd try to spot the photographers and do goofy poses, like this one. FORTY TWO, YEAH!

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Less than 5 kilometers to go!

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Two thumbs up for the best race experience ever! I LOVE TOKYO!

I just had to mention this very important observation. There was never a point in the race where there were no spectators and cheerers at the side of the streets. From KM0 up to KM42, people were cheering runners on, and some were even offering lots of goodies (and even beer!). For me, this is the most amazing aspect of the race. "THE DAY WE UNITE" - this year's theme. The Japanese really united to make this event a success of epic proportions.

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My finish line moment

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Where's Waldo?

As I crossed the finish line, I didn't even feel tired. The high energy of the people around me was contagious that it didn't even feel I ran a marathon. As I walked going to Tokyo Big Sight, I continued to witness why Tokyo Marathon is a success year by year. A number of volunteers and marshals greeted runners from handing of post-race giveaways - towels, medals, energy bars, post-recovery drinks, up to baggage claiming. They were the people donning yellow jackets - TEAM SMILE - I applaud them for the dedication and work they put on this event.

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Marathon finisher towels

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Finisher medals

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Proud, proud finisher (See the similarity with Runningshield's photo?)

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The most organized baggage claiming I've ever seen!

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The entire hall became one big dressing room.

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Post-recovery stations. I didn't even attempt to go near the place. Just took a photo.

The only difficult part was getting out of Tokyo Big Sight. 36000 runners plus families and friends and other spectators, it was crazy! It took me around 45 minutes to get to the nearest train station which will bring me back to my hotel. I rested a bit and then it was time for a post-race meal with my running teammate Joric, who was currently on assignment in Tokyo. I had the yummiest ramen at Ippudo!

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Ippudo ramen

I had a blast writing this blog post, reminiscing about my Tokyo trip. I hope that in my own little way, I was able to make you feel you were running in Tokyo Marathon with me. ARIGATOU GOZAIMASU!

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TOKYO MARATHON FINISHER AND PROUD!

Oh I forgot, I finished with an official chip time of 4:37:08, a new PR but still a long way to go from my sub-4:15 marathon target. In due time.