I Raced (and Paced) for the Orphans!

Right after my full marathon at HK, I was feeling fed-up with running that I haven't even thought of doing a recovery run. When I attended the Unilab Run United 1 launch the following Saturday though, I invited the idea of running at the Race of the Orphans the following morning. It was a race organized by sir Rene (Jazz Runner), and fellow bloggers CJ (Run Adobo King) and Thirdy (with a new personal domain at thirdylopez.com!) will be running 10k. I was game to CJ and Thirdy's request for me to pace them in achieving a sub-1 10k.

Good thing there was an on-site registration, which was handled quickly and efficiently by the people manning the registration booth. The 600-peso registration fee I shelled-out was but a small contribution to this event's cause.

The gun start for the 10k runners was supposedly scheduled 5:45am but got a bit delayed due to the flag-raising ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo. At 5:55am, we were off.

At the starting line - Doc Minnie as race marshal for the win!

My legs were soooo heavy during the start of the race that even I doubted myself I could have a decent 10k time. I just wasn't mentioning it to CJ and Thirdy since I still am their pacer and any negative comments I make might affect their performance. KB passed by my side and told me "Bro, you are dragging your feet." Indeed I was but I still continued on and prayed my legs just needed a bit of a warm-up.

And warm-up they did with the challenging route of Camp Aguinaldo! It took a long 5 kilometers though before I could correct my running form and not drag my feet. By this time, CJ was already pulling-out from our trio. I was constantly looking back and making sure he was only a few meters behind me and Thirdy. I asked Thirdy if we should just wait for CJ and just ditch our sub-1 goal or continue running and leave CJ behind. He replied he's ok with either so I made the decision to still attempt the sub-1.

Thirdy and pacer (CJ MIA)

Now for some good news and bad news. Good news: we made it to the sub-1 10k goal. We clocked in at the 10km mark in 59 minutes as per my Soleus GPS watch. Bad news: the route was 300 meters longer! That last stretch, Thirdy was so burnt-out that I had to give him the extra push, literally! Our official finish time is 1 hour, 1 minute and 9 seconds.

Last few meters before the finish line (pic taken by sir Rene)

Thirdy can still smile! Yay! Great race!

I love the intimate feel of a race like Race for the Orphans. Everyone was happy and stayed around to catch-up with runner friends and see familiar faces. I'm so proud to have represented Team Alpha1 on this event. Sir Rene did a fantastic job in organizing this - from registration, to race marshals, to the event host (Mish doing her debut hosting here), to hydration, to the bonus race raffle and to every other small details of the race logistics.

With Team Diadora Philippines (fellow blogger Running Atom on my left)

With the PF folks - photographer Phillipbf and interviewer (new career) Ms Mars

With the strict race marshal Doc Minnie (left-most) and the event host Mish (beside me)

the bloggers

post-race breakfast at Seattle's Best Coffee Valero

Another race plus: Race results were released the same day! Of course I wouldn't forget my ever reliable Excel graph for our race performance. Great to see another negative split finish with the final kilometer as our fastest kilometer!
Upcoming race: RUNew Alabang 21k on February 26! I need some practice runs this week! X.X

Race for the Orphans on February 12, 2012

WHAT: Race for the Orphans
WHEN: February 12, 2012 (Sunday)
WHERE: Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City

REGISTRATION PERIOD: January 7, 2012 to February 11, 2012 (12nn to 8pm)
RACE CATEGORIES AND REGISTRATION FEES:
- P600 for 10k
- P400 for 5k
RACE KIT INCLUDES: Race bib with timing tag and singlet
REGISTRATION VENUES:
- Secondwind Running Store: Quezon City and Ortigas Branches
- A Runners Circle (ARC): Roxas Blvd. corner Quirino Avenue
- ROX: Bonifacio High Street, BGC, Taguig
RACE BONUS: All registered runners have a chance to win a free trip for 2 to Boracay!

Singlet Design

RACE WRITE-UP:

A race for the orphans, a race for your hearts! A very special race for the month of the heart—The Race For The Orphans will stir the Camp Aguinaldo Grounds in the still misty morning of February 12, 2011 each not only to experience running the peaceful grounds of the military camp but to take part in answering the orphans cry for love and compassion.

It is with this aim that Rundezvous Events Inc., will stage this event that will provide scholarship grants through “I-Hope”, a trust fund that will support the educational needs of these orphans of soldiers killed in action in Mindanao and for future grantees of the AFP Educational Benefit System (AFPEBS).

Each runner pays a modest registration fee of P600.00 for the 10k run and P400.00 for the 5k run. Inclusive with this fee is a nice running singlet available in various sizes, a Timing tag, race bib number and a goodie bag from our sponsors.

Our registration Centers will be at the Secondwind Running Stores in Ortigas and Quezon City; ROX at Bonifacio High Street and at A Running Circle (ARC) along Quirino Avenue corner Roxas Blvd., Manila.

“We shall leave no soldiers’ orphan behind”. This is the AFP Educational Benefit System Office’s (AFPEBSO) tagline, an organization which deeply recognizes the heroism in each Filipino soldier. It is one of the morale and welfare outfits of the Armed Forces of the Philippines that grant educational benefits both to the military personnel and their dependents with the aim of helping them secure a brighter future. As it recognizes our soldiers' heroism, especially of those who lay down their lives in protecting peace, AFPEBSO gives priority to the orphans of Filipino soldiers who were killed in action.

We’ll see you at Camp Aguinaldo on February 12, 2012!

For inquiries, please call or text:
Abet: 09158030224 or Zarina: 09165217400
Or call Phone: 6(32) 3829659 c/o of Salie Guarin.

Rizal Day Run 32km OVERHEAT!

I'm blogging this late as I'm still undergoing the different stages of grief. It has been more than 2 weeks already since the Rizal Day 32km run. This has been my last run for 2011. Unfortunately, also my last run to date.

With a few weeks left before the HK Marathon big day, I was trying to increase mileage the last week of December. I did a 32km run on a treadmill December 26 (Monday), recovered for a few days, and then joined the December 30 (Friday) Rizal Day 32km Run. That's 64 kilometers in a week, the highest I've reached in my 10-week training thus far! That crazy move is now bugging me as a big mistake.

It was my first time joining a Bald Runner event, and first time running in Camp Aguinaldo as well. I did not know what to expect, but my Team Alpha1 running teammates were positive I'm in for a treat. The race route is simple, 4 and 3/4 times a 7 kilometer loop, roughly 32 kilometers. I got feedback though that this would exceed the target distance a bit.

Only Eugenator from TA1 was present in the event and I was expecting to be a lone runner (as his pace is impossible to follow). Upon gun start, Eug sped off and I was taking it slow, with the not-so-well-lit race path ahead. I decided to pick up pace once a little bit of sun appears. With only about 200 runners in attendance, the race was intimate, and in a few minutes I already felt the lead pack was far ahead from me and runners behind me were way back.

I got surprised when a familiar runner was already running beside me - Kampuger of Team Powerpuff Boys. I now have company! And he said he'd pace me as well. Him being a fan of BR events, this was his 3rd consecutive Rizal Day Run, so he's very familiar with the route. Any fear I had of getting lost inside the camp was gone. He was quick to notice changes in the hydration stations - he knew where they should be but got a bit disappointed when the stations changed as he has already plans on his hydration. There I was, a runner who never plans on my hydration, realizing I'm still a runner newbie. In the 7k loop, there were only 2 hydration stations, 3.5km apart. Kampuger kept mentioning we should take it slow given this hydration situation.

Ronnel aka Kampuger - my great RDR pacer

Running with the TPPB Mamaws - Ronnel and Mark

Kampuger was generous on giving training tips while running, so the repetitive loops did not bother me much. I was doing a good performance, with a 1:54 21km; I was ecstatic I could repeat sub-2 21ks! However by kilometer 25, I was already feeling tired. The sun was up and I am not used to heat trainings. Ronnel kept motivating me to continue running, and giving me some walk breaks at certain points so that I could rest a bit. The big race bonus is, when our Soleus GPS watches hit 32km, it displayed 2:58! Doing a sub-3 32km is so much an achievement, but since we're expecting the race to exceed 32km, we still had an unfinished business.

At the final stretch, with the finish line in sight, I told Ronnel to go on. He still has the energy to sprint the final part of the race; I didn't. Slow jogging, I arrived at the finish line in 3:06:52. My GPS watch registered 33.16km.

I found out I placed 20th overall (Eug was 2nd place, woah!). I should be celebrating but I was feeling something wrong. I felt a bit light-headed so I sat and closed my eyes at the covered area in the camp. Eug noticed something was wrong too, as he kept asking me if I was OK. I was already feeling numbness on my arms, making me panic more. The moment Eug suggested for me to drink more water, I ran to the nearest water station at the finish line area, splashed cups of water on my head (I think I wasted 5-6 cups) and drank 5 cups of water. The realization I was dehydrated and experiencing overheat came to me just in time. I don't want to think what could have happened if I ignored Eug's advice. I returned to the camp stage feeling better. Good thing there were also free doughnuts which were quite a life-saver.

20th place (out of 200) WOOT!

Official race results - 3:06:52

Race performance - what a slow final 4 kilometers!

I got 3 dead toenails, an injured left knee, and an almost loss-of-consciousness during this race. Will I do this race again? Definitely! Hopefully, I could recover quickly and be back on the road training.