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Runnex @ 25 Years

Thank goodness we didn’t get lost. Hubby and I are from the “province” of the South so racing in U.P. was akin to venturing out into the wild blue yonder—or shall I say maroon?

We arrived at the Runnex assembly area at around 5:30 a.m. giving me just enough time to line up at everyone’s favorite—the portalets. Soon after, I still had a few minutes to warm up and stretch. I was feeling some discomfort below the left knee which was making me feel anxious and frustrated.

As hubby and I were checking in, Coach Jo-Ar came to explain the route and reminded me for the nth time: “Pakiramdaman mo yung tuhod mo!” Yes Coach, I was not willing to waste weeks of rehab work for one race so this was definitely going to be a training run for me—a 7k training run, in fact, so I planned on running an additional 2k after the finish.

When the gun went off, I ran easy—overly cautious about the knee. According to my Garmin, my average pace for Km 1 was 5:49 min/km. Surprisingly, I felt no pain! Perhaps a go-signal from the heavens to go a wee bit faster? I eagerly complied.

By Km 2, I was averaging 5:28 and by Km 3 I was running at 5:18. The great thing about all this was that I was not tired nor out of breath. I felt like I was on a hard training run, not a race. So, I allowed my eyes to wander enjoying the beauty of U.P., the trees that shaded us, and the runners around me.

There were a couple of times I allowed myself to race. One with a girl probably a decade younger than me. She was definitely fitter than me, probably a college varsity player in a sport other than running. I chased her down and overtook her. She ran faster and passed by me. When time came for a small uphill, I sped up and didn’t see her after that. Thanks to those deadly stair climbs!

Then there was Mr. 10k guy who appeared from nowhere and ran by my side. I tried my best to leave him behind but he wouldn’t budge. After a few minutes, I was able to outpace him…at least I think so. And I thought to myself, “Yes, he got chicked! Woohoo!” But, I do have a feeling he overtook me at some point without my knowing.

By Km 4, I slowed to 5:38 but sped up again at the last km to average 5:17. I didn’t know when this race would end! “Why was I still running at 5 km?” I thought to myself (as I’m sure other 5kers where thinking.)

I ended the race at 31.20 according to my Garmin. Whhhaaaat?! Too slow! But, then again, I wasn’t focused on my time for this race. I went straight ahead to run another loop to finish my 7k, so I want to slap myself in the face for not peeking at the race distance. My guess is that it was around 5.6 km. Anyone had a Garmin at 5k to confirm?

This was another well-organized race for me. I especially liked the clock which had separate times for 10k, 5k, and 2.2k. Runners could also view the countdown to the start of their respective races. (Now, why can’t everyone use that?) I just wish the clock was bigger and right on top of the starting line for all eyes to see. Runners were also well-hydrated with Rush and mineral water bottles being distributed.

The only negative for me was the portalet. I hope someone thinks of a better alternative soon. I dread going in there before a race, moreso after! There was no dressing area for women (no race organizer ever offered one) so while the men easily change clothes in the car looking and smelling fresh after, women like me suffer in our drenched clothing hoping that we still look great despite the sweat dripping down our faces. Oh, and yes there was the extra half kilometer at the 5k.

Before leaving, I finally met my now ex-virtual acquaintance and now real world friend, Neville Manaois of the Pinoy Ultra Marathoners. He got me all excited about the ultramarathon training program and race that they’re planning and I can only hope I’ll have half the energy that he and his team have to run those ultras. (Thanks for the token, Neville!) It was also great to chat with Mark and Tiffin of Happy Feet again. I just love seeing couples run together.

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- Me with hubby, Pinoy Ultramarathoner Neville M., Mark and Tiffin -

To Jhamfrens and Eric (Passion Runner), sorry we didn’t see each other! Next race nalang. Cat of Binan and friends, great to meet you. Master Mon and Beni V., nice seeing you again!

Posted on 05.04.08 to 03 Race Announcements. Tags: , , , . Subscribe to follow comments on this post. 13 comments. Add your thoughts or trackback from your own site.

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13 Responses to “Runnex @ 25 Years”

  1. Haha! Onga… I finally got to take picture with Bald Runner… We were actually looking for you using the PA system… “Paging ‘The Bull Runner’ ” We had a bloggers pic. BaldRunner, Passion Runner and RunRio :)

    Next time :)

    Passion Runner said on May 04 08 at 10:41 AM Reply

  2. Hi Jamie! Thank you so much for joining my race. Glad you enjoyed your first run sa UP. Yes we were looking for you using the PA system. I will take note of the negative feedback from you. Will try to work on it. Maybe I will request for extra tent for you ladies!!! See you sa ultra!!!

    runrio said on May 04 08 at 6:17 PM Reply

  3. Hi!!! Masaya ang race na ito…well-organized. And!…I was able to meet you. Medyo nagamit ko ang assertiveness ko ng konti when I introduced myself to you because I knew it was really you…Jaymie.hehehe Cat is my name po…hindi po si Karen (naalala ko tuloy yung old McDonalds ad)hehehe pero ok lang po. =) Pero sayang, I was looking for you after the race for a photo opp pero tumakbo ka pa pala. I had photos taken with Baldrunner, Passionrunner & Sir Rio…ikaw na lang ang kulang…sayang. Well, anyway, sa next race na lang siguro. Happy running and blogging! =)

    CatA said on May 04 08 at 8:20 PM Reply

  4. Results are out. Check out http://runrio.com :)

    Passion Runner said on May 04 08 at 8:46 PM Reply

  5. Remind me not to stand beside Neville next time we have our picture taken. We look “malusog” compared to you guys!!! You should have gone to the Bahay ng Alumni. The toilets were available there. I guess thats why you call it home court advantage. Knowing the ins and outs of UP helps. Yes I tracked it using the map available in Runnersworld.com and it is approximately 5.65 Kms long. It feels good to be running once again.

    mark p said on May 04 08 at 8:58 PM Reply

  6. ran my first 10k today, saw TBR running past me approximately on the 2k mark, hope i run faster next time

    mel said on May 04 08 at 9:06 PM Reply

  7. Passion Runner, ack sayang nga! Next time :) Thanks for the link for results.

    Coach Rio, congrats! Minor negatives lang naman yan. It was still a great race!

    Cat, so sorry! Fixed it already. It was really nice meeting you. :)

    Mark, I was thinking of that too! Standing beside Neville makes anyone look large! Tara…let’s train for ultras so we’ll look as lean as him hehe. Congrats on the run…and winning over Tiffin by a tiny step hehe.

    Mel, congrats! I probably ran past you because I just ran 5k!

    bullrunner said on May 04 08 at 9:29 PM Reply

  8. There are a lot of races lined up for May. Lets hope the lessons learned here will be passed on. The other organizers should follow Rio’s example of giving out results quickly and in a well laid out format.

    Now we only need to get the measurement right. This is a problem most races have. If using a bike odometer, there’s a wheel calibration that needs to be done. For the Forerunner 305, you need to get at least a +-6 to get it accurately. This is normally done by staying put in one area for 1 to 2 minutes so the device can lock on the satellites properly. It also accounts for elevation into its measurements. Now if you want to use your car or motorcycle to measure, just make sure that the tires you have on are the ones in your odometers specs. Using yarn will not work as the length varies according to the tension used by the group measuring.

    As I’ve read, courses are measured along all the tangents, they cover the shortest possible way along the course. However due to the number of runners, some may get the longer line and end up with a slightly longer finishing distance. Out of 3 garmin 305 users last sunday, none got 10km. Im sure 2 of us made sure we got the best line. : )

    Here is the direct link to the USATF Course Measurement and Certification Procedures.
    http://www.usatf.org/events/courses/certification/manual/equipment.asp

    IMHO, a properly measured course entails a lot of work. Most of us weekend warriors will be satisfied with what the gps and bike reading will give.

    markfb said on May 05 08 at 7:22 AM Reply

  9. Hey TBR, finally I was able to talk to you. And yup start run training or walking hehe for our planned ultra marathon. Lets create a team and run and walk the ultra mrathon. Will call our team “corredor del toro” . hehe. It was nice seeing you, and your really thin in person. Thanks for meeting up with me. Till next time.

    Neville said on May 05 08 at 1:09 PM Reply

  10. so was the 5KM route yesterday not accurate? What about 10KM route?

    dennis said on May 05 08 at 4:15 PM Reply

  11. Bullrunner,

    My niece Ryanne Nicole, who ran 2.2k yesterday and is an avid visitor of your site wanted to come up to you and introduce herself but she was too shy. I promised her that the next time we bumped into you I’ll be the one doing the introducing, hope you don’t mind.

    The race was nice but me and my brother didn’t join, I ran with my niece to set her pace and my brother did the same thing for fiance who ran the 5k.

    See you in the next race and Happy Birthday! :)

    Black Sigil said on May 05 08 at 8:23 PM Reply

  12. 5km route is 5.65, 10km route 9.9

    markfb said on May 06 08 at 12:22 AM Reply

  13. TBR,

    Where can I find that Garmin, the monitoring gadget that you are using in the race? How much?

    Edjosh said on May 08 08 at 3:29 PM Reply

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