winNing rAce!

I haven't posted in a while.... but I'm really excited on this entry :D



You're probably wondering why the photographer is up on there and this 3 guys getting a snap????

Well folks please allow me to take this (probably the only) time to boast a little..... ok maybe boast alot! :P

This was last sunday's race. e-PLDT fun run at Ortigas Business Center. Good thing Renz, another h@ppyFeet member, gave us the invite for the event.



Since we stayed at the Intercon over the weekend, I didn't have any problems coming in that late for the event. :) But just to make sure that we were registered I did SMS Miss Roselle to register my Sister Pauline, GF Missy, and I for the race, since she was already at the site at 5am!



The race started at around 620am, already very hot, but thanks to the tall buildings around the race route.... we didn't even break that much sweat! We were informed that we were going to make 2 laps on the race course to complete the supposed to be 5k event. But upon doing the first loop, I can say that all of use were really surprised on how small the race route was! It wasn't even 2km long!

But I still managed to pace about 20feet away from the 3 race leaders for the first lap then i managed to squeeze in the 3rd spot about 300meters away from the finish. I felt really surprise that I was running with the lead pack! for a second there i felt that I needed to do a reality check! Well at the last 100meter stretch. I still felt good both on my legs and breathing so I pushed a bit more. Just enough to catch the 2nd runner. By this time Kimbia was running in my mind! The stride, the pace, the moment felt like some of my training was paying off.... :D hehehe

Problem is that i saw the organizers handing out another lap tag for the first runner..... By this time I was confused! Is there another lap???? They wont hand out lap tags if we were going to finish at lap 2 right!?! I slowed down, cause if we were to do another lap then i'll be floored already by halfway doing my current pace.

But all of a sudden the organizers lifted the finish line ribbon and of course I was still about 10 feet away from the first runner... tsk tsk tsk..... grrrrr..... I should have gave it all. But hey! I'm stil 2nd place out of maybe a hundred runners that day. :P (real number = 2 only, that's why i got 2nd place :D)




Miss Roselle ~ Women's 1st place

mY neXt Half!

late |lāt|
adjective

1 doing something or taking place after the expected, proper, or usual time : his late arrival | she was half an hour late for her lunch appointment.


Yes, i was a victim of the evil cool evening weather last saturday!
I managed to wake up at 5:17am when my race will start at 5:30am! and its an Adidas Sponsored event which would definitely start on time!!!! grrrrrrr!!!!! I still can't forgive myself for being such a sleepyhead! Good thing is that i was able to prepared everything that i needed the night before! :)

I had my own super dooper sugar concuction and some gatorade on my hydration belt and a pack of GU. I managed to chow down a powerbar while driving at 80kph. I was hoping i could document the whole race but for the time being..... i doubt that i could manage to break my PR and document at the same time! so i did set aside the camera. As i was nearing the US embassy i saw the first wave of runners going all in already for the 21k race! i was really at a state of panic already. So i was forced to park about 500m away from the start line which means that i had to run all the way to the check in line and thru start line! SHEEEESH!!!!!

As i exited the start line I was able to grab the time, im late by 15mins!!!!
I managed to do a steady fast pace start. And was only able to reach the last group of 21k runners near the 3km mark near buendia-roxas ave. I was still doing the same race strategy! Run as fast as i can, then do a regular 20 second fast walk thru the water station. It works! I continued my steady pace... since i was in a rush earlier i also forgot to bring my watch! grrrrr!!!!!!!!! By feel and by constant asking to other racers i think i was doing a steady 5:30ish pace. I still needed to shave off some time! GOD!!! When will we have CHAMPION CHIP around!?!?!?!?!

I was really careful not to pound the incline at buendia-edsa flyover since It was still the first half of the race. Then I saw the first h@ppyFeet Joms... still smiling and then Zaldy who didn't see me.... then before i knew it... i saw the half marker! i felt my heart pound and my legs..... hmmmm i couldn't feel my legs by this time so i drank my super dooper secret concuction, and slid down some GU, whew! SUGAR RUSH !!!!! :) I tried to change my stride and hopefully my pace. I continued to press on and the only good sign that i had was that I was still overtaking 21k racers. :)

Longer strides and shorter walks for the second part of the race. That was my race strategy. At about 15km a triathlete friend of RC acting as support staff to some of his team mates racing saw me and offered me some Pocari. Not that the Pocari stuff really helped but the support did. I didn't feel that I was all alone racing. I forgot his name, but will never forget his face. (will post his name on my next entry :) ).

I was still pushing myself up until the 19th km when i was struck with my evil companion..... cramps! I was hit hard on my right calf muscle and was forced to move to the road median. Good thing a doctor was nearby and helped my stretch my leg. The stretch was new to me but it did help alot! i was only down for around 2 minutes and was back on my feet running.... or should i say limping my way down the finish line. I thought my nightmare was already over when both my lower quad muscle was starting to twitch and tighten... As if i was relieving LA 2007 all over again!!!!!! I persisted and hoped nothing would hinder my race anymore. My official time was 2:03:10 minus my 15minute late arrival = a new 21k PR! 1:48:10 8 minutes faster than my last 21k last month. :)


~Thanks to Miss Tisha for the photo! :) oh and those 2 cops are my race escort! bwehehe...


Now, its still bothering me.... Will i ever get thru 13 miles at my race pace! Will i be able to redeem myself for my 2nd 26.2mi !?!?



~h@ppyFeet People

2 more nights till my next h@lf...

Geeeeez..... 2 more sleepless nights. and to top it all, I haven't had a good training since I got the flu due to some personal things that i had to attend to. So here I am, wanting to set a PR for my 21k yet really disappointed at myself for slacking on my training. Oh and my mom(a sprinter in her younger years) isn't going to be able to make it on Sunday to see me run. :(

My only source of inspiration right now is the kimbia documentary series. :D Yup! Im still watching it! And even trying out their running form. :) I just hope i turn 5shades darker and about 30lbs lighter before KOTR.

See you all on Sunday! and watch out for my new blog entry next week! :)

a Video Blog!

During our run last Sunday, Smith mentioned a cool video journal to me again. And I was only able to check it out today. Let me introduce you to

www.chasingkimbia.com

Its a video journal done by Matt Taylor, with the participation of the Kimbia Athletes and New Balance as their sponsor. Its a documentary about the Kimbia athletes' training life.

The videos are really cool! And of course the athletes are pure animals when it comes to race day. I haven't been able to finish the whole series so check it out also! and let's drool and be envy at these running gods!

back on my H@ppyFeet!

After an almost 1 week of of hiatus, I'm really glad that I was able to do a light run today!

6am, 0km marker in Luneta.

I came on time for this training day, well for someone itching to run even under the influence of the phenyl drug I was really eager to train. :)

Thanks to Smith and Zaldy, they made the run feel like a real short one. In short we chatted all the way to the finish. The sun was out and the heat was a real bummer! Good thing i brought in my new toy! I hope the bull runner reads my blog today! hehehehe Miss jaymie, i got my hydration pack!


Amphipod.

Thanks to RC and his cousin who brought it all the way from Melrose Ave! The long wait finally paid off. RC dropped it off at my apartment last friday at about 15mins past midnight. I was still sick and high on those d@mn meds and boy did that blue bag made me jump for joy! hehehe Saturday passed and i was still feeling quezzy. I dozed off almost the whole day hoping to recuperate faster.

I woke up at 430am, started sending SMS to every h@ppyFeet on my list. I got only 2 confirmed runners going for the training run. Smith our resident white guy and Zaldy our youngest member.

The pace was constant, the chat was also constant. Smith and I were just hoping that the new guy (zaldy) wasn't cursing us for our slow, very slow pace. hehehehe After 2 hours of running.... and by smith's calculations, we did nearly 20km.

siCk

I have a question????

How do you deal with the NEED to rest and forgo training????? Yes, i did catch a flu this week. I thought it would just go away and I'd have another good week of training. But it didn't go away..... I feel worse today than yesterday. I nearly got into an accident this afternoon driving in EDSA. I hate that phenyl stuff in that cold medicine! It just makes me feel really really sleepy.... and to top it all I had location shoots for the past 2 days already. Let me set the record straight, I'm not complaining about work. I just hate it when i'm sick and i WANT and NEED to deliver a good job. arrrrghhhhhH!!!!!!!! As for training... i'm feeling anxious the past couple of days missing training. I really want to go out and try some of the new stuff I learned from last Sunday's race.

I just wish this would go away before the weekend. I don't want to miss our group's long run training. :(

hAlf of mY StoRy....

Waking up at 3am just to make some noodles and hydrate isn't really an easy task for me. The only thing making me do all these stuff is the sheer excitement that of doing the half and knowing my real time for it.

I always set high marks for my self and usually end up really disappointed when i don't reach it. So going for last Sunday's race was a bitter-sweet feeling for me.

I met up with doc Brent at the usual pick-up point. This time i was there on time and well ahead of him. I wasn't late, yippeee! We headed back to my office to fetch Ron, but it turns out he wasn't really feeling good. We arrived at the race start before 5am giving me enough time to warm-up, hydrate again, and check out the competition.... nah.... hehehehe

Some of the things running through my mind at the starting box...

1. I hope I don't rush it for the first half of the course.
2. Will they have enough water stations?????
3. Change of route? sh@t!!!!!
4. Did i pick the right shoes?????
5. Do i look good on my skimpy shorts!?!?! hmmmmmmm......


Well, first sign of a good race is if it starts on time..... Well for Run for Peace! Yeps, they surely did start on time. Well, i think this is the first race I've attended that started on time!

First 2.5km(guesstimate)
I did pace with RC and kept it really easy. I was really surprised when my predicted time of walks did match the water stations. :) I did keep my 30 second walk . And proceeded with the course. I just hate uphill! After a good walk i had to manage a steep incline!

After 2km
I saw a triathlon team pacing with their female member. And i guessed, who would pace better, a triathlete right?! I hitched a ride with them for about 45mins. Lots of pictures taken by one of their members. hehehe and I was in all of them. hahaha This is the time when i really wish i had a camera with me too!

1hour mark....
When we were at the return side of C5 I did pick up my pace a bit and left the relaxed pace of the team. Reaching the next water station i hydrated and gel up for my push to the finish.

the next 45 mins....
I'm still doing my regular walks through the water stations, then picking up my pace again after.

the last 10mins....
Now this ordeal is a different story.... Guys, let me tell you this. You have to know the route in order to prepare yourself for proper pacing. I didn't! so guess what happened.....

When i was nearing the grand stand entrance i picked up my pace again for the final stride. Only to my surprise that I still need to do one loop inside the stadium grounds.... about another 500m!!!!!!!! sh@t! i knew i was in trouble..... I have to thank Joms for pushing me (literally) to the final 200 meters. I clocked in at 1:56:5 2

Now going back to the questions before the race.

1. Thanks to the tri team! I didn't rush in.
2. Down to the dot! They did have enough water, water stations, and volunteer's handing out the water!
3. This is my only gripe. I just hope next time, They wouldn't change the route last minute.
4. I didn't pick the right shoes! I'm glad i didn't have to attend another wake for my toes!
5. I always do! :D hahahahaha

Now I'm off to training again. Next Stop, KOTR Half!

That will give the nExt h@lf of mY StoRy.....