Runs last May and June

I wasn’t able to update my blog site the past weeks for the race events I joined last May and June. I have been very busy with my work and some personal stuff that kept me from running the past weeks. So, I’ll try my best to remember the Kerygma Run, Nature Valley Run and the OCAI run.

Kerygma run: I ran the 5km event with my ex-officemate and friend/gym trainer from Fitness First. I left my place around 4:30am and met with my friend at MOA around 5am. When we were walking towards the site, it was only then that I remembered that I forgot to bring my race bib. Luckily, the people at the information booth were kind enough to replace my “lost” race number. We waited until the ceremonies began. There was a pre-run worship headed by Bro Bo’s Ministry and some pre-run warm-up exercises and stretching. We checked in the starting line and waited for the gun start. I told my friends that I would go ahead of them because I was in a hurry to finish the run because I need to be with my brother. I didn’t put much effort for this run because I have a 10km run the next day. It was weird though that my legs felt heavy and after the 3rd kilometer, I started having stomach cramps which made me stop for a while. I continued on, not thinking anymore of what my race time will be. I just wanted to finish it and meet my family. I crossed the finish line and the man claiming the race stubs for the 3km run took my stub. (what were we both thinking, hahaha) I finished the race around 27mins according to my ipod. After claiming my bag, rested for a bit and changed, I went straight to Makati to meet with my brother and officially said goodbye to him. I hope he will be able to finish what I had started and stopped more than 11 years ago.

The next day, Nature Valley: I tried my best to sleep early that Saturday night after the Kerygma run to be prepared for the 10 km run in The Fort the next day. I woke up earlier than planned, ate breakfast and started preparing for my run. By 4:45am, I was already at The Fort. I met my other ex-officemate and her boyfriend and we waited together for the gun start. Right then, I was thinking that I hope I joined the 21-km event instead. (more punishment for myself, hahaha) At gun start, it took me about more than a minute to step on the carpet lining of the start line. The road was too congested with runners. I told my friends that I’ll go ahead because I wanted to break my 10km PR. It was too hot and humid at that time. I had to pour water on my head at every water station after the 5thkm. I even almost destroyed my earphones for running which was supposedly water-proof because of too much pouring of water. (i got ripped off by sennheiser, hahaha) I took a short walk break after my 7thkm because my left knee was aching. On km9, I was running my usual pace when suddenly the lady right in front of me abruptly stopped and tied her shoe laces. I almost bumped into her and cautioned her from stopping without any sign to other runners behind her. I was already feeling weak because of the heat and I was glad to see the last left turn of the race. I finished with 59:04 for my finish time and 57:53 for my chip time. I guess breaking the 54minute mark would still take me a long time to achieve. I waited for my friends near ROX and went straight to Rockwell for our post-run breakfast at Grams.

OCAI RUN: I was not able to run for 2 weeks or more before this event. I was having sleeping problems and would often wake up around 3-4 am and can’t get back to sleep again. At the end of the day, I was too tired to go to either to UP or Marikina to run even just for 3-5km. On the day before the race, I had to go to work to finish some projects and had dinner with my office mates before playing billiards and bowling with them. I had about 3hours of sleep. On race day, my friend (who got lost while looking for the race area in Ortigas) and I started the race 10minutes behind the gun start. We ran together until the corner of Julia Vargas and Meralco Ave. I wanted to go ahead and catch up with my 2 other friends who started the race on time. The route was new to me and it is a good thing there were marshals every corner of the street. I like the steepness of the road at St.Martin going to ULTRA. I was still running my usual pace until I got back at Julia Vargas. This time, I had to slow down because of the pain on my left knee. I can see my 2 friends about 300meters ahead of me but i can’t reach them because of the pain on my knee when running downhill. I caught up with them a few meters after Rodriguez Rd. From there, we talked and walked until the U-turn at Tiendesitas near Ortigas Ave. After a bit of heart to heart talk with them, I decided to go ahead so I can take their photos at the finish line. From Tiendesitas to Meralco Ave, I overtook some more runners and relaxed when I was already in Garnet Rd and ADB ave. I realized that it has been too long since I last went to Ortigas and for me it felt like a trip back at memory lane. I finished with 1hr, 17mins and 31 seconds. My time from my ipod was 1hr and 7mins and 15 seconds. I guess it was not a bad race time with a long walk break with my friends for about a kilometer. We lined up for our loot bags and chatted for a bit before heading to Eastwood for a great breakfast at Heaven and Eggs. I spent the rest of the day with my friends over 2 movies, a big lunch and coffee late in the evening.