My race report on the AXN Runs Philippines held last Sunday - Sept. 18, 2011. I did the 21K distance.
This was a very challenging course. I loved it! When it was first announced and I saw the race map, I thought, "Wow! A new venue!" Then, "Yikes! Three flyovers (out and back, so that's six) and a long uphill at the last kilometer! The race starts at the Ortigas Center, Pasig, goes down Julia Vargas to C-5 then traverses C-5 going to Katipunan Ave in Quezon City near Miriam College, then back to Ortigas Center, in the process, passing thru C-5/Ortigas, C-5/Libis and Katipunan/Aurora flyovers. But then, a week before the race, I found out that they changed the route because they were giving way to the Ateneo College Entrance Test being held that weekend. So instead of three flyovers, it became four! They added the Pasig flyover as a bonus. So, the 21K runners will have to run a total of eight flyovers and an uphill in the last kilometer. They really meant their byline - "Take Action & Challenge Yourself."
Finishing it made all the hill running and long runs that I have been doing the past few months worth it. I've learned my lesson in the Mizuno run last June. I didn't just do my long runs. I did my hills and my heat training - I timed my weekend long runs to end at about the same time I'll likely finish this race.
I chose to join this race because the schedule fit perfectly with the Galloway marathon program I'm doing in preparation for my planned marathon debut this December. That weekend called for a 24K long run or a 21K race. After my Yamaha 21K early July - my 4th in just 5 months, I felt I was burning out and needed a break from racing. But after 3 months of no racing (except for an easy 10K - the Robinson's Buddy Run with my wife) I felt I was ready again for another 21K. So I signed up in the first week of registration, and I'm glad I did.
On race morning, I woke up, ate breakfast, took care of business, got dressed, went out the door, and the starting line was there! Ok, it was a couple of hundred meters away. Can a race morning be any better than that? My brother's apartment is on the street where the starting line is, so I slept there the night before. There should be more races in the Ortigas Center area.
I was worried that the 21K would start really late because the emcees went up the stage about 5 minutes before the scheduled gun start of 5:30am (as it is, a 5:30 gun start for 21K is already late), but surprisingly they suddenly rushed the countdown and the race started just a few seconds to a minute after 5:30.
My planned run-walk ratios were 2:1 on the flats; 9:1 on the downhills; and 30s:30s on the uphills. My nutrition strategy was to eat every 20 minutes. I brought along 3 packs of sports beans, 3 bars of chocolate covered granola bars and 4 200ml flasks filled with Gatorade.
The first part of the course was fairly easy. It started flat along Julia Vargas Ave. then a long downhill towards C5.
And soon enough there was the first flyover - the Pasig flyover. The incline wasn't too steep but once we got down the other side, we immediately had to make a u-turn and go back up again and head for Quezon City.
Water stations were plenty. Almost at every kilometer. The manpower deployed was quite impressive. There were a lot of marshals, police, traffic enforcers, security guards and medics along the course. Street sweepers were also hired to clean up the plastic cups around the water stations. And of course there were the photographers.
The second flyover was the C5/Ortigas flyover. This was the toughest flyover in the course. It was very steep since it was on top of another flyover, and it was quite long. But I was prepared for it. I frequently pass C5, so I wasn't shocked to see it. But it still looked daunting when you approach it on foot. The great advantage of adapting a run-walk strategy is that I don't have the mental baggage of failing because I walked. The 30:30 worked well on the uphills. Although I was huffing and puffing when I reached the top, my legs were still fine.
The stretch to the next u-turn was a long one. It included two flyovers and a tunnel. This part of the course is where the runners shared the road with vehicles. But it still felt quite safe because three lanes were allocated to the runners and were separated by traffic cones. There were also a lot of police, traffic enforcers and security guards to make sure that the vehicles stay in their lanes. They even greet the runners with encouragements, salutes and Good Mornings.
The tunnel was an extra challenge especially for the asthmatic. The smoke from the trucks were terrible. I was coughing most of the time while in the tunnel.
One of the good things about courses with u-turns is that you get to see friends and relatives on their way or on their way back. After the tunnel, I saw friends, my brother-in-law and my sister-in-law already on their way back. They told me that the u-turn was near, which was encouraging.
By the time I got to the u-turn, the sun was already out. I really appreciated the close intervals of water stations and the provision of sponges at that point.
On the way back, that's where I noticed several runners seeking aid from the medics deployed. The course was taking its toll on some runners. Most were probably cramps. Thankfully I was relatively fine.
By the time I got back to the C5/Ortigas flyover, I was already starting to feel really tired. Near the top, really tired, and on my walk break, there was a photographer. He asked me to run for the photo. I seriously didn't want to. But for photography's sake, I cut short my already short 30 second walk break and ran - with matching smile and thumbs up.
Turning to Julia Vargas ave., it was the last stretch - less than 2 kms. But probably a climb of more than a kilometer. At this point, it's mostly mental. I still tried to do 30:30 but did more walking. Most were already just walking up. I got to pass the most runners in this last stretch.
When I got to the top, I saw the sign for the last turn to the finish line. I was smiling again.
Then I did it! I took action and I challenged myself and conquered AXN Runs Philippines.
My wife was patiently waiting for me at the finish line. She was happily taking pictures, and I happily posed. She said she was very proud of me. And that means a lot to me.
Scorecard:
The first part of the course was fairly easy. It started flat along Julia Vargas Ave. then a long downhill towards C5.
And soon enough there was the first flyover - the Pasig flyover. The incline wasn't too steep but once we got down the other side, we immediately had to make a u-turn and go back up again and head for Quezon City.
Water stations were plenty. Almost at every kilometer. The manpower deployed was quite impressive. There were a lot of marshals, police, traffic enforcers, security guards and medics along the course. Street sweepers were also hired to clean up the plastic cups around the water stations. And of course there were the photographers.
The second flyover was the C5/Ortigas flyover. This was the toughest flyover in the course. It was very steep since it was on top of another flyover, and it was quite long. But I was prepared for it. I frequently pass C5, so I wasn't shocked to see it. But it still looked daunting when you approach it on foot. The great advantage of adapting a run-walk strategy is that I don't have the mental baggage of failing because I walked. The 30:30 worked well on the uphills. Although I was huffing and puffing when I reached the top, my legs were still fine.
The stretch to the next u-turn was a long one. It included two flyovers and a tunnel. This part of the course is where the runners shared the road with vehicles. But it still felt quite safe because three lanes were allocated to the runners and were separated by traffic cones. There were also a lot of police, traffic enforcers and security guards to make sure that the vehicles stay in their lanes. They even greet the runners with encouragements, salutes and Good Mornings.
The tunnel was an extra challenge especially for the asthmatic. The smoke from the trucks were terrible. I was coughing most of the time while in the tunnel.
One of the good things about courses with u-turns is that you get to see friends and relatives on their way or on their way back. After the tunnel, I saw friends, my brother-in-law and my sister-in-law already on their way back. They told me that the u-turn was near, which was encouraging.
By the time I got to the u-turn, the sun was already out. I really appreciated the close intervals of water stations and the provision of sponges at that point.
On the way back, that's where I noticed several runners seeking aid from the medics deployed. The course was taking its toll on some runners. Most were probably cramps. Thankfully I was relatively fine.
By the time I got back to the C5/Ortigas flyover, I was already starting to feel really tired. Near the top, really tired, and on my walk break, there was a photographer. He asked me to run for the photo. I seriously didn't want to. But for photography's sake, I cut short my already short 30 second walk break and ran - with matching smile and thumbs up.
Turning to Julia Vargas ave., it was the last stretch - less than 2 kms. But probably a climb of more than a kilometer. At this point, it's mostly mental. I still tried to do 30:30 but did more walking. Most were already just walking up. I got to pass the most runners in this last stretch.
When I got to the top, I saw the sign for the last turn to the finish line. I was smiling again.
Then I did it! I took action and I challenged myself and conquered AXN Runs Philippines.
My wife was patiently waiting for me at the finish line. She was happily taking pictures, and I happily posed. She said she was very proud of me. And that means a lot to me.
Scorecard:
- Water Stations: Many and well stocked with water. Some of them provided 100plus, sponges and bananas.
- Cheering: I didn't notice any
- Route: The whole route was new to me and was the most challenging to date. There were no crowding of the runners. There were not a lot of turns and u-turns.
- Traffic management: Very good. Most roads were exclusive to runners. For those that were not, they were separated by traffic cones and were manned.
- Kilometer Markers: There were kilometer markers every kilometer.
- Weather: Nice. It was mostly cloudy. It wasn't very bad when the sun came out.
- Marshals: They were everywhere and there were a lot of police, traffic enforcers and security guards.
- Singlets: Yes. I used it on the race. It's a keeper.
- Timing chip: Yes.
- Race Results: It was out the next evening.
- Photos: There a lot of photographers on the route wearing PinoyFitness t-shirts.
- A run for charity: No.
- Finisher's shirt: Yes.
- Finisher's medal: Yes.
- Injuries: None. Thank God! I didn't even get cramps.
- Personal Best: No.
PERFECT Race Experience Index: PERFEC
Things I really liked:
- The route was new, simple and challenging.
- Kilometer markers at every kilometer
- Close intervals of water stations
- The timing chip was easy to wear - it was an anklet strapped on with velcro
- The route was very well manned.
Things that they can improve on:
- There was one major annoyance in the whole event, and that is the distribution of finishers' medals and finishers' shirt. After crossing the finish line, as in after a few steps, I had to fall in line for the medal and shirt. And it was a very long line. I think there were more than a hundred of us there in line. And the line wasn't moving! The last thing I want to do after running 21 kilometers is to line up for an hour. When I finally got to the booth, it was total chaos. To make matters worse, they ran out of mens shirts and gave me a size small, ladies shirt. I'm not going to pretend that I know how to organize this, but I'm sure this isn't the way.
What I learned:
- I use my glutes a lot more on hills. Boy, both my butt cheeks were very sore upto 3 days after the race. My calves, quads, hamstrings and feet were not sore; just my butt.
- Bring a hanky or bandana or anything that I can use to cover my nose from the black smoke of vehicles.
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