FRONTRUNNER Philippines

the 1st amadeo coffee run held today in amadeo,cavite was too good too pass up. for a change,i would be running in cavite and on a saturday when i should be resting for tomorrow’s docfit 10k.so i volunteered to be both driver for the team br elites and a runner as well.at least for once,i could say that i was keeping in pace with the runners and i was dictating the pace in fact  by being the car driver.cheap thrill.

we left manila at around 4:45am in a convoy of 3 cars and headed for our destination.we arrived at around 6:15am with plenty of time to spare.the air was cold-tagaytayish in fact.

amadeo with its small roads and subdivision-like atmosphere is a small municipality celebrating its annual coffee festival but its first organized run.

the race started at 8:00am and i was surprised to see a number of manila-based runners joining.there were about200-250 runners in all.

for a first-time run event, i had a good time to say the least.the route was a simple one way and back affair where water stations were strategically located.the challenge lay in the inclines going back  all the way especially the last 2 ones just meters apart  near the municipal hall.i dreaded the thought of the struggle coming back as we started going downhill from start to the turnaround.it was a wise decision to hold my horses at the downhills so to speak for this decision gave me the extra energy for the push going back.

town plaza and gymnasium

municipal hall

with sir jovie at race start

race start

with coach espejo at race finish

with manila-based runners

with the winners,mostly team bald runner elites,as usual.

this run notwithstanding the challenging inclines which i did for the 1st time at race speed was a fun run in the real sense of the word.free flowing coffee, pollution-free atmosphere,very nice weather,simple yet efficiently-organized race from start to finish,friendly townsfolk and nice,small,quiet town.best of all, i had a new pr at 46:40 down from last u.p.ictus’ 48:37.

amadeo is my kind of town,it should be yours too.i can’t wait to be back and race here again next year.

amadeo rocks!

for the love of running adventures, i said yes to the bald runner’s call for a test run on 7:00 am , 22 february 2009 to start in abucay ,bataan specifically at kilometer 50 of the death march route.this was going to be the daytime counterpart of the pa-morningan 12am to 6am midnight run at moa.

i invited my fellow runners from gold’s gym and classmates at the ultra speed drills. and knowing how demanding this run would be, we decided to travel a day ahead to abucay to stay overnight.

we agreed to meet in balintawak on saturday at 1:00 pm-me,arman,enrico,kevin,dess,jay,charlie,boyet,myke and mari.jerry would later hook up with us in abucay as he was with others.i had my 2 boys,ralph and nathan as my support crew and the others had their drivers too.in true filipino fashion, we finally accounted for all at  2:00 pm. in a convoy of 4 cars,we headed for abucay via the san fernando,pampanga expressway exit.

personally, as we were driving down nlex,it dawned upon me that at almost this same time,2:00pm sunday,i would running under the sun.reality finally crept in.frankly,the weather was what i have been worrying about all along since this invite came knocking.but i gave my yes, so there was no turning back.

after a pitstop in san fernando,pampanga,we finally reached kilometer 50 in abucay at around 4:30 pm after a pleasurable ride.i saw a few death march kilometer posts along the way and i was mentally running already.

good company.enrico,myke,arman,jonel,dess(hardcore muse and the ONLY lady finisher-way to go pare!),charlie,mari,jay,kevin,boyet

kilometer 50.calm before the storm.can afford to smile pa lahat at this point.

my support crew-ralph and nathan.

finding no place to stay in abucay,we decided to proceed to balanga city,bataan.it was a short 5 kilometer drive away along the old national highway.here were some more of  the death march kilometer posts.

balanga by night.

we checked in at ellison hotel which was strategically located near all the fastfood chains,convenience store and ice dealer! ice would be our best new friend come sunday.

carbo-loading at chowking.

tapsilog breakfast at 5:00am,D day.

we headed for kilometer 50 at around 6:00 am.i was surprised to see many runners led by sir jovie and vehicles including a police mobile escort from bataan pnp and an ambulance/medical team courtesy of major general samuel narcise(agngina ti apo dios sir sammie,mabuhay ka and palad-go ARMY!) and of course,the bald runner’s admin and support group headed by coach espejo,coach salazar,gigi and the guys.there too, i met george the talking machine,isidro the elite,lukban runners,isko lapira and the camanava runners and other familiar faces.as earlier agreed, we pooled our contributions together.boiled camote,eggs and saba, cloud 9 chocolates,skyflakes,sponges,drums of ice-cold water,propel and gatorade were gathered in our mobile support vehicles.other runners had their own cheering squads and support crew who would later stop at designated areas.

sir jovie gathering the runners for a short talk.perfect running weather...so far.

stretching led by coach salazar.

can afford to smile pa rin.

 

38-strong.35 filipinos,2 japanese,an indonesian and support crews were on hand for this test run.as a friend would say, she could not comprehend what the 52k was all about. there was only one way to find out-run and finish it.at least,i will try.

at exactly 7:22 am,we were off.as in most starts of lsd’s,we started laughing,exchanging jokes and stories.i had no reason to rejoice actually.this was but a test and it was but a mere fraction of the ultra come 05 april.this was just a test and that is all there is to it.no breast-beating here.we all came for a dress rehearsal.

1st mobile pitstop.

with george,the talking machine and his buddies.

typical support "menu"-skyflakes,ice-cold sponges,water,propel,gatorade,cloud 9 choco,boiled camote,eggs and banana.

jay and charlie infront of the hermosa church.just one of many beautiful churches along the route.

it was bittersweet to see kilometer posts along the route.bitter, because we knew how far more we had to go.sweet,because however slow,we were chewing the kilometers away.

sun was up and starting to burn.

jay approaching the junction of the roman highway and old provincial road.this highway is what the commuters regularly take.

this marks the intersection of the roman highway and the old provincial road.

wider roads meant more and faster vehicles and traffic.

kilometer post 68.the death march monument at the junction leading to dinalupihan and subic.

finally,the welcome arch to pampanga.the heat from the asphalt road was starting to hurt.

this is how my running shadow looked like at exactly 12 high noon.with the sun brightly up and kilometers to go,i estimated finish line to be 2-3 hours away(based on my pre-planned 7-7:30 pace) at this point somewhere in the vicinity of lubao,pampanga.

guagua town plaza.

 

our number 1 cheer leader,coach espejo welcoming me at the pre-designated stop at the original razon's halo-halo in guagua.on the way here,i counted 18 warm bodies that i overtook.i purposedly started at the back of the pack during the start to see where i stood among the group in the end.

sir jovie and the fast ones.

thanks for the cold treat sir jovie!

after the halo-halo treat courtesy of sir jovie, we headed for kilometer 102.we were 11 kilometers away and the sun was really bothering.as part of my plan,i stopped at all available mobile support stations to drenched myself with ice-cold sponge,grab a bite of camote,egg,saba and skyflakes and drank water,propel and gatorade even if i was neither thirsty nor hungry.fortunately,this plan worked and i would be using the same reloading style come 05 april.

betis church

it was 2:00 pm and hot and to make matters worst,a bushfire was going on and its flying embers kept entering my mouth as i took breaths.the heat added to the sun's heat.

my countdown to the finish begins....

i could feel the asphalted road getting soft under my feet as i ran.it is only february.how hotter will it get come april? i dread the thought.blue skies,nice views,good company,minimal pollution,friendly people and windy.perfect day to run except it was 2:00 pm!

finally,san fernando!

pampanga provincial capitol

kilometer post 102 after 7 hours and 3 minutes and 52.4 kilometers.i checked in 11th after isidro,the first one to reached the finish.

finally,kilometer post 102! the jubilation was short-lived for me.it saddened me to see this place virtually neglected.it is surrounded by a neighborhood and a rundown structure waiting to fall anytime and is submerged in murky floodwater.i hope to do my own share if only to give credit where it is due.our freedom today would not have been possible without the sacrifices made by our veterans-mabuhay kayo!

my pegasus and thorlo socks bore the brunt of the 52k run.this is how it looked after 7 hours and 3 minutes on the road.

as said,not even the best-laid plans...for all my pre-race plans, if forgot to put on sunblock on my legs and this is what i got after running for 7 hours.sunburned legs.i expected sore muscles and all,but not this one.so,what to do next time?

this REALLY sucks man.

and one by one, the other runners arrived at ground zero.

coach salazar who acted as the sweeper finally checking in.35 of 38 runners accounted for.the other 3 runners actually stated at the start that they were running 5k and 10k only.so ,for all those who intended to do 52k,all finished.a 100% finishing rate! 35 of 35.

the support ambulance and medical crew from the philippine army light armor division (palad) which patiently tailed the last runner from start to finish.mabuhay kayo and thank you.

tanaka-san's feet/legs got it too.

that's what boyfriends are for ,right dess? good work kevin.be sure to be with us on the real run.

triumphant finishers all.

perfect finish line attendance for my gym buddies.way to go!

52k test run is history!

and so it came to be. at exactly 2:25pm ,i reached kilometer post 102 in san fernando,pampanga.52k in 7:03 hours.

the beauty of this run is that i was able to put to test my race plan such as sticking to my planned race pace of 7-7:30, support food and crew(thank you boys), my running gear and of course to remember next time that my legs need some loving and sunblock too.

congratulations sir jovie for coming up with this somewhat crazy yet punishing eye-opener of a test run.it was not a bad idea after all.

to all you guys and girl(odessa coral,our hardcore muse), you sure all did our veterans proud today with a brave run.but rejoice not much for this is just a test.the worst is yet to come.and for all those who missed this test run.i hope to see you all come 05 april for the real thing.it was fun and pain today.

of course, to the bald runner support  group headed by coach espejo,thank you and congratulations for a job well.it only shows that however meager our resources are,as long as we put our acts together,we can do it and we shall overcome.

once more, running prove to be a love/hate relationship.at the finish,i asked a few runners about how this run will influence their final decision to join the 102k.most i asked nodded to say that it was a  102k go for them.

as for me, i have 6 more weeks to train for this.i have had 21 weeks so far under my feet.but,much more needs to be certainly ran and done.

i will bring myself to the starting line in mariveles come 05 april.fully armed,locked and loaded and ready to fire  at will.

no pain, no gain.

nag-imasen.

hopeless romantics,here we go again.

valentine’s day is somewhat like running-for the unfortunate ones,you love and lose and you get hurt in the end.same with running,you run then ache at every run’s end.but still,better to run and ache than never to have ran at all.

it is the day of  the year when everyone sees red,thankfully not out anger but out of  love.

to all the boys, do not forget to send your roses and chocolates and text messages to the one you are madly,crazily and truly in love with.make sure you send them right or be prepared to run away faster than you have ever imagined.

and to all you girls and running babes who make;

1) our heads turn everytime we see you at turnarounds(never mind if we slow down and strain our necks),

2) traffic come to a stop,

3) our hearts beat way beyond our heart monitors can take,

4) our running pace  go real fast,

5) our hearts skip a beat or two,

6)  and most importantly for stepping aside during training and race days and understanding why running is like a mistress to us,

thank you for all your understanding,loving and running as well.your company is well appreciated.very well in fact.

from your running hardcores(we do some hardcore loving too aside from hardcore running on the side)…….happy valentine’s to all the ladies on the track ,on the roads and in the house!

you are our concerns.

never mind if we don’t get our pr’s on race day.

you complete us and that is all that matters.

the subsequent online invite of albert salazar aka run2dmoon for a midnight to sunrise run at the moa grounds was too good to pass up given the fact that bataan102 was starting at midnight more or less come april.it would be a good gauge i thought of how i would feel running at this unholy hour.

after summoning my fellow participants for bataan earlier in the week, we finally got ourselves at the blue wave assembly area at around 11:30pm, 07 february.after the usual chit-chats,we went down our business of stretching and getting prep up for a 6-hour run.

for this run,i had the pleasure of having the company of mr. tanaka,a japanese national,albert salazar(run organizer),kim o’connel  with her coach jo-ar and ben gaetos,an l.a.-based filipino runner and of course my usual sunday runabout cohorts led by sir jovie himself as my running buddies.in all,21 started and eventually 2 (joerge looney and george aka akong,the talking machine) more joined us along the way.

ben gaetos,i learned as we ran together in one segment,gave up running in 2000 only to rediscover the joys of it all when he joined his 1st ultramarathon.to date ,he has done 30 ultras and countless fulls.just recently,he nailed the 100 mile l.a. crest ultra in 30 hours!no wonder,after 6 hours of running,while we mortals were aching and huffing our way to the pitstop,ben was in his finest running form as if he hasn’t been on the road the past 6 hours.

the agreement was to run to luneta/quirino grandtsand first then back to blue wave for our first pitstop.after which we would do the moa loops till 6am.of course,after every hour,we would stop for our necessities and whatever.

12 midnight and we were off.people were looking incredulously  at the group wondering what the hell we were doing running at this unholy hour.of course,the roxas seaside wall was still full of promenaders and lovebirds and we were able to catch the tailend of the gimikans along the moa side of the the bay during our moa loop runs.there were the racing motorbikes and cars whose drivers were feeling ala-valentino rossi and michael schumacher in the wee hours of the morning.

the weather turned coldish around 4:00am and slowly,the moa loop was getting filled with runners and bikers.at least,we had company now and we, who were running since 12 midnigh,t started to look like normal running dudes just like anyone else on the road.

the moa midnight to sunrise “class picture”. 21 runners- strong.

off and running at ultra pace,knowing only too well that we had 6 hours to go.we could still manage to smile and chit-chat at this point.

that's the film center at the background.eerily silent and dark at midnight.

hotel sofitel

coconut palace

entering roxas boulevard.that's the central bank building at the background.

roxas boulevard

kilometer 0 at rizal monument

ccp area/mbc buliding

this was taken after almost 21k in our run and after 2 pitstops.this was around 3:00am.massage/stretching time courtesy of kevin

finally at exactly 6:00 am ,we call it a day while others are still tucked in bed!

only too happy to have this over with after 6 hours!

rico and dess checking in.all accounted for.

my gold's gym buddies-dess,myke,arman,enrico

time out at last.our moa midnight to sunrise run is history!

after 6 hours on the road and 43.34 kilometers, what answer could i possibly give?come to think of it,i am not even halfway to bataan102 here.

knowing only too well how demanding an ultra much less training for one can be,i couldn’t rejoice too much upon finishing this 6-hour run.this was but a prelude and portent of things to come.6 hours and 43 kilometers is but a fraction of the bataan102k, ay apo! but i have made a choice and there is no turning back.

sugod mga kapatid!

you are all invited.

for all of those who have been training for the march 8 pasig marathon only to be met by its announced postponement again, we , the sunday runabout group of hardcores are inviting you to our own version of a fun full on march 8,2009.

please find below our route and other scheduled runabouts.we guarantee it not to be shorter thatn 42.195k but it can be longer than that given the surprises other members spring in the middle of a run.this is not a race but a runabout just like any of our past 4 sunday group runs-fun and thrills.

takeoff @u.p. oblation 5:00am 08 march 2009-katipunan-marcos highway-riverbanks-c5-shell tiendesitas(pitstop)-bayani road-lawton-mckinley(turnaround @ british embassy)-mcdonald’s(pitstop)-gate 1-kalayaan-j.p. rizal-guadalupe-edsa-channel2( we plan to donate an amount for the benefit of the pasig river rehab program) mother ignacia-quezon boulevard-quezon memorial circle-u.p oblation(end)…..given the distance and pitstops,we expect to finish the runabout at around 11am for a total of 6 hours plus change on the road.bring your hydration belts and enough cash for the pitstops.changes in the route if any will be posted.if any,be prepared for surprises.

february 8,2009-midnight to sunrise run @ moa.meet up @ blue wave ,macapagal boulevard @ 11:30pm,07 feb and takeoff, midnight ,08 feb. this is albert salazar’s rehearsal run where you are invited and which we are joining.how long?we shall see after 6 hours.with pitstops of course.

february 22,2009- bataan102  52k test run.this is bald runner’s rehearsal run.kindly visit his site for details.

please feel free to join us.this is free and there is no need to register.these are not races-just free and easy sunday morning runs with friends at conversational pace.run or walk at your own pace.

you know what i mean  ;  )

Plan A: 

McDonald’s Katipunan-Marcos Highway-Masinag Market-McDonald’s Katipunan….scrapped.kinda short for a sunday lsd  according to mental calculations.

Plan B:   

 U.P. Oblation-Marcos Highway-Masinag-U.P. Oblation….agreed!….or so i thought…..

someone asked for the distance of marcos highway from the katipunan/aurora junction.having calculated it to be short for a sunday run.we had 2 plans and finally settled to start at u.p at 5:30 am ,01 february.

arriving at the oblation , i saw familiar faces-jinoe and queenie,vener and my coach,saturnino salazar making their runs around the campus.after the “class picture” and briefing on the route, we headed off for our sunday runabout,the 4th that we would be doing  and whereas there were just 4 of us then the 1st time we did a runabout,this time around there were 21 runners accounted for.along the way,we met randy and his friend who both joined us making it 23 at some point.

attendees for the 4th runabout infront of the oblation

there we go....

la vista

lester and margaret(who joined us for the 1st time) in front of miriam college

nico,sir jovie and john infront of ateneo

running through still-deserted katipunan

rico approaching katipunan flyover.from here we turned left towards marcos highway to measure it up to masinag market.

approaching sm marikina.at this point,the sun was starting to rise.perfect running weather.

sm marikina on ramp.wide/clean roads ala-u.s. malls.

entering antipolo city

finally,masinag market,the original agreed turnaround point.end of marcos highway.

we finally hit masinag market ,after running for 1:07 and 10.17 kilometers in total so far, which was our originally agreed turnaround point. so to answer the question,from u.p. oblation to katipunan flyover is 3.88 kilometers and from katipunan flyover to masinag market is 6.29 kilometers.

it was still early, around 7am,when we got to masinag and for some reason,rico mentioned about running all the way to valley golf. sir jovie, consciously or unconsciously, asked,” gaano ba kalayo mula dito sa masinag ang valley golf?”.siyempre pa, di puwedeng palagpasin ang mga ganyang tanong hanging unanswered and there is only one way to find out-run and find out.eto na ang unscheduled and fun part.and there was a surprise for all as went up valley golf.

crossing marcos onto sumulong highway towards valley golf

running along sumulong.that's jay and janie

charging the inclines.

rico told us about the incline towards valley golf . and what an uphill run of almost 2 kilometers of steep inclines.why,even the bicycle riders would stop in the middle part while we ran on.strong enough in fact to make the cyclists hear us say’ “talo pa natin mga siklista ah.sila ngapapahinga,tayo takbo pa rin.” modesty aside,but that was the truth.

valley golf at last.but the jubilation ended when rico told us that the peak was 500 meters away(it was 750 meters on my garmin).so off we went-uphill again!

in the company of cyclists,we were able to put up a good stand by running on what they were pedalling through.

reached the peak at this memorial park after 3.32 kilometers from masinag

after FINALLY agreeing that this was to be our turnaround,we ran back towards masinag for our pitstop!!!!!!

joerge looney and dess

i hope things won't get worst than what you can see of manila's skyline.well,come see before all gets covered by smog.should have been a nice view of manila from here.

janie at johnny's chicken-the fried of marikina

after a 6.64 kilometer side run and 2 hours running and about 16k in total so far,we were finally headed for our pitstop.

after a 20-minute pistop,we headed for u.p. for the last segment.happy and full again.

no sidewalks,just wide roads to run on in the antipolo side of marcos highway.

up our 1st overpass run

sta. lucia mall

view of marcos from the top

robinson's

amang rodriguez avenue corner marcos highway

lrt 2

santolan,pasig.this is where lrt 2 starts and connects all the way to lrt 1 in rizal avenue,manila

approaching katipunan flyover again.the last incline run.at this point,the sun was well up.

running under lrt 2 line

esteban abada corner katipunan

entering u.p area once again

entering u.p. via velasquez gate

yabang pinoy earlier held a fun run at u.p.and i am proud to be pinoy!

usual u.p.sunday crowd

we finally reached u.p. oblation after being out on the road for 3:47 and 28.57 kilometers.it was almost 10:00 am and the sun was shining brightly.then we remembered a fellow runner who was celebrating her birthday with a free taho run in heritage.we made up for our absence in her celebration so we did the next best thing-we had two rounds of taho and dedicated all our kilometers ran today to her.happy birthday bards! taho cheers!

armando fernando-your spanish telenovela hearthrob is a running addict.

jay c reading the sunday news

relaxing and stretching the "drunken master" way.the 2 wise men at ultra will tell you where it came from and how it helps after a run.people who saw us doing this were wondering what we were doing.looking for a lost item on the ground?it works.

2nd round of taho this time with the dude himself, zorro. zorro and more zorrots.

U.P. to Valley Golf and back is history.

it was another memorable run and a great way to start what appears to be a kilometer-filled february.as our bataan 102k ultramarathon nears,there is no other way to train for it but pile up the miles anywhere we can get it.

to summarize,u.p to katipunan flyover is 3.88k. katipunan to masinag via marcos highway  is 6.29k. masinag to valley golf/memorial park is 3.32k then masinag to u.p is 11.75k (that includes a round at the academic oval as cool down).

thank you to all those who answered the question asked of us today.that goes to the first-timers and the concerned hard cores for waking up early enough to join the take-off. and to jerry(high altitude)who came all the way from silang,cavite and to john paul narcise who is flying back to l.a. tonight after a visit here and of course to you all running dudes,please join us next time in our runventure.

take a bow guys,you did well today.remember,this preparation is for all the marbles come april 4, 2009.

see you in next week’s moa midnight run!