my friends were either in singapore or corregidor.i chose to do a home run.
a golf tournament was being held along the race route so that necessitated a rerouting for the 30k race.the golf people won’t take responsibility for any hits their (puny) balls would make on runners just in case.
unfortunately, i came to learn of this development at about 22 kilometers into the race.up until then i was seething inside my hardly-sweating self and cursing silently why the route was taking a new course.
you know,i studied the route at least 4 times ,the last time at 4am during race day itself. i set my plans for a 3:30 finish for this 30k run.
but perhaps the chill and excitement of running at home again overwhelmed me that i did not bother listening to che alberto(race director) who was blurting out the route changes during the pre-race rahrah.
it was cold so i wore an undershirt and my black ballet tights if only to keep me warm.it was a feeble attempt to look and feel hot.deep inside,i was freezin’ cold.
at 5:30am,we were flagged off infront of burnham lake and i confidently did my plan-warm up some more for a couple of kilometers then charged the 3k downhill past baguio general hospital and kennon road all the way to loakan bridge before going up and slowing down towards the airport.no problems.
great.all plans were working so far.
at the junction leading to epza and texas instruments,we were told to turn right towards pma instead of left towards the voice of america area.at first,i thought it would not take the runners past the runway end.but when we went up past fort del pilar and kias,i sensed something funny.here i was running on philex road in what appeared to be endless gentle inclines.it got so far past the usual milo turnaround that i thought we would go all the way to philex mines.after what i estimate to be around 4-5 kilometers from epza,we finally reached the turnaround.
the biggest consolation though was catching the sun rising beyond the mountains and the spectacular views which i saw for the very 1st time.with cold winds gently blowing (and drying my lips), this philex segment turned out to be a pleasant surprise.
what a relief! on my way back to loakan road, i finally was able to get a taste of the first water station infront of texas instruments.wow, talk about water stations,this appeared after almost 15k on the road.luckily,it was not hot and the need for water was not really there.i was hardly sweating after 15k or so.
back on loakan road, i was once again on the part of the original route.and so with all the ups and downs loakan road had to offer,i ran with gusto.no surprises here.i was running according to plan yet again.race the dips and slow down on the ups.breath what’s left of the pine tree scent.
turning right towards south drive meant goodbye to loakan. it was at the vicinity of teacher’s camp when a runner told me why the race was rerouted.damn puny balls!never thought tiny balls could hurt so bad.we did not do the country club segment and instead went straight to outlook drive behind mansion house and towards mines view park.here,for all my familiarity with baguio, i was greeted with a hell of climb for almost 400 meters.it was so steep i almost had to walk.i slowly jogged my way up until it was mines view finally.it was my 1st time in my 28 years in baguio to run this climb.
gibraltar ,pacdal circle then back to south drive,military cut-off road, kennon road,kisad and the new finish line,orchidarium.even the finish had to deviate as there were festivities at the original starting line.
at last,i was done for my home run.as soon as i gathered my wits, i remembered my friends who did singapore. how i wish they had the same chill baguio gave me knowing how the infamous singapore humidity would wreak havoc on sub 4 and pr dreams.
while i paid for and expected a correct 30k distance,i was pleasantly surprised to get 33.63 kilometers on the reading at the race end.i made sure so i asked another runner.confirmed.this was an extended race.
it felt kinda weird running a race with no familiar faces at the turnarounds.save for chito and roselle and some happy feet peeps, this was practically bereft of familiar faces from the lowlands.
these home runs are just my kind of races.
this was one extended run i will relished for good reasons-i was running in my home turf, i did a no frills,all thrills race(kudos to che and the cool city running dudes-when are you doing the all-kennon run????)),i had a good icy-cold bath afterwards without having to buy ice cubes, i was able to do 3:17:31-ok, i was aching for a sub 3 run- (surprisingly,i finished 2nd in the masters category) and most importantly,i was home for my son’s birthday.
as a father and a runner, i got the best of both worlds last sunday.
cheers!
cris sabal sizing hardcore competition.
tolentino sisters,ailene and ellen,did battle here too.
after almost 5 kilometers of ease, inclines start at the junction of kennon road and loakan bridge leading to the airport.
loakan road near the voice of america
south drive near teacher’s camp and old hyatt hotel
end of outlook drive near mansion house and towards the last killer climb
felt lucky to overtake one more dude after that lung-busting climb
south drive in front of hyatt ruins heading for the finish
ailene finishes first in the women's category
cris does 2nd in the men's category
and i finally get number 1- the number 1 bib that is.
FRONTRUNNER Philippines 
