Happy crewing!

Racing in Manila is really predictable. The distance will likely not be accurate. At a Full marathon, if you are running at an average pace of 6:30-7:30minutes per km, you will probably see water stations but without water. Runner’s safety is 50/50.

I’m sorry to sound very negative today but after seeing a sea of dehydrated runners along SCTEX last Saturday, I’m beyond angry. *lumalaki na lang ang butas ng ilong ko*

I’m just conditioning myself to accept that the dream Full Marathon will remain to be a dream here in the Philippines.

Earlier on, I have learned the expect the worst at races. I always carry my own hydration and a lot of 20s to buy water and whatever I need along the way. During key races, we have also learned to provide support to each other.

Here are some of the things I learned while crewing in the last 2 races.

• Meet with your runners to discuss and set km checkpoints, pace, requirement per checkpoint, all logistics and admin stuff etc.
• Know the route backwards and forwards and plan how you will get to the km checkpoints. Vehicle or bike support is great but you can also commute to km checkpoints. Tiring but doable.
• Anticipate your runner’s needs and arrival time at km checkpoints
• For the truly OC, label or color code runners hydration and assign separate bags with their goodies
• Hand only opened bottles. The last thing they need is to struggle with opening the bottle.
• Gauge your runner’s conditions and adjust your plan accordingly (might entail adding km checkpoints or assigning a companion to your runner)
• Bring enough supplies for your runners but have a buffer so you don’t run out like the race organisers. Lotsa water, lotsa ice!
• Share. Share. Share your resources (ensure first that you have enough for your team) but as much as possible share your resources especially water. You’re runners are not the only ones getting dehydrated.
• Be courteous and polite to the police and marshals.
• Obey traffic rules. If you are locked up in jail, you cannot support your team. This includes wearing seatbelt at all times, not talking on the celfone while driving and crossing highways like SCTEX. If caught doing these, imagine you are picachu. Stare at the police … big wide eyed stare, smile a little, pretend it was an honest mistake, apologise profusely and slowly move forward and away from the coppers.  Promise it works … every time!
• Cheer! Cheer for everybody. They all need it. Or if they get irritated they will just run faster to get away from you. A truly win-win scenario.
• Bring food (for the support team), it’s always a long wait.
• If you run, wear your running gear. Sometimes, your runner might prefer rolling breaks and this mean you might have to run with them to give their stash. It’s is hard to run at 6mpk pace on flipflops. Also, if you are wearing your running gear, you can insert some speed repeats while waiting for your runners.
• Frozen gatorades in ice candy plastic is the best thing ever! (Thanks Ting and Boo for introducing this to us!) Prepare lots and lots of this one.
• Take pictures
• Offer your help when you can to other runners
• Consider learning first aid
• Give your runners positive reinforcements. Even if they look like crap, you have to focus on the positive to keep them going.
• If opting for vehicle support, use a car/van that is not a smoke belcher!
• Have a good meal with the team at the end of the race.
• Wear something colorful and distinct so that your runners can spot you easily. And you stand out in the background  ….

 

Happy crewing around!

To my crewmates – Kathy, Vicky, Dingdong, Alvin and Jackson – sa uulitin! To our ever reliable main crew – Gingging, Angel, Torio, Robert and Lito – maraming salamat ulit.