Not my target. I just want to finish 5K strong and happy. But if you wanna run in 2 hours or less, here are some info that you will find useful.
1. RACE ROUTES. Familiarize yourself with the route. If you are running the relay, take note of the transition area. Maybe your partner can wave a flag or pompoms so you can easily spot each other.
RELAY
INDIVIDUAL
2. VOLUNTEER PACERS. Click here and visit Kulitrunner’s blog for the complete list of volunteer pacers.
3. 2 hours. Did you finish in 2:01 in your last race? Oh that elusive 2 hours! For the Rexona Run 2012, you might want to try running with a pacer or a pace group.
If you are running the individual category, this is the guy you need to pace with. Meet Rod Sollesta. One fast dude who will try and bring you across the finish line in 2hours. To check him out, you may visit his blog, RUNdomSHOTS.
Getting back into running is hard for me. It’s hard to find time. Lotsa glittery and shiny stuff distract me. Work load is heavier than it was before. The list goes on and on. Blahblah and more blah. All rubbish. All really lame excuses. Bottom line is I’m just borderline lazy. :D
But with a race looming ahead, I needed to buckle down and log the required kms.
My goal for the next three months is to reclaim a race ready body and mind. But just like old times, long runs are always a pain. So I’m going to employ an old strategy that worked for me in the past. I will join races so that I will have company and I can share the pain and glory with others.
For my first long run, I will be joining the Goldilock’s Fun Run on May 15 at BGC. Registration opened last April 8 and will only be open until 1 May 2011. We have experienced sold out RunRio races … so spare yourself the heart ache and register now before the mamons … err race bibs run out.
You may register at RUNNER Store, ROX, Toby’s SM Mall of Asia, Planet Sports Glorietta, Planet Sports Trinoma, Athlete’s Foot Alabang Town Center, Athlete’s Foot Robinson’s Galleria, and Goldilocks Store Shaw Blvd.
Oh and check the pix of the the New Balance Singlet here. Yup, you get nice yellow and blue New Balance singlet. Nice!
Also, this is the first race for the Runrio Series. If you complete the series then you get to join in the awards night to be held at the end of the year. Sweet!
And lastly, do you see, what I see?
Yup ladies, that’s Dingdong Dantes. If you are ready to do battle with Ms M *rawr* then train and get ready to run after him.
See you on May 15 at the race and let’s run and celebrate Goldilocks 45th Anniversary. They are promising a fiesta at the race grounds. As for me, I just hope they give us mamon at the finish line.
Do you think I liked the race? :0) And I got my race jumpshot pa. Thanks to Journeying James for the photo. “Like” JourneyingJames in Facebook and view more CIHM photos.
Warm-ups. Runners are encouraged to warm-up before a workout and specially before a race. I normally just jump up and down and jog in place to warm-up. I don’t like jogging around or doing strides. I love the first jolt I get when I zoom away from the starting line. Settling to my cruising pace after zooming out of the chute helps to calm me down.
At the CIHM, Dingdong said we should jog a bit to warm-up. Since I haven’t logged a single km for 2 weeks, I thought it would help to build up my confidence before the race. We ended up jogging towards a chapel. I popped in and said a little prayer for all the runners. “Please keep all the runners safe during the race,” I prayed. Then, we jogged back to the starting line. As we crossed the starting line, I simulated how I will cross the finish line. I ran with wide open strides, arms pumping up and down and the next thing I knew I was falling.
Cr*p!
My left ankle turned and I fell and landed on my right knee.
Again!
I tripped over one of the cat’s eye on the road. Good news was that my tights didn’t get ripped this time. My right knee was not so lucky. The spot that got scraped at TNF Baguio then that got scraped again last June was badly grazed again.
Specificity again! I should have stopped at “Please keep all the runners safe…”
At the starting line. Running friends have indeed converged on the island for this race. I think Edward and Raymund’s dream of making this a running party is going to happen.
Race to the Km10. I was certain about one thing when I joined the group at the starting chute. I have enough power in my legs to finish a 5K in 32ish minutes. That would leave me with 1:13 to complete the next 5K to meet the cut-off. As long as I don’t see 10K Terminator Bob, I’d be fine.
I did not know the exact route but I have an idea of how tough it will be. I’ve seen the island and seen parts of the route. We even found one of the km markers when we were exploring the day before. I knew how it was going to end but not how it will start.
When the runners were released, we climbed the hill to the Malinta tunnel. That was a good taste of the inclines and hills we will climb for the next 21km.
The grassy part of the race was also tricky for me. The grass was about 2inches and I was careful not to trip. My ankle stopped throbbing but I was running carefully. One more slip and spill might spell the end of this race for me.
Thanks to Jan for the pic. He caught me walking so sinulit na with a bit of rest. Buking!
Conscious of the difficult route, I opted to walk all the uphills and race down the downhills. My strategy worked. I was able to cross the 10km mark in 1:15. I was so thrilled!
My favorite part of the route was the downhill trail on the side of one of the hills. I found this video of Bearwin in YouTube. And yup, he’s the artista na nagmamagic din. Fast runner na sya. The view here was fantastic. Definitely my favorite part of the route.
As I was approaching the 10km mark, which was halfway a steep hill. There was a group trying to encourage one of their friends to rush to the cut-off mark. They were shouting, “1:44 na, 1min to cut off …Push! Push! Push!” Tsk tsk tsk … considering that was just the start of 1km steady climb. If they were my friends, I would have bonked them silly.
The last 11km. I reached the 10Km mark before the cut-off! Woohoo! The rest was going to be so easy. And it was. Running 11Km was still not a joke but without the burden of being eliminated I just enjoyed my morning run. Plenty of water. Superb route. Friendly faces. We were all alternately groaning and laughing about the really hard route.
I continued with my strategy of walking the uphills and rushing the downhills. This race is really the best way to explore corregidor. We saw all the ruins, the tourist spots and all the battery. I was playing a game with myself every time I went through a battery. I pretended that instead of big mean guns, they were actually energizer batteries and I get recharged every time I pass one.
The race marshals and aid station crew were all very encouraging. It was not easy but they cheered for all the runners. Instead of the catatonic marshals we often encounter here in Manila, these guys were very enthusiastic and energetic. Maraming salamat, you guys helped a lot.
Dreaded Km19-20. I turned right into a corner and found myself at the dock where we started. Straight ahead was a familiar road. Oh dear Lord! I knew this road. I crawled up this road during the test run. The last 3km was going to be painful! To climb the hill I walked, zigzagged, walked backwards, jogged a bit and smiled a lot. What can I do? I need to get to the top to cross the finish line.
It was downhill all the way to the finish line. On my way down, I saw Running Atom, and he said that we had 1.1km to go. I ran all the way down. Ohwee! I was really going to pull off the stupidest stunt I’ve ever attempted. I can actually finish the most difficult half marathon of 2010 without training.
Km20 - still smiling. still running. Thanks Running Atom for the photo.
Triumphant. As I sprinted towards the finish line, I realised that my legs may have turned to flab but my runner’s heart continue to beat strong. A swollen ankle, grazed right knee or the craziest hill cannot keep me away from the finish line.
I finished in 3:14:58.
The medal was amazing. The long-stemmed rose was an unexpected treat. I was so proud of what I have accomplished. I walked around wearing my medal even during the lunch. Finishing this race meant so much to me.
Never again. This is the probably most irresponsible thing I have ever done as a runner. I dared to toe the line in the toughest half marathon I’ve ever joined without proper training. Luckily, the running gods smiled (and even laughed) at me brightly that Sunday morning.
Salamat. To Raymund, Edward and Vanessa of Phenomenon Sports and Events Management, thank you for bringing this race to us. You guys do live up to your name.
The race was a phenomenon.
I’m so excited to run CIHM 2011!
Conscious of the difficult route, I opted to walk all the uphills and race down the downhills. My strategy worked. I was able to cross the 10km mark in 1:15. I was so thrilled!
As I was approaching the 10km mark, which was halfway a steep hill. There was a group attempting to one of their friends to rush to the cut-off mark. They were shouting 1:44 to cut off …Push! Push! Push! Tsk tsk tsk considering that was just the start of 1km steady climb. If they were my friends I would have bonked them silly.
I had a training plan for the Corregidor International Half Marathon but, to borrow a phrase from a fellow slacker, it fell victim to competing priorities. StupidMe should have decided not to race.
However, a 1h45min cut-off to the 10Km mark didn’t seem too hard. I was able to clock in a 32min 5K during the Grand Fiesta Run. If I could do the same, I’d have over an hour to complete the remaining 5km. Plus I’m already registered and have booked and paid for my accommodation. StupidMe decided to run the race.
on the ferry to the the rock with dingdong and aj
I traveled to Corregidor with Dingdong and MeshSub aka AJ. Fellow T2 Dingdong and I had the same average km per week. Zilch. Nil. None. Big fat zero.
After arriving at the island, we had a quick lunch. Very quick. Kasi look …
This was our Php200 lunch c/o Sun Cruises.
Saturday afternoon was spent exploring parts of the island on foot and having numerous photo ops.We couldn’t get to the interesting spots because we were late booking the tour. We didn’t mind, we knew that we will see all the sights during the race. We did stumble upon the Km20 marker. This gave us a hint of the wonderful (Read: Pain and torture) surprise we will experience before crossing the finish line.
Oh the opening night! I don’t have pictures! But you should have been there. It was fun! Oh what a sight! Edward came down from the hill on the zipline carrying a torch. Jinoe, Tuesday, Vanessa and I together with a few runners also held torches. We lit our torches from Edward’s torch and we all ran and lit a big big bonfire. When I’m old and gray, I can proudly say that I was part of the first ever opening ceremony of the Corregidor International Half Marathon.
When I saw Edward last week at Ultra, I reminded him about the training program they promised after the CIHM launch.
Now, here it is. The suggested program to prepare for the CIHM. This is of course not TheMagicFormula but a program that can help with the battle ahead.
Have fun!
Registration will be open again this weekend at RUNNR (Saturday and Sunday, 2pm to 9pm) and SecondWind (Saturday only)
After you register, don’t forget to contact Lhen of Sun Cruises at 5275555 loc 4511 0r 4512 to book your ferry schedule.
***
Meso-cycle Training Program for Half-Marathon (21k)
* Mesocycle refers to the type of training/phases being performed. It can be as little as 6 weeks or up to 12 weeks/3 months.
Starting at point A run at 80% effort for 1min. Have 45sec SR then return to point A for 30 sec at 80% effort. Repeat 2 more times. (A-B-A Format)
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 40min
Friday – Rest or X-Train
Saturday – 40min
Sunday – 1hr
Run
Remark
Week 2
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 15 x 30 on 30 off JR
Alternate between running at 80% effort for 30 sec and jogging for 30 sec.
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 40min
Friday – 15 Hill Reps
Hill reps to take around 30sec. Concentrate on pushing off the balls of your feet, getting a high knee lift, relaxed shoulders and keeping your fists around hip height. The hill does not have to be all that steep. You still need to be able to run relatively quick. Jog back down for the recovery.
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – 1hr 15min
Week 3
Run
Remark
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 8 x 1min, 45sec SR
Starting at point A run at 80% effort for 1min. Have 45sec SR then return to point A at 80% effort. Repeat 3 more times.
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 50min
Friday – 2 x 5min, 1 x 10min
Starting at point A run @ 80% effort for 5min, have 30sec SR, then run @ 80% effort for 5min. Have 1min SR then return to point A @ 80% effort without a break. Your aim is to pass point A before you complete your 10min effort.
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – 1hr 30min
Week 4
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 8 x 500m, 1min SR
Your aim is to run all efforts at a similar pace. 85%
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 50min
Friday – 5 x 1k, 1.50 SR
Your aim is to run all efforts at a similar pace. 80%
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – 1hr 30min
Week 5
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 1hr
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 1hr
Friday – 2 x 5mins, 8 x 30sec Hills
2 X 5min efforts (2 _ min out and 2 _ min back) with 1min SR followed by 8 x 30 sec hills JR. The hill does not have to be all that steep. You still need to be able to run relatively quick. Jog back down for the recovery.
Saturday – Rest
Sunday – 1hr 45min
Week 6
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 6 x 2min, 30sec JR
Alternate between running at 80% effort for 2min and jogging for 30 sec.
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 1hr
Friday – 2 x 5mins, 8 x 30sec Hills
2 X 5min efforts (2 _ min out and 2 _ min back) with 1min SR followed by 8 x 30 sec hills JR. The hill does not have to be all that steep. You still need to be able to run relatively quick. Jog back down for the recovery.
Saturday – Rest
Sunday -1hr 45min
Week 7
Monday – Rest
Tuesday – 8 x 1min, 45sec SR
Starting at point A run at 80% effort for 1min. Have 45 sec SR then return to point A at 80% effort. Repeat 3 more times.
Wednesday – Rest or X-Train
Thursday – 1hr
Friday – 2 x 5mins, 8 x 30sec Hills
2 X 5min efforts (2 _ min out and 2 _ min back) with 1min SR followed by 8 x 30 sec hills JR. The hill does not have to be all that steep. You still need to be able to run relatively quick. Jog back down for the recovery.
It is. At Php2500, it is one of the most expensive race. (Wait, if you compute pala by km, 5K category of Adidas KOTR at Php170 per km is still more expensive. CIHM is only Php119.05)
CIHM reg will cost as much as a pair of Mizunos on sale at Megamall (if you are lucky), 2 bottles of Hammer anti fatigue, 6 days wage (NCR minimum wage), dinner for 10 (set menu) at Max’s, 25 iced tall non-fat latte from Starbucks, 357 Lucky Me pancit canton from my favorite sari-sari store and a whooping 2500 pieces of chocnut. Makes you think twice before registering, ano? It is not only expensive. The race will have a very tough course.
Pero …
TravelAgentGirl said that a day trip to Corregidor with buffet lunch is Php2149. Plus you get pa lotsa giveaways. I’m actually interested in the backpack. If it is like the bag that organiserEdward got from Maratona di Roma, then it will be uber nice.
If you think about it, you are just paying for a day trip to Corregidor and getting to race for a minimal fee. Well, you don’t have the luxury of seeing the island on the tramvia. Wait, you do have a chance to ride the tramvia. If you don’t meet the 10Km curfew of 1:45, tramvia will sweep you away, off to a sumptuous buffet clutching your 10K achievement medal while cursing the Island and vowing to take your revenge the following year.
Eniweis, come December 19, there will be a battle in Corregidor. Bards vs The Rock.
See registration details below.
Registration Venue and Period:
All weekends (Saturday and Sunday only) of October and November, subject to slot availability
RUNNR ( Boni High Street ) Saturday and Sunday, 2pm to 9pm
Second Wind (Maginhawa) Saturday only, 1pm to 6pm
Second Wind (Ortigas Home Depo) Saturday only, 1pm to 6pm
On-line registration facility (for participants residing abroad and outside Metro Manila) will be up on October 9, 2010
Registration fee:P2,500.00 – until October (early registration)/P3,000.00 – until November (late registration)
Race Registration inclusions:
I like!
Roundtrip ferry to and from Corregidor
Full lunch buffet on race day
Race bib w/ RFID timing chip
Race shirt (see attachment)
Race backpack (see attachment)
Finisher’s Medallion (or a 10k Achiever Medal) (see attachment)
Runners’ Briefing (Dec 4 and 11) at ROX
Carbo-loading Bonfire Party (Dec 18, Saturday night) (see attachment) Victory Party with two top performing bands (Dec 19, Sunday night) (see attachment) Personalized Finishers’ Certificate (complete with name and finish time)
Race Registration Procedures:
1) After completing registration for the race (manual or online), beginning the following Monday, contact Sun Cruises at 8346857/8346858 /5275555 loc 4511 0r 4512.
2) Indicate the desired trip schedule:
a) Overnight – departure on Dec 18 @ 8:30am (return trip to Manila is on Dec 19 via 2:30pm trip from Corregidor*)
b) Day trip – departure on Dec 19 @ 5:30am (return trip to Manila is Dec 19 via 5:30pm trip from Corregidor*)
c) Participants with non-competing companions (non-competing companions will have to pay Php2,000.00/person; no race pack will be provided to them) will have to take the Dec 18, 11:30am trip to Corregidor (return trip to Manila is on Dec 20, Monday, via 10:00am trip from Corregidor.
* for “a)” and “b)” indicate if attending the Solidarity & Victory Party on the night of December 19 to amend departure schedule to Monday, Dec 20 via 10:00am trip from Corregidor.
3) If applicable, make accommodations reservation with Sun Cruises (only registered participants will be given reservations). Pay the appropriate accommodations booking amount through the payment mode advised by Sun Cruises.
4) On Dec 4 or 11 (as advised through email and text by the organizers) at ROX, attend the Runners’ Briefing, pick-up the race pack, and claim the Boarding Pass and/or Accommodations Booking ticket from Sun Cruises. Ensure to bring the Acknowledgement Receipt issued during registration. No Acknowledgement Receipt, No Race Pack. Race Registration Requirements:
1) Properly filled out registration form (may be downloaded by Friday / available at the registration site)
2) Any valid ID (driver’s licence, SSS ID, voter’s ID, postal ID, passport, etc.) indicating date of birth
3) Proof of participation in a 10k race (during the last 2 months prior to registration) or 21k race (during the last 3 months prior to registration), or a full marathon (during the last 6 months prior to registration) or a doctor’s certification of fitness to participate in an athletic event. For proof of race participation, a printout of the particular race result is preferable. In lieu of that, race bib will be accepted but will be subject to verification through the race results available on-line.
4) Applicable registration fee.
Due to all the brouhaha of this half marathon, I was signed up and ready to race before I realized that it had a hot pink political color. My Aha! moment came when I was typing the name of the race in one of my entries here. Slow duh!
After bouncing back a few emails and comments in our respective blogs, DATC, MISh, runMD and I were ready to run the half marathon. We also ended up with a bike support when PrometheusCometh volunteered to help us out. The race began to show promise.
Conscious of the political agenda of this race and the fully aware of the jeepney filled route, I was still excited to run last Sunday. I have logged enough mileage to run a half marathon so I was confident I could finish this race as long as I stick to my long run pace. This is not a key race so I don’t have the usual pressure of meeting a personal time goal and having something to show for all the train runs I put in. This was just a long run.
Mesh and I met up with the group at the parking area. We watched PC on the bike and my first thought was… Oh geez, there goes our bike support! hehe Luckily, he quickly made peace with DATC’s bike.
At 5:45 we headed towards the starting line. We met up with Grethel, Erskine, Gabby and Des who registered the 5K and 10K races. These 4 have joined us in a few races and we are working on bugging them to be regular runners too.
Since there were very few runners, we only had one gun time and it was scheduled at 6am. A few minutes before 6am, the sun was already starting to rise, some runners were getting impatient and wanted to start the race already. The host patiently explained that we were waiting for BF and MCF but when the murmurs grew a bit louder he cheekily invited those who wanted to run to start running. A bit cheeky but I figured, we all knew the purpose of this run, it cannot start without the Couple. To their credit, they arrived at 6am and the speeches lasted less than 10mins. We were running at 6:09:45.
I read earlier blogs about the Pasig Marathon so I was ready for the narrow road before we hit the main road. I was with Dindo, Des and Gabby up to somewhere in Km2, then I had to drop pace to fix my shoelaces again. I eventually settled on 6:30-7:00min/km pace. The hill climb to Katipunan was tiring so I decided to try the chi running technique of running sideways. I knew I looked funny but seriously, it works!
30 or so minutes into the run I saw the little boy who ran 10K at Milo. He’s been to the turnaround and was on his way back. He was such a joy to watch but what was more amusing was the reaction of the other 10K runners he passed. I swear, two guys in front of me looked at the boy, then they looked at each other and started sprinting.
At Balara, I started pacing with Alex from Navotas. He was running his first half marathon and was taking it easy. Somewhere towards Tandang Sora, a crazy garbage truck driver decided it was a fun thing to release his airbreaks. And yes I shrieked and leaped towards the sidewalk.
Commonwealth was a pleasant surprise. It was not too busy and we didn’t have to fight with the jeepneys. We were joined by another Alex – fellow FuegoMizuno 10K alum – and his friend Allan. We had a pleasant chat and they told me how they helped out a mother whose kid missed the 5K turnaround. Ran most of Commonwealth and Batasan with this group. I developed a sidestich and had to drop pace at the foot of the downhill.
Batasan and Commonwealth turned out to be my favorite part of the route. This is where we passed a group of kids who heartily cheered for us and gave us high5s. This is something new and I enjoyed it. You don’t experience this when you race at TheFort.
JP Rizal was painful for me. It was hot. It was noisy. I really appreciated PC popping up every now and then and asking if I was okay. I think I managed to answer “Kaya pa!” most of the time. He gave me an orange energy drink and really really cold water which helped revive me a bit. Too bad he wasn’t there and I wasn’t pacing with anyone when one of the pedestrians tried to harrass me. I think it was somewhere around Km14 or Km15, I was maintaining pace but I knew that exhaustion was written all over my face. I saw 4 men about 5feet away and they were walking towards me. The one nearest my right side was swinging his arm at an awkward angle. It was very far from his body and at an angle that would hit me when he reaches my side. Luckily, I had the presence of mind and flicked his arm before he touched me. I then turned around pointed my finger at him and gave him my fiercest look and ran away really fast. Hay!
I really faded away in JP Rizal and to motivate myself I decided to do walking breaks everytime I saw a pedestrian lane. Winner! Marikina had so many pedestrian lanes. Yey!
DATC and runMD’s Garmin’s measured the distance at 19.6. Im only logging in 19kms for this race because I made the wrong turn towards the finish line. I just followed the two runners in front of me when they turned right at Zapatero St. Mesh told me later that the turnoff to the finish line was on the next street. Opps…sorry.
Overall, I enjoyed this race. My average pace was 7:05min/km which is an improvement from my Subic Half Marathon performance. This is the only race I ran without repeatedly asking myself, “Why am I doing this again?” My reason for running this race is very clear in my head. I knew I had to finish and finish this race strong to prove a point.
Btw, they will hold another race in Baguio. They said the winner will win a free trip to Japan and entry to the Tokyo Marathon. I would love to run and join a race in Baguio but I think I will be giving their Baguio leg a pass. Why? Same reason this entry has a generic title. I like pink but I don’t like giving it a political hue. I like running but I don’t think I am willing to run for anyone this early.
If you are doing the Marikina Half on Sunday … here’s a quick sneak preview.
The course is relatively flat. The only uphill is the part from Marikina to Katipunan. This is a bit challenging because this is going to be in the first 3kms or so. After reaching Katipunan, everything should be relatively
easy. There is also a very long downhill stretch between Batasan and JP Rizal. Great timing because this will give us a chance to rest our legs a bit before we sprint or crawl to the last kms before the finish line.
We will have very little shade so expect to burn baby burn. Please feel free to do a virtual 1-minute rain dance with me on Saturday at 8:08pm.
When we cross bridge the along Batasan, glance to your right and enjoy a great view of the mountains … I think its Antipolo.
Be prepared for the jeepneys especially along Commonwealth. Since this is a Bayani event, I’m hoping that MMDA will provide assistance to the race marshals. And no need to freak out when running with the jeepneys kasi … Basta jeepney driver, Sweet Lover di ba.
I might not have planned to join this race but I do plan to enjoy this new and challenging route.
It is. At Php2500, it is one of the most expensive race. (Wait, if you compute pala by km, 5K category of Adidas KOTR at Php170 per km is still more expensive. CIHM is only Php119.05) 
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