qcim42:tko 250 is 84 kilometers old and 166 to go and i got chicked twice!

pacer duty and 2 “chickeds” in a span of 5 hours!

at the starting line were team hardcore’s mari,lester,michelle,arman,ronnie,enrico,jamir,odessa,isko,george,nico plus romy and armand ready to do the qcim42 not so much for a pr but to guide any interested runner in pursuit of a finish time.a host of other runners like jomar paras,tko donor rafael castaneda(from anchorage,alaska) and mar of takbo.ph led other pace groups.

we were issued balloons indicating the distance and target time.together with michelle and lester,i went doing my 4:30 minute chores with lester dutifully telling us our current pace time and again.

after the tiresome milo42 last sunday,i had reservations but i had my commitment to tko 250 and more to the qcim organizers and runners of course.

quezon city circle was totally bereft of running vehicles.surreal but nice.it was left to be solely run on by runners even for just a few hours.so was the u.p. academic oval where i did the 1st 3 kilometers.

slowly but surely,lester and i stuck to our 6:24 minute per kilometer pace.our other group mate,michelle,went ahead her happy way with other runners that not even a reminder that she was going fast at the batasan and la mesa area would not let her slow down a bit.

commonwealth,like the circle,was all ours for the taking.the other side was another story altogether for the rest of the race though.it was still dark during the 1st 10 kilometers but traffic was building up.i could almost feel  the heat building up from the commuters.runners were met by school marching bands,traffic marshals and policemen ,various qc departments and barangays who provided live band music, water supplies and encouraging words.my, the crowds clapping and cheering so early were encouraging at the least.

there was no problem doing the directions as this aspect was properly managed by the race marshals.it was a blast running commonwealth where even on a good day,traffic would still linger somewhere the stretch.but qcim sunday was different.and so was the air that was around the litex area.it smelled of you know what.but no choice,this was a race that had to be ran.

i did not bother reckon-running the route and instead relied on the vault files of my memory about the route.anyway,save for the la mesa segment,i was pretty much familiar with the route having done it on wheels in the past.

the roads were concrete for much of the way and that proved to be very painful on my knees.the la mesa area was both my savior and the start of my downfall.before the race,we were warned not to bring any personal effect such as water bottles,water belts,cellphones, caps and sunglasses for security measures.so was support cars and people.the dam premises was swarming with swat personnel at almost every 100 meters interval in fact.

i enjoyed the views and fresh air of la mesa.i dreaded the uphill but was thankful it was not as difficult as heralded.short and up but sweet.here,the road was asphalted and kind to my knees.i even had the chance to run on grass and meet familiar faces during the turnaround.do not ask me about the kenyan dudes.i am pretty sure they were well ahead.but while i had a respite from the concrete roads, it was at la mesa where i started to feel sleepy.so sleepy i wanted to  close my eyes and run if i only could.of all the things that can happen in a run, i felt sleepy for the love of god!and tired.it started to creep in my legs but i had a mission and plodded on to the best of my abilities.

after what seemed an eternity in unfamiliar territory,i was back on the main road and concrete jungle.clueless at first but upon seeing a  familiar landmark ahead that was sm fairview,i had an idea where i was.lester was still with me a little ahead.

support allowed again, i was happy to see lester’s inspiration,margaret who handed us our much-needed drinks and munches.margaret did her bit every 3 kilometers of the way save for the la mesa segment.

i do not know what the road was called but it brought me back to commonwealth where at this point,i let lester ahead.i was feeling ever so sleepy.the kilometer markers were passing me by and it was such a burden to know how many more were left to carry on the task of lifting the legs just to reach the finish line.vener’s christy overtook me here.my first “chicked” encounter for the day.and she was doing her 1st full.i had no doubt that she would make it.vener is such a good mentor.

if going through the 1st half was almost trouble-free,going back was another story.

tales of water-less stations,cars sharing the same side of the road with runners and now-tired marshals  and silent bands floated.i understood their predicament though.i had to share commonwealth with a now unwieldy and testy band of motorists who were honking and cursing left and right.i stepped on the sidewalk for about 300 meters but gladly went back to the middle of commonwealth after.it was my luck that somehow,i was able to get water from stations but i saw for myself that they were running out of supplies and there were other runners behind me.i guess that ’s when shit happened.

as in the case of most mere mortal runners,doing the last 5-7 kilometers was a chore for me.it seemed endless.the sight of the qc monument looming up ahead was my savior.it gave me some push but there was north avenue and trinoma still to be tackled and back to the circle.my legs grew heavier every step i took.i belabored.

the last kilometer was heaven.i found my form back and my sleepiness finally went away.but i was way off my 4:30 pace task.the first thing i did before reaching the finish line was to apologized to the race manager,dave de leon for not being able to keep my end of the deal.i checked in 4:52:34, an hour’s cry form my milo best a sunday ago and 22 minutes late from my task.but at least, pace mates michelle and lester did their bit.and so did the rest of the team.they all made it back with time to spare.

so that is how the 2nd leg of tko 250 went,the 2nd consecutive 42 the team did in 2 week’s time.

this coming weekend is going to be a big challenge for the team.with barely enough time to rest in between races, the team goes to subic to do the sundown sim42 then head back to manila immediately after to do adidas21.i heard there was chaos at the claiming yesterday but do not get me started.

before i forget,congratulations to the 1st timers who did their maiden 42s.ther is of course, christy roldan, jaymie pizarro(the bullrunner),ting joson,doc chester(from laoag.i had the pleasure of meeting him when he introduced himself in the last 5 kilometers.he was still full of legs i tell you) and my dear training partner,lester chuayap-you finally nailed it my man.and to bards for doing her 1st sub-5 full.boy, are you ready for nuyok!3 minutes faster and you would have chicked me too.

by the way,it was team hc’s cassie yang doing another unplanned 42(just like her milo42 debut last week)who chicked me a second time a mere 2 kilometers to the finish.

sleepy,wasted,dogtired and chicked twice.what did i do or not do to deserve this?

all i want now is to get a restful sleep.sunday night was not enough.

but tko must go on.

see you at the starting line.

team hardcore and the party balloons

vener and christy roldan in her successful 42 debut,congratulations!

lester's beloved, margaret.she was our lifeline for all of 42 kilometers.thank you!

corregidor aquathlon women's champ and team hc's michelle estuar

early on along commonwealth

commonwealth was ours for the running at the early stages

after coming out of la mesa, sm fairview looms ahead

on the way back,dingdong(runmd) does a walk break.

mari with his 4:15 pace pack

finally, lester is a marathoner.

cassie yang in her 2nd consecutive 42k finish.

2 down.

lester and margaret make one happy couple.

duck walk by t2's harry and dingdong

nuyok-bound and t2 running's dingdong,harry and bards

the savior and the saved.

finally, jaymie(the bullrunner) nails her 1st 42 with gusto.and on a whim!way to go!with hubby,miguel.

fellow qcim pacer,jomar paras

tko 250 supporter and 2 consecutive 42s under his belt.junrox(tigerboy).

the circle is still ours.

pizza is good race food.

1st time 42k finisher ms. ting joson and 42k finisher ed francisco

ultramarathoner caloy nobleza and wife

the indefatigable neville manaois of the pinoy ultra runners and fellow qcim pacer bobby go.

with coach rio and dr./councilor dorothy delarmente

qcim pacers romy,ronnie and arman

the girls of team hc.cassie,ivy,michelle and odessa

team hc will see you in subic and adidas this coming weekend.