Yahoo!!!! I survived the first race I’ve joined in more than a decade. Whew! Two weeks after my 34th birthday, I was finally able to run in a 5K race at the BGC (Bonifacio Global City). Armed with around 18 days of afternoon jogs spread across 1 1/2 months, I set out confident that I wouldn’t embarass myself too much in a race joined by at least a thousand weekend warriors. (It looked like a thousand to me!) The Ayala Land Running Club members helped a lot in encouraging me to join this thing (I was bodily dragged to the starting line…..Kidding. ).
It was absolutely worth waking up for. That Sunday had an usual morning drizzle, if you consider the soaring temperatures we’ve had the past few days. It’s a sign from God! He didn’t want anyone suffering from heat stroke that day. hehehe.
The feeling of excitement and the desire to prove that I was equal to the task, strengthened my resolve to start and finish this race debut. I said to myself, "Ok Karlo you know the race route, so you better know when to pace yourself and when you should to kick it up a notch. Don’t get caught up with competing with the other runners coz you can’t! At 30-40 pounds overweight, you don’t stand a freaking chance. Your real goal is to finish strong. Right? "
Well…, the race did not exactly turn out the way I pictured it. From the onset, it was clear that a certain amount of healthy competition would bubble up from my highly evolved ego. The sight of 50 year old men, 30 year old women and pre-pubescent freaks passing me by was just too much to bear. I revved it up beyond my usual jogging pace in a futile attempt to catch up after the first kilometer.
I had pretty much guessed right that by the second kilometer the jack rabbit starters would already be losing steam. The race route was set up that from the 2nd to the 3rd kilometer you would’t see the finish line. So I thought that this was where I should push myself the hardest. What i did not count on was the pace. It might have been slow for the others but it was well beyond what I was used to. I really had had no other gear left to push into. It was now all about keeping this pace to keep up.
There were temptations everywhere. People walking, others slowing down and the ever present water stations. "No! I can’t stop." Just then someone said my name. I looked to my shoulder and to my surprise it was Sharon Vital from Market Research. She was running along side Jemps Gallegos and their collective presence spurred me to run a little faster.
"Just a couple of kilometers left, stay with it!" The sight of Serendra(Our condo project in BGC) greeted us as we entered the final stages. Huffing and puffing, I found this the most difficult part of the race. I was passed by both my lady colleagues when we reached the 3rd to the last turn. The last kilometer was a test of wills. I had nothing left, but the finish line was so close. I saw another running colleague Loy Danila leisurely jogging and taking pictures of everyone. "Ok fellas, that’s 3 women I know who passed me in this race. I must have gagged on several slices of humble pie at this point."
"But hey, surely I’m not out of it. A couple hundred meters left to run and my tired, aching legs will find rest and relief." The last race turn brought out some hidden strength as I dashed to the finish line. I looked up at the race clock and my jaw dropped….clank! It timed me at 33 minutes 26 seconds! Oh God. My fastest times on the thread mill were between 38 to 40 minutes for 5K. No wonder I felt like I was dying. I would have enjoyed the race more if I bought a stop watch! (Mental note: Buy the damn stop watch from Deck Alcance - ALI Running Club’s Guru)
I ended the race together with my ALI (Ayala Land Inc.) friends enjoying race notes and taking pictures (A well-known ALI competency!) "Ang sarap ng feeling pagkatapos. Tara na! Sali na rin kayo. Kelan ba yung susunod na race Deck?!
