Sunday morning musings...

ah those sunday mornings when you go for a run in the park wading through the sea of people who like me are celebrating life...you wonder about the members of the wiser generation who break a sweat moving along Michael and Madonna's ditties during this time while the younger ones would probably still be recovering from last night's drunken stupor...and you think about the year that is about the close and gingerly plotting your plans for the next...and you run to your heart's content, braving the uphills at first and happily walking them at the latter part...and at the 10th km mark, you sigh and give thanks to the Lord Almighty because for what it's worth, it is a good life after all...#sundaymorningmusings

I came, I saw and I conquered PENANG!

Out of laziness, I am able to finish this post only now. Forgive me if there were details that I have forgotten already. 2-24-12

At the finish wall

Penang is marvelous.

I know that is a bit of an understatement. But I am lost for words. The well preserved shophouses. The long stretches of cobble-stoned streets. The vibrantly designed rickshaws. The east-meets-west vibe. The very budget-friendly hostels. And the food! Go to Penang for the best food Malaysia has to offer.

My 3-day detour to this place is a bit short and I know I am coming back. I have to. I didn't do much sightseeing as I spent a couple of days preparing for the race or resting after it. 

And no, this is not a travel blog. 

I heard about this race last year through a blog of a friend. Apparently, Asia was the 6th continent where he ran a marathon. I didn't realize I'll be doing it too. 

I was hungry for a race. Any race just to prove I am still a runner. I googled, found some and I signed for three races at one time: PJ Half-marathon, CICM Run and the latest, Penang Bridge International Marathon. And finishing the last one proved to be the sweetest.

Taking on Malaysian suburbs...

...and the height of naivete.

Yey for the bling!

It was a sleepless night. No, I was not excited. I went to bed early to get enough sleep and I was off to dreamland the moment I lay down on the hotel bed and shut off the lights. Then in the middle of midnight, prank calling disturbed my peace and I was not able to sleep again.

Sweet Carbo-loading :)

Oh well, fast forward 9 hours later. I was able to finish my second pikermi in Malaysia, CICM Responsible Care Run 2011. Maybe I was ready for the race toting my water bottle as the hydration stations would be far from each other. The race went through smoothly. I didn't get a new PR and I realized I was getting slower as I put on some weight. But that's okay. I guess finishing strong is more than enough. But the events surrounding it almost drowned out the good things about the race.

the stage

Hang-overs

One of the best views of the route

I like the route. The scenic trees dotting the roads cooled the air and provided shade when the sun was up. The next-to-nothing traffic with only a few cars interrupted by our sporty gallivanting. And most of all, the mainly flat surface with few unsteep slopes that is PR friendly.

The singlet and the medal

There are medals for every 21km runner who crosses the finish line in 3 hrs. In PJ Marathon, only the first 200 finishers for each category gets one. So, this is officially my first bling in MY.

And the singlet. The New Balance singlet is comfy to wear and has better fabric than the one in PJ Marathon. These makes the 50 RM registration so worth it. 

Hang-ups

Second race with hydration stations spread at app 4 kms from each other. Is this a standard set-up here? It's a good thing it was not that hot today.

I like the route BUT I didn't realize it was just too far. I almost cried as the meter rolled on almost forever. Call me naive as I am new in town. And it's not the organizers' responsibility to get me there but I wish the organizers provided some shuttle service to lure more runners to join. And I was lost twice. Once during race packet pick-up and on raceday itself. Good thing, we reached Setia Alam Welcome Center just in the nick of time. And after the race, I couldn't find a taxi that was leaving. I called the cab company but they said there was none nearby. A taxi was parked by the events area and I had to wait for the program to wrap up (I didn't get to bring an iPad. sic.) for the driver to return and ask him to take me to the hotel. He didn't but instead dropped me off at KLang station where I took a train to KL Central then another train to Kelana Jaya where I was gonna take a bus or taxi to the hotel. I only took the train to KL Central and got off from that station and joined a new group of friends to watch Manny Pacquiao battle it out with Juan Manuel Marquez for the third time.

And that my friends is the biggest hangup of the day--though totally unrelated to this race. What the heck happened?! Tell me.

Next week: Penang Bridge International Marathon 2011. I'm stoked!

Taking on Malaysian highways...

...and PJ half-marathon, my first race in Malaysia.

Running Bitoy :)

Ready to Rock It

I was in a racing drought for almost three months now before this race. During those times, all I could do was be engulf with the untolerable amount of envy I was feeling whenever my running friends from home post their new conquests. The Manila running scene is surely one thing that I miss a lot.

It was one boring day in Luanda (and no, Luanda is far from boring), when I signed up for three races--Petaling Jaya Half-marathon which happened today, CICM Run and Penang Bridge International Marathon, both of which are happening next month. So what does this mean? This just means I'm really, really back! And there's no way I'm backing down.

Stadium Petaling Jaya

Enough of the rhetorics. I was both excited and anxious of this race as this is my first in Malaysia and the first in 3 months. I didn't have enough training and I gained weight a bit. I made sure that I don't miss this race by waking up early and getting to the race area an hour before gunstart. After a warmup session led by two trainers from Fitness First, 21k runners positioned ourselves by the starting line. I was there for only a few minutes and without further ado, the gun was fired and off we scrambled like mice in a maze. 

Highway signs

Runing inside a dark tunnel

We started before the sun was fully up and it didn't take long before we could fill its unforgiving might. And mighty it really was. I remember having to content myself with walking on the bridge when it was really hot and there were no trees around to provide us some shade. The route was mainly flat with just the right combination of uphills and downhills. The uphills weren't that steep and were doable. And there's the nagging fear of being run over as the highways were not really closed for the event. So, the route was just fine. It was just the heat.

Highway Runners

And the hydration stations. I thought there were not enough and are spread out too far, I think every 4 kms. So there are only 4 stations for refreshments. Good thing though, they also have sponge stations for us to feel a bit relieved from the heat.

Almost there...

And the lack of training. At 17kms, I was already tired and tempted to just walk to the finish line.  But I still tried to run and running I did. I was gunning for a sub2 finish but that didn't happen. I settled for a 2:15 finish and ironically, I'm happy about it. I didn't have to beat myself for missing my target. There's another race. There are two actually. And just to be back and finished the race in good form is more than enough.

***

Special thanks to Annitah for the nice chat and the lift after the race. It was a pleasure meeting you.

And yes, I can still hear Stevie Nicks singing in my head. So far, I'm sailing through the changing ocean tides just fine. 

3 Runs in Four Weeks

Jogging track in Ilha

I have been in Angola for a month now and in those four weeks, I have only run 3 times. I did not get to run in my first two weeks here. My first run as I mentioned in the previous post was a barefoot run in this place called Ilha. 

takbo.ph singlet

My second run was in the same place when a colleague asked me to run after work. I remember it was so cold (21 degrees is cold for me!) but I soon warmed up after a few loops. 
And the last one was last weekend when two of my colleagues walked with me from the guesthouse to Ilha so we could do some running. Err, it was only me who ran while they rested and chatted the morning away.

Thumbs up for a good run

I am running less and less and I can't wait to get back to KL to get some normalcy back into my running schedule. Don't get me wrong Luanda is a fine place. It's just that with my work and other circumstances prevent me to give more time for running.


In the meantime, doing Indian pushups help me to stay, uhm, trim despite having a hard time doing them. And I signed up for 3 races in Malaysia happening in the next two months. 


Happy Running, guys!

Running Barefoot in Africa

Happy feet running

I'm now on my third week in Luanda, Angola. With the limitations that are imposed on us, road running is out of the picture for now. Or so I thought.


Last weekend, my colleagues and I trooped to the nearest beach from Luanda downtown, Praia Ilha. I know there is a running track by the beach but I thought we were still going to this island beach everybody recommends to us, Mussulo Island, so I didn't bother bringing my running gears with me. 

Sunset in Ilha

The sand on the beach felt fine and the beach gives a wonderful and unobstructed view of the sunset. But it's not the cleanest. But going here was a welcome distraction.


In between bottles and cans of beer, we played football in the sand. I remember my cousin Jake who taught us how to play soccer when we first met him in the 90's. I never had so much fun since I came here. 


While my colleagues were catching their breaths and guzzling more beer, I decided to go for a run. Forget the running shoes. I was gonna run with my flipflops but I thought I'll move freely running barefoot. And so I did just that. I ran barefoot for the first time. I ran for the first time in Africa.

Long neck

I ignored the quizzical stares I was getting. Just running with a perfect view of the beach while the sun was setting among few other runners was more than enough to cure me of my homesickness. I did 5 loops totalling 5 kilometers of the running track pausing to take some pictures. I had a good workout and my feet hurt a bit, it was nothing compared to the euphoria of being back on track!

Hiatus in Africa and Missing Manila's Running Scene

partying in Angola!

I'm currently in Angola, Africa for work until next month. I've seen a few people running by the beach and my envy consumes me. Getting around is difficult since I don't have my own car and have to rely on the company shuttle vehicle. There's no gym in the guesthouse we are staying in and it makes me lazier to do any form of exercise. I sometimes have to content myself with a few pushups on those few days when I am not lazy. As the company is strict on safety, we are not allowed to wander alone, hence, road running is out of the picture. 


I miss the Philippines especially my family and friends. And the running scene.From its back-to-back weekend races to those challenging ultra races, forgive me for being biased but the Philippines has one of the most exciting running scenes in the world. Whenever I see my friends posting their recent running conquests, I am filled with ENVY. I miss the early morning calls for a race. The pre-race jitters. The crazy things that happen during the race. The commotion in every hydration stations. The camaraderie among runners. And that finish banner. The simple and quick gratification for some minutes or some hours of running. Simply put, I miss running in the Philippines!


I know five weeks is slow or fast depending on my attitude. But for now, hopefully, with some windfall, I get to run in Angola even just once. Else, running for now, will have to take a backseat.