Quezon City International Marathon

Calories Burned: 807 cal
Chip Time: 1:10:26

I got there late! The tail end bunch of 10k runners were already past the Philcoa area when I finally got to see them. But all is well :) I felt strong in this race; unlike the past weekend (Milo) when I felt so exhausted.

Thousands of runners participated in the first ever Quezon City International Marathon.

I even met some friends along the way. Near the 5k mark, I caught up with my previous gym trainer and chatted with him a few minutes before moving ahead. And then after crossing the finish line, got to meet my officemate, who also ran 10k, hanging out with his wife and kid. It was fun, fun, fun. Oh and the biggie of the event was having my photo taken with the Asian champ, Elma Muros. I'm so happy.

Elma Muros is almost a senior citizen, but look at how fit she is! Maybe she can do a full marathon right there and then.

The main highlight of QCIM for me is the route. Commonwealth has 8 lanes on each side. All those 16 lanes were blocked for the event (at least as far as the 10k went). It's a kid's paradise to just run along that wide a road. Ang lawak lawak, yipeee! According to my sister though, the resulting traffic caused by the blocking of Commonwealth ruined her Sunday morning drive to church. She reached her quota of curses just before going to church. Too bad for her.

A rare sight: Commonwealth Ave. free of vehicles except for ambulances.

So maybe next year, the organizers should inform the people better, and also, QC residents should make themselves more aware of what's going on in their city. For me and the thousands of participants though, the route was a refreshing break from the usual location of races.


Race Vitals

Start Time: it was on time; I was late
Participation: Kenyans, other foreigners, local runners, students, daming tao
Rate: P300
Route: Commonwealth Ave, fantastic!
Race Freebies: Nike Shoebag for 10k participants, drinks, granola bar, certificate of participation, timing chip (but no runpix analysis), photovendo pictures (but not free)
Personal Experience: 8/10

Milo Official Results

Official Chip Time: 1:14:30

Results of those who ran with chips can be viewed here http://www.nestle.com.ph/milo/. Later though, when milo updates its website with new content, the url would probably be different. So for that inevitability, here's the location of milo's data at runpix's website: http://www.runpix.info/mnc09/ge.php. And here's where you can get the photos http://free.photovendo.ph/index.php?eventID=2009101101.

And as usual the conclusion I gathered from my results was that I can be faster. Ayos lang naman yun, hehehe; basta may picture! hehehe.

In my case, there really wasn't a lot of difference between the chip time and the starting gun time. May be next time there will be (crossing my fingers).

The Milo finish line was a queue. We were just actually walking here.

And of course, where was I when the winner crossed the finish line? Never mind me, but a huge congratulations to the winner; he finished in 31 minutes. Amazing!

And me!

33rd Milo Marathon National Finals 10k

Calories Burned: 827 cal
Unofficial Running Time: 1:15:00

I haven't raced for sooo long; I couldn't believe how much I missed it -- missed the 4am rush, the smell of fresh unpolluted pre-dawn air, the hustle and bustle of other runners to warm up and get checked in, the excited atmosphere behind the start line, and the gun start.

I used to view running just as a tool to lose weight; now, it's a way of life. And the Milo Marathons have a way of bringing me back on my feet and on to the road than any race I've joined. It holds my first 5k, my first 10k, and my first comeback race -- this one.

The early morning rush of the 10k runners.

Just happy to have run and finished. Never mind the time. Well..

One of the doctors who gave great tips on proper running and how to avoid injuries. I actually consulted with him afterwards about my moving kneecaps.