My cellphone alarm went off at 3:30 a.m. to wake me up for today's race, Drew Arellano's The Happy Run at the Fort. This race is in some ways a test of firsts for me as this would be my:
- 1st 15K race
- 1st time to race with a hydration belt
- 1st time I'm running with my cellphone
- 1st time for me to run with iced tea laced with hydration salts
I was confident I'd finish the race and aimed to run at sub 90 minutes. I have run almost the same route last week, and today was just going to be a review of what happened during the Bull Run and some error correction on my part on how I dealt with the "rolls" of the course.
I got to the venue at 5:15 a.m. and as usual, I was alone. I didn't see anyone I know until around 5:30 a.m. when Noel and his wife Jude ( both friends from PinoyMTBiker.org ) walked past by me. Noel was also running his first 15K and knowing how strong this guy is, I don't have the slightest doubt it would all be a walk in the park for him. He had his first taste of a marathon during the Bull Run's 10K and he finished a good 2 minutes ahead of me. Beginner's luck? I don't think so.
The race started at exactly 5:45 a.m. and I was in the middle of the pack. Slowly inching my way to the front, I suddenly felt the need to pee. Oh man! What a great timing! I was thinking whether to run aside and let it out, pee in my pants to avoid wasting time, or just hold on to it until the finish line...I chose to hold it off which was a good idea.
I knew I was pacing faster than I did last Bull Run and this I have proven true when I reached the 5K mark in 27:12. At that pace, I thought that I could also beat my 10K mark by roughly a minute or so.
The route took us through the Heritage Park. The place is heaven! I was smiling while running because the air was so cool and running there seemed so easy. I didn't feel exhausted even after running the slightly uphill roads there. I must have overtaken more than 5 runners during the series of uphills and downhills there.
At the 10K mark, I clocked in at 55:39, beating my Bull Run time of 57:35. I was ecstatic! I was telling myself already that I could finish in sub 85 minutes.
As we turned back to Lawton Ave., and with less than 5K to go, I was wondering how the route go as the distance from the 10K mark to the finish line was less than 5K, even less than 3K!
The surprise came at the 3K mark. We were pointed to Mackinley Hill. Oh no! The last 3K was a combination of a fast descent and a killer ascent. I never expected it and thought of a plan on how to run it. I decided to roll with the descents and sprint it so I can relax on the way back up. As I made a U-Turn going back to the uphill part of that stretch, I started slowing down a bit to have enough juice in me to sprint the last 2K.
I underestimated the uphill and slowed down to a walk about 300 meters back to Lawton Ave. That was when my friend Noel overtook me.
I started running again less than 150 meters before Lawton. My ego wouldn't be crushed by runners whom I've overtaken early on in the race. Upon reaching Lawton, I thought of increasing my pace for a sub-85 minutes finish when I suddenly felt a stabbing pain on my right abs....abdominal cramps! I must have taken more water than I needed!
I shook the cramps away by walking for around 20 seconds. It did go away, but everytime I would increase my pace, it threatened to come back, so I slowed down to a 6:30 m/km pace to hold off the cramps from coming back...my slowest pace during the whole race.
Seeing the last kilometer marker, I let it all out. I said "What the heck, there are a lot of people lined up already, what could be the worst thing that can happen to me?" I increased to a 6:00 m/km pace and ran after those who have overtaken me, and caught up with a few of them.
The finish line clock said 1:17:05 when I crossed it, but my Garmin, which I believe would be more correct, said 1:26:05, a good 65 seconds off my ambitious target of a sub-85.
The Happy Run is a great race, and I will never hesitate to join it again next year.
Deo P.
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