Cebu Marathon 2012

My plan to go to Cebu and run the Marathon there goes way back to July of 2011, I think...  It was Rolando, my Marathoner friend from Ireland (ilonggo descent) told me he'll be visiting the Philippines and run the Cebu Marathon along with his friend Jonas. Rolando and I became friends in dailymile.com, and met in Belgium last 2010 and we even visited Amsterdam.

Window Shopping in Amsterdam (Rolando, JoggerNatz, with my officemates Rose, Ebet, and Agot)

A Dutch girl wrote this on my body.  Whew!

We had a fun night (crazy was more like it) in Amsterdam. The next day, He and his wife Mercy went to Brussels to do a lot of sight seeing. I think Rolando enjoyed a lot of Belgian beers there too. Unfortunately I had to go back to work and we weren't able to run together there. So our real run together would be in the Cebu Marathon.

Good thing we have another friend in Dailymile who lives in Cebu, who registered me in the Marathon. Her name is Coleen, and it looks like she's quite popular in dailymile! I thought she was an ordinary runner, but later when she told me her PR's in 5K and 10K, I was surprised how fast she could run. She was about as fast as I was 2years ago: xx-minutes 5K and xx-minutes 10K, I think. Waaah! Coleen told me to hide her PR's, but I guarantee you, she's fast! I guess in running, your PR can make you popular, and in Coleen's case, her looks as well. She has been running Ultras as well, placed 3rd on a 60K trail run in Cebu.

Coleen winning the 60k ULTRAmarathon

 I was glad the Marathon's schedule was in January, one of the coolest months of the year here in the Philippines. I remember also asking Coleen if the course was flat, and I remember she said it's relatively flat. She now denies this and I would suffer not training hills later on. When we did finally meet, she told me the last 10K was uphill.  I realized SH!T!

Gameplan:
For the race, I estimated a possible finishing time of 3:25, or maybe 3:20 if I'm lucky. Unfortunately Rolando told me he just came from an Achille's  heel injury and is under-trained. He and his friend Jonas' who is also a Filipino-Irish, only had a longest run of 10miles prior to the race.  So I told them we could run the first 10Kms at 8minutes/mile then see later on how we would feel. He told me we should run 7:50/mile pace. That sounds like a 3:25 finish. Personally, I'll be happy to just finish under 3:30. Why? My marathon race times were 3:57(2009), 3:48(2010), and 3:39(2011). Each year I improve by exactly 9minutes. Strange but true. I was hoping for a better time, but I was seeing a much likely 3:30. Also, i had a dry cough that has been bugging me for the last 2weeks that I hoped would disappear, but was still there. If the cough would make me feel weak, then I'll relax the pace and not hope for a new PR.

Carboloading:
Days before the marathon, I read an article that carboloading is best done for the last 2 days leading to the race, with 90% of the calories coming from carbohydrates, and I need to eat 1,000calories more on top of my 2,000calories daily requirement. So that means eating 3,000calories/day. That sounded easy but it isn't, especially if you're no longer hungry. 2nights before, I ate a huge bowl of Spaghetti Bolognese in a fine 5-star Hotel restaurant. Then night before the Marathon, I just ate 2 servings of spaghetti in Jolibee.

Carbo-Gels:
I remember only bringing and eating 3 to 4gels during my last 3 marathons. I always hit the wall the last 10K. I remember Lance Armstrong eating 16gels in his marathon races, but I thought he's nuts (Yeah I know he's a sub3hour marathoner). I asked Rolando and Jonas how much gels they ate, they said 8 or 10, and they never hit the wall. So that must be it! This time, I brought 6gels into the race. 4 gels into my racing shorts, and 2gels I just carried with my hands. Rolando gave me 2gels that looked bigger than normal, and I bought 4more gels in RUNNR store in Ayala. Thank goodness they have RUNNR store in Cebu!

Rest before the Race:
I declined Rolando's invitation to have a couple of beers before going to sleep, and I guess this was a bad move. I couldn't sleep the night before the race, and I badly needed the rest to help with me my cough. Sadly this wasn't the case, and when I did finally sleep a couple of hours, Rolando texted me at 1AM when I set my alarm at 2AM! Darn it, then I couldn't sleep anymore so I prepared and took a cab ride to his place.

Too excited to sleep

Pre-Race:
Rolando wasn't able to drink coffee in his hotel because they had no warm water in his room, and the restaurant was still closed. Good thing there was coffee in Jollibee near the race course, and we just had to walk there. I met KB runner on the way there, and he pulled me for a Photo with the Manila Based Runners:

Manila Runners in Cebu Marathon

 

Let's get it ON!
There was no problem getting to the starting line, Rolando and I was able to start near the line, so we had a good start. I was surprised by the fireworks there, they really looked great but too bad I had to concentrate on running or else I'll get tripped over or get bumped by other runners. Opening pace was a little slow, Rolando and I still had to weave through a lot of runners. We were running a little slower than 8mins/mile(5mins/km), yet people slower than us had the courage (or maybe plain yabang) to start in front. The first 10kms were indeed downhill, so this had me worried so I told myself to be conservative and stick to the plan. Good thing my cough was further reduced when I run, but they would occasionally itch and then I would have to cough. Rolando would stick by me but he wouldn't run exactly by me. He was a little behind me. First I thought he was struggling.... Then I heard noises... fart noises! Looks like Rolando had problems with his tummy and had audible farts along the way. His pace seems to increase with each farting noise, so the gasses must've propelled him a bit. A smaller runner ran with us, his name was R.A., we chatted for a while, he said his last marathon was 4hours, and he was hoping to run 3:45 or better. He was going to stick with us for us long as he can.

Rolando, JoggerNatz, and R.A.

Midrace:
After 10kms or 6miles, we went inside a long tunnel. Garmin couldn't get anymore signals, and Rolando's Garmin just gave a big error it wouldn't operate anymore. Then running up the tunnel, going outside was then mostly flat. Our pace then got faster and faster, and we were averaging 7:49/mile all the way! Looks like a 3:25 finish according to Rolando. Unfortunately after 10miles, Rolando had to back-out. I thought he burned-out... Then along the way, we saw the elite coming their way back really fast. They were all KENYANS!!! I just have to admire their fluid running form. For me, looking at the Kenyans run is like looking at a Ferrari Car speeding down the highway. I drool at them. I wanna be a Kenyan elite runner and own a Ferrari Sports Car. Why can't I have both? At the U-turn-around point, it wasn't 21Kms in my Garmin yet, but I thought perhaps the tunnel messed up my Garmin calculations and it would be indeed 21K. If so, the time was 1:35, and we were heading for a 3:10 finish, which was just too fast! I asked the marshals, what Kilometer we were and they didn't know! Damn... :-(

Top 9 runners were all Kenyans!!! Awesome sight. For me, it felt like looking at 9 Ferrari Cars racing each other.

Few Kilometers after the turnaround point, we saw Rolando. He said he took a poo-poo break on the sidewalk's grassy area. Eeeew... so that's why... I wanted to gave him a high-five but had to canceled it. At 15miles, A.R. had to say goodbye to me, and another runner, an American with the name John, I think, ran beside me. He was a 40year old Boston Marathoner with a PR of 3:10. He was running strong with a Galloway style of RUN-WALK. His RUN part is really fast! Unfortunately our cool January weather was too warm for him and he had to slow down while I maintained a 7:49/mile pace. I got face to face with the slower runners still on their way to the U-Turn. I got a few cheers most likely because of my Team Power Puff Singlet. Then there was this point where I was alone, no runner in sight was in front of me and no runner was behind me. I was alone, lonely, but I was smokin fast! I increased the pace till I averaged 7:47/mile. Whoa!

Fast Alone.... at this point my average pace was 7:47/mile.

At some point I had to go back to the bridge and meet the 21K runners at their turn-around point. I decided to go to the other lane where they didn't run, so I could run uninterrupted :-).  When I saw the 32K point mark, my Garmin said it was just 18miles or 30Kms!!!  Shit, i must be heading for a 3:10 marathon! I must slow down a bit or risk burn-out, but I felt strong...  10minutes or so later, I went inside the tunnel again. And guess what, it's the 30Km marker!!! The organizers must have accidentally swapped the 30Km with the 32Km mark!!! Worst joke for all Marathoners! Everybody noticed it when I talked to anyone after the race! So I slowed down, and then Garmin told me it was 20miles. Still OK for 3:25 marathon finish. Damn markers. Then there was the missing 2kms. The race marshals told us to go right while the 21k runners could go straight ahead. We had to run a long 1kms straight that seems to go nowhere. After the turnaround point, we had to go back and resume the straight path of the 21Km runners. Somewhere in the middle, I saw Rolando again, and he was running strong! He was gaining on me.

20miles+.... Start of Cramps!

After I went uphill to go out of the tunnel, my worst nightmare came true. I had Quadricep Cramps! On both freakin' left and right legs!  I panicked, so I started walking. This is the only time I walked. I never stopped or walk the whole 20miles(32Km). What was worse was that walking didn't stop the cramps. They would come on and off.

Ouch! Cramps Cramps Cramps!

The good news is, I didn't feel tired or fatigue at all, I had lots of energy - meaning, I haven't hit the wall yet. Thank goodness for proper Carboloading. Thank goodness to 6gels! The only problem I had to solve were the cramps. My average pace (i added an average pace in my Garmin) started to slow down as I slow down with the Cramp. The Cramp started in the last uphill, just like what Coleen said, the last 10Kms were uphill. I realized I didn't do any hill training prior to the race. Somehow I didn't want to give up. If I slow down, I wanted at least a 3:30 finish. I wanted it so badly I looked for ways to reduce my cramps. I started running backwards, it helped but it was too dangerous. Then... I noticed that when I increase my stride length, my knees would always remain bent, and my Quads wouldn't fully contract - they remain partially stretched, thus removing events of cramps. So I ran, but increasing the stride length made me run faster than normal, even reaching 7:40/mile uphill, and this was more tiring. What gave me the courage to continue was that whenever I momentarily reached a flat road, the cramp would disappear and I could resume a 7:49/mile pace and not feel tired. I felt strong.

Last 2miles and finish
I remember the last 2miles were steeper uphill again, and I would cramp so hard it was discouraging. Then I felt fatigued. But it wasn't the wall. Then the jogger in me took over. Jogged at 10mins/mile pace. At the last mile, I figured 3:30 finish was still possible and so that gave me strength to run stronger and I did. At the last 400meters, I increased the pace further, and when I finally saw the finish line, I sprinted my fastest pace possible. Oooohhh! a 3:29'21" finish! My official chip time was 3:28'08". MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.  In the race result, I finished 19th among the 1,009 finishers. If you don't count the Elite Kenyans, I would've finished 10th among the Filipinos :-)  I'm a Topnotcher, according to my sister :-)

New PR by 10minutes. Mission Accomplished.

First Aid
Right after I crossed the finish line, my Quads started to cramp again, and I walked like a limping monkey. The medics saw that and rushed to take care of me. They iced my quads, took my blood pressure and gave me fluids. They treated me like a baby. It wasn't necessary, but I appreciated it.

Post Race Analysis
This is obviously my best marathon yet. Improved by 10minutes since last year. I could therefore expect to finish 3:20 next year. Still far from my Boston Qualifying Dream. At least I've learned a lot. I think I've finally conquered the dreaded wall by eating lots of Carbs. The room for improvement for me now is adding Hill Training. I hated hill training, but it's a must, and I realize it now. What I'm really proud of was how I learned how I could overcome my own fear, remain calm, and challenge myself in the midst of crisis. For me, this gave me great confidence in believing in myself.  Hopefully this great lesson would help me in real life whenever I face harder personal crisis in the future. I had tough personal moments for the past year, I had to struggle with grief a lot, but this was a great high for me. Like Emil Zapotek once said, "If you want to race, run a mile. If you want to experience life, run a marathon."


Rolando's Tummy Struggle
Rolando had tummy problems during the race. He told me he had to do 2 pit stops along the race course. We chatted a bit, and figured out it was because he didn't drink coffee before going to the toilet early in the morning.

Rolando obviously didn't want to be like the dude who shits his pants in the Marathon.

Rolando still managed to finish an awesome time of 3:35, just a little slower than his PR of 3:24!

Normally coffee acts as a mild laxative, so I drink coffee right after I wake up. Then I go to the toilet and my bowel movement feels smoother. Unfortunately Rolando missed this opportunity and drank coffee in a restaurant minutes before the race. His intestines would then do its business while he was running the race, and therefore had to stop a lot. Good thing he still ran strong and was only 6minutes behind me, a 3:35! Too bad we couldn't finish together but maybe next time.

Every Marathon Finisher is a Winner against Himself, Time, Cramps, Accidents, and even SHIT!!!

Jonas' Cramps
We waited for Jonas, he finished at 4:33. One of his slowest times because he had a lot of cramps too. But his reason was under-training. But to think of it, 4:33 is pretty fast, but for Jonas is is quite slow because his PR is 3:40ish.

Jonas suffered a lot from Cramps too.

Coleen's accident
Coleen was aiming for a 4:30 marathon, however early in the race we had to go to a road with very poor lighting. I had no problem seeing the potholes, I have great 20/20 vision. Coleen, however, forgot to wear her contact lens she stumbled into one of these potholes and got a bloody right knee. That affected her momentum a lot and had to relax and settle for a 5hour+ finish.

Coleen suffered a nasty right knee scratch and had to settle for a 5:26 marathon finish

Post Marathon Fun Fun Fun!
After the race I ate a huge Big Mac at Jollibee to get protein for faster muscle recovery, and went to my hotel for a 2hour nap. I felt like I needed to sleep the rest of the day, but it was my last day in Cebu. The day before, I had to fully rest too so I haven't seen a lot of Cebu. Rolando and Jonas invited me to join their family for a trip to the mountain TOPS to see the whole view of Cebu. It was magnificent. We saw our race course, and had to admire how far we ran :-)

At TOPS, we are experiencing Marathoner's Running High, literally!

Hanging out with Rolando and Jonas' Irish-Filipino Family

Marathon makes grown men act like Karate Kids in the Chinese Temple. I think we're turning Japanese, I'd like to think so.

At night we went to Rolando's friend Jonas' wife's friend who owns a Bar and Restaurant with live band. It was great that Coleen still had the time and energy to join us. We celebrated by doing a "recovery dance". Jonas and I had problems dancing, we suffered from cramps, Coleen seems OK but she seems to be hurt with the scrapes on her knee. Rolando, on the other hand, was the life of the party, and showed us how to dance moves like Jagger.

Marathon runners never get tired of Partying, do they?

Awww... I'm going to miss Cebu City...