I was registered to join the Four Lakes 100K Ultra Trail Race and I was ready and trained to finish this race within the cut-off time of 30 hours. I did finish this race two years ago with a time of 26+hours when the cut-off time was then 28 hours. Mentally and physically, I was prepared to finish this race as this was considered as one of my training races in preparation for the 2018 Madeira Island Ultra Trail (MIUT) Race in Madeira, Portugal to be held in April 28, 2018.
In addition to finishing the BDM 102 Ultra in 15:20+hours three weeks earlier, the Four Lakes 100 Race would be a follow-up training race for me leading to the MIUT Race. In between these two races, I had my daily recovery runs and a Mountain Repeats workout in my favorite Mt Roosevelt’s Loop #3 in my Playground two weeks before race day.
Halfway towards Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya, I received an information from one of my nieces that my Father died from his sleep in the morning of Friday, few hours before the start of the race. As I travel to the venue of the race, I called my brother and sisters and made some suggestion about the schedule of Viewing and Funeral for our Father as most of our plan, in case of his untimely death, had been finalized long before while he was still alive. The plan was immediately implemented hours after our Dad’s death and I just kept peace and silence to myself and focused mentally to finish race where I had registered.
The race promptly started at 3:00 AM of Saturday and I started the race at the back of the pack. Knowing that 100K is a very long race and that Four Lakes 100’s race route is new to myself and everybody, I thought of being conservative on the first half of the race with the intention/objective of arriving each Checkpoint/Aid Station within the prescribed cut-off time. My smart strategy for the first half is to conserve my legs’ energy by using my Trekking Poles on the first ascent of the course with the hope that I could still run on the descents of the 2nd half of the course.
I was happy to have reached the summit/peak of Mt Ugo earlier than the first time I joined this race. I would start to run on the descent from the peak of Mt Ugo and alternately, hike and jog until I reached the Domolpos Aid Station. I ate two pieces of local “Suman” and refilled my Hydration Bottles with water and electrolyte powdered mix which was enough to provide me the much energy to reach the first Checkpoint at Kayapa East Market. I took my time to eat some food and refill my bottles even if I still have 25 minutes of buffer time from the cut-off time of 8 hours.
I was not in a hurry to reach the dreaded ascent at Amelong Labeng as I made up my mind not to stop or take a very long rest in one of the 3 waiting sheds along the said route. On my first finish in this race, I had a lot of rests and stops along this route that I had to engage in a very long conversation with some of the runners then, not knowing that they are participants in the shorter Old Spanish 50K Trail Run. For this year, I had to maintain my slow trek on this route using my trekking poles with some 5-10-second rests to catch up my breath. On the last waiting shed, I had to sit and ate some rice balls stashed in my Race Belt but I did not stay long as more runners were seen coming up to my direction.
Digging Deep @ Amelong Labeng (Photo By GlairoldRecella Photography)
Finally, I reached the Elementary School where I had to refill my bottles and make my Electrolyte Mix drink. As the heat of the sun was too hot when I was in this area, I had to douse my head, neck, arms and upper body with the cold flowing water coming from the faucet and it was refreshing and invigorating. I had to leave the place immediately as most of the runners were approaching my position. It was a repeat of my first finish when going up to the Tower Antenna at Amelong Labeng with the intense heat coming from the sun. I had to persevere and trust my training at this point where I would “power hike” with the aid of my trekking poles until I reached the peak of the mountain where the Tower Antennas are located. I started to run and jog on my way down to the Highway but along the way, I would here some mysterious sounds behind me as if somebody was trying to pass me but I could not see anybody. As I ran faster on the descents, such sound would never leave and then suddenly, I hear somebody calling my name “Ben” as the wind blows behind my back. I could not believe experiencing this as I don’t believe in “ghosts” or paranormal activity throughout my life. I knew I was neither dehydrated nor “bonking” on my nutrition needs at this moment. As I continued my running, I remember those stories we shared each other with my brother about our Father on the early portions of the race. We were both laughing about these stories while were were running. (Note: My brother was one of the runners of the OST 50K Trail Run). I felt guilty that here I was in the mountains running a race while my Dad was being prepared for viewing. At this point, I started to think and decide to shorten my race and be with my Dad.
Having Fun @ The Old Spanish Trail (Photo By GlairoldRecella Photography)
Two kilometers before reaching the 2nd Checkpoint in Castillo, I called the RD and requested him that I am going to downgrade to the OST 50K Race because of the “paramdam” I’ve experienced on top of Amelong Labeng. The RD approved my request. I reached Castillo in 12:15 hours which is almost 2 hours ahead of the cut-off time in this Checkpoint for the Four Lakes 100 Trail Run. From Castillo, the route is all descending 4+kilometers to the finish line.
I finished the OST 50K Trail Run in 13:08+hours without any pain in my legs and body.
“Enjoy Every Step”….From Coach John Fitzgerald, CTS
I am proud to say that I am the only Race Director and Organizer of Ultra Marathon Races in the Philippines who runs its own event. It started with my “Pilot” Event then which is now the Bataan Death March 102K Ultra Marathon Race (BDM 102). I would think then that running beyond a Marathon Distance was impossible and crazy to think among the local runners. It was like breaking the borders and exploring the impossible when I thought of having a solo and single stage running event of the historic Bataan Death March route from Mariveles, Bataan to San Fernando, Pampanga. But the hard-headed in me and making my dreams possible, everything was planned out and implemented and the rest is history. But for all the local runners to see and prove that such event can be done, I have to “set the example” and run the first edition of this race with the rest of the participants.
Fast Forward. While I was in Europe after I finished the Jungfrau Marathon Race last year, I received an e-mail from the John Medinger, President of the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run stating that the 10th Edition of the BDM 102 was selected as one of the 2019 Qualifying Races for the Western States 100- Mile Run. I was shocked and amazed that a Road Race in Asia is considered as a qualifying race in the most prestigious 100-mile Trail Race in the USA and in the whole world. It is for this main reason why I decided to join this event after nine years older than when I first ran it. The second reason why I decided to join the race is to find out the present state or condition of my running body after being under the watchful eyes of a Professional Coaching Service in the USA which is the CTS (Carmichael Training System) for the past six months. And lastly, as a part of my training to “kickstart” my 2018 Ultra Racing Season in preparation for my first international event for the year, the Madeira Island Ultra Trail Race (MIUT) in Portugal on the last weekend of April.
Planning for the 10th Edition of the BDM 102 had started since the months of April & May last year. And I firmly believed that my Race Staff and Volunteers would be there to administer and supervise the race while I was running the race. Slowly and surely, everything was in place and ready to be implemented on Race Day. Everything that can be controlled during the race was properly attended to except for the some surprises to include the assistance of the Local Government of Mariveles, Bataan in providing us with Public Address System and Lighting System for the whole Starting Area which is the BDM Shrine where the BDM Km #0 is located. Such assistance contributed to a “Party” environment for all the Runners and their Support Crew. It also made me more relaxed and comfortable in calling the attention and delivering my last detailed briefing to everybody before the Gunstart! The best surprise of them all was the weather during the night and day as most of the runners were covered with clouds and overcast sky. It even drizzled in some parts of the route and it was the first time to have experienced a rain at the Finish Line! I knew somebody up there was also with us in celebrating the 10th edition of this historic Bataan Death March Ultra Marathon Race.
Opening Ceremony & Short Program
I was asked by the local Police to delay the start by 30 minutes as most of the workers in the factories within the Mariveles Export Processing Zone will be leaving their respective factory/place of work at exactly 10:00 PM. The delay of 30 minutes will enable our runners and Support Vehicles free from traffic on the first 7 kilometers of the route as most of the workers traveling with their personal vehicle on this section of the Highway should have cleared the roads. The Zigzag Road from Km 2 to Km 7 is too narrow and the only long ascending portion of the route and with Big Cargo trucks, Commercial Buses and Private Vehicles on the road, extra safety was needed. The PNP made sure that only the runners would be on that section until the last runner had passed when they would open it again to regular traffic.
20 minutes before the Gun Start, we had our simple Opening Ceremony which consisted of a Prayer, Singing of National Anthem from the Main Actor-Countries of the Historic Bataan Death March and my usual Last Briefing and reminders on the Rules and Regulations of the Race. The short Prayer was done by Ronnel Go, one of my trusted and loyal PAU ultra runners; the Star Spangled Banner was sang by our US runners—Ann Sweat; Kim Travella; and Philip Bouve, all of whom are Veterans in their respective US Armed Services. Nobody from Japan was present and my Filipino ultra runner who teaches the Japanese dialect did not join the race, thus, we did not sing the Japanese National Anthem. Obviously, everybody sang our National Anthem proudly and loudly. I have also acknowledged the presence of 3 runners who came from Singapore—Wai Thing Law; Yang Wai Yee; and Jonathan Suerte. After some group picture at the BDM Km Post #0, the countdown started and all the runners were excited to start the journey.
Mandatory Group Picture @ BDM Km Post #0 (Photo By Dhan Punsalan)
At exactly 10:30 PM of Saturday, January 27, the race started with 244 runners with 48 Female Runners. I started the two Race Timing devices on my hand and waited for the last runner to leave the Shrine before I started the run. I was the last runner to leave the Starting Line.
With all those excitement, conversation with the runners, “photo-ops” or pictorials with individual runners and running groups, briefing, opening program, and giving instructions to my staff and volunteers, I forgot to prepare myself for those detailed things that I have to do minutes before the start of a race when I am a runner. I felt hungry immediately as soon as I had my first step of the race! I brought out one of my Power Bars from my Race Belt and started eating and walking on my first kilometer. No worries as I planned to hike on the ascending portion/s of the route.
As the event was getting nearer, I would review my notes and my thoughts and I thought of what would be my outcome goal in this race. When my Coach sent me a message two days before the race, expressed in three 3 simple words, “Enjoy Every Step”, I smiled and conditioned myself mentally that I will Finish the race and enjoy every step along the course. And that what I was expected to do from Start to Finish—Enjoy Every Step! However, at the back of my mind, a warrior’s voice aka “Devil’s Voice” would say, “Pass as many runners as you can!” So, from the very start, it was a fight between my Coach words aka “Angel’s Voice” and the “Devil’s Voice” in me!
I always advise the “newbies” in the BDM 102 that they should hike the first 7 kilometers of the route. Not heeding to this advise would compromise of what would be their running condition and ranking on the last 25-30K before the Finish Line and ultimately, on what kind of Finisher’s Medal they will receive as soon as they cross the Finish Line. After jogging the first 2 kilometers of the route which is flat, I started to power hike up to Kilometer #7. As I hiked, I was able to pass the slower runners and I would greet them and converse with them for encouragement.
Started As The Last Runner
An arrangement was made that I would be supported during the race by two Support Vehicles and Crew of two of my PAU Lady Ultrarunners. They would alternately provide me with the necessary food and hydration aside from their respective dedicated runner. Everything went fine and perfect on this kind of arrangement during the race.
From Km 8, everything was downhill and I took advantage of maintaining my “endurance run” pace with a relaxed, comfortable and steady speed and leg turn-over. I made sure that I was running with a speed of 5 miles per hour or 8 kilometers per hour. I was thinking that I should reach the first Checkpoint (Km 14) in less than 2 hours and not faster than 1:40 hours. Finally, I reached Km 14 in 1:44:44 hours and I was ranked #142. I was able to pass, at least, 100 runners as I came from behind in less than 2 hours!
After 2 kilometers from the first checkpoint, it was already a “roller-coaster” on the elevation of the course along the Roman Highway, you have hills and ascending portions of the course but you will be rewarded with some descents until you reach the second checkpoint at Km 23. I was surprised to know that I was ranked #66 with a time of almost 3 hours. At this point, I was having a speed of 5 to 5.3 miles per hour and I knew I was going faster as I tend to have the desire to pass every that runner that I see in front of me! The devil was really taking over into my mind!
Along The Km 68-83 Stretch
From this checkpoint, the next 9-kilometer stretch of this route is free from any vehicles except for the Support Vehicles parked on the right side of the road and their Support Crew waiting for their runner waiting on the left side of the road. Most parts of this stretch is well-lighted with street lamps, most specially in the center of each municipality or town one has to pass. I would pass more runners on this stretch until I came out to the Roman Highway at Km 31. At the 3rd Checkpoint in Km 32, I was ranked #58 with a time of 4:12:25 hours! I was able to catch up with the Singaporean Lady Runner Wai Thing Law and her Filipino companion, Jonathan Suerte and told them that there will be no more hills to climb up to the finish line. I guess, I lied because I did not take into consideration on those ascending approaches of bridges to cross up to the Finish Line.
After the Km 32 Checkpoint, it seems there are no longer runners in front of me as I was running without any “target” or reference point in terms of determining if I was going fast or slow on my pace/speed. This was the time that I thought the race was becoming boring. Not until I was in the company of Gibo Malvar, one of PAU’s candidate for the PAU Grand Slam Award for 2017 and it will be his second time to get such an award. He could be the ONLY PAU Runner who will have the distinction of coveting this Award in two successive years. Gibo and I paced with each other until I told him to get ahead after 5 kilometers. I would later catch him again at Km 45, eating some egg pie with Aldrin Pallera, another strong and consistent PAU Runner. These two runners caught and passed me before reaching Km 50 Checkpoint.
I finally reached Km 50 Checkpoint with a ranking of #42 with a time of 6:28:34 hours. I could see a lot of runners resting, eating, and having their massage with their Support Crew. This is where almost all the Support Vehicles wait for their runners. I did not stop as the my Support Vehicles were still few kilometers behind me taking care of their respective runner. One of the Support Vehicles/my Support Crew was able to refill my hydration bottle and I was able to stash some food in my Race Belt before reaching Km 50.
I was in the company of Wai Thing Law and Jonathan Suerte after passing Km 50 with few meters ahead or sometimes few meters behind me. It was a “see-saw” race between us until they left me for good at Km 57 when I started to incorporate power hiking with my run. Another runner in an orange shirt passed me before entering the town of Hermosa, Bataan and even if he was fast, I could still see him from a distance and use him as my reference point of my pace/speed. It was already daybreak and it started to drizzle when I was in Hermosa.
BDM 102 Never Gets Easier
I could still see the orange shirt of the runner ahead of me when I finally reached again the Roman Highway at Km 67. A PNP Checkpoint personnel was there to make sure every runner would be able to cross the Highway safely. I started to run again once I was on the left side of the road from this point. I knew the iconic BDM Km 68 post at the Layac Junction in Dinalupihan, Bataan was just one kilometer ahead of me.
I knew what to expect on the road stretch from Km 68 to Km 83. It is a 15-kilometer stretch where you meet every kind of vehicle on the fast highway of the San Fernando-Olongapo route. During the first edition, all of the runners had to cover their nose and face to prevent the dust from getting into your face/eyes and into their lungs. This stretch of road was under construction and being cemented at that time. The strategy to maintain your sanity in running on this section is to jog, run, and hike with a rest of power hiking! But with the heat of the sun, it will slow you down tremendously if you don’t be friends with ice water, wet small towel with ice cubes placed on top of your head or ice bandana tied around your neck or regular dousing of cold water on ones head, face, neck and upper body. However, in this year’s edition, the weather was so kind to everybody that I could feel a cold breeze coming from the East (in front of me) until I reached the commercial district of Lubao, Pampanga. It is just a matter of time that I would reach the Lubao Bridge (Km 82). It was on this stretch that some of the runners would be able to pass me and I would console myself with a reason that these runners are half younger than my age.
Enjoy Every Step On The Last 2 Kilometers
I finally reached Km 83 Checkpoint with a ranking of #53 with a time of 9:58:15 hours. My speed had decreased tremendously as I started to hike longer than jogging. From 5.3 miles per hour, I would estimate that I was averaging a 4-4.5 miles per hour speed at this point. One runner was on sight in front of me and I tried to use him as my reference point but to no avail. He just disappeared after a few minutes. At Km 90, fatigue and some tightness on my legs started to slow my pace and I knew more runners would be passing me. It was good that these runners are my PAU regular runners that they were kind enough to share their support-logistics to me aside from the designated Support Vehicle and Crew for me.
The plan to finish the race in 14 hours or less than 15 hours was nowhere in sight when I reached Km 100. The “angel voice” in my mind returned and reminded me to enjoy every step up to the finish line. I started to jog, run, and power hike on the last 2 kilometers and on the last turn towards the Finish Line, I saw the Finish Line Arc and some energy brought me back to jog all the way to the waiting crowd.
Approaching The Finish Line
I finished the 10th edition of the Bataan Death March 102K Ultra Marathon Race with a ranking of #60 among the 212 finishers with a time of 15:20:08 hours. At first, I was sad that I was not able to improve my time of 15:18:45 hours when I was 9 years younger but I realized that with every year that a person gets older, his body mass and VO2 max deteriorates or decreases making him slower and weaker. But with my performance in this race, I would conclude that I have not aged or never got older since the day I first ran this event.
The first thing that I did when I reached home was to immediately send an e-mail to my Coach and told him of my performance. He replied immediately with the following:
“For you to run the same time as you did at the 1st edition of BDM shows your fitness right now. More focus on quality efforts over quantity has helped improve fitness. Not placing such a high emphasis on hard workouts and just as much focus on the recovery process (rest days) has allowed you to be more fresh and rested for workouts. As you age, you lose muscle mass and your aerobic capacity is lowered. Focusing on high intensity intervals and consistency with a strength routine is required to continue to make improvements.
I’m beyond excited to see what else you can accomplish this season!”
Thank you, Coach John. I really enjoyed every step along the course as I finished the 10th edition of the Bataan Death March 102K Ultra Marathon Race!
Congratulation to all the Finishers and a greetings of “Good Job” to all my BR’s/PAU Staff and Volunteers for yet another successful edition of the BDM 102.
Race Report: 25th Edition Of Jungfrau Marathon Race
I did not know about the existence of this event not until I bought a New Zealand Trail Running Magazine at the Auckland International Airport on my way back to Manila after finishing the 2017 Tarawera 100K Ultra Marathon Race. The registration period was scheduled to be opened on the day of my arrival in Manila which was in the middle of February this year. I immediately signed in on the very first day of registration period and I was surprised that there were 800+ runners who have registered already!
I was accepted immediately as there was no lottery and the registration would be closed once the number of registered runners would reach to 5,000 runners. After 3 days, the registration was closed and it appeared in the entry list that I am the only runner from the Philippines to be registered and accepted for this year’s edition which happens to be its 25th edition. Having been not so lucky to be accepted for the CCC of the UTMB Races, I found this race to be an opportunity for me to visit, for the first time, the Europe Continent!
After a month, I registered also for the 80th edition of the Mt Fuji Mountain Race (which I saw an article also in the same New Zealand Trail Magazine I bought at the Auckland International Airport) which only takes only the first 50 registered runners from other countries. The reason why I registered in this race was also an opportunity to visit Japan for the first time!
Research & Planning
I found out that a Pinoy Runner had finished in last year’s edition of the event and I was able to read a news article on Cebu Daily News Online Edition about the feat of Dr. Yong Larrazabal, a low-key Pinoy Marathoner who goes to international cities to join marathon races and a fast runner at that. He was able to finish the race in less than five hours, having been a consistent sub-4-hour finisher in flatter marathon races. Through Messenger, I sent him some questions on how he was able to reach Interlaken, Switzerland coming from Manila. He told me that his point of entry in Switzerland was in Zurich and drove a car to Interlaken. That was all, I did not ask him about the details of the race as every information related to the event is on the English version of the Event’s Website, to include the Route Map, Elevation Profile, Cut-Off Times, and Aid Stations. From their Website, any runner would conclude that this is a well-organized marathon race. The only problems that a runner would solve would be his/her travel/trip arrangements; accommodation; and availability of money…and be healthy and prepared to finish the event.
On the last quarter of last year (2016), I decided to enjoy my retirement and be more focused to joining international running events in countries/continents where I’ve never been to. This was the reason why I decided to join the Tarawera 100 Ultra in Rotoura, New Zealand, a reason to visit New Zealand for the first time! After I was accepted at the Mt Fuji Mountain Race, I immediately made a scheduled plan where I would be joining these international race up to the 3rd quarter of 2017. I will still be joining local races but they will be considered as my training and evaluation races to find out if I am improving or not or if I am making good with my training and not “slacking” on my fitness condition. I maybe old at 65 years old but I know I could still find out some potentials on where and how my body strength is still capable of doing.
I decided to get the services of a Professional Coach on Ultrarunning and I started my training in the middle of June of this year. The first two weeks were more on developing my endurance but with better recovery as compared from my previous training schedules. I started to be exposed on quality training with more elevation and intensity on the 3 weeks of training leading to the Mt Fuji Mountain Race through “hill repeats” and tempo runs in my Playground. I have observed that I was getting stronger on my uphill runs and climbs and I am beginning to love faster running in some sections of my route. I may have been short of the time allocated in one of the checkpoints at the Mt Fuji Mountain Race, thus, I declared myself as DNF but I have observed a great improvement in my running on uphills and climbs! I am still in awe and surprised how I was able to continuously run an elevation gain of 4,000 feet for a distance of 10 kilometers in 1 hour & 30 minutes. Before, I would be hiking already after covering a distance of 3-4 kilometers. I knew that my preparation and training for the Mt Fuji Mountain Race was short from being perfect. But I considered my first race after being Coached by a Professional as a part of my training for my future races.
My training for the Jungfrau Marathon was very specific on the 4 weeks after the Mt Fuji Mountain Race, leading to the first weekend of September. I was again exposed to more “hill repeats” and “tempo runs” which were done on steep climbs in my Playground. And in one of my 20-minute tempo runs on a rolling terrain, I have observed that I was getting faster on my pace per mile for few seconds, little increments of improvement, but this is a good result of my training. On my peak training, I would go to Kennon Road (Zigzag Road to Baguio City) and run continuously the last 17 kilometers before reaching Baguio City which I covered in 2.5 hours. Aside from that, I spent my weekend back-to-back runs in Mt Tapulao, Palauig, Zambales and Mt Roosevelt where I would be running under the rain and cold temperature of Mt Tapulao. On my taper week towards the race, I had my one-hour recovery runs each day and fully-charged sleeps every night (7-8 hours of sleep).
Travel Arrangements
I attempted to apply a Shengen Visa with the French Embassy but I was asked to apply, instead to the Swiss Embassy since I will be staying more days in Switzerland. Since I did not bring any Passbook of my Bank accounts when I applied for the Swiss Visa (I only submitted a Bank Certificate), I was asked to submit a Bank Statement for the last 6 months. Unfortunately, my Bank could only issue me my 3 months of Bank Statement and I have to request to their Main Office and wait for 1 week for the said documents. Instead of waiting for one to two weeks, I went to AFPSLAI to get whatever the Swiss Embassy would require in order to tell them that I am capable of paying my trip and stay in Switzerland. In less than 15 minutes, I was able to get a Bank Statement for the past 15 years in only ONE page!
As of this time, I have not yet received my Bank Statement from the local commercial bank which caters to my banking needs for the past 30 years! And come to think of it, this is the oldest bank of the Philippines!
I found out that the Swiss Embassy is very strict on trying to monitor my movements/trips within their country to the point that they would like to know where I will stay for the duration of my visit in their country. I just realized the reason why when I was finally in front of the Swiss Immigration Officer when I landed in Geneva, Switzerland. The Swiss Immigration do not require their visitors to submit or fill-up an Immigration Card. They simply check your visa and mark it with a stamp indicating your date of entry in the country!
I made reservation for my flight arrangements with the Travel Agency that had been very helpful to me for the past 17 years and I was booked with the Qatar Airways with a stop-over in Doha, Qatar for 2.5 hours. My hotel accommodations reservations were personally made by me through OnLine on booking.com. And used the Google to its fullest for the trip/land travel arrangements.
I did not ask for any sponsors or made any requests from my friends in the corporate and government offices or came up with a running event to raise funds in order to support my logistical needs for this event. Joining this event is a personal choice and endeavor and I don’t want anybody to have the burden in supporting me.
Even if I am the ONLY Filipino runner in this year’s edition of the event, there is no need to brag about it. This is the reason why I don’t wave or display the RP Flag whenever I finish an international running event. I am just an ordinary and private Filipino runner enjoying my retired life!
Race Proper
My hotel, Hotel Central Continental, is 50 meters away from the Interlaken West Train Station and about one kilometer away from the Starting Area of the Race and Das Zelt, the place where the Race Exposition and Race Packet Kit Claiming Area is located, is just on the Public Park adjacent to the Starting Area. After checking-in at my Hotel, I immediately went to the Race Packet Kit Claiming area where it is located and I was able to get my Race Bib, Drop Bag at the Finish Line Tag, Event’s Magazine, and an ASICS Hydration Pack (Black).
Jungfrau Mountain @ Far Background With Snow
The 5,000 runners in this race were divided into 6 groups——Elite Runners & 1st Wave and 2nd Wave to the 6th Wave. The Elite Runner and 1st Wave would start at 8:30 AM and my group, which is the 6th and last group would start at 8:55 AM. Each group would be released every 5 minutes of which was done for the first time in this event.
I was on my way to the Starting Line when the 1st Wave was released at exactly 8:30 AM. I entered my corral when the 2nd Wave was released and I had enough time to position myself with the rest of the runners in my Wave. Every time a Wave was released we would move forward nearer to the Starting Line. It was time to check my AMIHAN Go Light Race Belt for my IPod Touch, gels, light jacket, and power bars and they were all properly stashed on my waist.
At exactly 8:55 AM, all the runners in my Wave which were easily identifiable by their race bib numbers beginning with the number 6 and myself started to jog and easily claimed my spot a few meters away from the Starting Line. The runners were not crowded at the start and I simply relaxed and imagined that my first 15-20 minutes were my warm-up runs during my training. After two miles, I started to increase my pace as the course would be flat and paved. As we left the center of the City of Interlaken, it started to drizzle and the announcement before the race started that it will be rainy and cold during the course was becoming a reality. It is even anticipated that it will be foggy and very cold once we will be reaching the last 15K towards the Finish Line.
Before reaching Mile 4, I was already passing the tail-end of those runners on Wave 5 and I was surprised. Such observation inspired me to maintain my pace and steadily move forward. There are portions of the flat sections which are wide dirt road with crushed gravel which you might think that the event is a trail running event. I have observed that I would pass some runners on the uphills but some of them would pass me on the downhill. It was a no big deal on my part since these runners would look like they are half younger than my age!
On The First Two Miles Of The Course
I reached the 6.2 Mile Mark (10K) in 56:22 minutes in the town of Wilderswil where there was an Aid Station. I took one of my GU Gels and then took at least two cups of water as I was sweating a lot even if it was drizzling. I was too nervous that I might be cut-off in this Checkpoint, thus, I was running faster than what I have planned. The cut-off time here is 9:55 AM or one hour from our Wave 6 start. So, I have less than 4 minutes as cushion as I passed this checkpoint. Based from my recorded split, I was ranked #2,832. At Kilometer #15, where the cut-off time is 10:25 AM or 1:30 hour elapsed time, I was able to gain one minute as additional cushion time where I timed at 1:25:47 hours but my rank decreased to #3,031. It could be that I slowed down or the other runners who started slower are starting to pick-up their pace at this point.
After I passed the beautiful town of Lauterbrunnen and reached the checkpoint at Km #21, my time registered at 2:11:34 and my rank decreased to #3,244 and it was due to brief walking at the Aid Station to grab some water, take in some bananas and GU Gel. But I was able to gain another almost one minute as cushion from the cut-off time of 2:17:00. From Km #21 to Km #25, it was slight uphill at the start but once you cross a river, it is almost slight flat and downhill. However, after reaching Km #25 where I timed in in 2:40:23 hours and placed #3,279, it was now the start of a steep switchbacks which are more than 15 turns going up to the mountain. However, I was able to gain a total of cushion time here for almost 8 minutes! It was raining harder at this point and I was starting to feel the air to be thin and cold that my hands were starting to get numb. I brought out my Patagonia Light Jacket (Waterproof) from my AMIHAN Race “Go Lite” Belt and zippered it all the way to my chin to keep my body warm. I would hide my palms from the sleeves of my Jacket just to keep them warm!
At The Town Of Lauterbrunnen
Before reaching the next checkpoint at Km #30, I had the urge to pee and I decided to just approach one of the trees beside the road and took my time to unload my urine. This is where I had been overtaken or passed by 50 runners! But once I reached the checkpoint, my time was 3:39:57 hours and I was ranked #3,329! But I was able to gain a total cushion time of 13 minutes!
From Km #35, it was the start of the steep uphill climb to the peak of the mountain, it was still raining and the temperature was going down to freezing cold. This is where I remember my training in Kennon Road leading up to Baguio (17 kilometers) and my uphill climb in Mt Tapulao (14 kilometers) during a rainy and inclement weather! I started to hike strongly and then jog from time to time on those steep ascents and flat portions of the course. At checkpoint Km #38, my time was 5:12:18 hours and I was ranked #3,325, an improvement of 4 slots and have a cushion time of 15 minutes. At this point, it was already a “conga line” of runners on the steepest part of the course and it was raining, foggy, and with muddy single-track trail.
It Was Freezing Cold
I got to make my move as the other runners in front of me were too slow in their hike towards the peak. I would start to jog, get out of the trail to pass the slower ones, one at a time, until I reached the peak of the mountain. The last one kilometer was downhill and I started to run, braving the cold wind, thick fog, rain, and thin air! Finally, I crossed the finish line together with some of the runners with an official time of 6:14:17 hours!
I was surprised to find out that I was able to pass 64 runners on the steepest part of the course even if it was cold, building up a cushion time of almost 16 minutes before the the cut-off time of 6:30 hours. However, as I reviewed the official result, I found out that the Race Organizer decided to adjust the course cut-off time to 7:00 hours! Maybe, it was due to the inclement weather during the race. I am glad the race was not stopped even when it was raining hard on the last few hours of the event.
Out of 95 starters on my Age Category of 65 years old and above, I placed/ranked #60. Out of the almost 5,000 runners, I was ranked #3,261.
The Marathon Race has an elevation gain of 8,406 feet and elevation loss of 3,386 feet.
Not bad for an old 65 years old runner from a tropical country finishing a marathon race in the Swiss Alps!
Bald Runner 
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