Prior to this marathon event, the last marathon race that I finished was the 1997 PAL Manila International Marathon. But in-between these races, I have been joining 10 to 20 K Road Races in Metro Manila.

A collegue of mine who is also a passionate runner and two years older than me, invited and urged me to join the 2005 Pasig River Heritage Marathon seven months before the D-Day (27 February 2005). Because we had been together joining marathons in previous years, I accepted the invitation even if I had a very delicate and sensitive job with hectic schedules to follow. I have to squeeze in at least one hour every day for my running practices in Metro Manila.

My practice runs and schedules were not consistent and I was not making a log/journal of my daily runs. My weekend long runs were limited up to a maximum of 25 kilometers. Basically, I did not follow strictly my past training strategy of building-up strength and resistance by running more distances and logging more miles. I did not had any speed plays/runs. I did not had the chance to run for higher altitude training in Baguio City as my practice runs were limited in Fort Bonifacio, The Fort/Global City area, Camp Aguinaldo and the Libingan ng mga Bayani Grounds.

I had to strengthen my legs and upper body muscles through daily weight training at the Gym by using free weights, Nautilus/Life Fitness Machines, and Yoga sessions. Although I did not had any Personal Trainer, I concentrated my workouts to my buttocks, legs, arms and stomach muscles. I did not use heavy weights as I did not want bulky muscles but I needed my muscles to be toned and stronger. I used lighter weights but with more sets and repetitions. Yoga sessions made me more relaxed and my muscles stretched every after gym workouts.

I know in my mind that I was not after a PR best time for a marathon at this time when I am already old and reaching the age of 53 years old, and after a long lull and absence of serious training and marathon race for the past eight years. I know then that I was courting disaster or encouraging self-inflicted pains to my body after running this marathon. Well, I just simply put in my mind that my goal to run this marathon event is to be able to finish in less than five hours and be able to recover fast without any injuries or encounter any “bad signs/problems” to my body. I just wanted to survive finishing the race with no injuries.

The following are the insights, observations, comments, experiences and recommendations during the said marathon event:

1) The registration fee was P 500.00 and it covered a “carbo-loading” event a day before the race, a Finisher’s T-shirt, and a Certificate of Finishing the Marathon. The “carbo-loading” was done at “The Tent” at The Fort which was scheduled at 5 PM the day before the race day. The “carbo-loading” was not organized and the food was so bad and disgusting that each registered runner was given a small amount of spaghetti in small styrofoam packs. The pasta/spaghetti was not well-cooked. I ended not eating the food as this was my first frustration in the said event. Instead, I went to the nearby Jollibee and ate two (2) orders of Spaghetti w/ Yum Burger Meal.

2) Before the start of the race, a prayer for the runners was led by an “activist-running priest” who was very popular in criticizing the programs and policies/pronouncements of the government and the present administration. I could not see any reason why the organizers would invite this priest to an event which is being fully endorsed and supported by the government through a Presidential Proclamation which was duly signed by the President of the country.

3) The start of the race was delayed by almost 15 minutes. It was scheduled to start at 5:00 AM.

4) The streets/route on the first three kilometers were very dark and could hardly see where your feet were landing on the ground. Some of the street portions near Intramuros were wet and the smell of the surroundings was so bad. I had to run slowly while passing through these places to avoid the slippery ground.

5) Our group and some runners ran an extra two kilometers as we were going to the wrong direction towards the Manila Hotel because we got lost along the way. This was due to the late arrival of road marshalls and no directional signs were seen within the first five kilometers of the course. This really made me angry along the way and it took so much spent energy from me, psychologically and physically. I was cursing the organizers while I was running.

6) Water stations were lacking along the route. I anticipated this problem by bringing some of my staffs to provide me with a handy water jug/s. These jugs are like the ones used by cyclists. They “leap-frogged” from one place to another along the route. There was also this runner who was asking some water from my personal water jug every kilometer that we ran. It really annoyed me while I was at the Makati area.

7) I have observed that most of the “first time” marathoners/runners were wearing belts with small pockets holding small plastic cannisters. Well, I assumed that they were carrying water or energy drinks on their waists. Later, I found out in a Nike Store that this belt is called “Hydration Belt”. I was smiling and wondering why these runners are carrying extra weight on their bodies while most of the experienced runners are trying to be light as possible by buying the lightest running shoes and the lightest running apparel/shorts & singlets..and running socks! These “hydration belts & camelbaks” are highly recommended for long distance practice runs. The weight of the water strengthens the leg muscles and provides immediate replenishment of water loss from the body during practice.

8) I started to have “muscle cramps” on my calves on both legs when I reached the 25 Km marker. I had to walk and jog, alternately from the Guadalupe Bridge going up to EDSA up to Crossing Shaw Boulevard. I reached my “wall” at the 30 Km marker and it was a fight between finishing the race against DNF which I could not accept. From the Bridge along C5 (at the intersection of Shaw & C5) up to the Finish Line at The Fort was the “longest” five kilometers of my life. It took me more than one hour to walk & jog & stretch my leg muscles to finish the last five kilometers of the course. The C5 stretch was the hardest as the heat of the sun was so hot to the skin and body and it was 9:00 AM already. I was glad that I had some members of my staff who provided me with the much needed water to drink and cold shower for my body along this last few kilometers of the course. My dark skin was burned because of the heat of the sun. I should had used and applied a Sun Block before the race.

9) I had to pray, chant, maintain my breathing rythym, think positively that I could finish the marathon, curse the organizers, curse myself for not training so hard and prepared properly as I had done when I was younger, I remember missing my altitude training in Baguio City, thinking of trying to pick up some runners ahead of me whom I could plan as targets to overtake, sometimes think why am I running the marathon…what’s the point?, why am I punishing myself.

10)  I could not remember if I was given a Finisher’s Medal after crossing the finish line. I finished and survived the race in 5 hours & 10 mins +. I was short of getting my goal of running the event in less than five hours but I was able to finish the race and to recover so fast that I could have my practice runs again after two days of rest. I had no injuries and body pains after the race. My collegue finished the race thirty minutes ahead of me.

11) This was my first experience to run and finish the Pasig River Heritage Marathon and because of the bad experiences and observations, I promised myself not to run the next edition of the race. So, for the 2007 Edition, instead of running the marathon, I ran the 10K race just to observe and see the top finishers of the Marathon.

12) I recommend that a professional and prestigious race event organizer should manage and administer the Marathon.

I just hope that for next year’s edition of the Pasig River Heritage Marathon, the overall conduct of the race will improve for the best.