The 1st MASTERS 15K Run was conceptualized as a simple and modest road race among the 35+ years old female and 40+ years old male runners. I consider this as a competitive race and there will be lots of fun, I mean, cold beer after the race.
We prepared Medals for the Top 3 Male and Female Overall Finishers. And another set of medals for the Top 3 in the different Age Categories for the Male and Female. The medals were made by AB BERNAL Engraver Inc., the same company that made the Finisher’s Medals for the 1st BDM 102K Ultramarathon Race.
Top 3 Overall Medal (Bigger) & Top 3 In Every Age Category Medal (Smaller)On The Back of the Medals
To all the MASTERS, Good Luck and See You at the Starting Line!
Rey Antoque is presently one of the Coaches of the Elite Team Bald Runner. His credentials as a runner speak for itself. He had been with the Elite Team for the past ten (10) months. What I like with him is that he started to train hard for the Marathon Race at the age of 33 years old, an old age for an elite runner for the Marathon distance.
His performance in Marathon Races in the 1990’s and early 2000’s speaks well of his focused training, dedication, perseverance, and determination.
On his first competition on Marathon Road Racing, Rey placed No. 4 in the 1990 Pilipinas International Marathon with a time of 2:24:06 hours which was considered at that time as the fastest time for a Filipino in a marathon race held in the country. He was 33 years old.
After one year of training for the Marathon distance, he placed #3 Overalll in the 9th PAL Manila International Marathon in 1991 at the age 0f 34 years old.
In 1992, the following year, he won as Champion in the 16th MILO Marathon with a time of 2:28:47 hours at the age of 35 years old. At that time, he won a Cash Prize of P 60,000.
Picture Depicts The Intensity of Rey's Race & Finish
In 1993, he was the 1st Top Filipino and 2nd Overall in the Pilipinas International Marathon where a Belgian runner won as Champion. Rey Antoque improved his time at 2:27:32 hours.
In 1994, he was the Champion in the 12th PAL Manila International Marathon on March 13, 1994 with a time of 2:28:24 hours. He was able to beat and overtook the younger Guiseppe Veletti of Italy who was then 25 years old on the last kilometers of the race. Antoque was then 36 years old.
Guiseppe Veletti of Italy & Rey Antoque
In 1995, the following year, he was able to defend his title as the Champion in the 13th PAL Manila International Marathon on March 12, 1995 beating again a younger Lucio Danza of Italy (28 years old) who was with Guiseppe Veletti. He registered a time of 2:28:02 hours at the age of 37 years old. He won P 100,000 as the Champion and additional prize of P 50,000 for being the Top Filipino Finisher.
Women's Champion Praskovia Gregorenko of Russia Gives Rey a Buss
On July 30, 1995, he was the Champion in the 1995 SIJORI (Singapore-Johor Bahru-Riad) International Marathon Race held in Johor, Malaysia with a time of 2:33:16 hours. He won a prize of RM 10,000.
Malaysian Newspaper With Rey Antoque in the SIJORI Marathon
In November 20, 1994, he was the Champion in the 5th 10-Mile YAKULT Run with a time of 1:03:15 hours.
In 1996, he was the Champion in the 9th Annual PUMA Half-Marathon with a time of 1:08:46 hours.
In 2004, he won the Gold Medal in the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter runs in the ASIAN MASTERS Championship held in Bangkok, Thailand.
Rey Antoque, 54 years old @ BOTAK's 1-Street Mile Run
He shared some of his “training secrets” of which I am going to divulge in this post.
He trains and prepares the whole year only for ONE Marathon Race Event.
He spends and stays in Baguio City at least 6 months during his training. Kennon and Naguilian Roads were his training routes.
He applied what he learned from a Kenyan elite runner—running three (3) times with a distance of 5,000 meters in 15 minutes with 3-5 minutes of rest/interval in between repetitions in his speed workouts at the oval track. I did this speed workout once (in 23 minutes) and I had to rest & recover for two days!
He runs twice a day, morning & afternoon, reaching up to 200+ kilometers mileage per week. His long run workouts exceeded the marathon distance!
He is a disciple of Arthur Lydiard.
(Note: News Clippings Courtesy of Rey Antoque’s Files & Memorabilias)
My old GF 305 finally laid to rest after I could not put on its power two months ago. The old GF 305 which was my first GPS runner’s watch lasted for one year and seven months.
My GF 405 was sold to me at a discounted price from a runner-friend from USA who visited the country. But it was stored in my locker as my GF 305 was still working. Later, I used it as my casual watch and tried to learn the features as I was confused with “touch” functions on its bezel.
After my GF 305 died down, I had to use the GF 405. But instead of being “user-friendly” like the GF 305, I had a hard time adjusting myself to a more “high-tech” GF 405. Finally, I have to use the GF 405 as my casual watch and use the GF 305 that my son, John, sent me when my old GF 305 was giving me some problems on the early part of this year.
I hate the GF 405 because of the following reasons:
1) It is more expensive than the GF 305.
2) I hate the sensitive bezel that the data on my watch would scroll as my sweat would drop on the watch. While running under a light rain, the data on the display would also scroll.
3) After a few months, the light (illumination) of the watch is no longer working!
4) For three (3) instances, I could not upload the data from the watch to my laptop computer. I never encountered this problem with my old GF 305.
5) There is a maximum of 3 fields/separate data that could be seen on the watch’s display. The GF 305 has 4 fields displayed.
6) My eyes are weak as I need a reading glass and I could hardly see the data on the GF 405. The big numbers on the GF 305 display could be easily seen with my bare eyes.
I am still highly recommending the reliable GF 305 to runners who are serious on the distance, elevation, HR and time of their running workouts.
(Note: I have a friend who arrived from the US and he left me eight (8) pieces of GF 305, brand-new, for sale! Price: P 9,500 Only per piece!)
1) For those who registered through the phone, your Race Bibs are ready for pick-up at the Starting Area/GHQ Grandstand at least One Hour before the start of the race (5:30 AM). Just be ready for your ID and your registration fee of P 100.00.
2) For those who intend to register on site before the start of the race, you should be at the Starting Area/GHQ Grandstand at least One Hour before the start of the race. A separate table will be established for those late registrants.
3) There is a limited number of Race Bibs. We prepared a total of 170 Race Bibs for the runners with ages from 40-54 years old male and limited number of race bibs for the older ages and the Women’s MASTERS. Issuance of the remaining Race Bibs will be on “First Come, First Serve” basis.
4) Please “Fall In Line” when you claim your Race Bibs or when you intend to be one of the late registrants in one of the tables. Our staff could only attend one person at a time.
Entry to Camp Aguinaldo:
1) Everybody is advised to enter through GATE #1 which is the only gate that is open in the camp before 5:00 AM. This gate is along BONI SERRANO AVE. (SANTOLAN ROAD). Be ready with your Driver’s License if you don’t have an AFP Car/Vehicle Pass or Decal. For those without vehicles, take the Pedestrian Gate (adjacent to Gate #1).
2) MPs will guide you where you can Park your vehicle. Don’t assume that your vehicles are safe because you are inside a military camp. Due to thefts in vehicles in past races, it’s unfortunate that our suspects are also “runners” wearing running attire and with the proper race bib. It is advisable to secure/hide your things and don’t display anything inside your car. The race organizer will not be responsible for any loss or damage of any vehicle parked on the race site.
Please feel free to post your comment/s if you have any clarification or concern about the race. We will try to update you through this blog about the said race. For those who are willing to donate or sponsor any product or “giveaways” for the runners, please feel free to contact us at Telephone Number: 497-6442.
Tatakbo Ka Ba? GMA-7 5K/10K Run @ The Fort/ 6:02 AM 30 August 2009
This was my general feeling when I finally registered to participate in the GMA-7 10K Run. Who cares about the incoming elections, anyway? The purpose of my participation of this run was to evaluate my racing performance after doing a lot of running workouts for the past weeks. I wanted to run in this race with an average pace of less than 5 minutes per kilometer.
One of the 3 Stages Prepared For The Race
The race was scheduled at 5:30 AM and I was already at the starting area at about 5:15 AM. I was surprised to see the festive atmosphere of the place with the presence of three (3) elevated stages; one for the race which was located at the far back of the runners & front-left side of the starting line and another big covered stage for the “special program” initiated by GMA-7 for the swearing in of oath by the candidates for the presidential elective position. Most of the runners at the corral area were not interested or listening on what the Emcees were announcing. In the first place, I don’t watch GMA-7 programs and I really don’t know the personalities or even the news broadcasters. Instead, I started to stretch my leg muscles while waiting for the race to start. I saw the family of Annalene aka The Meek Runner and I approached them. I had a brief time talking to them until such time the Emcees transferred at the front of the starting area and continued their program. We were surprised that we just heard the starting gun.
"Mass Start" For the 5K & 10K Runners
The number of runners who joined this race was also unprecedented. There were lots of runners and I can estimate that it reached at least 4,000 + participants. I am sure the runners did not participate the race because of the presence of the politicians but I am pretty sure most of the runners just wanted to run and the rest of the participants wanted to see the “stars” and personalities of GMA-7.
The other small stage infront of the Starting Line
The race finally started at 6:02 AM and it was a “mass start” for both the 5K & 10K runs. Since I was few meters from the front runners, I started slowly making sure to warm-up my leg muscles. I weaved through the slower runners as I tried to find my comfortable space and pace during the start of the race. From the start, I slowly passed the slower ones and those who made a dash from the starting area who ultimately run slower after running for about a kilometer. All the streets were fully packed with runners and I could hardly weaved through the runners. It was only at the 2.5-km turn-around where the 10K runners started to have more space. From the 2.5-km point, I started to peak up my pace and was able to pass more of the runners. Running towards the Market! Market! area was a breeze as I saw a lot of familiar faces who were ahead of me and those who were trailing me as I passed at the turn-around area.
The problem about the narrow route at the British School and at the vicinity of DILG’s Public Safety College started to be encountered by the 10K runners as most of the 5K runners and “walkers” occupied the road. At this point, it was the last 3 Kms of the 10K route. I had another problem of weaving through the slower runners & “walkers” that made my pace slower up to the point when I reached the road in between the new St Luke’s Hospital and the Ford Car Store.
After running through the streets west of Rizal Drive, I knew I still have one more kilometer to go before the Finish Line. On the last Five Hundred Meters before the Finish Line, I had to slow down because of so many spectators along the route who completely filled almost one-half of the road. The spectators were waiting for the “stars” and GMA-7 personalities to finish the race.
After Crossing The Finish Line
I finished the 10K run in 46:29 minutes with an average pace of 4:40 minutes per kilometer (based from my GF watch). I was able to run well during the race but it could had been better if not for the numerous runners that clogged the narrow streets along the route.
After the race, I did not bother watching the program being prepared by GMA-7 for the politicians. I just overheard that they were reciting an oath that mentioned that “they will be honest, that they will serve the poor and hungry, that they will not abuse their power, that they will not “pocket” the money of the government which are to be used for education, social services, and infrastructure, that they will “so and so”. Whatever, Guys! It sucks to see the politicians reciting such oath infront of the runners and signing such oath on LIVE TV Telecast. If you can not even support or see to it that we attain Sports Excellence in the country, then stop promising to serve the “poor and the hungry” and the the whole country! To me, everything was “bull….”; empty promises; and a “show” to be forgotten after it will be published on the daily newspapers & seen on TV newscasts and finally, I am sure the Race Organizer was laughing all the way to the bank despite of so many “lapses” (again)!
I am already tired mentioning to this blog the different “lapses” of the Race Organizers. As a runner, I just want the following things to be perfect, at least—appropriate length of table for the water stations; abundance of water & water cups in Water Stations; accuracy on the route distance; presence of digital clock at the Finish Line & publication of Race Results; and lastly, punctuality of scheduled time on the start for the race.
The "Presidentiables" & Politicians At The Biggest Stage
The race was significant because I was able to meet new acquiantances (Raffy Uytiepo & others); awarded my “1,000-Km Club” Finisher’s T-Shirt to Joseph Baltazar; talked to the family of David & Rowena from Great Britain; meet a young runner at the age of 11 years old who beat me by one second; meet the Finishers of the 1st BDM 102K (Ralph Salvador, Eric Socrates, & Dionisio Potonia); talked to the registrants of the 1st MASTERS 15K Run; and happy to see the awarding of the winners of this race who are members of my Elite Team Bald Runner. The following pictures will speak for themselves:
At The Team Bald Runner Booth (Note: BR's Logo)Natz aka i2runner with GF & Coach TitusAwarded "1,000-Km Club" Finisher's T-Shirt To Joseph Baltazar (On my left side)Raffy Uytiepo, "El Numero Uno" Race Organizer of Cebu City (on my right)Kid Lindangan (11-year old young runner) & Dad After The Finish Line
I just received an e-mail from the Race Organizer of the Los Angeles Marathon stating therein that their Online Registration will be open effective on August 31, 2009. The Race Day will be on March 21, 2010. The last day of Registration will be on March 1, 2010. The Race Route will be completely different from the past editions as the race will start at the Dodgers Stadium and end in Santa Monica Beach. Registration Fee is $125.00.
From this information, let me point the following observations:
1. Registration Period—An International Marathon Event opens its registration at least six (6) months before Race Day. This is a positive indication that the event will push through and it is already calendared in the list of Marathon Races in any of the websites maintaining a list of Marathon Races in the USA or in International Cities/Countries. The 6-month period is an appropriate duration to train for the said event. May the Local Race Organizers learn from this.
2. Deadline of Registration Period—If the Online Registration published the date for the deadline of Registration, such date will be strictly followed. There will be no “special” accommodation for late registrants! The reason why the Race Organizers always set a deadline for registration in International Marathon Event is that they want a 100% Customers Satisfaction to all the participants. This is translated to efficient production of Race Packets, Finisher’s T-Shirts, Medals, & Certificates to include coordination for security, medical, and safety protocols for the said race. On the said race, the Race Organizers had at least 3 weeks before the distribution of kits and on the race day to prepare the Race Packets of the participants to include the “giveaways” at the Finish Line. I hope our local Race Organizers will learn from this to avoid some “lapses” in the distribution of kits. It is also on this period that the race results encoders will be able to input all the data of the runners in their Master List of Participants for easy post-processing of results immediately after the last runner had passed the Finish Line. It should be noted also that the entity that receives your Online Registration is completely a different group from the Race Organizer.
3. Registration Fee—The registration fee is $ 125.00. Nowhere in the website where you can see where your registration fee will be used. The Race Organizer will not explain where your registration fee is going to be spent!!! If the Race Organizer decides not to give you a singlet or Finisher’s Shirt, they don’t need to explain. It’s either you want to pay the registration fee or not/join the race or not! It’s your choice. However, I am sure the money you paid for the registration is worth the experience during the race.
4. No Need To Invite Elite Foreign Runners—Let the name of the city or location of the Marathon Event speaks for itself. However, if you announce your Marathon Race as an International Event with 60 days before Race Day, there is a slim chance that the best international runners will be coming to participate in the said event. The best runners are already focused to join races which had been known by them 5-6 months ago. If ever foreign runners will participate in our International Marathon Events for the months of October & November, these runners would be their 2nd or 3rd rate runners. We hope these runners to arrive in the country at least two weeks before race day in order to acclimatize with the weather and humidity.
This road race was supposed to be conducted last 28 June 2009 as one of the “side events” of the BOTAK’s Paa-tibayan 100K Run but it was postponed to this date. Since I did not intend then to join this race after the fiasco during the BOTAK’s Marathon Race on the first week of May and the fact that I joined the Los Angeles Marathon on the last weekend of June, I did not know about the original route and the reason why it was re-scheduled to a later date.
It was almost a month that I did not join any road race after I finished the 5K Team Relay Run held at the ADMU Campus. I finally decided to join this race to make the 10-Mile event as my evaluation/performance race after one month of training since my last road race.
Thirty minutes before the race, I was already at the vicinity of the starting area doing my stretching and warm-up exercises and I was with the members of the Elite Team Bald Runner who were registered for the 10-Mile, 5-Mile, and 1-Mile Street Mile. Few minutes before the start, I was able to meet and talk to Jonel aka Bugobugo and we talked about our race strategy. I had the impression that he was prepared to do a fast run on this race after he told me that he will be going for a “negative split”.
At The Starting Area A Few Seconds From The Starting Line
After a short program, the race started at exactly 6:00 AM for the 10-Mile runners and the rest of the 5-Mile runners were left behind to start after a few minutes. I did not expect this race as a “big event” but I knew that the basic needs for the runners and the requirements for a good race were in place. As I started the race, I was surprised to see the first water station on the first 200 meters from the starting line. I said to myself that this must be a good sign of a good race. I tried to grab one of the water cups from the two volunteers manning the water station but somebody got the cups from them and I had to continue with my run. I am glad Jonel was able to grab two water cups from the table and he gave me one. Thanks, Jonel.
Chasing Jonel aka Bugobugo During The Race
After running 500 meters, Jonel left me for good as he started to slowly go on “race mode” and I just maintained my race pace of about 5:00 minutes per kilometer. My first loop was a fast one as I registered a sub-25-minute for the 5+ kilometer distance. After the first loop, the race started to be boring but I just maintained my pace and find enjoyment of running along the shady route of the UP Diliman Campus. Some of the runners would greet me along the way and some of them were the faster runners who reached the turn-around area ahead of me.
I had observed that BOTAK improved a lot in the way they conduct their race. I’ve seen PATAFA personnel who were manning the timer/digital clock and as staff of the technical group at the Finish Line; lots of volunteers and route marshals with directional signages & kilometer marking along the route; lots of water supply in water stations; additional ice cold Gatorade sports drinks in separate Gatorade Aid Stations with the proper Gatorade cups; and lastly, nice music rendition of an “acoustic” band at the Finish Line Area which gave me a boost every time I passed or completed every loop. I heard more good music after I finished the race as I waited for the other finishers and the other races during the 1-Mile Street Run.
BOTAK’s had improved in their water/sports drinks Aid Station and in their directional & kilometer marking signages. Gone are those days when race organizers in races at the UP Campus would lack drinking cups for the second loop. The race marshals were also efficient in reminding the runners on what turn or street to take during the race which is a sign that they know the route of the race. Since the race clock of PATAFA was at the Finish Line, I have the impression that the race time results was efficiently recorded. I just hope that the race results will be published soon.
My Running Form On My 2nd Loop
The hardest part of the race was running the third time for the last loop! The sun was already hot but I was glad that water & cups were still abundant and even the Gatorade drinks were still cold and available in every Aid/Water Station. Every time I reached a Water Station, I had to grab two cups–one for drinking and one for dousing water to my bald head and it was very refreshing. I started to feel hungry but I was reluctant to use the GU Sports Gel tucked inside the small pocket of my CW-X tight shorts and have it reserved for my additional 8K run after the race. I tried to pass as many runners I could reach during the last loop as I thought I was increasing my pace but after uploading the data from my GF watch, I found out that I was decreasing my pace! Maybe the runners infront of me were getting exhausted due to the heat and they were getting slower, too! Finally, I reached the Finish Line and I was satisfied with my performance as I registered an average pace of 5:00 minutes per kilometer for the whole race.
Jonel Before The Finish LineFew Meters From The Finish Line
Everything seemed to be perfect but what I’ve observed to be lacking was very minimal. I reached the finish line at exactly 1:19:00 hours based from the digital clock at the Finish Line but when I saw the distance registered in my GF watch, I found out that the distance was 15.64 kms. The distance I’ve ran lacked 360 meters! I really don’t know if my watch’s reading was accurate as one runs along the UP Campus. There might be some inaccuracies with the GPS of the watch when running in a thickly vegetated or tree-covered route. However, when I saw Ian Alacar, the Race Organizer of the event few days after the race, I asked him if the 1-Mile Street Run was properly measured by the PATAFA and he said, “Yes”! Then, I supposed, the 10-Mile & 5-Mile Runs were also properly measured by PATAFA, too. I just hope my GF watch did not register the right distance while running at UP Diliman Campus. By the way, I did not break any PR time with this race.
Ian, congratulations for a nice race to include the conduct of the 1-Mile Street Run. I like the singlet that goes with the Race Packet for this race. So far, this was the only complimentary singlet that I used during a road race.
This time it was at the Head Office of the American Presidents Line (APL) located in one of the corporate buildings at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Complex. This was our 8th Running Clinic to the different Corporate Offices situated in Metro Manila.
The first part of the Running Clinic was a Lecture at the Conference Rooms of APL. It started at 3:15PM of August 17, 2009 and finished at 5:00PM. The lecture was followed with an Open Forum and there were lots of interesting questions from the participants. The questions were answered and Coach Titus Salazar initially conducted a portion of the practical exercises to be done by the participants.
Maurice McKeating, President of APL Phil Led the Participants
Participants In The Running Lecture
Another View of the Lecture
The second part of the running clinic was the practical application of the basics and principle of training in running. The practical part was done at the beachfront/Seaside of the Mall Of Asia Complex. The session was led by Coach Titus Salazar and was assisted by the members of the Elite Team Bald Runner. Warm-Up and stretching exercises were done before the group was made to jog a portion of the Seaside Area. After the drills were introduced and done, the participants were made to group themselves for a team shuttle run competition. The exercises made each of the participants perspire and shed some calories. They were even taught how to pick-up/grab water cups and drink while they are on the run, a good starter for future runners joining their first road race.
Stretching Exercises & Stationary Drills/Jumps
Warm-Up RunLots of Drills During the ClinicMore Drills To EverybodyAnother "Long Run" For The ParticipantsHow To Pick-Up Water Cup While RunningGroup Picture After The Running Clinic
Lastly, my team encouraged the participants from the Head Office of APL to form and organize their Corporate Running Team so that they could train as a group and finally join the different weekend road races in Metro Manila.
To the APL group, thanks for the hospitality and the “freebies” you shared to the Team Bald Runner.
The Elite Team Bald Runner joined two road races yesterday, Sunday, 23 August 2009. The following were the results where the members were able to get “podium” finish places:
BOTAK Paa-bilisan 10-Mile/5-Mile/1-Mile Street Runs @ UP Diliman Campus
10-MILE Run:
Rene Desuyo—1st Runner-Up (2nd Place) Overall in the 10-Mile Run with a time of 54:26 minutes.
Frankreader Indapan—2nd Runner-Up (3rd Place) Overall in the 10-Mile Run with a time of 54:30 minutes
Milbert Nabuab—2nd Place in the Age Category (18-25 yrs old) & 6th Place Overall in the 10-Mile Run with a time of 1:00:46 hours
Christian Dalida—3rd Place in the Age Category (18-25 yrs old) in the 10-Mile Run with a time of 1:07:00 hours
Anna Vargas—2nd Place in the Age Category for Women’s (26-39 yrs old) in the 10-Mile Run
Rene Desuyo Before The Finish LineFrankreader Indapan Before The Finish Line
5-MILE Run:
Marecil Maquilan—Champion, Women’s Overall Category in the 5-Mile Run with a time of 32:15 minutes
Raul Lamprea—Champion, Men’s Age Category of 26-39 yrs old in the 5-Mile Run with a time of 25:40 minutes
Gerald Sabal—2nd Runner-Up (3rd Place Overall) in the 5-Mile Run with a time of 27:11 minutes.
Rey Antoque—1st Runner-Up (2nd Overall) in the Age Category of 40 yrs old & above with a time of 31:40 minutes.
Marecil Maquilan Winning The 5-Mile Run, Women's Category Gerald Sabal (Middle) at the 5-Mile Run
1-MILE Street Run:
Alquin Bolivar—1st Runner-Up (2nd Overall) in the 1-MILE Street Run with a time of 3:56 minutes.
Rey Antoque—6th Overall Place in the Age Category of 40 yrs old & above with a time of 5:05 minutes
Running Coach Rey Antoque at the 1-MILE Street RunThe "Flying" Alquin Bolivar @ the 1-MILE Street Run
After I participated in this morning’s BOTAK 10-Mile Run at UP Diliman Campus, I stayed at the Campus for another 8-kilometer slow run and then waited for the start of the 1-Mile Street Run. I did not join the 1-Mile Street Run but I cheered for the members of the Elite Team Bald Runner who joined this event.
When the Kid’s/Youth’s Wave started, I positioned myself on the last 20 meters before the Finish Line with a good view of the runners approaching and watch their facial expressions on the last sprint towards the Finish Line. This wave was won by a 12-year old kid whose name is Duncan who registered a finish time of 4:36 minutes for the 1-Mile Street Run.
As he passed on my position towards the Finish Line, I observed his running shoes. I was shocked to see his shoes!
Let the following pictures describe what I’ve seen which broke my heart for this young runner who has the potentials of being a future “Olympic” athlete…
His right shoe was wrapped with Masking Tape!!!His Shoes Are Torn on The Sides!This is Duncan, A Future Olympian
If you want to help Duncan, please leave your Comment. His running shoes size is 7.
Bald Runner 
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