Almost 3 years ago during the Race Briefing of the 1st Taklang Damulag 100-Mile Endurance Run (TD 100) in Fort Magsaysay, I mentioned about having a choice of preference in ultra marathon distance race for a runner. I intimated that a runner must be able to experience a road and a trail ultra race but I went further to suggest that at a certain point in one’s running career, an ultra runner or ultra marathoner must be able to specialize and concentrate in only ONE kind of an ultra event.
This is the very reason why I started to organize the first TD 100 in Fort Magsaysay and the rest is history. For the past two years, only 10 runners have earned the most-coveted TD100 Silver-Gold Buckle.
Going back on my topic. I recalled that I was “baptized” into the world of ultra running with my first ultra race which was the Bulldog 50K Trail Run in Malibu, California. Much to my delight to come up with a trail run in the Philippines, I had some reservations in trying to discover some trails in our mountains and outside Metro Manila. Instead, I took comfort in the conduct of an ultra marathon race on the road. Thus, the Bataan Death March 102K Ultra came into being.
However, my love for the trails was still in my mind and being assigned in Fort Magsaysay during my military days, I made some meetings and coordination with my former Command/Unit which is based in the said camp which resulted with the 1st TD100 Endurance Run.
It was a satisfaction on my part after the first TD100 event was conducted. Local runners have now a choice of being an ultra runner and be able to test his/her limits of endurance in running. For a road ultra, the BDM 160 serves as the goal. For a trail ultra, the TD 100 serves also as a goal.
I firmly believe that these ultra events serve as “jumping boards” for the local runners to prepare them for more challenging ultras abroad. They are more accessible and more economical rather than having your first “hundred” in another country.
As an advise to the younger runners, you have to try what it takes to be a road and trail runner. But in your later part of your running career when you have the speed and strength, I highly suggest for you to go outdoors and into the mountains and concentrate on the trails.
You have been running and hiking for almost 6 hours along the mountain trails and then suddenly you made a wrong turn to a trail that is not a part of the course and then after running for about 400-500 meters or a few minutes from the turn, you realize that you are lost. You begin to panic and feel frustrated. You make a decision and you seem to be confused. In reality, you don’t know what to do!
Such situation always happen in a training run in the mountains which could be easily corrected and solved by other runners within the group. It is also a situation that happens in mountain or ultra trail races.
I always say that it is a normal occurrence when a runner gets lost on a trail during a race and there is no need to complain to the Race Director/Organizer, most specially in ultra distances. In truth, the runner himself/herself should be blamed for his mistake of being lost on the trail.
In my experience as a trail runner, I have followed “common sense” practices for me not to get lost along the trail and if ever I would be lost, there are also suggested things that should be done.
The following are the “preventive measures” to avoid being lost on the trails and suggestions to correct the situation:
1. Don’t attempt to go alone on a trail that you are not familiar with. Register in the Barangay Hall and get a “guide” if you are new to the place.
2. Run with a group and make sure that somebody in the group is familiar with the trails in the area.
3. Inform your family, relatives, and friends about your activity and always make sure that you bring your cell phone with you.
4. You should orient yourself in the place by knowing where are the North, South, East & West directions. Look around and find structures or key terrain features (hill peaks, mountain peaks, forested areas, grassy areas, water falls, creeks, rivers, sea shore, fences, highway or main roads) in relation to the directions. In short, you should know basic orienteering & map reading.
5. If you are in a training run with a group, make sure that you can keep up with the pace with the runner in front of you. Keeping pace with the runner in front of you means that you could see his/her back every turn of the trail.
6. If ever you don’t see the back of the runner in front of you, you can start shouting at the said runner to warn him that you are lost or tell him to slow down. Don’t be ashamed to shout the guy in front of you or to the rest of the group. It would be a smart idea to always bring a whistle in your trail runs.
7. If you are in a middle of a pack and you took a wrong turn and notice that you are lost, you have to re-trace you way back to the exact point or place where you made the wrong turn. Stay calm and don’t panic. Take a deep breath, rest, hydrate and take some food while waiting for the other runners who are running way behind you.
8. If you can not wait for the other runners behind you to arrive, observe your surroundings and try to find out the right trail by looking on the marks of soles of running shoes on the trail. If you can’t see any marks of shoes because the trail is covered with grass, follow such trail for a few meters and you might be surprised that it could be the trail that would lead you to the rest of the runners.
9. In an “out and back” and “loop” courses, find time to observe your surroundings on the first half of the course even if it will make you slower in your pace. Find time to appreciate the beauty of the outdoors and try to absorb them to your mind. On your way back to where you have started, the things that you observed on the first half will come in handy if in case you think you are lost on the trails.
10. If you are joining an ultra trail race, it is highly recommended to conduct a recon of the course by simply walking/hiking through it. Take some pictures of places where there are turns or physical and/or natural features which you can see along the route like streams, rivers, waterfalls, bridges, unusual plants/trees, grasslands, big rocks, rock formations, huts/houses, uphill & downhill sections of the course and most importantly, establish your own “marker” every 10K of the route.
Take Note Of Waterfalls, Whether They Are Small Or Not, Along The Trails
11. In a well-marked trail race or run, shit happens. Surprisingly, markers or ribbons are altered or stolen by locals or people within the neighborhood, mostly by kids who make fun or play with them. Sometimes, there are also (front) runners who would remove them as part of their “collection of souvenirs”. There are instances also that markers are improperly placed along the route. The worst scenario is when these markers become wet due to rains or inclement weather that the color becomes the same with the surroundings, most especially during nighttime.
12. If there is a website of the ultra trail event, study the details posted and confirm/validate them in your recon/walk-through along the course. Some runners would laminate the data of the trail course printed on a piece of paper and had it handy in their pockets or in their hydration vest.
13. If you don’t have the luxury of time to conduct your recon, look for blogs of finishers of this race and you will find a lot of information that would help you to familiarize yourself with the course and event.
14. If you have friends who have finished this race, try to talk to them or contact them through e-mail or through the Social Media platforms. Ultra runners are very helpful to “newbies” when it comes to getting their experiences in finishing the race.
15. You might also consider joining a friend who trains with you in an ultra race to be a participant of the event. Having a partner in training and in a race is more comforting than running alone.
16. Lastly, if you are not well-trained or prepared for an ultra trail race, don’t make an attempt. You will be wasting your hard-earned money and effort.
How do you measure or quantify your running workouts? Is it by the time that had elapsed covering the period you started your run up to the time you stop or by the distance or the number of kilometers or miles that you have covered?
When I started to train for my first 10K road race, I followed the first training program that I could read and it recommended running and walking by the number of minutes and later by the hours. As I progressed to train for the full marathon distance, I became aware to count the number of kilometers every running workout that I finish for the day.
When I started to train and run in ultra distances, I became aware of both the time that my feet were on the ground and the distance I would be able to cover within such period of time. I would later determine the average of mileage or number of kilometers that I would be able to cover within an hour or two.
It appears that I could cover an average distance of 7-8 kilometers per hour in my easy long runs; cover 10 kilometers for 65 minutes in my tempo runs; and I could finish the same distance of 10K in flat 60 minutes in my progression runs. These workouts are all done on paved roads with an easy elevation profile.
Trail @ Mt Lukens, Los Angeles, California
However, when I run on the trails, it is an entirely different story and the outcome seems that I am slower. On the trails in my playground in Los Angeles, California, I could cover an average distance of 7 kilometers in one hour because the ground is clean and my foot placement is even on the ground due to the absence of rocks or stones.
As compared with my running in my playground in the Philippines, I could cover an average distance of 6 kilometers in 70 minutes/1:10 hours due to river crossing, varying elevation profile, and technical single-track trail (uneven foot placement on the ground and muddy/wet grounds with grasses). On a regular basis, I’ve been running a trail route that covers a distance of 28 kilometers and I would be happy if I could finish the distance in 6 hours.
Typical Trail In My Playground In The Philippines
With this new training, I have been concentrating on my running workouts by counting the number of hours that I spent along the trails whether I am just hiking, crossing a river, resting for a taste of a fresh coconut juice or running those downhills along the route.
If you are training to become an ultra runner, whether on the road or trail, I highly suggest that you count the number of hours that your feet are on the ground rather than counting the number of kilometers that you have covered. For sure, you will be able to determine if you could finish your targeted ultra race within the prescribed cut-off time.
Good luck on your next ultra race and keep on running!
I have been reviewing my earlier posts in this blog and it appears that I was using this blog as my personal diary of my daily runs; running events where I participated and other activities related to my job before. However, it was after few years that started telling my readers about my job.
I also used this blog to repost articles that are related to running in any place of the world. I also mentioned top finishers of running events that would interest me and thought of sharing it to other people.
This blog’s posts slowly transformed to specific kind of running which is ultra marathon/ultra running when I started to think about the conduct of the Bataan Death March 102K Ultra Marathon Race (BDM 102). This race leads to the creation of the Philippine Association of Ultrarunners (PAU) which is the National Sports Federation for Ultra Running in the Philippines, the 46th member country among the 76 member-nations under the International Association of Ultrarunners (IAU).
The conduct of the first two editions of the BDM 102 gave rise to the conduct of ultra marathon races in the country and this blog became a platform to promote PAU Races. PAU, in turn, promoted awareness on ultrarunning events to interested runners from 50K, 60K, 80K, 100K, 160K distances and later to multi-stage ultra events.
More Race Directors/Organizers came into the picture, creating more choices to every runner and the rest is history.
This blog became an “all-around website” for PAU Races, as well as, races/events of the Bald Runner and I now seldom post about my daily runs and my personal thoughts about running.
With the advent of Facebook and other social media platforms, the more that I could not make a regular update with this blog.
Facebook became my “daily blog” where I make some sort of a diary with my regular runs and my thoughts about running. I even mix it up about my thoughts on politics and sports excellence program of the government. My “status” and comments on Facebook would generate an immediate feedback from my “friends”. And in the end, Facebook became my daily blog.
However, if there is something that I would like to be known to most of the ultra runners and “friends” about the details of my races and their results, I would make a link on my FB status so that they could read my post in my blog.
I would like to go back to my blogging days again on this site. I wish I could recall those adventure runs that I’ve done for the past months of this year and post them here. I will try my best to post them as I am preparing again for another adventure run in the near future. If this means a lesser exposure on Facebook or in any of the social media platforms, this blog will be updated on a regular basis.
This is now my commitment. Write and publish more posts on this blog and let those “good old times” be back and make this blog as my personal diary in running and repository of my personal thoughts on different issues and concerns that affect my daily life.
Details of the Event are posted on the Facebook’s Event Page for the 3rd Edition of this Race. The start time of the race will be at 4:00 AM and the cut-off time is 12 Hours. The following is Facebook link.
“Walang matuwid na daan sa ultramarathon. Matutuwid na tao lang ang mayroon at sila ang mga mararangal na nakakatapos ng ultramarathon” (There are no straight roads/trails in ultras. You have “straight people” in ultras who honorably finish their races)
Good day to all Ultra Runners!
Let me first congratulate our friend and ultra mentor Benjamin Gaetos for being the FIRST Filipino Ultrarunner to have successfully finished the Badwater Ultramarathon which is considered as the “toughest foot race on Earth”. Let me take this opportunity also to greet and congratulate Simon Sandoval who have greatly improved on the two successive two years of performance of Local Ultrarunners at the prestigious Western States 100-Mile Endurance Race.
From the day the first 82 “tough and brave warriors” finished and shared their stories on their experiences for finishing the 1st Bataan Death March 102K Ultra Marathon Race four years ago, it was a “leap and bound” phenomenon on the rise of the number of ultra runners or ultra marathoners in our country. It gave rise also to different and unique ultra running Race Directors in this country. With more ultra runners and Race Directors, it gave us the opportunity to join a never-ending list of ultra running races almost every month. More races are being held and organized in the different regions in the country.
Not only we have monthly races, the distance of our ultra running events are getting LONGER, too! Our Race Organizers/Directors and our Ultra Runners have breached the 100-mile single stage/solo run distance and reached up to the 250-Kilometer distance with a cut-off time of 48 hours. And soon, more multi-day stage running events on the roads and trails will be held in the coming years!
Whether it is good or bad, you can say that it is only in the Philippines where there is ultra running season all-year round! More Ultra Running Races, More Fun In The Philippines!
There is nothing fancy about such races. Whether it is a trail ultra or road ultra, everything is kept to its simplicity. It is simply a race between the runner and the ground where his/her feet would land from the starting line up to the finish line. Simplicity, that our races are not sponsored by big corporate companies; the government; or any private foundation. Simplicity where we don’t broadcast or print them on the mass media publications and broadcast networks. We simply want our races to be known through the “words of mouth” from one ultra runner to another.
Do not complain if the registration fees in joining ultra events are rising. You have a choice and we are not forcing you to join our races. The Race Organizers are happier if they can manage only a handful of runners because Ultra Race Event Management is a “bad and losing” business. It is only the dedication and passion of each Race Director that keep the race being held every year.
We adhere to the highest standards for the safety of our runners. We make sure that our “first-timers” would be able to finish a Full Marathon Race (42K) and submit to us their respective Medical Reports/Clearances. And participants must be able to strictly follow our Rules and Regulations. Fortunately, we don’t have any record of death/s in our races. It is good that we only receive reports on dead toe nails; dead skin; and blisters!
Forty-Five years ago when I was in College, I would go to the University Library to research on a Subject or Topic that would interest me. Today, you can simply research on anything in the comfort of your bedroom by just simply having a cellphone or a tablet/laptop connected to the Internet. We started as ultra runners through the World Wide Web or the Internet and we learned from the experiences of ultra runners here and abroad through their personal websites; on line publications; and blogs. The knowledge and vast of information within the grasp of runners are endless and readily available.
On this age of high-technology, all you have to remember, when you want to research or get information on subject/topics you are interested in, are the words, “google it”! Or simply register and get a Facebook account and then ask anybody from the members of the Pinoy Ultra Marathoners Group (PUMAG)! Members of this Facebook Group are the Ambassadors of Ultra Running in the country.
We have a great and promising future for our ultra runners to be known worldwide. Let us discover more “talents” in the country side/”grassroots” level through our regional and provincial ultra racing events “sorties”. Strictly guided “younger talents” are needed if we want better performance in our participation in ultra running events abroad. We need “young yet matured, dedicated, and passionate” ultra runners for our quest to perform our best and be able to place our country among the best of ultra running nations.
Discovering and training for these “talents” for a “high profile” international ultra running event is just one-half of the story. The support and resources needed to send and support such runner is the more complicated second/last-half of the story. But with the generosity of our ultra runners and friends, everything will push through as planned. We were able to send and bring our elite ultra runners in international events in the past through this scheme. And we will continue to do so.
We need to exert more diligence and determination in our effort to attract and motivate private corporate entities as well as the government to support our sports and our future participation to international ultra running events. Let us send our “best, fastest, and strongest” ultra runners to such events.
If we have a hard time getting the support of the broadcast and printed media, we have to continuously support our FrontRunner Magazine as well as our local Runners World Magazine. These published Magazines had been instrumental in spreading our sports of running and ultra running.
After Ben Gaetos’ finish at the Badwater Ultramarathon, I have received a reminder of commitment from Joe Matias of A Runners Circle Specialty Store in Los Angeles, California that he is willing to support any of our local elite ultra runner once he/she arrives in the USA to participate in any ultra running event in any part of USA. Thank you, Joe for that commitment of support to our elite runners.
As my parting words to this SONA, let me go back to my introductory statement.
Once again, we warn you that we abhor “Bandits and Cheaters” in our Ultra Races! We will continue to expose these shenanigans in our races and disqualify them in our future race races.
True Ultra Runners are those that are silent, simple, calm, kind, supportive, and always see to it that their feet are always pounding on the ground, whether it is a trail or a paved road!
Mabuhay ang mga Pinoy Ultra Marathoners dito sa Bansa at sa Buong Mundo!
Salamat po sa lahat at Pagpalain sana kayo ng Diyos Maykapal!
1. Active and Retired Members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and other Armed/Uniformed Services of the Government to include the Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Coast Guard, and Bureau of Jail Management & Penology (BJMP) are entitled to special discounts in the 2014 BDM Races’ registration fees. This is to include Cadets of Service Academies of the AFP & PNP (Philippine Military Academy & Philippine National Police Academy), provided they are qualified to join the event. The following are the discounted rates:
2014 BDM 102—-P 3,000
2014 BDM 160—-P 5,500
2. Elite runners who registered a finish time of Sub-3 hours for a Marathon Race (42K) for the years 2012 & 2013 will have Special Rates on their 2014 BDM 102 Registration Fee. They have a discounted rate of P 2,000 as Registration Fee. If the elite runner is an active member of the AFP/PNP and other Uniform Services who has a Marathon Time of sub-3 hours, he/she will pay the lower amount of P 2,000.
3. Course Record Holders of past editions of BDM 102 are automatically FREE from paying their registration fee in the said race if they intend to defend or improve their finish times. The same will apply to the Course Record Holder of the past BDM 160 Race.
4. An additional 50 slots will be allocated to these members of the armed/uniformed services; elite runners and course record holders in the 2014 BDM 102 Ultra Marathon Race. This will make a total of 300 runners for the said event. BDM 160 Ultra Race will maintain a maximum of 100 runners.
5. Finally, Senior Citizens can avail of their 20% discount on the registration fees.
Bald Runner 
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