I conquered Commonwealth Avenue, a.k.a. the highway of death.... on foot! Well okay, not the whole stretch but the first 5kms from the QC City Hall which was the route for the 10km event at this morning's QC International Marathon. It was a liberating feeling to run (and walk) in such a wide space!
This was actually an unexpected run. A product of idle time spent on Facebook on Bonifacio Day holiday. I was about to shut down my laptop to go to the grocery when a post from Kikay Runner came up on screen. It said, "Spreading some pre-Christmas cheer with FREE RACE KITS! Run the Quezon City International Marathon (any distance) for free!" Aha! Just what I was looking for, free runs! And it was so simple to join. All you had to do was fill out an online form with your basic details - Name, Address, E-mail, Contact Number, preferred event - press Submit and voila! If you were one of the first 100 to submit the form, you get a free race kit. And luckily for me, I made it.
Truth be told, I was not in my best form as I have been living like a couch potato for the past few months. It was just pure courage to get into my running shoes and attempt to do a 10k run without any training. As expected it was my worst 10k finish at 1hr 31mins (PR was at 1:20). Well, at least I was still able to finish the race and injury-free, too.
The Race
The race started on time. The 10km event gun start was at 5:45am.
The weather was great. It was actually gloomy but it was perfect running weather.
It was my first time to run on Commonwealth Avenue, one of the major roads in Metro Manila and known for its numerous road accidents due to reckless drivers. It was a nice change to see this highway this morning filled with runners instead of cars zooming past each other.
Near Feria Road, Commonwealth Ave.
Hydration stations were a bit letdown, though. Some were stationed in the far right side of the road when the runners were concentrated near the center island. Also, electrolyte drinks were quite few. All the hydration stations along the 10k route served water only except for the one near the 10k turn-around point. Short distance runners (10k, 5k) may do without it but I think those doing longer distances need it.
Near Ever Commonwealth
Maybe I am just so used to RunRio organized races where hydration stations were a mile long so seeing this 3-4 table set-up were a bit disappointing.
There were a number of freebies in the activity area located at the plaza of the QC City Hall but by the time I finished, it was starting to drizzle. I managed to get a red SMDC bag then I took off. I planned to take a quick breakfast at Tropical Hut-QC Circle but early finishers already beat me to it that when I got there, the place was already teeming with runners having their breakfast fill. I decided to go home instead but got lost around the circle and the rain had starting pouring. Hubby had to come over and fetch me. Oh well!
Overall rating: It was still a good run despite my terrible finish, which was entirely my fault! I gotta get my big ass out of the couch and start training if I want make that 21k Skyway run via the Condura Skyway Marathon in February 2012!
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