31 May 2009

4-Miler: Microsoft IE8 Run (May 31)

It was drizzling at 5:30 am when i did my warm-ups at the assembly area of the Microsoft IE8 Run in between the NBC Tent and High Street.

The rain wasn't obviously going to stop any time soon, but that fact didn't deter the crowd of participants from running. I felt particularly happy in this event, because it was being held for the benefit of UNICEF's Child Protection program (on online child safety), and a good number of us from the fundraising, communication and child protection sections were there this morning. So it was indeed nice to stay at the UNICEF booth pre- and post-race (we were also selling products from our new line of gifts there) and have a laugh with good friends from work.

To make this entry short but sweet (as I am currently absorbed with a new, ahem, computer game--which is another story in itself), I'll do the lazy way out and do bullet points. Sort of what like The Bull Runner does, when she reviews races.

Highlights:
- new route, new distance (I've never run in the University Parkway area before)
- exciting route for the 8-mile runners (from Bonifacio Global City area, up the Kalayaan flyover, on Buendia up to the Makati Post Office, and then back. That is one hell of a route.)
- the light rain had a cooling effect and felt nice on the skin--and no sun to make the run tougher!
- ample water available to all runners (although I didn't have to stop at the water stations, because I carried in my pocket my own small bottle)
- race started on time
- good post-race program; the host had the crowd all riled up and excited for the raffle
- really amazing raffle prizes from Microsoft and sponsors like HP and Mizuno! (too bad I'm generally unlucky and I never win at raffles)
- inflatable playground for the kids, the same kind of playground that we had for UNICEF Walk on the Child's Side 2008
- UNICEF booth with our banners on anti-child pornography and our face-to-face fundraisers trying to get new pledge sign-ups. The booth showcased our gift items--and people were going to our booth and buying!
- ample food booths for the hungry ones
- yummy post-event breakfast at Pancake House sponsored by Microsoft

Low Points:
- not enough distance markers. There was only one marker: the half-way point. It was difficult tracking how I was doing on a per-mile basis. I didn't want to check my watch all the time because I wanted to concentrate on the road ahead of me.
- slippery portions. Upon gunstart for the 4-mile race, the guy right beside me slipped on this metal surface thing on the road! I felt panic for him and prayed he didn't get injured. And when I crossed the finish line, there was that blasted metal surface again! I almost slipped! Puddles on the rain were okay, though. It was fun sort of splashing around a bit, and my Nike Zooms did well in terms of traction.
- DEAD FROG IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. Okay, this is obviously not Microsoft's fault, haha. I just loathe the sight of frogs so much. When I saw the dead 'un this morning, I let out a small scream. It was lying on its back, with its stiff legs raised up and its white underbelly clearly seen. It was so hideous. The advantage here was that the sight of the dead amphibian made me run faster. I kept praying that I wouldn't encounter live frogs the rest of the way.


My right knee was bothering me the whole time. I've been feeling a little pain since Thursday (when I did a practice 6.4 km run), and it didn't let up during today's race. But I think I've managed to bear the pain fairly well. Clocked in around 42-43 minutes (6.7 min/km). Still average. I always hope to do better. The good thing is, every time I run a race, I show some improvement naman, which is encouraging, of course!

Next race? Mizuno Infinity Run on June 7. 5 km, hopefully, if my knee stops acting up.

***

Read an interesting entry in Takbo.ph on why two or more pairs of running shoes are better than one. It does make a lot of sense, you know. Running is still relatively cheaper than other sports, and the least one can do is invest on good running shoes. My Nike Zooms are still in okay condition but I need to get a new pair (or two?) very soon.

3 comments:

  1. kuyabob4:58 PM

    hey there! we ran the 8 mile of the same race. Actually some runners said it's 8.4 miles or 13.4km as it went all the way through osmena hiway instead of the makati central post office.

    it was a good race, nevertheless! this is only my third race.

    I see that you also ran the Botak 5k! I ran 10k then. A bit disappointed, though by the erroneous recording of time.

    Was looking for official race results of IE8 and chanced upon this blog. Hope to meet you in the runs ahead!

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  2. Hi kuyabob! Congratulations on your 8-mile run! Yeah, I heard nga from other people that the route was actually longer than 8 miles.

    The results of the IE8 run are out. You can check it out at takbo.ph (http://takbo.ph/index.php?option=com_jdownloads&Itemid=36&task=view.download&cid=199)

    See you in the next runs!

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