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TBR Dream Marathon: A Million Thanks (Part 3)

May 26th, 2010 journeyingjames 10 comments

As I said on my previous post, “the finisher’s medal, finisher’s shirt and loot bag are nothing compared to the friends I made and met along the way” the following were some of the people whom I met and made friends with. To them I say,

“A Million Thanks”

This medal also belongs to everyone of you.

Ms Jaymie aka TBR. I really can’t believe I will be doing a marathon this early. But your plan is a welcome one for me and for the rest of my “classmates.” We will surely pay it forward.

She’s the WOMAN! Kudos Ms Jaymie

Coach Jim. Thanks for the reminders, the intentional coaching and the tips you gave.

Sir Toel and Rob. I met during the Pocari Fun Run and the Bull Sessions. They were the ones who encourage me to join ANR Alabang. They were the reason I run my 3rd HM without preparation.

Mamita Chang. I met in group runs, very sweet mamita supportive and encouraging.

Ms Nao. Hats-off po! You are an inspiration. Still inspired on your TNF 100 story. Thank you once again for bringing my stuff at KM32 for my costume change.

Alex. PhotoAlex, thanks for the ride and the photos. And for pushing me to get faster when we run at UPLB.

Jai and Maan. Nice moments ha! Can we have a replay.

Reylynne, Edwin, Sarah, Sir Maki, Sir Lit and Sir Miguel. We are marathoners!

Mond, Ambo, David, Chit, X, Tiff, Christiam, Sir Sonny, Vangie, Annabelle, Jeanette, Rachelle, Lorena, Pauly and the rest of the ANR Alabang Group. Super super thanks sa poster, power gel, fruits, Gatorade, cheers.

Anonymous, Aileen, Tine, Christina, Juvy, and Ronnie. For supporting and promoting my cause. When the organization heard of you they were encouraged.

Doc Shawie. Thanks for the medical certificate. When are you doing your full marathon?

Kenley. A great motivator in my blog and my run logs. Thanks!

Kassy (Runnaholic), Sir Ed (ScientistRunner), Alfred (RunningAtom), Blas (TitaniumRunner) for pacing me sorry I have to run faster at the last 10K, Papi Jet (JetPaiso). Fellow runners and bloggers who motivated me.

Daily Mile friends: Wayne, Brian, Ana, Gurmeet, Phil, Di, Ruben, Barbara, Vern, RS, Anne, Estan, Leland, and others for everything.

MacRunners. My running group in UPLB. They are ‘mamaws’ (monsters) and I learn to push myself harder to see progression. Thanks for all the inspiration.

Family (Parents, Kit and Ji). Thanks for the support and understanding my chosen sports and lifestyle.

God. My STRENGTH, MY SALVATION, MY MASTER. My marathon finish is a testimony of your faithfulness and goodness in my life.

TBR Dream Marathon Trilogy:

I AM A MARATHONER

WE ARE MARATHONERS

A MILLION THANKS

Categories: 42k, Marathon, TBR, TBR Dream Marathon Tags:

TBR Dream Marathon: We Are Marathoners (Part 2)

May 25th, 2010 journeyingjames 4 comments

“WE ARE MARATHONERS”

I really don’t know what happened. I know that we are 300 (ahoo! ahoo!) But looking at the race results there are only 247 who finished the TBR marathon. The first finished at 3:49:40 and the last 7:50:03, these times are doesn’t matter that much for we just finished a 42.195Km.

Anyway, the purpose of this post is the idea that even if the statement “I AM A MARATHONER” sounds great and respect-worthy, I like the statement “WE ARE MARATHONERS” better. Because it captures the idea of a community of runners who dedicated their life to training and lots sacrifice.

This group is simply amazing! Thank you is not enough.

So along with millions of marathoners in the world, we can now say, “We are marathoners” and we are proud to do this. We have learn that the human spirit is up for any challenge. We have conquered “the wall.” We were patient enough in every stride. Yes, we have sacrificed a lot but the sacrifices are nothing compared to the experience we had as we cross the finish line. I would like to relive that moment again and again.

To tell you honestly, the finisher’s medal, finisher’s shirt and loot bag are nothing compared to the friends I made and met along the way. The journey (preparation) is better than the destination (finish line). I would forever cherish everyone of you.

To all my TBR Dream Marathon 2010 classmates, thank you for sharing the Journey with James. Hope to meet you again in races (and in coffee shops?). May we live the dream and inspire others to do the same.

“I cannot and will not do this alone.”

Photo credits: Photovendo, PhotoDavid and PhotoAlex

Categories: 42k, Marathon, TBR, TBR Dream Marathon Tags:

TBR Dream Marathon: I’m A Marathoner (Part 1)

May 24th, 2010 journeyingjames 9 comments

“I AM A MARATHONER!”

Four months of training had passed and I can now say that I have run a marathon. 42.195 kilometers or 26.2 miles is finished! I just want to remember the first race that I joined last December 2009. I was wearing a Nike t-shirt:

(a 5k fun run at UPLB with my students, December 2009)

This is the reason why I wore this same shirt at the starting line:

(last minute stretching 6 minutes before gunstart)

Flashback…
When I arrived at the venue- Nuvali, it was 11:30pm May 21. I still can’t feel anything, I still can’t believe that I will be doing a 42k hours after. I was looking for a nice spot to set up my hammock to get some rest but I wasn’t able to find one.
I saw my TBR marathon classmates and ANR Alabang Group. The ANR Alabang group became our support group (more stories about them on the next post).
I’m not 100% in good standing coming from a Siargao and Cebu the past week, I lacked sleep and didn’t eat well the past days. The last week of marathon preparation was really bad except for more than an hour of surfing a.k.a. cross-training. =)

Still, I don’t want to think about this because it could easily discourage me from finishing the marathon. We had group pictures, met well-wishers, encouraged fellow TBR marathoners, prayed together.

dreamers and chasers (sana drinks and chasers na lang)

the Adination of Runners Alabang- our support groups and cheerers

prayer time, committing the run to the Lord

then the gunstart…

Pacing me was TitaniumRunner

At the finish line: Tired but fighting until the last kilometer

Official Time- 5:00:07 Chip Time- 5:00:02 (3 seconds shy of sub-5hr)
Split times: KM13- 1:46:30 and KM31- 4:08:32
Rank: 49 among 237 runners (41 among 173 male runners)

Gameplan: 21K-10K-10K (1km for walk breaks when tired, uphill and water stations). I would like to finish the 1st 21K as if nothing happened.

Nutrition: Since I knew that cold water and cold Gatorade will be over-flowing, I decided to just bring 2 small water bottles. I contains 3 hammer gels (2 espresso and 1 vanilla mixed), the other contains honey mixed with water. Someone gave me Nature Valley Bar and I ate fruits and chocolates whenever I can. I stop to every water stations to drink or dab water on my face. Honey helped me a lot as I did not experience hunger.

Costume Change: At KM32 I changed clothes, socks and shoes (the last 2 pics is very obvious). It was planned, thanks to Ms Nao for making this possible.

As far as I can remember, I like the trail part as I run faster during those parts. I was really walking the uphills to conserve energy. There are times that I would close my eyes to feel and savor the moment.

Sleep running?

Mt. Makiling has been my training ground during the marathon preparation and since Mt. Makiling can be seen from Nuvali my mantra was “I look up to the mountains, where does my help comes from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2). This verse has helped me especially at the 2nd half of the run.

Photo credits: Photovendo, PhotoAlex and PhotoDavid thru Jai’s digicam

Categories: 42k, TBR, TBR Dream Marathon Tags:

A dream marathon come true!

February 25th, 2010 journeyingjames 1 comment

A dream come true!

It was the 1st day of February when I learned about the TRB Dream Marathon through takbo.ph.

The Bull Runner Dream Marathon is a one-of-a-kind small and intimate marathon especially designed for first time marathoners. From the moment you register for the race, we will guide you towards training properly and wisely until you run all 42.195 kms of your first marathon and cross the finish line.

Joining a marathon tailored-fit for me is a good news. So I wasted no time and sent a reservation.

Here’s the e-mail I received last February 2

Hi!

Thank you for expressing interest in The Bull Runner Dream Marathon, one-of-a-kind small and intimate marathon made especially for you, the first-time marathoner!

We have reserved one slot for you. This slot will be held for 48 hours upon opening of registration…Our 16 weeks of training starts TODAY so even if you haven’t been officially registered into the race, it would be great if you can start training already.

Looking forward to seeing you on the road soon!

Run far and dream big,

TBR Dream Team

Come February 13 at exactly 10pm I saw myself paying the P950 registration fee happy, excited and thrilled to be joining this event, this dream.

Then after 21 days, I received another e-mail from the TBR Dream Team

Hi!

Welcome to The Bull Runner Dream Marathon! You are now officially registered for TBR Dream Marathon in Nuvali on May 22, 2010 at Nuvali…

DATES TO REMEMBER:

BULL SESSION: Saturday, 6 March 2010, 6 AM, 80 min. slow and easy run. Guest: Coach Rio de la Cruz to briefly discuss basic running form and technique before we run. Paced by Team Secondwind. Meet at R.O.X., Bonifacio High Street. Open to the public. Bring your friends!

BULL CIRCLE: Wednesday, 10 March 2010, 7 PM, R.O.X. “Getting the Body Marathon Ready” by Coach Jim Saret, Phil. Olympic Committee’s Sports Training and Fitness Consultant for all national teams. Coverage: injury prevention, neuromuscular stabilization, strength and conditioning for runners. Open to the public.

We look forward to seeing you on the road soon!

Run far and dream big,

TBR Dream Team

Thanks Jaymie and The Bull Runner Dream Team! I already started training using the TBR training program by Coach Jim Lafferty but I tweaked the weekend long runs because I have scheduled races.

Definitely, I will run farther and dream bigger!