Race Report - Powerade Duathlon

In all honesty, after SUBIT last May, I have been slacking off. I've hardly been riding, and have toned down my runs and swims. The weather hasn't been cooperating since, and I have been finding reasons not to train. Over the last few weeks however, the pressure of Camsur 70.3 has finally gotten to me. It's less than 2 months away. HTFU Javy!

I was excited for this duathlon for several reasons. First, I had not done a duathlon since November last year. Secondly, I have been experimenting on a TT setup for my bike and I needed to test it. Also, I have not done a brick in months, so this would be a great workout. Lastly, the members of the national team would be present, as well as a lot of the elites of triathlon.

I racked my bike, setup my shoes and helmet, and I was set. Did a few hundred meters of warmup and I was good to go. Levy and I agreed to pace together. As I was not sure what kind of pace my legs would give me, I was planning on 4:30-4:45/km pace for the first 7km.

With one of my Idols National Team Member George Vilog

Run 1

The group started off at a frantic pace - of course, the national team members led the pack. About 2km in, there was some confusion and runners ended up doing a little loop. Amidst the confusion was our top National Duathlete August Benedicto, who seemed to have lost his way, and lost ground to the front pack. After clearing out some things with Coach Melvin and the Marshals, he continued on his way.

After about 4km, I found myself pushing a decent pace with Bombie of Tri-Clark. Later on, we caught up with Carlo of Timex and another Tri-Clark member Edward. I held on and finished the first run in 31:30 - right on target.

With Carlo during Run 1

T1 is never smooth for me. In almost every race, I screw up T1, and this was no exception. Right as I was mounting, I realized my cleats would not engage. I checked my shoes only to see my cleat covers still on - a rookie mistake! Note to self: Check shoes in transition :)

Bike

I didn't have much of a plan on the bike. As my setup was only days old, I just wanted to give it a good go and get a feel for it. The course was nice and pretty flat. Apart from a delivery truck parked in the middle of the bike course, it was a pretty good route.

With Deo of Tri-Pilipinas during the Bike Leg

I settled into a pretty good rhythm early. After a loop or two, I was in a pack with a tall kid and Edward of Tri-Clark. We took turns taking leads (not drafting). After the designated 5 loops, I checked my cyclometer and it said 25km. I didn't give it much thought, and proceeded to make another bike loop. The advertised distance was 7km - 30km - 4km, so I really did not doubt my decision. On my way back, I started noticing alot of people already on the run. That's when I realized that I might have made a mistake.

I entered T2 after 32km, and had averaged just a tad below 35kmh - well above my target. The setup seemed to be working! I racked my bike, slipped on my running shoes and visor, and off I went.

Run 2

The 2nd run was much simpler - it was an out and back. I settled into a pretty decent pace, and just thought of holding that pace all throughout. I was feeling pretty good as I tailed Joyette towards the finish line. I finished the 2nd run is just over 17mins, totalling 1:43.

I later on found out that I did, in fact, do an extra bike loop. Many other participants had made the same mistake. I'm not a loop counting person, so I rely on the accuracy of the information provided. Perhaps in the next race, I would be more diligent in asking the race director the exact distances of each leg, so that there would be no confusion.

Next stop, Camsur :)

*Thanks to Hannah for the pictures

Race Report - Speedo Aquathlon

Rewind

12 years ago to the date (April 19), my closest cousin died in a tragic car accident along South Superhighway. He was on his way home from his girlfriend's place, and was somewhere between Sucat & Bicutan, when his tire blew, causing the car to go out of control, and unto incoming traffic. He died instantly.

Mikel and I grew up together, born only months apart. We spent summers together, and had the same passion for sports and the outdoors. He moved from Bacolod to Manila to attend college at the Ateneo, where I was too. Instead of sleeping at his dorm, he preferred rooming with me. We shared a room and a bed, amongst alot of other things.

Growing Up

Both of us loved sports. Mikel represented La Salle Bacolod HS in Soccer and Basketball. In high school, I represented Ateneo in Tennis, Golf and Track & Field. Miks was one hell of an athlete.

It was because of Miks that I rekindled my love affair with soccer. I remember waking up early on saturday and sunday mornings, heading to Ateneo to kick around, and maybe play a pickup game or two. During afternoons, we would head to San Lorenzo, and play 7 or 8 aside. It was something we shared.

During the summer between 1st and 2nd year college, we had both made the team which would represent Ateneo in the Under-19 Nationals. We had a blast.

I vividly remember that fateful morning. My mom frantically woke me up, I looked at her face, then at Miks' side of the bed. It was then I realized that something bad had happened, since the sheets were cleanly tucked, and the pillows untouched. All my family convened at my Granma's house. All but me.

A few days later was the finals for Under-19 Nationals. In Miks' honor, the entire team wore a black band with his number '16' on it. During the start of the game, we had one minute of silence to honor him. I was filled with too much emotions, and could not finish the game without breaking into tears.

Fast-forward

On the way to AAV for the Aquathlon, I was accompanied by Hannah, Mikel's younger sister Ines, and my best friend Elmer who married her - talk about making the world smaller. Elmer was there to join the Triathlon Mini-Sprint - his first.

As I was driving along south superhighway, at just about the point and time exactly 12 years ago where he had met his untimely death, all the hairs in my body stood up. I felt him - and he was smiling at us. I was dedicating today's race to him.

The Race

As expected, the race was gonna be short and not so sweet. The 750m swim + 3.5km run was going to be quick and tough. I saw some familiar faces, and figured if I wanted a medal for Miks, I would have to work for it.

There's not much strategy in a race like this, it's just pedal-to-the-metal from the get go. The swim was tough, and for the first 250m, I was swimming alone since the faster swimmers had already packed a lead. Then I felt someone beside me, I glanced over and saw Tony Welsch. I let him pass with the hopes of taking his feet. What I didn't realize was Jon-jon Rufino already had. I tried to hang on to them for as long as I could.

Transitioning to the run, heart going bonkers

Shortly after, we were getting out of the pool and it was time to run. I quickly put on my running shoes, took a sip of water, put on my singlet and off I was. I came out of the water in 7th, and got one guy in transition (he chose to put on socks). So I started running in 6th, and knew if I wanted to place, I needed to advance a place, without losing one.

Finishing not so strong :P

I kept a pretty even pace, and finally settled into 5th place after a kilometer or so. I tried to keep up with Tony, but he was just way too fast. I eventually was trailing TI Coach Nonoy Basa, but did not have enough to chase him down. I held on crossed the line in just over 30 mins, in 5th place. My work was done - that was for you Miks!

With Ironman Ani de Leon

I quickly caught my breath, and headed over to the pool to support my best bud for his first triathlon. He managed a decent swim, an excellent bike split, smooth transitions, and a good run - finishing 10th overall (despite there being elites).

Mer finishing strong!

All in all, a good day. We miss you Miks!

Congrats to Lee, Ian, Deo and the rest of the first time finishers! Thanks to Hannah once again for the full race coverage :)


'Time keeps on slippin, slippin, slippin
Into the future
Time keeps on slippin, slippin, slippin
Into the future

I want to fly like an eagle
To the sea
Fly like an eagle
Let my spirit carry me
I want to fly like an eagle
Till Im free
Oh, lord, through the revolution'
- Steve Miller Band

Race Report - Speedo Aquathlon

I had been nervously waiting for this race for the past week and so, at 4:30 am, I was up. Not any amount of water, milk or sheep counting would put me back to sleep...so like a true Web Junky I did the next best thing - I surfed the Internet.

Finally, my alarm went off. I prepared my typical pre-race meal - Peanut butter sandwich.


By the time I arrived in ULTRA, the SuperTriKids were about to start. It's a blast watching these kids compete. Even better, is watching their stage parents egging them on, or running beside them hoping they'd push harder. Watching them made me wish I had started at a much younger age.

This little girl took full advantage of a quick transition - she put on Crocs! Howver, She got caught by that little boy

Shortly after, Coach Rick conducted his race briefing in waves. He detailed both the swim and run portions - making sure nobody would make a mistake.

The swim was a typical TRAP pool swim - we were to tackle 950 meters. This consists of getting in and out of the pool several times. The 950m were broken up in 3 segments - 350-400-200. After the first 350 meters of zig-zagging across lanes, you have to get out of the pool, run down and re-enter. Then, after the next 400 meters, you once again exit, make a dash and re-enter for the final 200 meters.

The run would be short but testy. It consisted of 2 loops within the ULTRA complex then the final 600 meters inside the track oval. There were 2 hills within the run route, which meant we would be tackling 4 hills in just 3km.

By the looks of it, it was gonna be a short and fast race. Pedal-to-the-metal, redline, HRM-beeping-Zone-5-all-the-way kinda race. Not a bad way so start a Sunday.

We 'middle-aged' (30-49 yrs old) were the last wave to be let off. It was about 8am by then - oooooofff HEAT! Our wave was led off by National Swimming Coach Guy Concepcion, who obviously posted the day's fastest swim time of 13:00 - DAMN!

The riot swim start

And we were off - I stayed in the inner lane, so as to avoid some of the confusion brought about by a pool start. That way, I would only have to worry about someone on my right - unless of course some daredevil skims the stainless steel lane dividers.

After a lap or two, I felt the group thin out. I was in a pack of 4-5 swimmers then, consisting of Paolo Diaz (I could tell by his Phiten Tape), JonJon Rufino (I could tell by the full body suit), Tony Welsch (PoloTri) and 2 other guys. I knew these were all good swimmers, so I hung on for as long as I could.

Its actually Swim-Run-Swim-Run-Swim-RUN!

Finally, 17 and a half minutes later, I was getting out of the pool. A quick transition, sip of water, and off I was to the run. The hills were tough, especially that one right before the pool. I felt like I was on a stair climber. Just as you were recovering from that one, there was another one waiting. I just held on and pushed to finish the race.

At the top of that testy hill right in front of the Pool

I finished in 31 minutes and change, well within my target. Shortly after came JonJon Rufino (PoloTri), Hector (Pinoy Ultra Runners), Jody (Transition One) and Paolo. The race was what I expected - short, fast yet tough. There is no recovering in a race like this. Like a 5k race, its a hard push from start to finish.

Short, but Sweet!

In the absence of the elites, I was lucky enough to post the 9th fastest time of the day, and bag a podium spot in my age group (30-34). What a surprise :)

'Til next time!

With Paolo and my teammate Jody (who finished 3rd)

*Thanks to Trigger Happy Hannah for the photos

List of Triathlon, Duathlon & Aquathlon Races for 2009

Updated from TRAP:

Jun 28 - Duathlon - MOA
Jul 5 - SPEEDO NAGT 3rd Leg - Sprint Distance - Cebu
Aug 23 - Ironman 70.3 - Half Ironman - CamSur
Sep 20 - SPEEDO NAGT 4th Leg - Sprint Distance - Cagayan de Oro
Sep 20 - Duathlon - MOA
Sep 26 - Gabriel's Symphony - STK - AAV
Oct 4 - SPEEDO NAGT 5th Leg - Sprint Distance - Los Banos
Oct 18 - SPEEDO NAGT 6th Leg - Sprint Distance - AAV
Nov 15 - Philippine International Duathlon Open - Standard Distance -Subic Bay
Nov 28-29 - Anvaya Cove Triathlon - Standard & STK - Anvaya Cove, Bataan
Dec 13 - Davao Mayor's Cup - Standard Distance - Davao

Race Report - Philippine International Duathlon Open

I arrived in Clark the day before the race (Saturday) as Hannah and I were lucky enough to crash in one of her friend’s places just outside the base. To kill time (yeah right), we drove the bike route. It was very picturesque, and with rolling hills, trees and lots of greenery. I took time to appreciate its beauty – since, when you’re crawling up a hill at 10kmh on your last gear, panting, legs cramping…its quite hard to appreciate the beauty around you. I was ‘bitin’ with the drive – I wanted to try out the bike route, just to get a feel of it…so off I went.

The bike route for the standard distance consisted of 5 loops of this 8km course. The route starts off with a slight incline and a few twists and turns around the parade ground, until the main road is reached. From there, it’s 2 small hills, then a short downhill – and that’s where all the fun ends. The next 1.5 kilometers is uphill all the way to a place they call the ‘ruins’. How apt! My legs (and ego) were ruined each time I reached its peak. However, just as you are about to curse the course, it quickly becomes your best friend.

Luckily, what goes up, must come down. Its pretty much downhill all the way back from there. Big-ring-small-cog kinda downhill. 60kmh-put-your-head-down-grab-your-drops-tight and pray-you-don’t-hit-a-pothole kinda downhill. After about 1.5km of that, a slight uphill, a few turns and you’re back in the parade grounds.

I didn’t bother running the run course as I was hoping to save all the energy I had left for race day. I had been nursing a cold, and have not been feeling well since the AAV Triathlon last sunday.

My targets for the 10km-40km-5km Run-Bike-Run course, were 55mins for the first 10k, 1:25 for the bike leg (adjusted it after I surveyed it) and 28mins for the last 5k, plus change for transitions. Those targets would have brought the total to about 2:50.

A loooooong day was ahead.

Race Day

I woke up very early, had my usual pre-race meal (peanut butter sandwich) and went off to the parade grounds. As usual, got inked very quickly, got my race number, and fixed my transition area. It felt weird having practically nothing in the transition area – just my bike and my helmet. I kept having that ‘what did I forget’ feeling – perhaps it was just another case of start line stress.
A quick warmup, race briefing and before I knew it, I was at the starting point of my very first Duathlon.

Right before the starting gun shot off – I found Levy. We talked for a bit, and in the process, he told me not to be surprised if the run times were very quick, as the course was uphill one way, but downhill the rest. Thank God he told me this – otherwise I might have paced myself too much!

A around 6:40, the starting gun went off…and so did we. After the crowd thinned, I found Levy and a few other participants. I decided to hang on for the first 10k (or the most I could) . We were going at a pretty good pace, and before I knew it, the first of 4 laps had gone. Lap after lap I hung unto his back (Levy, I hope you did not mind), and fortunately I made it to the end. We ended our first 10k in about 48:45 – which is tremendously fast for someone like me.

Me pacing with Levy aka 'Happy Hour'

A quick bike-to-run transition, and off to the bike leg. What followed were five laps of pure heartache and bliss. Heartache one way, bliss the other. Heaven and hell shared the road in this one. My planned race nutrition consisted of a bottle of water, Gatorade and 2 packs of GU. Tri-berry (w/caffeine) on my 2nd bike lap, and Espresso Love (w/ 2x caffeine) towards the end of my bike lap. By my 4th lap, I had already run out of all fluids. Its either I drank too much, or brought too little – at that point I was hoping it’was the former. My calves were already cramping during the last climb, so before the descent, I did some of my on-bike stretching. I ended my bike leg in about 1:24 – which was decent in my standards.


At this point I realized that my 2:50 target was well within reach. All I needed to do was fight through leg cramps and a sidestich and finish the last 5k. A run-shuffle made up most of the final kilometers. I was running on pure pride – hopefully it was enough. Apparently it was – my last 5k was just under 26 mins.

Bonked with 5km to go!

I crossed the finish line in 2:41:45. I made it…well within my target.



Shortly after, I found out that Philip aka ForeignRunner suffered a puncture during his first bike loop – causing a DNF. Sorry to hear that bro. Next time! You would have schooled us – we know it!

Me,Philip aka 'Foreign Runner' and Levy aka 'Happy Hour'

Thanks to Hannah (for all the support and race coverage) , Vince(for the pictures), and Levy(for all the advice).

Good job to Vince, Paolo, Marga, Harry, Hubert, Annie and all the other first timers ☺ Props to Coach Rick and the rest of TRAP for a very well organized and fun event. We should have more of these ☺

Next stop : New Balance 25k

P.S. – The top 5(consisting of the country’s top Triathletes and Duathletes) all finished under 2:00. Damn! Arland Macasaeb, a two-time Ironman finisher, and one of our premier triathletes, finished in 5th.

AAV Triathlon - October 12 2008

I arrived in AAV early, and had the chance to survey the 'famous' Ocho-Ocho bike route - which caused more than half the participants to be disqualified last Animo Tri. It was quite simple after all, that is, if you could keep track on which part of the bike loop you are on - fatigue does not help matters at all.

Got inked, got my race kit, and all was set. Luckily, I was given a corner spot - this somehow makes the transition area 'roomier' and makes it easier to locate. After preparing my transition area, all I needed to do was to warm-up (which I did not do). 'Start line stress' got the best of me, and the bathroom beckoned.

I started off in front - hoping to break away and miss some of the kicking and shoving which usually comes with a packed start. I got my rhythm after a few laps, and was in the zone (which is rare because I dread the swim). I had a perfect swim, except for the fact that I had to wrestle Alf for over almost 500 meters. I got out of the pool in just under 17:30 - way quicker than my usual swim time. Maybe the wrestling helped.

A quick transition, and off to the bike leg. I was riding my Cervelo Soloist (aka Sandy) for the first time (built the bike day before the race). I had not been training on dropbars for the past 6 months, so the feeling was alien to me. Levy aka 'Happy Hour' passed me during the last lap of the bike leg - I had been waiting for him to pass me all along. Except for the humps and the fact that somebody was drafting off me on the bike (You know who you are - Mahiya ka! Have some pride!), the bike ride was good. No excuses tho, I hit my target, finishing the bike leg in 1:00 flat.

Another perfect transition, and off to the run . I was feeling a bit dehydrated at this point, and I was beginning to fight cramps and a side stich. About a kilometer or two into the run, Phillip 'Foreign Runner' passed me too. I was certainly struggling. It was at this point that I realized my 'dream' of breaking the 2hr mark was not within reach. I dug deep but it was not enough. I bonked...

A run time of 42minutes brought the total to 2:04. I managed to finish 5th in my age bracket, and 23rd overall. What suprised me was that I posted a the 7th fastest swim split. I cannot complain about my time since it was decent, considering the fact that I had spent the past month vacationing.

Thanks to Hannah for full race coverage (despite her aching legs from her previous day's Half Marathon). Thanks to TEAM SUPER for support as well! You guys really ARE SUPER! Thanks to Vince for the parts :D

Congrats to the Winners, Suzi for finishing 1st in her age bracket, Levy for finishing 3rd and Phillip for finishing 4th in their age brackets.