My first KOTR

Much have been told about the recently-concluded “ Adidas King of the Road Race”. Let me share my experiences too! This was my first KOTR race and I was as excited as the thousands of registered runners. We went home last Friday from a prayer meeting at around 12 midnight. Our churchmates knew we had a race on Saturday morning so we started the meeting earlier than usual. We woke up the following day at 4:00 am, prepared ourselves, check our race bibs and off we went to BHS. While in the car I was looking for my ipod which I planned to use for the race. I thought I placed it on my bag but unfortunately I left it at home. All we got was JM’s ipod which I can’t use because the receiver for the nike sports kit was on my ipod. Besides, he is also going to use it. We also got the sports watch which I wanted swthrt to use to track her time during the race. Anyway, I didn’t want to disappoint myself so I told Swthrt that God might want to tell us something. I got back on my excitement mode with the hope that I will not miss God’s message for us during the race. We arrived at BHS at around 5:15am. 10K runners will take off at exactly 6am. You could feel the excitement in the faces of multitudes of runners. I saw familiar faces of bloggers/runners and met with my officemates and cousins who’ll also be joining the race. Swthrt, JM and I did some warm-ups. We also studied the race route posted for the 10K as well as 5K. Swthrt and I was able to do simulation run last Thursday night to most part of the 5K route. We just missed the portion from DOE going to the road leading to University Ave all the way to Market Market. This helped Swthrt gained some confidence in running her first 5K.

The Race.
The 21K runners were released at exactly 5:30am. 10K runners were then called to the starting line. Swthrt and JM were positioned behind the 10K runners since they will be running the 5K. I was joined by Gemini0522 who will also be running the 10K with knee injury. We positioned ourselves in the middle part of the assembly area. I had a goal and a plan in mind. Plan A was to finish the race within 1 hour. Plan B is to at least set a new PR in 10K. My plan was to start faster than my usual pace and try to sustain it to most part of the race. The starting gun was fired and the runners of the 10K are on the road. I heard gemini0522 shouting at me “see you at the finish line Bro J”. I felt good at the start of the race and was still coming strong as I approached the intimidating Kalayaan Flyover. I knew this will be a tough portion because some of my friends have already run this course in previous races. I was able to make it through the flyover. The site of the water station at the foot of the flyover makes me run even faster plus it was downhill. I was able to keep pace even for short time with Erlito, my high school classmate. I ran at a steady pace all the way to the half point for 10K. On my way back, my cousin Alwyn caught up with me. We had a few chat and then I told him to just go with his stronger pace and went ahead. I also ran with my officemates, Norman who gladly offered me his water to freshen me up. The return route at the flyover was harder than I thought. I had to slow down and took shorter strides and try to avoid walking. As I near The Fort, I knew it will only be a few more kilometers to the finish. I tried to push more, hoping to hit my goal of 60 min. As I approach the finish line, I looked at the clock but I’m having a problem with my sight because I did not use my eyeglasses. I think I hit 1:06 for this race, 9 minutes faster than my previous PR. I may not achieved my goal but I have set a new PR and I felt great about my run. I thank the Lord that He protected me on this race. I was welcome by Swthrt and JM at the finish line.

Swthrt and JM also have a good run of the 5K route. They just told me that there was no water station along the way and that it was really hot because the sun was already up by the time they started. Swthrt finishes the race in 34 min while JM clocked 32 min. Hooray for Swthrt and JM!

JM and Swthrt

One thing I was excited about is the insights that God allows me to see in the different experiences I have in every race. This time God has spoken to me again. Nowadays, runners are given a chance to take advantage of the technology. More gadgets are available to runners either to improve their time or to aid them track their pace, distance and more. I don’t think this is wrong. I also took advantage of it. I had a nike+ sports kit given to me by my brother, Relly. This time though, I was not able to use it. I unintentionally left it at home. I knew I had to run this race and finish it even without any gadget, and that’s what God made me realize. I can finish this race by focusing on my goal and not depending on anything else. Just like in our spiritual run towards the goal of being with God in the finish. Now, there are more than one ways offered to everybody to be assured of salvation. Others offer memberships, philosophy, or even items for possession to obtain salvation. God allowed me to know that I don’t have to depend on any of these. What he wants is for us to focus on the goal of finishing the race by faith, that is trust and obedience to God. The people whom I had ran with along the race somehow encourage me to go on. It may be likened to the believers we encountered in our daily living, who encouraged us, give support, guide us and cheer for us. They make the race easier for us. They are God’s language of giving help and sustaining us to finish the race. In the end, what matters most is how we focus on the Author and Finisher of our faith, our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless us all!