KOTR2010

Being one of the most awaited road races in the country, the Adidas King of the Road 2010 was a goal- setting event. I myself have set a goal for this event. I was hoping to set a new PR with Swthrt in the 10K category. Though we haven’t run much during weekdays, we consistently have our weekend runs at UPD covering a distance of 10K to 21K. So I was quite confident that we can clock a better time on this race. But not until a couple of days prior the race day that I have been experiencing heart palpitations from time to time. I also easily get tired even with minimal physical exertion. I told Swthrt about it the night before the race sending her to an alarming state because she knew I had a history of hyperthyroidism and angina (chest pains) before I started running two years ago. Having this in mind, Swthrt was really worried about me running the race. I assured her that if I felt any discomfort while running I will stop at once.

The Race
We woke up early, took a nice oatmeal breakfast and off we go to the site. JM our eldest son will be running his 2nd KOTR in the 5K category. Upon settling down after having parked our car, Swthrt and I went to the group of 10K runners waiting for their release as the 21K runners were sent off to start. JM went on to run around while waiting for their turn. Swthrt and I went to a very slow starting as I continue to monitor my heart rate (I used the heart monitor given to me by my cousin Noel). Swthrt was always asking me if I’m feeling OK. I knew she was more conditioned to run and set a PR on this one but she opted to stay with me. As we traverse the narrow road near DOE, I was gaining confidence that I can finish the race. We were slowly picking up our pace. I was even excited seeing JM among the first group of 5K runners when we came across near the Home Depot area. He was having fun as he was running fast. Swthrt and I continued on as I would either jog slowly or briskly walk if I felt my heart beating fast or if I was grasping for air. As we reached the Kalayaan flyover, I was really getting exhausted but managed to run/walk until we get to the top. Swthrt would run ahead of me but would either wait or run back at me to make sure I’m running OK. We were able to make the last U turn of 10K runners. I prodded Swthrt to go on ahead of me but she wanted to make sure I’m doing well. Eventually, I was able to convince her that I will be fine for the rest of the race route and that I wanted her to go ahead and run her pace and still be able to set a good time. Good thing she made it to the finish line four minutes ahead of me. Swthrt can do better than that if not only she was keeping pace with me almost the entire race. We were both glad to have finished the race without any problem. And yes, no PR for this race, not this time. We enjoyed the rest of our time roaming around and eating the free breakfast pack meal and looking for JM who set a new PR of 24:00 for the 5K.

Post race
I guess all the bad luck must have been absorbed by our car as we have front wheel flat tire when we returned to the parking lot. JM and I had to change tire before leaving the place. As for my health condition, I will see the doctor ASAP for a thorough check up. Come Monday, Swthrt and I had a good 45 minute recovery run in our village and spent a lot of time watching DVD movies for a deserved rest. Thank God for a great long weekend for us.

Race evaluation
This year’s edition of KOTR had a new route. The narrow and pot hole filled road near DOE created some traffic jam for runners. The marshals were also not able to control the 10K runners in giving way to the coming 21K runners. I’m sure these 21K runners were having a hard time and have been annoyed by the incident. There were few marshals manning the race route. The water stations were strategically positioned (at least for the 10K route) but with less staff to man this stations. I also noticed that there were no timing mats for recording split time at crucial turn around points making it prone to cheating. I just hope they will do better next time.