Second 15K at the Mizuno Run...

This is a really late post. I've been swamped with work, and I already know the next two weeks would be swamped with work, but I also know that I have to write an entry in my blog. Thus, here I am. Haha! Bomalabs intro.

Last Sunday, I did my second 15K at the Mizuno Infinity Run. I joined the same run last year, but I joined the 10K group. The run was quite good. I did much better than The Green Miles Run. Unofficial time for Mizuno Run is about 1:49. For the Green Miles Run, I clocked in at 1:52. Not bad, huh?!

The race route was also much better. I was already quite familiar with the directions (or so I thought), even if I still can't remember the names of the streets at the Fort. This is from a guy who has attended more than 5 races at that venue. Hahaha!

The night before the run, I checked the race map which I downloaded from a blog one of the more serious runners. I was quite sure that in that map, the turning point was right before crossing the railroad at the Buendia and South Super Highway intersection. So when the guy doing the VO was reciting the race route, I was surprised when I heard that we would be crossing SSH and that we had to go a little further. The turning point was in Bautista. Shoot.

I had no problem with the distance. What I didn't like was having to run that area right after crossing SSH. First, there are more vehicles in that area. Aside from the buses that come from Ayala, you have provincial buses from SSH, the jeepneys from wherever, and other private vehicles. In short, the road's more dangerous and the pollution is more terrible. Ugh! But since there's really nothing I can do about it, I thought the best thing to do was to get out of that area fast. That's exactly what I did.

During the return run to the finish line, the last few kilometers are always a struggle. I had to call on Agnes, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry to help me cross the finish line. Hehehe! And so far, the girls have never failed me. Woohoo! It was extremely hot last Sunday so even if I downed several glasses of water and Gatorade along run, I was ultra thirsty when I crossed the finish line. Haha!

Compared to the other races, the Mizuno Run was much more simpler and with less fanfare. A quick reaction would be to say, "It's not as good as this run or that run." or "This run doesn't have that much oomph." But after giving things a little thought, I realized that it still was a good run. Sure, there wasn't that much post-run gimmickry, but the organizers took really good care of the actual run. There were enough directional signages. There were water stations at strategic points. Marshalls were present at several points of the race route to guide runners. The finish line was decent.

That's all that matters, I guess. After all, it was only recent when runs became more of a competition among corporate sponsors, right?! I'm not saying I don't like being surprised at how fantab this company or that company will mount the event. I'm just saying that the Mizuno Run still is a good run, because it satisfied the first and foremost reason why we all decided to get up at an ungodly hour on that Sunday morning - and that is to run, yeah? Everything else is just a bonus.

Mizuno Run. Check. Up next is the Earth Run. 16K, baby, 16K!