adidas King Of The Road 2012

September 30, 2012
Bonifacio Global City
16.8K Run

It was a little bit too early for me, I almost arrived late and went to the back of the starting line as it was already packed with runners.  Luckily I spotted a couple who were going to the front slicing the crowd with reckless abandon, I just tailed them like a car tailing an ambulance and ended near the front.  After a pre race warm up led by coach Ani De Leon a countdown to gunstart followed then we're off to the first corner.

I joined this race as scheduled in my White Rock Triathlon plan (October 27, 2012).  To tell you the truth this was my first long run.  As I don't do long runs during workouts my previous longest run was a 60 minute 12K.  My target time was 1:20 but luckily I finished with a time of 1 hour and 17 minutes - 1:17:09 to be exact.  Yehey!  With still 1 month before my jogging anniversary I felt very satisfied with my time.

Hydration Stations:  Unlike multisports races, fun runs have fewer hydration stations and this one was no exception but it was relatively okay and there were bananas on some stations.

Route:  Starting near the front the route was not crowded.  The different distances merged only near the finish line.  Kalayaan flyover was a welcome challenge.

Cheering:  There were cheerers on some parts of the route, even Jollibee mascot went to cheer.

Celebrity:  Not sure but here goes.. Karylle, Erwan and Solen Heusaf, Spongecola band member, Michelle Madrigal.

Traffic Management:  From my point of view it was okay.

Kilometer Markers:  There were markers almost at every kilometer but some were distinctly way off the mark.  Time gaps were placed at kilometer 5 and 10.

Marshals:  There were enough at every key areas.

Singlet:  Excellent: adidas brand

Medal:  Excellent

Freebies:  Vitamins, medicines, canned tuna, deodorant, multisport source book.  Photobooth picture.

Injuries:  A nasty blister on my left foot, and my right calf hurts so much. These injuries proved costly to my triathlon training as I have races on October 7 and October 27.  I'll be racing Rudy Project Triathlon without practice as I have to rest and hope that my foot and calf will be ready for a short tri.

The Bad:  In the results page they didn't list my name correctly and my age was wrong - Peterson sounds too far from Neil don't ya think?

Waiting for gunstart

5k runners waiting for their turn

First Aid Station

At the finish line

The 'Itchy Worms' performing for the crowd

Sponsors' Booths

TRIpalooza 2012

TRIpalooza 2012
Venice Piazza, McKinley Hill, Taguig
September 29-30, 2012

List of Exhibitors

The busiest man in the event: Sir Carlos of sbr.ph

Bikes!

and more bikes!

Shoes!

Goggles and bags!

Apparel!

Bike again!

The Venue

Ridiculously Short Aquathlon

BS-HRM Students' Sports Management Class Project
Aquathlon 300 meter swim - 800 meter run
September 22, 2012

Registration Table

Waiting for gun start at the pool with the track field in the backround

Transition Area

Finish Line after 2 loops at the track oval (i finished with a time of 9:54)

Adidas King of the Road Race Pack

Adidas King of the Road
September 30, 2012
16.8K - Bonifacio Global City

Race pack arrived on September 19, 2012 via WWW Express delivery

Contents: singlet, number, L time studio gift certificate, Sennheiser discount card, tote bag, map

100 Plus drink, adidas body care, finisher's medal, baggage stub

back of race number: timing chip and personal information

Active Health Duathlon at SCTEX

draft

September 9, 2012
6K-60K-4K
South Clark Exit

Just glad there were a lot of portalets... I got to use it on my 2nd loop :-)

Finished with a time of 2:56... sorry ang bagal pa rin hehe

Idols Monica and Kim

And the most beautiful lady in a trisuit

My traditional pose in transition area

Aling Ineng's Barbecue

Among the many tents near the starting line

Holiday Inn Clark for Active Health Duathlon

draft

You know you're in Pampanga

At Holiday Inn Clark

Timing Chip and Loot Bag

Race Pack

View from the room

Rudy Project Triathlon at Republic Wakepark

Rudy Project Triathlon
900m - 30K - 8K
October 7, 2012
Republic Wakepark, Nuvali, Sta. Rosa City
Registration Fee: 3,000 at Rudy Project Stores
Organizers: TriMac Coaching and Adrenaline Multisport

Republic Wakepark

Front Desk

Artificial Lake with Viewing Deck

Starting Point of Wakeboarders

Shop

Powerade Duathlon Leg 3

Powerade Duathlon Leg 3
Sta. Rosa City
7K – 35K – 3.5K

Powerade tarp near the pool (free use of pool)

It was raining hard an hour before the start of the race and I got lost in the town of Sta. Rosa. After some help from tricycle drivers I made it to Sta. Elena City and proceeded to the clubhouse to get my race pack. When I told the verifier my name someone said ‘sino si Neil Ong?’ and saw a lady dressed in Team Beacon trisuit. It was Karen my teammate, glad to actually see a teammate for the first time.

Transition Area after the Race

This is easily the biggest duathlon event I have been part of.  With more than 500 participants the starting line was packed and I couldn’t squeeze myself into the front unlike the previous races where I would sneak in and start near the front.

With Karen of Team Beacon

Because of the rain before the race we were gifted with a perfect racing weather condition. The run course was slippery. The bike course was wide, flat and fast with some big road humps. This was probably the first time I rode in a race without feeling exhausted on the bike due mainly to the lovely weather. It was such a joy riding with my cycling shoes for the first time. With an average speed of 30.8 kph I was faster than my previous races but I attribute it to the race course being flat and straight. Upon entry to the transition area for the second run I noticed some men already taking a rest and asked them  ‘tapos na kayo?’, they all nodded and wow they’re really fast or I was just too slow.

Aling Ineng's free meal

Celebrity sighting: my wife saw Matteo Guidicelli and told me that he was way ahead of me. I also saw a gorgeous model wearing Gotta Tri racing suit, I think it’s Isabelle Daza.

yurbuds Booth inside the clubhouse

After the race I got my high quality Powerade shirt made by 8a apparel, checked out some booths, grabbed free Aling Ineng’s breakfast and took a shower.

Zoot

The multisport scene is looking pretty good and I’m just glad to be part of it.

In Front of the Clubhouse (14th in my AG :-)

My Upcoming Races

2 months with no racing activity equals less training and some badminton.  With no races in sight I opted to reduce my workouts even though I know I'm going to join White Rock Triathlon on October 27, 2012.  To force myself to train again I signed up for some events and here are the lineup so far leading to my first mid distance triathlon.

1.  August 19, 2012 - Powerade Duathlon Leg 3 - To test my legs I'll try to race this hard and see if my muscles will hold well during the second run.  This will also be the first time I'll use my bike shoes in a race.

2.  September 9, 2012 - Unilab SCTEX Duathlon - This is where I will test the nutrition packs I planned to use in WRT and gauge my target time approximation.

3.  September 30, 2012 - adidas King of The Road - This is going to be my first fun run that will exceed 12 kilometers.  In preparation for the 20K run of WRT I will sign up for the 16.8K run and experiment with my pacing strategy.

4.  October 7, 2012 - Rudy Project Triathlon - Just registered to get a free Rudy Project glasses :-)

After these 3 events I will focus my training on swimming and long rides starting on Octber 2, 2012 and hope to be healthy, happy and fit to accomplish my workouts. As always... train easy and race hard :) . Life is good!