36th Milo Marathon : God made a way!

RACE REVIEW:

Registration Fees & Package - Very affordable fees and almost complete package (singlet, bib, finisher's item for 21k & 42k runners) plus you'll be a part of Milo’s Give a Shoes advocacy.

Hydration - There were enough water stations. The water was cold in some part. The only thing that I don't like is the sport's drink. (I'm not used to drinking 100plus so I relied in water.)

Route and Traffic Management - The race route was clear, well-lit, traffic-free and absolutely for runners only. There were also kilometer markers and portable toilets.

Medics - I only saw 3 stations and they were not as attentive as what I expected during emergency. 

Program - It started on time, rain or shine.

Over all, it's 4 out of 5 Precious Smiles!

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The 36th Milo Marathon Manila Leg is one of my bittersweet races.

Around 245am, in the wee hours of the morning, with all the courage and determination, I stood in the starting line along with two thousand 42k runners, did some stretching and waited for 3am for the race start.

I started running with my own pace and aimed for a PR. I thought I was in a good condition but at km1.5 I suffered in abdominal pain. It made me slow down and walk. While walking, a dear friend of mine, A, like a heaven's angel, appeared next to me and offered some help.

He ran by my side and never left me alone. He turned out to be my nurse for the whole race. I'm very much thankful for his "katinko" that temporarily took away the pain. Katinko was not enough alone but it's a great help. I applied it from time to time.

I know I need a hot compress and a pain reliever that moment. A asked medicine from the first medics that we saw along Roxas but there was none. We also did the same at the second stop, but still unavailable. They also said that it would be too bad for me to take such medicine during the race.  Whoa! I'd done that before but nothing bad happened. Why I wasn't allowed to take that? Anyway, it's not advisable to argue with them so I continued running with A.

-Running along Roxas Blvd.-

When we passed along Buendia, he looked for a drugstore but unfortunately, it's closed. We ran and walked in the route and relied with the powerful "katinko". I also felt shin splints on my left leg. Katinko became my little savior that time.

When I'm in pain, the only thing that made me smile is the camera..

Thank God that at around km29, we bumped into a runner friend who had a pain reliever. I took the medicine but I waited some time for its effect. It seemed like I want to stop and attach DNF to my name but  A is determined to take me to the finish line.

While we were on the road, I felt the tiredness and boredom he's hiding. I'd even asked him to leave me and run ahead but he's so patient. He never allowed me to give up. I can still remember how he showed me the way. While walking ('cause I can't run) in the Kalayaan Flyover, he pointed a billboard along our way. It said "God will make a way!". He read it and asked me to repeat after him. I followed. I looked like a little girl learning a new thing. I said it loud. "God will make a way!" Then, I tried running again.

God will make a way! (along Kalayaan Flyover)

Hey! Look back! (Running along Buendia going back to MOA)

At km35, I got my second wind. My watch showed that we're running for almost 5 hours and 11 minutes. I saw the light; we can cross the finish line within the 6 hours cutoff if we ran all the way to finish line. We ran as fast as we could but at the last 5km, I'm alright while A started to suffer in a headache. He can't run with a fast pace. I tried to push him as much as I could but I know it's not easy to run with some pain just like what I felt during the first part of our race.

I didn't want to waste his effort. I desperately aimed a medal that he deserves. I tried to ask him if I could go ahead, ran to hit the cutoff and gave him whatever I got in the finish line. But it's a big big NO. As much as I wanted it, I can't leave someone who pushed me earlier to reach that point. So we continued to run and walk and I prayed that we'll reach the finish line.

We actually ran 44.57 kms. We exceeded the real distance due to stopovers like pharmacy and convenience store hunting. I also consumed some time in portable toilet.

We passed many running friends cheering for us in the last kilometer. Thank God for that. Cheers and supports were the best things that we had.

Still smiling! All the way to the finish line..

We crossed the finish line together even though we're beyond cut-off. Having someone like A by my side is really a blessing in disguise. Without him, I won't be able to finish. Thank God for giving me such a running buddy.

I also saw Rox waiting in the finish line. I hugged her and told her briefly what happened to me. I almost cried (tears of joy and pain) but thank God I had overcome it through a big smile. :)

For the post-race pics:

-While waiting for the rain to stop.-

-fixing my things-

After the very painful race, I still got a chance to be with my team Rock and Road in a breakfast while A joined the rest of Ok-Ok Runners.

Team Rock and Road united!

There were so many reasons to be happy! (Candid shot c/o Rad)

"Finishing a marathon isn't just an athletic achievement. It's a state of mind; a state of mind that says anything is possible."



Many thanks to SCR, Photovendo, Jobert, Yani, Edrick and Rad for the photos above.