Bruised and Blessed: QCIM3: My Third 21k

Since it first started, the Quezon City International Marathon (QCIM) has been a special, highly anticipated race for me. For one thing, it's done in Quezon City where I live, not in far off Fort Bonifacio where most of the major races are held. For another, the QCIM is a rare occasion during which half of the lengthy and busy Commonwealth Ave is emptied of vehicular traffic and transformed into a spacious playground for runners. It is a runner's dream to race along the long stretch of this infamous, accident-prone highway sans the noise, fumes and very real danger of cars running you over. And while the route is scenic, it isn't without a few challenges. It slopes uphill, especially along the Tandang Sora flyover and going towards Fairview.

Another great thing going for the QCIM is that it is always well planned and organized. A runner can't really ask for more. There are more than adequate water stations, kilometer markers and road directions, helpful marshals, and -- wait a minute--no medical aid stations this time? I don't recall seeing Red Cross volunteers or medical personnel in this year's race, though thankfully, I didn't have any need for their help. But maybe they were around and I just didn't see them.

For the QCIM3, some of the hydration stations even offered bananas and Gatorade drinks, which I really appreciated. When you don't have enough energy gels with you during a long run, those can truly help.

I woke up at 3:00 am on race day. With my brain still groggy with sleep, I wondered why I was subjecting myself to all these troubles instead of just going back to the warm comfort of my bed (and on such a cold December morning). I hurriedly had coffee, a few bites of lasagna and pastry, and hoped they would be enough to sustain me through the run. I had but one Gu energy gel (I calculated I needed at least three) and a Snickers bar as baon.

I was thankful my right leg was feeling alright and probably 90% recovered from a shin splint that had been bothering me earlier. But just to be sure, I wore a leg brace/compression thingy (I don't know the right term for it). This later proved to be a very prudent decision.

Before starting the race, I was resigned to the fact that I might need to walk during the latter part. I was under-trained because of my leg injury, and I was feeling far from confident. I told myself I'd just try to enjoy myself during the run as much as I can, and see how it goes. If I felt tired or had my usual leg cramps, I'd simply walk. I'm not running the full 42k marathon anyway, so I was not worried about the curfew time. Even if I walked half of the race, I would finish well before the allotted closing time of 11:00 am.

As it happened, the gods of running smiled upon me during this race, and I didn't experience any leg cramps. Without fail, I'd have cramps during any run that's longer than 12 or 13 kilometers--but for some reason, I didn't during this race. Wow! I was very pleasantly surprised. Later, I tried to analyze how this happened, and I concluded that it's perhaps the leg compression stocking that saved me. That's the one thing I did in this race differently from previous races. Maybe the Gu gel which I took close to Km 5 also had something to do with it. In previous races, I contented myself mostly with just Gatorade and water as fuel. I now realize that energy gels provide extra sustenance. (Duh!)

My finish time was nothing to brag about; in fact it was longer than my first two 21k races. But I was more than happy. No leg cramps, no walking (except while hydrating and munching on bananas), no problems at all! It was an easy breezy run, made enjoyable by the wonderful route, the efficient work of the organizers, and the December weather that's ideal for running. There was even a nice little drizzle as I approached the finish line.

There was a post-race raffle with a most enticing prize: a condo unit. I felt obligated to stay around and wait for the raffle draw, because you never knew who might win. If your race number was drawn and you're not around, you'd be deemed ineligible for the prize. And so I made tambay at City Hall until 11:30 am. I stayed there for a longer time than I spent running during the actual race. Good thing I had my earbuds and iPhone with me, so I didn't get too bored. Okay, maybe I was bored and dozed off a bit. (I woke up at 3 am, didn't I?) I tried to fill the down time reading up on trivia on my iPhone. (Did you know that the circular bits of paper you get after using a puncher have a name? They're called chads.)

By the way, medals were given to finishers of the the 21k and 42k categories. There was supposedly a loot bag too, but I only got an empty SDMC bag. Anyway, that's no biggie. Finishing the race injury-free was enough for me. It was another wonderful QCIM.