33rd Milo Marathon - PART 2

The first kilometer started very, very, very slowly.

There were more than 1000 runners squeezed at the start. We were somewhere at the middle.

The spacing in between was so tight that everybody else at the front needed to start running before we could start jogging.

It was jam packed at the starting line. The cameras help it tighten even more as everyone else who sees a camera in front of them cherishes the moment, slows a little bit more and flashes a smile of confidence and joy.

It took me around ten minutes before I could sweat and heat up to my running pace. I reached the first kilometer and there was a drinking station already.

I passed. I thought I didn't need it that early and I was just be running with extra weight in my belly. When I saw the Gatorade station at about the second kilometer of the run, I was a little hesitant to drink. Am I thirsty yet? Probably not. But then, man come 'on.. It's Gatorade. I began to think of a little refreshment, a little tasty drink won't hurt right? So I stopped for a drink.

If it was another water station, I thought I would have passed again. Hehehe. I was running fast (relative to my normal pace), so I'm wondering where would the 3rd kilometer be? Am I at the 3rd kilometer yet, Please say so as I'm getting more and more tired by the second.

Seconds past, minutes past.. No sign of the 3rd kilometer post yet. I just kept my faster pace.

And when I finally reached the 3rd kilometer post, I felt sad and worried? Only now? I'm already breathing hard and sweating a lot. I was worried I would gas out before I could even reach the 5th kilometer of the run.

[Overpass Run]

And then came the overpass. It's a climb. I was passing by tens of runners (every 20 steps) before the 3rd kilometer post. At the overpass, people started to catch up with me and I could only pass by one, two maybe three runners.

It was a struggle.

Yet it was a lot of fun.

If I were alone running, I would have walked at that overpass and took my time. But the smiling faces and struggling faces and the determined faces of my fellow Milo Runners kept my legs running. The faster runners were already going back to the starting line, I am still struggling to reach the halfway mark. :(

The 5th kilometer was a joy.

Wow, I'm already at the halfway mark. I wanted to raise my hands and shout (as if I sank the winning three-point shot at the closing seconds of a basketball game). I was all pumped up, I felt like I had a new set of fresh legs to run with. :)

At the halfway mark, we're given a yellow knot. It was a mark that you've crossed the halfway mark and you can go back to the starting line to finish the race. I put it around my neck. It was more than a mark to me at that point, it was a crowning glory. :)

I was already at the halfway mark and now's the part to finish the race. I'm going back to the starting line (where the finish line also is). Yehey!

The feeling was totally reversed:

When I saw runners already going back and I was still struggling to reach the halfway point, I was a little sad and troubled. When I reached the halfway mark and already going back and saw runners still struggling to reach the half, I was excited and revived.

That excited and revived feeling lasted until the 7th kilometer.

Three more kilometers to go!

Say what? 3 KILOMETERS???

The number weakened by spirit.

I cannot sustain my pace for another 3 kilometers, I thought.

So I ran slower, too slow actually.

Now runners start to overtake me and I couldn't help but run slow. :(

I tried to argue with my body that I have a goal to reach, a personal time record to break. I wanted to finish the race below the 50-minute mark. It was all futile as I continued to run slowly until the last kilometer mark.

[Last Km struggle]

The slow paced run helped me conserve energy towards the end of the race.

Seeing the last kilometer mark, I sprinted my way to the finish line.

I was swinging my hands freely.

(But not so freely due to the bruises on my armpit caused the size of the Milo Singlet. I took the Large Size, but my big body demands an XL perhaps. Hehehe. My armpit was always in contact with the clothing and the friction bruised my armpit enough that it hurts. Ouch!)

Never mind the armpit, I'm at the last kilometer of the race.

Go forward! Faster! Faster!

I was smiling a lot now.

I'm sprinting my way to the finish line. What energy! :)

By the way, I saw Zorro at the last kilometer of the race. He is still the Zorro-masked man I remember from my UP Diliman years. Zorro still attracts and frightens a lot of people. Hahaha.

Smiles, Sprints, Zorro.. I was having a great time. Then I saw the green tents of Milo at the finish line. The finish line is getting nearer and nearer. What a relief.

Not so fast.

After reaching the starting line, In what was supposed to be the 10th kilometer mark. We were still told to run hard as we were still 500 meters away from the finish line. Sad, but I can't argue now. Sprint more. Run Hard to the Finish Line.

[Time]

I reached the Quirino Grandstand at the 56th minute mark (over 6 minutes late of my goal).

Here's the results of the Milo 10Km Race. Congratulations to me as I still finished 160th of over 1000 finishers. Yehey!

http://www.nestle.com.ph/milo/sports_events/results/nmm/mm_elims/results_10k_mmelims.pdf

[Injuries]

Five or tem minutes more and I would have suffered from cramps.

My calf muscles became too hard and tight from the long hard run.

I stretched my legs after the race, but I knew it was still very sore and fatigued.

Salonpas medical plasters, massage and Alaxan FR tablets helped me ease the pain.

Although it really took me three or four days before the calf soreness and fatigued went away.

All in all, it was a very nice experience.

Hopefully, I can beat the 50-minute barrier the next time I race.

Watch out for it soon! I'll be training hard for it! Hehehe.

So long, Stay healthy.

On Scoring a Knock Down

9 July 2009

On Scoring a Knock Down

Last time out, I blogged about how I won a not-so-eventful match.

I was little too careful about getting countered, so I have to tame the warrior in me to be a little less wild. I won.

The next sparring match after that win, I've forgotten how I won. I was so focused on correcting "not-so-eventful" side of the fight and threw everything else in the trash bin. I charged in, like a wild raging bull on a sole purpose, seek and-destroy. I forgot my boxing essentially.

My head wasn't moving while coming in. Worse, my hands are not protecting my open head. I was caught coming in with a lot of hooks to the head.

I was countered a lot. I was hit a lot. I was missing a lot and I was beaten badly. Yes, I might have still caught him a few times.. But more often, I'm the one taking punishments.

That unfortunate night, I can hardly sleep. I knew what went wrong, I just can't figure why I did throw my boxing away? The boxing style that won me the last time.

I might have just found my answer on my last sparring match. I hunted my opponent (my trainer, sparring partner and coach all in one) like a hungry tiger. No more like the unreasonable wild bull, but a hungry and calculated tiger.

I moved my head while coming in. My hands were held high for defense. My upper body mimics Ippo Makounochi of the Japanese Anime, KnockOut. Well, not as bold and not as smooth though as Ippo would.

 
I pursued my opponent, hunting him down.. throwing jabs to calculate the distance, and then throw my right bombs (straight right to the head).

After a few combinations, I would step back to avoid counters and then I'm at him again. I was closing the distance more so than I have ever done with my coach. I was so excited, a little bit relaxed and nervous at the same time.

He was so close to me like one punch from him would catch me. The tension was too high, but I have confidence in my own power and skills. Well, not very skilled yet but I knew I had more power in my punches and I knew I could take his punches.

The first round ended.

I've hit him a couple times.

As expected, he was on his counter-punching mode.

I was carefully on the attack so I did not get countered a lot this time around.

Being so close to a punching opponent is the most exciting seconds of my day that sparring day. Adrenaline rushes in my body, the excitement builds up, I could feel the intensity if the match on the highest level. I hunted him like the tiger I have in me, and I did not back down. It was a very action-packed round and I feel so relaxed, confident and so eager to exchange.

I was making his style less effective by not rushing in carelessly. I have the longer reach, so I can box him from the outside. But that's just not my style and it's less exciting. So most of the time, I would attack him with jabs and straights, and once I get inside, I'll throw the short uppercuts to the body. There was one body shot, a right uppercut that him in the rib-cage. It was the best body shot of my young boxing career.

Then came round 3.

I was breathing a little heavier now. I could not pursue him as hard as the first two rounds. He's dancing away, still waiting to counter, still looking for my mistakes. I was following him, trying to engage.

As he rotates and slide to my left side, My reflex kicked in and I threw a right hand to his forehead. I caught him flush and HE WENT DOWN like a Marco Antonio Barrera in his first encounter with the Pac Monster.

He lost his balance as he goes backwards all the way to the ropes butt-first on the canvas with both his hands touching the canvas for support and balance.

I was victorious at that single moment. It was like everything I worked so hard for had bear its fruit -- a sweet one-punch knock down.

He got up, said I just caught him off-balanced and we continued to spar.

At round 4, visibly wanting to take revenge from the knock down embarrassment, he connected with a strong left-hand to my mouth (his left-handed by the way).

It was a solid punch as I felt the thud right through my skull.

I was alright, it's part of the game, let's fight.

But before all that, he made sure if I was OK.

He checked the upper lips and it was bruised but not bloodied.

Ok ka lang? He asked.

I said, Yes. SO we touched gloves and resumed.

What a fight it was. Action-packed, brawl, movements, drama. Everything I dreamed of a quality fight was all there. I wished I could present a video here.

After the fourth, which I believe I lost, we still had two rounds to go.

From the second half of the second round, I was breathing heavily due to the heavy exchanges of punches. So unsurprsingly, I was so tired by the start of the 5th round.

The last two rounds were very uneventful.

I just go by the motions, left jab, right straight, dance away.

He tried to land the left-straight again.

But this time, I timed it perfectly with a right straight counter.

The sparring ends. I was ecstatic. I'm very happy.

This is the fight that should be one of the most memorable of my fighting career.

Yeah. I know what happened the last time I won.

I became over confident and attacked wildly without caution.

I know how it hurts to lose in that particular fight.

I want to make sure that I still train as hard, if not harder, for the next battle.

I now know, that to satisfy my boxing thirst, I have to combine both my inner ferocity and the boxing skills that my trainer and coach teaches me. (Boxer-Puncher style!)

I'll be happy to fight again like I did tonight. I'm so very happy and proud. Yey!