UNICEF Walk on the Child’s Side – My Family’s 2k Experience

As early as seeing their UNICEF 2km kits, my kids have excitedly looked forward to joining this event. So on the night prior to the this, my kids were obedient children who helped in preparing the things we needed to bring, the clothes they will be wearing and have slept early to be able to wake up very early the next day.

We arrived at the event area a few minutes before 6am, enough time to make some small talk with my running friends and classmates Wilbert – who we bumped into doing his warm-up run and Aljo, Mayen, Bobby, Joy and Carmen who were on their way to the 10k check-in. Before I did check-in for my own 5k run, I sent them off to one of the available tents and saw to it that they will be well-settled.

playing while waiting for the walk to start

While I was doing my 5k, Art and the kids busied themselves with the available kiddie entertainment available in the area which were the two giant inflatable slides. Our little boy Adam, giddy enough with just being able to walk in the spacious grass-covered ground.

adam doing his warm-up walk

The 2km walk was just a simple playtime which was full of a lot of photo-ops, even one with the “Star Wars” costumed “walkers”.  Simple as it is, the organizers did not disappoint because markers were also present to guide the people. We met JunC along the way who nicely took photos of us, Miguel and Jaymie Pizarro with their kids also doing the 2km walk, Jay who is doing his recovery run after doing his 10K and Dindo (DATC) who was not able to run his 10k but still went and took photos of the event. We aso met couple Mark and Tiffin on our way to the finish. Thanks Tiffin, JunC and Dindo for taking photos of me and my family.

at the start of the walk

with the star wars gang

by the finish line

After the walk, all were treated with lots of freebies – Rush Fitness Water, Hidden Spring Mineral Water, Starbucks Cofee. Finisher’s shirts were also given to 2km registrants. Photovendo on the other hand has a photo booth for everybody to have their post-race photos taken. If you were lucky to have a hold of a Photovendo stub, your photo will be printed on the spot and given to you for free. Boy, was there a very long line of people in this booth.

UNICEF Freebies all!

We stayed in the area long enough for my two daughters to be able to have their picture taken all the while being able to chat with friend Mikey whose family was there to participate too.

The whole UNICEF event was one great experience for the family. What makes it an even greater experience is that we were able to help UNICEF raise funds for their objective in the process. Congratulations to UNICEF and to organizer Coach Rio for a well-thought-off event.

family pic by the stage

adam, art and trish with coach rio

my girls with my coach

After the event, Art, me and the kids walked to McDonald’s McKinley for breakfast. We met the Happy Feet folks there who have just finished and was having a post-breakfast chikahan. We also learned that it was Mon’s bday and he was really nice to have insisted in treating the whole family for breakfast. Thank you Mon and Happy Birthday.

 

breakfast at McDo

gutom na!

More pictures can be found here.

UNICEF Walk on the Child’s Side – My 5k Experience

Vanity was one of my favorite sin. Until i fell in love with the outdoors. Vanity and I have been keeping an on again, off again relationship. It is such a vicious cycle. And i bitterly found out that whatever sin it is, you still have to pay for it. And I almost did hugely!

You see, I paid a visit to a Makati Salon yesterday after reporting at the office and thought of having a foot spa. Yep, this is an offshoot to the dead toenails and ugly feet topic going around various runner’s blogs. I said to myself, hey its been awhile since i had a foot spa. And so went to the spa I did and had a foot spa. What a supposedly blissfule epxerience turned-out to be a nightmare because I had a blister from the over-eager piling of my heel. Shoot! I will be running tomorrow and a blister is one of the last things i want to have!

Fast forward to 4 am this morning – The blister is painful but I have to find away to prevent it from hurting much and annoying me during my 5k run. I covered the blisters (yep, that’s two blisters!) with cotton and bandage after taking a shower and said a prayer that it wont affect me much. Luckily, the pain became bearable after that.

We arrived in the race area just in time to see our running friends take off for their 10k run. I was initially worried about not being able to run 5k anymore because the announcement (Bianca Gonzales was not there!) said that each runs and the 2k walk will only be five minutes apart. So, if i am targetting to participate in both the 5k run and 2k walk, i will have to finish 5k within five minutes. Impossible! Good thing this announcement was corrected before the 5k run started. the 2k walk starts after an hour of the 5k run. Whew!

the race start/finish area

I started the run on a fast pace only to find myself exhausted even before reaching the first turn-around point at Essensa. I scolded myself for not being able to stick to my own self-imposed slow start. I don’t know what it is with me today but i felt that I easily get tired. I tried to maintain my slow pace throughout the entire course thinking that Mckinley Hill is a real killer. Hopefully someday i will be able to settle a score with it (May araw ka rin McKinley, huhuhu!). Btw, i finally saw Smith, the lonerunner. Aba, aba, aba Papa PEPE really was there to run at UNICEF!

art was able to get a snapshot of me running to the finish

By the third kilometer, i tried to increase my pace and maintained it until deciding to do the sprint downhill going back to Mckinley. At the corner before the last 100 meters to the finish line, I saw Coaches Jo-Ar and Sardeña. Coach Jo-ar shouted, asking me what my last 5k PR was. With a gasp, i told him that it was a 38.41 (ambagal!, hehe). He squinted to the timer and seeing that it was a little over 36 minutes, he excitedly told me to go for it – “Go, go, go Vim 37 ka nyan. Go!”. The ever obedient student that I am, I tried to make a dash to the finish line hoping to get the “icing to my cake”. With my sprint, I was unconsciously able to overtake some runners approaching the finish. I was honestly unmindful of them because I was thinking myself crazy, sprinting despite feeling that my chest is about to burst. Then suddenly, this guy elbows me! Not that it hurt but then i thought – is this a race or am i suddenly playing basketball with a rough player? Well honey, whoever you are, it’s ok if you maybe did not realize that I am a woman for you to have elbowed me. What matters is that I got my PR of 37.11. Life is good and training is great. With the shin injury that I have been nursing, this running month of November have been a great one for me. Each of the three runs i have participated in – the 5k at VSO, the 10k at NB Power Race and this 5k at UNICEF were all runs resulting to a new PR.  

pose, pose!

I could not have done those if not for the patient efforts of the good coaches we have in training. And of course because of the inspiration they have instilled in us. Thanks Coaches Rio, Jo-Ar, John, Jessie, Ruel, Jords and Sardeña. Your efforts were not put to waste.

a pose with Coach Rio

Congratulations also to classmate and good friend Aljo who also got a PR for his 10k run. Yey!

Lastly, kudos to Coach Rio and his group for putting up another well-organized race. Visible markers, enough water stations, lots of marshalls, a challenging course, freebies and lots of fun. Even the drizzle did not dampen the festive spirit of of everyone around.

Next story, my family’s UNICEF 2km experience.

UNICEF 5k and 10k Running Slots

Good news all! Aside from the 2k walk slots being available, the 5k and 10k running slots, I was told, is now again available for registration.

So for those who haven’t registered but interested to join either the 5k or 10k run, you can drop by at the ROX at Quadrant 1 of Bonifacio High Street for this. Registration area is at the 3rd floor. ROX’s contact number is 856-4638 to 39.

Ready for the UNICEF Walk/Run Event

VSO Bahaginan FUNdRaising Run – CHECK.  New Balance Power Race – CHECK. UNICEF Walk/Run Event – READY!

My running month of November is to be capped by the UNICEF Walk on the Child’s Side walk/run event on November 23, 2008. If the first two races are to be yardsticks of my running performance, I am looking forward to a good 5k run on Sunday. But then, I am planning just to have fun having registered for the 5k run and 2k walk with my hubby and kids. Yep, after running 5k, I will be with the whole family for the 2k walk. I am not targetting a 5K PR but if it happens, it will be an icing on the cake.

looking forward to my 5k run and esp the 2k walk with art and the kids

This UNICEF event will sort of become a unique family day for us since this will be the first time that all five of us will be together in a sports/fitness activity. Oh it is just a walk but then how often do you see families together outdoors nowadays when malls are everywhere with lots of indoor amusement centers in it? Children seldom has time or the interest to bask in the outdoors!

art's and the kid's race packets

“Mama, I already had my rubber shoes cleaned.” – said my middle child Trish last night over dinner. My kids you see are already excited and are so looking forward to Sunday that as early as yesterday, they have started with their preparations and plans.

The event will not just have the walk and run activities though. Being true to its being family/children friendly, UNICEF together with its organizers, made sure that there will be other activities that all can look forward to. There will be a children’s play area with two big inflatables and a magic show at that. For the adults, the race will have a program to be hosted by celebrity Ms. Bianca Gonzales, also a UNICE Ambassador. Oh! Her co-host, we have learned, will be Coach Rio. kewl! hehe.

During the race proper, our favorite PHOTOVENDO will be there to capture great snapshots – be it running or walking. In addition, they will also have a stage/booth near the finish area for everyone’s post-race photo-op.

Truly a family day of sorts. If you haven’t signed-up for this event, you can still do so with your family by going to ROX and register for the 2k walk. How about the 5k and 10k runs? Running slots have already been sold out as early as Wednesday, November 19.

Excited already? I am! See you Sunday!

Running Fever in November

There’s a running fever in November! By now, maybe all runners from beginners to elite, old and young, serious and kulit (hmm, present!) may have clearly drawn-up running-related plans for almost every weekend of this month. If I am not mistaken, there is an average of two races happening for each weekend of November. Giving people in the running community a whole lot of choices on which race to participate in.

isang malaking check! done with reg for all three races!

For me and my running “classmates”, we have chosen to join the VSO Bahaginan Kabahagi Ako Fundraising Run on the 9th, the New Balance Power Race at Clark on the 16th (we’ll be running 10k)and the UNICEF Walk on the Child’s Side walk/run event on the 23rd (me, hubby and the kids we’ll be doing the 2k Walk).  Of course this choice is obviously based on the fact that the organizer for the VSO and UNICEF events is no other than our well-loved, kulot and now-SIKAT running coach – Rio dela Cruz. But hey, admit it folks, our coach has a good record in organizing runs so it really doesn’t matter if we chose his races over others right?  And oh, he really is sikat na - proof to this is a one page article about him at the November issue of Men’s Health Magazine (uy, plugging!).

Check out Coach Rio's feature article in the Nov issue of Men's Health Mag wherein he talks about his passion for running

Some of our friends have even taken it to the next level by joining in the 55K Mt Pinatubo Ultra Marathon being members of the Pinoy Ultra Running Group and others deciding to take on the Men’s Health Urbanathlon challenge.

As if this isn’t enough of a treat, there is this one special big event that is being cooked up for the running community. This one too is targetted to be “launched” this November. And what will this be? Hmmm… We’ll just have to wait for official word to come out guys. You’ll know…. Everybody will in time!