This post is overdue - been over ten days since the event took place. This was such a huge event. As mentioned in my previous post, a lot of people joined this event because for only PHP1200, you get a Nike racing shirt, plus a finisher's shirt if you finish the 10K within two and a half hours.
So, here is my take on what happened, from the registration all the way to the event day itself. :-)
Registration
My friends and I went to the Nike store in Glorietta on October 28 to register. We came from the Unilab Run United Philippine Marathon, where we ran 10K. So naturally, we were already tired when we got to the store at around 10:30 am. However, much to our dismay we discovered that the registration booth won't be open until 1:00 pm that day. So we just left and decided that we will register individually.
So, that's what I did two days later. I went back to Nike Glorietta, and fortunately there were only three people ahead of me. It took less than half an hour in total, from the time I entered the store to the time I finished.
Claiming of Race Kit
The race kits can be claimed from November 27-30. The last day being a holiday, I decided to head to the Nike store in Bonifacio High Street. I was prepared to face a long queue. When I got there, I was surprised that 1) Nike had a huge tent in front of their store just for claiming the race kits; and 2) I got the race kit in a quick and pain-free manner. There were lots of Nike staff to accommodate the runners, as in upon entering I was quickly ushered to an empty booth. Amazing!
The race kit itself was a revelation of sorts. I was expecting the usual stuff - shirt, race info, timing chip. What I got was this:
There was also a Nike sports bottle! Plus, it came in a huge Nike We Run MNL bag. Trust Nike to make the event a stylish one.
Race Day
I got enough rest the previous night, so you can imagine my excitement when I woke up. The gun start is at 5:30 am. I got to SM Mall of Asia around 4:45 am, and it was only by 5:15 am that I found a parking spot. The parking spot available was behind SMX, which is way on the other side of the starting line. My friends parked not too far from where I was, so we quickly headed to the starting line. We still needed to make a quick stopover at the portalets. Fortunately there were a lot available, so it took less than five minutes. We were at the starting line by 5:30 am - perfect!
As there were A LOT of people, by the time we reached the actual starting line, it was almost 14 minutes! Given that there was only one category, I think it would have been better if they grouped the runners into different waves.
The run itself went pretty well. It was an amazing sight - all the runners were wearing the same shirt, and you could see Macapagal Boulevard covered in a sea of black with neon yellow rings. There were all sorts of runners who participated - from serious ones who were fiercely determined to beat their personal records, to casual strollers who were at a leisurely pace.
I finished the race at 1:04:49. I would have wanted to finish at below an hour (in order to beat my PR), but I couldn't seem to gain the right momentum. There were simply too many people. I still managed to clock in at a decent time, methinks. There's always another run, right?
As soon as I crossed the Finish Line, I went to the Finisher's Booth to claim my shirt. The Finisher's shirt has to be the same size as your race shirt. I would have wanted to get a medium, as my large race shirt was a bit loose. But it's all good - since I will be giving my finisher's shirt anyway to my Dad, a large one will do. I was also handed a bottle of water and Powerade, plus a banana. Cool!
My friends and I had a great time! We finished at different times, but we weren't really gunning for PRs anyway. Well, I was. Hahaha! But, whether we finished at 1:04 or 1:45, the important thing was fun was had by all. Three of us had breakfast at Aristocrat afterwards, and we were pleasantly surprised to see a lot of finishers as well.
Let's break down my assessment of the whole affair:
Strengths
Race shirt/Finisher's Shirt - these two are just beautiful. Nice design, nice material (dri-fit, baby!), all for an affordable rate. Truly, this is value for your money. The 13,000 who came knew that, too.
Hydration stations, with free banana - the hydration stations were placed within a good distance from each other. I'm not sure if some were water-only stations, whilst some were Powerade and/or water. It doesn't matter
Overall Organization - I can imagine the logistic nightmares you can have with an event of this magnitude. But I have to commend Nike and RunRio for doing a good job.
Areas for Improvement (AFIs)
Starting Line - as mentioned, it would have been a better option to have the runners start in different waves. What happened in my case was, since I was towards the back of the pack, I had a tough time zig-zagging left and right in order to overtake the other runners. This brings me to the next item:
Runner's etiquette - it was clearly stated in the race kit that slower runners should stay at the LEFT side, to give way to faster runners. However, we still had A LOT of runners who kept to the right side, even if they were running at first and just slowed down, or worse, were not running at all (gasp!). Even though the other runner's were shouting, "On your right!" as a heads up (this bit, too was on the race kit info), some runners still don't get it. Sigh.
Another pet peeve of mine related to runner's etiquette is the use of trash receptacles. Now, I am certain people have different views about this topic. I even read in an article somewhere (let me post once I find the link) that you can just throw the cups on the ground. Wrong! That's what the trash receptacles are for. I feel it is just irresponsible for us to just throw it on the ground. We're not doing the environment any favors as it is by using all these plastic cups ONCE for each station. Let's at least help the organizers by shooting the cups into the bins.
The cause - correct me if I am wrong, but whilst there is a beneficiary for this event, it wasn't really highlighted. Other than the small picture of the foundation on the race kit, there wasn't anything more. Then again, it could be very well Nike's point exactly - this was NOT a fund-raiser, but more of a marketing event. In that case, I feel sad. Being the behemoth that Nike is in sports, it would be nice if they also showed they care. Another option would probably be free running clinic sessions - they can give all participants one (1) free session. Obviously, it doesn't have to be just on one date - this would present another huge logistic nightmare. But if you really want to "run the world," might as well empower everyone on how to do it properly, yeah?
Overall, it was a very positive experience for me. I cannot wait to run at this event again next year!
post: I saw someone wearing the race shirt, only it says SINGAPORE during my recent trip to the Lion City. Amazing!
So, here is my take on what happened, from the registration all the way to the event day itself. :-)
Registration
My friends and I went to the Nike store in Glorietta on October 28 to register. We came from the Unilab Run United Philippine Marathon, where we ran 10K. So naturally, we were already tired when we got to the store at around 10:30 am. However, much to our dismay we discovered that the registration booth won't be open until 1:00 pm that day. So we just left and decided that we will register individually.
So, that's what I did two days later. I went back to Nike Glorietta, and fortunately there were only three people ahead of me. It took less than half an hour in total, from the time I entered the store to the time I finished.
Claiming of Race Kit
The race kits can be claimed from November 27-30. The last day being a holiday, I decided to head to the Nike store in Bonifacio High Street. I was prepared to face a long queue. When I got there, I was surprised that 1) Nike had a huge tent in front of their store just for claiming the race kits; and 2) I got the race kit in a quick and pain-free manner. There were lots of Nike staff to accommodate the runners, as in upon entering I was quickly ushered to an empty booth. Amazing!
At the Nike We Run MNL tent, Bonifacio High Street
The huge line at the right was for the additional services offered by Nike. Did they allow late registrations too? Hmm... The race kit claim area is on the left side.
The race kit itself was a revelation of sorts. I was expecting the usual stuff - shirt, race info, timing chip. What I got was this:
Nike We Run MNL race kit
There was also a Nike sports bottle! Plus, it came in a huge Nike We Run MNL bag. Trust Nike to make the event a stylish one.
Race Day
I got enough rest the previous night, so you can imagine my excitement when I woke up. The gun start is at 5:30 am. I got to SM Mall of Asia around 4:45 am, and it was only by 5:15 am that I found a parking spot. The parking spot available was behind SMX, which is way on the other side of the starting line. My friends parked not too far from where I was, so we quickly headed to the starting line. We still needed to make a quick stopover at the portalets. Fortunately there were a lot available, so it took less than five minutes. We were at the starting line by 5:30 am - perfect!
The Running Yogi at the starting line
As there were A LOT of people, by the time we reached the actual starting line, it was almost 14 minutes! Given that there was only one category, I think it would have been better if they grouped the runners into different waves.
The run itself went pretty well. It was an amazing sight - all the runners were wearing the same shirt, and you could see Macapagal Boulevard covered in a sea of black with neon yellow rings. There were all sorts of runners who participated - from serious ones who were fiercely determined to beat their personal records, to casual strollers who were at a leisurely pace.
I finished the race at 1:04:49. I would have wanted to finish at below an hour (in order to beat my PR), but I couldn't seem to gain the right momentum. There were simply too many people. I still managed to clock in at a decent time, methinks. There's always another run, right?
Runners after crossing the Finish line quickly went to claim their finisher's shirts
As soon as I crossed the Finish Line, I went to the Finisher's Booth to claim my shirt. The Finisher's shirt has to be the same size as your race shirt. I would have wanted to get a medium, as my large race shirt was a bit loose. But it's all good - since I will be giving my finisher's shirt anyway to my Dad, a large one will do. I was also handed a bottle of water and Powerade, plus a banana. Cool!
The Running Yogi with his running friends
My friends and I had a great time! We finished at different times, but we weren't really gunning for PRs anyway. Well, I was. Hahaha! But, whether we finished at 1:04 or 1:45, the important thing was fun was had by all. Three of us had breakfast at Aristocrat afterwards, and we were pleasantly surprised to see a lot of finishers as well.
Let's break down my assessment of the whole affair:
Strengths
Race shirt/Finisher's Shirt - these two are just beautiful. Nice design, nice material (dri-fit, baby!), all for an affordable rate. Truly, this is value for your money. The 13,000 who came knew that, too.
Hydration stations, with free banana - the hydration stations were placed within a good distance from each other. I'm not sure if some were water-only stations, whilst some were Powerade and/or water. It doesn't matter
Overall Organization - I can imagine the logistic nightmares you can have with an event of this magnitude. But I have to commend Nike and RunRio for doing a good job.
Areas for Improvement (AFIs)
Starting Line - as mentioned, it would have been a better option to have the runners start in different waves. What happened in my case was, since I was towards the back of the pack, I had a tough time zig-zagging left and right in order to overtake the other runners. This brings me to the next item:
Runner's etiquette - it was clearly stated in the race kit that slower runners should stay at the LEFT side, to give way to faster runners. However, we still had A LOT of runners who kept to the right side, even if they were running at first and just slowed down, or worse, were not running at all (gasp!). Even though the other runner's were shouting, "On your right!" as a heads up (this bit, too was on the race kit info), some runners still don't get it. Sigh.
Another pet peeve of mine related to runner's etiquette is the use of trash receptacles. Now, I am certain people have different views about this topic. I even read in an article somewhere (let me post once I find the link) that you can just throw the cups on the ground. Wrong! That's what the trash receptacles are for. I feel it is just irresponsible for us to just throw it on the ground. We're not doing the environment any favors as it is by using all these plastic cups ONCE for each station. Let's at least help the organizers by shooting the cups into the bins.
The cause - correct me if I am wrong, but whilst there is a beneficiary for this event, it wasn't really highlighted. Other than the small picture of the foundation on the race kit, there wasn't anything more. Then again, it could be very well Nike's point exactly - this was NOT a fund-raiser, but more of a marketing event. In that case, I feel sad. Being the behemoth that Nike is in sports, it would be nice if they also showed they care. Another option would probably be free running clinic sessions - they can give all participants one (1) free session. Obviously, it doesn't have to be just on one date - this would present another huge logistic nightmare. But if you really want to "run the world," might as well empower everyone on how to do it properly, yeah?
Overall, it was a very positive experience for me. I cannot wait to run at this event again next year!
post: I saw someone wearing the race shirt, only it says SINGAPORE during my recent trip to the Lion City. Amazing!
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