Marathon Pledge Run 2003
August 31, 2003
4.00 am - 10.00 am
Metro Manila

The first-ever Bukas Sarili marathon pledge run was held last August 31. It was a smashing success, and I still recall how I got involved.

I was sitting in the Bukas Sarili office in early June waiting for the Christmas cards meeting to start. Mike Alimurung mentions to me there's this pledge run - Kendrick Yu would participate in the Milo Marathon on July 27 and try to get pledges and donations from people. He was thinking of doing the same. "Maybe you'd like to run yourself," Mike tells me - he knew I had been running regularly since March. "I don't think I'd be able to run 42km by end-July," I say. He assures me I don't have to finish. "Just try to go as far as you can." Well, I reckoned it was for a good cause, so I said, why not?

Then there was the failed coup attempt on July 27 that caused the marathon to be postponed. I was physically and mentally prepared at the time. But now the marathon would happen on August 31. Since I had been telling myself that I didn't have to run long distances after July, I found it extremely difficult to keep running, and I lost a lot of steam. Add to that a sudden increase in workload, and my training really suffered. I was no longer able to train as often as I felt I needed to. At this point I didn't think I'd be able to finish anymore.

Friday before the marathon, I was chatting with Duncan Wall, my Scottish friend based in Newcastle. I told him I felt depressed coz I didn't think I would finish anymore, this despite the immense faith a lot of my friends still had that I would actually pull it off. "Well," he said, "whether or not you finish, it will still be a fantastic experience." And he was right. That realization just took away all the pressure I had been putting on myself.

The day of reckoning finally arrived. I got a room at the Manila Hotel so that I could rest well, and so that I didn't have to worry about driving or parking or being late. Kendrick and I met at the lobby at around 415. We got to Quirino Grandstand at about 420am. As we got there, we heard a guy on a megaphone saying "Ready, get set…" Kendrick and I looked at each other. "It's about to start!" We started to panic a bit. "Go!" shouts the same guy. It must've been a funny sight to see this myriad of runners running away from the grandstand while Kendrick and I were running the other way looking for the check-in booth. We had our numbers checked and after a minute delay Kendrick and I started running in the right direction. Then, a brutal realization - "We didn't stretch! Bahala na." It was also raining that morning, but there was no stopping us now.

Despite my self-doubt in the days leading to the marathon, at around the 8th kilometer, I had this sudden feeling of calmness and certainty that I was going to finish. Maybe it was the adrenaline, maybe it was Divine Providence, or maybe it was both. Whatever it was, all of a sudden, I felt that it was no longer a matter of "if," but rather a matter of "when." I then felt completely energized, and decided to focus on getting the job done.

The Bukas Sarili cheering squad was planning to be in Greenhills at around 7-730am. But the moment I got to Edsa, I saw the terrible traffic. "They are never going to make it to Greenhills by the time I get there," I thought. True enough, Mike, Anne, and Tessa got caught in the traffic, so they parked in Caltex in Edsa and started following runners. Apparently they saw me, but they weren't sure it was me at the time since I was about 200m away from them. How did they know it was me? I told them I was the only guy who WOULDN'T be wearing a sleeveless shirt.

At the 25th kilometer (Greenhills) I got hungry and pull out my Powerbar. A guy on a bike riding the other direction calls my name - "Christian!" It was Romy Garduce. Apparently his weekend out-of-town plans got cancelled and he decided to get up early to do bike-support for the many people he knew that were all joining the marathon. Perfect! He meets me at the top of the Ortigas-Edsa flyover and hands me a sports drink. "I'll meet you again in Buendia," he says, and rides off to support his other pals. I had just passed by the 26km mark at this point. "I've broken my previous distance record of 25km" I say to myself. I had already been running for about 3 hours and I was thinking, "I can do this in less than 5 hours!" That would mean I'd get to the finish line by 930am, which means I would be able to avail of my free breakfast buffet that comes with the hotel room. You'd be surprised how much motivation you can get from a free buffet breakfast when you are tired and hungry.

At around the 32nd kilometer I meet Romy again. "Nakita ko si Mike, may binigay sa akin na Gatorade para sa yo," he says. I down the Gatorade in about 5 seconds. "Saging, gusto mo?" Sure, I say, and consume it in about the same time. He decides to bike right next to me the rest of the way, which made the last 10km so much easier to run. The kilometers passed by much more quickly than I thought because I had company, and pretty soon I was back on Roxas Boulevard with about 4km left. "Matatapos ako in less than five hours," I tell Romy. I started to feel excited. (Buffet breakfast, here I come!)

Somewhere during the 40th kilometer, my legs started to feel like lead. "Romy, di ko na talaga kaya, maglalakad lang ako ng sandali," I say. "Exhale ka lang," he says. We near the 41km mark. I look at my watch - 4 hours 50 minutes. "Ubusin mo na adrenaline mo sa last kilometer," Romy says. He didn't have to. I start running again. Other runners or bike support people whom I didn't know cheered me on. "42km, pare, galing mo. Congrats!" I started to have this overwhelming feeling inside as I turn into the Quirino Grandstand. The home stretch! I then see two finish lines, and I stress out - "Romy, alin diyan ang finish line ko?" A big group of folks whom I didn't know start pointing me to the left. They started cheering me on as I passed them. Romy tells me to smile. Again he didn't need to. My smile was so huge it would've taken a lot more effort not to smile. I look at the official Milo timer. 4 hours 56 minutes. I pass the finish line, I did it under 5 hours, and together with Kendrick raised more than P80,000 for the benefit of the PGH charity ward. A scant few things in my life had ever felt like that.

I see Kendrick waiting in the finish line, and we were both famished. I look at my watch - 9:30am. "My breakfast buffet is for two people," I say, "and it's valid 'til 10am. Let's eat." And boy did we eat. : Mike and Anne met up with us while we were having breakfast, and we went through the events that transpired that morning. "We need to field more runners next year," we decide. Barring injury, sickness or any event that causes me not to be in Manila, you can count on me running again next year.

- Christian Pobre

For the record, Christian ran 42km, while Kendrik, who was feeling ill the night before and had leg cramps, completed 30km, beating his previous best of 26km. It just goes to show how much the human spirit can acheive! We would like to thank all the individuals who offered their support and who made donations and pledges.

The Route:
From Quirino run the distance of Roxas Blvd until you pass NAIA road
Turn back and head to Buendia
Turn right at Buendia and go until Edsa
Turn left at Edsa and go until Ortigas
Turn left at Ortigas and go until a little past Shopping Center
Then head back to Edsa, then to Buendia, then to Roxas, and back to Quirino