Running to infinity and beyond

February 25, 2011

By the time you read this, my crew and I will be on our way to Mariveles, Bataan. This historic town sits right across Corregidor Island – the last stronghold of valiant Filipino and American soldiers before surrendering to the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II.

Mariveles is also KM 0 of a journey of a hundred miles – the Bataan Death March 160.

From a historical point of view, the Bataan Death March did not end in KM 102 where the old train station of San Fernando Pampanga used to be. The Filipino and American soldiers and defenders who survived the 100-kilometer march were all loaded in cattle cars for their final destination some 60 kilometers up north to the concentration camps in Capas, Tarlac. Participants of this memorial run will complete the infamous journey running through the path where WW II heroes used to tread.

The BDM 160 is the country’s first ever 100-miler solo running event. To prepare for this, I trained for four months doing longer than usual long runs. The longest practice I’ve ever done was fourteen (14) hours running and walking around the Cebu City Sports Center from 4AM till 6PM. Going round and round the oval allowed me to train under the heat and condition the mind to command the body to move forward despite boredom and fatigue.

Three weeks before the BDM, race director Jovie (Baldrunner) Narcise increased the cut-off time from 28 to 30 hours. Still, I don’t know if I trained enough or racked up enough mileage to survive this 100-mile journey. But then again, you’ll never know unless you try.

But there are two things about this race that I am not leaving to chance – nutrition and hydration.Unlike last year’s BDM I eliminated all solid foods from my race day menu and replaced them with liquid food. Ingesting Hammer Nutrition’s Perpetuem and two gels every hour ensures that I get exactly 450 calories of food replenishment every 2 hours. If I eat solid food on a really long run I find myself becoming sluggish and sleepy because all the blood rushes to my stomach and intestines to work on digesting food instead of helping me run he race.

As for hydration and electrolyte replacement, I’ve eliminated all the sugary sports drinks and replaced them with water and Endurolytes electrolyte caps.

To help me get through 160 kilometers of pure torture, I recruited my husband Eugene and my brother Alexander to be my support crew.

Eugene as you all know did a superb job as my one-man crew during last year’s BDM 102. But the sheer length and breadth of this year’s race is just too much for one man to handle. Eugene will be joined by my brother Alex who is a nurse and firefighter for the Special Rescue Unit of the Bureau of Fire Protection. With Eugene and Alex manning my support wagon, I’ve nothing else to worry about except run the race as if it was my best and last.