koko & everything else

koko & everything else

Sunday, October 10, 2010

FUN RUN, HELL RUN



The day was 10-10-10 and it was time for the RUN FOR PASIG RIVER. A run for a cause: aiming to raise fund and save the famous Pasig River. It was also the day of my very first run in my life. And a chance to fulfill one experiences listed in my birthday bucket list.

But what supposed to be a “fun” run turned into a nightmare… my friend, Mai gave me the perfect term for it, “HELL RUN”.

It was disorganized for a lot of reasons; here are some:

1. No designated parking slots
2. No proper signage; directions
3. Recruiting uninterested and non-participative registrants who walked their way towards the finish line
4. Crowd control was a disaster…. They did not anticipated the swarm of runners and ended up in one place with lack of space
5. Lack of liquid supply; Runners would appreciate more water stations… we would even appreciate beverage selling booths… we just need to be hydrated
6. Again, another crowd control disaster – we were running with people who weren’t even registered…
7. Lack of security – I was pushed out of my line while I was trying to get the finisher’s band… and guess what, no security personnel was there to respond
8. Poor time management

So what did I get with this experience?

1. I signed up for a 3KM run and ended up walking and running for I think, more than 5km… coz I got lost and the parking I was able to get was like 1.5 to 2km away from the starting and finish line. And coz of the crowded space, I spent like an hour or two just looking for my running buddy.
2. I got pushed around and suffocated with sweaty crazy and angry runners while we were trying to get hold of the finisher’s band
3. The only souvenir I got from this run are photos I took and that piece of paper with a number on it that wasn’t even taken much importance to
4. And I got sore feet for running, walking, skipping, jumping, gliding and dancing past the “walking” runners! It was a full body work-out, I tell you

To summarize it, IT WAS HELL. But I still intend to join more local runs soon, maybe just not as big as this one… I’d rather join those little runs in Global City. It’s a bit more expensive but I’ll take that over getting abused by circumstances.