Greenhills Tri Team Members present at the 2012 Powerade Duathlon 2012 - Leg 1

Members present were Doc Peter, Mon, Franz, Leia, James, Emer, Eric, Uncle Willy, Sherwyn, Atty. Fredie and Jevon with Kevin supporting the team

Congratulations to our very own Igo Velasco bagging the 2nd place for his Age Group, and to Freddie Santos placing 3rd in his Age Group as well.

Greenhills Tri team at the 2012 Condura Skyway Marathon.From left to right: Sherwyn, Carlo, Igo, Mon, James and Franz

One of the premiere running events in the country, the 2012 Condura Skyway Marathon is bigger than ever with its new start and end venue at Filinvest, Alabang as well as the new Skyway route starting from Alabang all the way to the end and back for the Full Marathon category. This year’s Condura marks the 92nd marathon of one of the team’s legend, Dr. Eddie Yruma. Greenhills Tri Team members present are the following:

42km Full Marathon : Dr. Eddie Yruma, Freddie Santos and Franz Fabiana

21km Half Marathon: James Rosca and Mon Dela Pena

16km Run: Sherwyn Yao

10km Run: Igo Velasco and Carlo Pena

Starting point: Morong (DPWH) 7:15 am

Mid point: Manays Eatery 9:15am (then Lomi break for 45mins)

End point: Morong (DPWH) arrived at 11:45 / arrived luntala 1 p.m.

Weather: overcast mostly

Route: 10k flat then 10k continuous uphill then 10k continuous downhill then 10 k flat up to lomi point, then vice versa.

Total distance covered: 84K

Riders:

1. Peter Jarin
2. Sherwyn Yao
3. Carlo Chua
4. Jeng de Guzman
5. Kevin Dumol
6. Mike Siapno
7. Lapoy Custodio (security)

This was my first international triathlon race so I was very excited to join it. It was an Ironman event organized race and with lots of participants in the race. There were 1400 triathletes comprised of 600 Singaporeans, 300 expats, 500 international competitors (including 26 Filipinos). The oldest participant was 72 years old from Japan and youngest from Hong Kong at 18 years old. These things made it more exciting for me. Plus, they changed the race route this year to an expressway bike route, flat and fast, 3 loops, total of 90kms. The run route was very spectator friendly also. This was the only long distance race I’ve joined that had this many spectators from start to finish, from the swim until the finish line, even if I was very tired, the spectators would cheer me on. There were also many Pinoys watching the race because the race site was held in Big Splash, a beach where a lot of strollers would go on a Sunday morning.

The were several wave starts for the athletes, the first were the pros/elite, followed by the women’s age group and then so forth. There were about 4 more waves after the first wave of pros at 7am. As expected, the swim leg was chaotic. Imagine 1400 bodies trying to get his/her own space. After 10mins, I was expecting to have my own space in the open water but it didn’t happen. Swimmers were freestyling, breastroking, stopping, looking at each other etc. I was very wary whenever I had a breast stroker beside me, I would intentionally stop in the middle of the water and wait for them to pass by or I would veer to the left or to the right just to avoid being kicked. My agenda was to get out of the water fresh, without getting bruised, or getting kicked in the eyes, which is what happened to my training partner Geoff. I also felt it when the stronger swimmers / pros were approaching me from behind. It kind of feels like a tsunami wave from behind me whenever they were approaching. One even grabbed my shoulder and pulled me down! It was a free for all. It was a totally foreign scenario considering I have only participated in White Rock Triathlon and Subit, where the participants are less than 150 so everyone will definitely get their own space in the open water after a few minutes. I finished the swim leg in 50 plus minutes, more than my usual time, but I was happy because I got out of the water without getting kicked by anyone.

The bike route was a 3 loop flat and fast course with 30kms each. Sounds easy, but as I remember what Rienzi told me, this can sometimes be deceiving. This is not a rolling hills type of bike course, where you can bike up, and then rest on a downhill. In a flat course, it was simple: if you don’t pedal, you will not move. I’m used to this kind of bike route because my favorite long bike ride route is Jalajala, Rizal. So it was a 90km constant effort for 3hours and 3mins for me. I made it a point to take in 1 bottle of Gatorade and 1 gel every 30mins. Even If I don’t feel like eating, I forced fed myself. Nutrition really plays a big part in a race. This is a long distance race, not an Olympic distance tri or a 10km footrace. The bike route was the best bike route I’ve tried. The roads are asphalts, very smooth, makes me think I’m flying even though my speed was just 30kms per hour. Some part of the bike route was challenging like when there’s a flyover, I had to quickly shift to my low gears and maintain my cadence. For 90% of the time, I was using the small chain ring in front, and I was just adjusting at the back. This didn’t put strain on my thighs and legs, as opposed to using a big chain ring with low cadence. I learned my lesson very well in my 2nd White Rock Triathlon wherein I experimented and used the big chain ring. My bike split was terrible, and to make it even worse, my run was a disaster. My quads were burned because of this. Eric Imperio reiterated many times to me during our bike rides the importance of spinning, high cadence, low gear. I wasn’t going to make a mistake this time. I took advantage of the 3 loop bike course. Whenever we bike back to finish our 1st loop, there were many volunteers handing out water bottles, 100plus drinks. I made it a point to get 1 bottle of cold water and shower my whole body with it (something I saw in the Tour de France). It prevented my body from overheating. I enjoyed the bike route as much as I enjoyed looking at the different cyclists with their uber sexy time trial machines. I enjoyed the sound of the faster and stronger cyclists passing by with the sounds of their carbon wheels. I had fun every bit of the bike route. If I’m not mistaken, there were 2 paralyzed athletes from the waist down who joined the race. They used wheelchairs that looked like bikes, the ones I see in the Ironman Kona Championships DVD collection. I cheered them on as I passed by them in the bike route. It’s so inspiring to see them give their all in these kinds of races. They responded by giving me a “thanks for cheering me” smile.

Jevon at Aviva Ironman 70.3 Singapore 2008

Thank God I finished the bike route at 3hrs and 3mins with the following: 1) without getting a flat tire; 2) no accidents; 3) enjoyment of the bike route (not feeling wasted); and lastly 4) no cramps.

The run route featured a flat area with lots of trees. It was not an out-and-back course which I really loved because spectators can see the athletes and cheer them on. The weather was perfect for running. Not as hot and humid as the races I’ve joined here in the Philippines . First thing I did was to get to the nearest aid station and got 1liter of cold water and showered myself to avoid overheating again. As my rule of thumb, I ate powergel every 30mins. Since it was a 3 loop course, I saw several Pinoy athletes many times, sometimes I would shout Go Pia, Go Ani, Go David! I was able to adjust to the bike to run with ease. I looked for the pace I wanted, raced my strategy, and after 6 hours and 57mins, I crossed the finish line waving the Philippine flag. All the pain was erased! I felt goosebumps when the host announced my name and my country. My parents and my sister was there waiting, my fiancée, her mom, and our Singaporean business partners. They all congratulated me. They didn’t have to say it but from their smiles, I knew they were so proud of me.

The money spent for registration fee, airfare, hotel accommodations, food, training expenses were obviously worth it. Realistically, everything entailed costs, sacrifices, and a lot other things, but finishing an IronMan 70.3 is something I can say as PRICELESS. I
would definitely do this race again. I didn’t finish the race saying to myself , “I hate the pain and I will never do this again” like some previous finishes I had.

I still consider myself a newbie in Triathlon even though I’ve been doing this for 3yrs. I still have a lot to learn from being a triathlete. For the other hopefuls, discipline, dedication, passion for the sport, respect for the distance, prayers are the key elements if you want to finish a long distance Triathlon race. As what I always hear from a friend whenever he sees me training for a long distance Triathlon race, “Training for that kind of race is not a joke.”

Swim Training: Corinthian Gardens or Alexandra; Swim, Swim-Run; Weekdays

Bike Training: Jala Jala, or Clark or Mall of Asia; Bike or Bike-Run workouts; Weekends

Run Training: Greenhills Unimart and Villages for short runs. Greenhills to Corinthians Gardens , ULTRA, White Plains , Greenmeadows, back to Greenhills for long runs. Weekdays / Weekends

Four Greenhills Tri Team members are present and braved the Typhoon lashed course of Zambales. Leading the way is Kevin with a time of 6 hours and 4 minutes followed by Franz with a time of 6 hours and 52 mins. Our veteran Uncle Willy came in third with a time of 6 hours 40 mins and Alfredo Santos although getting declassified still finished the tough course with 7 hours and 5 mins.

Greenhills Tri Team roster at WRT 2011 and Official Times

• Kevin Raphael Dumol – 6:14:13
• Franz Fabiana – 06:52:34
• Wellington Yao – 7:40:32
• Alfredo Santos – 7:05:52 (DC)