A 21K PR, "Free" Hotel Accommodation, and an Egg

Just when I thought that I could no longer break my personal bests, here comes an unexpected 21K PR-breaking at the previously held Egg Power Run in Bonifacio Global City last January 11.
Egg Power Run is first of its kind and a unique concept organized by LeadPack, partnering with Philippine Egg Board Association to promote the goodness of eggs and its nutritional value. Before the race started, the runners were briefed and given an introduction about some history of the Philippine egg economy, its health benefits, some trivia and also a live weather forecast from Kuya Kim Atienza, who was also present and did a really fast yet relaxed 21K run.

Kuya Kim weather forecasting before the gun-start

Prior to the gun-start, all runners were given one egg for you to bring along as you run. A few did not welcome the idea of clutching an egg but most of the participants welcomed the challenge with their own tricks and techniques to secure the egg. Ms. Abet (whom I ride with to and from the venue) put hers on a small zip-lock and onto her windbreaker's pocket. The challenge for this race is to cross the finish line with unbroken egg. Although this rule was changed to give everyone a chance to bring home a basket of egg -- so whether you broke your egg or not, as long as there's still a shell left from your egg, that's okay.
As for me, I had the egg in my left hand at the start of the race, and my hydration bottle on the other hand, inter-changing each for a few times in between the route. While running, two silly questions kept crossing my mind (while trying to chase Louie, Hendy, and Kuya Kim's group): 1) after the whole stretch of 21K, will the egg become so beat-up that it will become a "scram-boiled" egg after boiling? 2) will my 2-hour sweat cause the egg to become salty? Well none of it happened as the swinging of my hands are not enough to jostle the albumen and yolk, and a 2-hour sweat will not even penetrate the eggs' shell. Anyway, I crossed the finish line with still intact egg but with a cracked shell when I almost squeezed it while trying to put on the second loop band. Luckily, the egg still has its shell membranes unbroken that protected it from leaking.
I finished the race with a new 21K PR, although it was not so fast like our really performing runners but it was still a surprise to me because for the past year, I haven't been running much and as a matter of fact, my 2014 mileage is only 321-km for the whole year... that includes my non-contiguous training mileage as well. I don't attribute this to physical capacity, genetics, or anything physical-giftedness because I don't have those but I think, it was because of the cool weather during race day and the early gun-start that helped me shove 12-seconds off from my previous 21K record.

The winning stub

To top it off, four days after the event, an unknown number called to ask how did my Sunday's race went and told me that they are one of the event's sponsors and they have been calling me at 8:30 AM that day because I won a 3-days/2-nights "free" accommodation at Club Ultima/Crown Regency Hotel. Well was I really lucky? Because I know raffle prizes like these are automatically forfeited once you're no longer around during the time of raffling (this has reminded me of my Club Astoria experience which I have also "won" from watching the Pacquiao-Margarito fight). Anyway, we've agreed to an appointment for me to claim the Gift Certificate.
A day after, I went to their office at West Ave., Quezon City, attended a supposed-to-be 1.5-hours video clip about their Hotels but which became a 3-hour Club membership briefing. Before the midnight hits and failing to convince me with the membership, they still gave me the Vacation Certificate but contrary to what they told me of "free accommodation", there's a Php 3,000.00 non-refundable booking fee that I have to pay before I could use the certificate.
Not bashing them though, the lifetime membership package that they showed me is a good offer, actually way better than Club Astoria. That is if you would always choose to stay at a posh/5-star accommodation like the Crown Regency line of Hotels and Suites on your vacations in Makati, Cebu, Boracay, and Davao. The membership is transferable, re-saleable, and can also be willed to your succeeding generations for a minimal transfer fee, but considering my budget priorities, I consider it still a bit pricey. Well why don't you just sponsor my out-of-town run accommodations? :p

Photo courtesy of Jham Mariano

To conclude, the event was a great run to start my year. It was actually my first race for 2015 and it offered a unique way to practice your running form. It didn't gave me a hard time holding and keeping the egg safe and made me realize that I might be able to hatch a good chick (outside from the nest) while running. There were more than ample hydration stations, great Marshals from Takbo.ph community, and the route was challenging enough with a mix of flats, ascents, and descents. Special thanks to the Organizers and Ms. Donna Fuentes for this opportunity.

Crossing the finish line still a bit dark

Race Profile:
Distance: 21 km.
Official Time: 1:54:32
Official Ranking: 27th out of 320 21K Finishers
Race Info:
When: Jan. 11, 2015.
Where: Bonifacio Global City
Event: Egg Power Run Half Marathon