2013 MILO MARATHON MANILA ELIMS

Last July 28, hundreds, if not thousands,  of local runners answered the gun for the 42km marathon of the 2013 Milo Marathon Manila Eliminations.  

Many of them had aspirations of qualifying for the National Marathon Finals scheduled December 8, 2013.  Others would also go for qualifying but if they were not successful, they would look to better their personal best in the Milo Marathon. Still others would count themselves lucky just to be in the event.

We 83neans are inspired to note that two of our Ateneo de Naga HS Batch 1983 classmates are part of the first two.

Bob Castilla, for the 3^rd straight year, qualified for the December 8 finals.  He conquered the 42.195 kilometers with a time of 3 hours & 54 minutes. This is 2 minutes faster than his 2012 finish time. More importantly, it is 6 minutes better than the 4-hr qualifying time for our relevant men’s age group of 45 – 49 years old.  Bob has a 100% batting average for qualifying in the Milo Marathon Finals.

                 

42.195-K Participants During Manila Elims

Age Group – Men – Women

18-34 – 3hrs 45min – 4hrs 20min

35-39 – 3hrs 50min – 4hrs 25min

40-44 – 3hrs 55min – 4hrs 30min

45-49 – 4hrs 00min – 4hrs 35min

50-54 – 4hrs 05min – 4hrs 40min

55-59 – 4hrs 10min – 4hrs 45min

60-64 – 4hrs 15min – 4hrs 50min

65-69 – 4hrs 20min – 4hrs 55min

70 & up – 5hrs 30min – 5hrs 30min

While Ernie Badong did not qualify, his finish time of 4 hours & 30 minutes is an   improvement from last year which was at 4 hours  & 34 mins.  Not bad for “old man my ass” runners.

In the spirit of brotherhood among ultra-runners, Bob has these tips for Ernie:   

“Nakakatsamba lng ako padi sa milo qualifying na may kaibahan tyaga.

Actually padi, kaya muna mag qualaify sa milo. sinabi ko na saimo ang sikreto. Daily SEX lang yan pra ganado magdalagan.

Kung 4:30 ka, ang 30 mins bale kuanun mu sa speed work pra ang cardio mu maurag. Tpos sa training runs, birahin mu ang uphill sa interval run pra magkusog ka. Recover ka pag pababa.

Keep running.”

These words  are something that all running 8neans, not just Ernie, should heed. Bob is the silent type but in the rare event that he speaks, the output are pearls of wisdom.

Congratulations. We wish Bob the best of luck come Dec 8.  We wish Ernie more focus in gunning to qualify next year. Maybe next year, there will be more running 83neans in the fray. 

The Milo Marathon National Finals is simply the grand daddy of all Philippine marathon.  Started in 1974, the Milo Marathon is the local version of the Boston Marathon.  Full of color. Full of history. 

P.S.  For more official information the Milo Marathon,  kindly check out   http://ww1.nestle.com.ph/milo/marathon/about.html