2014 MAYON 360 ULTRA : The Heat and High of It All

The Penguin is back from the peninsula of Bicol.

Got to finish for the  3rd time the Mayon 360 Ultra last Saturday, April 5. The heat  was brutal in the high 30s. More humid than last year. The joke around Mayon was that you could boil an egg by placing it on the asphalt road. The no-brainer strategy was to get wet  always while running thru the 3 cities of Legaspi, Ligao and Tabaco, and the 5 towns of Daraga, Camalig, Guinobatan, Malilipot and Sto. Domingo. 

Good thing the organizers (Jaycees Legaspi, the province of Albay, and Bald Runner’s crew) were sufficiently  prepared. Almost all the barangays along the 80-km route had  stations complete with  biscuits, boiled eggs and the all important H2O, either for drinking and showering. Kind-hearted and hospitable residents along the route, and there were many, took it upon themselves to prepare buckets of water for shower use by the weary  yet undaunted runners. 

Getting a water shower on the road courtesy of a roving Jaycees crew of volunteers

Getting assistance from  Kristina and Angela, DOH personnel  based in Tabaco

Our support crew of Ed Balcueva and Allen Tolledo were up to the task as well. Need Gatorade, Mountain Dew, ice candy, watermelon, bananas,  peanuts, jelly ace, and chicken joy? They got it. Even the occasional words of encouragement. The duo even arranged for a masseuse, Liza, in the second half of the long and arduous race.     

 

Support crew, Ed, in action on Mau

Support crew, Allen & Liza, in action on Ghibz

Liza, giving massage service, on the "maestro"

More importantly, we are  happy to have accompanied and assisted two newbie participants, Mau Gines & Noel “Ghibz” Guevara, to a successful finish (we finished in 15 hours, cut off was 16 hours). The feeling for us  never gets old.  So, who wants to conquer Mayon 360 next year?  Let us know.

The 349th, 350th and 355th finishers out of 396 solo finishers of 2014 Mayon 360

Sunday was rest day for the team but Monday was an opportunity  to do some recovery run on a beach in some remote Camarines Norte island (no power, no resort, no wifi) by the name of "Quinapaguian ". This after doing some outreach activity  (distributing slippers ala Korina S) arranged by Epok Dacudao,  another batchmate,  for the public school children (150 + kids)  on the island.

Running on the sands of Q

Ateneo de Naga HS Batch 1983 members and the barangay officials and kids of  Quinapaguian Island

A double inebriation of runner's high and helper's high.  Good for the heart and sole.

P.S.  

This is just a teaser of the awesome Mayon 360 experience. A few more articles to come.