TAGAYTAY TO KAWIT ULTRA (50kms): Registered for this Run Mania Event

BDM, T2N, TNF100,  LUUM, L2Q ... For a sports event that is  about super long distances, the names of ultra marathon events in the Philippines are notoriously short. 

Add to this budget soup of alphabets and numbers, the acronym T2K which refers to the Tagaytay to Kawit Ultra Marathon scheduled for gun start in the late evening hours of August 24, 2013.

The T2K will bring ultra runners to a 50-km jaunt from the highlands of Tagaytay City, in front of Summit Ridge Hotel, to  lowland Kawit, in front of the Aguinaldo mansion which hosted the birth of Philippine Independence 115 years ago. The historical backdrop of the T2K is enough reason for history-loving BP to register, and even recruit a couple more 83neans (Ernie Badong and Bob Castilla) to the fray. All 3 of us have now deposited the reg fee to the bank account of the organizer.

T2K route map

BP’s deposit slip

Ernie’s and Bob’s deposit slips

Another impetus for me to participate in the T2K is get a nibble of the race organizing skills of Run Mania Philippines Promotions (http://runmania.ph/), a Laguna-based outfit founded by  Engr. Ian Patrick Maranan  with support from  Engr. TJ Taburico and aspiring lawyer Jeromme Lacbay.  All of them are Caliraya Runners and my hope is that being true-blue runner would help them zero in on what makes a satisfying running adventure.  They had their maiden voyage in organizing races in 2012 with the Caliraya Uphill Challenge (10km)in January and Takbo Para sa Lawa (21km) in April. This 2013,  Run Mania ventured into ultra marathon distance with the Laguna to Marathon (L2Q), a 50-km race from the Laguna provincial Capitol in Sta. Cruz to the town plaza in Lucban, Quezon.

Feedback from Gia Estrella, an Ayala Triad participant of the L2Q, last June 16: “Okay naman Run Mania how they organize the race. There are marshals and the traffic was controlled well and I think there was an ambulance on standby. Ample hydration and food every 10k then there’s finishers medal, trophy, shirt and certificate.”     

One thing that markedly crops out of the statement - there is a trophy for all finishers. This in addition to the usual line-up of finisher’s reward in an ultra. Plus, there were water stations every 10 kms which would allow a runner to do away with a support vehicle. All for the registration fee  of Php 1,400 in L2Q, which is also the same price for T2K. The Run Mania rate  is notably economical than the pricing contrivance in the BDM or TNF races. 

T2K trophy

More value for our money. All we need to do now is to train for the T2K so as to extract as much satisfaction from the experience.  This we shall do. 

Abangan.