Multisport Season 2012 Is On!

Action from Multisport Weekend Leg 1 at Filinvest last January 15. (photos courtesy of pinoyfitness.com)

     MUNTINLUPA CITY – The 2012 multisport season kicked off last January 15 with the holding of the first leg of the Multisport Weekend organized by Finishline at the Filinvest Corporate City.  On tap were a Sprint (5K run, 30K bike, 5K run) and a Mini Sprint (2K run, 20K bike, 2K run) duathlon.  Cycling races originally scheduled for the previous day were held immediately after the duathlons.

     A lot was expected from the organizers after they received good reviews for their staging of the AXN Run last year at the Ortigas Center.  However, staging a multisport event is far different from a plain fun run.  I joined the longer Sprint category since it carried the same entry fee as the Mini Sprint of P1,350.00

     All bicycles had to be parked at the transition before 6:00 AM and the gun set for 30 minutes after.  Since I arrived early to claim my race kit, I managed to avoid the slight confusion that happened later as the organizers decided to just let the participants chose the spot where they wish to park their bikes thus disregarding the unclear numbering system which was basically small strips of masking tape that could hardly be read before sunrise.

     The race kit consisted of a race bib made of tarpaulin and stickers for the helmet and bicycle.  Finishline should be commended for promoting the use of reusable timing chips in line with the pro-environment Green Triathlon program.  These devices may be used again in future events that the company will stage.

     The estimated 120 combined Sprint and Mini Sprint participants were fired off at the same time, going their separate ways at the corner.  One thing I noticed was that the announced five-kilometer route seemed longer than usual.  My watch was already past 30 minutes with no finish line site.  I was running a comfortable pace of about six minutes per kilometer so I should be on the bike by now.  Those who had GPS watches also noticed that the route was going to take more than five.  Having not enough marshals and confusing directional and distance markers (due to having two different races at the same time) did not help either.

     Hydration was non-existent for about the first three kilometers.  It seems there were no stations in the back roads and only at least three overall – two within Filinvest and one on Alabang-Zapote Road.  Only water was available, perhaps due to the absence of a sports drink sponsor.

     As always, my strategy is to have the strongest run as possible in order to make up for my poor bicycle skills.  For this race, I debuted my new road bike and I can say it was far better to use than the old mountain bike especially in the uphill stretches around the Palms Country Club and the road leading to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.

     Unfortunately, the suddenly extended first running stage resulted in at least an extra 10 minutes to my overall time.  Racing in the area for the first time, I regret not taking advantage of Finishline’s free practice run on the route last December as it could have made a big difference.

     The bike course consisted of six loops of five kilometers each around Filinvest.  Timing mats were strategically placed in order to achieve accurate results and deter cheating.

     According to my watch, it took about 90 minutes to complete the bike course.  Still, I relied on a strong second run.  I finished a little over 30 minutes which is normal for a five-kilometer run, thus strengthening the suspicion that the first run was longer than usual.  I also managed to pass at least three other participants along the way thus avoiding another last place debacle.

     All finishers received a medal and a cotton finishers’ shirt.  Later on, it was found that the first run was indeed seven kilometers, two kilometers more than what was written in the race entry form.  My total time was a shade under three hours.

     Upon collecting my prizes, I left at once and opted not to stay behind to watch the cycling races.

     After this initial leg, the Multisport Weekend goes to Clark Air Base in Pampanga on June 23 and 24 before returning to Filinvest on August 25 and 26.  The four-leg series concludes at Daang Hari on November 10 and 11.  Hopefully, we will see nothing but improvement as the series progresses leading to another banner year for the multisport scene.