Sep 29, 2016

BIKEKING DUATHLON

BIKEKING DUATHLON
6KM Run - 60KM Bike - 4KM Run
Alviera, Porac, Pampanga / SCTEX

 Weeks ago I signed up for the BIKEKING DUATHLON just on a whim much to the disbelief of Ting Joson, the event organizer, who was surprised to see my name on the registration list. She claims that I may have finally "crossed over to the dark side."  Still not confident with my fitness level to do both run and bike,  I only planned on doing the bike leg of this run-bike-run event so I partnered with "Jrl - Running " (Jaya) who agreed to do the run portion of the relay with me. It seemed like a great way to ease the pressure by sharing the workload since this was our first ever duathlon. So, we just took the leap and signed up with no expectations whatsoever. 

It was a cool Sunday morning at Porac, Pampanga which got really hot as the sun started to rise. Jaya together with the other participants ran the initial 6km portion of the relay that started at 6am sharp. She finished that leg in about 34.03 mins after which it was my turn to do the 60km bike course along the SCTEX. The scorching heat did not take away from the beautiful mountain view and greenery of Pampanga that is always a sight to behold. However,  I may have underestimated the difficulty of the bike terrain at SCTEX which was smooth, undulating and oftentimes challenging which took me about 2.19.57 to finish.  At the last transition,  Jaya did the final 4km Run which she finished in 23.11 minutes. Together we tallied up a total finish time of 3:17.11.
Not bad I guess for a couple of first timers who bungled their way in the transition area like headless chickens not knowing what to do next much to the entertainment of the Marshals who could not help but laugh at us. 

Though we struggled a bit with a few kinks along the way, Jaya and I were just glad to have finished the race in good spirits and in a fairly decent time. What we didn't expect was the news of us finishing in 1st place for the Relay Category which was communicated to us by Ting Joson  herself just as we were about to say our goodbyes and leave. Quite unexpected but totally Awesome!!!!

A big thanks to the BIKEKING DUATHLON organizers for putting on a well organized and marshaled event.   Thank you Jaya for partnering with me and putting up a great team effort.  As for me, my original intention was just to gain some experience, have some fun and enjoy spending time outdoors.  I'm sure we didn't plan on finishing in first place but that's not bad...not bad at all. What an unexpected perk for something that just started on a whim.
Flying at the SCTEX 60 km event.

 Sprayed water at the marshall.  ha ha
Jaya doing the Run part.
Jrl - RunningShield Team 
Transition Area 
Relaxing After the Race , getting ready for Monday.
Hanging out with friends 
I told her to wait for me at the finish line  


Highlights from the Race. Thank you RUN CAB for the pictures