My First Race - Haribon Million Hectare Challenge

First of all, I would like to congratulate Haribon Foundation for the successful Million Hectare Challenge last November 21, 2010. More than a thousand people joined the race and supported the cause to raise funds to restore our forests by the year 2020. Everyone had a great time and some runners can not wait for the Haribon Run next year. As for me, I am very happy for my first run and I decided to continue running as what I mentioned on my previous blog post.

I joined the 5k race and successfully finished it in 37 minutes and 10 seconds. It was a slow pace but I know I will improve in the coming months. I could have finished earlier if I knew the route and was not dependent on race marshals. I was a bit relaxed, saving my energy for the last 50 meters because I was planning to finish in a bit of a sprint. I had a hard time during 2 uphill stages and I relaxed a bit to gain strength. To my surprise, race marshals were pointing to a direction towards the finish line and I have plenty of energy left. I was a bit smiling when I crossed the finish line because I knew that in my next race, I would definitely get a better time and I knew 5k is not that difficult after all. I can run for 6 or 7k next time, to prepare for the next 5k run and in a few months, try the 10k run.


I am planning to join another race this December and train during the holidays. I am so excited to start this running hobby and I am also looking forward to meet new runner friends. My wife has always been very supportive and in fact had a great time running the 3k race too. Hopefully, she'll have more time on her hands and try the 5k run next year.

I would also like to give my sincerest gratitude to the Rotary Club of Midtown Diliman for supporting the Haribon Million Hectare Challenge, most specially President Randy Tan for being present during the event. Finally, congratulations to my loving wife, Yasmin Mangila Ponce for doing a great job as the overall logistics supervisor, I am very proud of her accomplishments and will always be there to support her future projects and endeavors.