Pat & Pam Buddy Run

Last Sunday, July 1, 2012, my daughters ran the Fit n’ Fun Buddy Run as a pair for the first time. The girls have accompanied me on this race separately in the past (Pat in 2010, Pam in 2011), but this year, I told the girls to run with each other. There was actually a little hesitation from the younger one when I first told them about the fun run some time May, but she nevertheless agreed to the plan.

The 0400 H wake-up call

Anticipating a huge turnout for this activity and therefore a parking nightmare, we set ourselves to wake up at 4 am. Our clock at home is 20 minutes earlier so the 4 o’clock wake-up time is well, really early. Someone almost refused to wake up until I did the calling.

Early fun

Pre-gun start, booths giving-away freebies have been setup. One can actually leave home starved and start the race having eaten a full breakfast – cereal, banana, bread, milk, yogurt, your choice. From my assessment, this year’s crowd is bigger than last’s. I guess the reputation of this activity to be fun and really worth it (sulit to be exact) had gotten around.

We came in early :)

Having eaten prior to race, the girls look energetic

Initial plan, I will just wait for the girls at the finish line. However, upon seeing the crowd, I decided to follow them along the route – yes, I became a bandit.

Good thing I made this decision as water stations got very, very crowded and to a certain point, chaotic. Personnel did not have time to fill up the cups before runners arrive hence ending up giving away bottles of water and sports drink. I supplied the girls with drinks from my hydration belt.

Large crowd

Photo-op at the distance markers

Running bug

Several other kids joined the race with their parents. Good thing they are being introduced to exercise and healthy life style. The running bug has really spread!

Mommy and child pair

Reward at the finish line

Wow, lots of goodies

Good:

1.   Fit n’ Fun Buddy Run has lived up to its reputation of being fun with lots of freebies. Really, really lots of freebies.
2.  Nice venue, setup and very energetic hosts.
3.  Adequate distance markers. You know how long you’ve ran (and how many more kilometers to go).

Not-so-good:

1. Probably due to huge turnout, hydration stations have become soooo inadequate. I actually feared some runners will get crushed amid the chaos.
2. Personnel manning the stations freely gave some runners (with bags) sports drinks in bottles. I wonder if some runners ran out of something to drink due to this practice.
3. Though I may never be able to prove, some loot bags have missing goodies. I compared contents with a friend who ran – we got coffee but no cookies. 

 Verdict

This activity is worth the registration fee and a good way to start running races. Hope organizers will work on the not-so-good list. Most probably, we'll be back next year.:)