June 29, 2008
TO ALL THOSE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE RUSH TO INFINITY:
We would like to apologize for the long queue upon reaching the finish line. We understand that this mistake caused confusion among the runners as to where they should go in order clock-in their finish times. We also apologize to those who were not able to set new personal records or were hoping to beat their previous times because of this mistake. We will be making adjustments to the official race results to off-set the time that was spent waiting at the finish line queue.
Furthermore, I take full responsibility as race director for this mistake as it was purely technical in nature. This error cannot be attributed to Rush Fitness Water and Mizuno, as well as the other event sponsors.
The Official Race Results shall be posted at http://runrio.com. Should you have any comments, suggestions or other feedback, feel free to email us at feedback@runrio.com. We hope that in spite of everything, you were able to enjoy the race. We look forward to seeing you at future race events!
Sincerely,
RIO DELA CRUZ
Race Director
RUSH TO INFINITY
Rio dela Cruz is currently the coach of the UP Track & Field Varsity Team. He is also a race organizer. Most importantly, he is a running fanatic!
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June 29th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
hi rio,
do I hear mizuno 3? joke lng po
was wondrin’ what happened there cuz I was kinda slow with my time & tried to bawi when I sprinted on my last few meters, kaso, oops, there was the looong queue, nabitin tuloy ako hehe.
better luck next time, and may we both improve/learn from our mistakes. di bale, your other events were well handled naman, and it doesn’t rain everyday! cheer up!
June 29th, 2008 at 1:54 pm
coach rio,
overall it was a good race you laid out today.if only for that finish line fiasco, everything else went well.
may i suggest that next time though, you put distance markers ( at least every 2-2.5kms ) indicating how many kilometers we have covered and how many more to go.that way we can pace ourselves.napansin ko,puro turnaround markers lang meron.alam mo naman ,not all of us can afford garmin distance readers and the like.
btw, lots of water today unlike the previous mizuno run.
you will get over this coach.don’t lose heart.marami pa rin kaming sumusuporta sa iyo.keep it up.you did well enough today to make a lot of runners smiling and with more running stories to share.on an otherwise sleepy and cloudless sunday morning.
June 29th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Normally there are metal barriers that make up the chutes just before the finish line that I did not see today. It was like shopping at Divisoria actually he he. I nearly hit a woman carrying a folding table in my sprint to the line.
No one took the stub from my bib there so I just gave it to one of your guys by the water queue, only it was much later since I did not line up to get a free drink. I didn’t mind really since I was actually a minute slower today (59:33 on my watch) compared to the waterless Mizuno 1. Go figure.
June 29th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
It was my first competition race after more than a year of taking up running seriously. I join the 10k my first and am glad I make it under an hour which is my goal if not the champion. I presume my time is between 40-49 minutes am not too sure just because of the terrible finish line. Am just a bit disappointed but I don’t want to pinpoint whose to blame it’s not my attitude rather better give some suggestion. Everything goes well if not only in the finish line looong queue so terrible that caught exhausted runner’s so confused. Just some of the suggestions it would be better if the start and finish line will occupy the whole road and there must be a partition and a visible time circuits display that is place above the steel bar in each km distant. hope we could have much technology available in determining runner’s accurate official time that will make the way for a smooth runner’s entry in the finish line.
June 29th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Hi Coach Rio,
Hmmm, di ko yata inabutan yung long queue. I remember there are only around 6 runners in front of me at the finish line. Other than that, I believe it was a very good race. Plenty of water and water stations (may banana pa), plenty of marshals and a very nice weather (answered prayer). Congratulations Coach Rio. Cheers!!… You’re the man.
JUN
June 29th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
it happens so go go go! mizuno 3 with the dry fit technology singlets! may sleeve ang nakuha kong shirt ngayon e. hehehe
June 29th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
hi coach rio,
this was a highly anticipated race considering this was part 2 and you served as the race director. expectations were raised a notch. we all know that PRs are keenly watched bcoz PRs drive runners to continue and improve. it was a miss today in the “clock-in” department but what’s hopeful about this is that the mistake is acknowledged and an apology was rendered (after the race and here in your page).
looking at it overall, personally I had fun. great singlet. water was enough, probably more than enough by others. this time, i don’t have to waive at the drivers so i can safely cross the street. there were raffle prizes (OAKLEY!!! although i didn’t win any). a red carpet would be a welcome addition near the race and sponsor backdrops for picture-taking (just kidding:D). i dunno if it started on time coz I was nearly late.
and best of all, we were blessed with good weather during the race.
lastly, my friends and I will still support your future races.
June 29th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
pls post race pictures from that guy in yellow?? or link to his website
June 29th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
halloo sir rio!
sowee at nangulit pa ako ng pic with you kanina before you come up on stage. hindi ka na nga makangiti and yes…we accept your apology. me, my friend and boss empathize with you with the pressure you were experiencing after the race but ei, cheer up po! it’s no easy task. we’ll keep on supporting you and your future races.
all in all…double endorphin-pumping yung race coz unang una, ang daming participants. it put a smile on our faces seeing the sea of people running lalo na sa 5k. super hydrated. photo opps with the running bloggers and celebs. i won the raffle (fitness first freebie). hehehe =)
more happy faces and races next time =)
June 29th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
It was a good race for me notwithstanding the finish line problem. I know you will do better next time!
Is there anyway we can decongest the flow of runners going back and fro next time? It may lead to a traffic accident.
More power to you!
June 29th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
hey rio!
the run this morning was really fun! though i didn’t beat my last record, i can say that this is one of the very few races i actually enjoyed =). bawing-bawi ung stress and disappointment from the 1st infinity run hehe..
can u please post the pics? how about those guys who were taking pics? what’s their website?
and thanks for letting us take pics with you (”seryoso?”)
you rock!
June 29th, 2008 at 9:58 pm
Coach Rio,
It is very honorable for you to take full responsibility of the minor hiccups that happened during the Mizuno Race.
Generally, I think that the race was organized well enough. For the cheap registration fee that we paid, I think that we only deserved to get what we paid for. Runners cannot expect a world class race given the budget constraints. On top of that, there were not enough sponsors who supported the race.
Here are just my 2 cents worth on the lessons learned on this race:
1) Please put distance markers along the route. At least a marker every 2km should be enough.
2) Races should be festive events. The overall mood was a bit dragging. Please invest on good and loud speakers, lively music and an articulate emcee who can motivate the runners. I believe that it’s better to invest on these rather than promo girls.
3) The TV which displays the timing is not very helpful. It is unreadable because of the sunglare. I suggest that for future races, partner with TIMEX or other time sponsors who can provide race timers.
4) Lining up to the finish line is very anti-climactic in finishing a race. I suggest invest in time chips or RF tags to automatically record individual times. This will definitely increase the cost of the race but I think runners are willing to pay extra for a good race.
5) Get more student volunteers.
These are just my suggestions in improving future races.
Nonetheless, I think you did a spectacular job as a race director. And I believe that future local races can be of world class calibre.
Congratulations and keep up the good work sir! Looking forward to participate in your next race!
June 29th, 2008 at 10:26 pm
It was my first time to join a long run, and it was fun. I like the experience and love the idea of competing with myself for personal record and other runners.
I want to win in one of the runs one of these days to feel once again the great exhiliration of winning.
We all make mistakes. That’s part of the learning process. You got the right attitude of acknowledging it and apologizing. There’s no doubt that you will do better next time.
A big thank you for all your efforts.
Same request as other people mentioned here - links to the photos.
Cheers!
Richard
June 29th, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Hi Rio,
First of all, thank you for organizing this race. This is much better than the first one. I already saw the results and it was way slower than the what was registered on my ipod. I think the adjusted time still did not reflect the actual. Good thing I was able to track my time but I feel sorry for those you weren’t able to. Despite this, I am still looking forward to joining your races.
June 30th, 2008 at 9:30 am
hello coach,
I think the race was OK and much much better than the first mizuno race.
I think the long queue at the finish should not be much of bother especially for those people who wants to beat their PRs. Most of these runners will be wearing their chrono anyway.]
BTW, I checked the results and noticed that my name was misspelled. Finisher #118 in the 5K men’s race should be ROSAURO not ROSARIO and my friend who finished with me is listed as “bandit”.
Overall it was a good race, I think the errors are very minor. It was good work from you and the organizers.
-Ross
June 30th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Hi Rio just like to let you know I still enjoyed the race even if I wasn’t able to give my race tag immediately after crossing the finish line.
Just to let you know, my actual time is 1:08:33 secs. About my place, I’m sure I was at the back of Regie Boljoran so I’m number #24. This is because we paced each other until the finish, so im a second or split second at his back. The only difference was he fell in line again at the long line after finishing and I didn’t. I just gave you my number a few minutes after.
June 30th, 2008 at 9:42 am
Oh, btw, my fullname is Eustacio Cuevas II. I’m not sure if you know its Eustacio.. hehe.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:04 am
C’mon guys! We, runners gave you the chance to redeem yourselves in any way we could… Give us the race that we deserve- hitch-free!
June 30th, 2008 at 2:27 pm
It’s still a good race event after all.
June 30th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
hi. we were around almost 10 people from retreat group, mostly novices and running virgins who ran 5K, a few braver souls did 10K. Of course, its our first time (thats why we are running virgins)
Overall, i think we enjoyed the race and actually would like to join again. the weather was perfect! people were just the right crowd..hehe and lots of water! just a small note maybe the queue at the finish line (documentation process) could have been avoided by subdividing the 5K,10K and 15K runners and maybe a DJ playing music throughout(or at least some really pumped up 90’s anthems..haha)
congratulations and looking forward to the next.
chris
June 30th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Rio, My hubby & I had tons of fun in the 5k Race! Mostly, it’s just indoor exercises for us, so running outdoors yesterday was a real treat. Great singlet too! Looking forward to the next race…
June 30th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Hi,
I timed my own race. Would you sign my finisher’s certificate? I had fun, and will be joining future races.
June 30th, 2008 at 8:37 pm
ok lang yan papy.wag ka na masyado mag isip at baka maunat lahat yang afro ‘do mo eh di ka na makatakbo ng maayos.pati si ate mernele mo,di maipinta ang mukha kahapon.go drown yourselves in rush.tagay mo pa bro.see you again in your next race.better do good or else,i will straighten your hair myself.
June 30th, 2008 at 11:46 pm
Hi Rio…also timed my race, it was a great event. My bro, sis and her 2 friends also joined and enjoyed. Just want to correct my last name de la rama instead of la roma, bib #647, position #52
We are eagerly looking forward for the Mizuno 3 race..congrats and we’ll support your future race events
July 1st, 2008 at 1:13 pm
“Rush Mizuno Infinity Run Take 3″
=)
July 1st, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Aside from the long queue at the end of the race (which didn’t really bother me much bec. I had a watch), I also want to complain about one of the water stations (near McKinley Hill). The guy there
splashed a bottle of water on me even if I made a “NO” gesture.. Good thing my iPod didnt get WET!!! It seems he had too much fun, thinking he was in a Fiesta in San Juan… Sayang Tubig!!
July 1st, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Cheer up! in all you did a great job. All runners know that it’s not that easy to handle with such a number of participants. keep goin… as keep running…
July 2nd, 2008 at 9:37 am
Mizuno 3…pwede… =)
July 6th, 2008 at 12:00 am
it’s kinda sad that the results aren’t accurate. but oh well, i don’t mind joining another run. i just hope we won’t encounter the same problems in the future.
July 19th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
question..what was the technical problem you encountered?