“Of course it was painful, and there were times when, emotionally, I just wanted to chuck it all. But pain seems to be a precondition for this kind of sport. If pain weren’t involved, who in the world would ever go to the trouble of taking part in sports like the triathlon or the marathon, which demand such an investment of time and energy? It’s precisely because of the pain, precisely because we want to overcome that pain, that we can get the feeling, through this process, of really being alive–or at least a partial sense of it. Your quality of experience is based not on standards such as time or ranking, but on finally awakening to an awareness of the fluidity within action itself.” Haruki Murakami, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
Leeyhan had a different vision of how he will cross the finish line: sprinting the last 100 meters and jumping the moment he steps on the finish line.
“Allan!!! I am so nervous!” Just like any busy individual, Leeyhan wanted everything in order. We tried following the program, attending every Bull Sessions, training different distances, racing up to the half marathon so he could guess-timate his time when marathon happens after a year.
I met Leeyhan in graduate school and he got interested doing 10k and gave him tips back then–that was 2011.
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Fast forward, he got into CrossFit and CrossFit Striking, we signed up for Pulag, we enjoyed doing trail runs; Leeyhan was on a roll! The guy was obviously focused on that next target–finishing the marathon.
When I mentioned about The Bull Runner Dream Marathon, he said yes after he saw another friend of ours in Striking finished her marathon last year. Leeyhan was part of Gawi (UST Salinggawi Dance Troupe) in college and so he has the stamina and the endurance. He also did his sprint triathlon relay in Regent 5i50 but my friend is a go-getter! So he will finish the marathon and I dared him to finish it 5:30 hours. That was our target.
Send Off Party
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This is my first time to be a pacer in TBR SunLife Dream Marathon, after my first marathon in 2011, I was a Dream Chaser for 6 years bringing quite a number of Dreamers turned marathoners and it is a sight to see, chokes you and gives you that burst of emotion.
“ALLAN!!! This is so nerve-wracking! I know I am running a marathon in 2 weeks but this IS REAL!” He couldn’t believe it and our mileage was consistent from 28k to 34k on a weekly basis and whenever I try a different training, we would learn something new about his attitude on the conditions. So we really took notice of it.
Leeyhan watched motivational videos by the last week before the race to keep him on his feet at the same time add pressure to what is already there.
Race Day
I have heard Coach Jim say that famous line, “Later, you will be a marathoner!” so many times but it still gives me the goosebumps. While waiting for the gunstart, only seconds away, I felt the love and the positivity that surrounded these Dreamers.
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At the last minute, we changed strategy to try going steady 7-7:30 min/km for the half marathon and then we will do a 3:1 (3 minutes run: 1 minute walk) with 6:30 on the next half. We attended the last 2 Bull Sessions in Nuvali so he already knows the rolling hills and the flat ones.
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I know I always do a positive split on my first half so I always suffer the second half but I have managed it for years now and tried doing even splits. With Leeyhan I wanted to break a 2:30 half marathon so we would have enough time to recover (3:00) on the second half.
By kilometer 24, we are in high spirits–same percentile since gun start; same people for a good 100 meters. By kilometer 28, Leeyhan started to feel tight on his right calf; so we decided to do a power walk. It was a very friendly competition as Dreamers and Chasers and even the hydration stations, water and Gatorade, were cheering.
It was in kilometer 34 that both calves started to feel tight and we have to slow down the pace. But as pacer, you have to keep the momentum and the spirit high. This is when I saw Leeyhan’s motivation to brush off the pain. I asked him to try to sit down so he could relax both legs but he insisted on continuing sans the muscle relaxant sprayed at strategically placed before the Dream Chasers’ tents.
This is the human spirit fighting and this sets him apart from the friends I have paced since then in countless marathons–to continue while enduring the pain is something. It was only when he enunciate my name, that is when we really need to stop.
Come kilometer 38, only 4 kilometers away we are already 5:05. We are hopeful but his legs were both logs, but he kept on going. We took 200m run and 100m walk to still keep the momentum, Leeyhan is focused.
By kilometer 40, he cries in pain. He did not imagine this to happen, he wanted to cry when he will cross the finish line and not because of the pain. It is the longest 2 kilometers. Dream chasers and finishers and even spectators were cheering for him, I am overwhelmed with emotions and we just joked that we wanted to correct people that motivations are great but the pain is just crippling!
200 meters away from the finish line and we were ready for his vision, sprinting and jumping. No, we didn’t want to risk getting more injury–WE WANTED TO FINISH. So he pushed more, he endured the pain, he crosses the finish line.
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Leeyhan finished the race at 6:32:12 as per our Garmin. It’s done, he still aches but we finished, HE FINISHED!!!
So this is the feeling of a pacer, I got teary eyed to see Coach Lit cheering, Jaymie and Coach Francis asking Leeyhan is okay. LEEYHAN DIZON, YOU ARE NOW A MARATHONER!
Oh sweet success! Leeyhan, I am so proud of you! We are so proud of you.
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You know the great thing with doing a marathon, it builds character. It brings out the survivor in you, how you face and handle your adversities and how you overcome them. My friend Leeyhan displayed such courage, he remained calm even if the pain wanted him to shout. He remained composed, even his pain asked him to quit. He is a warrior. Congratulations Leeyhan. Welcome to the club!
Photos during the race courtesy of our guardian angel. Good thing we have vivid photos.
Give It All Or Nothing At All (Leeyhan Dizon’s First Marathon) “Of course it was painful, and there were times when, emotionally, I just wanted to chuck it all.