Asian Food Channel’s Eat and Run

Posted by Franc on 25. March 2013

Burp… After a 6K Relay and Food After

Distance: 6 Kilometers Food Relay
Date: March 24, 2013

“AFC’s Eat and Run treated runners to a combination of a hill run, good foods and team play set in a very festive Piazza Venice. Run Fast, Eat Faster and have all the fun you can.”

Eat and Run Food Relay

Running and Eating Redefined

Eat and Run was a first of its kind eating and running adventure that gave the participants a 2 kilometer run each, a good meal and team play among relay participants. Relays don’t happen much frequently as it’s a bit harder to organize in terms of team composition and relay transitions. Then there’s food from Global Academy and The Academy for Culinary Arts which was set to cater food for hundreds of participants. Runtertainment was able to successfully stage the event from the get go to ’til the participant has made their last burp. This was an excellent event to promote the Asian Food Channel. This was a whole new concept for me as running 2 kilometers and being part of a relay would be a first. I had the chance to form my own team as well as giveaway slots to others as a social media partner for the event.

Team Zombie Journals

Team Zombie Journals

I handpicked my team to be fellow Outbreak Manila Zombies James and Tezza. Since we all had The Zombie Journals shirt from my “Who’s Your Favorite Zombie? Campaign,” we made it our team uniforms. Tezza would come in first, then followed by me then finally, the speedster James for a strong finish. It would also be a nice way to promote The Zombie Journals Story and the upcoming Outbreak BGC 2. Come to think of it, Outbreak BGC 2 would be another eat and run event for Outbreak Manila Zombies like me. Let’s just say this one is our appetizer.

The Race

Starting for Team Zombie Journals

The race area was relaxed and festive which set the tone that this one would be a pure fun run for the most of us. I was even kidding that it’s OK to run slow but it’s important to eat fast. It was nice to see some runner friends and fixtures in the running community. It was also nice to see a fellow blogger in the group. The warm up was an upbeat one with focus on stretching and some dynamic exercise. The first runners of each team was then guided to the start area while the rest were stationed at the waiting area. The drill is to run two kilometers that covered the perimeter of Piazza Venice and some stretches in McKinley Road before going back to the food station drinking CarbTrim and finishing the food which was served before passing the bib to the next runner.

Having Fun – Photo by Jobert Dela Victoria

After the loop of Tezza and after she ate her Chicken Caesar Wraps in the food station, I got the bib and immediately went on running. Since this was just 2 kilometers, I can run at a faster pace without tiring myself too much so went on with the 2 kilometers at below 6 minute per kilometer pace. Even with the short distance, the route is no pushover as it’s mostly uphill. This was also a test run for my Adidas boost and it really felt like bouncing with little impact on the knees and legs. Upon arrival at the food station, I was handed a water bottle and 12 oz Gourmet Taho, which I was able to consume after just a few sips. Funny how I thought that the Taho was just a teaser to the meal but at least, I was lucky I didn’t have to consume much. I passed on the bib to James for the last loop.

A Speedster for our Finishing Kick

James was our fastest runner who would ensure we had a strong finish. He didn’t take long to do the loop and he was surprised at what was waiting at food station 3 which was 2 Chicken Caesar Wraps. He did spent a chunk of time gobbling up those two Chicken Caesar Wraps before heading to the waiting area to meet us where we run together a few meters into the finish line. That was a really fun and satisfying run.

Post Race

Team Zombie Journals with Judy Malabanan of Runtertainment

This was an intimate race and was packed with post race activities starting with some freebies from Nestle Acti-V, Carbtrim, Hawk Bags, Mogu Mogu, Magnolia Pure Water as well as the loot bag which had the event shirt and some giveaways. There were also raffle prices, awarding of winners and finally, a cool down stretch to end the first eat and run relay in the country.