Many many thanks Jaymie!! You have done more than I could have dreamed of.

Dear Jaymie and the TBR Team,

During the run I told myself, “This is the last time I’m ever going to do a marathon!” Now, I can’t wait for my legs to stop hurting so I can start running again. At first, I thought it was called the “Dream Marathon” because it was your dream to put up an event like this. I’ve since realized that it’s a marathon for those who dream they can accomplish more than what they’ve ever imagined or been told. There are no limits for those who dream.

Thank you very much for inspiring us to chase our own dreams and make our own reality.

Thank you for all the dedication and support (and for spoiling us rotten!) during the marathon. It was such a surreal experience, I still can’t believe that I finished a marathon! Maybe next week, reality will sink in! Thanks again to you and your team for this experience. See you at the next 42!

First of all i just wanna thank you for letting me participate as a pacer at the dream marathon. I wanna say kudos too for organizing such a fantastic race. Even the term fantastic would be an understatement for the event that u just did.

The race was very very very organized…. I can’t say that enough. From the aid stations, the support crew, the logistics, everything! It was perfect. The first/second timers are really really lucky.

I’ve done a lot of races like Singapore Marathon, Ironman West Australia and I can say that this is almost up to par all of them. From the organization, down to the execution.

Honestly I think you may have set the bar too high though hehe 🙂 Everyone’s gonna get spoiled now when u organize another race. But I’m sure that wont be a problem for you.

Again, just wanna say thanks jaymie for making a lot of peoples dream (including my gf aleta yao) come true. I’m very honored to be part of this once in a lifetime event.

If I had to “rate” the TBR Dream Marathon, I would give it 5 bull medals!! Thanks Jaymie for making this mary possible for us. The bull circle talks and weekend training runs really helped us prepare and the support team yesterday were just great!! Stations were aplenty and we were never wanting of anything. Hope to join the next TBR marathon as a second time marathoner and improve on my time. Kudos to everyone!!!

I did it!!!! WE did it!!!! Thank you so much, Jaymie. Really, words cannot express my deep gratitude for all you have done. That was the most amazing marathon a new runner could ever ask for.

Three months ago, I was content with running half marathons. I thought that it was enough. When you presented the Dream Marathon, it opened up an opportunity for me to challenge myself even more. I was the happiest man when I got the confirmation that I was included in the small pool of runners for the event.

Last Saturday, I have surpassed one of the greatest physical challenges known to man. I probably would have joined other full marathons but your event was different. It was well thought of, well planned, and well executed. I could never ask for a more personalized run than this. You inspire me to share the love and passion for running to other people. I hope you continue to serve as an inspiration to runners out there. I wish that in the future, I could also share something like this to other people.

So yeah, congratulations to you for helping all 300 (or more) of us achieve something really monumental. Congratulations to your team for successfully executing this event.

If you intend to do this again, you can count on me for support. Again, Thank you very much! Cheers!

JB
HR Analyst
Upstream International

To most serious runners, finishing a marathon in 7:51 may be something to scoff at. But I hold my head high. I, after all, finished! More than gunning for a faster time, it was the experience that mattered most. So all those tears were all about being surrounded by happy, shiny people who have nothing but my best interest in their hearts, thus making my first marathon worth running, despite the pain.

I’ve been treated like a “fragile being” by family and friends who cared about me — so many things I shouldn’t eat or do, just because I had asthma. When I was rushed to the ER and a doctor tells me my asthma was back (and with vengeance), I was told I can never take part in any endurance sport ever again — I was told I can never run. But finishing your marathon defied all odds. I was able to complete 42.2km even when they told me I could not.

Full story here: http://binaryfeet.com/2011/03/25/my-marathon-journey/

TEARS OF ELATED JOY. That is how I would describe my feeling as I ran the last few hundred meters to the finish line. The last few meters to the finish line just kept repeating in my mind, it was truly a EUPHORIC MOMENT for me. When Joy & I saw the sign 42K, she told me she will run ahead & she will see me at the finish line. The moment she ran ahead of me I just could’nt stop running, I kept going and going and going and I was crying already. Good thing I was wearing shades so my tears were not easily seen. It was just me who crossed the finish line when I saw the TIMEX clock 6:48 ( as I recall ) so it was a glorious MOMENT indeed! And you know what the BEST part was? Just a few steps near the finish line, my eldest son JAVIER approached me, HELD MY HAND and gave me a big smile and TOGETHER we crossed the finish line. Then my youngest son, ENZO gave me hug and it was just a PERFECT moment.

All Dream Marathoners were acknowledged by the host as we crossed the finish line. I felt like a Hollywood star, cameras flashing and the host gave me a compliment that I still looked FRESH even after running the TOUGH 42K. Then the TBR medal was placed on me & I surely felt like a REAL WINNER, whoohoohoo!!!

TBR Dream Marathon 2011, race day… I describe it as one HELLISH experience but I don’t mind doing it all over again. There were a lot of emotions from the start, pains and soreness along the way, but crossing that finish line gave me and every participant an inexplicable feeling that would make one cry and smile at the same time. , I’d like to thank Jaymie and the entire TBR Dream Team. TBR Dream Marathon is the best marathon setting anyone could ever ask for. We appreciate all the time, efforts, and sacrifices you’ve done in making this happen. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and passion with us. I pray to God that He may bless you abundantly for you to be able to continue this good deed and help more runners in the future.

I practically threw out any plans of targeting a particular finish time and just cherish every kilometer and enjoy the great company.

We had a blast every time Coach Jim would pass us by with his motorcycle shouting loudly and egg us to move on. We would talk about how this year’s edition of TBR Marathon was setup from the Bull Sessions, Talks, Send-Off Party and the marathon itself.

With all the exceptional things given to us by the TBR Team, it seemed like Jaymie paid us to do the marathon – it was just that good.

Thank you so much for going the extra mile(s) to make our dream come true! Thank you for pampering us throughout the run. Most of all, thank you to each & everyone of The Bull Runner Team for cheering, encouraging & supporting each & everyone of my batch mates.

Our dream together of running a 42 km had come true! Thanks to Ms. Jaymie Pizarro and all the Staff, Experts for making our DREAMS become a REALITY. Thanks to Coach Jim Lafferty, Lit Ornubia and all the members of the DREAM TEAM. We will always cherish that day for the rest of our lives. Now we are proud to say that my running buddy, Bong and I are MARATHONERS!

To those who are thinking of running a full marathon, I suggest that you take a hard look at joining the Dream Marathon. It is more expensive than the regular races that we join but I tell you that it is worth its weight in gold. More in fact. I am so happy that I am doing this.

Joining The Bull Runner Dream Marathon 2011 was the most life changing experience and the most memorable. I felt so pampered. Hydration, food and the cheer of the support team was indeed exceptional. I felt warmth people cheering on me every time I passed an aid station. I learned a lot of things from training to the d-day. I’m so thankful to Jaymie Pizarro and TBRDM 2011 team for the best ever run. Kassy and Maan for pacing me to my dream. Lastly to my fellow runners who once dreamed of running a full marathon and now it’s real and to my support team and everyone who cheered us up to our finish line. A big big THANK YOU!

Running might be an individual sport but this time I had a team. A team made up of other runners dreaming of their first marathon, a team of organizers and Dream Chasers led by Jaymie Pizzaro helping first time marathoners realize their dreams, team arVee who waited patiently until I made my step towards the finish line, and of course a team composed of Rence and Koosh who stayed late given the six-hour difference between Botswana and the Philipines until they got a call from me — I finished 42.195 kms!

Dreams do come true.

There is nowhere in the world where one runs a marathon in a more loving and nurturing environment than in the TBR DM. The pacers, the dream chasers, the hydration station attendants, the organizers, the fellow runners, the families, the onlookers, everyone was cheering at us and buoying our spirits up, as if our dream-come-true is theirs too. Some runners faltered along the way, labored painfully, grappled with injuries, struggled with each mile, but these people kept them on, pushed them literally…Each of us runners were facing our own bout but we moved as if we were one spirit, straining into one direction and wanting every comrade of the road to finish too. In the TBR DM, everyone who crosses the finish line is a winner and everyone who steps on the thin line that defines a marathoner owns the limelight to himself. There was no competition there, only a contest against oneself, and there, we conquered. And as we did, our families and friends and supporters roared and hugged and held because our victory became theirs.