The map, with the permanent address www.ceburunning.com/runsafe, will contain such data as areas where runners are robbed or attacked. It will also indicate which parts of Cebu runners should avoid for being unsafe, especially at night.

To view the data, click on the icons on the map.

I will also indicate areas in the city where there are vicious stray dogs on the loose (think A.C. Cortes Ave. near the Shell Station at night). I was chased by stray dogs there once. I’m coming back with dogfood heavily-laced with vetsin. (Ling, it’s a joke )

If you want to report an incident, send me the following data 1.) all information related to the incident (date, circumstances behind it etc.) and 2.) coordinates of the area where it happened.

MAP COORDINATES. Getting map coordinates using the ITouchMap.com tool. Click on the image to load a larger version.

To get the coordinates of the area where the incident happened, 1.) Go to the iTouchMap Latitude and Longitude page and navigate to Cebu, 2.) zoom into the area in the map where the incident happened and click on it, 3.) click on the placeholder that will appear in the spot, and 4.) copy the numbers that will appear in a balloon pop-up. (For guide, check the image above)

Send me an email using the contact form found in the menu above with the needed information.

My next interactive map projects will indicate great running grounds in Cebu.

Here’s a smaller version of the map. To view the larger version, visit its permanent home at www.ceburunning.com/runsafe.

The girl ran about 11 kilometers in what seemed to be her first 10K.

In the absence of a local certification body, you just take organizers’ word that their race routes really are the distances that they announce these to be.

MEASURING ROUTES WITH GOOGLE MAPS. Google Maps allows you to draw a line on its street, satellite and terrain maps to measure distances. CLICK ON PHOTO ABOVE TO VIEW LARGER IMAGE.

In most cases, they are, at least to within the margin of error of a few meters. But in some races, the distance is way off the chart you’d wonder whether the organizers actually measured the route in the first place.

To accurately measure a route, the best tool to use is a global position system (GPS) device. Many runners now use GPS watches to measure runs as well as determine such things as pace and even heart rate.

A popular GPS brand is the Garmin Forerunner line. Garmin is, in my opinion, the best GPS watch brand because it offers consumers a top-of-its-class device and an equally stellar after-sales support—the Garmin Connect website that not only serves as an exercise logbook that stores all of your runs but a repository of all the data related to each workout. With Garmin Connect, you can replay all your runs—a placeholder moves with your exact coordinates on a map and at any given point, you’d know your coordinates, distance and elevation.

If you’re really serious on your running, you’d do well investing on a GPS watch. It allows you to accurately measure your progress.

But if you don’t have a GPS watch, how can you measure your running route?

Race organizers drive through their routes and measure these using their car’s odometer. Some use bicycles. That method has varying degrees of success. I know of certain routes measured that way that came up short.

The easiest way to measure running routes is to do it online.

In the middle of this decade, Google gave rise to web mapping services when it started Google Maps, probably the best mapping application on the Internet.

For runners, Google Maps is almost heaven-sent. The website allows you to draw lines on street, satellite and terrain maps and measure points. That way, you can accurately measure distances.

To measure distances, go to maps.google.com and sign in with your Google account. If you still don’t have a Google account, sign up with the company’s popular free e-mail service Gmail to get one.

Once you’re in, go to the My Maps section and click on Browse Directory. Look for the Distance Measurement Tool and click on the Add it to Maps button under it.

To start measuring routes, just zoom into the area in the map where you want to run then click on My Maps and then click on Distance Measurement Tool. You can choose whether to use the Metric or English system.

Click on the point in the map where you want to start running. Continue clicking on areas where you want to run and the system will add it to the line. At the left portion of the screen, you will see the total distance of the route.

DAILYMILE. The social network for runners, triathletes and bikers offers a tool to plan and measure running routes. CLICK ON IMAGE ABOVE TO VIEW LARGER PHOTO

Another way to measure routes is to do it through DailyMile. DailyMile is a social network for runners and triathletes. It’s a community logbook for your runs and exercise sessions.

The site has a route planner section. In that section you can draw lines on a map and the system gives you a running total of the distance and even renders kilometer markers.

With the ease by which distances can be measured using online tools, there aren’t any excuses for organizers to make a mistake in the distance of their race routes.

If you’re running to set a personal record, you’ll be disappointed.

The routes of the Red Cross Humanity Race are shorter than what have been announced. The 5K race route as indicated in the map that came with the registration form is actually just 4 kilometers, based on Google Maps data (see image). The 10K route is just 7.6 kilometers.

NOT 10K. The “10K” route of tomorrow’s Red Cross Humanity Race is actually just 7.6 kilometers, according to Google Maps data. CLICK TO ENLARGE.

If you’re using a GPS device in tomorrow’s run, I’d appreciate feedback on the actual distance of the routes. (Update: Runner Joe France Rodriguez Cañizares said his Garmin GPS watch indicated the 10K route to be only 8.89K.)

It may sound nitpicking—all this fuss on the actual distance of the routes for a charity run—but exact measurements of race courses are very important. Most runners do not compete with other runners, they compete with themselves. They want to continually set personal records. But to be able to gauge whether they have gone faster, they should be told the correct distance of the races they are running.

You cannot announce a 10K race and then plot a 7.6K route.

The Red Cross Humanity Race route map indicated that the routes were surveyed and measured by Marathon Organizer of Central Visayas. I searched through news archives and it seems race organizer Joe Deresas is involved with the group. I have nothing against Joe Deresas, who is such an amiable man, but he was involved in the two most problematic races that I’ve joined this year—Go for Green Tourism Eco-Fun Run and The Great Lapu-Lapu Run.

The Go for Green Tourism Eco-Fun Run was not only marred by chaotic timekeeping and awarding, it’s routes were also short by at least half a kilometer.

There is no excuse to get your race route measurements wrong in these days of GPS watches and Google Maps. With tools like the distance calculator in Google Maps, you no longer even have to go out to actually measure your route.

Below is the map of tomorrow’s Red Cross Run:

Google Wave is e-mail, instant messaging, wiki and collaboration platform combined. It’s been described as what e-mail would have looked like if it were invented today.

Google has since invited more than a million users to the system but the service continues to be invitation-only. If you want to be invited, be a fan of CebuRunning in Facebook and request for an account there.

ORGANIZING A RUN. Google Wave is an excellent platform to use in organizing road runs. CLICK TO ENLARGE.

Much has been said and written about Google Wave but this much is clear—it is indeed a great communication and collaboration tool. And because of that, it is an excellent tool for organizing runs.

I’m currently organizing the first group run of the recently-organized Sun.Star Cebu running club and decided to try using Google Wave for the task. Three Wave gadgets immediately come to mind: Yes/No/Maybe for confirmation, Google Maps and AccuWeather.

The Yes/No/Maybe gadget allows people to RSVP for events, in this case, the Sunday long run. The gadget then lists the people who are either attending, not attending or still unsure of joining the run.

The Google Maps gadget allows you to plot your running route and use placeholders to mark turning points, areas for water breaks, among other things. The placeholders also allow people to leave comments on the suggested route.

The only thing lacking in the maps gadget is a distance calculator. I did not have a problem without it because I had already calculated the distance of the route I had in mind using Google Maps (I wrote about how to do it in this earlier blog post).

DIFFERENT GADGETS. Three gadgets useful for organizing groups runs in Google Wave are Yes/No/Maybe for confirmation, Google Maps and AccuWeather gadgets.

The AccuWeather.com gadget, meanwhile, allows you to display the weather forecast for race day. The proposed date for the Sun.Star Cebu running club’s first group run is still weeks away so the forecast isn’t that accurate. But since the gadget is already set to display the forecast for a certain date, it should update the data as race day approaches.

Google Wave excels at collaboration work and with its gadgets, it is an excellent tool for runners to plan a road run.

It’s easy. Use Google Maps.

PLANNING, MEASURING LONG RUN ROUTE. Google Maps allows you to plan ahead and measure your running routes. Above is the route I planned for our two-city long run this Sunday, Nov. 1. Click on photo to view larger image.

Google Maps offers two tools that allow you to trace a route on a map, satellite image or a composite of the two, and then measure its distance. To use the tool, log into Google Maps using your GMail account and then click on My Maps and then choose Browse Directory.

You will then be presented with several add-ons to your Google Maps account. You can either pick Distance Measurement Tool or Area and Distance Calculator. I’ve long been using Area and Distance Calculator but I recently tested Distance Measurement Tool and found it to be better. Click on the Add it to Maps button below the tool area.

After adding the tool, just load a map and start tracing your route. The panel on the left side will keep updating you on the total distance of the route you are tracing on the map.

Is it accurate?

In my experience, yes. I plan out Marlen’s and my Sunday long runs using Google Maps and then use a Garmin 205 for the actual run. The variances in distance are negligible.