Monday, September 21, 2009

Races, races, races

Two road races are again set for next Sunday, September 27, one up north and another down south.

At the Fort Bonifacio Global City, New Balance, which is no doubt one of the major forces behind the continued popularity of running in the country today, will be holding the New Balance Power Run ... Raising HOPE.

Raising HOPE, for beneficiaries of cancer awareness projects of Carewell (Cancer Resource and Wellness Community), Philippine Cancer Society, ICanServe Foundation and Natasha Goulbourn Foundation. A 3K run/walk for cancer is part of the event, together with the regular 5K, 10K and 21K. Cancer survivors with their supporters will also be among the over 6,000 runners who will cross the finish line at the Power Run , said Planet Sports, Inc. President Anton Gonzalez.

In Davao City, the Gaisano Mall parking lot will again be awash with runners of all gender, ages, sizes, and abilities who will join the Auto Review Run for Road Safety and Courtesy. The event presented by GoodYear features competitive 10-km and 5-km distances. Knowing Davao City and race organizer Kenneth Sai's knack for gathering a good crowd, I imagine another big number of students and young professionals running in this event.

This is the first time that the advocacy run will be held outside Metro Manila after three successful stagings in Manila and Taguig City since 2004. Hopefully, it will start a steady stream of races moving from Manila to the country's southern islands.

I wonder if we can look forward to a New Balance Power Run in Davao City next year.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Running in the news

I was visiting some local online news sites recently and was quite surprised by the number of running articles I read.

Well, it's not quite what I and other runners would perhaps want to see, but to get to read something about our sport quite a bit regularly in some sites is already something in this basketball- and boxing-crazy country.

It shows that running is alive and well in these parts.

It is definitely alive and will in Cebu as one story on the 2009 Don Sergio OsmeƱa Sr. (DSOS) 10K Run shows. Almost 500 runners competed in the event which offered P200,000 in prizes.

And then, there's the story on the Crocs Prepair to Run at the Mall of Asia. More than 1,000 runners showed up despite the steady downpour to help raise funds for WE International Philippines, a nongovernmental organization that helps the children of Smokey Mountain.

Runners are not only crazy enough to do what they love to do best even in the pouring rain. They are a kind-hearted bunch, too.

Now, isn't that good publicity?

Sunday, September 06, 2009

Running is alive and well in the Philippines

More and more corporate sponsors are getting into the Philippine running scene and that's good for runners.

Yes, even us non-elite, age groupers, and recreational types. More races simply mean more opportunities to test ourselves, hone our running skills, live out our dreams of breaking that personal record, or simply enjoying a weekend race with birds of the same feather.

So what's out there?

GMA Network just had its “Eleksyon 2010 na, Tatakbo ka Ba?" event at Bonifacio Global City last Sunday. Veteran runners ruled the race as expected - Jujet de Asis stamped his class in the men’s 5K competition, while Alley Quisay (in photo by Scott Kho/GMANews.TV) dominated the field in the 10 K. On the distaff side, Aileen Tolentino won the 10 K and Nhea Ann Barcena ruled the 5K.


And more is yet to come.

Quezon City has the Quezon City International Marathon set for its 70th founding anniversary this year. The event has been reported as one of the richest running events in the country, offering a P3M purse, and drawing an impressive field of 10,000 runners.

ABS-CBN Foundation is staging the Philippine International Marathon on November 8 in a course starting and ending at the Quirino Grandstand. The 42-km race dubbed “A Run for the Pasig River” and open to all runners aims to help the program to rehabilitate the Pasig River. Organizers are said to be expecting 20,000 participants in the marathon (individual and relay), 3K, 5K and 10K runs.

Running is truly alive and well in the Philippines.

I only hope they would bring the races outside Metro Manila, way down south, so runners here could join the fun, too.

What matters is the run

 For the past two weeks, I have been running in my more than two years old pair of Saucony Kinvara 10s. They still felt good through several...