Summer at Sea
ANG INIT! is the refrain you hear from most runners lately. Even with the recent spate of rainy weather, there’s just no respite from the heat.
In my daydreams, I’m usually at the beach sunbathing or floating on a surfboard. (I love being ON the water, but not IN it. Something I need to work on as a triathlete…) My breaks away from running involve the water and I’ve been blessed to continue to indulge my fantasies about being a surfer girl. Last week I was invited to Aloha Boardsports Surf Bound: Bali press launch. Want to escape to Bali this year? Every purchase worth P2,500 at Aloha Boardsports stores entitles you to a raffle ticket. The grand prize is a three-day paid trip to Bali for two. Read more about this on my other blog.
I’m surf-bound to Bali!
The Next Step Tri Camp
Posted in Blog, FYI, Multisport
There are seven weeks to go until the Subic Bay International Triathlon, where I’ve chosen to make my standard/Olympic distance debut (*gulp*). After a year in triathlon doing the short distances (minisprints and sprints), it’s time to level up. To use a running analogy, after 3K’s and 5K’s it’s time to do a 10K.
Tangent: yup, the Olympic distance is the triathlete’s 10K. If the full Ironman distance (4K swim, 180K bike, 42K run) is the pinnacle of triathlon achievement just like a marathon is for running, then the Ironman 70.3 (2K swim, 90K bike, 21K run) is the 21K. The Olympic distance is half that of a 70.3. Coincidentally, those are also the distances in their respective run legs.
I’ve had an extremely long tri off-season, though. After recovering from my elbow dislocation in July 2011, I just didn’t feel compelled to continue training as I did in the first half of that year. When I went into The Next Step Tri Camp 1 (Getting Started) last February 25-26, 2012, I hadn’t gotten on my bike in three months. I was also scheduled to attend Camp 2 (Sprint/Standard Weekend) two weeks later on March 10-11.
Getting My Feet Wet at the Ateneo Aquathlon 2012
Posted in Blog, Multisport, Post-Race
I was supposed to do the Ateneo Aquathlon last year and had already registered for it when it was rescheduled, conflicting with another race I was attending. So this year I pounced on the opportunity to do it.
Most runners entering the world of multisport try a two-discipline event first, such as a duathlon (bike and run) or aquathlon (swim and run). My experience was otherwise because I went into the full three-discipline event, the Speedo NAGT Ayala Alabang in 2010. I rely heavily on fast bike and run splits, so I was curious how I would match up to the rest of the field if one of my strengths were taken from me.
So on 4 March 2012, I found out.
Why do I look like I’m scheming here?
New Shirts! I RUN LIKE A GIRL and RUN LIKE A MAMAW
Kikay Runner in cooperation with SAFETEES Premium Reflective Clothing brings you version 2.0 of the “I RUN LIKE A GIRL” T-shirt. (Check out version 1.0.)
Wear your running girl power with pride with this stylish reflectorized print on strategic areas for better night visibility. Also, it just looks really cool and kikay. Ü Available for P560.
Now if you run like a “mamaw” or just want to run like one, wear your wish on your sleeve (or literally on your chest) with the new “RUN LIKE A MAMAW” T-shirt! Boys and girls, this post-workout cotton shirt is designed to bring out the monster runner in you with its fierce reflectorized print. Available for P600.
About SAFETEES Premium Reflective Clothing: At Safetees, road safety is our priority. Every year, millions of people suffer from road traffic injuries, but the good new is, this can be prevented. Born out of a need to make streets safer for pedestrians is the first premium reflective clothing line, Safetees. We bring the market everyday wear that’s not only in style but designed with road safety in mind. Each piece is a work of art, crafted with reflective material for visual attention at night. With Safetees, now every pedestrian wearing one can be safe on the road. With Safetees, you can now be seen!
SAFETEES also accepts custom shirt designs. For more information, contact SAFETEES.
Yurbuds: Your Buddy for Your Ears
When was the last time I ran with music in my ears?
Kikay Runner’s 2010 Look
It’s been a really long time — in fact, that photo must have been the last time I ran with earphones because the week after that, I started training for my first marathon and wanted to accustom myself to having no mp3 player.
Another reason I haven’t run with music: most earphones just don’t stay in! The earphones I’m wearing in the photo above kept falling out despite their over-ear hook. So when Gianina Dayrit from Cascos Inc. offered to send me an earphone product guaranteed not to fall out, I was immediately intrigued.
photo by Gianina Dayrit
RUNNR in Alabang Town Center + Donate-a-Singlet Promo
Two Saturdays ago I found myself down south in the Republic of Alabang attending the grand opening of the RUNNR store in Alabang Town Center. I remember when the first RUNNR store opened in Bonifacio High Street right on the cusp of the Philippines’ current running boom. Toby Claudio, its founder and president, was visionary back then in his approach, and now RUNNR has branches in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao!
The highlight of the ATC store launch was the running clinic by Jinoe Gavan of TAKBO.ph (“Getting Started Into Running”) followed by U.S.-certified coach Jay Valencia of Newton Running (“Natural Running Technique”). For a Saturday usually meant for family outings, the clinic attracted a lot of runners based down south — nice to meet some of my readers there! Continue reading »
Summer Fun with Thermos Contest
Recently, the people from Thermos gave me a cool new Thermos tumbler to keep my drinks in. As an athlete and overall very active person, I need to keep well-hydrated throughout the day. Thermos has patented insulation technology called Thermax that keeps drinks at their temperature, which means hot drinks remain hot, and cold drinks remain cold. This means that the ice-cold water I put in my Thermos in the morning is still cold when I chug it down three hours later after a long workout. Ü
Anyway, the Thermos folks want to let you know that this summer, you have a chance to win an iPad 2 by joining their Summer Fun with Thermos Photo Caption Contest! Here are the mechanics: Continue reading »
My Filipina Sports Heroines
(It’s International Women’s Month! So I’d like to take this opportunity to focus on an issue women share. Last year, it was about menstrual woes.)
OK, quick quiz: Who are the male superheroes in the Justice League? Now, who are the female superheroes? Why are there more men than women in the Justice League?
Girls like comics, too. So how come only 2 out of 7 characters are women?
There are some things in this world that have more men than women participating. I was reading Senator Pia Cayetano’s book My Daily Race last week, and in one of her essays in it she notes that in running (as well as in politics), men dominate.
Consult any Philippine race’s official results and you’ll find more men than women joined, unless you look at women-centered races like Sen. Pia’s Pinay In Action Run or last year’s Women’s Health Athena All-Women’s Run. In fact, a women’s marathon event was included in the Olympics beginning only in 1984, and in the Philippines there still exists some resistance toward women running due to old wives’ tales about it affecting fertility (check out Purito Rosero’s article debunking these myths in the January-March 2012 issue of Runner’s World).
Whenever I step out on the road I want to show that women can get fit and have fun when they run, and that there’s no reason we can’t excel at it if we only try our best. That’s why I get annoyed whenever I get catcalls from bystanders, or especially from fellow runners. I’m huffing and puffing and hard at work here! Way to degrade a woman, boys.
Maybe that’s one deterrent to women running: they don’t get support from people around them and may even be ridiculed for attempting such a thing. There’s a sad reality that sometimes in this society we just don’t think women can be capable.
But would you hoot and holler at the following women if you saw them out on the road? They are my personal trailblazers: these are the women whose example inspires me to lace up my shoes. Respect!
Lydia de Vega and Elma Muros
If you’re an 80′s kid like me whose uncles were sports buffs you’d have heard these women’s names uttered with a reverential awe. Lydia de Vega was Asia’s fastest woman, and Elma Muros was the long jump queen. Those were the glory days of Philippine athletics (and oh how I wish we could excel like that again!). Though specialists in short distances and hurdles, the two of them were an example to me that women could be fierce competitors on an international level.
Senator Pia Cayetano
I voted for her when she was up for reelection based on her previous track record in the Senate as an advocate of women’s interests. Another reason I voted for her was her discipline and dedication to running and triathlon. As a runner (and now triathlete) myself, I know a person who takes the time to be fit and to challenge herself physically in this way is a hard worker and has the strength of character I look for in a leader. And because of Sen. Pia I know even if you take up a sport relatively late in life you still have a chance of being good at it — she is a frequent podium finisher in her age group.
Check out Sen. Pia’s international women’s day post.
Ani de Leon-Brown
Coach Ani’s sports achievements are quite numerous and “big-time”, given that she’s the first Filipina to qualify for the Ironman World Championships, but what left an impression on me was her performance at the Men’s Health All-Terrain Race 2010. She had gotten lost during the 16-kilometer trail run. She was also registered separately for the mountain bike race. With minutes to spare, she emerged from the trail run, did the 20-kilometer technical mountain bike trail — and won 2nd place overall female at the bike race! Last year she got married, got pregnant, and had a baby. This year, she’s back in the saddle and on track, running a 10-kilometer race only a month after giving birth. She’s a great example that being athletic and competitive doesn’t end when you tie the knot and have a child.
I don’t think these women are the exception; in fact, if more Filipinas got out there and got active, we’d see more like them, representing on the road. And those Filipinas can be heroines to the next generation, and the next, and the next…
A girl can dream, right?
And the 3,000 Likes Contest Winner Is…
Before I make the big announcement I’d like to thank you all for the great responses to the contest question, “What do you look for in a running blog?” These help me understand what you, my readers, want and hopefully will also help you understand what my blog is about.
In no particular order, here are some of the most common things you look for in a running blog.
- Race Information and Updates: Blogs like Takbo.ph and Pinoy Fitness aim to provide a comprehensive list of running events in the Philippines, which is why they are still my trusted source of race info. Ideally, race organizers should provide this information on their own websites, and running blogs should just link to those websites for more information and updates. I usually just post about races I’m interested in, so my listing is very selective.
- Race Reviews: My running blog initially began as a round-up of the races I’d joined and my experiences at them. It’s nice to find out that people visit running blogs exactly for this.
- Equipment Reviews: Through trial and error I’ve found what works for me, so when I post about running equipment (clothes, shoes, gadgets), it’s usually about what fits my needs.
- Training Tips: You’ll find that when I give training tips, I refer to other websites and magazines, such as Runner’s World. I’m no professional running coach nor do I have formal training in running, but when I find something in a magazine or a website that works for me, I like sharing it with others and hope it helps them, too.
- Promos: While contests add a touch of fun and excitement to my blog, it’s not a main focus. I really hope my other blog entries aside from contests keep people reading and commenting.
- Inspiration and a Personal Touch: When I first started this blog, I took a look at all the other running blogs out there and decided to be very clear on what I wanted to write about — my experiences, my thoughts, and my goals in running and related sports. I wouldn’t try to be a one-stop shop of information; rather, I wanted to express myself in this blog and hope that readers could relate to my experiences. I wanted to encourage those who read my blog to get fit because there’s so much more you can enjoy in life when you’re healthy.
So, thank you for reading and for participating in my little contest. I read through all the contest entries and they were all creative and well-thought out.
The winner of a Mizuno Prestige Card and a P1,000 Mizuno Gift Certificate is… Continue reading »
De La Salle Green & White Run on April 1, 2012
Posted in Blog, Contests, Pre-Race
Before school’s out for the summer, why not race to benefit some students? From the organizer of the popular Greentennial races comes the De La Salle Green & White Run on April 1, 2012 at BGC held for the benefit of De La Salle scholars.
It’s quite an economical run, with reg fees at P500 for 3K and 5K, and P600 for 10K and the 10-miler (or 16K). Race kits include a tech shirt, bib, and timing chip. All finishers will receive a medal.
There will be costume contests for Best Green Archer Attire and Best Green and White Buddies (2 runners of any gender combination, one wearing all green and the other, all white). Of course like every Greentennial-organized race, you know there will be plenty of photographers snapping away on the race course so you can download your running shots on the Greentennial Photos Facebook account after the race for free.
Race: De La Salle Green & White Run
Date: April 1, 2012
Assembly Time: 4:45am at Bonifacio Global City
Gunstarts: 5:15am – 10-miler; 5:40am – 10K; 5:30am – 5K; 6:00am – 3K
Registration Dates: starts on March 1
Reg Fee: P500 (3K/5K), P600 (10K/10-miler)
Registration Sites: A Runners Circle (Aloha Hotel, Roxas Blvd.); Second Wind (Teacher’s Village and Ortigas Home Depot); Toby’s Sports (Park Square and Shangri-La); Mizuno (Mall of Asia, Eastwood, and Alabang Town Center)
With many thanks to the race organizer, I am raffling off five race kits for any race distance (3K/5K/10K/10-miler) at the Green & White Run! Here are the mechanics:
- Follow @kikayrunner on Twitter.
- Tweet “Animo! De La Salle Green & White Run on April 1, 2012. Let’s run for the scholars! @kikayrunner”
- The first five people to tweet will win a free race kit each.
- Winners must claim race kits at their chosen registration sites.
UPDATE: Congratulations to Melanie Intalan (@nie048), Ian Intalan (@ianintalan), Jonard Aries Gamboa (@boypickuprunner), Russell David (rusz_08), and Allan Gregor (@AllanGregor07) for winning the race kits! I’ll forward your information to Greentennial so you can pick up your race kits soon.
