Join Rexona Run to Win a Great Wall of China Adventure

Tuesday, 14 June 2011  |  Race Announcements

Way back in July 2007, I wrote about my desire to visit The Great Wall of China if only to run in The Great Wall of China Marathon, one of the top 10 must run races according to Runners World (Jan 2007).  Who would’ve thought I would get the chance to win an all expense paid trip to China just by signing up for a race?!

Rexona Run registrations now_02

Rexona Run, the 4th Leg of the RunRio series, on July 24, 2011 at the SM Mall of Asia will be raffling off three all expense paid adventures to the Great Wall of China.  Of course, it will also have the usual cash prizes, medals and bragging rights for the winners in the 21K, 10K, 5K and 3K.  12,000 runners are expected to join the race.

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REGISTRATION is ongoing until July 3, 2011 at RUNNR and R.O.X. stores in Bonifacio High Street, Toby’s SM Mall of Asia, Planet Sports Glorietta and Trinoma, The Athlete’s Foot Alabang Town Center and Robinsons Galleria and Stoked in Greenhills, Rockwell and Gateway.  You may also register at www.runrio.com or at the Rexona Philippines Facebook page from now until 12 midnight of July 3, 2011.  Late registrants may proceed to R.O.X. in Bonifacio High Street, Toby’s SM Mall of Asia and The Athlete’s Foot Robinson’s Galleria from July 4 – 10, 2011.

RACE FEE is P750 for the 21K leg, P600 for the 10K and 5K leg and P500 for the 3K division.

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– Rexona Run 2011 Singlet –

Non-runners can also join the fun at the Rexona Run in the Rexona Adventure Hub happening on July 23-24.  Just buy or bring any proof of purchase of a Rexona Men Adventure stick, spray or roll on and get free access to a wide variety of activities and challenges that’s guaranteed to give the thrill of adventure. What’s more, a raffle will give participants a chance to go an amazing all-expense-paid adventure package with their barkada to awesome local destinations like Banaue, Bohol or Cagayan de Oro.

For more details, call the race hotline at 703-1736 or visit www.runrio.com or visit the Rexona Philippines Facebook page.

See you in China, er, I mean at the Rexona Run on July 24!

Black Lines

Sunday, 12 June 2011  |  Therapy + Injury

I should have been in Phuket today.  Right this very minute, I should be running towards the finish line.

Or, I could have been participating in my 3rd triathlon, Animo Tri at Ayala Alabang this morning.  Lord knows how hard I trained for the swim portion of that race.

Or, I could have spent my Sunday morning the way I usually do for the past five years, running long and slow in the company of friends.  By now, we should be finishing up a run and heading for a sumptuous breakfast. I can almost smell the coffee.

But, here I am at home patiently waiting for my house guest, Morton Schmorton Neuroma, to get his lazy butt off our couch and head back to wherever he came from.

It’s been 17 days since my last run.  Yes, I’m getting impatient and frustrated. Ako pa?! But, swimming has kept me sane for the past week.  I’m not freaking out because I’m getting some training in with the swim.  At least, I’m not completely losing fitness.  But, there’s also something about the water that’s keeping me calm. Maybe it’s about following nothing but black lines from end to end in complete solitude and silence that’s given me some sense of peace.  Maybe it’s the fact that I feel I’m progressing with a new activity (I can swim 1k now with ease. Me? Who would’ve thought?) that’s distracting me from this long road to recovery.  Maybe I’ve finally matured as a runner and accepted the fact that there will be set backs like this every once in a while.  Whatever.  For now, I’m just going to be following those black lines under the pool and hope it takes me somewhere.

TBR Magazine Goes International!

Friday, 10 June 2011  |  News + Promos

{Background music: I Gotta Feeling…}

Yup, we’ve gone international…at least with our cover runner!

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In our latest issue, TBR gives you an exclusive interview with…hold your breath…APL. DE. AP of the world renowned music group, Black Eyed Peas.  Bet you didn’t know he was a runner, and not just any runner, but a track and field athlete at that!  This issue is also packed with other running articles that will have you running for your copies in no time.

Get your FREE copy of The Bull Runner Magazine at your favorite stores over the weekend!  Click HERE for a list of the stores where you can get your free copies.  PDF file will be downloadable in a week.  Yes, I promise!

Age is Just a Number: Achieving Your Dreams at Any Stage in Your Life from Dara Torres

Wednesday, 8 June 2011  |  Gear + Gadgets

Age is Just a Number: Achieving Your Dreams at Any Stage in Your Life from Dara Torres—twelve time Olympic medalist in swimming (four of which was gold) and the first American swimmer to compete in five olympics—is all about swimming.  But, runners, and even non-runners, stand to gain from reading this book.  It’s about an individual who realizes that she can achieve anything no matter the obstacles—whether it was age, naysayers, injuries, or real life.  It just so happens that Dara found her passion in swimming.  Even if your passion is in running, biking, or multisport, this book will inspire you.  Well, that’s what it did for me.

Dara Torres

Dara Torres was an Olympic swimmer in her teens, pursued a comeback at 32, and yet another comeback at 41 as a young mother. She broke her own world records set in her younger days and competed with younger swimmers…and won.  At 41, she didn’t only get to the Olympics, she bagged silver missing gold by only one one-hundredth of a second.

Wow. I loved her strength of character, her discipline, how meticulous she was with her nutrition and training, how competitive she was, and last but not the least, how she balanced this all with motherhood. She calls herself a Type A++ person, one who wants everything done fast, correctly, and with 100% effort.  That’s pretty much me (I don’t know if that’s a good thing!) in my, uhm, far more ordinary and mundane world.

Here’s just one of my favorite excerpts from Page 219: “I am who I am—a competitor at heart. That hundredth of a second doesn’t gnaw at me a little; it gnaws at me a lot. I’ve heard people say it put the focus on my comeback in the right place, on blowing open the possibilities as we age. But that’s not how I think. I’ve wanted to win, at everything, every day, since I was a kid. And time doesn’t change a person. It just helps you get a handle on who you are. Even at age 41, I still hate losing; I’m just more gracious about it. I’m also aware that setbacks have an upside: They fuel new dreams.”

Thanks to Jun and Mariel for giving this book to me at the perfect time: when I turned a year older last month and a full month before I got this stupid injury.  It’s helped a lot in keeping me strong (and bull headed) despite the setback.

Bull Cloud

Monday, 6 June 2011  |  Bullish Insights

Sighting: BULL CLOUD

Date: May 22, 2011

Time: 3:26 PM

Place: Buendia Ave. cor. Ayala Avenue

Frequency: rare Bull Cloud is said to appear once every 1,005,555 years

Discoverer: imaginative and observant non-runner named Jude aka TBR’s brother

bull cloud