NOTE: If you have your MEDICAL CERTIFICATE already, we will accept submission during this Bull Session.  Give it to our staff at the registration booth.

Here’s where the assembly area will be for the Bull Session this Saturday in BHS:

Click HERE to mark other important dates to remember!

The run club is open to all runners. But, they are now offering the MIZUNO RUN CLUB MEMBERSHIP to those wearing Mizuno running shoes. If you attend regularly, you get the chance to receive special perks such as free drinks, gift certificate, singlets, and a Mizuno Loyalty Card.

Click here for more info.

- with Jay (who looks like a firefly here), Coach Rio, friend, Vimz, Wilbert, Mark, and Jun.  (Chris, never leave before the photo op!) -

Silly me for thinking I could do an easy 10k during Day 3 of Nike Run Clinic.  My training at Ultra last night was quite the opposite. 

After the usual warm up and stretching, Coach Rio asked the group two questions: 1) who had injuries, and 2) who was going to run at Singapore; both times I raised my hand.  We were then divided into groups during which my bullheaded self requested permission to cross over to the uninjured group instead.  Coach Rio and Jo-Ar obliged telling me to simply stop should I encounter any pain.

I found myself with Jun and Mark under the supervision of Coach John. Jay and Chris joined the group several minutes later.  We were to run 3 x 200m with 100m walks for recovery.  My goal time was 40 sec.  Phew.  Just thinking about it made my heart rate skyrocket but, at the same time, I was looking forward to doing intervals again which I hadn’t done since summer.  (Ssssh, don’t tell anyone.)

In a few words, that workout was lung-busting, vomit-inducing, and really tiring, but it was a lot of fun. I also picked up a few tips from Coach Rio and Coach John who took note of my “lazy wrists” and helped me correct my form. I ended the run without injury but Coach Rio advised me to continue with the ice—not in my drink, Mark—but on my knee. 

I must say that I don’t enjoy intervals as much as long runs, but I always end track workouts feeling proud of myself for merely being able to walk back to my car alive and well.  I’m so looking forward to Nike Run Clinic Day 4. Tempo Workout, here I come!

Thank you to the wonderful coaches: Rio, John, Jo-Ar and Roel and the rest of the team.

To promote the love for running and to help those who are already in love with it, Nike is starting a training clinic for runners. The NIKE RUNNING TRAINING CLINIC offers a 16-module training for beginning as well as advanced runners, free of charge! There will be two training sessions every week, plus scheduled rest days and run-on-your-own assignments. The sessions will be supervised by Coach Rio de la Cruz, himself a passionate runner and an inspiring teacher.

Each training session will have a maximum of 100 participants. So registration will be on a first-come, first-served basis.  

REGISTRATION STARTS NOVEMBER 7, 2008 (That’s today!)

CLASSES START NOVEMBER 14, 2008

To sign up, click here to visit its cool website.  Remember: You have to SIGN UP for a session even after you REGISTER.  I’m the 2nd registrant for the Nov. 14 Orientation…I can’t wait!

Great job, Nike!

Mizuno will hold Running Clinics to replace the regular Run Club sessions.  Details of the clinics will be discussed tonight.

Last year, I never missed the run club, which is held every 1st and 3rd Thursday at 7 p.m. in Bonifacio High Street.  Nope, not once.  There was this one time when, despite a minor injury, I drove all the way there with my two kids in tow just to watch the runners from afar and smell the sweat from their bodies (er, the last line right there must not be taken literally.)

This year, however, I realized that my injuries had kept me from attending the run club for half a year already.  You can only imagine how ecstatic I was over the fact that, with my shin splints gradually disappearing, I could finally run with everyone again.

So, I arrived a little before 7 p.m. to see that I didn’t recognize anyone except KC from Mizuno.  All of a sudden, I turned shy and went to ROX to drool over the bikes first.  I returned around 10 minutes after happy to see a lot of familiar faces.

From Happy Feet, there was Ben and his fiancee Missy who was going to run for the first time.  Marga and her bike Sixto arrived along with her good friend Jeremy, my “editor”.  I finally got to meet Maui who I have forever seen online and in pics but never got to talk to.  Taki ran too soon after he signed up for the TNF at ROX.

My pathetic goal was to run a safe and slow 3k.  This was, after all, just my second post-injury run.  I started out with Ben, Missy, and Taki chatting about running, biking, and everything else in between.  Soon after, I ran alongside Coach Ige who, as it turns out, was injured like me.  I asked him the cause of his injury and he replied “overtraining.”  As if we were two athletes on the same fitness level, I answered “hey, me too!”  Then, he adds “Yeah, I just came back from two marathons, one in Vancouver, the other in Singapore.”  I wanted to slap myself in the face; I just got injured from a pitiful 5k in U.P.

As we ran, I saw a man in white running in the opposite direction.  It was Bald Runner.  Now, I know for a fact that BR is true to his word.  In his last post, he said he would try waving at lady runners just to see their reactions.  I told him I would look forward to a wave from him should we run into each other soon.  That wave definitely came sooner than expected.  We got to run together for a few minutes but ended up parting ways as he completed his 10 mile goal for that evening.

I ended my run at exactly 3k.  No more, no less.  And, oh, no pain after the run either.  Yes!

The running clinic is open to the public and is free of charge. For this fellowship, participants are encouraged to bring food that can easily be distributed to fellow runners such as biscuits, sandwiches, boiled eggs, juice, etc.

For more information, call Marie Casareo at 716.5534/5537