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I was browsing channels yesterday (just as I finished my marathon…DVD-marathon, that is) when I chanced upon the Men’s 100m semi-finals at the Beijing Olympics. Shortly after, when the finals was about to begin, I hollered for my son who complained last week that he hadn’t watched a single event of the Olympics. This was the perfect opportunity—almost like hitting two birds with one stone—as it would give him his first glimpse of the Olympics and secondly, it could possibly inspire him into becoming a future Olympic track star (a running mommy’s wish!).

“Who’s your pick?” I asked him. “Mine is USA.” I confidently exclaimed. My little boy pointed to a guy in green, “That guy” he said. I informed him he chose Jamaica and he replied “What’s that?” 

And so they were off. In a blink of an eye—9.69 seconds to be exact—my son’s choice, Usain Bolt of Jamaica, doesn’t only win the Men’s 100m, but he sets a new world record! Usain was insanely fast, but even more astounding was his seemingly effortless and calm stride. He even looked at the audience and relaxed his arms before he reached the finish line! In slowmo, he looked almost at peace, quite the opposite of Tyson Gay’s semi-finals slowmo wherein my son exclaimed “He looks scary!”

– Usain Bolt after setting his new world record in Men’s 100m (Photo credit: Xinhua) –

It was a delight to watch Usain celebrate his victory by running around the track, hugging people from the audience (I wish I was there to be hugged by him too!), showing off his gold spikes, and doing his little happy dance. He’s quite the performer, really. 

I was in complete awe.  I told my son, who by that time had gone back to fiddling around with his toys, “Your pick is now the fastest man in the world!  Can you believe that?!” He nonchalantly replies, “Uh huh” and then excitedly asks “When can we see that scary guy again?!”

Have you read the papers today?

Skip the headlines (nothing important for us runners there) and head straight for the Sunday Lifestyle portion of Philippine Star. Fellow Happy Feet member and Star columnist, Tanya Lara, features recently held races Milo Marathon, Feati, and Mommy Milkshake.  (Thanks Tanya!)

Jump over to Page H-3 and you’ll find my big sis and I there…(That sister of mine is my next target running recruit. Ssssh! As for the hubby, mission accomplished!)

This is the one I am most proud of: TBR on yet another special mention in the papers. (Click here for TBR’s “press debut”.) I just love it when TBR gets more attention than little ol’ Jaymie does.

Oh, the 3rd winner of the 3rd Nike+ SportsBand was meant to win it.  You’ll know by the name…

But, before I announce who the lucky commenter is, let me share my favorite answer from Pete.sr:

Running is like THE THRILL OF VICTORY
you’ll never know THE AGONY OF THE FEET.

I beg to disagree with the 2nd line because I’ve certainly felt the agony of my feet, knees, and shins ever since I started running.  But, I liked the play of words there so Pete.Sr got 4 entries in the raffle.

As for the Nike+ SportsBand, the commenter was chosen once again by my little Bull Runner…

And the winner is…

WINNA!

You are the Winna!  I mean, you are the WINNER, Winna!  (See, I told you she was meant to win!)

Thanks to all the runners who joined! See you at the next race!

2 down, 3 to go.

Be among the first 20 commenters in this post and get a chance to win the 3rd of 5 Nike+ SportsBands from TBR. If you’re a newbie to the TBR Race, click here for detailed race rules.  

REVISED RACE RULE NO. 4:  TBR’s favorite answer (for its humor, creativity, or wit) will receive 4 additional raffle entries regardless of its place in the race.  In other words, that commenter, even if he/she didn’t make it to the Top 20, will automatically be included in the race raffle and gain 4 additional entries.

A few reminders:

• Please refrain from revising your posted answer by sending a new entry.  Once you press submit, that’s it!  
• Your comment won’t appear instantly since I moderate them. Fret not, I promise not to delete any.

Here we go…

Forrest Gump once said “Life is like a box of chocolates, you’ll never know what you’re gonna get.”

Inspired by that quote, fill in the blanks and post in the comments section below…

RUNNING IS LIKE A ____________ OF _____________,
YOU’LL ________________________________________.

Good luck to all!

I chanced upon an article on Yahoo a few minutes ago entitled “The Mystery of the Black Stuff on Kerri Walsh’s Shoulder.”

So much for the mystery game. I instantly knew what the “black stuff” was and why it was on her shoulder. Suddenly, memories of my Clark Marathon came flashing back; I had the same stuff on my leg only mine came in shocking pink and bright blue. Those “stuff” were my best friends at that time, the only reason why I even managed to finish a 10km with my runner’s knee.

It was kinesio tape, which I wrote about a few month’s back here. Definitely an injured athlete’s best friend.