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I am a Bicolano by birth and choice. By any standards, I am a slow runner but I like it that way. I look at running as a healthy and exciting way to make a difference. Together with my fellow runners from our family, school, office, and the community, we use running to give back.

BANANA BOAT SHIRTS, FINISHER SHIRTS AND RUNNING GELS FOR THE BICOLANO PENGUIN ANNIVERSARY RUN



A couple more nights and it is already November  2, the D-Day of our first-ever Bicolano Penguin Anniversary Run.  The running paradise that  4 of my fellow 83neans,  5  more Bicol-based  buddies and myself  will journey to on this date is a 40-km stretch of the  picturesque Tiwi- Sangay Road in the border of the provinces of Camarines Sur and Albay.

SIMPLE HYDRATION BOTTLE



Like all runners all over the world, hydration is very important to a penguin like me.  We need to stay hydrated to stave off exhaustion, cramps and even death.  All that shuffling and puffing on the run makes me thirsty more often than  naturally gifted runners.  Thus, thru the years, I have tried   many types from specially designed backpacks with water bladders (Camelback) to water bottle belts (Amphipod) to hand-held  bottles (Polar).  

FEED THE PIG



Buta, the pig, is spending the last week of October in our house. Our son, Marcel, brought the pig with him from class.

KARHU: Both Adidas and Nike Got Something from this Finnish Brand



I visited  the Wandering Jouster site  of my favorite Bicolana blogger, and I got to enjoy her latest blog entry entitled “Shoe Talk”  which was about  the 7 leading global brands of running shoes and their history.  Informative stuff about Adidas, Nike, Puma, KSwiss, Reebok, Asics and Mizuno. 

AVON WALK THE TALK AND RUN FOR PASIG RIVER : Engaging Employees Thru Running


A cool and fun way to engage employees is thru sports. And one of the more egalitarian sport activities  out there is running.  

RUNNER’S WORLD PHILIPPINE EDITION: October-December 2012 Issue



It is a ritual for me to drop by the local literary mecca that is the Fully Booked Store when  I am in the Bonifacio High Street area in Taguig City.  Last night was no different and I was ecstatic to see on the magazine rack  brand  new issues of 3 editions of Runner’s World:   United States,    United Kingdom  and the Philippines.

OCTOBER BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION OF A TRIO OF BATCH PIONEERS



Last Saturday , I attended a salo salo for the October birthday celebrators in our Ateneo de Naga High School Batch 1983:  Jobel Belarmino (October 6), Pidong delos Santos (October 14) and Ernie Badong (October 20). This was hosted by our batch salutatorian, Art Puncia, in his house inside Filinvest East.  In attendance, in addition to the celebrators, the host and myself, were Bogs Abogado, Ed Balcueva, Franco Besinio,  Bob Castilla, Ruben “Fards” Fajardo, Ron Hemady and Rico Sabalvoro.

MARATHON DREAM TEAM OF FIRST BALFOUR RUNNING CLUB



After reading the McDougal masterpiece “Born to Run” in December of 2009, I dreamed of finishing a marathon.  Prior to that, the longest distance I have tackled  was a 10-km fun run, but something about the way the book was written made me dare to significantly upsize my running experience.  Five months after, under the nurturing  coaching care of Jaymie Pizarro and Jim Lafferty, I crossed the finish line of my first full marathon – The Bull Runner Dream Marathon, 2010 edition. It is definitely  one of the highlights of my adventure here on earth.

BICOLANO PENGUIN ANNIVERSARY RUN: November 2, 2012 at Tiwi-Sangay Road



My Bicolano Penguin blog will be turning 1 year this November 5.  Thru the  weeks and months, this blog has churned 105 articles, mostly about running and a handful about food, the runner’s best friend.  In a year, the blog has elicited more than 10,000 page views.  We can safely say that this baby is an active one.  Not precocious but a bouncing one.

ADIDAS ADIZERO FEATHER 2 : Running made sputing!



In my youthful days in Bicol back in the late 70s and early 80s, there was a street word that connotes being excellently well dressed, or “dressed to the nines” to quote the Wandering Jouster in her article last October 5,2012(http://wanderingjouster.blog.com/).This word is “sputing”.  

TBR DREAM TEAM RUN: November 17, 2012



A couple weeks ago, I received an email invite from Jaymie Pizzaro to all TBR Dream Marathon alumni about a TBR Dream Team Run scheduled for November 17, 2012 at Nuvali.  

RUNNING ON ENTRANCE EXAMS DAY



October 7 was the entrance examination day for  Grade 7 students aiming to study high school  at the Ateneo de Manila High School.  Thus, that Sunday morning, I drove my son Marcel to the high school campus.  I was informed by my son that the entrance exams would last 3 hours. Unlike many of the parents who left immediately and planned to fetch their kids later, I stayed in the campus. What should I do to kill  time for 3 hours?

RUN UNITED PHILIPPINE MARATHON 2012: Registered Already



The 1st ever Run United Philippine Marathon 2012 is hands down the most awaited marathon event in the Philippines for this year.  Since a year ago, the local running community has been abuzz with this running event that was in the works from Unilab Active Health and Runrio, Inc. It is scheduled for October 28, 2012.  

FRONTRUNNER MAGAZINE Vol 3 Issue 4 2012



Today, I got a copy of the latest issue of the Frontrunner magazine.  Good timing for me as I was not planning on running in the next few days given my cough and cold.  Having a colorful and insightful magazine about my favorite passion would be a plus for my recovery from sick bay.