The following runners are the latest finishers/awardees of the Bald Runner’s “1,000-Km Club”. Congratulations!!!










The following runners are the latest finishers/awardees of the Bald Runner’s “1,000-Km Club”. Congratulations!!!










I am selling two (2) copies of the book “Born To Run” in Hardbound for P 1,000.00 each.

I have one (1) copy of Dean Karnazes’ latest book “50/50” for sale for P 850.00 (Hardbound).

The proceeds will go to the training and support of the Elite Team Bald Runner Distance Project.
First come, first serve! You can leave your comment if you are interested.
Thanks for your support!
(Note: These books are highly recommended to ultrarunners!)
1. November 30 is declared as a Holiday and popularly called as Bonifacio Day (Araw Ng Kabayanihan) but it became more significant not because of the birth of the Father of the Revolution but because it was the day most of the politicians declared their candidacy to the different elective positions for next year’s national and local elections.
2. It was supposed to be a running workout day for most of the runners preparing for their next marathon race but most of the people went “running” to the COMELEC to file their respective COCs (Certificates of Candidacy). I doubt if these politicians are really “runners/joggers” at all.
3. Instead of having a Bonifacio Day Run to celebrate one of our important heroes, McDonald’s, a popular American Fastfood Chain celebrated the day with a McHappy Day 5K & 10K Runs. How I wish Filipinos would not forget our heroes. Without them, we would not be enjoying the freedom that we are all enjoying today. Are we losing our sense of nationalism or are we completely forgotten that we are Filipinos?
4. I only realized that it was Bonifacio Day when I saw two Ceremonial Guards of the Philippine Army standing infront of the Main Gate of the Headquarters Philippine Army. Just across the concrete fence of Fort Bonifacio, more than one thousand runners were celebrating with McDonald’s along the streets of McKinley Hill, a place which was part of Fort Bonifacio.
5. McHappy Day 3K/5K/10K Runs were done inside the confines of the McKinley Hill and it was done very orderly. I was happy to see very long tables in each of the water stations. There was an organized start and finish to all the runs. During the awarding ceremony, it was my first time to see an elevated podium for the top 3 finishers on top of the elevated stage.

6. I personally congratulated Coach Rio for the outstanding improvements that I’ve been seeing in his races since the TIMEX Run. Is this the result of his latest experiences in attending at least two major road races in California, USA? If so, then our road races are international in quality and standards!
7. One of the famous running coaches approached me and told me how my “boys” (my elite runners) sprinted on the last 500 meters of the 10K run towards the Finish Line. The coach was amazed on their “speed endurance” during the whole race! I just smiled at him and I knew that their training in the mountains for the past weeks is making some progress for better performance.
8. I observed that more Movie and TV Stars are joining the road races. Angel Locsin, one of the popular TV stars, finished her first 3K run during the McHappy Run. I had the chance to have a photo-ops with her and she was very kind and accommodating. More of the runners had their pictures taken with her.

9. Aside from the “freebies” to the runners, the awarding ceremony was filled with popular TV stars and international singer. Phoemela Baranda acted as the Emcee and Charize Pempengco sang two songs to the runners. My Elite Team Bald Runner Distance Projects runners won the 1st & 2nd Places in the 10K run.

10. The most glaring observation I’ve noted is the presence of old, young, beginners, and the whole family members joining such road races/fun runs like this particular event. It appears that fun runs are already becoming a way, event, or an activity where the whole family would be together during weekends and holidays. This is a good sign that the whole citizenry is adhering to sports activity that promotes good health and lifestyle.
1. We no longer offer FREE Running Lectures/Clinics. We are now asking a honorarium for the conduct of our Running Lecture/Clinic. The fee will be used to support our Elite Team Bald Runner Distance Project and logistical needs for the 2nd BDM 102.
2. I was invited for the Send-Off Party this week for our athletes in Athletics (Track & Field) who will represent the country in the 2009 ASEAN Games to be held in Laos. The Track & Field athletes consist of 20 athletes; 6 Coaches; and 1 Head of the Party. The PATAFA Team will be leaving on December 6 for Laos. The 25th ASEAN Games will start on December 9. The TEAM Philippines “HOPES” to get at least 45-50 Gold Medals in the Games.
3. I made a “surprise” visit to my Elite Team’s “training camp” in the Sierra Madre Mountains and we had some pictorials with them with their new Team Bald Runner uniform courtesy of MILO/Nestle, Phil. Altitude, Hill workouts, trail running, and clean air are the keys for better performance.


4. A Leadership Training/Speaking Engagement Module had been offered to me by a Private Company engaged in the conduct of training to corporate offices. I think this is a good job while I am on “rest & recovery” period.
5. “Brainstorming” session was conducted among the members of Team Hardcore and other ultrarunners about the creation of the Philippine Association of Ultrarunners (PAU) at the Board Room of Reinier Pacific which was hosted by Capt Amado Castro Jr aka Reinier6666. The meeting was very productive and I was able to gather positive insights about its creation and its availability for membership.

6. There are already 147 runner-applicants for the 2nd BDM 102. There are 40 slots reserved for the AFP/PNP runners. If the slots for the AFP/PNP will be filled up, there are already 186 runner-applicants. However, I still encourage runners to apply in my Bataan 102 Events Page. There are 96 Days to go before D-Day!
7. More suggested logos for PAU had been received. Thanks for your interest to come up with PAU’s Logo. Deadline of submission is December 31, 2009.
(Note: Latest Awardees/Finishers of the 1,000-Km Club will be posted next!!!)









































With or without my present injury, I was decided not to join this race because of the following reasons: (1) The registration fee for the 21K is too expensive (P 700.00); (2) The Cash Prize of P 6,000 is not commensurate with the Registration Fee being paid by each runner and the number of sponsors supporting this event; (3) The course is too familiar and overused; and (4) I am not a fan of Piolo!
Instead, I came to the race to cheer for my two elite runners, Alquin Bolivar who ran the 10K distance and Crifrankreadel Indapan who ran the 21K distance. The other members of the Elite Team Bald Runner were distributed to other races in Metro Manila being held on the same day.

The set-up of the Starting/Finishing Area was properly prepared and I could see that these are “signs” of improvements in road racing. I was impressed with those new portalets lined up at the vicinity of the Assembly Area. I was able to see also a long tables of water aid stations for the 3K & 5K runners. Well, it is about time that such basic support services should be given to the runners. I’ve been complaining of short tables of water aid stations and the lack of water and water cups for more than one year of blogging and I am glad our Race Organizers are reacting to the observations of runners and bloggers.


Piolo is a competitive runner afterall. He finished the 10K race in 47+ minutes which is an impressive time for a new runner with only one month of training under Coach Rio. I hope he could run the next edition of the Philippine International Marathon: Pasig River Run 42K Race so that ABS-CBN Foundation would be able to improve its race most especially on their Prizes for the Winners.
My elite team runners informed me that the ABS-CBN Foundation awarded Gold’s Gym Gift Certificates to the winners/members of the Team Relay Race worth P 5,000 for each runner. To the dismay & frustration of the athletes, they tore their GCs after receiving them. I think those runners who are employed and working under the ABS-CBN Foundation should advise their boss, Ms Gina Lopez, that our athletes need MONEY for their subsistence needs. Runners do not have time to go to the gym and they don’t need to have bulky muscles!




Congratulations to all the finishers of this race and to Coach Rio and Finish Line for raising the bar in our road races!
And the best photo of the day…

Congratulations to Manny Pacquiao. Amazing Performance and the Greatest Fight of the Year!
This is not the kind of treatment wherein you have to drink a number of glasses of water after you wake up in the morning; before eating your meals; after eating your food; and before going to bed almost everyday.
After I had the strength to stand up and slowly walk on my own, I requested my staff to bring me to Brgy Bucal in Los Banos, Laguna as I remember having visited this place with the invitation of my classmates from the Philippine Constabulary/Philippine National Police when I was still a Major in the active service in one of the hot spring establishments in the area. Although the place where I was invited was an exclusive place, I found out that there are places where it is cheap and affordable. A former classmate of mine in Elementary & High School also owns a house with pool in this area. In the end, I decided to look for a cheap place where there is no reservation procedure is involved.

After lunch last Tuesday, I went to Los Banos, Laguna with the intention of soaking my legs in the hot spring water of the numerous in the said place. I wanted my leg muscles to relax and get the warmth of the sulphuric water. From 1:30 PM to 7:30 PM, my legs and whole body were soaked in the sulphuric water of the old & renowned Laguna Hot Spring which was established in the year 1949. It took me straight 6 hours to soak myself in this therapeutic waters of Los Banos. Surprisingly, after 2-3 hours in the water, I could see that I was sweating and had some snack “breaks” as I felt so hungry due to the effect of the heat from the water.
Staying on the hottest portion of the pool for 6 hours seemed to be so short because of the people who shared the area with me. There was this European guy who was in his late 60’s who was looking silently to me and to other two Filipino guys who were talking in Tagalog. All of a sudden, the European guy joined the conversation in a fluent Tagalog, too! This guy had been a constant visitor of the place. A Filipino guy in his late 30s approached me and asked if I am joining marathons/road races in Manila (he might have seen my singlet in the TV news about PIM) and we started our conversation about running until it reached about topics on politics/presidential election candidates. His purpose in going to this hot spring facility is that he has “gout”! What? A guy so young with “gout”? Unbelievable!
And then there were two “senior” couples who happened to be “Balikbayans” from Cerritos, California. The topic they were discussing was about the bad image of the country’s peace and order situation as gleaned from the TV broadcasts they see abroad. I did not join their conversation but just listened to what they were talking. Later, the conversation went to Tyhoon Ondoy and the distribution of relief goods and the accountability of the money received by ABS-CBN Foundation from the local and foreign donors. Later, it went to the pros and cons of the political figures planning to run for Presidency of the country. Well, what they said were valid and some are the usual “opinionated” remarks. Hearing all their conversations were very entertaining!

After 3 hours in the water, I started to move my left leg by kicking it underwater and doing some leg curl exercises. After 15 minutes of leg kicking and leg curling, I started to jog slowly. I was surprised that I did not feel any pain while doing the slow jogging inside the water. The depth of the pool is 6 feet and it was very comfortable to be curling my legs under the hot water of the spring. I did a 30-minute “water jogging” and it was a nice workout that I had to sweat!
After a brief snacks/break for about 20 minutes, I returned to the “hottest” spot and did again some leg exercises—leg curls and leg scissors! A guy suddenly started talking about the therapeutic benefits of the sulphuric water where he said that he had been a constant visitor and user of the place for the past 20 years! According to him, the benifits from the water are better absorbed by the body if you do some exercises or body movements while you are soaked in the water. Well, I silently said to myself that, that was exactly what I was doing for the past 3-4 hours!
The Laguna Hot Spring in Brgy Bucal, Los Banos is one-hour ride from Taguig City. The admission fee during daytime is P 60.00 only per person. The toll fee from Taguig City to Calamba Exit at the SLEX is only P 87.00, one way. So, if you have the time and want to experience a relaxing moment to soak your running legs and tired bodies to the sulphuric water of Los Banos, a trip to this place is highly recommended. A canteen/store is located inside the establishment where anybody could order cooked food. However, you can also bring your own food and drinks inside the place without any extra charge.
After a full night rest, my legs, most especially to my left, has slowly already regained its strength.
To get a full appreciation of what happened to me last Sunday’s PIM, I tried to look for charts and pictures of specific muscles of the lower leg. Having finished two years of BS Pre-Med before entering the Philippine Military Academy, I had the chance to dissect the different body organ systems of frogs and sharks in our Basic Anatomy & Physiology classes. And with the advent of the Internet, anybody could immediately research on certain topics about the human body. I downloaded and copied the following charts/diagrams of the human lower leg muscles groups from the Internet to give a full description of what happened to me last Sunday’s marathon race.

After a “back-to-back” Subic International Marathon on a Saturday early evening and then a Sunday early morning ADIDAS KOTR Half-Marathon, I felt a “pain” on my upper Gatrocnemius, which is about two inches below the back of my left knee. I had this part of particular muscle to be exposed to “deep-tissue” massage, every other day. After resting my legs for a day, I would do my slow long runs with a slow pace after warm-up and stretching and the pain would be manageable. More massage and rest for my legs for the two weeks in between SIM and PIM but the urge to build-up more mileage was so tempting that I had to do my long runs and a single session of tempo run. In these runs, I would observe that the pain would just disappear the longer I do my runs.

However, during the PIM, at Km 15, the pain at the same spot on my Gastrocnemius started to appear but I still tried to maintain my pace with the hope that it would slowly disappear. At Km 19, the pain on my Gastrocnemius started to spread to my Petronius Longus and later to my Tibialis Anterior. With the diagram/chart above, the Petronius Longus muscle is connected to a tendon that goes all the way to the ball of my foot. This was the reason why I could not force my foot to spring up from the ground and maintain my running pace/form as pain would spread to the whole left leg. There was no way that I could run continously with the unbearable pain on my lower left leg as my foot strike the ground. And the rest is history.
Few hours after finishing the race, I could no longer stand on my two legs without being helped by my staff/assistant! I could hardly walk without somebody supporting me and could not even lift my left leg for a few inches from the ground. It was the most painful experience in my life after a Marathon Race! But being a seasoned runner, I just relaxed and thought of applying the “time-tested” R-I-C-E treatment. I took a cold shower; had my left lower leg massaged lightly; elevated my affected leg with an ice bag placed on the affected muscle while sitted or lying on my back; and rested/slept well during nighttime and daytime! Drank a lot of my Ensure, Milk, Gatorade and Water and Ate a lot of Carbohydrate & Protein Foods! After 36 hours, I could walk without any support or assistant and the muscle soreness slowly disappeared. And the pain was already manageable.
I need more time to rest and recover.
2009 Philippine International Marathon: A Run For The River 42K Marathon
After joining the Subic International Marathon and the ADIDAS “KOTR” Half-Marathon two weeks ago, I rested for one week with only one running workout. But for the week (6 days) before the Pasig River Marathon, I started to do my long runs where I was able to run a total of 78 kilometers and had two days of rest before Race Day. My first mistake!
On the last kilometer before the Finish Line at the Subic International Marathon, I was attacked with “muscle cramps” on my left calf muscle but it disappeared after running lightly until I reached the Finish Line. As there was no pain during my trip back to Manila, I was comfortable in joining the next day’s ADIDAS KOTR Half-Marathon with a plan to finish the race at my own pace. After the race, I felt that there was a “pain” in one of the inner muscles of my calf and I decided to have a massage. More daily sessions of massage was conducted to my legs and they relieved the pain as I pushed to build-up my mileage for the week before Race Day. I did not wait for my “strained” muscle to “heal” before doing my long runs and tempo run for the week. My second mistake!

After shaving, shower, and preparing my running kit, I went to bed at 8:00 PM on the night before Race Day and had my alarm clock set at 3:00 AM. I arrived at the Luneta/Quirino Grandstand area at 3:45 AM and did my stretching & slow jogging immediately. Before entering the Starting Line Area, I was able to talk to the ABS-CBN Foundation officials, Finishers of the 1st BDM 102, my friends & supporters of my road races, runner-bloggers, runners from other Running Clubs, and readers of this blog.
The race started at 2 minutes before the scheduled time of 4:30 AM, a sign that the Race Director is Mr Rudy Biscocho. I went with the flow of the runners beside and infront of me. My GF 305 registered an average pace of 5:56 mpk for the 1st kilometer and I was comfortable with the pace. I was trying to expect a Water Aid Station in between 2K & 3K mark but I was surprised that the first Water Station was located on top of Del Pan Bridge which is at the 4+K mark. I took a cup of water and made a sip after taking my first GU Power Gel for the Race. I continued the race and relied with the assistance of the Race Marshals positioned in intersections as the traffic was building up on the surrounding street of Luneta Park. I also relied on the runners infront of me in order to be in the right track of the course. For the past Pasig River Marathon editions, I became one of the “lost runners” along the streets surrounding the Luneta Park due to lack of race marshals on the early part of the race.
Crossing the bridges were memorable during the race because each of the Water Aid Stations was located on top of the bridge and at the same time the location of the Relay Stations for the Relay Race runners. I was feeling okey and comfortable passing along the Jones Bridge and McArthur Bridge where I was running at an average pace of 5:30-5:40 kpm . It was at the approach of the Ayala Bridge that my support team met me and started giving me water and Gatorade drinks in ice candy plastic bags. Gerald Sabal, one of the early relay team members who finished his 2-kilometer run joined me and paced me from this point.

After crossing the Nagtahan Bridge, at the Km-15 mark, I started to feel a pain on my left calf muscle, the very same muscle that I had problems after the SIM and ADIDAS KOTR runs. I tried to slow down at first to find out if the pain will subside as what I’ve experienced in my previous long runs before the race. However, the pain would not disappear and I tried to keep my pace faster thinking that the pain would completely cease. I don’t advise this “technique” to the “newbies”! Even after a few yards of talking to my left leg, the pain would stay! I started to limp and slow down with my pace. As soon as I saw my support staff and vehicle, I stopped and asked one of my elite athletes to apply pressure and massage to the affected area and it gave me relief from the pain.
So, I continued to run and forced the pain to go away from my legs by running as fast as I could. After passing the Lambingan Bridge, I felt that the pain started to spread on the side of my lower leg and no longer at my left calf muscle. As my left foot would strike the ground, it caused an unbearable pain for the whole of my left leg that I have to take a light footstrike to the ground. The pain was still there and my left leg could no longer force my body to move forward. I decided to stop in one of the Waiting Sheds and had my lower left muscles massaged by my Elite Team runners. After a brief massage, I tried to alternately jog and walk until I saw my support vehicle and I was offered my usual Instant Oatmeal at the halfway mark. At this point, my GF 305 registered a distance of 19.63 kilometers with a time of 1:58+ hours!

As my leg-in-pain was being massaged, I saw a lot of runners passing me and asked what is happening. I answered them that I have a strained muscle and told them to continue their running. Some offered help, sports drinks, water and food. Thanks, guys for the show of concern and offers of assistance. I will never forget your faces!
After finishing my Oatmeal snack, a decision must be made! Do I have to DNF or Finish the Race? In my entire running career and adventures, I never experienced a DNF. I told my Elite runners who were assisting me that I really “walk the talk” because I always tell them to finish every race they have started and don’t want them to be dropping their race once they know that they could no longer place on standings where there are no cash prizes to receive. So, I made my decision to finish the race even if it will take me a longer finish time. This is the time to prove what “warriors” are made of!

I removed my wet bandana from my neck and tied it around my upper left calf muscle to relieve the pain I felt everytime my foot strike the ground. I got some relief by doing this. I took my GU Roctane Sports Gel & drank a lot of water as I started my brisk walking up to the Finish Line. I need to walk a distance of 22 kilometers from the Mandaluyong side of the Pasig River up to the Finish Line. My walking pace started at 10:30 mpk and making it fastest at 8:45 mpk along the remaining parts of the route. More of the slower runners would overtake me and I could see in their faces of their disbelief that the Bald Runner is walking briskly instead of running fast towards the Finish Line. Well, you can not win them all, as they say! There are ups and downs in running and I am trying my best not to be a DNF in a Road Race where I started.

As I passed the Guadalupe Bridge, I was thinking that Mr Amadao Castro, Jr aka Reinier6666 would pass me and I was planning to encourage him to walk with me up to the finish line as I knew he planned to end his race before he trurns right towards the Pioneer Street. But instead of him, I was overtaken by Eugene, one of my sponsors in my advocacies, and the Team Logan with lots of runners from takbo.ph. As I was about to end my walking along Pioneer Street, I was overtaken by Polo Tri athletes who were also brisk walking! And then suddenly, something went wrong with my stomach that I have to drop by the Jollibee branch at Brgy Oranbo, Pasig City to use their Comfort Room. It was my first time to experience such situation in a Marathon Race even if I took an Immodium tablet hours before the start of the race.

At the Shaw Blvd, I was able to talk to a lady runner from the ABS-CBN Foundation who is a part of a relay team. I observed that she was running with a cotton T-shirt and a thick cotton jogging pants, running with sneakers and not a running shoes and holding a hand towel. She would stop after running a few yards, taking a lot of walking breaks and I could see on her face that she is just forced to run in the said relay. She finally stopped at the Relay Station where another runner would start after the lady handed a loop-string with a big Card tied around her neck.
From Shaw Blvd, runners would turn left towards Canley Road up to the C-5 Road which is a steep downhill street. I would walk briskly and faster on downhill parts of the route but I had a hard time walking on uphill approaches as the pain on my leg would be unbearable. As I turned right at the C-5 Road, I observed that there was a designated lane for the runners and the lane was strictly guarded by the Pasig City Traffic Enforcers and other Race Marshals from vehicles. I really commend the Race Marshals and the Traffic Enforcers in every City that the runners had passed through. Everything was orderly and the runners felt that they are really the King & Queen of the Road during Road Races!

Even if the roads I was passing through are familiar with me because of my past “runabouts” and road runs, I had more time to see the details of the places and the things I see along the streets while walking. However, the heat of the sun was making its toll to a lot of the slower runners. Walking along the C-5 Road and along the streets of The Fort offers no shade to the runners and it was like my experience with the 1st BDM 102. I had to drink water and Sports Drinks alternately coming from my support staff while the water I am getting from the Water Stations would be poured to my head and body.

As soon as I reached The Fort area, I made another Pit Stop to eat hard-boiled eggs and had my legs massaged for the last time. I removed the Bandana tied around my left leg and used it as my cap which I have to pour cold water in every water station or when I felt I needed some cold water to cool off my head and body. While I was at the Kalayaan Flyover, I was able to talk to a runner who was wearing a Buff on his neck, CW-X tights, and arm warmers with body tattoo design, He was telling me that the heat of the sun slowed him down and I suggested to him to pour some water on his head and body every time he is in a Water Aid Station. I left him as I was going down the said Flyover towars Buendia Blvd!
While walking at the Buendia Blvd, I was able to join the group of Nickko Nolasco and Atty Red Samar who are both 1st BDM 102 Finishers and other two runners. Later, members of my Elite Team aboard on their respective motorbikes escorted us from this point. They informed me that the Team placed 1st Runner-Up (2nd Place) in the 20-Man Relay Team and I was happy! Also, walking with Nickko and Atty Red was enjoyable as we started to exchange stories about the next BDM 102 and running/training. Nickko would always have the honors of finishing last among the members of the “Team Hardcore” in every Road Race and he would like to maintain such record.

Before reaching Roxas Blvd, I saw Sam, The Running Ninja and another runner at the side of Buendia and I encouraged them to join our walking group. I asked Sam to share some stories as we continued our brisk walking. In the end, I was the one sharing to him strories on how he will prepare himself for his participation in next year’s BDM 102. As I glanced my GF 305, we breached already the 5-hour elapsed time! Nothing to worry afterall after having these runners around you with only one thing in mind—to finish the race!

As we reached the vicinity of the Aristocrat Restaurant along Roxas Blvd, a Race Marshal with a handheld radio warned us that we still have 25 minutes to reach the Finish Line or else we will be considered DNF for the race. From here in my estimate, we still have 2.5 kilometers before reaching the finish line and I started computing if we have a chance to reach the finish line before being declared as DNF. I forced my body to finish this race up to the last 2.5 kilometers with a decision of not being DNFd for the race. Not at this point, I said to myself! So, we started to slowly jog. From a pace of 9:00 mpk while brisk walking, we managed to have a pace of 7:45 mpk pace and we maintained that pace. My escorts of my Team Elite on their motorbikes would cheer us up to make our pace faster and beat the deadline and cut-off time! I would shout at Sam & Nickko whenever they stopped and forced them to continue jogging.

Finally, Sam, Nickko and I finished and crossed the Finish Line at the same time with my GF 305 time of 5:52:31 hours!!! We congratulated each other and we were approached by the Race Officials to get our race stubs! More runners from the takbo.ph and the Team Hardcore would approach us and were surprised why I was walking more than one-half of the race distance. I told them that I had a strained muscle on my left calf muscle which slowly affected other muscles. I never had “muscle cramps” but a muscle-related injury because of some mistakes in my training! For the first time, “Tumirik Si BR” but the “warrior” attitude is still there—to finish a battle until the end!

If you are wondering why I am wearing a running singlet with the MILO colors, together with the Elite Members of Team Bald Runner, the explanation will be in another post. Henceforth, this will be my official racing singlet and for the Elite Team Bald Runner in the next road races to come.

My personal congratulations go to the finishers of this PIM: A Run For The Pasig River, most especially to those who experienced their first Marathon Race. In comparison on the previous 8 editions of this Marathon Race, this is the most attended Road Race so far with a very noble advocacy to clean the Pasig River.
At present, I am under R-I-C-E treatment!
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