Running in 2010
Bleacher Talk
January 10, 2010
Running in 2010
Running is going to be THE “in” thing in 2010. And with May fast approaching, we’re going to be bombarded with news about all those who are running this year. But don’t get confused. For the record, there are two types of 2010 runners. We have the runners who’ll be doing it for the noble purpose: for their health, and getting in shape. We also have another set of runners who say they’re doing it for “noble” reasons. Wow. Just imagine if all of them and their noble goals would actually be achieved, we’d be better off as a country!
So as we start the year, we’d like to pose this interesting question, “Which type or group of ‘runners’ is going to achieve its respective goals, and make a difference for themselves or for the country this year?”
Cebu’s running scene blasted off at 4am today at the Cebu City Marathon (CCM), a footrace that features a 42K, 21K and 5K run which have drawn over 3,000 runners including a group of pre-race favorites in the Kenyans, and a host of local sports tourists who’ll most likely stay behind for the Sinulog’s festivities. (My bib # is 3473. I guess hitting 3,800 or maybe even 4,000 runners is a realistic thing. I just hope my ranking isn’t the same as my #.)
And why is this race so significant? Simple really. It’s ironically both a climax and a beginning of a sports fairy tale for Cebu Running. It’s a climax as we’ll be seeing a Cebuano-organized race for the Cebu running family that has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade. It’s our very own and we proudly say, “Ato ni bay!” Expected to run is a melting pot of all those Cebuanos who have taken up running (or jogging) as a hobby or as a means to stay in shape. They’ll be joined by many others from outside Cebu who’ll get a taste of the Cebuano hospitality and the way we proudly do our thing. It’s thus proper that we have the biggest running event to kick off the year’s racing calendar being organized by Cebuanos. And it’s no ordinary race at that. It’s a full 42 kilometer marathon.
The CCM will also a big beginning of many things to come for Cebu running. The future of the sport in Cebu is limitless in potential as we’ve barely scratched the surface of how much we can reach. Already a norm are the weekly races that are being held anywhere from Talisay all the way to Danao. We’ve even reached a point where two races are held on the same day. At the rate we’re going, we’re going to run out of Sundays in the calendar year, the traditional day for races. Pretty soon, we’ll also have Saturday races, Friday races, and did I hear weekday races? Hmmm.
Relevance? As a sport, running has created a dose of excitement that has brought out the serious runners out there. While they couldn’t look forward to running in many races in the past, they’re all back and excited to join all the races that are out there. Running has already attracted non-Cebuanos to make Cebu their base or training or place to settle down. Simon Liosaboi and Mary Grace de los Santos aren’t Cebuanos, but they’ve already made Cebu their second home. Running has also awakened the many “frustrated” athletes who probably thought that they never had a chance to enjoy a certain sport since they had “no talent” for it. That notion is gone and you’ll see many of them at today’s marathon. They’ll be running, laughing and simply enjoying every part of the race, and this includes waking up as early as 3am for the 42k runners, and 4 or 4:30am for the others. That’s the beauty of running. One doesn’t have to be a star athlete to go into running. Any “ordinary Joe” can run, ergo they run.
And then you have the other runners for 2010. I’d like to call them the most “promising” runners of the year. They’re so “promising” because they make so many promises every time you talk to them. Whether or not these promises come true is a totally different story. For the next five months, they too, will be like runners, running from one place to another to reach out and be “promising.”
Like runners, they also get up early in the morning. They have a pace to maintain and a finish line somewhere down the road. To them, finishing the race is also as just as important. But I’m afraid that’s where all comparisons come to an end. The main problem with these runners is that they’re not there to truly finish the race. In a 42k run, they’ll start out hot, set the pace and create an impact. But as the finish line nears, they’ll leave all of us behind and turn their back on us, and leave us (their constituents) in awe and worry.
You know which side I’m obviously on. But there’s hope, if only these “runners” for May would take to their races the way the real runners would, they can truly make a difference.
January 10, 2010
Running in 2010
Running is going to be THE “in” thing in 2010. And with May fast approaching, we’re going to be bombarded with news about all those who are running this year. But don’t get confused. For the record, there are two types of 2010 runners. We have the runners who’ll be doing it for the noble purpose: for their health, and getting in shape. We also have another set of runners who say they’re doing it for “noble” reasons. Wow. Just imagine if all of them and their noble goals would actually be achieved, we’d be better off as a country!
So as we start the year, we’d like to pose this interesting question, “Which type or group of ‘runners’ is going to achieve its respective goals, and make a difference for themselves or for the country this year?”
Cebu’s running scene blasted off at 4am today at the Cebu City Marathon (CCM), a footrace that features a 42K, 21K and 5K run which have drawn over 3,000 runners including a group of pre-race favorites in the Kenyans, and a host of local sports tourists who’ll most likely stay behind for the Sinulog’s festivities. (My bib # is 3473. I guess hitting 3,800 or maybe even 4,000 runners is a realistic thing. I just hope my ranking isn’t the same as my #.)
And why is this race so significant? Simple really. It’s ironically both a climax and a beginning of a sports fairy tale for Cebu Running. It’s a climax as we’ll be seeing a Cebuano-organized race for the Cebu running family that has grown by leaps and bounds over the past decade. It’s our very own and we proudly say, “Ato ni bay!” Expected to run is a melting pot of all those Cebuanos who have taken up running (or jogging) as a hobby or as a means to stay in shape. They’ll be joined by many others from outside Cebu who’ll get a taste of the Cebuano hospitality and the way we proudly do our thing. It’s thus proper that we have the biggest running event to kick off the year’s racing calendar being organized by Cebuanos. And it’s no ordinary race at that. It’s a full 42 kilometer marathon.
The CCM will also a big beginning of many things to come for Cebu running. The future of the sport in Cebu is limitless in potential as we’ve barely scratched the surface of how much we can reach. Already a norm are the weekly races that are being held anywhere from Talisay all the way to Danao. We’ve even reached a point where two races are held on the same day. At the rate we’re going, we’re going to run out of Sundays in the calendar year, the traditional day for races. Pretty soon, we’ll also have Saturday races, Friday races, and did I hear weekday races? Hmmm.
Relevance? As a sport, running has created a dose of excitement that has brought out the serious runners out there. While they couldn’t look forward to running in many races in the past, they’re all back and excited to join all the races that are out there. Running has already attracted non-Cebuanos to make Cebu their base or training or place to settle down. Simon Liosaboi and Mary Grace de los Santos aren’t Cebuanos, but they’ve already made Cebu their second home. Running has also awakened the many “frustrated” athletes who probably thought that they never had a chance to enjoy a certain sport since they had “no talent” for it. That notion is gone and you’ll see many of them at today’s marathon. They’ll be running, laughing and simply enjoying every part of the race, and this includes waking up as early as 3am for the 42k runners, and 4 or 4:30am for the others. That’s the beauty of running. One doesn’t have to be a star athlete to go into running. Any “ordinary Joe” can run, ergo they run.
And then you have the other runners for 2010. I’d like to call them the most “promising” runners of the year. They’re so “promising” because they make so many promises every time you talk to them. Whether or not these promises come true is a totally different story. For the next five months, they too, will be like runners, running from one place to another to reach out and be “promising.”
Like runners, they also get up early in the morning. They have a pace to maintain and a finish line somewhere down the road. To them, finishing the race is also as just as important. But I’m afraid that’s where all comparisons come to an end. The main problem with these runners is that they’re not there to truly finish the race. In a 42k run, they’ll start out hot, set the pace and create an impact. But as the finish line nears, they’ll leave all of us behind and turn their back on us, and leave us (their constituents) in awe and worry.
You know which side I’m obviously on. But there’s hope, if only these “runners” for May would take to their races the way the real runners would, they can truly make a difference.
Comments