TLBF Website
Among the many Philippine websites devoted to sports, the Terry Larrazabal Bike Fest site is one of the best I’ve found. Check it out at www.tlbf.org.
‘Rain, rain, go away…’ says China, playing God
This is funny. Absurd. Never done before. Crazy. But, if they’re able to perform what they’ve boldly promised to accomplish, it will be unprecedented. A first. Freakish. An act to prove that man, indeed, is starting to play God.
Have you heard this news before? Of China, with only 159 days left before the Beijing Olympics, spending $100 million annually and deploying 50,000 people to—believe it or not—keep rain away during the Olympic Opening Ceremony? That China is concocting a storm—yes, a real-life, but man-made, storm—to clear the skies of pollution?
This is no joke. It’s true.
Bananas and Cramps
My good friend from Australia, Graeme Mackinnon, sent this informative and yes, funny, comment. Note: I especially like his last-sentence suggestion! Hehe… Thanks, Graeme!
“John, I watched a tennis player chewing on a banana during a game and it got me thinking. So two years ago I decided to give it a try. I quietly gave my son Robert one before a game and I watched what happened. Put it this way it did not affect him adversely, so I decided to put the rest of the team on bananas for the rest of the season.
“The team that I was coaching was not an elite squad of players and many of them you would have to say were not adonis in their physical attributes. They would eat half a banana five to ten minutes before the start of the game and then consume the other half at half time. I expect a lot from the players and I drive them in the heat of the game to go for that extra effort when the occasion arises.
Glendale Tennis Club visits Casino Espanol de Cebu
Last January, at around the time of our Sinulog, a group of men and women from Glendale, California, held a friendly tennis encounter with our very own Casino Espanol de Cebu tennis group. The original schedule, January 19 (the day before the Sinulog), rained out so we moved it to Jan. 21, the day after the biggest party and celebration of the year in Cebu. It was competitive, exciting, filled with serves, volleys, lobs and smashes, and both groups enjoyed each other’s company. Thanks to Brian Bailey, who helped facilitate his Glendale group’s visit to Cebu, we had an ace of a time!
The TLBF: An Affair to Remember in Ormoc
In Nov. 9, 2004, I wrote this article for Sun.Star Cebu…
Jaime Gallego and I are members of the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals (BCBP). Our motto reads: Be Honest. So I’ll be honest. I’ll make a confession. I had an affair. And so did Jaime.
Three weekends ago in Ormoc City, miles of sea away from our wives’ radar screens, we each smuggled in “roommates.” We checked in at Hotel Don Felipe. Held their hands. Opened the hotel room door for them. Inside, our eyes sat frozen ogling at two attractive, sexy, ravishing frames. We massaged their curves. Gave each a long wet bath. To cut the long drama short, like most affairs, word leaked out and our wives found out. We had to spill out the truth. And be honest. How that weekend, we “roomed” our bikes.
Why I Love Cebu
From left: Jesse Taborada, John Pages, Meyrick Jacalan, Dr. Ron Eullaran and Roel Militar
The year was 1986 when my family and I moved from Bacolod to Cebu City. Back then, like any 14-year-old who had developed deep friendships with classmates and neighbors, I resented the decision
“Can I just stay in Bacolod?” I recall asking my parents. The answer, of course, was obvious. From the City of Friendship we transferred to this Queen City of the South. Looking back 22 years ago to that time—with no offense meant to Bacolod—it would be hard for any city to surpass what Cebu offers. In schooling, in business opportunities, in R & R, in malls to visit and night spots to party in and, lest I forget, in this favorite topic of these back pages…. Sports.
Take mountain-biking. Here in Cebu, if one craves to climb steep hills, descend on trail roads, trek across muddy terrain or traverse shallow streams—it’s all, as the cliche goes, right at our own backyard.
If ‘Pistol Pete’ guns for it, he can win W.
Tennis’ greatest-ever—next to Roger Federer—is Pete Sampras. He amassed 14 Grand Slam singles titles—the most of any male player. But we know he’s long retired; back at the 2002 U.S. Open final against Andre Agassi, Pete won that match—his last on the ATP Tour. And that was 5 ½ years ago.
Today, Pistol Pete is back. Last November, Sampras played thrice against Federer. He lost the first match, 6-4, 6-3, in Seoul, Korea. He lost the second, 7-6, 7-6, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. But in their finale, Pete shocked Roger in Macau, 7-6 (6), 6-4. And, just a few nights ago against Tommy Haas, Pete spent just 43 minutes dismantling the German, 6-4, 6-2. That’s two of the last two.
(This painting and the one below from www.galleriadelsol.com)
Which brings me to ask: Should Pete return?
Guess Who?
Anyone out there who can identify these two?
The Day I Tried….
February 17, 2008. That date was to have been one of my life’s biggest moments. Like that first kiss. Like my graduation. Like winning that first tennis event. Like my wedding. Like my daughter’s birth nine Novembers ago.
When I woke up at 4:45 a.m. last Sunday, I was sure that when I crossed the Finish Line to record my first-ever 42-K run—the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon—that it would mark one of my life’s most memorable days.
Well, dear readers, guess what: I didn’t make it. I failed.
When the horn roared along Nathan Road at 7:45 a.m. four days ago to signal the start, I felt confident. And running beside Jesse Taborada, the president of the Cebu Executive Runners Club, the first part was easy. We laughed, talked, overtook dozens. At the 10-K point, our time was one hour, two minutes. With barely a sweat.
Thirty minutes later, Dr. Vic Verallo joined us. Down the tunnel, up the tunnel, down the foot of Tsing Ma Bridge, up the world’s sixth largest suspension bridge, down, up the Ting Kau Bridge, down. Flyovers. Tunnels. Bridges.