Cebu Sports Blog by John Pages

Your chance to be Spiderman!

Name me a child—or adult—who doesn’t like Spiderman. I have one: my mother-in-law, Malu Mendez. She dislikes spiders. No, make that hates spiders. Anything brown and web-like and crawling with eight legs, she stays at least 957 feet away. But Spiderman? Because of Jana, her grandchild, she’s willing to catch a glimpse of the movie.

Spiderman is in Cebu! No, make that Spider-men. They number hundreds. Young and old. Some as young as four and some as old as 50. They come in different shapes, short and tall. They all share one passion. Crawling. Vertical crawling. They love to stare up the ceiling, plant their four legs on the wall and climb.

Spider-men. Wall-climbers. The same species.

The first time my daughter Jana, now eight years old, tried wall-climbing was two years ago. Jourdan Polotan, the muscleman of the Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals (BCBP), invited John Ligan and Ferns Uy and our children to Metrosports.

At first, Jana trembled at the sight of the wall. It stood 24 feet tall. She sat frozen. Then here comes her dad to the rescue… just like the superhero… Spiderman. Never mind the sweaty palms and Ferrari piston-pounding heart beat, I crawled up, up and away. Aha! I told myself.

Jana laughed. She laughed so hard. Why? I found out later: she said I looked like a giant lizard! Then she tried it. Right hand up, left leg up. Step by step, she reached the summit. Fast forward…

Today, Jana is Spider-woman. Since that first climb, we’ve been back every month or two; in each visit, she climbs at least 15 times! Wall-climbing is exhilarating. It’s fun. Here’s why…

1. Wall-climbing builds courage. Believe me, as a first-timer, it’s scary. And that’s the point. To take a risk, to try something different. In life or in business or in wall-climbing—you’ve got to be scared, at first. If your heart’s not pumping full blast, then you’re not taking a risk. Let’s say you’re halfway up—at 12 feet—and you look down. You want to climb down. You don’t. Instead, you look up and aim for the sky. You climb. Once the summit is reached with your bare hands, you grin and scream, “Yes! I made it to the top!”

2. Wall-climbing means child bonding time. John Ligan climbed with his daughter Alison. They did it together, side by side. What a sight! You’re hanging up on air, your daughter’s looking at you and she’s got that worried look, but you smile, give her instructions and say, “You can do it!”

3. Wall-climbing teaches perseverance. I’ve seen Jana shouting the words “Falling” (the signal for you to be lowered) and wanting to stop midway when her instructors urge her on and say, “Almost, Jan… you can do it!” She pushes a few more climbs and makes the top.

4. Wall-climbing is to feel relaxed. Same with life. Even when you’re hanging on to a small form of clay, you’ve got to breathe deep, not look down and not get panicky. Stay cool. That’s a motto in life and in climb.

5. Wall-climbing is safe. In Metrosports (called Vertigo Wall Climbing), look for Tony Go, the head instructor (assisted by Bernie Yu and Jack Culi). They’re a good team. Their English is perfect. They’re polite. They don’t just hold the rope to make sure you’re securely fastened. They teach you. They give you tips. They demonstrate. We asked Tony, who had been wall-climbing for 10 years, to give us a demo. He slipped on his special shoes, covered his hands with powder, and walked vertical. He climbed the most difficult wall—the same one you see on TV with those spiders hanging upside down.

Rates? Reasonable. In Metro Sports, for non-members, it’s P110 for four hours.

Back to Jana: After 109 or so climbs, I no longer tremble watching her brave the 24-foot summit. My only fear? It’s when I climb and she calls me by another name and not Spiderman…. Daddy lizard.

Jack the Football Giant

With TV host Bobby Inoferio in Cebu last year

Jack Biantan is a giant. He stands six-foot-one. Weighs 330 lbs. Three hundred thirty pounds? “Actually, I’ve lost count on how much weight I carry,” Jack once told me. “Because every time I step on my weighing scale it says…… Error!”

Hehehe. Jack and I laughed. Sure, he’s a giant. But Jack’s also a giant on another scale: The Literary World. With Sun.Star Cebu, he was the assistant sports editor from 1998 to 2001, covering boxing, basketball, volleyball, and swimming.

The sport Jack loved most? Football. His credentials are impressive: coach, Don Bosco Boys Home (1986-1990); coach, USC college varsity team (1990-1994); coach, SWU college varsity team (1998-2001); Cebu coordinator, Coke Go-For-Goal (1989-1996); secretary general, Cebu Football Association (1989-1996).

Jack is now an Englishman. Yes. (Ever wonder why the flag of UK is called Union Jack?) Seven years ago, Jack left Cebu for London. Today, he works in a hospital, same with his wife, a manager of nurses. They have a one-year-old son, Ethan Luke.

Jack emailed me a couple weeks ago to announce the good news: He’s back into writing. Check out Jack’s columns on English football at www.pinoysoccer.com.

Mr. Federer is on time and in vogue

ROGER FEDERER, the undisputed world No.1 on all tennis surfaces except clay, is on two current publications: Time and Men’s Vogue.

In Time magazine, the 25-year-old Swiss is counted as one of “100 Most Influential People In The World.” Wow! For the winner of 10 major titles, that’s major. Guess who penned the piece on the man destined to be The Greatest Ever… of course, who else but the current Greatest Ever himself: two-time Grand Slam winner Rod Laver.

“Every time I speak to Roger,” writes Rod Laver, “I sense no ego on his part. He asks me questions about how I prepared for big matches—Roger has a clear appreciation for the history of tennis. (Plus, these days, I should be the one peppering him with questions. He’s the big star!) When you’re talking to Roger, he makes you feel important—whether you’re a fan, an opposing player or an old geezer like me.”

Laver said not to crown Federer as the best ever — not yet. But, he said, “One thing is for sure: he’s the best player of his time and one of the most admirable champions on the planet.”

Read the whole Rod on Roger piece here.

IN MEN’S VOGUE, you’ll not only be entertained by a terrific write-up, but also by some fabulous pictures. Read the Men’s Vogue article here and see all the seven pictures here…

Cebu to host 30th PAL Intersports

THIS August 30 to September 1, Cebu City will host the 30th PAL Intersports. Over 1,000 executives from 16 cities — this will be the biggest-ever PAL Intersports — including four delegations from the United States and one from Australia, are expected to arrive in Cebu for this annual meet.

The photo was taken last April 20 at the Casino Espanol de Cebu when we hosted the first President’s Coordination Meeting.

This will be a grand event by PAL to fly and land in Cebu!

Rey Pages: Our Family Superstar

(May 9, 2007)

LAST April 29 in Valencia, Bukidnon, our family held a reunion in honor of my grandmother, Dr. Paulina “Bing” Pages, who celebrated her 84th birthday. In attendance were my dad and his brothers and sisters, including the most known “Pages” in our clan… Rey Pages.

Here’s an article I wrote about my uncle in September of last year (2006) for Sun.Star Cebu…

He is the most famous member of the family. Up until today, over three decades after he first slipped on that green jersey named Crispa Redmanizers, whenever I introduce myself, people always stop to ask, “Are you related to Rey Pages?”

I am. I’m proud to call him “Tito Rey,” the younger brother of my dad who once stood as Cebuano Idol, more famous than any other sportsman during his time.

Last June of this year, we were at the San Remigio Beach Resort for the family’s biennial reunion. After the usual “hello’s,” we escaped to a familiar scene: that tall circular steel rim hanging with the net and, on his hands, an orange ball.

“How many can you shoot?” I asked. He smiled. And went to work… “One, two, three…” I counted. “Four, five, six…” Every smooth release of the ball, every follow-through, every swoosh of the ball to the bucket, he stood relaxed. “Seven, eight, nine…” 10!

An hour or so later, the boys had crowded the court and a four-on-four ensued. Drilling 20-footers as effortlessly as a little boy would throwing pebbles into the lake, guess who scored the most points?

Rey Pages’ story began in the mid-1960s at the University of San Carlos. He scored the most points. People clapped. They screamed. He moved to the Colegio de San Jose-Recoletos and averaged more than 18 points, back when they had no three-pointers. For two years, he played Batman-and-Robin on the rectangle floor with his best friend, Bernard Fabiosa.

Rey Pages, a star? No. Superstar.

In college, he was plucked from Cebu and asked to strip and wear all-green. At La Salle, he became the team’s second-highest scorer (behind Lim Eng Beng). Next, he hopped to the Concepcion team before moving to the squad that immortalized his name…

Crispa. To those who followed the PBA in the ‘70s and ‘80s, didn’t you just love those days? I miss those days when you only chose between two: green or red, Crispa or Toyota.

From 1974 to 1981, Rey Pages donned the Crispa uniform. You know his friends. Atoy Co. Philip Cesar. Bogs Adornado. Abet Guidaben. Bernie Fabiosa. Johnny Revilla. Rudy Soriano. Freddie Hubalde. You also remember Team Toyota: Robert Jaworski, Abe King, Francis Arnaiz, Ompong Segura and, of course, Ramon Fernandez.

“What reminds you most of those days?” I asked.

“1976,” he said. “The year we scored a grand slam. As prize, we joined the Goodwill Games. We went to Hong Kong, then to Hawaii.”

Back then, Rey Pages, all of 6-foot-1, stood tall. Twice they traveled to Hawaii, four times to Hong Kong. He owned a brand-new Mitsubishi Galant, then later a hatchback two-door Toyota Corolla SR, then a sporty Mitsubishi Celeste.

He was so popular that his younger sister Grace (Vargas) became well-known at her Insular Life office because “she’s the sister of Rey Pages.”

In my case, I was barely 10 years old then but I recall that whenever he’d visit Bacolod, our house grew chaotic and people crammed to see him throw hoops at our backyard court.

After eight years with Crispa, Rey moved to Utex Wrangler in 1982. As fate would have it, he dislocated his shoulder. It turned so painful that, at a youthful age of 29, he quit.

Today, almost 25 years since, Rey Pages has lived the non-pro basketball life. He relocated to Los Banos, Laguna, where my grandmother, Dr. Paulina “Bing” Pages, was a top botanist at U.P. He went into business: from landscaping to the supplying of plants (you see those coconut trees at Shangri-La in Mactan, many were supplied and planted by his men). Now, he’s into the selling of vehicles in Calamba, Laguna. He lives with his wife Gloria and they have many children. No, not the ones born by them but those in four legs. “We have 30 dogs and cats,” he said. “They climb the table, sit beside and eat with us. They sleep with us.”

Basketball? In smaller leagues, he played on. When called to play a Crispa exhibition game against Manny Victorino and Jimmy Santos, in six minutes he drilled 12 points. In their league in Laguna, he would score 30-plus points. And this was against 20-year-olds. He is 53.

Last year, he received news from the doctor that tore him: “Stop playing!” he was told, after he tore ligaments in his left knee. “Play and you’ll be in a wheelchair for life.”

Rey Pages? Quitting basketball? Is this possible?

Not during our reunion. Not when that basketball continues to dribble inside disguised as his heartbeat. Not when you score 10 out of 10.

My uncle Rey (left) and dad Bunny with my younger brother Charlie

Run For Your Life!

Last Sunday, I woke up at 2:20 a.m. I bit my lips, shut my eyes, and tried to return back to snoring. It didn’t work. My heart kept pounding. And so after a few minutes of counting sheep, I gave up. I unwrapped the blanket, headed out, checked my email, read the news, and sipped San Mig coffee.

By 4:45 a.m., the time had arrived. I shook my wife Jasmin to wake up, showered, changed to sleeveless T-shirt, packed the iPod Shuffle, then left.

At 5:30, the Cebu Doctors’ University Hospital was flooded. Over a hundred—maybe hundreds—in running shoes littered the side street. It was the “Run For Your Heart” campaign launched by Dr. Peter Mancao and his fellow doctors. What a fabulous idea! Never mind if these heart doctors lose patients because more people are fit and are less likely to suffer from heart ailments.

At 6 a.m., Councilor Yayoy Alcoseba fired the gun and hundreds trampled the asphalt. It was my first-ever attempt at the 10K. For Jasmin, the same—her first 5K. Since I’ve taken up running last year, I’ve loved every moment. Jogging along streets named Escario, Salinas, Mango and Osmena, you observe sights you’ll never see on a car.

At the finish line, it was exhilarating. Vice Mayor Mike Rama ran the 5K and never lost his smile from start to finish. Cesar Montano ran one kilometer then said a “Vote for Me” speech. Dr. Yong Larrazabal was, as expected, a cheetah in shorts—he won the 10K Doctors’ division in 40 minutes. Dr. Vic Verallo beat his personal record—he clocked 45 minutes. My time? I couldn’t—and still can’t—believe it: 47:49. Was the distance shortened or did my Timex malfunction? I expected to run one full hour but 47 mins? My wife Jasmin also out-sprinted herself. She ran the 5K in 30:40. Good speed!

Tennis? This summer? Learn from RP’s best

Coach Butch Bacani (far right) with his Cebu students

Don’t miss this chance: One of RP’s top coaches is in town and he’s here only for a month. So, go!

Butch Bacani, with 30 years of experience tucked inside his tennis racket, is in Cebu. Dubbed the “Smart/Butch Bacani Tennis Camp,” this clinic is for free! Yes. Believe it or not in this day of commercialism, it’s for free. So, go!

Sessions are MWF. Time? Beginners (8 to 10am), Intermediate (10 to 12), Advanced (1 to 3 pm), and venue is Cebu Country Club. If you need more info, call Ging-Ging at 4161500 local 100. So, don’t delay, grab a racket, change to tennis shorts, and go!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“I couldn’t surrender,” said Rey Bautista. “I remembered my hardship when I was growing up, the time a bamboo pole was stuck in my head when I was a kid bleeding and walking 30 minutes before reaching home to find someone to remove it. I remembered my poor parents. I couldn’t let them down.”

Hooray for Boom-Boom! Wasn’t he amazing? Listening to Edito Villamor, his trainer, dishing out advice (“Ari sa tiyan!”) between rounds, didn’t you feel proud to be Bisaya? After Boom-Boom’s win, when he raised both arms, stared at the TV screen, and screamed “Para ni sa imo, ma!” or words to that effect, didn’t you want to shed a tear?

To me, the fight of the night was Bautista’s. De la Hoya vs. Mayweather? Nah. Lousy. I’m no boxing expert, but wasn’t that boring? Maybe it was the hype or the six months wait. But that was no classic. Sure, we saw jabs and jabs and jabs, and we saw Floyd sliding back and sliding back and sliding back. That’s it? That’s it. Was that what the world awaited?

Maybe that’s why I liked Mike Tyson and adore Manny Pacquiao. They jump on you, bloody you, rifle you with machine-gun punches, rarely on the defense, always on the offense, and when they smell defeat dripping off the enemy’s sweat, they bite, chew, and then kiss you. Yes. Kiss you with a KO.

White Water Rafting in CDO

This summer, if you’re in search of an adrenaline-rush, take the 8pm Trans-Asia boat and hop on to Cagayan de Oro. It’s called “White-Water Rafting.” Sunday last week, I was with Dr. Ronnie Medalle, his wife Steph and son Santi; Jourdan and Jingle Polotan; and my wife Jasmin and our daughter Jana. For five hours under the sun’s umbrella, we fastened our life-vests, donned helmets, and carried smiles on our faces as we paddled across 13 kms. of water and hurdled 14 rapids. What an adventure!

Roger, Rafa on half-grass, half-clay?

Why not! Since Federer’s won 48 straight matches on grass and Nadal’s won 72 straight on clay, why not halve the rectangle?

Creative, unprecedented and, yes, with that $1.63 million court, it’s a very expensive idea—but it’s drawn world-wide acclaim. Sad to say it wasn’t shown on ESPN. But don’t despair… YouTube to the rescue! If you want to see footages, especially of the third-set tiebreak that ended 12-10, click on this.