From Bukidnon to Boston

Last Sunday, Bukidnon had its first ever international marathon.

Bukidnon is one of those places one would have heard of as scenic and stunning but, because it is a bit “out of the way” (i.e., relatively far from the nearest airport), has not yet been deluged by tourists.

Which is why when the inaugural Bukidnon International Marathon was announced, I lost no time to register. Even though given my work schedule and family commitments, I knew I would be unable to properly explore the province, running 42 kilometers of it, is more than enough to give me a bird’s eye view of its beauty.

As it turns out, the marathon coincided with the Kaamulan festival, an annual celebration in Malaybalay showcasing the rich traditions of Bukidnon’s seven indigenous tribes. To highlight this, the organizers held a welcome dinner for the runners which featured a cultural show with performances from local artists depicting what Kaamulan is all about.

The Capitol area was surrounded with vendors of local crafts and delicacies and the Bukidnons showed up all weekend.

One of the locals I was happy to connect with is our ever humble fastest female marathoner and Southeast Asian Games gold medalist, Christine Hallasgo, who unsurprisingly won the female category in the Bukidnon race.

She recently place 9th in the Asian Marathon Championship in Jiaxing, China but is now preparing for the upcoming SEA Games in December in Thailand.

Christine warned me that the race route was going to be hilly and she wasn’t kidding.

Bukidnon is in the highlands of Mindanao and the terrain is rolling. The route had a 653-meter elevation gain so it wasn’t exactly an easy course.

But the running community in Malaybalay is really flourishing so they came in droves. They arrived in Filipiniana inspired costumes at the welcome dinner but came properly clad in the latest supershoes on race day.

The race course was AIMS (Association of International Marathons) certified, meaning it was properly measured. There were pacers, adequate aid stations and marshals.

The most pleasant surprise were the cash prizes because the organizer handed out substantial amounts for the first three in each of the age categories for both males and females.

Overall, it was a memorable experience, and was definitely worth the trip.

On the other side of the globe my best friend Ampee Villamor and two teammates, Angie Limbaco and Rose de Leon, participated in the 129th running of the Boston Marathon. Had it happened under better circumstances, I would have wanted to go and cheer them on.

Boston is touted as the most prestigious of all the World Majors given its strict qualifying time, which I’ve vowed to continue aiming for even in my 70s.

For now, however, was content to vicariously feel all the excitement through my friends’ stories and the snapshots I got to watch on social media.

Which led me to thinking if it was possible for the Philippines to ever have a world major? Are we able to mount a world class event that people all over would want to participate in?

The only Asian country that has a candidate event is China through its Shanghai Marathon.

Maybe we can also have one someday.