Home // 2012 // December

Surfing in Baler

Surfers catching a wave in Baler

Catching a wave in Baler. Photo by Renato Ubay Jr.

This is a guest post from my friend Mick Ison, who divides his free time between motorcycling, wakeboarding and all sorts of other water sports.

 To Pinoy surfers, Baler needs no introduction. Along with La Union and Siargao, it is one of the most frequented surf spots in the Philippines. But being new to surfing, I had little idea of what to expect.

I had been hearing about Baler for the longest time. Unfortunately, I never really had a chance to visit the place. My luck changed when I reconnected with an old friend, Noel Lazaro, who invited me to tag along with their Surf Trip to Baler. And without any hesitation, I said yes. Read more [+]

Running in Daranak and Calinawan

Nature's Trail Discovery Run Final Leg 2012

Nature’s Trail Discovery Run Final Leg 2012

Hands down, this is the best run I’ve ever participated in. Nature’s Trail Discovery Run in Tanay held last November 25 took its participants through beautiful mountain trails, through a cave, across a river, up a 600 meter high peak, down a postcard-perfect waterfalls, and dared us to test the limits of what we could achieve.

Initially, I had some doubts about whether I should sign up for the 21k trail run. I had done only one 21k before this, and it was over the relatively flat urban terrain of Fort Bonifacio. Running up steep rocky slopes sounded like a great deal of punishment, and someone told me that all the ascents and descents of a trail run added a few extra kilometers to the official 21k length of the course, so that it was actually going to be more than 21k. I was wondering if I should enlist in the shorter 10k race instead. Read more [+]