Kailee and the Columbia Trail Masters Run

Ever since trail running came to Thailand my daughter and I decided that the street marathon had lost its luster. Running on concrete in the midst of a highway and sucking in polluted air into our lungs wasn't our description of a "fun run."

We already did the NorthFace 100 in 2012 and 2013, which were both trail runs done out in the countryside and we decided that the Columbia Trail Masters Run at Khao Mai Kaew in the province of Chon Buri would be our next challenge. Hotel accommodations were booked 5 months earlier and registration for the run was done as well. 

One thing that we discovered was that there was a 3.5K category which was dubbed the "family run" and we decided that this would be a great chance to introduce my 6-year old granddaughter - Kailee, to the sport. 

The photos will tell the rest of the story.

Breakfast at the motorway rest area on the way to Kao Mai Kaew

The stage at the race venue

with her running partner. at this point we didnt have

the slightest idea what would transpire in the next few

hours that would totally change our game plan.

Making sure that tito JJ gets the right size

getting registered

in the depths of the sea or on mountain trails

these guys don't leave my side

The Philippine Trail Running team

Yeah, she's registered and eager to run. 
just 6 days shy of her 6th birthday, which
falls on June 22.

after getting our race kits we check in at the Horseshoe

Point Resort, as they were expecting us...

... and to our delight we discover that it is also

a riding academy for equestrian sports.

that's the north side view

an indoor riding arena for riding events that I knew

were only found in European countries

There was this kid who was practicing in the outdoor track

a few hours after checking in Kailee started coughing

and breathing heavily. she actually was on ventolin

when we left Bangkok, but we noted that it was

getting worse. so we brought her to the Pattaya

Memorial Hospital to be nebulized.

after a quick checkup by a lady doctor she was 

nebulized and we were charged 1,530 Baht.

 from the hospital we head to the Central Festival mall

for lunch at 3:30 in the afternoon... she's famished.

she feels better and we take a rest while mama 

went to get some stuff to take back to the hotel

That night we mount our bibs and check our other

gear for the run. at about 8:00 Kailee get's up

suddenly from bed and runs to the bathroom and vomits 

the undigested food that she ate 4- 5 hours earlier.

I knew there and then that our game plan for the race

would take a drastic turn and that she would be unfit

to run. how do you explain that to a very eager and

motivated tyke? it also starts raining so hard for more

than 2 hours and i knew that tomorrow would be a 
challenging day for us.

i chose not to tell her yet, but i prayed that

God would make things better. the following day dawned

and we head to the starting line to warm up.

baby Gray was there too

this runner gets on with the stretching exercises

without anyone telling her what to do.

that's it babe, you gotta stretch coz you'll be

strapped to lolo's back for the race. at this point

she has no idea what was in my mind about the run.

"hey Kailee, are you ready to run?"

at the starting line

 she was the only girl in her age bracket and i bet in 
her mind she was saying "i'm gonna beat all of you guys!"

 at the blast of the starting horn she's out in

a flash and i had to haul her in little by little

to the point of raising her up on my back. she was 
kicking like a spirited pony even while on her perch... 
and that's when i find the time to tell her that she 
has to do the race on my back because it would be 
hard on her lungs.

with each mile she realizes the truth and accepts 

her fate.

at mid-point i let her run uphill for a few meters

and she concludes that she is more comfy on my back.

10 meters to the finish i let her finish on 

her own steam and she liked it.

Her mom loved the the 10 kilometer run, 

but lost her prized earphones.

tito JJ was his usual self - light and speedy.

Buffet b-fast at the Horseshoe Point was really rewarding

so was the cool pool

we have so much to thank Jesus for. we thank

him for every breath, every stride up the trail

and every blessing.

"She ain't heavy, she's my granddaughter!"

Divers just wanna have fun

This diving team has been diving different countries, islands and challenging depths. The talk is usually about the latest sighting of another species of marine life, how to develop another diving skill or method or what gear/gadget to save for next. In the world of scuba diving this is called “fun diving.”

This time the “fun” would be done no deeper than 1 meter along the shores of Koh Sichang – an island nearest to Bangkok. The photos will tell the rest of the story.

the boat to the island. 

fare: 50Baht 

duration of trip: 45mins

first trip: 7AM

last trip: 7PM

Koh Sichang pier

south koh sichang island

Pink bikes made it more fun

part of the way to south island was unpaved.

beach-combing

a nice spot by the cliffs where there

was a field of tide-pools

the tide was out and we had fun checking

the stuff that is submerged during high tide

crustaceans that encrust the rocks showing

the soft and hard phase of their life cycle

it wouldn't have been fun without these

protective footwear

some more barnacle-like crustaceans

chasing the tambasakan - mud skippers

gotcha!

King of the tide pools

top view

a dead coral that knew better days.

i'm still trying to figure out what kind

of creature would be pooping this much.

D2 should get herself a pair of these shades.

looks good on her. char... reese.

a heady pic. D3 is strutting in the distance

spicing up our lives

a plateful of mouthwatering cholesterol-laced uric acid

green but ripe mangoes

battle of the beverages

clipped wings

awesome tide pool mirror

getting wacky

if this pier can only talk...

...it would tell of days of royalty 

and pre-nup pictorials

c'mon D1, you can't fool no one

apprehension written over our faces

while the vendor who obviously wasn't 

cam-savvy gives in to our wishes.

‘ty-seven

The title may be a desperate attempt to mask the age of this writer although the photos don’t lie and there is no doubt that I am officially 57 years old as stated in my passport.

I am obliged to post an entry to this blog to document each passing year ‘till I breathe my last and depart from mother earth’s embrace.

God has been sustaining me throughout my rollercoaster life. It has been an exhilarating and thrilling ride all the while and I don’t intend to get off yet.

Here are some photos of the year that added the 57^th milestone to my aging bones.

the whole shebang at Oishi buffet celebrating the aging process.

this lively tyke keeps me young with her antics

 Blessed with a visit by dear friends from high school years

 did a medical mission trip to bless the Karen kids...

...in the remote villages on the mountain range 
straddling the Thai-Burma border

 Did the North Face trail run on the mountains of 
central Thailand

scuba diving and underwater photography goes 
up another notch

God's creation is awesome under the waves

 Noah's wife kicks her fear, takes up Noah's
sport and loves it -  she's hooked for life.

 My sis Ethel's son - Jong, graduates from 
US Navy nuclear school.

Elaine, her youngest daughter also graduates from high school
and is accepted at the prestigious University of California, 
San Diego

Kailee finishes kindergarten at the top of her class.

Chito - a frat brother and buddy comes for a visit and 
we reminisce the years and drinks when we were 30 years younger.

I had the chance to donate blood every 3 months this 
year, which means that I gave a total of 2 liters 
= 40 - 50% of my total blood volume.

On top of all these events that took place this year I would like to declare that Jesus is still the center of my life and that my heart is still overflowing with praise and thanks for His taking me out of the untruthful doctrines of the Seventh-day Adventist church into the marvelous light of His mercy and grace.