Drawn-out affair Participants in the Subaru Impreza Challenge brave fatigue, boredom and the elements for a shot at a brand-new car in the final in Singapore. Al S. Mendoza
THE longest you can hold your breath under water and emerge from it in one whole piece is three minutes. No need for decompression. That has been medically, if not scientifically, proven. But that’s under water. Okay, leave the pool, the beach. Go home. At home, do not work. No chores. No TV. No Internet. No nothing. Just sit still. Okay, you can move your head. Your hands. Your feet. Your body. Your eyes. In that position—seated either on a chair or on the floor—how long can you last? One hour? Two hours? Maybe more? Okay, this time stand up. Just stand up. Do anything while standing up. Bend. Limber up. Shake your hands, fingers and legs. Roll your eyes. Anything. How long can you last standing up? One hour? Two hours? Maybe more? Okay, lie down. Just lie down. Belly up. Belly under. Sideways. Any position. Do some calisthenics. Kick your legs up. Anything. How long can you last lying down? One hour? Two hours? Maybe more? I shoot these questions in lieu of what Subaru has been doing the last seven years or so: Call on the public to join a contest using one hand, just one hand, to touch a Subaru car. Weird? Of course, not. It’s brilliant. A work of genius. THUS, since 2002, Subaru has been staging an annual event involving men and women of all ages. You simply need to be 18 and above. If you are rich or poor, employed or not, or healthy as an ox, you can sign up. Oh, wait a minute. About that health aspect, fellers, listen up. “It’s kind of funny, if not a bit scary, but on the day of the start of competition, our nurses said almost every participant was high-blood,” said Ariel de Jesus, the gutsy hotshot at Motor Image handling the Subaru Impreza Challenge in perfect tandem with Motor Image Pilipinas managing director Nicky Mariano. “Turned out they were simply all excited—and just too anxious to go to battle.” OVER the years, there had been a few minor changes in the battle format. But basically, as first envisioned in 2002 in Singapore (Motor Image’s chief headquarters), the contest called for every participant to place his/her right palm on a palm decal strategically located on the Subaru Impreza cars. That simple? Uh-oh, think again, fellers. Staying power is the key—and more. Endurance, both physical and mental, will put to the test the ability of every participant to win. As I said earlier, you can sit, you can stand, and you can even lie down during the contest. Just don’t detach your palm on the palm decal and you are on. No part of your body must touch any part of the Subaru Impreza. Not even skin, or the tip of your fingernail. PULL out of your post every six hours for a five-minute break. They could be the most precious five minutes of your life each time they came as you would lump into those minutes everything: Eating and drinking, stretching and visiting the john. But first, can you last six hours with just your right palm planted on the palm decal of the Subaru Impreza of your choice? Rain or shine, day or night, you need to be there, six straight hours nonstop. You can talk to your “neighbor,” one of maybe 25 attached to the Impreza, all six hours long. But you can’t hear music from your iPod or anything. No, nothing. SURE, you can whistle, you can sing, you can hum a tune, or even shout “careless whispers” during the contest. The only thing prohibited is moving your right palm, fingers, while “glued” to the Subaru Impreza. There was a heavy downpour but the contestants never flinched. Not even gusty winds could derail the gutsy throng. About 200-plus intrepid souls signed up, including the four famous honor guards that stood in rapt attention during the Cory Cortege on August 5. But if they had been unmoving as a solid rock for nine hours or so during Cory’s funeral procession from the Manila Cathedral to the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque, they were no match for the demanding tests of the Subaru Impreza Challenge. One by one, they all fell by the wayside—PO2 Danilo Malab of the PNP; PO2 Edgardo Rodriguez of the Philippine Navy; A2C Gener Laguindam of the PAF; and, PFC Antonio Cadiente of the Philippine Army. EACH had a story to tell and worth retelling. Through thick and thin, they fought on, hung on, or attached their palms as though stapled forever before the altar of conviction. But the cruel, grueling tests of patience, staying power, and sheer fighting spirit would tell on the weak of heart until, finally, only 10 were left “standing.” Still, hours and hours passed and not one of the 10 surrendered. Finally, sensing the futility of seeing some peeled off from the pack if they were left on their own “crazy world of make-believe,” the eagle-eyed Ariel de Jesus cooked up an innovation. “Okay, now, pay attention,” he yelled to the 10 survivors still wide-eyed close to midnight. “Raise your left hand!” Each one obliged. No one quit. “Okay, next,” said Ariel, “Raise your left leg!” Each one obliged. No one quit. Exasperated, Aries screamed: “Okay, you are tough, huh. Okay, now, raise both your left leg and left hand.” It was here when, one by one, they surrendered. Ariel DJ then began his countdown: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4… And then there were three…two…and, finally, one. IT was indeed a stunning surprise as the winner was a woman, Apple Joy Lee Balibado. “And I honestly thought she’d be among the first to quit,” said Ariel of Balibado. So skinny is the 28-year-old Balibado she’d hardly pass a test as the apple of your eye in a health-oriented contest. But here she was, the proud winner of an energy-sapping contest of wits and staying power that saw Apple Joy outlast machismo pretenders, including defending 2008 champion Gerald Gonzaga. In winning the top prize of P15,000, Apple Joy stayed awake for 29 hours and 38 minutes from noon of September 12 up to almost 6 in the evening of September 13. Gonzaga won P10,000 for second place and Relly Esposo P5,000 for third in the battle held under open skies at the Fort Bonifacio Global City. But the bigger prize for the Top Three and seven other survivors was an all-expense-paid trip for everybody to Singapore next month for the Subaru Asia-wide Championship. Balibado, Gonzaga and Esposo will be joined by Mark Lauder, Ray Joseph Pizana, Raimond de la Torre, Daryll Sarno, Danilo Biadog, Joseph Galvez and Chrizar Mallari in Singapore for a similar insomnia-laden Subaru Impreza Challenge with much bigger prizes at stake. The winner in Singapore will bring home, among others, the Subaru Impreza WRX 2.5L Turbo worth P1.728 million. It’s a tall order for Apple Joy and company as the 2008 champion logged an astonishing 81 hours and 32 minutes recorded by Singapore’s George Lee, who bested 399 contestants from four Asian countries. Still, Nicky Mariano, this early, is confident we might come up with a surprise in Singapore. Said Nicky: “We hope to see a Filipino finally winning in Singapore.” Pee stop My salutations go to Mitsubishi Motors Philippines for staking a Lancer EX GLX as a hole-in-one prize today at Valley during the Rotary event called the DG Dulce Coyukiat Golf Cup. Tournament chairman Jake P. Ayson extends his gratitude to Mitsubishi top guns Orly Alvarez, Froi Dytianquin and Arlan Reyes, and, of course, chief conduit Jojo Alcoriza...I welcome the arrival of Ford’s Wildtrak, described by both Glenn Dasig and Anika Salceda of Ford as “the ultimate truck for the urban cowboy.” Good day, too, to the Mercedes-Benz’s S400H, the handsome machine with the staggering price of P10million-plus which the dashing Felix Ang had proudly announced as the “first luxury hybrid to hit the country, if not all of Southeast Asia.” Cheers!...Kudos, too, to Danny “Sir John” Isla, the president of Lexus Manila. This early, his legendary Lexus convertible is the Grand Raffle prize at Alabang in March 2010, topping off three other Toyota cars to be raffled off during the occasion. “As always, the deal has been clinched this early as they would put on display the Lexus convertible beginning in November,” said Sir John. Cheers!…And, finally, here’s my monthly hello to Mel Co of Honda Cars, San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte. More power, Mel! |
