HAPPY EASTER! I welcome this day, yes, because Our Lord has risen, but also because my penitential sacrifice ends today. I am free to go shopping again, although technically I have to extend my penance for another week since I cheated during the early part of the Lenten Season.

The sacrifice was not so torturous as I kept busy doing other things, like taping episodes of ?House Life,? and running with my super coach Ani de Leon. Focusing on physical training and work allowed me to avoid weekend store specials and summer sales.

Gift of Life

It?s been a summer of fun runs, badminton tournaments and bike races, so my credit card bills are suddenly no longer scary. I did card the tutus for the female runners of the Polo Tri Team for the Rotary Club of Makati West?s Gift of Life Charity Run, but that wasn?t a bad swipe.

In fact, the ladies won the Gift of Life costume contest, thus allowing them to take a minute off their official times. So we all looked glam and got great race results to boot. Check out rotarymakatiwest.com for results.

The race was for the benefit of the Gift of Life project, which benefits children with congenital heart defects. The Rotary Club of Makati West has helped hundreds of indigent patients waiting for heart operations. It was wonderful to be part of the race, knowing that we are helping to make a difference for children.

Right after receiving my finisher?s medal, I was also handed Cadbury chocolates, Powerade, Oishi iced tea and bottled water. Gift of Life was quite organized, thanks to sports organizers eXtribe, who did a wonderful job with an on-time race start and lots of water stations.

Races are also opportunities for picture-taking. As I struggled to climb McKinley Hill, there was a kids? marching band that stopped me for a few snapshots. That was the added push I needed to make it to the top.

Afterward at the Oakley booth, I had more time for photos wearing my Endure sports shades. Owners Rameesh and Geeta Dargani explained that these latest Oakley shades are lightweight and the best tech for runners. For me, it?s just great that they look good!

Posing at the Oakley wall were the badminton ladies from Manila Polo Club who are runners as well. These energetic ladies recently joined the Fourth Famous Badminton Cup, generously sponsored by Timex.

The fun tournament is the brainchild of PR master Keren Pascual, who has been playing badminton to keep fit and sharp together with his celebrity friends and other distinguished personages, all of them famous, of course. It was a smash, with prizes like stunning, high-performance Timex watches up for grabs. Among the timepieces were the Timex Ironman Triathlon 50, a stylish piece built for extreme triathletes; the Timex Ironman iControl for iPod, which controls an iPod via a wireless transmitter; and the Timex heart-rate monitor, to keep track of the runner?s heart rate during exercise.

Since I am perpetually late for my races, I now use the timer on my Timex to clock my time so I can be conscious of my pace. I am normally not so conscious of time, but for the Rotary Run, my cousins Leica Carpo and Jon-jon Rufino told me to try and finish ahead of David Salon?s David Charlton. Ha! Good luck with that, as David is a master triathlete.

Tour of Hope

David is organizing the Tour of Hope Philippines 2009, a five-day bike race from Alabang to Camarines Sur that aims to spread the word on cervical cancer prevention. Last year, during the inaugural Tour of Hope, Team David?s Salon, composed of David, Tricia Chiongbian, Vice Mayor Nestor Itchon of Candon, the David?s Salon Club, and the Candon Bikers Association, all had so much fun biking from Vigan to Olongapo City.

This year, the Tour of Hope will cover Tagaytay, Lipa, Lucena, Naga and CamSur on May 24-28. Registration fee includes hotel accommodations, meals, jerseys, support vehicles, tour marshals (on police cars and motorbikes) and lectures on cancer prevention. For those who can join only certain legs, registration fee is P2,000 per leg.

For more info, check out http://thetourofhope.multiply.com, www.thetourofhope.com, or www.xoutcervicalcancer.com.

With my new, custom-made, neon pink bike created by Goyo Larrazabal of Bike Town Cyclery, I will surely join this worthy bike tour.

Condura Skyway Run

Running is totally addicting. The more I run in my Nike running shoes, the faster and stronger I become. Since the NY Marathon last year, all I?ve been doing have been 10K fun runs, so I was challenged to enter the recent Condura 21K.

The Condura Skyway Run for the Whale Sharks was one of the most well-attended races this year, with a total of 5,274 participants. There were more 21K runners than the recently held Kenny Rogers 10K! Maybe the excitement of running on the Skyway was a big attraction. Or maybe it was the thought of benefiting the whale sharks of Donsol, Sorsogon, that attracted the huge field.

Whichever it was, Concepcion Durables head Ton Concepcion was so happy about the Condura Race and the awareness it built for the country?s marine life. The Condura run was also partnered with ABS-CBN Foundation?s Bantay Kalikasan, Runners for Others and Operation Smile.

After the race, I donned my hula skirts and leis for some photo sessions next to giant photos of whale sharks, printed by Canon and contributed by world-renowned underwater photographer Gutsy Tuason. The whole cast of Jollibee mascots was there to welcome all finishers.

The whole Concepcion clan gave their all-out support, along with Skyway Corp., Vitwater, Nike Park, Smart, Ayala Land, Citibank and a lot more whale shark-loving sponsors. Taking photos of all the action were friends Rica Lopez de Jesus and Peachy Concepcion. Check their photos at www.condurarun.com.

All these summer sporting events are great ways of doing penance and sacrificing, with the side benefit of keeping fit. Of course, now that Easter is here, my new challenge is to keep on running, and even harder, to keep those credit cards in my wallet.

E-mail the author at seaprincess@inquirer.com.ph.