Runner's World, Welcome to the Philippine Islands

The first Philippine issue of Runner's World hit the shelves recently and I'm certain a lot of Pinoy runners dashed to their local bookstores to grab a copy of the maiden issue, which is currently bundled with Men's Health Magazine. So much for my personal resolve to buy only back issues of magazines--I did not want to wait to get this one. And at two magazines for P165, it's not bad at all. So, how was it?

Runner's World Philippines First Issue Cover

Summit Media touts itself as the Philippines' leading magazine publisher, boasting a portfolio of mixed foreign licenses and locally-conceived products. Their publications are classy and top-notch, which is why I'm glad they're the ones who brought the global voice of runners to our shores. The lay-out of Runner's World Philippines (RW Ph) is akin to its overseas counterparts: enough information and design on the page to make it interesting and facilitating good eye movement on the page.

If you're expecting a full on, 112-page magazine, don't. The first issue of RW Ph has 36 pages, and much like you, I thought I'd be getting a nice, thick serving of local running goodness. But since Summit is I guess, still testing the waters, RW Ph will be bundled with Men's Health and Women's Health Magazines four times in 2010 before it hopefully becomes available as a stand-alone publication. With the current running boom in the Philippines, I can't see how this would flop. But then again, you know how it is here when a sport or activity becomes "uso" (a fad). Think badminton.

Runners, I bet, would ask who the Editorial staff is and would hope that it's being handled by runners. The Editor-in-Chief is Marie Calica, the current Beauty and Fitness Editor for Marie Claire, Philippines. If you're thinking "Pfsh. Marie Claire. What does she know about running", keep in mind that her title is Beauty and Fitness Editor for the magazine, and that she has contributed to The Bull Runner magazine among her many accolades. In addition to that, she ran the New York City Marathon in 2009, finishing in 4:53:44. Actually, the photo on the editor's letter is Marie raising her fist triumphantly during the NY Marathon. She's got both running and editorial experience, so I wouldn't worry about it. Other contributors include Ultra runners Neville Manaois and Hector Yuzon, names we often see in the running scene.

I've noticed that a lot of the articles were taken from international issues, which seems to be how magazines on this level operate. Correct me if I'm wrong, I'm guessing there are articles which are written then published for RW in all the countries it's in (for example, the article "Arch Nemesis" on page 18 is almost the exact same article and photos and lay-out found on page 48 of RW US, January 2010). But of course, the cover story is of our very own Coach Rio, whose face and hair is immediately recognizable to runners of any level. On page 5 is a brief one-pager dedicated to Joy Rojas and her recently completed Takbong Pangarap, a cross-country run through the US from California to New York, and I'm glad that the "Back Story" segment, a short half pager frequently found on RW, features Olive Cortez, the winner of the 2009 Auto Review Run for Road Safety and Courtesy 10-K. I quickly flipped to the end of the magazine to look at the "I'm a Runner" segment, expecting it to feature a local icon, but was a bit disappointed to see Alanis Morissette's interview, also a rehash of an article from RW US January 2010. Rave Run though, featured a nice photo of a runner in Subic. I'm certain that there will be more locally-grown content to be featured on RW Ph as the issues pile up.

Runner's World Philippines is poised to become one of the most-read running magazines in the country. I just hope that when it comes out on the shelves on its own, the price tag would be similar to other Summit Media publications. Also, it would be mutually beneficial for the publishers and the readers for the magazine to heavily feature local content and information, which I'm sure it will, eventually. Funny, though. Now I really want to get my hands on a copy of Front Runner magazine.

Kudos to Summit Media and Runner's World!