The conversation still resonates vividly in my head on that balmy afternoon a little over two months ago. I was going about my business at home, chillin' to 90's tunes on my Grado SR-60's when the call came.
Jonel : Are you free to interview Piolow for our next cover story tomorrow at 4 pm?
GBM : Huh? Er, uh, Piolow?
Jonel : Yeah. The Piolow.
GBM: Uhhh, errr, okaaaaaaay?
Jonel : Great, I'll have the Timex gal get in touch with you.
Numbness. Is this for real? Not that I'm a screaming fangirl or anything , but I knew why Frontrunner EIC/Tatay/BDM Ultraman Jonel Mendoza got me for the story. Think of all the tension when the online pseudo-rivalry would come to a head. The Piolow finally meets the Sub-Piolow in the flesh. What fun.
To those who came a tad bit late into the scene to remember the entire ruckus that happened, read and go back to this piece to get a grasp of what we're talking about. It's as close to a cold war as one would get in the community. It was presscon fodder, and the "feud" was showing up on a completely different front. You should have seen the day when my site was inundated with heavy traffic (hostile no doubt) from Piolopacual.net. Smirk. Eventually the entire episode simmered down, but always remained as sort of an urban legend amongst old running hands.
I had practically forgotten about the entire thing.
Until I received that fateful phone call.
A gazillion things immediately raced through my head. How was I to approach it? Would he be hostile? Snooty? Would the "interview" last 2 minutes while he was being made up for his next show, alalays in tow?
I get a message from the Timex gal coordinating with us. It said something like :
You'll interview Piolow while he's being made up in the dressing room before his next rehearsal.
Ulk. This makes it interesting. I had prepared like ten questions, how am I supposed to pull that off now? For some reason, I was starting to conjure visions of a cranky prima donna surrounded by a burgeoning entourage.
The following day, me and Abby met Jonel at the lobby of his posh Valero condo in Makati. The plan was to ride convoy to the Aliw Theater where he was a guest star for Pokwang's concert. Slight Complication. Apparently, he was stuck in Bulacan, and would be late for what was anticipated to be a 7pm interview. Given that we had plans after, I thought this was a goner. Bummer.Maybe it wasn't meant to be. Maybe next time. What if there won't be a next time?
As we dejectedly started to head for the door, Jonel had a startling piece of news. For some reason, there was some confusion with his handler, and he was actually already at the venue. Sheesh. We were on the road before you could say "Noah"
We parked right in front of Star City, that last bastion of early 90's fun (anyone aside from me remember that show they used to have on channel 9?) I was pleasantly surprised to see that people were actually lining up for her show. Cool. The handler would be out in a few, so we took the time to grab some coffee (which was really more to calm my nerves). I've done a lot of interviews before, but given that this was on such short notice I felt horribly unprepared.
A few more minutes and his handler finally came out. The affable, soft-spoken lady didn't exactly fit my notion of a "handler". Was half-expecting either Ogie Diaz or Lolit Solis to start thumbing down a clipboard in my face.She secured VIP passes for us to gain entrance, somewhat even apologetic that we couldnt just waltz in. "Stricto sila eh, full house kasi ngayon." Pokwang? Nice, strike while it's hot.
The Aliw Theater was much more bigger than I had expected, first time to ever enter. Both me and Jonel were comically fumbling with the digital recorder as we were waiting for Piolow to come out. We checked the
batteries at least four times lol. Oh the nerves. Apparently, our earlier fears of a madalian/pinilit interview were unfounded - we'd be doing the interview right there at the auditorium.
Thankfully, before I could complete a 10k just through pacing around Piolow finally came out. Here's an excerpt from the story, just to give you an idea of my thoughts at that precise moment (consider it a teaser haha.)
IMHO, the interview was exponentially better than what we had expected. No time pressure at all, we were able to run pretty much the entire gamut of questions over the span of nearly 30 minutes - quite generous for someone who was going on stage in less than an hour. The interview reflects rare insights on perhaps one of the most polarizing figures we have today, and showcases that burning competitive spirit oftentimes glossed over by the showbiz fluff. Perhaps the lasting impression I got from the whole thing was that if we existed in an alternate universe where he wasn't an actor, he could just as easily be your next door tropa or training buddy.
So did he stare me down after learning I was the guy behind the Sub-Piolow? How does he balance a crazy work sked with training? Will he ever do BDM? Want to know how he felt during his first duathlon on no cleats?
Get the special Christmas issue of Frontrunner to find out,now available at newsstands and bookstores nationwide :)
p.s. It's a collector's edition double cover issue, with a batak Sir Jovie/ Bald Runner on the other cover. That I believe is already worth more than the price of admission :P
remember you promised to scan me a copy =) can't wait =)
Yeah I will :P Pramis hehehehe :)
i love it babe! :p GO TEAM LUIS!
Where are our copies?? :P
i heart batak BR :P
Wohooooo are you the President babe? Hehe :P I think our copies were delivered to the office na :D Haha batak BR is da man :P
napa-Google ako sa "beck and call." Before this post, I thought it was "beckon call." nasa answers.com ang kasagutan. hehehe...
I hope to buy a copy when I drop by ROX one of these days. I'm sure my wife would FORCE ME to buy a copy knowing that there's Piolow in it. Hahaha...
kitakits!
--Roelle (http://daytripped-running.blogspot.com)
Hahaha laugh trip ka talaga Roelle :P Awesome awesome,they say it may be the best issue ever :D
Haha! Nice one Ginger! Can't wait to read your uhhh (article) face off ?(parang abbyjocson is soo kilig beside Piolowww. Haha!)
GBM, I want a signed copy... of Papa P that is. ;p And when am I meeting up with him? You were able to set it up, right? hahahaha!
It is the best issue ever. The magazine looks amazing! BR's shot is soo on the spot---bigger than life type thing. Piolo's cover is a perfect complement to your piece.
Lay-out is perfect from cover to cover. Really. Loved the Christmas Buys (I should be writing this on FrontRunner's fan page or something)
I loved love the article, GBM. It felt like a GBM blog on paper-sweet!
Congratulations! Shall it be a GBM-Piolo Ironman 2011 Face-Off then? Let's continue the fun!
'Gratz, GBM!
Haha nice Rach :) Naka beso beso pa yan, akala ko din na maligo eh hehehe :P
Haha MAri, that will be a liiiitle bit hard :P :P Baka sapukin tayo lol!
Yay Marga, so glad you liked it :) Effort kung effort lol! Nice the Mag no? :P
wow! nice piolow vs sub piolow faceoff hehehe.
can't wait to grab a copy of that fR mag.
Hehe lol Joy :) HAd to keep it under wraps for a bit:) Get one quick :P
the FR magazine is getting better ha (good job papijonel!)
finally a face off with piolow! although the interview is one of the most-read article of the article for sure (together with the MJ23-ish vibe of Sir Jovie).
can't wait to see what happened when GBM meets PP! :)
Haha! Either a fated meeting between two athletes or life's version of a funny joke for you guys to talk in the same room.
anyway, good job as usual with the articles! rock on! \m/
Thanks Tim, finally no? :P It's a good issue, some say it's the best ever :P Buy naaa!
Wow, nice handle Benj :P Fate? Irony? What I know for sure is that it was quite a pleasant experience, and I'm hoping people like the final output :D
ahhh, piolo. what else can i say? let the work of the gingerbreadman speak for itself. for that matter, make it frontRUNNER. i am very proud of you luis. thank you. and abby, thanks for being the able camerawoman when i was fumbling like a starstruck fan.
T J
Hehe thanks for the awesome experience Tay :) Given the short notice that you gave it to me, I thought we did well :) It was great he remembered your conversation, of all the people he probably meets in a day :) Looking forward to the next cover story hehe.
lol.
i have to back read again. di ko nasubaybayan ang piolow rivalry. hehe.
Haha lol CJ, several series of articles yun haha. With matching research :)
i bought the magazine yesterday. nice!
at first i only saw the upper portion of the front cover featuring baldrunner because there was a misplaced book on it.
and i said, "WTF!" a smiling baldrunner is wearing a lingerie!
that was before i realized that what looked like lingerie straps were actually shoelaces. :) LOL!
Haha lol :) Well I hope you liked the magazine :) Has good material :) LOl BR in lingerie haha
i told my friend from TBR about this and he was envious, he only interviewed Piolow via phone. haha. :D
and also, i had a weird dream that i had a copy of this magazine but i couldn't find your article.lol
luis, sino ba si piolow dito? yung naka-black?
CJ, oh so was he the one who did that phone interview? Jaymie told me nga na it was done over the phone. Still must have been a heck of an interview :)
Haha lol, ayos sa dream ah!
James, FTW! Hehehehe.
Yes GBM, it was him.
He told me to read your article and tell him who's better daw. Competitive? Haha. :D
Haha, well if Jaymie got him he must be good. :)
nice naman sir luis, si papa p. >__<
Hehe glad you liked it :P
Nice, Luis! And Abby! Haha.
I bought the last piece of FrontRunner with Piolo as the cover at NBS Technohub the other week ;D