Actor John Estrada lost his board and fell on his stomach a couple of minutes after he took off, but he did not let go of the cable. He glided on the water on his tummy and kept going up to almost half of the track. Somebody shouted: “Hey, John, wakeboarding ito, hindi bodyboarding!” Later, at dinnertime, John told YES!: “Like any sport na first time mong matutunan, siyempre mahirap. Pero enjoy mag-wakeboard. Kailangan ko lang ng more practice.”
Blue Team leader Joey Marquez, like most of the celebrities who participated in the event, is a wakeboarding first-timer. Tsong didn’t last long standing up in the water. As soon as this photo was snapped, he fell into the water and had to swim back to the boarding deck. His Blue Team placed fifth.
Beach beauties—Mylene Dizon, Say Alonzo, and Annalea Javier—enjoyed sun, sand, and sea in Cam Sur. The day after arriving in the province, the guests took a half-hour ferryboat ride to Aguirangan Island, where a big tent had been set up and masseuses were waiting. Afterwards, everyone had a hearty lunch of seafood, chicken, vegetables, and fresh fruits.
Though Paolo Paraiso and Mylene Dizon insist they are no longer a couple, their actions seemed to say otherwise. They were super-sweet to each other and spent a lot of time together. They even extended their stay in CamSur for one extra day.
Young star Michelle Madrigal kept an eye on three-year-old Gabriel Nuñez, son of LenPlus finance manager Maripeth Nuñez. “Gabriel thinks girlfriend niya si Michelle,” said his Mommy Apeth. “That’s his bike, brought all the way from Manila.”
Wendell Ramos went kneeboarding—where the player sits on his heels on a convex board instead of standing up on a flat board. Angelu de Leon teased him and said over the microphone for the crowd to hear: “Naku, ’kahiya ka. Ang laki-laki ng katawan mo, matipuno ka pa naman, nagmumukha kang unano. ’Yan ba ang tunay na lalaki?” Wendell took it all in stride, saying, “Okey lang ’yon. Asaran talaga ’yan, e.”
TV host Marc Nelson, a wakeboarder capable of executing fancy moves, led the Yellow Team. It won first place and was awarded Calvin Klein watches and P20,000 in cash.
Geoff Eigenmann (inset) and his brother Ryan (main image) were among the few participants who are not new to the sport. They have been wakeboarding for a number of years in Batangas. Geoff said of the CamSur complex: “Mas maganda ang facilities dito, mas mahaba ’yong track, and challenging ’yong obstacles.”
Young actress Bianca King was seen in the company of Julio Villafuerte (left), son of Governor Lray Villafuerte. Bianca and Julio are
both avid wakeboarders.
Dyan Castillejo, host of ABS-CBN’s Sports Unlimited, came to work and play. She and co-host Marc Nelson covered the event and interviewed some of the professional wakeboarders for their show.
Young actor Marco Alcaraz said, “Nakaka-addict,” even if he had to take Alaxan for muscle pain after just one day of wakeboarding. “We’re planning to come back here next month!”
Twilight Dancers star Tyron Perez didn’t mind that the mother of his 16-year-old girlfriend, Charee Pineda, tagged along with them. Tyron did not even try the wakeboard because of a kayaking injury he had in last year’s Nivea event, where he hurt his shoulder. But Charee joined the Pink Team that won third place.
ABS-CBN executive Ernie Lopez (leftmost) had fun goofing around with Antonio Aquitania, Paolo Paraiso, Marc Nelson, Marco Alcaraz, Jake Roxas, and Nivea Philippines’ marketing director Rica King.
For the most part of the four days he was in Camarines Sur, Joey Marquez spent his time inside the “villa” where he was billeted. On Friday night, he was spotted in the company of a long-haired, non-showbiz young woman. Someone close to Tsong asked if she was his new girlfriend. He quipped: “Wala ’yan. Play lang.”
GMA-7 executive Redgie Magno, talent manager Douglas Quijano, Marilen Nunez, Rica King, and GMA-7 program manager Bang Arespacochaga posed for a souvenir shot.
