After conquering the land in Rizal and overpowering the waves in Cagayan de Oro, the Acer Group, together with select members of the local media, had set their sights towards vanquishing the sky in Pampanga and triumphed over it at the recent Acer Group Media Summer Power Fest 2009. 

 

 

 

Similar to the two past races that the Acer Group had formulated, this year’s Media Summer Power Fest put to the test, not only the brain muscles, but the physical muscles of its participants through a series of time-constrained challenges.

 

 

 

In spite of the hectic schedules, the participants made it early at TriNoma which Acer Group set as the pick-up point before departure. Also, present during the meeting were friends from AMPR, Acer’s PR partner; and Confluence Asia Marketing, the events team delegated to preparing the obstacles.

 

 

 

Thankfully, the traffic flow on the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) on that bright and sunny Saturday morning was smooth and safe. For that reason, we arrived on time at the Woodland Airpark in Magalang, Pampanga – the hot spot of this year’s competition.

 

 

 

Firing up the intensity of the affair, we were welcomed by festive sounds that were very appropriate for the occasion’s theme. Conspicuous around the venue was the Acer brand logo, together with the logos of the two of its acquired brands, namely eMachines and Gateway. For your information, Acer had also acquired brands such as Packard Bell and E-TEN (Glofiish). Through these acquisitions, Acer continuously cements its leadership and presence in the PC and smartphone industry worldwide.

 

 

 

Going back to the happenings prior to the actual race, both veterans and first-timers got their opportunity to see the highlights and sidelights of the Cagayan de Oro expedition as well. Of course, in the spotlight are the boys of HardwareZone, who were members of the champion team last year – Veriton Orange.

 

 

 

Inspiring us to be more than we could be were words of wisdom from His Airness, Michael Jordan...

 

 

 

... and the genius among geniuses, Albert Einstein.

 

 

 

 We couldn’t imagine what the Media Summer Power Fest would look like if it wasn’t hosted by a guy with a powerful voice such as Mr. Norman Quiminales.

 

 

 

Acer Group Philippines General Manager Mr. Manuel Wong officially kicks off the event with an encouraging opening speech. Commenting on the theme of the race, “Quest of the Fearless”, he reasoned out that “fearless perfectly represents the character of Acer Group and the Philippine media.”

After Mr. Wong’s remarks and some words of advice from the administrator of Woodlank Airpark, the organizers wasted no time and divided the participants into five teams, namely Fiery Red, Gorgeous Green, Chic Blue, Sparkling Yellow and Flashy Orange.

On the whole, the race was composed of up to ten challenges, most of which involved perplexing puzzles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

But in this article, we opted to focus more on those that are REALLY thought-provoking. How about hugging or being hugged by an enormous albino Burmese python?

 

 

 

 

 

Gobbling up a whole stuffed frog?

 

 

Or having a meal peppered with mole crickets?

 

 

 

 

 

Nevertheless, the most breathtaking part of the race was when we tried conquering our fear of either heights (acrophobia) or flying (aerophobia), which is considerably the main obstacle of the competition. Going aboard an ultralight aircraft, we soared over the awe-inspiring scenery of Pampanga. Luckily, we had not forgotten to bring our camcorders up in the sky so we could share with you this extraordinary experience.

 

 

 

 

 

Eventually, all teams were able to finish up the race safe and sound. On the other hand, strenuous races like this could also have some negative effects on participants, such as extreme exhaustion...

 

 

 

... aggression...

 

 

 

... and a few moments of insanity. 

 

 

 

How to deal with such scenarios? Just give the patient a dose of ice-cold coconut sorbet – topped with mole crickets.

 

 

After the dust had settled, the Acer Group proudly announced the victors of this year’s Media Summer Power Fest. Certainly, everyone was a winner that day and each one of us brought home a basket full of goodies.

 

 

 

Gorgeous Green – Fifth Place

 

 

 

Sparkling Yellow – Fourth Place

 

 

 

Chic Blue – Third Place

 

 

 

Flashy Orange – Second Place

 

 

 

 

 Yet, having a loan of George Orwell’s famous catchphrase, although all participants were triumphant, some participants were more triumphant than others. Worth mentioning, for three consecutive years since the Acer Group kicked off the Media Summer Power Fest, we are proud to say that HardwareZone Philippines has always been part of the champion team.

 

 

 

Acer Philippines Marketing Manager Ms. Agnes Neria-Espino delivering her closing remarks and thanks to the local IT media.

 

 

While everything seemed done, from Woodland Airpark, the Acer Group drove us to Holiday Inn hotel in Clark, Pampanga where all of us feasted on a sumptuous dinner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Again, we would like to thank our friends from Acer Group and AMPR for inviting us to the Media Summer Power Fest 2009! Being farsighted, we are already looking forward to the future and thinking of the venue of the challenge next year, even as early as now. If we conquered earth in 2007; water in 2008; and air this year, probably, next would be... fire? Ooops... we slipped. Shut your mouth. Don’t tell the Acer Group about our mischievous suggestion!

 

(Photos and videos: Alfred Bayle, April Salazar and Lionell Go Macahilig)