STAR: Congratulations! What do you feel now that the contest is over?
Mark: I feel relieved, a bit more relaxed, but I miss them. I felt sad when William (Enriquez) gave up on the first week for personal reasons, and more so when Gabby (Jover) was "evicted" on May 16 at about 11 pm. A lot of people thought that Gabby and I looked alike, so it was like I lost a part of me. It was especially painful when he was saying his farewells to Reinier and me, and more heartbreaking when he was waving goodbye as he walked away from the contest site. It was so sad to see him go.
Reinier: Actually, after William left, I felt some fear towards Gabby because I thought of him as a "dirty" player. He was also very verbose, and he was the one who said that we will stay in the vehicle and not give up until the organizers gave up or until they would give us a Ford Ranger each. When he was bidding us goodbye after he was "evicted", he confessed to us that he had once thought of physically hurting Mark and me to force us to give up. But he said he couldn’t get himself to do it because he developed a fondness for us during his stay in the Ranger. He was sincerely repentant as he was leaving and while things became "smooth" after his departure, we felt the loss of his company. He even sent us a message through RX 93.1, our official radio station.
Mark: When Reinier was penalized for his third and final violation on the 30th day which eventually led to my victory, I likewise felt sad because we had been together for a month and suddenly, the contest was over. I suddenly realized that our days together were indeed over. I cried when the organizers declared me as the winner and awarded me with the keys to the vehicle. I thanked God for blessing me with the victory and asked Him to bless Reinier.
Reinier: I actually feel happy for Mark. I knew I lost the Ford Ranger to him but I gained his friendship. I also gained a lot of knowledge in the process in spite of the other losses.
STAR: Other losses?
Reinier: Well, what happened was, I was not really prepared to be in the actual contest. Along with Sam Chua, I was one of the two "back-up" contestants, in case one of the four original contestants (Mark, Gabby, William and Mabel Quesea) decided to quit before boarding the Ford Ranger (during Labor Day, May 1). Since nobody looked like they were backing out during the festivities that preceded the actual contest proper, I had made plans to go somewhere else after the contestants had boarded. I was surprised when the organizers called me aside and told me that I would take the place of Mabel who decided to back out at the last minute. I hurriedly made some last-minute phone calls since we aren’t allowed to make calls during the contest, and I think I forgot to inform some people that I’d be gone for some time.
Thus, when I was out of the contest last May 30, I went home to my student’s condo unit to find that my landlord was evicting me because I had abandoned my unit for 30 days. I also lost my thesis mates since I was not able to contribute anything for a month. To add salt to my wounds, I got kicked out of my school’s track team since I didn’t attend the summer games nor practiced for a whole month. I asked the coach for some leniency, but he sternly said that those were the rules. I couldn’t blame him because I guess I wasn’t able to inform him, either. Losing my berth at the track team also meant losing my scholarship, which was very important to me since I am a self-supporting student.
STAR: Any regrets?
Reinier: None at all. Friends and relatives felt I was unjustly penalized for refusing to finish the food served during the final days of the contest while others felt that the contest rules were changed to speed up its conclusion. But I told them that I won more than I lost because I gained more perseverance, patience, humility, wisdom, love and obedience after my 30-day stay in the Ranger.
STAR: How would you summarize the whole experience?
Reinier: It was actually a character-building experience. Besides the virtues I gained during the contest, I also learned to overcome my fears. Thus, in spite of the setbacks that happened to me after the contest, I look at the future optimistically.
Mark: To me it was more of an emotional and spiritual experience. I really felt the greatness of God as I felt my love for my family. I realized that I’d do anything for them, and persevering without them for 30 days to win the Ranger for them is proof of that. I plan to continue my graduate studies (MA in Special Education) and of course, enjoy driving the Ford Ranger.
And thanks to Ford, I was finally able to propose to my girlfriend, whom I’ll be marrying in June next year. I wanted to propose to her in a spectacular and unforgettable way, and proposing after I won the Ford Ranger "Live in It to Win It" contest was the perfect way.