MANILA, Philippines - If one were to construe the expression “Midas Touch†from a more profound point of view, it could be interpreted as the gift of profiting from whatever one undertakes. Having said that, I think a spot-on example of the modern-day Midas Touch is the annual Subaru Impreza Challenge: a competition that entails participants to keep one of their hands firmly placed on Subaru vehicles, for the longest time possible. As the ultimate reward, the last person standing wins the car—a Subaru Impreza 2.0i 6-speed MT worth approximately P1.5M (arguably better than turning door handles into gold).
The mechanics are simple. Hand-shaped decals are located all around three Subaru vehicles, and each is assigned a number. After raffling off the position numbers to the participants, they then take their place and lay one of their hands flat on the corresponding decal, and keep it there while the timer ticks away. What about bathroom breaks and hunger calls, you say? Well, there is a 5-minute break given to the participants every 6 hours! That leaves it up to them to come up with their own strategy. Oh, and there is no roofed area, so contestants are at the complete mercy of the elements!
But winning in the local leg doesn’t get you the car just yet... you have to be exceptional to win an equally exceptional car! There will be 10 finalists who will represent the Philippines in the Asian Face-Off that will be held in Singapore from October 27 to 30. There, finalists from a string of other Asian countries will all fight for the ownership rights. So far, the record for the grand finals is a whopping 81 hours and 32 minutes of holding on to the car (by George Lee of Singapore)... and no Filipino has ever won the title yet.
What makes this year’s Subaru Impreza Challenge more exciting though, is the fact that Motor Image, the country’s official distributor of Subaru vehicles, will be spicing things up by holding three provincial legs, on top of the classic stand-off in Metro Manila. Hence, there will be one winner each from Cebu, Davao and Pampanga; and seven from Metro Manila. All 10 finalists will get P10,000 each for making it that far, as well as an all-expense paid trip to Singapore to compete in the Asian Finals.
Subaru Cebu played gallant host to the first of the 4-leg Impreza Challenge series, and kicked-off the event at 9am at the Terraces of the Ayala Center in Cebu. A total of 107 participants passed all the final requirements (which included presenting a medical certificate of health) to join. Since there were time constraints at the venue (competition had to be over by 10pm), a series of physical challenges were also incorporated into the game. The first challenge required all participants to stand on one leg while holding an empty water bottle with the extended free arm. Another challenge had participants spin hoops using their free arm; and yet another challenge had the players do a choreographed dance to the tune of PSY’s ‘Gentleman’ song!
Delightfully, Cebuanos and Subaru Cebu dealership owners Brian and Debbie Chua were very supportive of this provincial first. The couple worked hard to spread the word and even persuaded a bunch of their friends to join, while many curious Cebuano shoppers stuck around to witness the event.
Jobert Estrera, 24, who worked as a KFC crew member, emerged as the winner of the 2013 Subaru Impreza Challenge Cebu Leg, lasting a total time of 10 hours 33 minutes and 15 seconds. He told The Star that he joined the competition out of curiosity, since many of his co-workers were joining, but did not really think he could win. Well, not until he steadily lasted through the first six hours—after which, he began feeling really competitive. He also shared that he felt working in a fast food chain was an advantage, since he hardly had the time to sit while on duty, and hence was adapted to standing for long hours at a time. Now when he flies to Singapore for the finals, it will be his first time to travel out of the country.
Meanwhile, the Davao leg was conducted at the Abreeza Mall just over the rainy weekend, with Albert Saguillo emerging as the winner. His time was 12 hours 32 minutes and 55 seconds! The remaining two legs will be held in Pampanga’s Marquee Mall on August 24 and at Bonifacio High Street (for the Metro Manila leg) on September 7. The stand-off commences at 9am of each scheduled day. You may visit the “I Love Subaru†Facebook page for more updates.