Jake Roxas says he enjoys being a hands-on dad to his three children

Currently seen on Primetime Bida’s Imortal as the powerful and imposing vampire Magnus Imperial, Jake Roxas says his carefree partying days as a single guy are long gone. But he isn’t complaining one bit. Now, barring any work, he makes sure he personally attends to his three school-age children (one is in high school, the other two in elementary) during weekdays. “Maaga ako nagigising. Paggising ko ng 5:30 am, magluluto na ako kasi kakain yung tatlong anak ko bago pumasok sa school. Tapos ihahatid ko sila ng 6:30 am. Basta wala akong trabaho ako maghahatid,” he shares. But even with tapings scheduled for the day, Jake still tries to squeeze in as much quality time as he can with his kids. “At kahit may trabaho, kung ang call time namin which is usually 7 am, which is sa Magnus mansion, malapit lang sa amin kasi. Andun na ako kagad in 15 minutes. Paghatid ko sa kanila, dumidiretso nako. Pero pag malalayo ang location gaya ‘pag sa Rizal kami, 4:30 am umaalis na ako. Mas gusto kong nauuna ako eh. Kasi pag na-traffic kaming taga-south wala na, no excuse talaga. Kaya mas gusto ko maaga,” he says.

Jake also shares that his kids were never aware of his being part of showbiz until he started appearing on Imortal. “Honestly ngayon lang nila ako napanuod. Lalo na yung panganay ko, hindi niya alam na artista ako. Nalaman niya lang nung hindi na ako active nung nag-quit ako. Ang napanuod lang nila nung alam na nila, kaya nung una nagdududa na yung anak ko pag lumalabas kami, yung mga tao nare-recognize pa rin ako,” he says. Jake is especially proud that at the reaction of the youngest member of his family. “Tapos eto yung pinaka-tuwang-tuwa sila, kasi gusto rin ng mga Tita nila sa ibang bansa na makita ako sa ABS-CBN para mapanuod. So lahat sila suportado ako. Especially yung bunso ko, ‘pag nakikita ako sa TV, yumayakap sa akin tapos kinakapitan ako ng mahigpit. Kinikilig yung bunso ko. Eh lalake pa naman yun, nabuwi-buwisit siya dahil bakit bad daw ako, sayang daw dapat good ako. Nagalit siya sa akin, parang ganun,” he says in amusement.

Some of Jake’s favorite sports include basketball and golf, but the Imortal actor admits that biking is his real passion. “Matagal na akong nagba-bike. Since high school. Nag-start ako mag-mountain bike nung 1997 tapos ang pinaka-hardcore na balik ko is 2009. yun talaga. Favorite trail ko yung nasa Santa Rosa, Laguna. Yung trail going to Silang, Cavite. Safe na safe kasi ang dating sa Sta. Rosa. Tapos gusto ko yung babatiin ka ng bata dun ng ‘Good morning!’ Gusto ko din mag-bike dun dahil yun yung area namin, sa South kasi kami so malapit lang. Tina-try rin namin magpunta sa north pero mas comfortable ako sa south,” he says. Although he plays a physically demanding role, Jake says he prefers not to go to the gym. “Ngayon puro basketball lang ako at saka bike. Hindi ako nagbubuhat kasi nagpapayat talaga ako. Kasi pag-nagbuhat ako lumalaki kagad, lumalapad kagad ako,” he shares.

After being out of the limelight for a long time, many were surprised at how Jake still looks as youthful as he did when he first came out in the popular teen-oriented show back in the ‘90s. “Siguro ang secret ko siguro is love. Love ako ng family ko, love ko yung family ko, and then siguro pati once a week yung pagba-bike ko ng 50 to