The Unpaid

I know I sound like a broken record when I say here for the umpteenth again that cycling is a hard sport. Hard in that the reward is not commensurate to the efforts and sacrifice that the athletes do (and still they do it). Hard in a way that they spend their office hours with what the weather will give them. Hard in a way that their sport, in spite being 50 years old, still doesn't get the respect that it deserves.

But makes it harder is when the race organizers themselves make the sport a lot tougher that it already is. Yes, the same people who are supposed to take the sport to the promise land. You see, right after the "Tour Pilipinas 2006 Padyak Pinoy" ended in Marikina last May 19, the riders who survived the race have yet to see a single centavo from the organizers- Dynamic Outsource Solutions Incorporated (DOS-I).

For two Cebuanos who joined the race, Juvani Delica and Antonio "Kasag" Nebria, two weeks of waiting for nothing was enough. Staying for two weeks at Cristy's Bike Shop in Cartimar, they finally decided that they missed home. Imagine two weeks days of waiting in place that you don't have a home, which you don't have friends, which you're not in your comfort zone and where a serving of mongo in a toro-toro costs you 25.00- it's like doing time.

Imagine if your office is riding your bike at an average speed of 40 kph for 8 days in the sun, rain, dust, traffic and all the street hazards. Imagine doing that with nothing to show for it. "Kasag" was supposed to received close to 40,000.00 (or 5,000.00/day), his biggest paycheck so far. But is it fair to have him wait for 24 days (and counting) to get his dues? And what about Juvani Delica's share?

What is Mr. Bert Lina, the Phicycling (PC) president and Mr. Paquito Rivas of PNCA, our cycling leaders doing in this case? (Last year, Rivas would not allow a PC sanctioned event (Sikad Cebu) unless close to 300 cyclists would cough up P100 for the annual PC racing license, when PC had no racing calendar to show for. It was also the first time I heard of a PC racing license!) What about the president of the deadbeat organization, Mr. Ed Canton of DOS-1? Doesn't this guy know what being poor is?

Sadder still is the story from the Philippine Star that said that drivers and owners of the vehicles used in the tour have been paid off. Isn't this scandalous? Maybe the public doesn't know this but the lowest race official gets a better home pay than middle of the average cyclist in a race other than the tour. And some of these officials are pompous and arrogant, like officiating a bike race is like rocket science!

In UCI sanctioned races, prize money is usually given at the end of the year. The reason being that is that it'll take time for the results of the doping test to be finished. But you'll never hear any Euro pro complain since they are richly remunerated by financial contracts. They're paid to ride. Local cyclists don't have contracts. They earn nothing unless they win. Hello, GAB?

In the last multi-stage bike race here in Cebu a few years back, it took a long time for a particular organizer to pay the riders. I thought he learn his organizing skills from the people in Manila. But it seems that the people in Manila have been studying him for a long time!

Santy Barnachea's championship sound a bit hollow these days since his purse of P130,000 is still up in the air. Same with the team champion Cossack Vodka who is expecting P500,000 from the race. These small people have bills to pay like you and me. Now what would you do if you pay is two weeks late? With the way our race officials are tripping all over on the job, I won't be surprised if Tanduay ever goes back to sponsoring the Tour Pilipinas 2007.

Local Race Results:

RCM (6.10.2006)1. Richard Patalinghug (LPLP-RUT) 2. Ryan Lipata (SC) 3. Xerox Lauron (VNT) 4. John Paul (LPLP-RUT) 5. Junjun Canasa (KLT) RCM Overall Idividual- Junjun Canasa-31pts, Richard Patalinghug-30, Hitler Nemesis-30. RCM TEAM- Velonauts (VNT)-57pts, LapuLpu-RUT(LP-RUT)-40, Kalit (KLT)-44, Spark Kleen-(SK)-21, Yawkoy (YKY)-5, SC-15.