CEBU, Philippines - Two days before the triathlon, the Iloilo delegation of Dash Suelo and coach Renold Dutchillo made landfall in Liloan and after they were settled at their quarters, went over to and got acquainted with the rest of the group. With them was Alexandra Ganzon, Iloilo’s version of Cebu’s several iron ladies of triathlon. She came ready for battle and with the necessary support crew – her father and, as per FB profiles, her ka-relationship. As everyone knows in the triathlon community, Alex dethroned Rochelle Tan for this year’s women’s Filipino Elite category.
The place they were staying was booked almost exclusively by XTerra Warriors from different parts of the country, as well as the rest of the neighboring resorts. Yup, the vicinity of the event’s staging area was festive for three days.
The afternoon prior to the race, since my son Emil was entered in the half tri, we checked in his bike, but discovered later that air was leaking out of his rear wheel. Since we can’t bring the bike out after checking in, we removed the rear wheel and brought it outside. Long story short, the problematic wheel had two tire changes.
The night before the race, I had trouble sleeping. Oh yeah, all sleeping positions imaginable were experimented and not until about 2am did I finally travel to dreamland. Meanwhile, less than 20 minutes after he lay on his bed, Emil was fast asleep. Was I excited or what?
Before 6 am, we were at Seafront Beach Resort and both sides of the road were already parked with vehicles. It was a sight to see athletes with their tri suits and body markings going in all directions. It was a clear and great day for XTerra.
Ah, Matteo Guidicelli. He was the star attraction, complete with cheering and flag-waving fans clad in white shirts with his image. His demeanor is so Bisaya as utan monggos and inun-unan nga tulingan, no airs or illusions of grandeur, that his fans were not disappointed.
The water course was more on run, hop, skip and swim. The tide was still ebbing when the swim started so it was more on running and jumping over the waves until the athletes reached the deeper portions. Getting hit with flailing arms and then kicked cannot be avoided because of the mad rush that eventual Filipino elite men’s champion Joseph Miller had his swim cap and goggles detached. Ever seen a handful of fresh bolinao dumped into boiling water with malunggay for a tinola? That, more or less describes the swim part.
The bike part was something like riding on the road to perdition. Some foreign entries described the route as treacherous and unforgiving that a good number of bikes had busted tires and broken wheels, not sparing even Austrian pro Karina Wasle. And yes, Ms. Malu Michael, a herd of goats made their checkpoint at one of several isolated mountain trails. No ducks and chickens this time.
When they got back down to civilization, the riders not only have to dodge motorcycles and tricycles but also irate drivers who got stuck for at least two hours on the highway. I don’t know about my wife and mom-in-law if they were anxious and worried during the bike stage but I was more than that with a mixture of impatience and anger on those stupid drivers who disregard the race marshals.
Emil had done the bike route several times already prior to the race, completing the loop just a little over an hour but this time, more than eighty minutes had passed and still he hasn’t appeared. Finally, he emerged from the corner and upon confirming his race number, quickly checked his anatomy for some cuts and scrapes as about 20 minutes before he came, a foreign entry had some really nasty cuts on the side of his face, shoulder, arms and knees. Relieved, I went to the finish line and enjoyed the comfort of the shades from the coco trees.
A foreigner described the trail run as more of an eco-adventure run. My familiarity of the terrain is limited only to where there are existing roads but they said the trail almost defies description. Since I haven’t been there, I can only imagine. Dash, the athlete from Iloilo had cramps on both legs doing the run that he actually needed a bamboo pole for support and had the magic kawayan till he crossed the finish line.
After the race, we asked Emil what took him so long during the bike course and he said there were some changes on the route. And he stopped to assist a lady rider who had trouble with her bike. Ay sus! We told him that this is no time to being a gentleman, we take advantage on everything in racing against the clock, within the confines of the given rules. A good three to five minutes was lost on this misplaced act of chivalry. For a first timer, he finished fourth in his age group. Very good job, part!
One of the booths at the staging area advertised the next XTerra Tri Series to be at Putrajaya, Malaysia. Registration rates are standard but other incidentals are still to be verified. Emil had made inquiries and has made paramdam that he’s interested. The game he has seriously taken interest in has become wallet-challenging. Pwede mag scrabble nalang ta?
It was a fun weekend for the participants and spectators, a huge traffic daytime nightmare for motorists. Hopefully, the traffic issue will be addressed and given more details the next time the franchise sets foot in Liloan, if there’s still a next time.
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Birthday greetings to “Mother†Evelyn Cabatingan on her birthday today. Belated birthday greetings also to my favorite mom-in-law Bebs Panganiban. How many in-laws are we supposed to have if she’s my favorite? Just asking. These two ladies are sisters.