|
Siquijor Isla del Fuego |
|||
Siquijor was considered a mystical Island and believed to be the center of witchcraft in the Philippines. We were given by the race organizers an amulet each team member for protection against "Barang" a form of witchcraft. Although we didn't believe in it, we still practiced extreme caution to avoid upsetting the local inhabitants. We did this not because of fear but out of respect for the environment and the people of Siquijor. The road network in Siquijor was well planned and they were able to protect their mountains and beaches. It was a good location for the 200km/3day adventure race. Only Team Captain Fred Porio and me remained from the original team that raced in Camotes Island the previous year. Fred recruited Noel Malacad, Darlyn Lubang of Sierra Outdoor Club to race with us in Carrera Habagat Siquijor. Benjie Encarnacion and Vic Baloco were also picked to be our support crew. Benjie is the older brother of our former team mate Deo Encarnacion. We arrived in Dumaguete 7 a.m., June 7, 2001. We took another ferry to Larena Pier, Siquijor. At the pier, we noticed several kayaker wearing a red Habagat lifevest, we were excited to know that this was the gear to be given away to the racers. We went straight to the gym where all the teams will be briefed. Akiko Thomson of Game Plan arrived with her crew to cover the event. The maps, rules booklet, the control point info, passport, IDs, lifevest and amulets were given during the opening night. We plotted our course in the gym where everyone stayed for the night. I was able to sleep at around 1 a.m. after reviewing and checking Fred Porio's plotted course. 9 a.m., June 8, 2001, Noel and me swam towards our kayak which is being manned by Vic several meters from the pier. We went onboard and Vic had to swim back to the pier to give the life vest to Fred and Darlyn who were going to run 5 kilometers towards our a point where Noel and I had to switch places with them. The switch had to take place off shore. Then, Noel and I will run for 5 km while Fred and Darlyn will paddle for 5 km. to our transition area. We kayaked 5 km, ran another 5 km. we also had to do a piglet catching test before we could proceed with the bike section. After the bike section goes the very tiring hike to several mountains and to the highest point in Siquijor, Bandilaan (Flagship). We were able to meet some of the teams like Wild Trek, Team UTA-Cebu and Team Pitman Tacloban. The skies that night was illuminated by non-stop flashing of lightnings. We had to stop hiking at around 3 a.m. and seeked shelter from the hard rain and freezing wind. We decided to wake up an old couple to ask permission to sleep in their porch. This is the famous Witchcraft province and waking up a total stranger in this island at 3 a.m. is a very unnerving experience. We started waling again at 5 a.m. and found our next Control Point on top of a very majestic range of hills. We continued trekking and reached the Shore at around 11 a.m. and started our Scooter section. We arrived at Control Point 14 at around 11:54 a.m. 6 minutes before the cut-off time. We rested and filled ourselves with water and food. Fred Porio called everyone for a meeting. The racers found out through Fred that our support crew encountered several accidents and injured themselves in the process. We also assessed our equipment. 2 of the four bikes have major shifting problems while three out of the four scooters are damaged. We had to pull out of the race on the 2nd day due to minor accident encountered by our support crew. We transferred first to Control Point 20 and found out that several teams like last year's winner, Radix also pulled out of the race. I've had the pleasure of meeting Akiko Thomson personally. The beaches of Siquijor are all the same. White sands, clear blue waters, it's a pity few people come here because of the scary reputation of the island. Benjie, Darlyn and I transferred to Dondeezco Resort while Fred, Vic and Noel toured the Island. I wasn't able to join them because my bike was damaged. We enjoyed swimming in Siquijor and the food served in the resort was great and plentyful. Teams (DNF) arrived one by one. At around 2:30 p.m. Santorini Tri-locos arrived followed by Team Iligan. We were ranked 9th out of 15 teams then. Only 2 out of 15 teams were able to finish the race.  Photos captured from The Game Plan Carrera Habagat Episode |
|
||
