A new breed of motocross heroes
Neil Vallejera captured the crowd’s admiration.
These are the new breed of heroes for the country.
During the 2017 National Supermoto Race of Champions held Aug. 5 and 6 at the open grounds of the Robinsons Mall and Go Hotel in Dumaguete, local fans were introduced to the riders of the future.
Racing on the dirt with motocross bikes was always the norm, but the addition of a short stretch of asphalt around the start-finish line added a higher level of adrenalin. It was their first exposure to an actual Supermoto race.
“Initially, there was some reservation among the racers. Since Supermoto is a relatively new discipline, the costs of changing to the 17-inch wheel sets with road racing tires for the motocross bikes seemed too prohibitive for most of the participants. Instead of having a race track with 30-percent dirt and 70-percent tarmac, we made the road course short and the dirt course longer to accommodate the riders racing on knobby tires,” said race director Jovie Saulog, himself a seven-time National Motocross champion.
Supermoto action“Supermoto offers increased excitement especially when riders switch from their motocross-riding stance to a road-racing stance. The race is designed to determine the best rider who can be fast on the asphalt, fly high on the jumps, carry their speed around the berms, and endure the same for several laps, each time improving their racing lines and clocking quicker times,” added Shawie Dizon, organizer of the National Supermoto ROC series.
Ton-ton Angcon dominated the Underbone category with Tata Calingacion in second, Dokie Sardon in third. But it was fifth-placer Neil Vallejera who captured the admiration of the crowd and the organizers because he was riding without a left hand, which he lost in an accident several years ago. He will compete as a wild card in the Underbone category during the Philippine International Supermoto Championship races that will be held in Palawan on October 21-22.
Dumaguete native Seth Peralta dominated the Power Enduro category with Elijah Cadayona and Robie Columna. Seth will also run as a wild card in the Supermoto races in Palawan.
Meanwhile, Cadayona showed mastery of the course by bagging first place in the Local Enduro category, followed by Tata Calingacion in 2nd and Aikee Mapa in 3rd.
Team UA’s Bornok Mangosong flew high and proud for the people of Mindanao when he captured the 2017 Supermoto ROC Vis-Min championship. He will represent the country and compete in the Newcastle Supermoto Championship races in Australia on September 2-3, in the Indonesia International Supermoto Championship races in Malang on October 7-8, and in the Philippine International Supermoto Championship race.
Second placer Ralph Ramento did well, too, as he will compete in the international races in Indonesia and Palawan.
“We would like to promote Supermoto as a new venue to harness the talents of our local motorcycle racers. It is also our way to open the avenue for Philippine riders to compete in international completion to further improve their racing skills,” said Blanch Arreza, brand manager for Total Hi-Perf Motorcycle Oil.
The 2017 National Supermoto Race of Champions Visayas-Mindanao races were presented by Total Hi-Perf Motorcycle Oil, sponsored by Fox’s Racing Apparel, and supported by Robinsons Malls, Go Hotel, Nature Spring Mineral Water, Jo’s Chicken Inato, JMS Motocross School, and MotorCycle magazine. The races are conducted under the close observation of the Philippine Authority for Motorcycle Sports and Safety (PAMSS), the National Sports Association (NSA) for motorcycle racing accredited by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).
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