KIA Ironlegs: A classic in the making?

Liege-Bastogne-Liege is the oldest bicycle race that is still being contested in professional cycling today. LBL, considered as one of the five "monuments" of cycling, was first run in 1892 and the race takes place in the Ardennes region of Belgium. The course is 258km long, depending on the current condition of the route and the winner usually finish the race in under 7 hours. The greatest cyclist of all time, Eddy Merckx, won the race 5 times from 1969-1975.

So why am I talking about La Doyenne (The Grand Old Lady of cycling) today?I've been joining road races for since I got my first road bicycle back in the late 80's. My amateur competitive urges have taken me to the provinces of Leyte, Negros, Bohol and just recently in Guam. And I've seen how these races have been done and what its impact is to their respective communities.

But for me, KIA Ironlegs simply stands out from the rest. It stands out not because it has top-notch race organization but because the race has a homey feel to it, a certain calmness, like you're racing in you're own backyard. The homey feeling not only includes the race route but the whole place as well.

Maybe it's easy for me to say because it's my backyard since I grew up in Tagbilaran. But I can sense that cyclists-friends, loved not only to race there but one day to live there.

For these reasons, I have a feeling that KIA Ironlegs could become a classic event for competitive and cyclo-tourism events.This with the organizers and sponsors doing so little to market the race. It took LBL a long time to be called a classic and here is KIA Ironlegs, an infant at 3 years old, and everybody in the cycling community is talking about it. Cycling blogger Raymond See of team Fanzia Wines and DondieAzarcon of team PLDT who convinced 20 executive riders to join the race, promised to double their contingent next year. Cebu Cycling, led by Ome Rodriguez, Jong Sepulveda, Miguel Flores, to name a few, has never missed all the three editions.

But I can sense that the organizers and the sponsors behind the event do not realize that they have a virtual gold mine in their midst. Bohol is a perfect place to race and relax especially for the stressed out executive cyclist. Transportation from around the country isn't a problem and so are the supporting infrastructures like hotels and pension houses. And our beaches are comparable with the best. But two things that really stand out are the beauty of the forest of Bilar which the race passes through and of course, the honest and sincere hospitality of the people.

The only hitch was with the race itself. I'd like to call the attention of KIA and the Bohol JCI Sandugo Chapter that they should step up and make the race the best executive race in the country. Rey Cimini, my cousin-in-law and race director, can only do so much with so little. We're not asking for a Tour de France-like race, we're simply asking that the basic requirements of the race be put in place. Who knows, we'll have a classic in our hands!