Tour of Friendship 2009 R1 May 2-May 6 2009

bisekletaguy

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TOUR OF FRIENDSHIP THAILAND R1 May 2-May 6, 2009 « on: Today at 11:00:19 AM »

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this recap i did while in suan dusit hotel in Bangkok before heading back home to manila may 7 2009

dear friends

the toughest amateur race in asia this year was held in Bangkok and the provinces in Thailand from MAY 2-MAY 6 .

It is called THE TOUR OF FRIENDSHIP R1 2009...It is nowhere the level of Tour of EGAT 2005 and Tour of egat 2008 in terms of intensity, firepower, distance.... i was telling teammate Kaight Forgie...."for me FINISHING just one of the tough stages was like winning the race already"...

consider the following.

Day 1 we had to cycle 30kms to the start. 7 kms of ITT then cycle back 30 by OURSELVES back to hotel. ..67kms


team Philippines Excellent noodles boss Alex billan with his super domestiques prepared for stage 1 (official foto)



the peloton snakes its way out of bangkok to the staging area of the ITT...(official foto)




the long and beautiful straightaway was perfect for the 7kms ITT (official foto)





team Philippines proudly shows off their flag jersey before start of ITT May 2 2009(official foto)




team philippines from left to right raymond see, tiboy reyes, michel velasco (singapore based philippine rider riding for team Joy riders) rex tan and emmanuel tiples giving the photographers a nice foto shoot before the start of the races (margie see foto)




crowd favorite miss AVE CHUA from team philippines (official foto)



DAy 2....Hotel to PETROL STATION same 30kms neutral...THOMAS said "set your computer to zero after 175kms...FINISH LINE at that KANCHANABURI PLACE (killer stage KOM 2005 Tour of EGAT) This time i didnt walk up that hill..however everybody flying already none gets dropped. So am already happy . Today should be 205kms total with the neutral...I had to cycle 181kms plus 30 total but i couldnt see the finish so 211kms..i have to quit my longest stage...bummer for me...but for we teamrocka to cycle 200kms that already a BIG achievement. so many TEAM PECA people COMPLETED THAT 220kms RACE!

my friends PHILIP GO and TIBOY REYES and REX TAN from my teamrocka SURVIVED THAT ONE so WARMEST CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THOSE WHO SURVIVED.


a rider from team joyrider singapore shown here riding his bike with MIS ALLIGNED handlebar enroute to the finish after crashing out earlier in stage 2 (margie see foto)



rex tan of teamrocka1bikeshop philippines had to cycle on only one leg after suffering cramps but still managed to finish stage 2 (margie see foto).



philippine hopeful Leian Cruz (in blue) of team Fitness First battles it out with the best up the 3.9 kilometer uphill after 217kms in this piece of action stage 2 (offical foto)





philippine team riders Rene Tablante of Tagaytay Highlands team in white and Leian Cruz of Fitness First in blue pracatically speechless after successfully finishing the 220kilometers long stage 2. (margie see foto)



DAy 3 ....the PAVILION was so nice and so 3rd stage 145kms...over that KOM climb again...40kms of rolling with 3.9kms SPIKE..after wards they bring us to what looked like a forested area rolling at first with U TURN then climb back what looked to me like GARDEN COTTAGES up sierra madre mountains east of manila...too much for me...so i have to abandon again 100kms mark...now i went to pee near a tree...and my pee starts look like im peeing blood already...so i have to ride the sag wagon pick up truck which brought me to our Philippines Toyota GRANDIA COASTER and so i was able to see how the race unfolds. AGAIN PHILIP GO my teammate and TIBOY REYES and REXTAN made it..at the finish line...so many people literally dropping on the road side..some people suffering dehydration and severe cramps..so many had to abandon today. At the PAVILLION am still peeing blood..so had to drink 5 bottles of mineral water water therapy ...until pee clears.


raymond see wears his zefal hydration life support system along to help beat the heat...(official foto)




the garden wedding party is actually the dinner reception and awarding ceremony area at the Pavilion after stage 3 (margie see foto)




DAy 4 now this is a flat stage 154 kms on paper...i already told my wife am doing the 109kms ladies finish line only as am sick already..so my wife said if i couldnt ride i can stop. wow the speed of the survivors of the 40-49 was 44kms per hour..after surviving 90minutes of this i have to ride by myself..wait for 30-39cat go by then ride with them guys.

most of the PHILIPPINE PECA BOYS had survived ...i finshed my 109km target and thats good enough for me.,

a Fantastic dinner, some video showing and award ceremony was held at this beautiful grand ballroom after the 4th stage (margie see foto)



DAy 5 the last stage goes back to Bangkok 100kms.. same finish line last year. Philippine team 40-49 wants to speed up from start for a chance to go all out for the beautiful SADDLE TROPHY..so speed was 50kph first 3kms...then slowed down a bit to 40kph i couldnt hang on..fortunately my friend robert meier from bamboo lake village team decides he too couldnt survive 40kph per hour cruising speed so two of us finished 31kph per hour over the 100kms. the rest of PECA BOYS had to endure 3 big crashes for 40-49 that saw the cycleworx guy land in hospital after he hit pothole he also lost his pinarello prince (broken seat tube)..MUTUC BROTHERS also crashed..Michael YNGSON crashed, ADMIRAL TIPLES CRASHED ALSO

the colnago Extreme C of team Philippines rider Emmanuel Tiples was missing its saddle after he crashed out near the finish..(margie see foto)




This red Pinarello Prince from a Team Cycleworx Singapore rider wasnt so lucky either after suffering cracked bottom bracket assembly as a result of a crash on the final stage (margie see foto)






Ave Chua won 4th place ladies category. she was so happy. (margie see foto)





Leian Cruz of team Fitness First Philiipines got 1st in the 30-39 age category. (margie see foto)



I am just happy to finish. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS AND SURVIVORS!

Raymond See of teamrocka1bikeshop Philippines (in yellow) raises the hand of Robert Meier from team Bamboo Lake (in green) after crossing the line during the last stage of Tour of Friendship 2009 (margie see foto)



raymond see in striped tshirt with Robert Meek in yellow with team THUNDERHEAD ANZA CYCLING and friend chanchai of team CHAMPS KORAT thailand (holding his 5th place trophy) .....at end of stage 5 (margie see foto)



team Philippines took home 15 trophies during this years edition of the Tour of Friendship. (margie see foto)



MABUHAY team PHILIPPINES!

raymond see
suan dusit place BANGKOK

TOUR OF LUZON 2009 with THOMAS WIEGAND

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TOUR OF LUZON executive 3 days race coinciding with Tour of Luzon pro race « on: April 19, 2009, 06:49:52 AM »

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dear friends,

last thursday teamrocka1bikeshop and rest of the executive cyclists began their exodus to Baguio city and nearby towns for the start of the TOUR OF LUZON executive race. This is the FIRST PRO TOUR with provision for executive cyclists to participate in the TOUR (UP BAGUIO- and BAGUIO TO BAGUIO) so everyone was so excited. Am bringing my wife and daughter and so have no problems back home.

we spent the night in Baguio to enjoy the cool weather there. It was raining up baguio and the visibility with the fog was near zero about 8pm in the evening.

Early morning of friday april 17 2009, thomas wiegand our guest rider felt uneasy as it was still raining in BAguio.

when we proceeded to the town of rosario near kennon road...the sun shines...and there was a festive atmosphere as about 85 riders from the executive category showed up and excited to do the first lap Rosario up MARCOS HIGHWAY about 50 kilometers on paper. Finish line is the same as the professionals...AT BURNHAM PARK.

cloudy skies bringing much rain in baguio ..foto on our way down baguio to the starting line




team JAC MOTORS with the boss Vekvek viray



team CNC's boy "the admiral" tiples on his rollers before start of race






team ROCKA1bikeshop before the start of the BAGUIO via MARCOS stage



paul mutuc (how do i know? white handlebar tape peter has red yes paul and peter they are twins....)boss Vic cordero of gerry's and ariel malabag at the starting line



team MJY BIKEZONE with dennis d menace dionisio beautiful new team kit!





with doctor butch ydia and dondie and pangasinan dagupan team support crew who later gave me COFFEE! thanks guys





photo with brothers baterna quin and jojo of team MOSSIMO who will climb MARCOS hiway for the first time today





lining up for the neutral start (so many other exec riders going up MARCOS for the first time today also so everyone a bit nervous)...





BAGUIO holiday for my wife and daughter shown here at the start of the TOUR OF LUZON EXECUTIVE RACE





the convoy of suvs going up marcos today.







9 o'clock start. Thomas a bit nervous but in the beginning of race...i saw him with about 8 riders..they attacked straight away.

i was with peloton until stray dog again crossed the way of the cyclists...some riders missed dog. but i saw Ping Raymundo of team PLDT run the dog over and his good handling skills saved him from falling. I had to apply brake as i was behind him..Ping able to bridge gap...i have to wait for my friend team MJY strongman Bong cayco to bridge me to peloton. we were able to bridge ..

tour of luzon organizer arnel ty shown here all smiles with his team...gamely joins the race up BAguio via MArcos HIWAY today.








"are you ok daddy? " my wife ask.....here i am again with thumbs up means OK! tongue out means suffering like a dog





liston yao at start of climbs





michael briones of Team jac motors leads bong cayco of team mjy up the MArcos climbs...congratulations michael and bong (thanks for allowing me to draft behind you to bridge gap)



businessman joshua tantoco of team mjy bikezone rode his new MERIDA strongly up marcos today. congrats josh..






former teammate dennis d menace dionisio now riding uner TEAM MJY BIKEZONE wore this new team MJY teamkit and rode strongly up the climbs...shown here receiving bananas from teamrocka fotographer margie see



start of the climb...2 minutes over dondie ? i will put the pressure on dondie today...



still no dondie?... i am thinking aloud....if dondie catches me today i will surely be dissapointed as i am sure I put my best time already today up MARCOS....30 minutes off my best record..at the finish




IS IT THE BIKE OR RIDER? dondie azarcon seen here with a beautiful RED GIANT TCR previously owned by doctor butch ydia passed on to professional rider ERICSON OBOSA and used in his stage victories overseas... before being set up for use by one of the managers of team PLDT



bisekletaguy cracks as dondie azarcon bites his lips as he catches bisekletaguy at the Jolibbee sign..impressive victory for dondie azarcon today



mano a mano at 1300meters at the jolibbee sign MARCOS HIWAY STAGE 1 TOUR of LUZON EXECUTIVE RACE APRIL 17, 2009 ....thats dondie in white and bisekletaguy in yellow (margie see foto)











i couldnt recover so have to stay my own pace. so many cyclists passed me. however the most important riders are architect quin baterna and dondie azarcon. i couldnt do anything when quin baterna arrived then silently pulled away. my wife shouting "2minutes over dondie" so i know dondie behind...i put pressure on the pedals..however an impressive dondie caught me at JOLLIBEE..then dropped me at the tunnel when i applied brakes again..then dropped me up that 3kilometers climb. Warmest congratulations dondie! who passed mossimo rider joe cortez...i ride my bike after i saw joe dismount but as soon as he saw bisekletaguy on the bike he quickly mounted his bike and sped off too...so joe was away also!

there he goes...quin baterna super strong today as he puts the pressure on then "dissappears" from bisekletaguy warmest congratulations ARCHITECT quin!




Quin baterna had emerged the winner of our race within the race today as he puts impressive lead over dondie and me...and inspite of walking up that 3kilometers after the tunnel...on his socks (he couldnt walk with cleats on) "my socks unbelievably strong i must have walked a kilometer and the socks didnt give way ray" ...i couldnt catch him...as i was walking part of this stretch of highway also and some of the execs have to swallow pride also the race was too difficult and only way we could finish relieve back pains and hamstring muscle cramps was put foot down..so nothing to be ashamed of...so this detail im sharing here just to let the readers imagine whats happening with us mere mortals at back end of peloton..the strong riders up front dont have this problem for sure but they dont know we also have our own fight back end...and wow its getting serious also...as you could also hear a pin drop with the last guys of the peloton..no talking during racing just grit teeth mash pedals and start huffing and puffing hoping dondie will say "i give up" BUT NOT TODAY.

richard uy climbs MARCOS



tagaytay highlands riders and tony lopez leads teamrocka's philip to a strong finish ..CONGRATULATIONS philip.!



Gerrys Grill boss Vic cordero leads the way up Baguio. Yellow cab rider is tour of egat 2005 veteran Ariel MAlabag



ramon antonio of teamrocka leads teammate team captain tiboy reyes and doctor butch ydia on the PINARELLO over the mountains





the other unsung hero of this race is team MOSSIMO rider joe cortez on the yellow MONOC who is bent on finishing this race even in the company of bisekletaguy...warmest congratulations JOE "this race is very difficult...i was walking up the IMPIYERNO (HELL is the nickname of the 3kilometers climb) after tunnel but have to force myself to ride when i saw you coming up ray" says joe cortez




deon james of team XTERRA climbs impiyerno (hell)







near the finish i lost my way to session road.. ah now dondie must have put over 10 minutes over me today...im irritated... angry at the marshalls whom i didnt see at the rotunda ..turns out most of the riders also made a mistake and lost precious time going to the finish with thomas wiegand himself got lost..he had to settle for 8th place behind bitoy daa of team PLDT who also got lost...and Mang ric of team Liquigas...

The winners of todays race is Team Mossimo rider jaime basilio followed by team fitness first wonderboy Leian Cruz...who performed strongly even without any other team fitness first teammate. "yes leian cruz is a strong rider and we worked together up front" said thomas wiegand.

we took shower had long story telling over lunch...wow we had an enjoyable time inspite of this difficulty. Thomas was happy with 8th place win...at the starting line he isnt so sure to finish even.. he said he is not feeling well because of allergy turned bed sores and he said he could ride the rocka sagwagon midway of the race. Im laughing...as im sure i will finishing my race today and dont believe thomas will ride the sag

to my teamrocka teammates..thanks so much for participating in the Tour of Luzon

to my guest rider thomas wiegand...Thanks so much.

to the organizers led by arnel ty , richard uyt and caloy gredona..THANKS SO MUCH.

to all the participants who joined this race for the experience. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL.

to all the winners of this stage. CONGRATULATIONS!

to my wife my partner, fotographer and friend...very difficult to stay with a cyclist and his races for the past 4 years...but you rarely complain...thanks so much swithart

to my daughter who also had a nice baguio holiday..."daddy i can imagine how difficult it is for you guys to cycle 3 hours and more up baguio...am on the stationary bike for 15 minutes and my legs hurt...what more 3 hours cycling non stop up that BAGUIO? its too difficult"


to my friend thomas wiegand....i hope you enjoyed being a guest in my team. THANKS SO MUCH!

we look forward to see you guys on the road again soon...

raymond see

stage2 BAGUIO TO BAGUIO April 18 2009

with no driver for sag wagon, my wife margie and rachel decides go shopping. this means teamrocka riders have to ride to the starting line at 630 in the morning. starting line at burnham park. big mistake as we have breakfast at 530 in the morning which was too early. race starts with the professionals being released first. executive riders released about 9-915am and am already hungry.

race starts. its not true BAGUIO down MARCOS is easy downhill...im terrified so have to apply breaks on the downhills ...inside tunnel was dark and slippery...then uphill at end of tunnel..everyone nervous...down we go carreening over 80kms per hour. i see a barricade that was destroyed probably by a wayward bus...i take it easy shouted at my marshall..."its not flying start at PUGO they wait for me at new starting line correct?" marshall said "tama correct" so i take it slow..my campy record brakes does the job well but am still afraid i can ruin my rim set by applying too much heat..anyway..no accident for bisekletaguy i see a smiling architect quin baterna at the new staring line...i said "ok we take it easy ha.." he smiles.

start of the race ..Thomas wiegand up front because 3 cyclists attacked... the three of us Mossimo rider joe cortez quin baterna and myself rode leisurely pace..afterwards we caught polotri rider and we became 4..at start of kennon road climn. joe cortez and polo tri rider went and we decide not to follow. after the toll gate quin said he quit..so im left alone to carry on. camp3 area i saw mossimo rider Joe Cortez he quits too and puts his bike on the brand new GRANDIA of team MOSSIMO...quin baterna gave me his water bottle..and sped off..at the second toll gate i have rear wheel puncture then decide to quit. Quin BAterna after being informed i have flat tire make u turn and fetch me so i rode the nice team Mossimo GRANDIA wagon too and enjoyed the race inside airconditioned van.


"i can get use to this. if you decide to retire as team mossimo rider and choose to ride the sag wagon as non playing team manager i can also retire and ride my sag wagon next year..." i told quin baterna and quin baterna laughs .


at the LIONS HEAD we saw jojo walking up Lions head...he was dehydrated. quin baterna asked his driver to stop and we tried to talk to jojo to finish the race. Quin gave him gatorade and water...jojo had his second wind..climbed strongly without any aid from team mossimo sag wagon...no holding whatsoever as i am inside the mossimo wagon...near the baguio general hospital jojo had to dismount and stand still as he suffer massive cramps. joe cortez quin baterna and myself we helped him..i became the masseure massage my friend jojo baterna's legs. " come-on jojo the cramps it takes just 2 minutes to defrost..after muscle soften you need to finish race its so near" i said

Quin baterna said "do not Quit!" and so jojo once again rode his bike....we saw how hard it is to climb BAguio General hospital....i am very impressed with the survivors of stage2...but i am witness to the guts of jojo baterna..he loses his race against teamrocka teamcaptain tiboy reyes who rode like an angel up the mountains STAGE2...however jojo didnt quit nor hold on to any vehicle.

congratulations once again jojo baterna...to team mossimo boss quin baterna..thanks so much for making u turn down kennon road when you found out i have no sag wagon and i suffered a rear wheel puncture...you pick me up treat me to ice cold Gatorade.

thanks so much team mossimo. salute!

to my teamrocka teammates THOMAS WIEGAND CONGRATULATIONS for your 5th place finish...to teammates tiboy reyes and Loston Yao....you guys are the best!


raymond see