Lacuesta's own account of the history of the Tour of Luzon

 Here is Atty Geruncio Lacuesta's article recounting the early days of the Tour....

This article was part of the Manila Times' Tour of Luzon supplement, which was celebrating its 10th year in 1965.

THE EARLY, TRYING YEARS OF THE TOUR OF LUZON

Part I

From the Times-Mirror Tour of Luzon Special – April 26, 1965

By Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta

President, Tour of Luzon Association, Inc.; Hon. Secretary General-Treasurer, Asian Cycling Federation; Hon. Secretary General, Philippine Cycling Association; and Director General, Second Asian Cycling Championship.

When I conceived, organized and staged the Manila to Vigan bikathon which was held from April 27 to 31, 1955 for Don Jose Lauchengco as a publicity gimmick for the first Tobacco Festival of Ilocos Sur Governor Eliseo Quirino, little did I dream that 11 years after that race, we would be holding from April 25 to May 9 of this tenth and biggest version of what has become the only annual cycling classic in Asia - the Tour of Luzon.

This year’s race, which has been fittingly named Andres Soriano Memorial Race in honor of the departed patron of the classic, is a far cry from the its prototype, the Manila to Vigan bikathon. The first multi-stage race ever to be held in the Philippines chair manned by La Mallorca’s Atty. Gemeniano F. Yabut, that bikathon was a four-day primitive affair, organized only in 15 days and staged with only P250 in cash, relying mainly on spot volunteer services and donations in kind. Today’s tours are organized and staged by a permanent staff operating on a year-round basis assisted during the Tour by some 200 paid staffers and 400 volunteer workers, not counting the hundreds of volunteers a the lap terminals and thousands of constabulary men, policemen and boy scouts along the route. The cost of staging the race comes up to some P350,000 in cash, not counting the expenses of the participation of various national government agencies, private firms, civic organizations and lap terminals.

No Tour of Luzon would have followed the Manila-Vigan bikathon had it not been for some “cussed” mental quirk that changed the course of our life. Sleepless and spent after four harrowing days serving as manager, judge, timer, clerk of course, quartermaster, public relations man all rolled into one in that Manila to Vigan bikathon, I vowed never to handle another bicycle race. But the next year found us organizing the first Tour of Luzon. I had heard something about the Tour de France from the newsmen who covered the bikathon, and the idea of holding a Philippine version became a burning challenge after the fatigue of the race had worn off.

With P4,000 that I raised from Marvex Commercial Co. and the Rizal Bicycle Store and P6,000 in cash prizes donated by Manila Times, Marvex Commercial CO., Inc, and Bataan Cigar and Cigarette Factory, I organized and staged the First Tour of Luzon with Santiago E. yap as chairman. Joaquin P. Roces, Manila Times publisher, was most instrumental in the success of that race. It was a five-lap jaunt with a total distance of 1,037 kilometers. Antonio Arzala of Laguna, the winner of that Manila to Vigan bikathon, won.

I had no intention of holding a second Tour of Luzon as I was then gong to prepare for the bar. But something happened during the race that changed my mind. Arzala had been accused of riding in a van, and in the spate of recriminations that followed, I was irked by the adverse comments. So I decided to organize the Second Tour of Luzon which was held from May 28 to June 2, 1957 for this purpose, I organized the Philippine Cycling Association, Inc. with Don Antonio de las Alas as president. The other incorporators were Santiago E. Yap, Jose Sy, Eliseo Quirino, Geminiano F. Yabut, Luis Ablaza, Jose Lauchengco, Angel P. Edrosa, Arsenio Luz, T. Calosanz, Dr. Juan S. Tablante, Jose A. Panlilio and Alfredo Balingit. I was elected executive secretary-treasurer.

An event of transcendental importance happened at this time. Col. Andres Soriano accepted San Miguel Brewery sponsorship for Royal Tru-Orange of the prizes for the Second Tour of Luzon amounting to P6,000. He had become impressed by the fact that the Tour was doing something good for the under-privileged youth who were its main beneficiaries. This was the start of the good fortune of the Tour. In preparation for the race, we held the Three-In-One Cycling Series in Manila, Dagupan and Baguio and the first Tour of Bicolandia. The Second Tour of Luzon was a six-lap race covering a distance of 1,155 kilometers. It was a resounding success, unmarred by any incident, with Rufino Gabot of Pangasinan winning the first prize. But I had to pay a heavy price for the success: I flunked the bar. The following year, however, I passed it.

The two years that followed saw the intensification of cycling promotion all over the country. Tying up with the Boy Scouts and the Red Cross, we held 10 regional tours all over the country in 1958 and 12 regional tours in 1959. These were mostly one stage and two-stage races. For me and my tiny staff, it was an island-hopping operation. I had to generate the financing for the massive archipelago-wide promotion from island to island, mainly from gate receipts and local donations.

In the 1958 Tour of Luzon, Coca-Cola Export Corporation became co-sponsor with San Miguel Brewery. This was a development of great importance because it brought into the promotion not only the massive resources of this company but also Rene L. Khan, Assistant Vice President of San Miguel Brewery and manager of the Manila Coca-Cola Plant, whose association with the project was one of the best things that happened to the Tour. The Third Tour of Luzon held from April 14 to 20 with seven laps and a total distance of 1,517 kilometers was won by another Pangasinense, Mamerto Eden.

Because of the advent of Don Antonio de las Alas into cycling, I became interested in amateur cycling. In 1957, we started promoting amateur racing in the Three-In-One Series and held the first national amateur championship. Through the efforts of Mr. Alas, the PCA became a member of the PAAF (Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation). In accordance with PAAF rules, we had to divorce the Tour of Luzon from the PCA. So I organized the Tour of Luzon Association to continue holding the Tour of Luzon.

The fourth Tour of Luzon was held from April 12 to 18, 1959. The project chairman was Salvador C. Peňa. It covered eight laps and 1,618 kilometers. Antonio Arzala won the race, establishing a record of two wins which has not yet been duplicated. In this tour, San Miguel Brewery and Coca-Cola Export Corporation started their logistical support which was to become massive in the coming years.

It was at this juncture that I met for the first time Andres Soriano Jr., whose personal interest in the Tour has been its mainstay since. In the following years, he took time out from his heavy schedule to check up on the logistical arrangements, following the race up the Nagiullian Road and down Kennon Road and viewing it from the air. It was at this instance that Mr. Khan and I observed the 1959 Tour de France to learn all that we could from the world’s biggest cycling race.

The fifth Tour of Luzon which was held from May 14 to 22, 1960 with nine laps and a total distance of 1,692 kilometers benefited greatly from our observation of the Tour de France. For the first time we supplied uniforms to the teams and officials and team vehicles. The race column began to take on more color with more vehicles, flags and signs. It was in this race that the Tour of Luzon Stage Show was initiated. The radio, TV and film coverage was greatly expanded. To select the regional teams for this race, we held four regional multi-stage tours in Mindanao, Cebu, Bicolandia and Cagayan Valley-Central Luzon. The fifth Tour was won by Rodrigo Abaquita of Cebu.

• 10y
• Like
• Share

Gorio Belen

Author

Admin

THE EARLY, TRYING YEARS OF THE TOUR OF LUZON

Part II

From the Times-Mirror Tour of Luzon Special – April 26, 1965

By Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta

The sixth Tour of Luzon held from April 25 to May 7, 1961 covering 12 laps with a total distance of 2,167.5 had several Tour first: it had the first publicity caravan and the first foreign team to participate – the Korean team. It was the first Tour to go through the Cagayan Valley over the roof of Luzon and down the Ilocos coast. Jose Moring Jr., of Cebu won the race.

In the seventh Tour of Luzon held form March 26 to April 8, 1962 covering 13 laps with a total distance of 1,893.58 kilometers, a foreigner, the Korean Kim Ho Soon, came very close to winning the race. A great performance of Edmundo de Guzman of Pangasinan up the Kennon Road saved the San Miguel Brewery trophy for the Philippines. De Guzman won the race. The project chairman of that race was Col. Luis Uranza, Sr.

This race was marred by a threatened walkout of some cyclists instigated by some managers of its commercial cycling clubs. Although the tremendous success of the race was not impaired by the incident, I was so disgusted by the actuations of those who were directly benefiting from the promotion that I wanted to terminate the Tour of Luzon as did also the sponsors. I had in the meanwhile become interested in the national language and had founded KATAS magazine. I wanted to devote my time to the building up of this magazine and to the practice of law. I closed the office of the Tour of Luzon. But in the months to come, I was besieged by cyclists, technical directors and race officials who entreated me to continue with the Tour. The feeling of paternity over the Tour finally prevailed over me and I persuaded our sponsors to go on with the race. But to prevent a repetition of the Baguio incident, we disbanded the commercial clubs and strengthened the position of the technical directors.

The eight Tour of Luzon was held from April 21 to May 5, 1963 with 14 laps and a total distance of 2,350 kilometers. This was the longest race yet and most successful. The technical directors and riders imposed self-discipline and order. Gonzalo Recodos won the race. Project chairman of the race was Col. Guillermo Domingo.

The first Tour to be honored by a President was the ninth Tour held from April 19 to May 3, 1964. President Diosdado Macapagal started the race on its 14 stage peregrination covering a distance of 1,967.60 kilometers. The contest and the shows exceeded all previous races. Project chairman of the race was Col. Jose D. Regala.

The tenth Tour of Luzon scheduled for April 25 to May 9 of this year has a very deep significance for us. First, it marks the tenth anniversary of this classic. Second, it is our offering to the memory of the man who, more than anybody else, has made it possible for this Tour to continue and become the top spectacle on wheels in Asia. Project chairman is again, Col. Jose D. Regala. We appeal to everyone of our countrymen to help make this race a fitting tribute to a man who has helped very much the under-privileged youth of the land.

I have been asked what account for the success of the Tour of Luzon. The following come to my mind.

1. There is a social need for it. The under-privileged youth of the land had been neglected in the promotion of sports in this country. The Tour was the dramatic answer to the need of channeling the potentialities of the under-privileged youth to constructive activities.

2. The public wanted more challenging sports that would overcome the traditional ningas cogon trait of our people and develop rugged character, stamina and strong will power needed for national survival in the atomic age. The Tour was the spectacular answer.

3. The Tour was promoted as a community project thereby assuring it the support among the officialdom and the various communities.

4. The Tour was promoted not only as a challenging sports contest but also as a colorful promotion for trade, travel, tourism and civic cooperation.

5. We had generous “angels” in the persons of the late Don Andres Soriano Jr., and in San Miguel Brewery and Coca-Cola Export Corporation.

6. We did not lack in government and community leaders who gave freely of their time, money and effort to help this sport of the masses.