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The Devil's Advocate
(Biboy)
It was on a Sunday morning when Jobo came over to my place to prepare his bike for a 4-day long trip. I only knew about it then and I envied him for having that opportunity to conquer Northern Luzon. My other two previous long trips were also to the North, but I never had a chance to circumnavigate it. I have had bitter experiences with my bike during those trips and the stigma was hard to overcome. Anything that's more than just a 3-hour drive puts fear in my heart. This I said, I have to conquer soon. My first unfortunate experience was when we went to Claveria, Cagayan, just six months after I got my 1979 Honda CB750k. On our way back I had my bike coughing oil out of a hole in my chain tensioner. I have had to add oil every time we stop for gas. It was messy and demoralizing. On my second long trip a year later, I was plagued with charging problems and we have to cut short our trip. We ended up at Zambales instead of Bolinao. I was really disappointed about my bike and apologetic to my buddies for the failed trip. That trip has cemented my fears of long rides on my aging CB. Despite the problem, we still managed to enjoy the picturesque landscapes and the indescribable freedom of being on our bikes.

Jobo went about his mission that morning of prepping his bike. He was also sharing the details of the coming trip and I was getting more envious by the minute. The challenge: Four days, 1600 km, during weekdays. Jobo would often say “Tara” to me and rubs it in a way like salt on a wound. I wanted him to shut up and not tempt me from doing something I might later regret. His excitement was so contagious but still not enough to overwhelm my fears of long trips. And besides, it's going to be on a weekday. I have work and it was already too late to ask the office for a leave of absence. The favor was on me. At around 2:00 pm she caught the fever. Ann was with us during that fateful day. After we had our lunch, she was showing the symptoms. She said, why don't I clean my bike while Jobo does his. I did. After about an hour, she was full blown. She was as excited and as pesky as Jobo. She was the one discussing the details with Jobo. And that did it. I joined the bandwagon. Hell, if you can't beat them, better join them.

The devil's advocate left my place all smiles. But we still have one problem to face and this has slowed down our excitement significantly. I still need my employer's blessings. It took me some time to formulate the right words to say to my boss, afraid of saying something that will get me sacked. It was already close to 7 pm when I texted my boss of my plans, some 8 hours away before Jobo departs for Manila to meet the other riders. To my surprise, she said yes and even bade me and Ann a happy trip. Whoa! Excitement and adrenaline pumped back to a 100 percent.

(Ann) It all started when Jobo unexpectedly came to Biboy's place to borrow some gadgets for his bike. We invited him to have lunch with us since he proclaimed that he's currently alone in their house. During the course of our discussion (which was mainly about our Zambales trip last year), it suddenly dawned on Jobo to invite us in his trip around Luzon the next day. That's what he's been preparing for in the first place. To make the long story short, I eventually convinced Biboy, with a little help from Jobo, to accept the invitation. I was so thirsty for adventure that time and I so much wanted to quench that thirst. I had a really rough time persuading him. To defend Biboy's side, he is really the practical, logical and reasonable one between the two of us. I'm the impulsive and stubborn one. He had a lot of reasons not to join the group, not only thinking of himself, of course, but also of me. But I guess the passion and desire to ride again won and that's the reason why we became a part of the 4-day long ride.

From the time that I elicited the word “YES” from Biboy, I made it a point not to upset him, something that could jeopardize his already-made decision. I was really that desperate to join this trip. I immediately packed what's necessary for the 4-day trip bearing in mind what Biboy had emphasized to me “Pack light because the two of us are heavy enough for the bike.” So, I did what he told me to do. I came up with two bags: a big backpack containing our clothes, to be placed on the bike's tank; and a smaller and lighter one with our stuff, which I would carry. I had a hard time sleeping that night. It turned out I was not the only one because Biboy suddenly told me he can't sleep either. I was not sure if it's because of the overworking and uncontrollable nerves, or just maybe it's too hot for a good sleep that night. But whatever it was, it made me feel agitated because we badly need a rest that night for the long ride tomorrow, and the jitters, as I call it, or heat is becoming a threat to my sanity that I was saving for the ride. With a lot of help from above and a little from the fan, we finally slept.

Surprisingly, we woke up with just enough time for, I should say, a very early breakfast. Despite the late sleep, both Biboy and I seemed to share this strange sensation of being excited and nervous at the same time. Excited, because, as I've mentioned earlier, I was craving for a real adventure before med school starts. Nervous, because I just couldn't exclude the possibility of meeting danger along the road. And aside from that, the ride would basically include the whole of Luzon and that's no joke for me, not to mention the unknown riders we would be accompanying shortly. And so off we went, with Jobo leading the ride. I was just daydreaming of shops and beaches when I realized that we were no longer trailing Jobo.

I tried to look for him at the side mirror to no avail. He was out of sight. That's the time Biboy decided to stop at the shoulder and wait for him. Twenty minutes had already passed when Jobo finally joined us. He was having some kind of problem with his brakes. I'll leave it to them to explain what had happened to the bike. It's too bikey for my own comprehension. What I can only understand from this situation was that this could easily put at risk my “adventure.” And that is so unacceptable for me. We just couldn't back out. Everything would be perfect (almost) if given the chance. But I don't want to be selfish either. Minutes ticked by and thankfully, Jobo assessed that it would be fine and would just do the MacGyver thing once he had some tools. And so we resumed our journey.

Meeting point

We arrived at the meeting place 15 minutes late. Jobo introduced us to his clubmates. I shyly smiled at them praying that they wouldn't think of me as a hindrance to their ride. I took into consideration what they would feel once I joined them but I was so wrapped up with the trip that I convinced myself they would not really care. I didn't get any chance to dwell on this because everybody was in a rush to hit the road. Again, bad luck appeared to be stalking us. My vision started to get cloudy as raindrops formed on my helmet's visor. I can already feel the sting of the rain on my exposed hands. First, Jobo's bike, and then this! It seemed nature was against my joining the ride. But everyone seemed not to care. Much to my amazement and delight, the drizzle didn't proceed into a total downpour.

We passed familiar roads and scenes. That made my mind wandered to the other riders, a roll of an impression, if I may say. I already designated Rene as the leader/consultant of the group. Maybe because Jobo had been mentioning of him before. But as I spend more and more time with them, that impression strengthened. Andrew is a very charming person. May it be on the road, during meals, photo ops, and I've never met anyone quite like him. He could prod a truck to move aside with just his gloved finger. Even the locals seemed fascinated by him. And I thought then that this was one character that I would really miss once the trip is over. James, I first thought, couldn't understand a single Tagalog word. Just like Derek and Andrew. I was really astonished when I heard him say “Oo nga no”. I never found out why and who made him answer that but I was glad I discovered it before I made a fool of myself. So much for my first impression!

Charlie and Ritchie are still a puzzle to me. They are the quiet riders. Regrettably, I didn't get a chance to get to know them because of uncontrollable circumstances such as; breaking away from the group to find a vulcanizing shop, satisfying their yearning for a fast ride leaving us behind, staying in a separate lodge to pass the night, and others. In a nutshell, joining the group had taught me, somehow, in dealing with a diverse personality. Cruising as a backrider is basically boring in nature. All you could see is the back of the head of the driver. Not an appetizing and charming view. I would have had removed his helmet and counted his hairs just to keep me busy. Luckily, we were traversing new places, and with a little bit of imagination, I survived. However, this was not always the case. There were times when the surrounding was really boring and dull, ordering my brain to shut down. I slept, but still fully aware of what going on around me.

I know this is a cardinal sin among backriders, even among riders themselves. Anyway, riders wouldn't resort to sleeping since they're very much busy handling and indulging their “babies”. But I just couldn't control what my brain was forcing me to do. The lullaby won over ”Lady Marmalade” by Christina Aguillera and company, and “Growing Old with You” by Adam Sandler. To fight drowsiness; I sang, I rapped, I even resorted to composing my own song (which I couldn't remember, by the way). Anything that will make me stay awake. It worked, for a time. Not until my ocular muscles betrays me and submit to my sleepy brain. Oh well, at least I tried something. Maybe next time I'll just cut myself and squirt calamansi on it! I'm sure this could really help. No doubt about it. I'll leave the details of our ride to the others. This is a great opportunity for me to share with you my experience as a backrider. To tell you the truth, I'm scared to hell of Biboy riding the bike. The thought that something bad might happen to him never leaves me. And I guess to overcome this nagging fear I always insist that I ride with him whenever possible. My fear, somehow, alleviates when I am on the back, enjoying every moment, as carefree as I ever could be. God bless to all of you. I will include you to my prayers. In return for that, just ride carefully.

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