To be a cyclist is always risky

By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

I’VE  KNOWN many cyclists  who met freak accidents during their training along the highways and eventually succumbed. The latest victim was Raffy Peralta, a promising rider from Alcala town, who died last December 10 after he was run over by a speeding van along the national highway at barangay zone 7 Bayambang town. Despite his wearing a ‘crash helmet’, the poor guy was killed instantly due to a severe skull injury and multiple wounds in his body.

Feeling like a father to many young cyclists in this province, I visited his remains at barangay Atainan, Alcala, with my only cycling son Jazy and his Pitaki Boyz cyclists to extend our deepest sympathy and condolences to his parents who survived him, Leonardo Peralta and the former Concepcion Muñoz, with some financial help including a contribution from San Carlean rider now Houston-based philanthropist Blandino Caguioa. Caguioa called me from overseas to say more help would be coming from him and from his co-cyclists in Houston. Caguioa mentioned his grandmother is a Peralta so Raffy could be his relative.

In an interview with his parents, the dream of their son Raffy was to join the annual and the biggest race of the country called the “Tour Pilipinas” to be staged summer time next year. That’s the reason why he was training hard, to pass the qualifying races tentatively set on February 2007 and had hoped to bring honors to his family and his town.

According to the elder Peralta, the driver of the van, a certain Federico Velasco, Jr., 29, from barangay Tambac, Bayambang, did not have a driver’s license and worse, the registration of the van already expired. That’s now a big headache for the driver and the owner of the van. Luckily, the driver voluntarily surrendered to the PNP Bayambang after the accident.

What happened to Raffy similarly happened to 1990 Marlboro Tour champion Manuel   Buenaventura. Buenaventura was also run over by a car sometime in August, 1992 in a ‘hit and run’  incident. To this day, the culprit has not been identified.

Before Raffy, other Pangasinenses who died in road accidents during their training were Wencelmo Torio of San Carlos City and Reynante Conde of Pozorrubio.

Torio was sideswiped by a truck and the driver was apprehended and I believe his case was solved. Conde, on the other hand, met his end by falling from his own bike while sprinting at barangay Alacan, San Fabian. Because he was not wearing a ‘crash helmet,’ he suffered a brain hemorrhage that eventually caused his death.

Based on my record, Raffy placed 14th out of 70 contestants during the ‘Tour de Tercero Distrito’ held last October 29 and I believe that was his last race.

Raffy, 25, unmarried, was buried yesterday.

May you rest in peace, Raffy. Goodbye my friend. We, your   colleagues in cycling especially your teammates in the Malasiqui Cycling Association will miss you a lot.

(For past columns, click http://sundaypunch.prepys.com/archives/category/opinion/sports-eye/)

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