It's the time of the year again when this nutty bunch of sport-riders get together for a three day 1,500 km. 'retreat' to the best roads in the North. Destination: Pagudpod, Ilocos Norte. Like in all our rides, where we end up is not important. It's getting there that counts! Last year's ride was slightly longer and was marred by a few spills and no breakdowns. This year was the exact opposite: No crashes but we had a few breakdowns although these were minor and only caused a few minutes of delay to our trip. As usual, the Club 200 took their wrist-numbing sportbikes for a joy ride they will never ever forget!
FIRST DAY (Feb.21): The group assembled in our regular meeting place at the Shell station in Ortigas avenue, Greenhills at around 3:30AM, our back-up Tamaraw packed with gear, tools, cooler, spare tires and fuel. Hot-dogs, siomai, juice and coffee were available at the station so we didn't hesitate to eat a hefty breakfast. Our crazy mechanic "Barok" who still rides with slippers on joined us to sit in as spare rider just in case. We hired police escorts from the PSG( presidential security) on FZ750s to take us on the forbidden North expressway. As soon as the escorts arrived, the group finally took off at 4:15 a.m. We all got to San Fernando, Pampanga in less than an hour for a brief stop to thank (and pay--ouch) the friendly PSG officers. We headed for the scenic route via Iba, Zambales. I love bikes with centerstands because you can make such lovely sparks in the dark when you drag 'em.
As the sun began to rise, the South China Sea beckon with strong side-winds that pitched pitched our bikes at an angle even when going straight! Before reaching the "scooter-capital" of Sual in Pangasinan, we had "brunch" in this empty fully air-conditioned restaurant playing Karaoke music. Suddenly the Club 200 had talented singers in the likes of Perry Como, Frank Sinatra and Pat Boone! If only these guys could sing as good as they ride! After paying the exorbitant bill (they charged us for the Karaoke-those twits!) we headed for La Union. It' was amazing how all the townsfolk would suddenly run to the shoulder of the highway to cheer us on like we were racing or something all the way to Ilocos Sur.
We arrived in nostalgic Vigan, Ilocos Norte at around 2:00PM. for a luscious lunch prepared by our good friend J.R. Rosario of Cycle Mart. The food was so good that had we stayed any longer, it would be 'siesta' time. Took off in no time.
Just before nightfall, the ZZR-600 loaned to me by a friend just turned- itself off--no lights, no horn--no power! Bummer- it was getting dark. I finally discovered a loose battery terminal which caused the batt to go flat. I had to bumpstart and avoid using my lights all the way to beautiful Fort Ilocandia in Laoag where we planned to stay for the night. 3,700 bucks a night for three?! Forget it! Noel suggested we stay instead at the Texicano Hotel a few minutes from there. For a grand and 6 persons, this was a great deal! Dinner was taken just across the hotel and soon after some of us hit the sack while others looked for some night life.
SECOND DAY (Feb.22) The group had a very good rest and those who were out that night told us how bad the bar "servants" were in the area! I took the opportunity to save time and look for a new battery while the group had another heavy Ilocano breakfast at Noel's aunt's place. The roads to Pagudpod were even more scenic and isolated with rocky beaches on our left and greenery on our right. We made a stop near the old light house but it seemed like the road that led to it was unfinished so we just flaked out. When we finally arrived at Saud Beach in Pagudpod, we did not expect to see such beautiful white sand and clear blue water comparable only to the world famous Boracay Island! Without hesitation, most of us undressed and dove into the semi-freezing water!! I could actually feel my body sizzle like a hot plate thrown on ice! The weather was perfect--sunny and cool. The resort was very clean and very very private. I could almost read the minds of those with a naughty looking grin on their faces.
This trip back was the fun part since we were already familiar with these roads. The guys on the 600's were blitzin' the path for the riders on bigger bikes. Rey (ZX6R) and myself (ZZR600) were switching lead and enjoying 240 kph wind gusts! Barok our 'slipper' riding bike mechanic rode for Noel who got tired and we were revvin' our 600 engines to 14 grand!! The ZZR I was using was bone stock and it flew---comfortably even!
We got to Vigan again and had another good lunch at the Rosario residence. Since we were ahead of schedule, we took some time out for scenic photos. Our second night was spent at the Villa Estrella Beach Resort in Bauang, La Union. Another group of riders (Bikers Unlimited) also arrived with Jimmy Chan posing as Police with his mint conditioned CBX750 Jap cop bike. La Union had much better night life and some of us really enjoyed the famous "Dawn of Life" service while the others went "dancing" in the club.
LAST DAY (Feb.23): Those who woke up early went for a swim in the beach after having a light breakfast at Jasmin's. At 11:00 a.m. we all took off for Dau, Angeles where we were going to meet up with our hired PSG escorts. Again the roads beckoned for sportbike hooliganism! Hey, my next bike would be a bone stock sport-tourer with grunt like this ZZR. The riding position's great and my contempt for quiet stock pipes has just changed. Lunch at Tarlac was our target so we got there on schedule and ate at Max's restaurant where we spent a good while relaxing and enjoying the fully air-conditioned toilets. On the way back to Pampanga, the oil light on Johnson's FZR went on so we all had to wait for the back-up to get him some oil. Our scheduled visit to Paul Peczon's birthday was put off as we had to meet up with our escorts in Dau after visiting Clark Air base. Flashing lights on our side leading us to the North Expressway and gestures of thumbs-up from car passengers just made our trip even more fulfilling...'till next time.