Honda Media Challenge: Team spirit wins it

There was an almost palpable pall of sadness that descended upon us that humid Saturday afternoon at the CCP Complex. The fourth and last round of the Honda City Media Challenge was drawing to a close. After five months of food, camaraderie, more food, and competition (did I mention food?), the curtains were being drawn on our motley group of media practitioners. On one side of the tableau were the 1.5-liter Type Z Citys. They were finally silent — tired and battered machines caked with dust and mud. I must say they endured our less than professional handling for the dirt trial speed event rather well.

Draped over the bleachers across them were us, the worn-out gladiators of a day’s worth of racing. The podium had been used, the champagne had been brought out and popped, the rolls of film had been exposed. But there was something that made us linger, talk about the just-concluded competition, and savor the experience on our lips like fine wine swirled incessantly around the palate.

Must be team spirit.

Admittedly, it was conspicuously absent the first time this group gathered at the track. What mattered more were the individual times and rankings. But as we cheered ourselves on, we began to empathize and sympathize with the woes and joys of our fellow novices. After all, this event made possible by ADBM Resources, Activity Asia Association and Roadwise Motoring School (along with other sponsors Caltex Vortex; Caltex Havoline; Michelin, through its distributor Tiarra Commercial and Industrial Corporation; Aitech; and Nodalo’s Trading) was as much about winning the championship as it was about winning friends.

As the greenest among the greenhorns, I longed to prove myself behind the wheel. There was much to be inspired by — the sterling overall performance of Today’s Dodjie Aguila (man, I hope we’re related!), my own teammates’ unwavering support, and my girlfriend’s rah-rah remarks (hi, Joyce!). There was a commitment that Satin Silver (my team) made from Round One — that we would always be present in the field of battle. Our teammate Jay Taruc of GMA only showed up only once, but we understand the man has a busy schedule. At any rate, it was up to Lester Dizon of Gadgets, Ferdie Baja of DZEC, and me to hold the fort.

Finding ourselves in first place with 81 points after last month’s third round, we dared to dream that we could go all the way and claim the top spot. Last Saturday afternoon, strapped to the bucket seat and hands firmly on the wheel, we went for it.

Again, the City proved to be a willing victim, eagerly dishing out its maximum power of 115 ps at 6,800 rpm. Its power plant is adequate and fun – at least as far as the 1500s go. I haven’t tried the 1300s. The air-conditioning was great, although we turned off the compressor when we went for our runs. We wanted to squeeze out all the horsepower we could get. Honda says its trademark VTEC (Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control) engine on the VTi model possesses a dual personality "designed to meet the contradictory requirements of high torque at low rpm and high power at high rpm. VTEC allows maximum intake efficiency that delivers high power, low fuel consumption and excellent drivability."

The first heat ensued in the morning when the track was wet and slippery from the previous night’s downpour. We were cautious about jack-rabbit starts during our race, as the front-wheel-driven City’s Michelins were already laden with mud because of our abuse. Overeagerness just made them slide and spin in vain. We also had to be extra careful of the orange pylons, which cost us three seconds a pop. Decisions also had to be prudently made because of the terrible understeer due to the atrocious dirt road. I registered a horrendous time of 1:54.67 in the first heat after a fatal mistake where I suddenly found a pylon right in front of me. Costly seconds ticked by while I reversed. Lester and Ferdie reassured me as I pondered on whether I would be the goat that denied this team of a championship.

While the others struggled as well (though not as much as me), the sun climbed up in the sky and dried the track quite nicely. After lunch, we hit the road (and pylons) again, and I managed to miraculously improve on my time by more than 10 seconds! Yipee! I actually did 1:43.87 on the one-kilometer course.

However, we were nudged from a possible fourth-round win by Passion Orange’s Dodjie Aguila, Angelo Almonte (DZMM), Jude Crisostomo (Dragracingpinoy.com) and Benj Ngo (Autoindustriya.com). They beat our time by a mere 0.29 seconds to take top podium honors for the round. How close could you get?

Notching third was Sunburst Yellow, composed of Tim Alipalo (Associated Press), Lucky Besa (Men’s Zone Magazine) and Eric Soriano (Drive.com.ph).

But our second place was good enough that day. We earned 27 points for the effort and gave us a 108-point tally for the overall championship. We had won! Yes!

Meanwhile, Passion Orange’s 30-point harvest enabled them to leap-frog into second place with 81 points, while Clover Green’s Brent Co (Autoindustriya.com), Bernard de Lara (Tempo/Manila Bulletin), and James Deakin (C! Magazine) got third place with 75.

We felt sad for Lito "Da Man" German (Manila Standard) and Jons Crisostomo (Dragracing pinoy.com) who were in the running before this round, but were DQd despite their fast times because they failed to reach the three-man quota.

Nonetheless, Lito went on to bag second place for the round, just behind James Deakin and pacing Bernard de Lara. For the individual overall honors, Kuya Dodjie edged out James Deakin and Bernard de Lara.

Handshakes and last-minute jokes and pats on the back and smiling faces. Racing overalls and helmets and sunglasses and caps. We held these images dear as we drove off from the track and into the welcoming traffic of Metro Manila, remembering to hold the steering wheel with both hands and at the 10- and 3-o’clock positions.