Playing to Win

Every boy dreams of fast cars, but not many get to realize this dream. One lucky 12-year-old not only got to literally ride out his dream, but has taken it to a whole new level: he’s competing in an international race, carrying the country’s flag. Juha Turalba competes today for the Junior Championship in the 2006 ROK International Finals in Lonato, Italy, together with Joey Orduña, who is racing in the Mini-ROK division.

Jose Antonio Turalba was nicknamed after Juha Kankunnen, the rally car champion the year he was born. The name proved to be prophetic. "I tried other sports before, like golf and horseback riding, before I got into racing," Juha says. "I found golf too slow, and I didn’t really get into horseback riding. But when I got into kart racing…it just clicked."

Juha was initiated into karting by his father Toti, chairman of Asian Spirit and president of the Active Group. "It was really fun. But then one day, I decided that I wanted to go faster," Juha says. Toti promptly enrolled his son in the Tuason Racing School.

What began as a bonding activity with his father turned into a commitment to win every race he entered. "I like the speed and being able to race against a group of people, fighting for position. And I like the technical side of it too–tuning the engines and finding out how the kart works," Juha enthuses, sounding like a seasoned driver. Then his face breaks into a huge grin and he is 12 years old again: "And when the race is on the Enchanted Kingdom track it’s really nice because I get to ride the rides before the race!"

Juha embodies a determination unhampered by drama. Racing is straightforward–you race to win. "It’s not about doing your best because your best might not be enough." So how does he motivate himself to win? "I just do," he says simply. "If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here. If you’re dedicated enough, you’ll win. All racers are motivated by that. All our skills are pretty much equal so it all depends on what you’re thinking, on how dedicated you are."

Juha has been racing seriously since 2004, competing in the Shell Super Karting Series from 2004 to 2006 where he won four times and placed 2nd four times. He also won the Champions of the Future race and came in second in the Arthur Tuason Memorial Cup, both in 2005. He was also a member of the Philippine team that competed in the Macau Asian Karting Open Championship in 2004, where he placed 4th, and in 2005, where he placed 6th.

A lean young boy with dark, intelligent eyes, Juha realizes that racing is not child’s play. Last December, he figured in an accident when a competitor lost control and spun into his kart at the Macau Open. Despite an injury, he raced in the finals and, as he describes on the website he set up with his mom’s help (www.juhaturalba.com), "I had to fight (the doctors) off from trapping me in an ambulance!" He placed 6th and was sent to the hospital to get a cast on his left arm.

But that wasn’t the end of his adventure. Juha and his mother Jing had to walk almost two kilometers in the freezing cold to the nearest taxi stand. There he got into a verbal sparring contest with a Chinese man, with the only available taxi as the prize. Juha unleashed a relentless barrage of Tagalog, and the man gave up and walked away.

Preparation for a race demands a certain amount of maturity. Coached by his dad and JP Tuason of the Tuason Racing School, Juha practices as often as he can with the knowledge that the tracks in the country are only an approximation of the smoother, better tracks abroad. There were times when he had to make last minute adjustments in his game plan when he found a faster, shorter route around the track.

Juha also has to keep fit and does so by training regularly at the gym and playing badminton. But the hardest battles are the ones that take place in the mind. "All of us have stories in our heads–stories that won’t allow me to achieve what I want," he shares. For this, he has his mom as mental coach. "Before each race, I tell her the stories that stop me, and she helps me take away those stories…she helps me create stories that work." With those stories in place, Juha is ready to go for gold.

As successful as Juha’s been as a racer, he knows he won’t see the inside of a track if his grades dip. He is a Grade 7 student at the International School in Makati, and grumbles about homework like any other kid. But mom Jing proudly shares that he got straight A’s last year, and a Jose Rizal Award to boot. "He’s very OC and wants to get it right always," Jing says, "but I have no complaints."

This kuya to a "dramatic" younger sister Ari finds a perfect partner in crime in his dad. "We do a lot of things together–race, build RC models. He takes me places, I help him choose cars. He’s like my brother." When told that it’s a rare thing for a son to say that, he raises his eyebrows in surprise and says, "I don’t see why a lot of people don’t say that."

A totally different hobby that father and son share is fishing. "I like fishing because of the fights you have with the fish," Juha grins. "I hate the waits, but without the waits you’ll never be able to enjoy the fights with the fish." He excitedly recounts the struggle he had with a carp as big as his arms were wide. It took the two of them, pulling with all their might, to overpower the carp. The battle lasted a few minutes but it took a week of waiting before the fish bit. "So the waits are necessary," Juha says with the wisdom of the ages.

He recently started swimming with the fish too, when he began diving. He practically jumps up from his seat describing the wonders that he saw diving in Palau with his parents–a pawikan, a stingray and "a slug as big as a table!"

Then there’s painting. Juha liked watching his mother paint. "I used to tell her my suggestions, like ‘put a square here’ or ‘make it black here’." Jing took his suggestions seriously, recognizing his talent, and even asked him for help when she was stumped.

One day, Juha decided that he wanted to paint too, using acrylic, construction paint, and even things that people had thrown away as junk. One of his paintings, entitled Hardware, is made up of computer parts arranged on a canvas painted in festive oranges, greens, reds and yellows. "I like computers and I like to disassemble them. I got that computer from the office of my dad–they have this whole room full of stuff! Originally I just wanted to see how the computer works and so I opened it up. And in the end I said to myself, ‘so now what am I going to do with all this junk?’ So I stuck it on that painting." His imagination knows no bounds, and he takes his ideas as far as they can go.

And if he doesn’t like the outcome? "I just paint the canvas white and start all over again!"

At the South Garda Karting Track in Lonato not far from Milan, Juha is one of only 34 karters from all over the world racing to be the first to the checkered flag. He flew to Lonato a week earlier to prepare for the race, and has his parents and grandparents around to cheer him on to victory. On and off the track, Juha shows he’s definitely playing to win.