Are you Kinatkatay ready?

by | Feb 1, 2019 | Local News / Bohol Balita, Sports

Technical climbs and rampage rated downhill sections with possibly painless ball-out sections if you are quick to roll into the tall grasses: these await the uninitiated into the KinatkataysaBinabaje, Alicia’s extreme cross country mountain biking challenge.
Set in the afternoon of February 24, the 35 kilometer race of epic proportion, is generously spiced up with punishing climbs into the tall hills of sitioBinabaje in Barangay Cambaol in Alicia town, and opens to age group competitors.
But just before you let go of that P400 registration, it just might be fair if you get forewarned about what to expect when you get on The Alicia Panoramic Park (TAPP) trails.
BUILD ON THE MUSCLE AND THE HEART
If you ever had joined a group trail ride and wondered how you humped and puffed while other whizz through, then you know what it is to climb faster, rip through the downhills and bunny hop on obstacles like they do.
That ain’t coming with your kind of training regimen.
You would have to invest in lots of riding, great fitness workouts and scratched bikes. So take on the trails at least four times a week and build on those heart muscles.
TAPP’s KinatkataysaBinabaje is a 35 kilometer 3 hour ride at least, so it would make sense if your designed training program fits the race distance. Or more.
Single day long rides or moderately long rides placed back to back in the remaining weeks should work on the muscle memory and the heart. Keep the intensity level high in short trail rides, and do not forget the recovery rides, that is where one heaps on the power level needed for the punishing trails.
And then train on steady endurance.
To do this, an occasional spin with the road bike will often do the trick.
If you noticed, mountain bike training plans are suited for the technical sections and agility, but seldom on the pace upkeep in a steady tempo. It is the big effort on short sections and then recovery and then big effort and recovery that does not help much. Sometimes, when the efforts is less than five minutes and you reward yourself with a stop at the peak of technical sections, it does not help a lot.
This is where a road bike spin will help you attain a strong endurance to hold a high intensity attack mode that must hold throughout the race.
BIKE HANDLING
KinatkataysaBinabaje is not your typical long climb and then recovery ride, but that is getting ahead of the story.
Binabaje and the entire Alicia extreme XC MTB is a juxtaposition of climbs and descents that knowing which gears to fit into your rig can be a make or break.
A 1x or 2x 11-46 or 50 fits on a niner or a 27.5, a 35 may be fine on a 26 frame, but it is not the cassette, it is the rider that matters.
The climbs here are arduous and a shift to a low gear may be the easiest and most painless way up the obstacles. Anticipate on the gear change and decrease the strain on the chains to shift to a gear that matches the terrain and the climb.
When climbing needs traction, by standing on, you may lose this grip, so leaning forward while staying seated could work much better.
Slide forward on the saddle or hunch over the handlebars to add more weight on the front wheel for added traction, this may just be better than dancing your bike and lose much energy on the skids.
KEEP PUMPING
And keep pumping, keep the pressure on, and don’t let up on those pedals, getting at least a speed over the uncomfortable. Do not overspin, because that will dent on your energy.
The downhill sections here equally demand full off and on saddle and keep off the temptation to grab on the brake levers as it could literally send you cart wheeling down the majestic slopes.
Find better judgment when you have the itch to grab on the levers. Downhill sections here are extreme, and expect the front wheels to skid if you over-brake on the front. The rear brakes should play here, making sure you’re shifting your weight to the rear to lend more traction.
Shift into the big chain ring on the downhill, at least a bumpy descent will keep the chain from bouncing off and the chain will cover the teeth of the big ring so it won’t bite into your leg.
RELAX AND ENJOY THE RIDE
Stay loose, keep from being rigid, don’t lock your elbows or clench your grip, let your hands act as an extra fork to absorb the shock, while your hands keep a firm controlled grip on the bars to keep things steady.
Most of the time, looking ahead and not on the front wheel allows you to steer better. Let your shoulders guide you through each turn and around each obstacle, but do not oversteer.
A good bike skill is to let the bike track the direction you are looking, while you shift and adjust on your leans, thinking only of the line to go.
WALK YOUR BIKE
Every decent dirt biker knows it is embarrassing to walk your bike when it has in the rig all the necessary gears to get you past that technical ascent.
But, a good judgment helps.
If you would swallow your pride and walk your bike than dance through the technical sections, an unwanted crash may sideline you for good and ruin your dream of finishing the race.
Moreover, a hard attack on a section that would deal so much on your energy reserves would better be good because many riders take so much time picking up from a fall than simply walking on the bike and get past the dangerous sections.
Just keep off the cameras.
STAND ON THE PEDAL AND RISE ABOVE THE SADDLE
Racing down bumpy, technical descents would be easier if you stand on the pedals and above the saddle, letting your legs and knees absorb the bumps.
While it may not be necessary, a dropper seat may help here.
Binabaje has a fair share of technical downhill sections that dropping your saddle 2-4 inches should lower your center of gravity, allowing you more space to dance with the bounce.
And yes, the pedals can get snagged in the undergrowth, so the front pedal should be a bit higher so it won’t catch on to something and toss you over the handlebars.
Keep your focus, concentration pays. If, in the ride, your thought strays, then so may your bike, into the long unwanted roll.
And yes, going into the roll could be the best way to get you up and running again. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)

Either you use up all your energies to mount the hills or lower your pride and walk your bike, KinatkataysaBinabaje will have many instances when you have to pick between the two. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)

DENR leads CV rivers’ simultaneous clean-up

by | Feb 1, 2019 | Headlines

Enthused by the successes of the massive volunteer clean-up of the polluted bay in Metro Manila, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Central Visayas spearheads the simultaneous clean-up activity to kick off the river rehabilitation program in Central Visayas this month.
Set this February 22, Friday, the DENR has identified ten rivers in Central Visayas as venue for the envisioned massive volunteer clean-up activity, according to DENR Regional Executive Director Gilbert Gonzales.
The DENR has identified Category B classified rivers in Cebu, Bohol, Negros and Siquijor for this.
Bohol Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer (PENRO) Charlie Fabre, during the Capitol paid radio program Kita ug Ang Gobernador Friday, explained that category B rivers are those which have been identified with a certain degree of pollution where the coliform level is below the 100 most probable number (MPN) as determined by laboratory tests.
These include Bautanon River in Mandaue, Bulacao River in Bulacao and Luyang River in Luyang Carmen, in Cebu, Abatan River in Cortes, Wahig River in Inabanga and Manaba River in Garcia Hernandez in Bohol, Banica River in Valencia, Panam-angan River in Bais and Sicopong River in Santa Catalina in Negros Oriental as well as Señora River in Siqiijor.
In Central Visayas the state of our rivers is not a hopeless case, [but still] let us come together and prove that we can also make it happen,” said DENR 7 Regional Executive Director Gilbert C. Gonzales.
And while most river clean up events are initiated by government agencies, the DENR intends to gather as much volunteers and mobilize communities for the Visayas-wide events this time.
The activity is also in line with the Presidential directive to the DENR, which the secretary Roy Cimatu also followed up with a department order to strictly enforce Republic Act 9272 or the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.
The activity kicks off the region-wide river rehabilitation and would involve community stakeholders, national government agencies, local government units, barangay officials, the academe, people’s organizations, environmental groups and other well-meaning groups with DENR as the lead agency.
In Bohol, interested groups can contact the PENRO at (038) 416-0151.
While in the past clean-ups, the DENR has not been as strict, this time, Gonzales said they are discouraging volunteer participants who use single use surgical gloves, black garbage bags and other clean-up materials that turn to be additional trash after each event.
The environment agency however suggest that volunteers wear appropriate personal protection: boots or shoes, gloves, hats, caps or headgear for sun protection and, tongs and used sacks as trash container.
Along with this, local officials including barangay officials where these mentioned rivers snake through are now asked to help coordinate volunteers for areas of assignment and future rehabilitation activities which they can implement, DENR sources said. (rahcPIA-7/Bohol)
Aerial View of the Abatan River from Over Bato, Cabawan, Maribojoc. The factory in the cackground has long ceased its operations but with communities now settled along the river, issues of cleanliness of the river have recently resurfaced. (PIABohol)

Aerial View of the Abatan River from Over Bato, Cabawan, Maribojoc. The factory in the cackground has long ceased its operations but with communities now settled along the river, issues of cleanliness of the river have recently resurfaced. (PIABohol)