Locals rule Sarbay Bancarera

GUMASA, Sarangani (May 16, 2015) – For once a year, the pristine waters of Gumasa becomes a race circuit for bancas (small boats) as Bombo Radyo and the provincial government of Sarangani host the Bancarera of Sarbay Festival.

In this year’s Bancarera: SarBay Edition, 48 banca racers from different regions across Mindanao tried to outpace each other to prove who is the fastest among them.

These racers came from the areas of Sta. Maria, Davao Del Sur; Davao Occidental; Glan, Sarangani; Maasim, Sarangani; Parang, Maguindanao; and Toril, Davao City.

Four buoys were placed in a semi-rectangular position in the sea about 500 meters apart to serve as the checkpoints for the race.

Although the guides were placed in that way, the sea circuit was traversed circularly three times by the racers in order for them to maximize the water drifts and glides of their bancas.

It took 12 elimination rounds before the final three was derived.

Some of the bancas malfunctioned during the race, leaving their sailors upset while floating aimlessly in the calm sea of Gumasa, waiting to be rescued either by the Philippine Coast Guard or by their fellow racers.

Those who were not able to rev up their engines before the race started were able to get a second chance from race officials of Bombo Radyo. Those who still failed in the second run were disqualified.

The race, especially during the last legs of the elimination round, was intense. People were cheering hard every time there is a dead heat between banca racers.

Crowd’s shrieks grew even louder when one racer overtakes another.

Jaire Jeopil of Davao Occidental described how intense the Bancarera: SarBay 2015 edition was.

“This Bancarera in Sarangani is very lively. There are a lot of people who witnessed it and we really enjoyed the race,” Jeopil said.

Yet at the end of the race, it was Federico Canoy of Barangay Colon, Maasim who was the fastest in this year’s Bancarera: SarBay 2015, finishing the race with a time of 3:39:08.

In the finals, Canoy raced closely against Sam Bastida of Sta. Maria, Davao Del Sur (3:45:54). Contender Joviro Veresraiz of Colon, Maasim had an engine malfunction during the second lap of their race.

Canoy grabbed the P40,000 cash prize while Bastida and Veresraiz earned P20,000 and P10,000, respectively.

Both Bombo Radyo Mindanao Area Head Ricky Collado and Bombo Radyo Gensan Station Manager Jonathan Macailing graced the Bancarera: SarBay 2015 Edition.

They thanked the crowd for witnessing the Bancarera: SarBay 2015 Edition and invited everyone to join again in the Bancarera this coming Tuna Festival of General Santos in September. Web updates powered by SMART. (Ian John Lagare for SARANGANI INFORMATION OFFICE)