So some may be curious what we did when we were not racing. I just to break it out... there wasn't really anything special here.... no bar crawling, no fish'n chips, no museum visits, no downtown escapades, but there are a lot of standouts cannot be forgotten! Let me start with the unfortunate side and build it up to the brighter side, so here's it is.... Just take these 3 major things into account:
First, evenings in England is morning time in California. Besides yearning for a real 8-10 hour sleep and finding food was as important. Secondly, it was always cold and wet. The sun only shines when the obnoxious thick clouds gives her a chance and that's usually just a few minutes later in the afternoon. Third, the commute was always mystery and trying our best to safely navigate through foreign roads.
Here's our escape route from the hotel:
And loading up in to the mini-minivan!
During our daily commute back to the hotel, finding Asian restaurants or anything else is not as easy as in California... the 3rd hurdle. If you find one, parking is not a given. If you find a takeout place, you only get a baby fork if you ask for a "fork"… yes, it was tiny! Forget the napkins! You're not going to get those! They look at you strangely when you ask for these 2 things… it's a bloody "takeaway" for heaven's sake! But surprise.. your order comes with a fortune cookie!
Desperation growing, we found a couple of Chow Mein restaurants, first one was near Manchester University campus which was south of the Velodrome and a another one but a takeaway-only place which is a couple of miles west of the hotel in Hale. Add a couple of stops at 2 different McD's, the food place at Asda, and the cafeteria in the velodrome, and that was it! Yep, at least we did found find food within our budget!
Now, just because we had to treat ourselves sometime... we've got to find a Filipino Restaurant at some time right! The craving was somewhat building up, if you know what I mean!
Our taste buds were eager, we spent the time on different days driving about half an hour east to Ashton-under-Lynn to Cora's Restaurant, and … they were closed but "not" according to the internet! Talking about food problems!
But don't despair as we always endure the night for the hotel's breakfast. So here's the fortunate portion of this story... As I mentioned earlier, lunch and dinner is not too convenient for our taste buds but Chef Bhogs 'Banana' Alves, the hotel's chef at Marriott made our stay worthwhile.
Besides the hotel's breakfast buffet, he prepared lunch for us even a meal for the last night. Deo and I basically will have brunch when he is around. He would also chat with us when he frees up. Hotel chef he is, but he was a long time chef from different cruise liners. This man has traveled the world… amazing! Besides his friendliness, he is very proud of his restaurant staff.
I think he is an asset of the hotel. Beyond that, it was a treat because he also follow Philippine cycling and was very familiar with Deo's prime during the early 80's.
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It was a perk seeing my cousin Jason once again. He also brought cookies from Betty's, a must visit Tea House when you get a chance! My only regret was not getting a chance to talk to Dennis Ong of PCC-UK and Mikey Ramirez of FGL. Hopefully there's another chance.
Remember Mark Altamirano! He was Steve Pelaez's manager during 2008 UCI Track World Cup in Los Angeles. He competed also!
Naturally, we had some time to roam around the track, savor and soak all the prestige and history this building can offer. To get started, here's the front entrance to the velodrome..
Most of the days, we park and go through the back entrance. Here's the smiling Shoulin Mastah!
Look at these collections though UK's Track Cycling history!
Check out these pics from around the Velodrome: Here's the hallway to the different offices different from the offices around the lobby with Chris Hoy's picture on the wall.
Yes, the moment is yours upon entering the track through the infield.
Hopefully you've seen the pics I posted in Facebook while we were there. There are a few more, I just couldn't fit them most of them in this story. On top of that, There are many pics of UK's superstars to include Chris Boardman, Bradly Wiggins and Mark Cavendish to name a few. Here's Chris Hoy against SoCal's Jimmy Watkins...
If you recall, I mentioned in the previous chapter that Deo started to have symptoms of flu on the second day of racing. We were just fortunate that we had 2 days of rest in between. We don't realize having cold sweats and runny nose while in the velodrome but clears out a few minutes after we have left the building. My hunch could be the stagnant cold air.
Here's the view from atop turns 1/2..
At least we were feeling better and rested when we returned for his 3rd race. But I noticed the same symptoms back once again. I think we were just fortunate that the Finals of the Points Race was move to the schedule of Heat 1. Speaking of the bug floating around, there were 2 from his 3rd race that just crashed on their own rumored having the bug. Right off, once Deo was rested we jetted out of the Velodrome! I think I started feeling sick that day.
Recapping the event, here's the final results from 22 countries who participated with USA finishing 2nd place in the tally:
Special thanks to Mr. Ian Emmerson of UCI Cycling Masters, the staff of the National Cycling Centre who spearheaded and organized this successful event. Photo copied from their FB page.
Once again, we appreciate the fund raising effort made by Integrity Riderz Cycling Club and the structured training during Roger Young's sessions. Maggie Ethridge-Unero, Ron and Ada Garland, Chris Cruz, Tammy Aquino, Ryan and Brendon Dalrymple, Ashley Long, Christene Le, Kevin Cho, Jennifer Velasquez, Debbie Carroll, Army Luong, Joyce Guzman, Pat and Gloria Frey, Madonna Sikat, 4 anonymous donators. Peter Maharaj, Robert Herber Jr., Arland Macasieb, Alex Tellez, Louie Rivera, Al Villamil, Shon Halasi, Gibby Hatton, Bill Ron, Bong Toralba, and George Eugenio and most of all Deo's family Diana, Eugene, and Alvin for all the support we received.
Deo Asuncion's Race Results:
Day 1: October 4, 2014 Saturday - afternoon session only 2:00 pm - 7:45 pm
30-lap Scratch Race - 12th place out of 24 participants
Day 2: October 5, 2014 Sunday afternoon session
500 meter Individual Time Trial - 20th place out of 29 participants
Day 5: October 8, 2014 Wednesday morning session
60-lap Points Race (points every 10 laps) - 9th place out of 22 participants
Day 7: October 10, 2014 Friday morning session
Team Sprints (45-54 age group) with Robert Cormin of NorCal, Alphonso Whaley of Texas. Team Texie Cali USA - 5th place out of 10 teams.
It was also a pleasure to race and rub shoulders with local friends at this big event: Jim and Carol Kloss, Robert and Rebecca Pelegrin, Mike Birditt, and Kurt Sato, Jay Wolkoff, Coach Travis Smith, and Coach Andy Lakatosh. A few coming home as World Champions and World Record Holders. Congratulations!
For complete results, please refer to 2014 Masters Track Cycling World Championships Results
What's next? Let's get Wilson Blas to have a chance at next year's World Championship Jersey! But, shhhh... keep it low... Deo is not done yet!
Coach/Manager Arden Arindaeng
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