There's also a lot of hard work that came from Cesar (carpenter) and Carlo (finishing carpenter) for their expertise in carpentry and painting, and to Larry (welder) for the metal works that supports all the angled surface of the track itself.
Eclipse Mini Drome PH is a scaled-down velodrome track. This was a 2-year project in the making founded by Mr. Bustamante building ideas from different minidromes constructed in the United States and in Europe. Especially Red Bull Mini Dromes which hosted races from different parts of the world.
Jay started riding flat tracks around 1975 and later won a few races in his age category. Unfortunately, he later shifted to another sport since he was disgusted seeing a coach disrespect their athletes. A few years after, he was in elation when he learned that Amoranto Velodrome was being built. He took the chance to ride the track when the Philippine Cycling Team were not training. He just feels bad that the velodrome is not mainly used for what it is intended for anymore. And as we all know that there’s no suitable schedule for cyclists to ride the track yet alone to ride fast safely. Because of his experiences, he thought of starting to build a minidrome in 2014 for the cyclists and for the next generations to come. As this turns out, this is new facet of Pinoy cycling and the first scaled-down velodrome in the country. For starters, the foundations of the track being needs to be assembled as you can see from the couple of pictures.
The construction of Eclipse Mini Drome PH was the biggest obstacle that they faced because of the limited budget they were able to gather. As shown below, pre-renovations were needed to make enough space for the concrete base and the track. Materials were gathered one at a time until they completed the steel frames needed to erect the track.
The track is measured at 34.5 meters at the black line and 42°steep at the apex of both turns. It is about 10 meters longer than Red Bull Mini Drome and about a tenth smaller than Amoranto Stadium’s 400 meter track. So far the expense of building the track costed about more or less half a million Pesos with more facility improvements in the plan.
It took them 3 months to completely erect the track while avoiding inclement weather. And finally, Jay was so pleased to be the first person to test ride the track. This is to make sure it is safe and sound. He was so elated to have the track surface completed despite the time, money, and effort everyone in the group gave. He also realized that the way to ride it to navigate the turns at the right pace as speed was not the factor.
It was about the later part of April 2016 when they started to have friends test ride the track knowing that there’s still a lot of work to be done. Their friends realized that they needed to be introduced to the minidrome. The nervousness from a few cyclists were obvious as others learned it easily. Here you can see a few invited friends trying out the track for the first time.
Here's 11 yr old Franco Esculer trying out the track for his first time.
And here's our first female rider Jia Gold Bustamante testing out the track with the close attention from his father Jay.
Since it’s an outdoor minidrome, they can only allow rides only during favorable weather. The staff stops the rides with just a hint of rain drops since the surface becomes slippery and unrideable. This is a good reason why they are looking into adding a roof to protect the facility to prolong its life and for everyone to enjoy at any given weather.
And here's Japo Parcero, the second female rider to ride the track.
The staff performs daily checks and maintenance of the track and the whole facility. Repairs and repainting are planned to be done while the damage is still small and to preserve the facilities. In addition, the funds collected from sponsorships will be used for the overall maintenance and management of the facilities.
For the meantime, they are allowing appointments to view and test ride the track only. Coaching is currently free and provided by Director Jay Bustamante, Mr. Jake Bustamante, Mr. Jason Bustamante, and Mr. Raul Tiolengco. The map below shows where you can find the Eclipse Mini Drome PH with an address of: #2 Jewel Street, Foresthill Subdivision, Novaliches, Quezon City.
There’s VIP lounge being constructed for members to use while the facility is open. It also includes rollers, WiFi, and shower room. The owners and staff of the minidrome reiterates a few simple rules if they want to use the facilities: helmets must be worn properly and no slippers allowed while riding. Smoking, drugs, alcohol, and spitting inside the premises are strictly prohibited. No one is allowed in the facility if under the influence of drugs and alcohol. All tires needs to be cleaned before riding the track.
Here are Santa Ana and Novaliches groups trying out the track for the first time.
You can check Eclipse Mini Drome PH at their Facebook Group or Facebook Page .You can also contact Jay Bustamante at cellphone #: 0920-223-7777 SMART or 0933-596-3178 SUN.
Let’s all hope that Eclipse Mini Drome PH can officially open sometime next year for the big inaugural day.
Thank you Precy, Marlon, Jairish, Cesar, Carlo, Raul, especially to Jason, Jay and Jake Bustamante for allowing me to tell everyone the story of their creation.
Arden Arindaeng
