It is confirmed! Dumaguete reigns supreme in mountain biking.
Feared from Batanes to Sarangani, it was a tremendous sweep of the gold medals by Dumaguete riders: Eleazar JR Barba winning in the Elite category, Wendell “Wangyu” Barba winning in the Masters category, Gwen Hannah Barba winning in the Women Junior category, with her younger sister Alexa Barba taking the silver; and Meleochim Vincoy Catalbas of Valencia winning in the Men’s Junior category during the recently-concluded Philippine National Trials for Downhill Mountain Biking held in Danao, Cebu — proving that the legend is true.
The event in Danao was no ordinary competition. It was the end of the year national championships bringing together the outstanding downhill riders from all over the Philippines.
The winners in the different categories carry the honor of becoming Philippine National Champion, and the winner of the Elite category gets to take the lead of the Philippine Downhill Team in the year 2022.
This Philippine National Trials in Downhill MTB is about a sport that has a growing following around the world. It was only in 1990 when it was recognized by the Union Cyclist International (UCI), the worldwide governing body of all cycling disciplines. Today, it is enjoyed by both athletes and enthusiasts throughout the world, with amateur and professional competition, giving it a prestigious status among the various cycling disciplines.
Like many competitive sports, cycling has many disciplines. Each discipline requires a particular type of bike, and riding terrain. To name a few, there is the classic Road Racing discipline, most famously associated with the Tour de France whose cyclists use the light thin “racer” bikes.
There is also the BMX (bicycle motocross) Racing discipline that is held on specially-built tracks to accommodate the smaller bikes.
Then there is Mountain Bike Racing, held in two UCI- sanctioned disciplines — cross-country and downhill. The bikes for both MTB disciplines are similar with the wide tires and suspension forks, but to the aficionados, there is significant difference between these two disciplines. 
Cross-country races begin with all riders going off together, pedaling up and down through the countryside, with the first one who reaches the finish line declared the winner.
Downhill MTB Racing, the beast of the family, begins high up on a mountain, with the riders released with their bikes one at a time, to ride straight down. Pulled by the force of gravity on steep descents, they barrel down between trees, over rocks, and constructed jumps, unleashing speeds up to 60kph. These fearless racers throw all caution to the wind as they race the clock to reach the finish line down below. The rider with the shortest elapsed time wins.
One would imagine that the country’s powerhouse in downhill racing would be riders based around Baguio where the mighty Cordillera mountain range towers higher than 2,900 meters above sea level; or perhaps around Davao where the country’s highest peak at 2,954 meters stands tall.
But such is not the case. The powerhouse of downhill MTB racing is composed of Dumaguete-homegrown kids, now the country’s highly-skilled local cycling talents, who prefer to train right here in Negros Oriental, nestled below the Cuernos de Negros mountain range.
What’s remarkable about this feat of success is that the constellation of star riders all lead back to one surname, Barba, who grew up and were raised in barangay Batinguel.
The name ‘Barba’ has sent fear and trembling through the competitive downhill mountain bike scene for the past many years as they have been a formidable ‘force of three’.
Like the Three Musketeers, the battles these three young Barba athletes take on have been, more often, victorious. The eldest, Wendell Barba, popularly known as Wangyu, has been making a huge impact on the downhill racing scene since the early part of 2002.
His success excited younger cousin Joey Barba, who had the opportunity to demonstrate his exceptional skills at the 2007 Southeast Asian Games, and eventually brought home the country’s first-ever downhill MTB gold medal.
The gold earned by Joey Barba inspired Eleazar JR Barba to improve on his skills as well. JR was being groomed by his mentor, older brother Wangyu, to assume the throne of Philippine National Champion.
By 2013, JR Barba achieved what he worked so hard for, winning gold at the Philippine National Downhill Championships — after winning the Philippine Downhill Series for two consecutive years.
Living the dangerous life of downhill racing, JR has been plagued with his share of injuries that have led to periods of recess from competition. But he remains unfazed. “It comes with the territory. If you have not yet fallen down your bike, maybe you have not really pushed yourself to your limits,” he said in the vernacular.
In 2018, the opportunity for the SEA Games honor arrived for JR Barba. But a split-second slip off the pedal at 52 kph caused him to swerve, and cost him the gold. Imagine how a fraction of a second can take away the dream. Being the fighter that he is, JR pushed more fiercely to make up for the mishap, and brought us all pride by bringing home to Dumaguete the SEA Games silver medal.
Downhill MTB is not a sport for the faint-hearted; it is feared by many bikers who realize it is more difficult to execute than it looks.
Wendell and JR have since turned their home compound in Batinguel into a “cycling center” which includes a bike shop that is always buzzing with different levels of riders and all sorts of bikes.
Wangyu, recognized by the close-knit biking community as a highly-competent and highly-skilled engineer on bike technology, makes time to work on the repairs, and give you advice on every aspect of the mountain bike.
His brother JR brought his actual mountain experience right in their backyard, creating a “bike park” in their garden.
All roads and trails lead to this compound of the Barba family where biking enthusiasts and serious bikers know they can have their bike quirks expertly repaired; get their equipment upgraded; get to practice the hills and twists and turns; get to be coached by the country’s best; or just to hang out, and feel the MTB vibe while sipping coffee and ‘talking bike’.
All these may be the secret to the success of Dumaguete in the National Trials held recently.
Wendell is now encouraging, and guiding his two daughters into the sport, keeping their bikes in perfect condition, and mentoring them for competition. JR, meanwhile, is constructing new obstacles and trails to improve the needed skills in the backyard and in the mountains, offering his knowledge, and most importantly, his inspiration as a champion that delivers the message — we can win if we work hard for it!
On a final note, after coming up close and personal with these amazing local athletes, it is just heart-breaking to witness the lack of support given for their sheer physical skills and talent, and their potential to the country for which they bring pride and prestige.
Through the years, this Barba family of mountain bikers had to reluctantly knock on the doors of philanthropists and business enterprises to seek help for their craft. In good times, help may be available; in bad times abandonment comes easy.
We have tremendous athletes all around us; this is a call on their behalf for a supportive heart. We can contribute for the welfare of our athletes who do work hard. We can support their small businesses. We can give them the dignified life they deserve, as they risk their lives to dignify ours.
Congratulations to our new Philippine downhill champions. Their exceptional accomplishment is our pride as Dumagueteños. (Santiago Las Palmas)
