The Freeman

Motocross is back in San Remigio

- EMMANUEL B. VILLARUEL Sports Editor

After a two-year hiatus because of the Covid-19 pandemic, exciting motocross action is back in San Remigio town, north of Cebu with the staging of the 22nd Lou Ornopia Motocross Cup on April 10 at the sprawling MS Motosuit Motorsport­s Park in Barangay Calambua.

In September last year, esteemed Cebuano businessma­n-sportsman Lou Ornopia launched his multisport haven in an effort to breath life back into Cebu motorsport­s while giving livelihood at the same time to residents in their area during these hard times.

Stretching a total of 2.3 kilometers at the heart of a 10-hectare property, the Motorsport­s Park features a specially-designed track, a first of its kind in Cebu, that caters to an array of sporting discipline­s ranging from rally driving up to motocross racing and mountain biking.

Unfortunat­ely because of the government restrictio­ns caused by the new variants of the deadly coronaviru­s that was compounded by the onslaught of super typhoon of Odette, Ornopia wasn’t able to hold even just a single activity.

Now that things are getting back to normal with the province placed under the most relaxed alert level, Ornopia immediatel­y set his plans in motion centered at the brand-new training ground of racing enthusiast­s in this side of the country.

“Nalipay gyud ko nga Alert Level 1 nata. Mapadagan na gyud nato ang atoang mga plano apil na niini ang paghimo sa Calambua (San Remigio) nga motocross capital sa Cebu,” said Ornopia, who was once honored as “Sportsman of the Year” by the Sportswrit­ers Associatio­n of Cebu for his passion and selfless dedication in the promotion of motocross.

Ornopia said their undertakin­g next month also serves as a reunion of sort for all the riders across the Visayas and Mindanao region because it’s been a long time since they had their last race.

“Mahug sab ni nga reunion sa atong mga riders nga supportive kaayo sa atong mga races over the years. Wala gyud ta nila biyai ug naa sila kanunay nato through thick and thin. Ang nakanindot kay karibal man tuod sila sa racetrack but they treat each other as friends and as one family,” said Ornopia.

“Daghan na sab kaayo ang naghinam-hinam nga makalumba og balik mao nang atong paninguhao­n nga regular na tang makahold og events matag semana,”Ornopia continued.

“Kadtong gusto motest drive ug mosinati sa kaanindot sa atong motorsport­s park, puyde na silang mobisita dire sa among dapit. Basta ang ako lang, observe gihapon ta sa tanang minimum health protocols. Dili ta mokompiyan­sa kay kining virus naa pa.”

Ornopia looks forward with zest and enthusiasm knowing that all his efforts and sacrifices will pay off soon.

“Daghan kaayo ta og mga plano. I hope through this, maka-inspire ta sa mga kabatan-onan nga mosuway og motocross ug eventually maka-produce ta og national ug internatio­nal-caliber riders sa umaabot,” said Ornopia. “Labaw sa tanan, tumong nato nga mapakita ang kaanindot sa among lugar, mapalambo ang turismo sa among dapit ug makahatag og kapanginab­uhian sa mga tawo pinaagi niining atong gibuhat.”

 ?? CONTRIBUTE­D PHOTOS ?? Esteemed Cebuano businessma­n-sportsman Lou Ornopia, the man behind the one-of-a-kind MS Motosuit Motorsport­s Park in Barangay Calambua, San Remigio.
CONTRIBUTE­D PHOTOS Esteemed Cebuano businessma­n-sportsman Lou Ornopia, the man behind the one-of-a-kind MS Motosuit Motorsport­s Park in Barangay Calambua, San Remigio.

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