For a guy who works in the Travel Industry, I hardly do any full-scale flying. Naturally, its hard to forget the circumstances that led to my first plane ride - which was also the first time I landed in Boracay.
It was in November 1997 when I was invited by Robert Mamonluk to do some flying with him at Hacienda Luisita, Tarlac. I didn’t know anyone from the area, but I was eager to do some flying with my glider. So off we went.
There are two incidents which I would refer to as my best flights ever with a glider, for no other reason that I enjoyed myself immensely: the more memorable of the two was my longest flight. It was at Timog Park Phase 4, Angeles City. I don’t recall the specific date, but I do remember that this was pre-Kamikaze Airfield days. Vista Real was in danger of being lost, and Omni Aviation was getting a bit crowded (due to increasing numbers of drag racers, sky divers, PAL pilot trainees, etc). So I offered use of an empty five hectare lot to fellow flyers. So for a while, this was our flying field - fondly remembered as “Rancho ni Juancho”.
I began my adventures into radio controlled flight in February of 1997. I had lost contact with all of the old hobby shops I once knew. Most had already closed down. Desperate to build planes, I went to Polymer Philippines to take lessons in fiberglass construction methods. It was there, that the instructor had directed me to one local hobby shop which he said, was still in business. I was advised to visit NGISEDIBO, which was situated at Mapua Highschool.
It was there that I first met fellows & mentors like Anthony Ballesteros & Obi Mapua. These two gentlemen asked me what my interests were, and cheerfully gave me advice about any aspect of flying that I showed interest in. They were to become dear friends in the years to follow.