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What is enduro? Enduro is a form of off-road motocross in which scores are determined not by who crosses a finish line first, but by who arrives at predetermined checkpoints on schedule. The route,generally 30 to 50 kilometers in length, includes obstacles such as slopes, stone paths, rivers, and woods.In advance of the run, more than 15 organizers plot a course for the drivers to follow and determine arrival times at each location.

The object of the event is to reach these destinations exactly on schedule; early or late arrivals result in penalties. According to David Ortiz García, head of the National Commission of Enduro, the main difference between Enduro and a typical motocross race is that motocross is run in a closed circuit of about 800 meters, whereas enduro cyclists ride about 240 kilometers on a trip that is divided into different stages. As its name implies, enduro is not a test of speed but rather of long-distance endurance.

Enduro has existed in Mexico since the 1960s, when a group of drivers started organizing races on the outskirts of Mexico City in such areas as Ajusco and La Marquesa. Once the number of competitors increased, the organizers approached the Federación Mexicana de Motociclismo (Mexican Motorcycling Federation) to form the National Commission of Enduro in 1977. Currently there are enduro motorcycle clubs in more than 15 states in Mexico, and more than 350 drivers participate in national enduro championships.

Enduro in San Miguel

The 13th and 14th stages of the 2008 Enduro Championship were organized in San Miguel by the civil association Hijos de Allende, a group of sanmiguelenses headed by Pavel Hernández whose objective is to promote sports in San Miguel de Allende through national and international events that generate income for the city.

“This is not the first event we have organized,” said Hernández. “We have organized other motocross competitions but they were only a quarter of the size of the Enduro Championship. This is our biggest event so far.”

Ortiz García said, “We are trying to promote this sport in a more public way, since it used to be more private. San Miguel, besides being a World Heritage site, is a well-known city, a pueblo mágico, which attracts the interest of national and foreign motocross riders, of the media and of the whole country.” Ortiz added that San Miguel is the third city in Guanajuato to host the event this year. “We have also run it in Guanajuato and Moroleón,” he said.

Ortiz García said that he is expecting more than 300 drivers for the San Miguel leg of the championship, including international champions such as Mauricio Carminati, from Italy, and Alejandro Sánchez Aldana, 10-time Mexican national champion and four-time Latin American champion. “José Luis Pérez “El Pájaro,” the 2007 national champion, will also be here,” he announced. 

Ortiz García added that the competition includes a children’s category and that the public can see the drivers in the Jardín on Saturday, August 23, at 11am. The contestants will begin a slow ride through the streets en route to the meeting point at kilometer 9 on the road to Celaya. Food, refreshments and music will be served on both Saturday and Sunday at this meeting point.

Important income for the city

Cristóbal Finkelstein said that the local government supports such events, which can bring income to the city. “We must be open to other kinds of tourism, not just traditional cultural tourism.

Sports tourism is a popular draw, and San Miguel, besides being a cultural site, has a landscape appropriate to adventure tourism.”

Finkelstein said that according to registrations from previous races about 300 drivers participate, and they bring their families and mechanics. “At least two or three people come with each driver, so at least 250 hotel rooms will be booked in one weekend.”

José Luis Pérez “El Pájaro”

José Luis Pérez, known as “El Pájaro,” was the winner of the 2007 National Enduro Championship. El Pájaro, born in the state of Mexico, said that motorcycles are a family tradition. “My father was also a cyclist and he introduced me to this world. I began riding a motorcycle when I was five years old. Because money got tight, when I was 12, I had to give up the motorcycle but I began riding bicycles, which was cheaper.

I won seven national mountain bike championships and a silver medal in the Pan-American games. Thanks to the experience I got from riding bikes I have better control of the motorcycle.”

El Pájaro said that to be a champion one has to train a lot and have a lot of experience. 

“We have to be in good physical condition and to have the intelligence not to lose concentration during a long race.” In the current championship, El Pájaro is in second place, four points behind the first-place driver, Homero Díaz.

Schedule

Fri, Aug 22
Cyclists arrive in San Miguel
5pm: Motorcycle reception at the Jardín
9pm: Meeting of drivers at Teatro Ángela Peralta
11pm: Welcome party


Saturday, August 23
10am: Commemorative photo, Jardín
11am: Beginning of the race, Jardín
All day: Races, music, food and drinks at the meeting point, kilometer 9, road to Celaya


Sunday, August 24
All day: Races, music, food and drinks at the meeting point, kilometer 9, road to Celaya
Races end at 5pm

A chat with Chilo, local artisan, singer and composer
By Jesús Ibarra

Cecilio Hernández, known as Chilo, is a colorful character in San Miguel. An artisan, musician and composer, Chilo cheerfully performs his cumbia music in his own very special way. Some of his songs are references to life in San Miguel, such as “La cumbia de los Locos” and “La cabina de Don PP” (Don PP’s Cabin), composed as an homage to Don Manuel Zavala PPKBZON, the late radio announcer from local station Radio San Miguel.

Chilo talked about his work and music with Atención’s Jesús Ibarra.

Jesús Ibarra: How long have you been working as an artisan?

Chilo: I have worked in arts and crafts for more than 45 years.

JI: Is it a family tradition?

CH: No. I learned the job from an artisan, Lucio, who worked for Leonardo and Eleuterio Llamas. 

JI: I notice that your work is very elaborate, different from other styles here in San Miguel.

CH: It is very important for artisans in San Miguel to be constantly innovating; if there is no innovation, you will be out of the market. Ninety percent of my work is of my own design, as well as the client’s. I exchange ideas with my clients and that has helped me a lot in my work. Every week for the last seven or eight years I have created one or two new pieces. My store is called Artesanías Los Botes because 30 years ago I used to make about 5,000 botes (tin baskets) a week. But today it is not a very good business. The cost of material has increased a lot, and the price of the botes is too low.

JI: Is the situation difficult for artisans in San Miguel?

CH: Yes, indeed. It is very, very difficult. 

JI: The fact that San Miguel is a tourist city does not help?

CH: I am three blocks away from the centro, and tourists do not come to my store. The Mercado de Artesanías (arts and crafts market) is visited by tourists, as well as stores downtown, but for shops like mine, which are outside centro, it is more difficult. I subsist because of my repeat clients. I am a known artisan in the city, yet I have money problems week after week. Long ago I was president of the artisans’ association in San Miguel, and our goal was to make handicrafts a good source of jobs in San Miguel. We achieved that goal for awhile, but today the situation has changed. I would like the authorities to pay more attention to the artisans and really support us. It is said that they support us with assistance and training, but most of the time these are only words.

I was one of the founders of the Feria de la Lana y el Latón (Wool and Brass Fair), and it is still a good option for selling, but it is held only in November, and we eat the whole year.

Most of the artisans in San Miguel are excellent, but they lack creativity. Some do not want to innovate because they do not have money to invest in new materials.

JI: What materials do you use for your work?

CH: Most of my work is made of tin, but currently I am introducing brass, copper and alpaca. A kilo of tin costs 18 pesos; alpaca, 180; copper, 150 and brass, 140.

JI: To talk about your other work, when did you begin playing music?

CH: Well, music is not a job for me; it is part of my life. It is what gives me the energy I have all the time. I started with music in 1995.

JI: Why did you decide to make music?

CH: I became fond of music because of my stepfather, who was Hilario from the trio Los Tres Compadres, together with Che-Che and Antonio. He died in Canada, where Los Tres Compadres were taken by a man named Paulo. Since that time I have been fond of music. I was in Mexico City for a period of time in the 1970s and was even the assistant for a musical group.

JI: What is the name of your group?

CH: Chilo’s. It is made up of La Tila on drums; Rolando on percussion; Roberto on bass and César on guitar. We were invited to perform this Monday, August 25, at 7pm at Teatro Ángela Peralta, during the tribute to Don Manuel Zavala commemorating the forty-seventh anniversary of Radio San Miguel.

JI: When did you begin composing?

CH: It was eight years ago. I have composed several songs, such as “La cabina de Don Pepe” (Don PP’s cabin), “La cumbia de los Locos,” “El corrido de los albañiles” and “Lluvia de estrellas.” I composed “La cumbia del zapato” (Shoe Cumbia) for a competition in Valle del Maíz and I won first prize. 

JI: Do you write your songs specifically to be representative of San Miguel’s traditions?

CH: Not specifically. My songs are inside of me, and some of them are about San Miguel because I was born here and I like my town. I had wanted to compose something for Don Manuel Zavala for a long time, but I couldn’t. When he died, I couldn’t compose anything in tribute at first. I wrote “Don PP’s Cabin” more than a year after his death. He was a very dear person in San Miguel; he always gave me his support, so the song I composed for him came from inside. He is still with us. That was what I felt when I went to the radio station—that he was still there.

Chilo can be reached at his store Artesanías Los Botes at Prolongación Calzada de la Luz 51-B, near the corner of Hernández Macías.

The Group of Firefighters of San Miguel de Allende celebrate 25 years
By Ivette G. Cruz Lugo

We feel so small and helpless when we confront natural disasters, mainly when we are not prepared to solve those situations that put our life in danger. It is in these moments, when we think of the people who help us during floods, of those who put out the flames during a fire or even free us from bent iron in car accidents; but we almost never think of the risks these men and women take each time they answer our emergency calls.

This September 11, the Group of Firefighters of San Miguel celebrates its 25 years of service to the San Miguel community and other nearby cities, saving the lives and heritage of nationals and foreigners without distinction.

Recognition

When it seems that we are living in times during which very little has meaning, we learn about the under appreciated job of the firefighters, men and women, who without self-interest, risk their lives to save ours. This is the case of documentary “25 Years of Voluntary Service,” which was produced by the students of the Department of Communication of the University of León, in San Miguel.

This deserved audiovisual acknowledgement was presented to the public last August 16, at Teatro Santa Ana, with the presence of the Group of Firefighters of San Miguel de Allende, educative municipal authorities and media, who enjoyed a professional investigative work which gathered testimonies, images, and videos, and witnessed the rescue and saving labor of the Group of Firefighters of San Miguel de Allende.

Future events

Friday, August 22 (The Day of the Firefighter), the Group of Firefighters will begin celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary with a mass at the Parroquia, thanking God for the protection and benefits received during the performance of their job, and asking for the eternal rest of those companions who have passed away.

On September 11, a series of conferences entitled “Escuela Segura” (Safe School) are being held in different elementary and high schools and in the evening, there is a commemorative ceremony and concert for the anniversary of the Group and an acknowledgement to the dedicated labor of the firefighters who died in service during the tragedy of September 11 in the United States.

This event is at the esplanade in front of the Parroquia; with candles, everyone will observe a minute of silence before a prayer led by several representatives of religious communities, to honor the firefighters that have passed away.

On September 12, there will be more “Safe School” conferences in the morning, and in the evening the exhibition of the movie El Bombero Atómico (The Atomic Firefighter) with “Cantinflas” in the Jardín’s esplanade. A parade of local firefighters and other invited firefighters takes place on Sunday, September 14, through the main streets of San Miguel.

The date of a new exhibition of the documentary by the UDL students will also be announced.


Schedule
Events from the Group of Firefighters

August 22
Mass at the Parroquia

September 11
Ceremony and concert
Jardín
Time to be announced

September 12
Movie
El Bombero Atómico
Cantinflas
Jardín
Time to be announced

September 14
Firefighters’ parade
Main streets
Time to be announced

Atención will update readers with all times for events in a future issue.