Salesman Days

 

We were young then, and we had unbelievable endurance against body-beating restless travels across Mindanao. During those days, I was keeping a 3x5 inches notebook, jotting my thoughts, describing the details and experiences of those endless travels. My skills in driving were just a mediocre then, so I thought I could harness both skills in writing at the same time improve my driving also. 

On those relentless travels, books were my priceless companions to cure boredom and sleepiness. Hours of travel by land took its toll on our minds and bodies. We were just two in the vehicle, alternately taking possession of the drive wheel, to give each other the needed rest, but for me, I devoted those times on my obsession of reading good books on varied topics. Books acquired at cheaper prices, during occasional stop-over on cities like Cagayan De Oro, Iligan and Zamboanga. Book sales were still unusual during those days, second-hand literatures but purely original works. I was conspicuous on selecting books with paperback reviews, with these marks: National Bestseller, Medallion Book Selections of the Month, New York Times Bestseller, Newsweeks Book Selection Bestseller.

Prices of diesel fuel then were just fifty percent way below the current selling price these days. Our gas filling at a meager budget of P1,000 could allow us to reach CDO from Tagum then, by using Davao-Bukidnon route. Coupled with the low selling price of fuel was the optimal efficiency performance of the Mitsubishi L300 engine, the FB Van Model was very familiar during those days

For long-distance travel, we prefer to use tires with interior tubes rather than tubeless. Tubeless tires can be changed only using pneumatic tire changers, and commonly found in urban centers only. Unlike tires with tubes, it can be repaired easily on those crude and primitive vulcanizing shops, dotting along the way. Changing of flat tires in the middle of remote and unpaved roads in Bukidnon was not uncommon for many motorists. In the middle of that wilderness, countless times, we give other motorists a helping hand in fixing their problems of flat tires. Mostly inept executives in their suit and tie, those typical drug agents braving through those unpaved dirt roads of Quezon, Maramag and Marilog areas and mindlessly drove their light vehicles on  those rough roads, exploding its tires and hydraulic shocks, and it misaligned their cars’ wheel balances and torsion suspensions. Brilliant sales reps who forgot to bring their car tools, their croc jacks and tirings, we had made friends with them after we helped them with those odds.

We had learned that during the 70’s, the route of going to CDO from Davao City was by going through Kabacan, North Cotabato, crossing over the bridge in Pulangi River, reaching Carmen, then Wao, Kibawi and then Maramag of Quezon, Bukidnon. The distance of such travel was almost similar if not longer to the Davao-Agusan-Misamis route. 

I surmised that the Davao-Bukidnon-Misamis route was built only during the early 80s, cutting the trip of going to CDO from Davao City to almost half of the travel time required for Davao-Cotabato-Bukidnon route of the 70s. It was in the later part of 1990s that another route was opened for motorists, the Kapalong-Talaingod-San Fernando, Bukidnon route. My cousins had used this new route, riding on their 110cc Honda XRM from Sto. Tomas, Davao del Norte to San Fernando, Bukidnon, they reported that they had completed the ride by 3hours only! I still need to prove their claim on that. In Salawao, a barangay of Talaingod, I reached the place and saw the landmark stating San Fernando was just 40km away from Salawao. In fact, there are a number of entrepreneurs from Valencia City, Bukidnon regularly plying the route, delivering their bakery products to retail stores in Sto. Nino, Talaingod.

I lost my notes on those travels. But the memories are still with me. Before I would loss them through old age, I’ve decided to transcribe it here and keep sharing them to anyone.