Participants in the Bigiw Bugsay 2017 compete along the Tañon Strait in Moalboal town, south western Cebu.
CDN PHOTO/James Savellon
The Bigiw Bugsay 2017 held at the Moalboal Seaside Park in Moalboal town, southwestern Cebu last week may have ended but organizers are looking to do more to promote watersports and the sea.
Buzzy Budlong, Island Buzz Philippines president and organizer of the competition, said he envisions bigiw paddling and sailing as an avenue for people to explore the “beauty of the islands” along Tañon Strait, a 161-kilometer strip that connects the Visayan and Bohol Seas.
He also said his group has plans to pursue a school for training different watersports. This plan will involve local fisherfolk, including Negros-based individuals. He said by training them, they can be instructors themselves.
“The dream is like I am looking for a place like this where people from all walks of life can come and enjoy the sea using the bigiw, the paddle board, the free-energy sports,” said Budlong. “We can easily gather thousands of bigiw for an activity.”
The competition last weekend was successful as it gathered 50 paddlers from different parts of Cebu, mostly from the coastal town of Moalboal. The event served as a tribute to the traditional Visayan sailing and paddling culture. The bigiw is a traditional dugout outrigger sailing canoe which for generations has been used by fishermen.
“[The event] was a big eye opener for everyone. These people here, if you look at them, based on the data that we gathered, they have 45 years of (sailing) experience,” Budlong added.
Meanwhile, Oceana Philippines campaigns head Danny Ocampo said that their partnership with Island Buzz Philippines was also for the preservation of the Tañon Strait.
He said enforcement activities are ongoing to ensure the stoppage of illegal fishing.
“We’re working with them to promote the conservation and protection of the Tañon Strait, because most of those who joined are also fishermen.”
The Tañon Strait is rich in biodiversity as it hosts 62 percent of the country’s coral species and 14 species of whales and dolphins.
“If we continue protecting our oceans, it will provide us limitless supply of food for the future generations,” Ocampo added.