(Amiga) Let's Play Road Rash Part 3
1EVENT OVERVIEW
Name: HKS Hill Climb
Location: Sierra Nevada, Plumas, California
Qualifying Level: 1
Distance: 5.6 miles (9.0 kilometers)
DESMO
Chapter 1 – Firmin & Haizea
To say that Sergio Hielo-Borrosa’s fascination with daredevilry was the product of his initiative, although a key factor, would be a shallow observation to make. Had it not been buttressed, chances were decent that it could have been just another phase. Looking at his family tree, his heritage is peppered with individuals who, on a cursory glance, behaved coquettishly around danger and taunted anyone who could provide it. Unsurprisingly, the two most influential forces which molded Sergio’s worldview were his parents: Firmin Hielo-Arkularia and Haizea Borrosa-Pregónes.
Around the town of Pamplona, the province of Navarre, and even the Iberian Peninsula, the Hielo and Arkularia families are legendary for their prowess in bullfighting. As graceful with their lances as they are with their capes, their reputations as master matadors effortlessly spread around Spain. Of course, technique alone was not what drew crowds to their fights. Rather, the juxtaposition of their battle scars with their suits of lights was what drew the most spectators. Like a splice of a circus freak, an acrobat, and a lion tamer, the epithets “ciego”, “gancho”, and “ipurdia” became nicknames of the performers who embraced them.
Born in 1927, Firmin was adamant in his desire to become a professional bullfighter ever since he was introduced to the prestige of his bloodline. His education in the family trade began when he innocently asked about why one of his uncles, Bartolomé Arkularia, wore an eyepatch during a Christmas dinner party in 1935. One retelling about the life and times of the Modern Polyphemus, his painful recovery from one of the family’s worst survivable gorings conspicuously expunged, was enough to entrance the malleable Firmin.
Despite a fluid transition into bullfighting, Firmin’s father was understandably leery towards his passion. After bombarding the young adult with gruesome tales of the arena’s gladiatorial side, he only found some success in convincing him to assist him at his job. Traveling throughout the countryside fixing tractors and farming equipment, he was as inculcated in the art of mechanics as he was with the culture of raising livestock. Try as his father did, it wasn’t enough to dissuade Firmin from abandoning his montera, becoming a rising star in Pamplona by the dawn of the ‘50s.
This career, as bright as its potential was, would grind to a screeching halt in 1954, when Firmin announced his retirement from the sport. Given his terse responses to questions regarding his decision, rumors rapidly spread to rationalize it. Broken ribs, the inescapable creep of his thirties, and the baggage of his aggressive style were just three of the possible explanations making the rounds. As it turned out, the last explanation was the closest to the truth, though it lacked an element integral towards Firmin’s announcement.
Said dimension was made public knowledge when he published a bombshell editorial for the Navarra Daily in 1977. As it turned out, Firmin grew to loathe bullfighting, ironically, because of the support of one intense fan. To hear such praise towards his ferocity and bloodlust, what he thought he mitigated in his performances, was enough to make him reconsider his red cape as a red flag. That fan’s name? Francisco Franco.
“Even after twenty-three years,” Firmin wrote, “the idea that I was an icon to that despot still makes me squirm. My qualms with Falangism aside, I couldn’t resist myself from remembering that my uncle [Bartolomé] was caught in a Nationalist ambush in 1937. Despite his efforts to avoid getting embroiled in the war, it wasn’t enough to stymy their misjudgment that he was a member of the Euzko Gudarostea. Needless to say, the Caudillo’s glowing praise was enough to pollute my understanding of the sport. What was once an art form I loved became, tragically, a symbol of Francoist nationalism I despised.”
Vehement in follow-up interviews that he never wanted to emulate Khrushchev’s Secret Speech, it became readily apparent as to why Firmin retired from public life. With the money he stashed away during his prime and his knowledge of vehicle repair, he decided to settle down and open a mechanic’s shop with his new wife. Sharing the scars of the tumult before them, it was hardly a surprise that Firmin found his soulmate in Haizea Borrosa-Pregónes.
Like if you enjoyed the video
Other Videos By Icicle158
Other Statistics
Road Rash Statistics For Icicle158
Currently, Icicle158 has 58,312 views for Road Rash across 86 videos. About 22 hours worth of Road Rash videos were uploaded to his channel, roughly 2.69% of the content that Icicle158 has uploaded to YouTube.