A black-painted helmet mounted on a concrete post, a plaque that reads "Bursts to the sky," and often flowers on the ground. In the Bazal viewpoint, this picture surprises motorists who descend from Monforte to Os Peares on the N-120. Is what it seems. A homemade tribute to bikers killed in traffic accidents. To all and to no one in particular. It was devised in the summer of 2014 by a group of motorcycle fans from O Barco. And in just over a year it has become a true benchmark thanks to word of mouth and the Internet. "Since the photos of this monument have been circulating around, there have already been five more in different parts of Spain, the last one in Asturias and practically the same as this one," says Javier Guerrero, a member of the Balas Rasas biker group from O Barco.
Actually, the members of Balas Rasas did have someone in mind when they improvised this tribute. It was ten years since the death of one of her friends in a traffic accident. His family had chosen to spread his ashes this viewpoint of the N-120 over the Miño River, in the Lugo municipality of Pantón. At that time, the curves of the slope between Alto de Guítara and Os Peares were every weekend a meeting point for dozens of bikers from all over Galicia. They and their friend were also coming, so the family decided that their ashes might well rest there.
They didn't want names
In the viewpoint there is a cement marker placed by the Ministry of Public Works in the mid-nineties, when the construction works for this race were completed, which significantly shortened the route between Monforte and Ourense. They took advantage of that post as a support and placed a helmet on top. They did not want to put any name on the plate. The family of his deceased friend asked them to avoid spreading his identity, so they opted to engrave on the plate "Bursts to the sky", a reference to the traditional greeting between motorists based on flashes with the headlights. The tribute thus transcended the personal to gain symbolism and now it is rare on the weekend that someone does not come to the viewpoint to leave a bouquet of flowers.
Vandalism
That first helmet barely lasted a week. He was stolen in what the promoters interpreted as a hooliganism. They came back and put a better tie down, which is the one you can see now.The bikers fear that the Ministry of Development will decide any day that it does not have to be there and will order its withdrawal from the company that is in charge of maintaining this section of the N-120. For this reason, another group of fans has activated an Internet campaign. "We want the ministry to authorize it," sums up Marcelo Silvera, a biker from Vigo and a member of Stop Guardaraíles, the platform that calls for the replacement of dangerous biondas with safer ones.
More than 2,300 signatures
Powered by the change.org web platform, the campaign has more than 2,300 signatures but has not yet produced results. Its promoters have addressed the ministry on several occasions, without obtaining a response. But they do not give up their efforts and already have plans for the day after Fomento guarantees that the monument will continue there. "The Galician motorcycle club association - explains Marcelo Silvera - has already decided to fix it by putting a helmet in condition and a small fence so that people do not step on it."In 2014, 169 motorists died in traffic accidents in Spain, 22 less than the previous year. Motorcycle fans are calling for the removal of all conventional guardrails from the road and their replacement with a different model, without sharp edges and tested to withstand impacts of up to seventy kilometers per hour.
In that same place, the ashes of a deceased fan were scattered ten years agoThe viewpoint has become a pilgrimage point for friends and family.
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