The team of Alicia Ultra on Bohol island produced a successful first edition last Sunday and gave us a nice introduction to some new names in the southern Filipino trail world. The ondulating 50km ATM Candidate Race was won by Candelario Logrono and Kathleen Ligan in the men’s and women’s categories, respectively. Logrono completed the scenic and mostly runable course in 6h23, twelve minutes faster than Andy Toniacao. Joliemar Aquino completed the podium in third. Kathleen Ligan was clearly the fastest woman in 8h56. Jessie Ejoc and Sharon Torres joined her on the podium.

Alicia Ultra was postponed for over three years due to the corona crisis. Normally scheduled in February - when the air is cooler - the race was approved by local authorities quite late to be held in April instead. RD Richard Anania said afterwards Alicia would move back to February in 2024. Our race reporter Richard Akol gave the thumbs up for the event, characterised by good accessibility, great hospitality by the local community in Bohol, and a fine and quite runable race course mostly on single trails.

The next Filipino ATM points race takes place near Manila on 6 May, Sierra Madre Trail Ultra 75.

We are happy to announce that after a three-year-postponement due to covid, Alicia Ultra will finally take place on 16 April as the next Filipino ATM Candidate Race. This event is special, as it’s the first event on the island of Bohol that carries the ATM label. On the menu are three options: 50km, 25km and 12km.

Bohol lies east of Cebu and northwest of Mindanao. Alicia is a beautiful town on Bohol and the trail course is set over the luscious green rolling hills of its Panoramic Park, oil palm plantations, rice paddies, and other tourist destinations. As you can see on the map, it’s a natural loop with about 2000 hm for the 50 km race.

The event is organised by the Bohol Trail Adventure team, amongst whom there’s experienced trail runners such as Richard Anania.

 

In the first quarter of 2020 the spotlights will shine on various islands of the Philippines quite a few times. Culiminating in the Cordillera Mountain Ultra on 7 March - the country’s SuperTrail in the Asia Trail Master Championship series - no fewer than three Candidate Races will be held in the months of January and February. Local runners therefore have no excuses not to be in shape for CMU!

Last week we already announced the Philippine Mountain Run in Kibungan, Luzon on 11 January and the Mt Kalatungan in Bukidnon, Mindanao on 1 March, this week we are happy to add the Alicia Ultra as a 2021 ATM Candidate Race on the island of Bohol on 23 February. This will be Bohol Island’s first trail ultra marathon, happening in the beautiful town of Alicia, 3 hours away from the province’ capital Tagbilaran City. Bohol is the island to the east of Cebu.

The trail course is set over the luscious green rolling hills of the Alicia Panoramic Park also known as the Binabaje Hills, oil palm plantations, river banks, rice paddies, and the Batong Puti Cliffside Park. The highlight of the race is the chance to gaze upon the panoramic views of the Binabaje Hills at sunrise. Though the highest point of the route is just about 350masl, the short steep ascents, slippery descents, and sun‐exposed terrain offer a good amount of challenge even to the most seasoned trail runner.

The 50KM Trail Ultra will start on Sunday, 1:30AM at the Alicia Gymnasium followed by the 25KM Trail Run at 3:30AM. The 12KM Fun Trail will start 5:30AM.

More details can be found on the official website and facebook page.