This weekend SC 70, short for Santa Cruz 70, will test the endurance and technical abilities of runners looking to score an extra point on their Grandmaster Quest. The Filipino event organised by Team Jegol may only just qualify as a Grandmaster race with its 70km, but it’s a tough 70km. Elevation gain is estimated at over 4000 Hm and the course features some iconic places around Santa Cruz, such as Mt. Loay, Mt. Dinor, Tacub Laya Falls, Pilan River, Sinoron, Lipantod, Camotes Ridge, and Mt. 796. The course profile is actually quite distinct and interesting from a competitive point of view, too. Mount Dinor is the cornerstone and highest peak in the first half, Mount Loay in the second half. Runners should also be aware that after the final descent of Loay, there’s still a 10km flattish section to the finish back in Santa Cruz.

Plenty of solid runners will be taking part this weekend, including 2-star Grandmasters. Cheryl Bihag and Alfredo Reyes Jr. It is the first time SC 70 is on the calendar, so all finishers this weekend can score an additional GM point. The race does not offer points for the ATM Championship ranking, but will be interesting nonetheless with many competitive athletes on the start list, including last year’s winner Eldy Bulod. Marjones Abugan, Florencio Alave, Roberto Cain III, Isaiah Paraiso and others will be challenging him for the victory. In the women’s field we find Julieann Morales on the start list, as well Guia Cabigas, Dolly Joy Alonzo and Razzil Sumalinog to name a few.

Santa Cruz, just a half hour drive south of Davao City in Mindanao, has become a real trail running hub since the corona crisis and even more visibly so since the 2022 ATM Championship Final, the Mount Apo Sky Race. That event is how things started in Santa Cruz, which is now not only the main gateway for hikers to the highest mountain in the Philippines, but also the venue for several trail running events during the year.

Runners seeking more Grandmaster Quest points should draw a red circle around Saturday, 8 February 2025. That’s the date of the Santa Ines Mountain Adventure Run in the Rizal mountains east of Manila in the Philippines. Alternating with Bagtit Ultra on our ATM calendar, this event is organised by The Pace Republic and 4-star Grandmaster Rhea Batac herself. The main race category is the 80km , that’s also the Grandmaster race distance. Please note that this is a Grandmaster-only race, i.e. there are no points to be scored for the ATM Championship ranking.

Santa Ines is about a 2h drive from Manila City and therefore quite convenient. Grab cars will take you there. However, the race start is scheduled for 4 am so make sure you arrange accordingly. The event was a Candidate in 2022 and a points race in 2023. From both occasions, we learnt that the 80k should certainly not be underestimated. This is a race to come prepared for, with several technical sections and many river crossings, some narrow, some wide. Accoriding to Rhea Batac, the 2025 course will be amended here and there compared to 2023 and this is still work in progress. Below you can see the profile of back then with Mount Irid as the highest peak of the race at about 1500m above sea level. Total elevation gain is estimated at 4500 hm.

The winners in 2023 were Elmer Retolado and Elizabeth Dangadan.

It is recommended to follow the official facebook page - linked below- to stay up-to-date with the latest news about the Santa Ines Mountain Adventure. Registration is opening soon.

Brought to you by Mark Caldez of Marcado Trail Quest and the Maharlika Series team of Sierra Madre Trail Ultra, the second edition of Malico Grand Ultra in Santa Maria West, Pangasinan, in the West of Luzon a little south of Baguio, offers a Grandmaster point to all finishers of the 75km race on 18/19 January. The event was a Candidate Race in 2024.

As of the new Season 10 and following popular demand, a number of events on our calendar will only offer Grandmaster finisher points and no ATM Championship points. Malico Grand Ultra is the third of these.

Stunning panoramic views of Villa Verde ridges and pine forests, Malico Grand Ultra offers a unique blend of history, challenge, and natural beauty. Run through trails that were once significant battlegrounds during World War II. Immerse in the tranquil surroundings of Cabalisian River and move across the Andalasi hanging bridge to witness the crystal-clear waters of Ambayaoan River. Meanwhile, do not forget to take in the breathtaking mountain views of Mt. Ugo and Mt. Pigingan. One of the main highlights in the 75k category is the exhilarating downhill adventure at Mt. Valdez, that will undoubtedly challenge your skills and endurance. In fact, the 2024 edition showed this is a tough 75km that should not be underestimated. Miguel Carranza won the men’s race in 15h39’ and he is by no means mediocre! Carraza even preceeded other established technical trail runners such as Bhert Orpiada and Sai Tonog II. The women’s race had a surprising winner in Michella Aradanas, who managed to outpace Ann Jilian Pulanco.

Another element participants in the 75km GM distance should prepare for is the cold weather. It is January and close to Baguio, you will need more than just a running tee at night!

Registration for the event is open. Please go to RaceTech PHI to sign up. Event details can be obtained via the official facebook page.

Winners of the 2024 Candidate Race

The Mount Apo Sky Race has become a genuine classic over the years in the Asia Trail Master series and we are happy to announce that runners on the Grandmaster Quest can again highlight the event dark red in their agendas. The 7th edition of the event, which is basically a sea to summit race of 100km to the highest point of the Philippines and back, is scheduled for the weekend of 30 November/1 December 2024. Host venue is once again the beach resort Playa de Obuza in Santa Cruz, just 30 minutes’ drive outside of Davao City.

Organised by Vertical To Sky and one of Mindanao’s pioneering race directors in trail running, Doi Calbes, the Mount Apo Sky Race has built up a solid reputation for mountain trail lovers, looking for wild and even unspoilt trails. We were happy to have the event as the 2022 ATM Championship Final, won by Arnie Macaneras and Hau Ha, and continue its legacy in 2024. For one season, we skip the Championship label to give opportunity to another event, but Grandmaster-point seekers will find Mt Apo a very fulfilling race to have on your record. And of course, winning this 100k race still puts you in a very selected list of top runners.

Registration is open and as usual restricted to a fixed number to ensure the mountain area does not get overburdened. This is a protected nature area, after all. The link to the website and registration portal is below.

Last year, Isaiah Paraiso had his breakthrough moment winning the men’s race, while Julieann Morales established herself as the ‘Trail Queen’ of Davao by winning the women’s race.

Isaiah Paraiso was the fastest 100k runner on Mt Apo last year

Julieann Morales was the strongest woman on Apo last year

A successful Candidate a year ago, SC 70 in Santa Cruz, Davao in Philippines has now been rewarded with a spot on the new ATM Grandmaster Calendar for Season 10. The event organised by Team Jegol Runners will be held on 23/24 November and ‘70’ in the event name stands for the 70km long Grandmaster point distance.

SC70 will be the first Grandmaster-only event on our ATM calendar, following the announcement made last week (read it again here: http://www.asiatrailmaster.com/news/2024/8/30/grandmaster-quest)

Santa Cruz, just a half hour drive south of Davao City in Mindanao, has become a real trail running hub since the corona crisis and even more visibly so since the 2022 ATM Championship Final, the Mount Apo Sky Race. That event is how things started in Santa Cruz, which is now not only the main gateway for hikers to the highest mountain in the Philippines, but also the venue for several trail running events during the year.

The 70k ultramarathon trail has an elevation gain of about 4000hm, and will feature scenic and iconic places in Santa Cruz, namely, Mt. Loay, Mt. Dinor, Tacub Laya Falls, Pilan River, Sinoron, Lipantod, Camotes Ridge, and Mt. 796. The course profile is actually quite distinct and interesting from a competitive point of view. Mount Dinor is the cornerstone and highest peak in the first half, Mount Loay in the second half. Runners should also be aware that after the final descent of Loay, there’s still a 10km flattish section to the finish back in Santa Cruz. That could hurt for some, while be a tactical all-in section for others. The precise 2024 course map will be made available soon.

Last year, SC70 was the event were we got introduced to youngsters Shally Yuson and Eldy Bulod, two competitive runners whom we have gotten to know very well since then! Shally has just completed her Grandmaster Quest and is part of Team Pilipinas at the upcoming ATM Championship Final. Eldy Bulod was the joint-winner of The Punisher, together with Kik Suello, just a month ago. Bulod stated we will see more of him in Season 10.

It is highly recommended to follow the event’s Facebook page, as is common in Philippines, to receive the latest updates and links to the registration portal.

Last year’s winners of SC70 have since then become well-known: Eldy Bulod and Shally Yuson!

Season 10 is approaching with Dieng Trail Run in Central Java, Indonesia, on 21/22 September as our opener this year! Every new season we reevaluate both our competition regulations for the ATM Championship and the Grandmaster Quest. In the context of the ever more popular Grandmaster Quest - the individual non-competitive challenge whereby runners need to finish six ultras on our ATM calendar within a period of two years - there are two rather significant updates that will go into force as of Season 10.

Firstly, due to the growing enthusiasm of the Grandmaster Quest across Asia, we will be publishing a separate Grandmaster Quest event calendar that will have a number of events not featured on our Championship calendar. That means there will be 70+km races where you can score a GM point, but no Championship points. The first one of those “Grandmaster-only” events will be SC 70 in Santra Cruz, Davao, Philippines on 23/24 November.

Secondly, as the number of events with GM points on offer is expected to grow, it has been argued that an amendment to the regulations is required in order not to make obtaining the Grandmaster status too easily. Instead of asking runners to complete more than six races within a period of two years to become a Grandmaster 1 star, we will request runners to do one of their six ultras abroad or in any case outside of their resident country. In other words, if you live in Malaysia, you will need to complete one of your six ultras in another country to receive the Grandmaster title. As such, we also remain true to one of the core pillars of the Asia Trail Master series, which is ‘fostering a pan-Asian trail community and bring people from various distinct countries, cultures and backgrounds together’.

These changes will thus go into effect as of Dieng Trail Run on 21 September.

Runners who wish to embark on their Grandmaster Quest are still kindly invited to sign up via the google form here, so it is easier for us to keep track. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhJmjAgjEV44_CPEpDBwHa0o2XdrUGkhPioL9VhoZYQ4mw3A/viewform

Please note that we will also be updating the ATM Hall of Fame to include all new Grandmasters of the past season. Stay tuned for more and exciting updates regarding this!

Let’s conclude this announcement by putting the spotlights on our three four-star Grandmasters to date: Masafumi Yamamoto, Hisashi Kitamura and since July also the first female : Rhea Batac! They are the only runners so far to have completed 20 ultras on the ATM calendar. Some of you have asked the question “will you add a 5th star?” . Our answer remains “no , we won’t”. We believe 20 ultra finishes and 4 stars is a great number, and all good things end some time ;-).

However, we will introduce a new non-competitive challenge for trail runners in due course..

Masafumi Yamamoto, 4-star Grandmaster

Rhea Batac, 4-star Grandmaster

Hisashi Kitamura, 4-star Grandmaster

We know him as one of the top contenders in the Asia Trail Master Championship, but this weekend Hisashi Kitamura can also enter the record books as the first trail runner to obtain the Grandmaster **** four stars label. The Malaysia-based Japanese runner from Team UGLOW Asia will be competing at Cameron Ultra 100 this weekend.

Kitamura began his Grandmaster Quest in early 2018 with the 9 Dragons in Hong Kong and already completed the first level in the same year in Bali at the Plataran X Trail. He continued piling up the results and race finishes of over 70km in the following year - when he stubbornly challenged John Ellis for the ATM Championship title - even to the extent many felt he was outrunning himself. The covid crisis of course also stopped him in his tracks, which in that sense might have been not the worst thing. In this current season VII, Kitamura is in any case very much back in action and he is probably at his highest competitive level yet. Cameron Ultra 100 this coming Saturday will be his 20th Grandmaster distance in the ATM series, and many will bet on him to win the race. But even if he does not, finishing Cultra will earn him the top Grandmaster recognition.

Another three-star Grandmaster***, Masafumi Yamamoto will be aiming for his 19th race finish at Cameron Ultra as well. It is interesting that the first two runners about to score four stars are both from the same country, Japan. A country, of course, that loves distance running.

Episode 3 of our bimonthly video talk show The Tale of the Trail will be broadcast tonight, Friday, 29 May, at 19:00 Hong Kong time (20:00 Korea; 18:00 Thailand). The episode is titled “Ending the Waiting Game’, referring to the long-awaited amendments to the regulations for the 2020 Asia Trail Master Championship and the Grandmaster Quest. Our reigning champions John Ellis and Veronika Vadovicova will be on the show, as well as Jey Jang from South Korea to give us an update on Korea 50K. We will find out what is going on in Thailand during these difficult months and Amy Khor will be interviewing Alex Ang. In cooperation with Mark TWT there will be a feature on Sabah’s trail queen Jassica Lintanga, aka Jess Boubie, and finally there will be a chat with out Mystery Guest of this episode Job Tanapong.

The Tale of the Trail will be shown on the Asia Trail Master pages of both facebook and YouTube as well as here on the website.

Runners aiming to launch their own Grandmaster Quest soon are kindly requested to read the following new regulation.

Please let us know when you wish to begin your Grandmaster Quest and at which event, so ATM can more easily follow your progress and also put you in the spotlights (if desired). This simple registration is also mandatory as of 1 April 2020 to allow for more transparency in general, also towards other runners. The count starts when you complete your first race and thus score your first GM point. If you DNF in your first race, you will need to register again next time you wish to begin your Quest.

To register (of course free of charge), please fill in the simple Google form by clicking on the button below. If you live in a place with limited access to Google, please email to info@asiatrailmaster.com

The Grandmaster Quest has been increasing in popularity as every trail runner’s individual challenge of choice. Every time a runner, regardless of ranking or performance, finishes an ATM-promoted race of 70 kilometres or more, he scores a point. If you manage to collect six of those points within two years, you become an official Asia Trail Grandmaster. Now in its fourth year since the inauguration in 2016, three runners have almost reached the fourth and highest level of the Grandmaster Quest: four stars or 20 races!

Indonesia’s Ruth Theresia was the first runner overall who reached the plateau of 15 Grandmaster points in Nan in her championship-winning year 2018. Last year, the Bandung Explorer ace and Indonesian flag holder was joined by two great Japanese athletes, first Masafumi Yamamoto and then Hisashi Kitamura. While Ruth Theresia and Hisashi Kitamura are well-known as competitive elites gunning for our annual Championship, Masafumi Yamamoto is evidence that the Grandmaster Quest is made for everyone willing to grit his or her teeth together. Having finished more than 15 ultras is an incredible achievement that has spanned two years for them and slightly more than three years for Ruth, but of course she took a sabbatical last year.

Looking ahead, it is highly likely that they will reach the fourth star in the course of 2020, as soon as the corona crisis has been conquered. Ruth is only 3 Grandmaster points away from it, and our two Japanese friends even only two points.

Twelve trail runners are now at level 2. That means these runners continued to race and complete ten relevant races after they had become an Asia Trail Grandmaster (six 70+km races in 2 years). They are Aleksis Capili, Lily Suryani, Isaac Yuen Wan Ho, Milton Amat, Yim Heng Fatt, Jassica Lintanga, Ali Ajis Rasil, Rene Amigleo, Alessandro Sherpa, Tomohiro Mizukoshi, Arief Wismoyono and last but not least Cheryl Bihag.

Our ATM Hall of Fame is being updated these days and is the place where you can discover more about these amazing athletes’ achievements under the banner of the Asia Trail Master Championship series.

Grandmaster Quest

In Asia Trail Master there is the championship, and then there is the Grandmaster Quest. For newbies to our website and social media channels, the Grandmaster Quest is an individual challenge open for all trail runners to accomplish. What do you need to do to become an Asia Trail Grandmaster? Finish six ATM races of 70 km or longer (or shorter but with 4500 hm) within two years. That is level 1 for which you earn 1 star and entry into our Hall of Fame. Continue running to 10 race finishes, without further time pressure, and you earn yourself a second Grandmaster star! At the end of 2017, 15 runners have now achieved Grandmaster status. Interestingly, the gender balance tills in favour of the female sex: we have 8 women for 7 men! Can women suffer discomfort more, longer and more frequently than men? It would appear trail running can now have its own chapter in the eternal discussion about the stronger and weaker human gender... We will explore this interesting conclusion of the 2017 ATM season more in depth soon! 

Of the 15 Grandmasters, three of them reached the second level in 2017. Aleksis Capili was again first, followed by Isaac Yuen Wan Ho and also Bali's Lily Suryani earned her second star as first female with an incredible string of ultra trail finishes between May and November. Lily's Hall of Fame profile shows that no fewer than 9 of her 10 eligible Grandmaster race finishes since 2015 were 100 km or longer. This includes 6 ultra race finishes in the last six months, and actually even 7, as Lily also completed BTS Ultra 100 again. However, as it was the third time she finished that same race it no longer provided any extra Grandmaster point. Earlier this month, Lily Suryani still started in HK 168, but arguable it was the one race too many for this year. Not being the youngest runner on the ATM tour, Lily Suryani proved that determination and focus get you a very long way in trail running, and a genuine congratulations are in order! 

Isaac showed his stamina as well in the second half of the year with six ultra race finishes since Penang Eco 100 miles in May. The Hong Kong star now totals 11 Grandmaster points, and in combination with his 6th place in the 2017 ATM Championship he certainly is one of the year's top performers! 

Aleksis Capili was the first Grandmaster ever, and he obtained 2 stars also as first ever at the Mount Apo Sky Race in Davao, Philippines, last April. Since then, Aleksis has added one more race to his record, which brings his Grandmaster record to 11 race finishes as well! As Lily in BTS Ultra, Aleksis did CM50 Ultra for a third time, but a third-time finish of the same race does not increase the Grandmaster total. 

While some ATM Championship contenders have naturally also reached Grandmaster status, others who are not so often in the spotlights deserve a mentioning for reaching their big objective: Joseph Sibal, Cheryl Bihag from Philippines, and Ali Ajis Rasil from Brunei have all had ups and downs during their Grandmaster Quest, but they have succeeded in securing their 1 star at Ultra-Trail Panoramic in Thailand earlier this month. Well done! 

Below is the overview of the current 15 Asia Trail Grandmasters. Who will join them in 2018? 

2 stars

10 or more races of 70+ km 

Grandmaster Quest

Aleksis Capili 

Philippines / Thailand

1st Male ** Grandmaster

1st Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Isaac Yuen Wan Ho 

Hong Kong

2nd Male ** Grandmaster

4th Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Lily Suryani

Indonesia

1st Female ** Grandmaster

3rd Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

1 star

6 ATM races of 70+ km in 2 years

Grandmaster Quest

Arief Wismoyono

Indonesia

3rd Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Ina Budiyarni

Indonesia

1st Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Shindy Patricia

Indonesia

6th Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Jan Nilsen

Norway / Thailand

2nd Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Ruth Theresia

Indonesia

2nd Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Tahira Najmunisaa

Malaysia

4th Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Yim Heng Fatt

Malaysia

5th Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Adelinah Lintanga

Malaysia

5th Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Kim Matthews

Australia / Vietnam

7th Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Joseph Sibal

Philippines

6th Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Ali Ajis Rasil

Brunei Darussalam

7th Male * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame

Cheryl Bihag

Philippines

8th Female * Grandmaster

Go to Hall of Fame