Candidate Race: bright future ahead after successful 1st Malaysia Eco 100

Last weekend there was not only Borneo 100 TMBT in Malaysia, but also the brand new and promising Epic Valley Malaysia Eco 100 in the Tokun Hills in Penang: a 2016 Asia Trail Master Candidate Race, organised by Endurance Nature, a company led by two experienced and well-known trail runners Seow Kong Ng and Allan Tan. Runners had a choice between the traditional ultra distances of 100km or 50km. Ho Fai Wong (Hong Kong) and Peng Hoon Ng (Malaysia) won the long distance race for men and women respecitively. 

The inaugural event had to cope with rainfall but that did not prevent the participants from having a great run in the scenic Malay countryside. A bit tougher than expected for most people, though. Quite soon after the start the path went up in the area of  the challenging Tokun Hills. Participants therefore really enjoyed the excellent refreshment stations, featuring energy drinks, water and delicious local food. 

The Epic Valley Malaysia Eco 100 clearly has the potential to grow. "We have again established Endurance Nature as a quality event organizer," says Seow Kong Ng. "Eco 100 has proved to be a tough, but beautiful race with yummy food and fantastic volunteers. As first editions go, we have had a few unfortunate problems related to the route marking, but we have analysed these and we will ensure these won't happen again.  Nevertheless, some participants afterwards described our event as 'near perfection'. The future looks good!" 

Avoiding the date clash with TMBT, the event will be held the first weekend of June next year, when it is also an official Asia Trail Master race. 

Start of the 100km race with organiser Seow Kong Ng in the middle

Start of the 100km race with organiser Seow Kong Ng in the middle

Top 5 results

Men

1. Ho Fai Wong (HKG) 14:38:01
2. Tho Fatt Liew (MAS) 15:19:48
3. Matthew Dyas (GBR) 16:10:57
4. Yew Khuay Lim (MAS) 16:31:19
5. William William (INA) 17:01:04

Women

1. Peng Hoon Ng (MAS) 19:37:14
2. Kelly Hoh (MAS) 19:47:50
3. Soot Goh Ng (MAS) 20:29:10
4. Tsae Ling Toh (MAS) 21:24:33
5. On Tzu Wong (MAS) 21:35:46

The winner of the 50km race 

The winner of the 50km race 

Race reportKris Van de VeldeMalaysiaComment