The 2018 Cordillera Mountain Ultra in Dalupirip is scheduled for the weekend of 3/4 March. The traditional 50K course features the ascent and descent of Mt Ugo and has been described as one of the most beautiful courses on the ATM tour.
Registration opens on 1 November 2017.
The 2nd edition of the Cordillera Mountain Ultra in Dalupirip, Benguet, Philippines, saw the first big surprise win of the season when Arnold Lozano - an established local mountainbiker - left everyone of a strong field in his wake. Lozano finished together with last year's winner Marcelino Sano-Oy, but only because he wanted to. The organisers did not accept a tie, and awarded the victory to Lozano as he was ahead at the latest checkpoints as well. Lozano is more known as a mountainbiker, having won a.o. the Cordillera Challenge already, as well as having competed in the Genghis Khan MTB Adventure in China's Inner Mongolia region. Clearly, he is multi-talented, and if he can win Cordillera Mountain Ultra against a strong line-up of runners, what more can we expect from the man?
Arnold Lozano from Baguio was the surprising winner of this year's CMU 50 trail race
Both Lozano and Sano-Oy set a blistering pace across Mount Ugo and broke last year's winning time by half an hour. This was emphasized even more by third-placed Al Telias, who in the previous edition was competing with Sano-Oy for the race victory and now had to concede 27 minutes. Telias did very well himself, however, to stay ahead of other class acts such as Gaspard Dessy, Grandmaster Jan Nilsen and his brother James Telias. Dessy finished 52 minutes behind Lozano and Sano-Oy in fourth place and claims the points lead in the 2017 Asia Trail Master Championship. The Indonesia-based Belgian also finished third in Tahura Trail and Coast To Coast Night Trail, and is the first male protagonist to finish three ATM points races this season. Dessy will see his name at the top of the standings until April at least, as Q1 has come to an end and the next race is scheduled only on 1/2 April in China.
Gaspard Dessy is the new points leader in the men's Asia Trail Master championship
Shortly behind Dessy a duo arrived back in Dalupirip: Grandmaster Jan Nilsen and first woman Sandi Menchi. Nilsen still struggled with his foot injury and probably finds 50 km too short as well to compete with his younger competitors. Still, fifth is a good result. Menchi of course delivered more than what many had promised earlier. Previously mainly running shorter distances of events, CMU was the second time she went for the top prize in a big race after CM 50 Ultra last November. Menchi not only managed to come home a joint fifth overall together with Nilsen, but she was also 45 minutes faster than last year's winner Gretchen Felipe, who in turn did well by staying ahead of Majo Liao, proving that last year's victory was no fluke at all. The Philippines have a very strong trio of trail runners up in Luzon: all three podium placers managed to finish in the top 10 overall! To note also is the 11th place of multi-race runner Cheryl Bihag, by which she claims the current second place in the ATM championship ranking with 3 points results already under her belt this season.
Jael Wenceslao and Aldean Lim finished sixth and seventh in the men's, and Grandmaster Capili was eighth, putting him firmly in the top 10 of the ranking as well. James Telias, another pre-race favourite, suffered from stomach cramps and could not defend his chances. It was indeed a very hot day on and around Mt Ugo, which gave all participants an additional difficulty to cope with.
Sandi Menchi was outstanding: finishing together with Jan Nilsen to claim the women's race
Koi Grey, Grandmaster Jan Nilsen, Marcelino Sano-Oy, JP Alipio and Grandmaster Aleksis Capili
While Al Telias scored 3rd place, James suffered from stomach cramps
This weekend's fantastic Cordillera Mountain Ultra 50k race in Dalupirit, Benguet, Philippines is already the 7th points race in the 2017 Asia Trail Master Championship series and marks the end of Q1 - the first quarter. A hard-fought battle in both the male and female races is expected on Mount Ugo, the highlight of the race with a summit at nearly 2200m above sea level. Belgium's Gaspard Dessy is set to even take over the points lead from Arief Wismoyono in the championship, provided the Belgian finishes the race, of course. Dessy is currently only 50 points behind the Indonesian ATM champion of 2015 after two third place finishes in Tahura Trail and Coast To Coast Night Trail. Now venturing beyond his home base of Semarang, at CMU he will not only collect 100 finisher points but he is a race favourite and may thus score up to 400 performance points to boot!
However, the competition on paper is tremendous. Starting with last year's winner Marcelino Sano-Oy, who knows the area like the inside of his pocket. Sano-Oy is often mentioned by local Filipinos in the same sentence with Asia Trail Master champion Manolito Divina, which says a lot even when the two have not yet squared off in a direct confrontation. An up-and-comer, it will be fascinating to see how Sano-Oy fares in his second ATM campaign. Divina, by the way, is not running this weekend. Last year's runner-up in CMU 50, Al Telias, is also back in the mix this weekend. He actually made life hard for Sano-Oy in the descent of Mt Ugo. Can he do it again, and what can his esteemed brother James Telias do in this race?
After two third places earlier this year, Gaspard Dessy is set to take over the ATM championship points lead before the three-week-break to Q2.
Last year's CMU winner Marcelino Sano Oy is ready to go for it again
And last but not least of the known top favourites is of course Grandmaster Jan Nilsen, who also makes his first appearance in an ATM points race this year. The Thailand-based Norwegian is always at his best when the elevation gain makes a difference in a race. However, the early part of 2017 has not been going as smoothly as he would have liked with an annoying foot injury plaguing him for several weeks. Just how fit is Nilsen to compete with Sano-Oy, Dessy, the Telias brothers and others in a 50k race that apart from Mt Ugo also has long runnable sections?
To note and definitely a podium candidate in every race is also the participation of another Grandmaster, Aleksis Capili. Going faster race after race, Capili was sixth at UTKC two weeks ago and will certainly make a leap into the points championship top 10 going into Q2 in April. Another podium runner never to be underestimated is Aldean Lim.
Gretchen Felipe won the women's race last year. Can she repeat that feat on Sunday?
The women's race also promises to be huge with no certain winner at all! Defending CMU champion Gretchen Felipe will have pressure on her shoulders to repeat her accomplishment of last season. Felipe had a great run in the Cordillera and backed it up with an amazing second race victory at Merapoh Trail 60 in Malaysia - her first outing outside the Philippines. For sure, Felipe will enter this weekend's CMU 50 with the required confidence to compete with the already more established runners such as Majo Liao and a strong newcomer Sandi Menchi. Liao was third in this race last year, in fact, but it was the beginning of a difficult period for her as well as she sprained her ankle during the race. Majo Liao will be keen to forget that memory with a stellar performance on Sunday. But yes, what to think of Sandi Menchi? Hailed as a top talent, Menchi is making her debut on the A-race level in the Asia Trail Master series. Menchi knows the Cordillera area, as he won the shorter Cordillera Mountain Marathon two years ago. Another runner to watch out for is Croatia's Mateja Blazevic, who might as well cause an upset. Patricia Ann Morota, coming off a great second place in last month's Rizal Mountain Run, can also challenge for the podium, and score another good points haul as well for the ATM championship.
As usual, the Cordillera Mountain Ultra will be tracked live via our social media channels. We look forward to another fantastic trail race!
After suffering from a foot injury earlier this year, just what can we expect from Grandmaster Jan Nilsen?
Our 2017 early preview continues with an event that received amazing feedback this year: the Cordillera Mountain Ultra, organised by the environmental NGO Cordillera Conservation Trust in Benguet, Philippines. Because of the event's success, the programme remains virtually unchanged except the date: the Cordillera Mountain Ultra will take place three months earlier and this on 4 and 5 March 2017. The 50k race with 2640 Hm remains the main show of the event, and anybody who witnessed this year's battle for victory between Marcelino Sano Oy and Al Tellias will remember how exciting relatively short trail races can be. CMU is not that easy, however, and even top athletes need to stay focused at all times. Just ask local female hero Majo Liao, who twisted her ankle in the early stages of this year's race. It paved the way for Gretchen Felipe to take the women's win, and a ticket for the Magnificent Merapoh Trail in Malaysia, which she then won as well! CMU 2016 was a classic with lots of stories, and there is no reason why 2017 won't be the same!
The 50km Cordillera Mountain Ultra trail is about Mt. Ugo in Benguet. Topping out at 2150m it features long ridge lines covered in Pine forests as well as superb views of the West Philippine sea, the entire Agno River Valley as well as the Cagayan Valley of Nueva Vizcaya. Host town of the event is Dalupirip, and the best international gateway to the event is Clark International Airport.
Race registration will open on 1 November.
Link to Event review 2016
2017 Asia Trail Master calendar
14/01/17 - Thailand - The Dirt Track
22/01/17 - Indonesia - Tahura Trail
29/01/17 - Philippines - Rizal Mountain Run
17-18/02/17 - Thailand - UT Unseen Koh Chang - SUPERTRAIL
25-26/02/17 - Brunei - Beach Bunch Trail Challenge
04-05/03/17 - Philippines - Cordillera Mountain Ultra
The Cordillera Mountain Ultra, follow-up to the Marathon organised in previous years, did not miss its debut in Dalupirip, Itogon yesterday. The first Filipino points race in the 2016 Asia Trail Master series saw a very close battle for victory in the men's 50k race, and drama in the women's. On the top step of the podium stood Marcelino Sano-Oy and Gretchen Felipe as the day's champions. Runners and spectators spoke of a truly well-organised event with a fantastic running course, which made the journey to the remote area very much worthwhile. "CMU was publicity for the sport of trail running," one happy finisher said afterwards.
Marcelino Sano-Oy
Gretchen Felipe
The race started at 4 a.m. just before dawn, and runners only had a few kilometers to warm-up as the ascent of Mount Ugo began quickly. Marcelino Sano-Oy, a 26-year-old local runner, had already taken the lead, but was closely followed by the experienced Alison Telias. Sano-Oy is a previous winner of the Cordillera Mountain Marathon and knew the terrain very well. Yet, Telias kept chasing him and was at times less than a minute behind. In the descent of Mt Ugo the pressure seemed to be getting to Sano-Oy, as he had to stop and stretch to stop the cramps he started to suffer from. Telias caught up and passed him, but eventually Sano-Oy fought back in the late stages of the race and reclaimed first spot! At the finish, Sano-Oy took the victory with a 3-minute gap over Al Telias in 6:06:36. In a join third place were teammates Aldean Philip Lim and Eric Gueb in 7:05:19. One of the pre-race favourites, Thumbie Remigio, injured himself during the vertical kilometre race on Saturday, and opted to run the 21km instead. The shorter race was won by Roland Wang.
The women's 50k race had a rather unexpected outcome as big favourite Majo Liao sprained her ankle in the early part of the race. Liao could not react to her challengers as for most of the rest of the race she could only walk and not run. Showing a high degree of mental strength, Liao nevertheless continued and finished ... even on the podium! These could be important points for her in the ATMs ranking later this year. The race was won by Gretchen Felipe in 7:25:58, which is a strong result as well for the experienced runner. Next to Felipe on the podium in second place was Penny Nepomuceno (7:53:59).
As part of the podium prize package, both Marcelino Sano-Oy and Gretchen Felipe have received free race entries for the Magnificent Merapoh Trail in Malaysia.
Koi Grey
This Sunday's Cordillera Mountain Ultra is the first race for Asia Trail Master championship points in the Philippines this year. The 50km main event takes place on and around Mount Ugo in the vicinity of regional centre Baguio, and is organised to the benefit of environmental NGO Cordillera Conservation Trust. While current points leader Manolito Divina is still allowing his body to recover from the Malaysia Eco 100, several other strong Filipino runners will be starting this weekend. Among those is Majo Liao in the women's, who is the double winner of CM 50 Ultra, the Philippines' SuperTrail race at the end of November. Liao is expected to be one of the protagonists for the women's championship as the season develops. Quite a few women in the start list for CMU, though, so one never knows if someone causes an upset on race day.
In the men's we have an open race on paper. Local area experience may boost chances of Thumbie Remigio, who earlier this week spoke of the challenge of climbing Mt Ugo the way they do in CMU, and Alison Telias. Jonel Mendoza and MTB champion Arnold Lozano are others to watch out for, along with a contingent of foreign runners.
CMU follows the Cordillera Mountain Marathon that was organised last year. While Mount Ugo dominates the race profile, fast climbers will need to ensure to keep something in reserve for the final 8 km to the finish in Dalupirit. The start of the race is scheduled for 4:30 a.m. and as usual we will be reporting live on social media, subject to available connectivity.
All runners are also encouraged to support the work of the Cordillera Conservation Trust. Every small donation counts, and, in any case, the local coffee is excellent!
Mount Ugo in CMU this Sunday
Runners will need to cross a few bridges this weekend
Majo Liao is a big race favourite in the women's 50k.
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The Cordillera Mountain Ultra on and around Mt Ugo in the Philippines (Luzon) is scheduled for 5 June. You can still sign up for the 50km race now. The event also highlights the Cordillera Conservation Trust, an environmental NGO that definitely deserves your attention. Get some local coffee while you are at it!
