Mt Apo Boulder Face Challenge to resume this year
DAVAO CITY(MindaNews/27 January) – After a seven-year hiatus, the Mount Apo Boulder Face Challenge, a 24-hour multi-sport race from the coastline of Santa Cruz town in Davao del Sur to the summit and back, will resume in April this year.
Julius Paner, tourism officer of Santa Cruz, told MindaNews in a phone interview on Tuesday that preparations are underway for the town’s biggest race, which is slated for April 25-26.
The 118-kilometer adventure race consists of three kilometers of water tubing, 54 kilometers of mountain biking, 34 kilometers of trail running, and 27 kilometers of road running.
“As to participants, they keep coming. The solo elite (individual) category is almost full, while the relay category has several slots still available,” he said.
He said the local government-led race has limited slots: 50 for the Individual category, and 10 slots each for the All-Men Team Relay, All-Women Team Relay, and Four-Member Mixed Team Relay.
For the Individual category, the champion will receive P70,000, while the first runner-up will take home P50,000. The second, third, and fourth runners-up will get P30,000, P20,000, and P10,000 respectively.
The champions in the All-Men Team Relay, All-Women Team Relay, and Four-Member Mixed Team Relay categories will each get P40,000. Meanwhile, the first and second runners-up in these categories will each take home P30,000 and P20,000, respectively.
Paner said the local government decided to push through with this year’s race in hopes of revitalizing Santa Cruz’s local tourism industry, which is known for its scenic trail leading to the summit of Mount Apo, the country’s highest peak.
According to him, the last adventure race was held in 2018 and was originally set to resume in 2020, but the event was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Paner said for 2025, the town recorded some 345,000 tourist arrivals generating an estimated P70 million in tourism receipts. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)
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