DAVAO CITY -- The country's national icon, Mt. Apo, is being eyed by Sta. Cruz town in Davao del Sur as the venue of two upcoming international events in April.
The two events are the Mt. Apo Boulder Face Challenge and the Mt. Apo Sky and Vertical Race that will be held simultaneously from April 21 to 22 as part of the Visit Davao Summer Festival 2018.
Santa Cruz Municipal Tourism Officer Julius Paner said the Boulder Face Challenge which is an extreme adventure race for specialized athletes already has 70 registered competitors.
The number is not big because the event is very rigid in difficult terrain. He said a majority of the racers are from Mindanao while some are from Luzon and the Visayas with foreign participants as well.
The Mt. Apo Sky and Vertical Race, on the other hand, already has registered contestants coming from 16 countries.
“We expect close to two hundred participants because the race is purely running,” Paner said.
In last year's competition, the event was participated by 170 runners coming from seven countries namely US, Hong Kong, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
The racer from Spain was the champion. It will be a 24-hour race of running competition for 100 kilometers, 50 km, and 25 km to the peak of Mt. Apo then back to the finish line in the poblacion area of Sta. Cruz town.
Paner said he is also expecting racers coming from Vietnam and the European countries.
The runners can register thru an international accreditation company that is accredited by Asia Trail Master, an international running association base in HongKong.
If a runner joins an event that is accredited by Asia Trail Master they earn points that is why many international runners join to also earn points.
Paner said the municipal government is finalizing preparations that also includes security in coordination with the security forces and the police.
"It will be a festive mood and this has become a yearly activity in our town," he said.
Meanwhile, Paner said the town still receives climnbers but only on a limited number of 50 as part of the policies and rules being implemented.
So far, Paner said the government already recorded 1,500 climbers.
"We only allow 50 climbers per batch," he said. He said the government started accepting visitors in June 2017 for the Boulder Face Challenge after it was closed due to the fire that happened last year.
However, he said the burnt site is already regenerating and it is now declared as "no touch zone". The policy on "strictly no camping at the peak" is strongly imposed.
"We have learned our lessons and we are doing extra care as far as the mountain is concerned," he said.
He said the members of the community are already aware of their role and there is strict enforcement in the area where the monitoring in camp sites and the trails is led by a team from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
Paner said the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) of which the town is a member, makes sure that Mt. Apo is closely monitored and protected.
Mt. Apo will be closed to visitors during this Holy Week. (Digna D. Banzon/PNA)
