2,500 cyclists endure the 7-Eleven Trail 2018

7-ELEVEN once again challenged the endurance of Filipino cyclists who joined their biggest singleloop cross-country mountain biking race to date, Trail 2018, held last Feb. 18.

With more than 2,500 registered racers, Trail 2018 recorded the most number of participants since the said event started in 2014. The race was held at Timberland Heights in San Mateo, Rizal, known as the “mountain biking capital” of the Philippines.

“It makes me happy that a lot of racers registered for this year,” Jose Victor Paterno, president and CEO of Philippine Seven Corp. said. “At 7-Eleven, we believe that it is important to have a balanced lifestyle, that’s why we encourage our customers to eat healthy and engage themselves in sports such as this or do simple exercises.” Paterno added.

Cyclists who joined had to face a very challenging race course which was a mix of road climbs (10%), fire road (30%), and single track ( 60%). The single loop course was stitched together using favorite routes of San Mateo regulars, otherwise inaccessible trails on private land, and newly created trails just for the race.

“For this year, we built a lot of new trails. Also, for the very first time, we are finishing here at the Glades, which is a bit of an uphill finish, it can be challenging but I think the venue is really worth it,” Paterno said.

Crossing the finish line victoriously were EJ Flores and Ariana Dormitorio, overall male and female champions for the 40-kilometer race with time records of 1:18:32 and 1:24:58, respectively. “Masarap sa feeling na ako ang nag- overall, nahawakan ko na ’to dati, dalawang sunod. Nasiraan lang ako [ng bisikleta] last year, kaya buti nakapwesto ulit ako ngayon,” Flores said. “Kinabisado talaga namin ’ yung ruta, arawaraw kaming nag-eensayo dito sa Timberland. Siguro ang advantage ko ay ’yung sa technicals, sa downhills, at sa rocks.”

Meanwhile, Dormitorio considers this as an opportunity for her to challenge herself, especially when it comes to competing with male racers.

CROSSING the finish line victoriously were EJ Flores and Ariana Dormitorio, overall male and female champions for the 40-kilometer race with time records of 1:18:32 and 1:24:58, respectively.