OATM 6 Weekend Showcased the trails of Batangas In its back-to-back event With On Philippines Trailfest and the very first Batangas Road to Trail Challenge. last November 9 and 10, 2024.
On A Trail Mission
After stagings in Itogon, Tanay, San Mateo, Baguio and Batangas, On A Trail Mission returned much bigger and better with a 2-day event that had a little bit of everything last November 9 and 10, 2024 at Bamboo Hills, Leisure Farm in Nasugbu, Batangas. Day 1 featured ON Philippines Trail Fest had the regular shakeout run, trail talks and resumed the tree planting activity. Day 2 had the maiden staging of Batangas Road to Trail Challenge with a 1-kilometer, 8-kilometer and 16-kilometer race distance and the Suunto Adventure Challenge. Overall, OATM 6 Weekend had about 1,000 runners enjoying the trails of Nasugbu, Batangas.
OATM 6 Weekend Day 1: On Philippines Trailfest
On Philippines Trailfest (Day 1) had about 300 participants including marshals and crew and had positioned their event village at Balai Kawayan in Bamboo Hills. This is the biggest On A Trail Mission crowd to date. OATM 6 Weekend started with the opening ceremony that included an opening remark from Pinoy Trails Founder Franc Ramon, a first aid briefing by Jeth, a route briefing by Noy Gentoleo and a warm up by Coach Kit De Leon.
Trail Run
Up next, was the shakeout run with a 7 kilometer loop including Mount Talamitam and Mount Lantik that had about 500 meters of elevation gain. The runners then joined on pace group: fast, moderate and walkers wave. With about 70-80% newbies in the event, the bulk of the runners were packed in the moderate and hikers wave. The route was not an easy feat but it was a scenic one with forested trails at the start and open ridges showcasing both Batangas and Cavite’s mountain range.
Tree Planting
In between, the runs was the tree planting activity with participants being able to plant at Mount Lantik Campsite and at Bamboo Hills. With the collective effort, the group were able to plant around 300 trees. After the planting, the runners resumed the route traversing the challenging but scenic peaks of Mount Talamitam and Mount Lantik. The morning heat also added a challenge.
Trail Talk
After the run, the participants headed back to Bamboo Hills for the Trail Talk.
The Trail Talk portion focused on four P’s, namely Purpose, Passion, Power and Persistence. For the Passion, it was Pinoy Trails Head and OATM lead Franc Ramon and Batangas Road To Trail Challenge lead and race organizer Ysa Sabater. Franc and Ysa shared on how to get started in the trails, the gear and the difference between road and trail running.
It was powerhouse cast for the panel on Power headed by no less than 2024 Boxing Bronze Medalist Aira Villegas and two seasoned ultra runners and race directors Noy Gentoleo and Henry Cottillon. The panelist highlighted the importance of training to progress in your fitness regimen and sports.
2019 UTMB Finisher George Javier covered both Passion and Persistence. Aside from his UTMB accomplishment, George has also been known for his clean up drives in Mount Makiling. George shared both his road to UTMB, the struggles that came with it and the moment of victory.
Biggest Delegations
After the talks, the teams with the biggest delegations were awarded their trophies. A unique part of OATM 6 Weekend was involvement of corporate participants as part of their ESG activities.
OATM 6 Weekend Day 2: Batangas Road To Trail Challenge By On Philippines
OATM 6 Weekend Day 2 was reserved for the inaugural Batangas Road to Trail Challenge Powered by On Philippines (BR2TC). With over 600 participants, BR2TC is one of the biggest trail running event for the year. The 16-kilometer distance had more than 400 runners and the 8K also had about 200 participants. There was also a short kids category.
The Route
Both distances started in Bamboo Hills and had several kilometers of road before entering the trail by the riverside. The participants had to start with a steep climb on the trail, which was one of the surprises for the event. The race then enters the route heading towards the camp site and then eventually ascends Mount Lantik. The 8K and 16K distances separates in a junction. The 8K runners heads to the finish while 16K participants head to a longer trail and road near Magallanes before heading to the finish.
The Race
The 16K Runners had their gun start at 5:30 am, the 8K runners had a 6:15 am gun start and the kids race started at 7:00 am. The runners were in for a scenic adventure with each ups and down and twist and turns of the trail. The trail had deep forested trails and open ridges. This gave runners a peak of the beautiful trails of Batangas and Cavite.
It was a long challenging but scenic adventure with Mount Talamitam and Lantik as the backdrop for the runners. Within a few hours, the runners slowly finished the race full of stories and memories.
The Suunto Adventure Challenge
There was a surprise event within a race with 16 participants for the Suunto Adventure Challenge. The challenged had the runners retrieve boxes with puzzle piece and surprises. It was not just a game of speed, but also a game of luck, smarts and coordination. Some boxes had puzzle pieces ;which can only be solved by finding your other random pair. It was competitive and really fun.
The Awarding
The event ended with the awarding and the closing remarks.
The Sponsors
On A Trail Weekend is powered by On Philippines and presented by Pinoy Trails, Trail Academy and Outdoor Statement. Special Thanks to the partners and sponsors for the event.
- GPS Watch Partner: Suunto
- Registration Partner: Race Meister
- Venue Partner: Bamboo Hills Leisure Farm
- Hydration Partner: Lightwater and Vitamin Boost
- Electrolytes Partner: Sipp Plus
- Nutrition Partner: Nutrition Depot
- Healthcare Partner: Shinagawa Diagnostic & Preventive Care and Shinagawa Lasik and Aesthetics
- Recovery Partner: Hyperice
- Dans
- Skincare partner: Pureganics and kojie san
- Relaxential Partner: Scent Therapy and Danarra
- Coffee Partner: Cafe Agapita
- Sock partnet: Injinji
- Sinaunang Ugat
