The original mass-participation cycling event will be celebrating its fourth running on November 20, 2016…and I won’t be there. Why? I’ve got a few reasons.
VALUE?
I always signed up as an early bird entry into these events and took the group rate (of four participants) to take advantage of the lower price of entry. The registration fee and ride pack used to represent good value. You got F2P’s excellent event jerseys, your race number and timing chip, and a bunch of extras. 2013 by far was the best year, offering a decent canvas sling bag (I used it long enough that it wore out on me), some off-brand shades, and a high-visibility yellow leg band from the Firefly Brigade that I still use today.
The ride pack from the very first running of BGC Cycle Philippines in 2013. I joined the Community Ride, so I got a shirt instead of a jersey.
The 2013 ride pack came in this canvas sling body bag – excellent for bike commuting. I used it so frequently that I wore a hole through it.
Very very useful
These shades came with the 2013 ride pack and with two lens options too. Sadly they got lost.
These days, however, even adopting this strategy, I can’t deny that participation is getting expensive. Had I signed up with three others this year during the early bird period, the PhP6,300 fee would have worked out to PhP1,575 per head. This is an okay price for me…but it no longer corresponds to the value that previous runnings of this event had. The 2015 edition offered a ride pack with changing bags for triathletes and packets of MSG-laden crisps – really?
The 2014 ride pack came in this knapsack. Decently useful, I guess, but the narrow strings make it painful to ride with for long periods.
2014 also saw this Rudy Project branded pouch bag. Erm, okay. Not as useful as the knapsack as it’s too darn small.
2015’s ride kit. Disappointing.
THE ROUTE IS RIPE FOR AN OVERHAUL
Sunrise Events is reusing the exact same route as last year.
I find it mildly amusing that an event called “BGC Cycle Philippines” sports a 40 km route that barely even uses its host, Bonifacio Global City, at all. Seriously – the meat and potatoes of the route is Gil Puyat Avenue and a bit of Roxas Boulevard.
The original 2013 edition was the only difference in this regard because it used C5. I have my pet theory about this route decision – largely revolving around the territorial dispute as to whether Taguig City or Makati City owns BGC.
Even if the organizers are justified by local government jurisdiction that Makati owns BGC, there has to be a much better place for running an event like this than Gil Puyat Avenue, which runs across three major thoroughfares of Metro Manila: Roxas Boulevard, Osmeña Highway, and EDSA via the Kalayaan Flyover. Gil Puyat Avenue itself is a busy drain pan collecting vehicular traffic – one with a patchy road surface the closer it gets to Pasay City.
Okay, EDSA traffic isn’t impacted, but I can remember lots of irate motorists plying Gil Puyat and Osmeña Highway inconvenienced by the BGC Cycle Philippines route in the past two editions.
Alaska Cycle Philippines route for 2015. You had to focus on counting how many loops you did of the course, but otherwise this was really good.
Its sister event, Alaska Cycle Philippines, has consistently used a much more compact course layout contained within Roxas Boulevard and the SM Mall of Asia area – one with much less disruptive impact. Maybe Sunrise ought to look at adopting the same. I would not mind running the entire 40 km Challenge route within Bonifacio Global City and Kalayaan Flyover as a criterium of sorts – they’ve already shown that it can work.
THE FALSE PROMISE OF “CLOSED ROADS”
It is very, very hard for event marshals and local government police to patrol the length of Gil Puyat Avenue and ensure road closure for participants. Perhaps some of it is their fault, but to be fair to them, Gil Puyat is simply a nightmare for traffic control.
Approaching the Gil Puyat – Taft Avenue intersection. Screen still taken from Timothy Lacbay’s onboard footage of BGC Cycle Philippines 2015.
There are U-turns, lots of intersecting streets, and a railway crossing, as well as the infamously poor self-control of Pinoy pedestrians and drivers. Back in 2014 I distinctly remember having to come to a stop at the railway crossing because a train had to make its way through. And while it’s easy to point fingers at pedestrians, Gil Puyat Avenue simply does not have the infrastructure to avoid disruption between pedestrian and vehicular traffic – a fancy way of saying it doesn’t have enough elevated walkways.
Nice promise, but execution has been disappointing. I would suggest getting rid of Gil Puyat Avenue altogether because any promise of “riding on closed roads” when it is factored in is hot air at best.
And just when the event finally got rid of white on its jerseys…
CONCLUSION
Sunrise Events has to be applauded for their commitment to hosting these events year on year. That said, there’s definitely a lot of room for improvement. Gorgeous F2P event jersey aside, BGC Cycle Philippines has gotten somewhat stale. I am sincerely hoping that Sunrise takes these criticisms into account when it plans its next edition of BGC Cycle Philippines.
The 2015 running of Alaska Cycle Philippines did a lot of things right. It boasted a compact, criterium-style layout for the 40 km Challenge course; a smooth, well-organized registration and ride kit claiming procedure; and one of the best-looking, most flattering cycling jerseys I’ve ever had.
Will the 2016 edition better it?
REGISTRATION AND RIDE KIT
Organizer Sunrise Events opened the 2015 event’s registration a few days before 2014 ended, and it made a huge splash about it. By comparison, in 2016 they seemed half-hearted in raising awareness, and early bird registration opened in the middle of February.
It had also become a little dearer to participate. The price of admission had gone up considerably, even for the most cost-effective option: early bird registration for the 40 km Challenge as a group of four. Registering this way effectively joins the fourth team member for free. Even so, effective price per head was now PhP1575, compared to the PhP1350 of previous Cycle Philippines events.
This time around, I signed up with Rommel Cruz, Mike Nera, and BJ Serrano of SudRouleurs.CC.
As with the 2015 edition, Microtel Suites at the bayside SM Mall of Asia area played host to the ride kit claim, and the Sunrise Events team certainly repeated their good job with the venue. When I went at around 10:30 am, there was a lot of people, but Microtel’s function room was just big enough to keep things from disintegrating into chaos. They even retained the bike parking area too.
So what’s in the kit? The essentials are still there: the RFID-tagged bike number tag, the three helmet stickers, and the race number pinned to the jersey.
They did away with the junk food and threw in useful extras instead. Helmet and eyewear maker Spyder threw in a small wrist cuff with reflective print and a tiny zippered pocket, as well as a strange combination of a sun visor and a “Buff” headgear. Both are certainly useful for cyclists and are thoughtful additions.
We also got some samples of Cetaphil’s skin care products, a small pack of tissues, and a collapsible fan.
As before, F2P make the event jerseys. It’s a nice combination of hues, with the dominant black and gray fade flattering most people’s physiques. While not bad, I still prefer last year’s design.
Previous jerseys were made in the Lao PDR. F2P seems to have moved production to Thailand this time around.
It’s still got three pockets at the rear, but little else in terms of features. Quality is still up there, though.
THE ROUTE
I had concerns about the BGC Cycle Philippines 2015 route for the 40 km Challenge because it threw in Gil Puyat Avenue. Even on a Sunday morning, this road is busy enough that closing its span from Makati to Pasay resulted in a lot of irate drivers.
As it turns out, Sunrise Events decided to tap Gil Puyat Avenue again for this event.
From the start/finish line along Seaside Boulevard, the Challenge route runs along J.W. Diokno Boulevard and up to Gil Puyat Avenue, where riders pedal along its length until the Paseo de Roxas intersection. There, they all double back the opposite way, turning right at Roxas Boulevard. Riders then complete three laps, bookended by U-turns at the City of Dreams casino and the Gil Puyat Avenue flyover. After the final lap, cyclists forego climbing the flyover and turn into the World Trade Center area before swinging into J.W. Diokno and Seaside Boulevards for the finish.
This is in stark contrast to last year’s layout, which was largely self-contained within the area of Roxas Boulevard and SM By the Bay and did away with as much use of Gil Puyat Avenue as possible.
Even worse, the 2016 edition changed up the schedule and had all rides on a much busier Saturday morning. How much more irate people would get, we will see.
THE RIDE
The four of us all started late.
We were registered as the last of Wave A, so our ride-out time was supposed to be at 5:30 am. Subsequent waves were released two minutes apart. Unfortunately, we arrived late due to long queues at the outdoor parking areas. Apparently they had opened only at 5:15 am. Once parked, we unloaded our bikes from Rommel’s pickup, stuck on his bike number tag and helmet stickers, and pushed our bikes over to the start/finish line as quickly as we could.
Hyro, my TCX, stripped down for Alaska Cycle Philippines 2016.
Rommel and I arrived in time to join Wave F, with Mike and BJ nowhere to be seen. Oh well.
The initial plan was for me to draft for Rommel at around 25 km/h. Unfortunately, when we turned into Gil Puyat Avenue, congestion due to other riders, the single available lane, and the generally cyclist-unfriendly state of the road slowed us right down. Rommel waved me off, so I pushed on, slicing my way through gaps as I rode to the Osmeña Highway train crossing. Riding in the drops, I pushed a 32 km/h pace while passing lots of slower riders.
As expected, lots of motorists and pedestrians were frustrated with the Gil Puyat Avenue road closure. Little wonder, as it was a busy Saturday morning. After rounding the Paseo de Roxas U-turn, we had to stop for half a minute at the Makati Avenue intersection as the cops and route marshals had to let a few irate drivers through. We started again and rushed through the remainder of the Gil Puyat route before swinging over to Roxas Boulevard to start our three laps.
(L-R) Michael Caya, Timothy Lacbay, and Sean Ilaguison.
From previous editions of these events, I knew that the wide expanse of Roxas Boulevard was home to some stiff headwinds, and this day was no exception. I rode in the drops for most of this leg, while chasing slower riders and holding on to their rear wheels as I approached them for added shelter from the wind. I held 27-28 km/h on the flat sections, but felt my right calf starting to cramp. I clicked into easier gears to decrease the load, and managed to stave off a full onset.
On the climbs of the Gil Puyat and EDSA flyovers, I opted to stay seated, click into easier gears, and spin the cranks as best as I could, maintaining 16 km/h and no slower. I shuffled to the rear of my saddle and rotated the load toward my glutes and hamstrings.
BJ Serrano on his Specialized Allez.
There was one instance where I had to suddenly put on the brakes, as there was this rider on a mountain bike that swerved into my path as I was attempting to pass him on his left. I felt my right calf cramp once as I braked and wrestled Hyro into a better position to pass.
At the end of my second lap, I saw a rider in a pink and blue jersey pass me on my left. It was Michael Caya of the United Folding Bikers. He was drafting for my pals Timothy Lacbay and Sean Ilaguison, the three of them keeping a well-coordinated paceline, and I greeted them hello. They were already on their way back to Seaside Boulevard, and I told them I had started late.
Michael Nera with his fluoro green helmet, riding his white Giant Defy Advanced 2.
My third lap went without incident, although my left hand was starting to get numb from all the forward-leaning weight. I improved my seated climbing to 18 km/h, too. I almost had to come to another stop on the turn to J.W. Diokno from the cars, but I managed to keep moving.
I had done enough to stave off my cramps, so I thought of shooting for a sprint finish – an achievement I’ve never pulled successfully. Another rider on a white Specialized Tarmac road bike seemed to have the same idea. Waiting for the final intersection, I stood up, cranked on the drops, and launched a huge 992 W sprint – propelling myself from 35 km/h to 48 km/h on the final 200 meters to the line.
Maximum speed.
POST-RIDE
After crossing the line, I had no cramping at all as I whooped from the adrenaline rush. Rolling into the finishers’ area, I was given a Sausage McMuffin. White Tarmac guy pulled up and congratulated me on the sprint. His name was Andy, a triathlete. We remained near the finish line area, chatting away as we waited for our companions to cross the line.
Timing results. For some reason Sean’s timing tag wasn’t detected. Click on the image for the PDF file.
I walked over to congratulate Timothy, Michael and Sean. Michael in particular had put out some amazing numbers, averaging 30.8 km/h. Kuripot Biker author Jojo Bartolome was also there, finishing in good form and keeping pace with road bikes with his blue Brompton.
Lastly I met up with my guys Rommel, Mike and BJ. It was the first time for almost all of them and they were abuzz with pride. BJ’s training regimen had paid off, and he completed the distance without cramps and without difficulty on the climbs. All of them wanted to do it again.
(L-R) Rommel Cruz, Mike Nera, BJ Serrano and yours truly.
I’m of two minds with this year’s running of Alaska Cycle Philippines. On the one hand, the ride kit is excellent; logistics were well-managed; and there’s very minimal route interference like what happened with BGC Cycle Philippines 2015.
On the other hand…I hope they just do away with Gil Puyat Avenue altogether. The stretch the marshals close from Osmeña Highway to J.W. Diokno is pretty bad for all parties, and I believe replacing the whole Gil Puyat leg with another lap around Roxas Boulevard would be much better.
(L-R) Yours truly, BJ Serrano, Mike Nera and Rommel Cruz.
November 22, 2015 marks my third year in the premier mass participation ride event held in Metro Manila: BGC Cycle Philippines.
THE RIDE PACK
If there’s one thing consistent about the Cycle Philippines events, it’s that they give you a very nice jersey as part of the ride pack, still made by F2P. The print this time around is much better than the 2014 edition, while still retaining the same colorway of orange, turquoise, black, and white.
As with the 2015 running of Alaska Cycle Philippines last May, there’s a “transition bag” that’s essentially three drawstring bags – one each for swimming, cycling and running. They also give you a musette or feed bag.
Rounding out the package are the race number, three helmet stickers, the large transponder-equipped number sticker for the bike…and a green bag of Regent snack foods and Goya chocolate products. This time around, at least there’s much less of them. Last May, they ate up almost all the space inside my panniers purely from the air volume inside them.
THE ROUTE
A full ninety percent of the route from the 2014 running is intact in this go-around. It still starts at Bonifacio Global City, where riders go through some of the smaller streets until they are launched up Kalayaan Flyover, crossing EDSA and landing on Gil Puyat Avenue. Riders continue westward until the left turn under the flyover at Roxas Boulevard, where a U-turn awaits. This is the main difference from last year, where riders turned farther west at J.W. Diokno Boulevard instead. From there, it’s a return trip back to Gil Puyat Avenue, up Kalayaan Flyover, and down Rizal Drive.
As I was on the 40 km Challenge, I took a second lap of all this, minus the initial side street stroll around Bonifacio Global City.
THE RIDE
Confession time: I managed to bungle the start by jumping the gun five minutes early.
I made the mistake of following the riders in front of me, when they were really part of the wave of riders that were supposed to ride with Aussie ex-pro and Tour de France green jersey winner Robbie McEwen. Oh well. I was already in the fray; I might as well make the most of it. So sue me.
Jumping the start did allow me to put in a proper chase effort. This was the first Cycle Philippines outing where I used clipless pedals, and I was glad I had them because I was drafting behind some really hard riders. I had managed to complete the first lap keeping pace with the six-man Robee Stickers cycling team…up until Kalayaan Flyover, where they eventually dropped me after the climb plateaued back to 32nd Street.
30 km/h average speed. No doubt helped by drafting behind some hardened riders
As the second lap started, without a train for me to “caboose” with, I immediately felt slower. Hahaha!
Because the route is practically unchanged from last year, it’s becoming fairly apparent that it also conflicts with Sunday morning vehicle traffic, which is at the point where closing just one lane and three intersections makes for lots of irate drivers. Rerouting to Roxas Boulevard was a welcome improvement, as the World Trade Center junction was no longer a choke point. However, my friends were in agreement: Gil Puyat Avenue’s stretch from Osmeña Highway to Roxas Boulevard is still very busy, and may not be the best venue for this kind of event any more. Some of them were still trying to push their way into the closed U-turn slots, where a lot of riders (myself included) had to stop, dismount, push our bikes around the wayward cars, remount, and continue on our way.
As my friend Jojo Bartolome of Kuripot Biker said post-ride, “we annoyed a lot of car drivers today.”
Maximum speed from the Kalayaan Flyover off-ramp into Gil Puyat Avenue. This is the fastest I’m ever gonna get on the stock 46/36T crank.
That left turn under the flyover to Roxas Boulevard was the site of a lot of close calls from riders, too. It doesn’t help that the turn is slightly blind, because of the support columns of the flyover, but a lot of riders weren’t even staying on the right side as they should, increasing the risk of collision. Route marshals didn’t do enough to prevent wayward pedestrians from crossing, either – too many of them grossly misjudged how fast the cyclists were going.
Finally, I managed to cramp both legs along the bumpy westernmost end of Gil Puyat Avenue. The left calf I managed to stave a full onset away from, but my right calf properly seized for a good half-minute as I overtook a slower cyclist. Forcing myself to relax, I eventually recovered and completed the ride as strongly as I could, cramp-free.
Taken from the finish line
POST-RIDE
As with previous Cycle Philippines events, the post-ride meal was a hearty Sausage McMuffin and a bottle of Gatorade. I heard mumblings from the riders about the organizers being stingy with the hydration this time around, offering Gatorade only on the second lap of the 40 km Challenge ride.
Ignore the official time. I finished in 1 hour 19 minutes dead. Not bad for a heavy guy on a ‘cross bike
There’s something to be learned from this third running of BGC Cycle Philippines. While I’m glad that Sunrise Events president Wilfred Uytengsu has promised repeated runnings of this event in the foreseeable future, I’m not sure I want to join again next year unless the route is improved. I don’t want to see events like this stir up hatred of cyclists among vehicle drivers when “sharing the road” is the name of the game.
Alaska Cycle Philippines 2015 mostly got it right back in May: a very compact criterium-style course that took up only one side of Roxas Boulevard and the streets leading to SM By the Bay. I think its November counterpart should do the same.
With my cousin Cherrie Rodriguez Simon.
With Pao Duran.
With Alvin Telan of Team TipidPC.
With Ralph Jara of Team TipidPC.
With Sean Ilaguison, Timothy Lacbay and Clyde Robil of the United Folding Bikers. Photo shot by Michael Caya.
Hyro with Pao’s full-suspension mountain bike chilling after the ride.
the accidental randonneur 