Baguio City To Welcome Ronda Pilipinas Cyclists

February 17, 2020 JUST IN

BAGUIO CITY (February 17, 2020) —  A hundred cyclists will race their way up Marcos Highway on March 2 for the Baguio leg of Ronda Pilipinas.
A special lane will be designated for the participants of the local cycling competition according to Baguio City Administrator Bonifacio Dela Peña.
The cyclists will come from Nueva Ecija and battle a grueling 177.1 kilometer open road distance to reach Baguio for the eighth leg of the 10-stage race.
“We anticipate the arrival of the cyclists by 1PM of March 2 at the Lake Drive, Burnham Park,” Dela Peña said.
He said the traffic management unit of the city with the Baguio City Police Office is already preparing their traffic scheme for the said event as this will affect the natural flow of vehicles from Marcos Highway to Burnham Park.
“We wanted to promote sports tourism in Baguio that is why when the organizers of Ronda Pilipinas visited last year, we really asked them to return the route to Baguio,” Dela Peña said.
The last time Ronda Pilipinas included Baguio in its route was in 2015 with the Summer Capital as its final leg to complete its 1,000-kilometer grueling race of flat roads and mountain passes.
“Baguio is the most awaited leg of Ronda Pilipinas because it’s most challenging being an uphill race,” Dela Peña said.
The Ronda Pilipinas will start on February 24 with 137-kilometer distance in Sorsogon to Legazpi towards Naga followed by the longest distance set from Daet to Lucena with 212.5-kilometer distance then end in Antipolo for a break.
Cyclists will resume on February 29 from Antipolo towards Lingayen and Nueva Ecija before taking the uphill race to Baguio.  From Baguio, cyclists will go down Pugo, La Union and will end in Vigan for the closing on March 4.
Despite the threat of the 2019 corona virus disease, Dela Peña said the Ronda Pilipinas was not cancelled and will not be suspended.
by: Artemio Dumlao