MANILA -- Filipino cyclists will now have a chance to experience the world's toughest bike race without even going to the US.
Enter Cycling RAAMpage, the Philippine version of the Race Across America, which was launched to the media at the Union Jack Tavern in Makati on Thursday night.
"Cycling RAAMpage is an ultra-distance cycling race," said Carmela Pearson, one of the organizers of the event that is set to be held at The Villages at Global Clark in Angeles, Pampanga on July 28.
Divided into six-hour, 12-hour, and 24-hour time trials for individuals, duos, and quartets of varying ages and genders, the race serves as the lone Southeast Asian qualifier for the 2019 RAAM.
"The goal is to introduce the Philippines to the other Southeast Asian countries," said Pearson, whose husband Colin already raced the RAAM before.
The female Pearson later bared, "We also invited India, Taiwan, and Japan, so hopefully we'll see more of them coming in the next few months."
While RAAM and its regional qualifiers have been compared to the Tour de France and each region's local counterparts, Pearson said RAAM is an entirely different game.
"It's a speed race, but definitely, the format itself is very different. Usually in races like Tour de France, it's point-to-point. In this one, you're just in one loop going around," she continued. "It's not just physical endurance that we're testing but also the mental."
Racers will do multiple laps in a 33-km. loop without any rest or pit stop. The one who travels the longest after the time limit in the division he or she played at will be the winner.
On the other hand, cyclists who breach the 612-km. mark for men and the 564-km. mark for women in the 24-hour solo category will become part of RAAM proper. (PNA)
