SOME 420 trail runners will try to conquer the wild and uncharted terrains of Barangay Mulao in the mountainous part of the municipality of Lilo-an today for the fifth leg of the Columbia Eco Trail Run.
Around 200 trail runners joined the fourth leg last year but for this edition, the organizers from the Philippine Adventure Consultant (PAC) and the Primer Group of Companies expressed surprise by the unexpected mammoth number of registrants.
However, they decided to limit the number of participants to 420 to avoid overcrowding in the venue and also to prevent any damage done by the participants to the natural trail of Mulao, Lilo-an.
The trail will be a total of12.6 kilometers composed of two river systems, a mountain named Mount Lanigid, more than two storey boulders for scrambling, a hanging bridge and a muddy trail will be offered to the participants of the race.
Mount Lanigid is 450 feet above sea level while one of the rivers along the route has a total distance of four kilometers.
The race will kick off at 6 a.m. while free transportation to the venue from in Lilo-an proper will be available at 4 in the morning.
The race’s cut-off will be four hours.
Cash prizes, gift certificates and medals await the top 10 finishers of the race both in the men and women’s divisions. /CORRESPONDENT DALE G. ROSAL