Block Party in Subic and Clark
Run. Bike. Climb. These aren’t the things you’re normally allowed to do on a highway. But I was fortunate enough to have been invited to “94k Weekend” – last week’s pre-inaugural opening of the smooth and spanking Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX).
The new toll road is a flagship project of the Arroyo Administration and government corporation Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA). Promising speedy and comfortable travel for tourists in Luzon (just 30 minutes from Clark to Subic!), the SCTEX is expected to become the economic backbone of Central and North Luzon, while also developing new centers of excellence in international service and logistics in Southeast Asia. Introductory toll rate has been set to P2 per kilometre.
For the 94k Weekend, BCDA gathered runners, cyclists, bikers, car lovers, families and leisure seekers in what turned out to be, quite literally, a three-day block party. Well, a block party with marathons and ceremonial torch relays and tattooed Mad Dog MC bikers with handlebar moustaches.
On Friday, the 250,000-strong Luzon Motorcyclist Federation, Inc. (LMFI) held an exhibit and convention on the grassy grounds of the Clark Omni Area. And then on Saturday, executives and corporate professionals put on their cycling suits for a friendly but competitive 150k race. Wall-climbing guests scaled a specially-constructed 3-panel wall. There was also a concert stage, on one side of which was a bazaar that sold –among many other things– imported tequila. And BMW Philippines built a mini-expo to showcase their latest luxury bikes and cars (a red M3 Coupé!), most of which were made available for test drives.
Oh. And then there was a 94-kilometre marathon.
It’s not every day that toll roads are open for runners but for this one summer weekend the organisers had made it possible. An invitation was sent to a team of athletes to cover the full distance of 94 kilometres; collectively, they’re called the Pinoy Ultra Runners, and I carried the journalistic burden of following them.
So they ran. They ran across an asphalt highway so smoothly paved such as you’ll never see elsewhere in the Philippines. They ran through the country’s most important economic hubs: from the Central Techno Park in Tarlac, through the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga, and to the Subic Bay Freeport Zone in Zambales (as well as several other duty-free, Americanized areas). They ran past 8 interchanges, 35 bridges, 255 culverts, 44 underpasses, and –ahem!– state-of-the-art computerized toll collection systems.
They ran to prove a point, to burn calories, or maybe just to view the northern scenery. (The SCTEX does offer breathtaking views of distant mountains, cliffs, and green landscapes.) They didn’t exactly run to finish first. In this case, after all, placing ahead of others did not really matter so much as conquering new challenges.
And treading new paths. Literally.
Hi Migs, it must have been a great event. THANKS a lot for sharing it with all of us… Very interesting post…
Hi Klaus: Thank you so much. It was a fun event indeed. I hope tourists from Manila and from other countries alike get the chance to use the road for future travels. And that includes you.
Cheers!