Tour de Cebu girds for grand return

CEBU, Philippines —  After a two-year hiatus because of the global pandemic, the Tour de Cebu, the only touristic and historic car rally in the Philippines, is back on the road with close to 50 classic and vintage cars hitting some of the scenic spots of Cebu and Bohol for its seventh edition on September 29 to October 3.

 Organized by the Performance and Classics Enthusiasts (PACE) of Cebu in partnership with the Manila Sports Car Club (MSCC), the one-of-a-kind tourism adventure car rally covering a total distance of 1,000 kilometers is open to sports cars manufactured in 1972 and older.

“This will be the seventh year of this Tour de Cebu event. We are happy to bring it back after two years that it has taken a pause because of the pandemic that has hit the world,” said Michael Lhuillier of the organizing PACE of Cebu during the event’s formal launching last Monday at the Fili Hotel in Nustar Resort and Casino.

The Tour de Cebu was originally conceptualized as a celebration of a decade of friendships formed and shaped by the open road, but has blossomed into a major driver for road tourism, highlighting the beautiful roads and highways as well as the many scenic spots that the Visayan islands have to offer.

Over the years, it has captured the imagination of many classic car enthusiasts and fans and has become one of the best motoring events the country has to offer.

It takes a lot of passion and patience not to mention the financial aspect of restoring a classic car yet the satisfaction it brings to most of the participants is immeasurable.

“As Michael (Lhuillier) mentioned earlier, this our seventh but every year we present something new.This year, there are several special cars coming from Manila and in Cebu as well and many of the cars will be on its debut after years and years of restoration,”said Jay Aldeguer, one of the organizers.

Some of this year’s entries which really make Tour de Cebu a touristic rally and a rolling museum at the same time are the 1979 Opel GT, 1957 MGA, 1972 Porsche 914, 1868 Alfa Romeo Giulia, 1965 Porsche 912, 1970 Lancia Fulvia Zagato, 1968 Mercedes Benz 280 SL, 1960 Porsche 356B Cabriolet, 1974 MGB, 1961 Jaguar XKE, 1972 Datsun 240Z, 1968 Porsche Targa, 1963 Corvette, 1974 Alfa Romeo Spider, 1966 Toyota Sports 800, 1966 Shelby Mustang, 1971 Lotus Europa, Michel Speedster, Michel Spyder, Kougar Jaguar, 1969 Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV, and 1969 BMW 2002.

The drivers look forward to tackling the challenges ahead and hopefully bag the coveted “Robert “Bobby” Aboitiz” award. This in particular will be for 1966 sports cars and older.

“The reason why it is the most prestigious is normally these are the cars that have been most prepared, the rarest and the most valuable.The reason that this is named after him is that the late Bobby Aboitiz was one of our participants and we’ve always held him as the perfect example of a gentleman competitor that really loves to prepare his car. His car has never ever broken down and he has always been competitive,” said Chris Tio, the Grand Marshal of Tour de Cebu.

Technical director Pepon Marave, a former Asian Formula 3 champion, said the Tour de Cebu 2022 features a new route that includes the iconic Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (CCLEX). “As the technical rally director, it is my job to mix up the route and make it exciting for the drivers, look for a route that has less traffic and at the same time the best driving enjoyment.”

The participants will most likely be traveling 300km per day, which is a big challenge for both drivers as they navigate and calculate to ensure that they will make it to the checkpoint at the prescribed time.

Unlike the World Rally Championship where participants race to achieve the fastest time, Tour de Cebu is a regular rally that sees teams using their navigational skills to reach checkpoints in a pre-defined time. Penalty points are given to those who arrive too early or late at the said checkpoints. The winner will be the team with the lowest penalty score.- Caecent No-Ot Magsumbol