Race Report:
Samboan Waterfalls Dash 2025

Reported by Nick Aguilos, Navigator for Team Dirt on October 03, 2025

This race almost didn’t happen for us.

We had been looking forward to the 3rd Samboan Waterfalls Dash, a 12-hour sprint adventure race, ever since our 2025 season started. Not only would it be our first race using phones and digital maps, but it would also be Team Dirt’s first time racing on Cebu Island. Fresh off our win at the Sangyaw Adventure Race and Ormoc Eco Adventure Challenge last June, we had taken a few weeks of downtime before picking up training again in September. Everything looked on track—until Typhoon Opong started brewing in the West Pacific just two days before our departure. With all travel between Leyte and Cebu suspended, we weren’t even sure we’d make it to the start line.

6:00 AM, September 27

By sheer luck, we secured Supercat tickets to Cebu as soon as ferries resumed operations. On board, we sat beside Sir Toto of the Pangasugan Trailblazers—one of the strongest teams in the Philippine AR scene back in the day. His insights on racing and life were the kind of encouragement we needed.

We arrived in Samboan by 9 PM and pitched our tents at @beachillax beach c , hastily packing our race gear before grabbing a few hours of sleep. Race Day

2:00 AM, September 28

Alarms went off. Over turmeric drinks and star monay, we checked our gear and clarified race rules we’d missed in the previous day’s briefing. By 3:30 AM we were lined up at the start.

4:00 AM – Go!

The race began with a short sprint—ankles tied with garters—before we picked up the first checkpoint coordinates. This was my trial by fire for digital navigation. With coordinates in degrees-minutes-seconds, Google Maps was slow to input, so I used GAIA GPS for plotting, then transferred points to Google Maps for real-time nav. The system worked flawlessly. We quickly cleared CP1 and CP2, but CP3 stalled us—a puzzle we couldn’t solve cost us 30 minutes and points, while other teams surged ahead.

The CP4 Fiasco

By CP4 we ran into the biggest snag of the race. The checkpoint was misplaced due to a typo in the coordinates. Every team scoured the mountainside for hours before we eventually found it on an adjacent hill. By then, we had slipped to 5th place, losing 2.5 hours.

Fighting Back

From CP5 onward, we clawed our way back. At Dau Falls (CP6), Gil took on a spectacular multi-waterfall rappel while Kaka and I trekked the shaded route toward CP7. By the time we regrouped, the lead team was still 45 minutes ahead.

At CP8, after struggling to find beach access along sheer cliffs, we managed to overtake the leaders. From there, the coastal and swim stages tested us with strong currents and cramps, but smart adjustments and grit carried us forward.

By CP10, then Aguinid Falls for the final checkpoints, we were holding first position. A short trek later, we crossed the finish line at Aguinid Falls in first place overall on time.

Summary

The Samboan Waterfalls Dash 2025 was classic Habagat-style adventure racing:

Long, punishing treks under brutal heat
Navigation that demanded adaptability (this time digital!)
Stunning terrain capped with refreshing water stages

Though we crossed the finish line first, our failure at CP3 cost us heavily in points, dropping our official rank to 2nd place.

Still, we’re proud of the effort. For our first race in Cebu, overcoming a typhoon, missed briefing, coordinate errors, and currents—landing 2nd overall was a strong result.

And most of all, it reminded us why we race: the challenge, the beauty of the outdoors, and the friendships new and old forged along the way.

Personally I want to thank Erika and Gil for pushing real hard for this race.