Sarangani sizzles with beach fest

MANILA, Philippines - Sarangani Bay, habitat of one of the world’s best-tasting tuna, sizzled this summer with the biggest and most sensational beach event in the country at Gumasa Beach in Glan, Sarangani.

Dubbed as SarBay Fest, more than 800 athletes competed in different water sports, plus a host of special events that made Mindanao’s best white sand beach a party place from sunset to sunrise last May 18-19.

Fun and adventure kicked off with the extreme Swim Across the Bay, a 15-kilometer Cross Channel Team Swim from Tinoto beach in Maasim to Reycon beach in Glan. The three-hour relay marathon was among the longest sea swimming races in Asia.

In addition, there was also the shorter 200- to 400- meter Sarangani Swim Challenge.

Back at the beach, participants enjoyed a dance marathon with Alfred Lauzon (from the Maneouvres), hip hop team dance contests, beach volleyball tourneys, and clinics on skim boarding and poi and zip.

As the festival’s environmental component, there was a coastal clean-up, a Scubasurero underwater clean-up and deployment of artificial reefs.

The expansive party zone and events area where the SarBay Festival takes place.

Art took center stage with Pinta sa Baybayon painting workshops, Percussion Island Beats by Kuerdas, and an inter-municipality sand sculpture competition.

The evening sizzled as fire dancing exhibitions leveled up into a contest, the Bay Bodies strutted their stuff on the ramp, and wrapped up with the Summer Party at the Bay featuring DJ Club mixes.

The second day featured a beach dance marathon, the Bombo Bancarera boat race, finals of the beach volleyball and football, and a three-hour early evening Zumba dance party.

The two-day extravaganza drew to a close with the Concert by the Bay by San Miguel Beer, and an all-night beach party with Club DJs which ran until the wee hours the next day.

“Sarangani Bay Festival started small and has turned out to be the biggest beach festival in the whole country,” said Gov. Miguel Dominguez, himself an aquasports enthusiast.

New activities added this year included a paragliding tilt in the hills of Maasim town which provided a breath-taking view of the bay.

A swimmer is captured in mid-air as he participates in the Swim Across the Bay challenge.

Dominguez noted that the festival, which is now on its seventh staging, will project the province as an adrenaline-pumping getaway in line with its tagline, “Sarangani: Your Adventure.”

Tourists can dive or snorkel at the Lemlunay Resort in Maasim which boasts of rich marine life and a diversity of species just a few meters away from the shore.

The town also offers a zipline and shooting range at the IML Ecopark, as well as Fort Sarangani, a visitor-friendly army camp which has a commanding view of the bay.

Other nature and adventure activities are tubing at the Maitum River and snorkeling at Tuka Marine Park in Kiamba.

Check out details of SarBay Fest on Facebook (Sarangani Bay Festival or Go Sarangani).

Skim boarders show off their skills.