Erick Feliciano of Quezon City Bags Tour of Camarines Sur 2009 Crown

PILI, Camarines Sur - Frederick "Erick" S. Feliciano of Quezon City, crossed the finish line with the frontrunners of the third and final lap to clinch the Sports category championship of the Tour of Camarines Sur 2009 and a cash prize of P35,000.

Feliciano who was nursing a very narrow edge of only five seconds over closest rival Alvin Benosa of Nabua, CamSur going into the third lap, simply coasted along with the second pack to share an identical time of 4 hours and 3.06 seconds with Benosa and over 20 other cyclists to complete the Tour with best total time of 9 hours and 41.32 seconds, still five seconds ahead of Benosa who ended first runner-up with P25,000.

Third lap third placer Nilo P. Estayo of Pangasinan came up with the next best cumulative time of 9:43.31, some three minutes behind the frontrunners, entitling him to a cash prize of P15,000.

In the Fun Riders category, Sergio D.L. Sotto of Baao who was eighth in the first lap, third in the second lap and second in the last lap has the best overall time of 10 hours and 8.29 seconds and took the championship worth P20,000, followed by Marlon F. Endico of Calabanga as first runner-up with P15,000, and Pohnpie Nico B. Barreto of Iriga City at third place overall with P10,000.

The Sports Category third lap first and second places were a shoo-in for Julius Mark S. Bonzo of Pangasinan and Bryant E. Sepnio of Nabua, respectively, who were able to slip away from the main pack as early as Cabusao going north.  The duo held the lead up to just past the Libmanan boundary on the way back when Sepnio slipped back a bit and Bonzo was joined by Jonathan B. Rombaon and Michael B. Pili of Iriga City and Hilario A. Ladra of Davao City.

Sepnio managed to rejoin the lead pack at Pamukid, San Fernando and in a burst of speed at the straightway again slipped away, together with Bonzo, from the pack.  It was the two of them all the way to the finish line some 200 meters ahead of the massed second pack of about 25 cyclists.

In the Team category, the Tommy Banks team composed of Eusebio Quiñones, Feliciano and Estayo had the best combined cumulative time of 29:10.49 and shared the P15,000 cash prize, followed by Army Team with Arnel D. Quirimit, Benosa and Bonzo at 29:19.34 with P8,000, the Liquigas team of Sepnio, Cris L. Joven and Pili as second runner-up with P6,000 and the Duterte team of Dexter O. Nonato, Glen U. Yap and Hilario Ladra third runner-up with P4,000.

Aside from lap winners, other cash award recipients were: