As of 2nd September, all 4,700 slots for the first OCBC Cycle Virtual Ride have been fully taken up, one month before the organiser planned to close registrations.

This new virtual format for the long-running cycling fiesta has proven to be a hit, with participants citing the convenience and flexibility of completing the event with family and friends over multiple rides – and on their preferred routes – as the main attraction.

Close to 70 per cent of signups are first-timers as opposed to past editions of OCBC Cycle where first-timers made up 40% of the total participation.

Said Dennis Tan, who signed up with his 7-year-old son, “This is the first time that I am taking part in OCBC Cycle with my son. During this period, my wife and I are constantly looking out for new activities that we can take part in with our son. OCBC Cycle Virtual Ride stood out for us as it is easy to join and we do not have to travel to any specified place.”

And Tan also added, “I also like that the ride can be done at my neighbourhood park and we can do it anytime over two weeks. After telling my son about the ride, he got very excited and has been asking me to bring him downstairs so that he can train for it. Best of all, he gets to claim his very own sports event medal – which I am sure will be a big deal to him once the medal is delivered to him.”

The OCBC Cycle 2020 Virtual Ride will take place from 1st to 15th November.

And participants will complete the full distance of their registered categories over a maximum of four separate rides. Rides can be done anywhere safe, whether indoors or outdoors. 

Participants would then submit details of their rides, recorded by either a fitness tracker or a workout app, to the organiser by 15th November, in order to claim their medal and a tote bag. These will be delivered to all participants by 7th December.

Said Koh Ching Ching, Head of Group Branding and Communications, OCBC Bank, the title sponsor for the event, “we want to thank all those who signed up for the first OCBC Cycle 2020 Virtual Ride. Being able to continue to create the opportunity for families and friends to come together to have fun and exercise, in small groups this year, given the current situation, has always been a key objective of the OCBC Cycle.”

She continued, “While we are not able to bring the more than 6,000 cyclists together in one place because of the Covid-19 outbreak, the different format that circumstances forced us to come up with has been well-received. Our team is really looking forward to the pictures and selfies that the cyclists will send us, over the two-week event.”

Participants who registered for the original OCBC Cycle 2020 will receive a full refund by 4th September unless they opted to donate their fees to Care Corner Singapore, the charity partners of OCBC Cycle.