Taking The Ford Ranger to an ATV Ride

Photo by Paul John Caña

Adventure-seekers based in the city need not go far to get their adrenaline fix. If you look hard enough, there are services that offer an escape from the mundanity of everyday life that won’t require a flight, a sea voyage, or even a long road trip.

About an hour east of Metro Manila is one such service. ATV Adventures has been around since 2016 and offers regular folk a chance to drive all-terrain vehicles through literal rocky roads and punishing pathways. If you’ve ever tried to avoid pockmarked city streets while driving, this ups the experience by actually having you drive over and through the road obstacle.

Reps from Ford Philippines were kind enough to invite me to experience ATV Adventures for myself and a friend one Sunday afternoon. They even threw in a Ford Ranger that I used to drive us to the site. It made sense to drive a pick-up to the location—what better vehicle to use to go to an off-roading site than one of the leading pick-up trucks in the country.

The unit was a Ranger XLT in sunset red. I’ve always been curious what the XLT stands for, so I did a quick Google search. Whether or not it originally meant “extra luxurious truck” I’m still not quite sure, but today it’s essentially a trim level to indicate certain features. The one I drove was a 4×2 AT variant, with a 2.2-liter TDCI diesel engine, a 4.2-inch digital display (but not touchscreen), leather-and-fabric upholstered seats, and 17-inch alloy wheels.

It’s all a bit basic if you’re used to the Ranger’s more uppity brothers like the Wildtrak and the Raptor, but for the purposes of this drive, it was more than adequate. We all know Metro Manila’s roads aren’t going to win any awards for smoothness and durability, but with a pick-up like the Ranger, you’ll at least have peace of mind that the next crack or pothole won’t have you ending up at your casa or friendly neighborhood mechanic getting your tires or suspension fixed.

Photo by Paul John Caña

Marcos Highway is fine till around Masinag, but some areas after, especially the inner roads closer in the mountains, are still under repair. Many sections are already crumbling, no doubt because of the sheer number of vehicles that traverse it every day. But the drive there was a breeze, and even pleasant, despite light weekend traffic. The Ranger proved to be not just a capable daily workhorse, but a thoroughly convenient and enjoyable weekend ride.

Sapinit Road, where the ATV Adventures headquarters is located, is still technically in Antipolo, but the environment is already more provincial than city. After getting our gear on (helmets, knee and elbow pads, fingerless gloves) and a quick safety demo, my friend and I were off in the ATVs.

The initial stretch was on the paved highway, but we soon turned onto a dirt path and that’s where the adventure began. There was a light rain, which I didn’t mind, because it helped cool us off after the blistering midday heat. But that also meant that the dirt path was more muddy than dusty.

I had to resist the urge to avoid the mud puddles and small crevices in between the slabs of hardened earth— that’s instinct kicking in. But it’s not called ATVs for nothing, and those things can handle most anything thrown its way. Soon we were rolling along and minding how we drove less and enjoying the scenery more.

Photo by Paul John Caña

The path was challenging and rough, as it should have been, but we managed to pass it with minimal effort and hardly any coaching from our guides.

We were rewarded with photo opportunities against stunning mountain views and, of course, the thrill itself of the off-roading experience. On the way back, we were more confident and put just a bit more speed on less bumpy sections of the trail.

We couldn’t help coming back to the starting point with mud all over our clothes and even on our faces, much less getting some of it on the Ranger’s interior, but I reasoned that’s exactly what the pick-up expects. Ford says the Ranger is Built Tough and there’s no doubt that it lives up to that tagline.