More than 5,600 cyclists took to the streets of Singapore for the mass rides of OCBC Cycle this morning. All three categorieys: the 40km Sportive Ride, 40km Foldie Ride by Brompton and the 20km Straits Times Ride were fully sold out, showcasing the strong community support and demand for cycling in Singapore.

20km ride for me

I participated in the 20km Straits Times Ride which flagged off at 6:30am. I reached The Kallang at around 5:45am and headed straight to the start pens check-in area. There was already a crowd.

I found myself in the second wave. This was flagged off about eight minutes after the official start time. 

The ride was beautiful and scenic. Riding on closed roads through Singapore is a rare treat that we only get to experience once a year at OCBC Cycle Singapore. 

The route was challenging. We had to climb Sheares Bridge twice but the views from the top were rewarding. This is one of the rare opportunity that cyclists in Singapore get to ride up and down Sheares on two wheels. The rest of the route took us to Marina South and back. There were some other gentle, easy inclines along the way but none as iconic as Sheares. 

This year’s route had some minor changes/improvements compared to previous editions of the event.

The ride was smooth and the weather was thankfully kind to us. The bicycle traffic was heavy at some places along the way because everyone rides at vastly different speeds but I was able to navigate my way through, soak up the sights and sounds and simply have fun and enjoy the ride – which was the main purpose of participating anyway. 

Our hydration needs were taken care of. There was a hydration point around midway giving out bottles of 100PLUS which were super cold and refreshing and quenched my thirst nicely when I need more than just plain water. 

After descending Sheares for the second time, the ride back was great fun. I found myself thoroughly enjoying the last stretch of my experience of riding closed roads. The remainder of the ride was flat. And all too soon, the large dome of the National Stadium appeared in front of me. 

Finishing

It’s always special to go into the National Stadium to end a sports event and this morning’s ride was no different. Riding into the stadium still felt amazing even though I’ve done this a few times already in past editions of the OCBC Cycle event. The finish arch appeared in front of me, and then we were asked to dismount our bikes. The ride was over.

We were then ushered to the entitlements area to pick up our medals and finisher stuff. The medals are well designed this year in my opinion. And the 100PLUS ice cream was super refreshing and shiok after the ride; I really hope OCBC Cycle continues to give this out every year at the finish line. 

We were then ushered out of the Stadium to the finish carnival outside at the grounds of The Kallang. There was so much to see, do and buy there but the booth that got the most attention had to be the personalised laser medal engraving booth. It was super cool but I didn’t get mine engraved due to long queues. 

It was a super fun experience at the OCBC Cycle 2026 and I thoroughly enjoyed this year’s experience. Thanks once  again to OCBC Cycle for putting on another well-organised and amazing event. 

While the mass rides concluded today, OCBC Cycle continues with the 100km virtual ride and 120km round island virtual ride from 9 May – 8 June allowing participants to complete their rides at their own pace. 

Ride Vlog