2018 Advenures Review

The year whizzed past, it felt so long and yet so fast. I think I packed a lot more in this year than before, with a nice build-up leading to plenty of highs and lows, followed by a big crash-lull at the end. All in, the 2018 adventures report card looks quite pretty.

Had an uneventful conditioning start in the first quarter to roll out the year. Began as always with HK100, cleared TransLantau100 amidst much frustration, and enjoyed two race trips with friends to Malacca and Muar (food and company were the main goals). The remaining nine months simply flew by after that, with several hits and misses.

Let’s start with the misses, and end on a high. The misses were as important as the hits, intentional or not. Taking risks to try new events, learning that complacency is a big no-no, and accepting that not everyday is a perfect race day. Rinjani100 was my challenge race this year, and DNF-ed as expected. Knowing how tough it was made cheering for finishers all the more sweeter. Suffered cramps during CrazeUltra 100k with an awry pace and was lucky to be able to trot back to the finish. My swansong race of the year took a miss too; for the first time in years, I missed clearing 8 loops at MR Ultra. If all my races and climbs are prompted by performance, I would be confined to all the “safe” stuff and missed the point (and fun). Every “down” seeds a doubt, and bracketing those doubts is a skill we need to hone. Likewise, the art of managing the tension between staying active, and getting enough down time. For two months after my major expedition, I just wanted to sleep in and not do any long runs. The fear of regressing was real. Well, so was the pull of a new TV and Netflix. :) Allowing myself a long time-out required a lot of self-assurance.

Now the hits. Scored a surprise first-time win at a 100k with Cameron Ultra. It was a pinch-me moment, especially just getting my PF injury sorted out. Came in second at Force of Nature (60k) and some shorter road events. But otherwise, fifth was the prevalent position this year; at Sungai Menyala (50k), Craze Ultra, and MR Ultra. Another set of adventures deserves special mention, with a common theme of breathing and staying centred. My friend, May, indulged me with an utmost crazy trip to Australia. We touched down in Canberra and drove straight to trek up Mt. Kosciusko (2,228m), went to Blue Mountains the next day for UTA race check-in, ran a 100k PB the next morning, and flew home right after. It was like blasting through four days with one big breath. Another highlight was climbing Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m) in Indon Papua, where the team waited a week for clear weather to fly into base camp. The seemingly endless and inactive waiting required a level of zen-ness from everyone who was accustomed to hard slog. The long-awaited reward was getting to the summit and on the Tyrolean rope traverse with emptiness below. The icing on cake for this year must be standing on the summit of Mt. Cho Oyu (8,201m) in Tibet. My first-ever at an 8,000er mountain, bundled up in a downsuit and climbing with oxygen. So much self-doubt, questioning, and anxiousness, it was truly emotional and memorable. And literally breathless.

Grateful for supportive family, colleagues, bosses, who give me the space to do all this. And Melvin for being a partner-in-crime in many of these, even as he sometimes complains about my gear. Looking forward to a pivotal 2019 ahead.  

Part 3: Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m) Summit

On the summit morning, we set off at 520am. It was a nice warmish (for that altitude) day, no wind, blue skies and some sunshine. We took the normal route via the North Face (Heinrich Harrer route). After a 45-50min hike, we got to the the start of the fixed rope. Thereafter, we would jumar all the way up to the summit, crossing multiple ridges and an exciting tyrolean traverse. The rock surface was extremely rough and sharp, chiselled by the weather, making for very good climbing traction (and also good scratches and cuts on those gloves and fancy gear). The rock walls were steep and angular, and became a lot more jagged and looked like serrated saws nearer the summit.

Soon we came up to the summit ridge, where we would take another 1-2h to complete the ascent. There were 2-3 parts where there was a gap in the ridge, and which was too far to jump across. Imagine the ridge, with unsurvivable steep drops on both sides. Getting from Point A to B required scrambling down to a "standalone" mid-point, and jump/step-crawl up the other side. A fairly easy big step for long-limbed folks, but a challenging small jump for shorter climbers like me. Step meant one foot still in contact with the surface. Jump meant both feet off. Our guide, Josh, belayed me down, and I had to gingerly place one foot to the very edge in order to make that jump. A distance that one would not even bat an eyelid in normal life quickly morphed into a gaping hole with silent voids on all sides. My imagination was definitely in overdrive. I was quite paralysed there for a few seconds, but finally told myself that I had to move. Took a deep breath and jumped, to cheers from behind (or everyone would be stuck). 😬 I did not even want to think of the return climb down...

We got to the highlight of the climb - the famous tyrolean traverse. Wikipedia defines it as "a method of crossing through free space between two high points on a rope without a hanging cart or cart equivalent". Think action movies where the hero arm-hangs or walks across a tightrope... The old tyrolean traverse was indeed for hanging upside down and using arms to pull oneself across. The new setup that we used comprised three steel wires; two wires for the right and left hands into which we clipped our locking carabiners, and the third for walking across one foot in front of the other. After all the excitement and YouTube videos, the tyrolean traverse turned out to be quite stable, super cool experience!

A couple more palpitating gaps and deep breaths on the knife-like ridges, we finally reached the summit base. A short scramble took us to the shiny sign proclaiming the summit of Carstensz Pyramind (4,884m). Whoosh! 11:37am, slightly over 6h, on 13 Aug 2018. The climbing company made personalised summit banners for each climber, and with my large SGP flag, it was a busy affair getting the summit pic organised in the fluttering wind. We were very lucky to have good weather throughout the entire climb, and could even see basecamp from the summit.

In theory, the descent should be somewhat faster. In reality, not a lot. We had to go through all those scary gaps again, albeit they felt easier on the second attempt. Where I had jumped down across a gap, I now had to climb up, and vice-versa. Gilles went in front of me and Josh took the rear, helping me with a pull or push at times. At one point, they were giving me directions on where to place my hands and feet, but based on their heights. 😂 In the end, I found my own hand/ footholds and scrambled up. Once passed the jagged ridges and tyrolean traverse, it was a lot of rappelling over the steep walls. Lean back, legs out, go, switch over anchor points, repeat. Endless times. Some of the newer ropes were so stiff that I did not lower an inch even when I bounced in my seat harness or released the locking rope. After quite an eternity, we reached the last of the fixed ropes (whew!) and our basecamp tents were right ahead. Mission accomplished, up and back down safely, in perfect weather! 😊
 
Now, we pray hard for a chance to fly out of basecamp tomorrow. It was another sleepless restless night of tossing in my sleeping bag. At 6am, the commotion outside my tent suggested that the heli was coming in with the remaining three members of our team, and to fly the three from the previous expedition out. That was the earliest takeoff the pilot had made in the past week! Fingers crossed tightly for him to make a second trip and take us out too. Meanwhile, our three teammates set off for their summit attempt. Our prayers were answered and all of us got back to Timika and caught our connecting flights to Bali that same morning. We also later got news that everyone else had summited and returned to BC. 🙏

Part 2: Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m) Basecamp

Our group of six climbers started our expedition on 4 Aug 2018 and was supposed to fly to BC on 6 Aug 2018. Alas, bad weather confined us to Timika for a good 7 days (!) before three of us finally landed in BC. My plan of summiting on National Day fell apart. 😞

There was also a delayed expedition just before us, pushing us back in the heli queue. It was an agonising and frustrating 7 days wait. Each heli trip could only take 3 pax, or up to 350kg load. Every morning, the assigned climbers would be ready at 530am, head out to the airport, and either fly out or return. The heli window is only a few hours each morning; there are no flights after 10/11am as the winds typically pick up in the afternoons. To get a flight going, there needs to be clear visibility in both Timika and BC. There is a small "curtain opening" in the mountains for the heli to fly through and get over to Yellow Valley where BC is. When I finally got on the heli, I saw just how tight that opening was. 

After many prayers and some morning full-dress rehearsals, Andrei, Gilles, Josh (our guide) and I arrived at BC on 12 Aug 2018. We were extremely lucky that the pilot was willing to make a second trip after dropping off some climbers from the previous expedition that morning to get us there! We wanted to climb immediately, but because we landed late, it was 11am when we started. The rain came in and we managed a 2h acclimatisation hike instead. The rain continued pelting heavily through the afternoon. None of us slept much that night. The combination of altitude and adrenaline kept me counting every hour until it was time to get ready at 4am.

Part 1: Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m) Access

Carstensz Pyramid (4,884m), also known as Puncak Jaya, is the highest peak in Australasia and Oceania. Arguably the most exotic of the Seven Summits, it is located in the Indonesian province of Papua on the western island of New Guinea; an area home to some 300plus tribes and languages, as well as the largest gold mine in the world (Grasberg Freeport mine). So yes, literally sitting on top of gold. 😉

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International expeditions teams would fly from Jakarta or Bali to Timika, before trekking or taking a heli to basecamp (BC) at about 4,280m. The domestic flight from Bali to Timika took some 3.5h, longer than the international flight from SGP to Bali. There are three ways to access the climb - trek, fly, drive. Due to security concerns with the tribes and separatist movements in Papua, as well as mine operations, the 5-day trek through tribal villages is generally discouraged. Local Indonesian teams could take the 5h road option through the gold mine, drive fairly close to BC and hike in.

Adventures of 2017

Adventures of 2017

Let's see. Where do I begin? This is the year of several firsts, and many ambitious back-to-backs on red-eye flights and long distance buses, maximising all hours. Could not have experienced all these without the generosity and support of so many of you (spot yourselves in one or more adventures 😉). Grateful for the opportunities.

• January kicked off with my favourite HK100 race, and three days later I was in Argentina. Glad the Aconcagua summit did not evade me this third time. 🙏 • February saw me attempting the TransGrancanaria 125km in the Spanish Canary island, and my first DNF of the year. 🤦‍♀️ • March offered a hiking through the Big Bend national park in Texas, soaking in the vastness of the land and being so so close to the Mexican border. Plus a weekender to Quebec and Montreal to catch the Hotel de Glacé (ice hotel). Discovering my name on #27 of the new Ultra-Trail World Ranking was a surprise bonus perk-me-up! • April was a crazy month, presenting my second 100-miler at Zion100 - a breathtaking scenic meandering through the canyons just outside the Zion national park. A week later, it was The Boston Marathon, my very first! Followed by bucket-list Peru to gasp in wonder at the Machu Picchu ruins and trekking up the amazing Rainbow mountain. • Then Melvin came over to NYC in May where we went snow-shoeing in Colorado, and ran the TNF NY Bear Mountains - got my second DNF of the year. 😂 Graduated from my Masters programme with my family in attendance, and finally home-sweet-home to SGP. 😍
 
• June was the Muar Camel Run 22km, finished 9th place with loads of otah. Then a Krabi chill rock-climbing weekend. • July had the MSIG SG 50km, which was cut short by a thunderstorm, followed by a Malacca weekend drive. • August's poison was my first Craze Ultra 100km, where longans and coconut juice got me to 2nd place. Two weeks later was my first ever win at any event - the GreenRace 60km. • September squeezed in a recee training at Mt Kinabalu, a feeble attempt to "dash" up the mountain. A week later, it was off to Sapa for the Vietnam Mountain Marathon 100km. • Early October was my third Chicago marathon, good to be back in the Windy City. Followed by my first Mt Kinabalu Climbathon - glad I survived it. Loving the high altitude events. • November was relatively low-key, with only the Swissotel Vertical Climbathon, over in like 11min and finished 4th. So I basically chilled for almost two months, which felt like an eternity. • Glad to end December with a local favourite MR Ultra. Soaked up the camaraderie in my favouritest playground, had loads of fun, ran my eight loops with the support of several people, and closed 2017 with a 3rd placing.

Amidst all of this, read a tonne of books and journals and articles, juiced a couple of brain cells, wrote a stack of papers and assignments, organised a conference, completed my studies, re-adapted to work and picked up new skills, and connected with many new faces in our running community.

May 2018 be another year of exciting opportunities and adventures. Looking forward!