Bromo Tengger Semeru (BTS) 100 Ultra 2013

One thing always leads to another. I never liked riding a motorbike since young, but due to boredom from not working after an 'exciting' 9 month stint at a dubious company, I got my motorbike license for fun. I wasn't thinking to get a bike, but since I got my license, why not =)

Similarly like the motorbike license experience - Why not get the points needed to complete my minimum of 7 points to ballot for a UTMB slot. And since I was gonna run, why not run in the 100 miles category and get that virgin 100miles experience done and away with. I was thinking beyond the necessary points, I was treating this race as a prelude to the UTMB if I got the slot. BTS100 as shown on the website was 165km, with 7772m cumulative gain. Seemed like a good gauge if I should spend the money required to go to Mt Blanc which is around 168 km and 9600m of positive altitude change as indicated on the website. If I DNF BTS, it meant that I save on UTMB, if I complete, I would have the pride of being the first Singaporean to complete. It's a win-win situation.

Decided on the race 3.5 weeks before the race and as I was late and after the registration period, had to plead with the race director to let me in. I was in and it was training time. Being a noob and having read somewhere that there was really no way to train for an ultra and getting used to running on fatigued legs was key, I decided on a plan like this: 

20km X 5days with 2 days rest, 25km X 4 days with 2 days rest and 33km X 3days with 2 days rest. 

I supplemented one of the rest day with 15 storey X 15 sprint and did a Pinnacles@Duxton 50 storey X 7blocks at sub 15mins up and back down with positive splits to 12 mins on the last block. I replaced one of the 33k with this as I was getting drained from relentless ECP and MR runs.

It was tough and tiring. I am sure that I wasn't 100% fit from the lack of recovery when I reached Surabaya, but mentally I had the confidence knowing that I gave all I could to training in that short span of time training. 

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Apart from training, I spent quite abit of time hyping up this race to get people around me excited. I was gonna run this virgin 100miles, but wanted friends, friends of friends, colleagues, company, sponsors, etc to be part of it. I made people sponsor and in a short 2 weeks, got affirmation in cash and products. I mean if I spent my money on a race, not completing is easy, but to get people to believe in you and DNFing that trust, it was not an option. Smart move I thought considering I had only minimal time to train.

Now, there was no more turning back - Thanks to a friend who gave me the idea as he was looking for someone to sponsor in a separate adventure race.

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I reached Thursday night for a Friday 3pm race start. Slept and rested all I could at Lava View Hotel which was also the start point.

Lava View Hotel

Taken from my Samsung Galaxy S3. It's Real - Land of the Ice-cream cones and Candy-floss..

Next morning, I readied dropbag 1 with New Balance Minimus and dropbag 2 with Salomon Sense. Both bags had a supply of socks, gels and electrolytes and spare change. Submitted them after breakfast and more chillaxing.

This Bromo Massue just came by and dropped me some massage!

This guy will cook your egg in any way you like. Omelettes were good!

     Mt Bromo Erupted in 2012

Start and Finish point still in the midst of setup at about 1pm.

The few that dared to even tow the start line

22 Nov 2013, Fri, 2.45pm, made some friends, got some encouragement and took photos. Slightly over 3pm and we got started. I started off slow, still adjusting and naturally was at the back of the pack. Overtook a Japanese guy who was coughing alot and only after ensuring he was ok. 

I reached the first checkpoint at 7km feeling faint, unable to breathe and puky.

I mean 7k and I already feel sick and then I suddenly remembered YMT mentioned that he hates compression top coz it makes it difficult to breathe. I removed my compression and immediately felt better. I was alive again. I sped up a little, but was still feeling weird. I kept kicking roots, stones and whatever and felt my toes cringing up with each knock. This happened for the next 10km and at 17km I started motivational talking, but the other negative voice was like questioning if I had to start doing 'the talk' from 17km, what's gonna happend for the next 100+k?

Crazy! But strangely enough, the down slope to the 2nd checkpoint at Ranu Pane (18k), I overtook or caught sight of all runners except our Malaysian friend Puzi. This somehow made me feel better that I wasn't terribly slow. I rested, refilled and took off after 2 runners that reached ahead of me left.

I did the loop from checkpoint 3 to 4 and back to 3 and was ahead of everyone except Puzi. I had recovered and my mind wasn't thinking about anything except of how much tougher can UTMB or any other race for that matter be. I was 1 quarter way through and it already feels worse than the whole Vibram 100k race I did in HK in January. I finished HK100 feeling that I could run through the finishing line and top up the distance to 100miles.

At this point I was very much in a sadistic 
determination to complete this race, the whole 
time in my mind was 'bring it on' although it was 
crazy tough, I was enjoying it, knowing many would 
have stopped by now. Not me on this weekend, 
somehow. I was enjoying 'the gruel', fully absorbing and appreciating all of it.

I reached the first dropbag and reloaded gels and by this point, I was with Hendra Wijaya an Indo runner and race director. From somewhere after 40k, I wasn't sure where I was going, being ahead was risky for me being an avid 'hollander' (local terminology for someone consistently losing his way). I stuck with Hendra as he seemed to know the way. It turned out to be the wisest choice as he rearranged markers and even changed directions signs from left to right. I later found out that some were mistakes, but many were villagers messing around.

Somewhere at around 80k, Puzi came from behind!?!? I mean he was in front all the while from start till now. It seemed he went the wrong direction. Remember the left to right change of the direction arrow and did I mention the last 2 checkpoints where no water point were setup. I was dehydrated, but I'm sure Puzi was drained, however he was still eager to make back for lost time. 

Yeah, luckily there was a hut that I rested while I waited up for Hendra.. A critical decision that paid off, as here was where the left turn, became right!?

Puzi and I chatted abit and he was on his way, but shortly after Hendra, Puzi and I were running together to the second dropbag. My feet and shoes by now were wet, soggy and full of mud from an almost virgin stretch of vegetation we bashed and slide through loose soil. I got to a toilet upon reaching the 2nd dropbag and used the freezing cold water to wash my feet and socks. It was crazy. My numb feet felt cold, the first sensation for a long time and thinking that I could change into my Salomon sense ultra, I was wrong. My feet had probably expanded to 1 size bigger and the already squeezy sense which was only worn twice prior could not swallow my feet. Placed feet back into cold shoes, no socks change required as shoes were so wet, no difference. Freezing feet lasted for at least an hour until I could no longer feel them. Great! I was back on track to pain numbing, brain freezing cold.

A Shaq-out moment where my 2 running buddies lay sleeping after some 'yong-tau-foo' like food. I was wide awake when they were sleepy and weak when they were strong.. System was opposite from theirs.

The night got colder and colder and I brought out my emergency blanket and tried to get some sleep at Jemplang, since I was advised that reaching Bromo before dawn and without a clear view was dangerous. About an hour later, we were up and on our way. Still wrapped in emergency blanket, I did 2km before warming up and discarding the blanket. By now, my calf began to register a sharp pain and running on flats seemed to intensify the pain. I just continued subduing the pain, by focusing on keeping pace with Hendra. Upon reaching Bromo area, I tripped over some steel cables and a jab of pain shot up from my shin and I was really pissed with no illuminated or reflective sign being placed on this hazard. My shin got a strip of bruising each at a 45degree angle that when both legs were placed together, formed a perfect line. Enjoyed 30sec of pain and I could no longer see Hendra, due to the many folds of graveled hills at the foot of Mt Bromo. I climbed the highest one to try to locate my guide and saw him at a distance of about 500m away and caught up with him at the top of the stairs leading to the volcano.

Very similar feel to Tai Mo Shan, HK

Finally! One of the main reasons I did BTS, running the rim of a live volcano.Stood there in the awesomeness of the smoking crater for a couple of minutes, took some shots and I was on a 10km explosive joy running the rim of the volcano and its surrounding mountain range. No pain felt anymore, just joy. 

Finishing this 10k, I thought it was all the way back to end point in 5km, since Hendra said we were at 160km by now. I was wrong. I still had one more almost vertical Batok climb up and back down before heading back. Now, I was feeling my calves, they were ripe for an explosion, but who cares, I was gonna complete this regardless of the number of body parts left. I scaled the mountain quickly using all fives, including my back. I had for most part of the climb held my breath for 10-20sec of climb and turn away from the mountain to breathe. This was due to an upward draft that blew all the dust into our faces if we faced the mountain since we were climbing almost vertically up in a crevice.

Pinning the Singapore Flag on Mt Bromo from Batok

At the top of the last considerable elevation, I heaved a sign of relieve knowing it was now the home run stretch. How wrong I was! I spent some time clearing all the debris off my shoes and that was when I realised my trusty guide had taken off quite abit. He was good on the downs. Seemed like 700m off from me when I lazily got moving again. I made my way down Batok and had to go maybe 3km across a sandy plain and up back to the hotel end point. 

Asking directions on the way up I realised a right turn would lead me to the hotel, which would be just about the right distance to complete the 165km, but I saw the markers going left and decided to do whatever was the supposed right 'wrong direction'. It seemed that I would need to do one big loop and the villagers in Cemoro Lawang gave me estimated distance to the hotel ranging from 400m to 4km and it was very random. One moment I was 400m away, next 2km, then 1km, then 4km. To make matters worse, the markers disappeared at a major junction. It was the first time that I thought I could possibly DNF and all due to missing markers probably 1-2km away from the end. Did I mention I finished all water, gels and anything edible just before the left or right turn decision at the start of this paragraph.

Wristbands collected at checkpoints to remind you of what you have gone through.. I will Finish!

I took out my phone, tried to get some GPS thingy going, but it failed to pinpoint my location, hence I just guessed where I was on the map and headed to the hotel.

170km and 12km elevation later, I completed - First Singaporean ever. Haha. Guess whatever honor I could think off was good to bandage whatever pain I volunteered myself for the last, almost 2 days (44h).

Elevation shown on website was 165km and 7.7k elevation. As I don't have a GPS watch, info is from Hendra, who forgot to stop his watch until upon completion and after napping.

This race could be done in a much shorter time, probably 36h or less, but I can assure you, regardless of the finish time, the Brutality, Terror, Sadism (BTS) of this trail ultra will definitely be similar for all participants. It will increase your will, endurance and basically anything mental you will ever go through in a race.

Crazy heavy medal that equaled a crazy race..

Numbness, Doggedness, Psychotic, etc are the kind of traits needed to complete this ultra. 
Be not afraid, sign up for pain therapy now!

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After the race, my feet were numb and doing a search it seems that I have nerve compression and I have been numb for about 2 months now. It's either getting better or I am getting used to it. There is a constant tingling sensation in the front part of the feet and especially so after wearing shoes for more than 30mins.

Getting shoes with rock plates, thicker soles, etc will definitely help. Also ensure that the shoes you are using are made of tougher material especially on the sides of the toe-box.

Even though it wasn't really raining, it's crazy cold and wet in the morning.. Gear up!

Lotsa climbing on fours, some, almost vertically..

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Please feel free to use the photos as long as you link back to this blog =)