My first Obstacle Course Race - O-Zone Games 2023

 just put the title in here first story later.

National Selection 2020 - Bouldering

After that horrible performance in lead. I was down as far as down goes, cried like I had never cried before, even considered bailing the bouldering final tomorrow and stop climbing all together. Thinking that I’m not good at it and I was never going to be good at anything in life. I’m just a grain of dust in a vast dessert. 

But then I woke up in the middle of the night, I prayed and I thank God for all the experience and I wholeheartedly accept what that has been decreed by God to me. Saya redha, ini rezeki saya. 

So the next morning I plucked up my courage to wake up and go for the bouldering finals, though thinking it would be hopeless considering I’m up against better and experienced boulderers. 

Me and Shin Yee has this plan, where we can expect how hard the final boulders will be, so we will only aim for the zone.

That was my mindset prior to the finals. Aim for the zone. 

I had zero expectation, no burden, no hope, just happy chatting up other girls in isolation room and hope to get this over with.

So the first boulder problem, when I got the zone, I was pinching in as hard as I could as long as I could to make sure I truly got it down pat. And expectedly didn’t get any more zones for the next 2 problems.

Unexpectedly, when I went down to met other girls after its all over, all of them told me that nobody else got the zone except for Amoi and my jaw just dropped.

I ended up 2nd place next to Amoi. 

Took me a while to believe it actually happened.

Me getting podium in a bouldering comp when I only started bouldering once a week in May. 

What I can think of is that, that doesn’t mean I’m strong still, I know 90% of the girls ( if not all ) are stronger, way stronger than me, I’ve seen them in action, I KNOW that fact. 

Now what the competition thought me this time around is that competition doesn’t always come down to strength. 

The style of the problems, mind/mental game and probably there’s a little bit of luck comes in play. 

When I boulder with some of the girls, I can see some of them really have the brute power, crushing all the power problems, some are exceptional at slabs problem and some are good at crimps or slopers or coordination styles. There are some problems that they can do that I can’t do and some problems that I can do that they can’t do. So the competitions are down to whether that problems suites/play to your strength or other girls strength. 

I honestly don’t know what my style is yet, but the problem that I managed to zone was a slab and it doesn’t require much power where I know I’m lacking.

Of course if you are really good, you can do all kinds of style.  you NEED to be able to do all kinds of style to be the BEST. But as of know, that’s how I see where my level is. The problem just happened to suit me best. 

And of course I’m going to boulder more now that I know that you don’t have to lead 2-3 times a week for 2 years to get where I am at at lead now, you just have to boulder. (Still hard to say it though) But yes that is the general direction I’m going.

National Selection 2020 - What competition has thought me

 So 2020 turned out to be quite a roller coaster of experiences, and its only October.

I went from topping my longtime project route in January, shifting to climbing mountains in March to a depressing and hopeless 2months in movement control order, then starting bouldering once a week, to Battle of The Boulders, and the biggest event of them all, National Selection 2020.

Lead Climbing

It will be the first lead competition for me and I’m so looking forward to it. I did not looking forward to win it though, looking at the list of the competitors, I’m not even looking forward to be in the finals. I know some of the girls who are an exceptional lead climber and some other girls who are known as a excellent boulderer but judging by their bouldering caliber, I’m sure they have enough strength to last on a lead wall longer than me. So I was expecting to be in the middle of the pack at least.

But turned day of event, I was at the BOTTOM of the pack. I know I shouldn’t compare but it’s hard not to when you’re in a competition and you know who you’re against. 

I (who lead climb 2-3times a week for 2 freaking years) did worse than boulderers who I never seen climbed a lead wall - ever.

So what gives?

It was the lowest moment of my climbing life but I still have to swallow that fact. 

So competition thought me, if you love lead climbing, you lead climb. But if you want to get stronger, lead climbing alone (unfortunately) is not the answer, you need to boulder.

I did not get stronger because of lead climbing. What I have is just muscle memory of repeating a movement. Repeat that many time enough the move will be easy for you. 

Seems like a bitter fact to fathom but that’s apparently the truth. 

Or maybe I’m not built for competitions, maybe I don’t need to be stronger, or better than everybody else, if I just love lead climbing, maybe I just lead climb, day in and day out, not having to worry about getting stronger.

So I have to decide what I actually want in climbing? 

1. To just enjoy it?

2. To get stronger enough to progress to harder route?

3. To get stronger for competitions?

The answers are,

1. Just lead climb.

2. Lead climb + boulder + training 

3. Every kind of training there is in the world. Coaching/mentoring. 

So I have to reflect.

Anyhow, I learned a lot of things.

To be continued...

Ragas Sports Climbing Championship 2019