Challenging Rompin State Park Trails Bring Out The Best In Adventurers
Taman Negeri Rompin (Rompin State Park) in Pahang was teeming with activity on 20th August 2022, playing host to 140+ adventurers who were vying for podium finishes at the Adventure Racing (AR) Asia Series – under the Adventure Racing World Series (ARWS).
There were 3 categories in AR Rompin: Under 10km Trail Run (T1), Under 80km Team of Two (T2) and Team of Four (T4) multi-disciplined race, covering Trail Running, Navigation, Mountain Biking, Tubing and Abseiling & Tyrolean Traverse at the Sri Makota waterfall.
The participants were flagged off in two batches by Tourism Malaysia Senior Director, Tuan Syed Yahya Syed Othman accompanied by En. Hedzir Aminudin and Mr. Owen Choo, Directors of Rompin Park Resort. 42 participators from the T2 & T4 categories were flagged off at 7.41am while the rest, T1 Trail runners, followed at approximately 8.20am.
The sun shone brightly from morning until about 3pm when heavy downpour set in, exposing Abseiling & Tyrolean Traverse into the danger zone of lightning striking the high-tensile cables. Placing the safety of all competitors top priority, the Race Director had to stop the tail-end adventure racers from attempting that discipline at the waterfall.
Mr. Sim Chong Yau (209) came in first for AR Rompin T1, completing the approximately 9km trail, crossing the finishing line at just 1 hour 14 minutes.
1st runner-up went to En. Muhammad Farhan Najmi (169) who was a mere 2 seconds behind while 2nd runner-up En. Hafizul Asing Abdullah aka Cikgu Hafizul (198) completed the overall top 3 podium finishers only a few seconds behind.
For Team of Two (T2), duo Mr. Kim Hong Yeo and Ying Zhi Chua from Team F & S (215) from Singapore were declared Champion of T2 needing a time of just 5 hours 44 minutes to complete AR Rompin.
T2 1st runner-up (Team Skomad) husband-and-wife team of Zulhelmy & Nur Haafidzah (she was one of the ARWS Demo race participants back in 2019 for the Kuala Lumpur – Kuantan 3-day race). Team Skomad crossed the finishing line in 6 hours 24 minutes.
KBS Adventure Team (305) clinched the AR Rompin T4 Championship in 5 hours 54 minutes. Team KBS Adventure Team was represented by Norazrin Kamsor Azrin (like Nur Haafidzah, she was also one of the ARWS Demo race participants in 2019 for the Kuala Lumpur – Kuantan 3-day race), Mohd Azuan, Muhammad Syamsul & Yusof Abdul Manan.
1st runner-up for T4 went to Team 309: KE7B AR Team headed by another 2019 ARWS Demo race participator – Suhaimi Mohamdin who came in at a time of 6 hours 19 minutes alongside teammates Azan, Shamsudduha & Mustika Ayumi.
2nd runner-up of T4 (Team 303): Team Kamikaze Alpha needed 6 hours 37 minutes to complete, led by yet another 2019 ARWS Demo race competitor – Muhammad Shukri with teammates Ahmad Mustapa, Faherina Mohd Esa & Mohd Puzi.
The last team of T4 (308) returned to basecamp.
The prize presentation ceremony was held at 4pm at the state park’s multi-purpose hall with Dr. Fateh Mohammed, Vice President of Society of Sports & Exercise Medicine Malaysia (SSEMM) representing the host alongside En. Hedzir Aminudin for Rompin Park Resort, giving out the trophies and prizes.
T2 Champion walked home with a cash prize of RM1500, while T4 Champion RM3000, followed by T4 1st & 2nd runners-up with RM2600 & RM2000 respectively. All podium winners also received an invitation to one round of next year’s AR Asia Series in Malaysia. Citizen Watch, being Partner to the event as the Official Time Keeper offered limited-edition ARWS Citizen Altichron watches to all finishers.
At the end of the memorable event, all the adventure racers were invited by the state park rangers to each plant a tree to support the sustainability of Mother Nature.
More event details can be found at ARWS MALAYSIA Series website or official Facebook Page. See you all in AR Asia Series 2023!
Event: Adventure Race Rompin (AR Rompin) 2022
Venue: Rompin State Park, Pahang
Date: 20th August, 2022
