If you told me 10 years ago that I’d be into this, I would have reacted “weh.” But life is just surprising & funny sometimes, no?

Here we go again with our healthy addiction

People close to me know that I had to put off a lot of training hours due to an injury the previous year (Oct 2023). I fell from a considerable height after rushing down from a rope — resulting in weeks of rest, crutches, and a face that speaks of visible disappointment.

No fractures or whatever… just a really bad case of ankle sprain. But I had to defer my final race of the year (Alviera, Pampanga) when I should have been the readiest.

So when I say that I was happy to get back to obstacle course racing, I was really happy.

A comeback after 5ish months of being unable to race

We decided on a new fitness goal when Spartan Race Malaysia released a post about the South ASEAN Series. For this, we would have to complete races of varying distances in participating countries. Since we wanted to race competitively (AG), we needed to do our best for all events (not just one), because a points system was in place, and winners would be determined by the end of the series.

1st Race: 🇲🇾 JOHOR 🏅 April 27-28
2nd Race: 🇮🇩 JAKARTA 🏅 May 25
3rd Race: 🇸🇬 SINGAPORE 🏅 June 22

Basically, the schedule gives us a very busy Q2. We did our math, and the total package seemed fair all things considered. So why not??

ALSO READ: From ‘Try’ to Multi-Trifecta: My Spartan Race Journey (2022)

Going international for the first time

I was accustomed to doing Spartan every 2 months so I took it as a challenge because the preparation time would be shorter. It was a monthly thing from April ’til June. I was doubtful at first, but tbh I was probably more excited.

Leg 1: Malaysia (Sprint, Super, Beast)

Spartan South ASEAN Series kicked off the first race in Johor Bahru, Malaysia last April 2024. Yep, truly eventful because we could race the Sprint (5km, 20 obstacles), Super (10km, 25 obstacles), and Beast (21km, 30 obstacles) all in one weekend, although only the points for the Beast event would be part of the leaderboard.

The Malaysia leg was the first Trifecta Weekend in Asia, and the only one in the first half of 2024. If you finish that, you can be pretty much done for the year. Like, done-done. Trail shoes off. Celebrations. Trifecta. We also originally planned to do this one only, but who are we kidding, really?

I was very much recharged coming into the race thanks to a previous eye-opener trip. And can I just say that I absolutely loved everything about our experience here?? It was when we were reviewing the course map that I realized that I really missed all the race preps and whatnot. 😛

For Trifecta Weekends — racers complete the long-distance events first, so for Day 1, we were set to take on Beast. We arrived at the venue less than an hour before the gun start, with one of our friends coming in clutch for his race. Not enough time for a decent warmup but good thing he still made it! There were also a lot of Filipino Spartans there — some friends/ acquaintances, with other familiar faces you’d usually run into during local events.

Honestly, we thought the race in JB would be easier because the elevation isn’t like the elevation in PH. Well, it was still partly true, but it rained hours before the race so the trail got really muddy and wet. Even if elevation wasn’t an issue, we were still bound to face challenges.

This specific Beast gave me the 2nd worst, if not the worst, cramps I’ve ever experienced. Girly was struggling at just the 7 km-ish mark, and I just tried to keep a steady pace so long as I didn’t stop. It became a mental game at that point, and I did a lot of self-convincing to push through especially when it got triggered during Stairway to Sparta, Bender, Rope Climb, and Dunk Wall. I fell from Bender but was thankful for the good landing. Otherwise, we’re back to the injury era 🤪 Some of the obstacles were slippery too. Sadly, I failed the Monkey Bars for this event (and I love hanging obs meh).

While I didn’t hit the target time I had in mind, still finished with a PR for Beast, and also came in 3rd in my AG. Everyone I know got really good results too so we’re extra happy!

After our recovery eating sesh and swim, we got our good night’s sleep and prepared for Day 2 which was meant for the Super and Sprint races. I was in a much better condition then, and I’d say my faster obstacle completion compensated for the slower pace I had vs. yesterday’s race. I snagged the 2nd AG spot this time for Super, but the real win is acing the Spear Throw and avoiding the seemingly short yet irksome rectangular maze-shaped penalty loop!

The last race was a Sprint and we were just excited to plaaaay 🕺🏻

I remember taking lots of videos with friends and we even tagged along a fun group we met along the way.

And of course, we had a nightout after the Trifecta weekend!

ALSO READ: 10 Things You Need to Know Before You Say NO to Joining a Spartan Race

Leg 2: Jakarta (Sprint)

Why is it that the farthest location only has a Sprint? Haha. This was the most physically tiring event for me because our plane landed literally hours before the race, and I only got 2 hours of sleep. Coming from a work week, that was surely… draining, to say the least.

The event took place in Ancol Dreamland, so our course was quite interesting. It was a mix of both track (e-Prix Circuit) + beach. Add that to the fact that this was an inaugural event (it’s the first ever Spartan Race in Indonesia!) so it felt soooo celebratory from start to end.

The festival area was huge, and there was a place for food & drinks, official merch, socializing, recovery massage (head and body), games (there’s even a claw machine filled with Spartan items), 360 photobooth, and more.

It may even sound like a simple thing but I also liked how they have both decent portable toilets and showers for the racers! We normally just clean up in the festival area (at a timed open shower area if there’s no clean restroom from a nearby establishment), or directly from a water tank which is the case in Malaysia.

As for my rainy race experience – my most vivid memory would be the number of trips and falls I got from branch-like thingies in the sand. Swear. It happened too many times that I lost count, and it went past the point of funny and was just plain sad. The Plate Drag was particularly difficult because of all the hardened sand that accumulated in the plate. The same goes for the Barbed Wire Crawl! It was hella long, and even had some extra blockages we had to avoid.

A fun event overall, plus Optimum Nutrition drinks are overflowing!

Leg 3: Singapore (Super & Sprint)

Now we’re down to the last leg of the South ASEAN Series in Singapore! This is the first Super in the country since 2019. Honestly, I’m not a big fan because the event was poorly organized. I participated in the 2023 Sentosa Race too, and thought they’d be able to redeem themselves. But it’s such a shame that the kids in the competitive category had such a chaotic race. I don’t think the route was marked well/finished, and there was no timing chip system in place.

As for us — we initially got word that points from this series’ leg would not be counted. There was no official announcement though, and the organizers were MIA so we were like HUH?? the whole time. Just imagine the commotion with everyone being clueless and not really sure whether to stay or go. They also ended the event in a way that was so anticlimactic. No awarding for series winners despite making us wait for hours. There were also some disputes. Hmmm.. It’s not like the series was only announced a month ago. They already decided to conclude it here as early as December last year, so… #sorrynotsorryaboutmyrants.

Moving on. We did burpees AS an obstacle and we were also asked to do that as a penalty instead of the usual loop for the competitive category, so that was a surprise.

I’m trying to think of all the positive things I experienced here and I’d say the route was still nice, and the subsequent Sprint I did together with friends was definitely fun.

ALSO READ: What It’s Really Like Joining an Obstacle Course Race (Photos)

Overall, the whole series experience was simply lovely

It was nice because our race-cations got an upgrade, and it was interesting to compete with foreign Spartans. Loved the bonding time with the community + free time for other activities too!

I wasn’t expecting a podium win to be on my bingo card this year, especially not after disappointments from last year. 😅

But grateful to earn that for this series. I know I’m not the fastest nor the strongest… but believe me, this win is proof that you can get to somewhere amazing if you keep showing up. 😉

The last 21km event for a Multi-Trifecta

By the end of June, I already got 2 medals for each event except for Beast, so I went all in for Alviera to cap off my year. Honestly, I expected it to be really hot because hello Pampanga?? To our surprise, we had a really good time because the weather was perfect for the first half of the event. I also loved the trail with its balance of chill, difficult, and picture-perfect spots.

There was no Dunk Wall here, but we cooled off with an ice bath, and filled our tummies with something delicious after crossing the finish line. Dare I say – deserve! As soon as we reached our Airbnb, this girly slept like a log.

I wish I can confidently say that I ended my year strong (no, this line is not a pity party or invalidation of efforts hehe). It’s just that I failed to beat my PR for Beast, and some moments tested my grit and I was well aware that I just succumbed to “comfort.” Well, you know what they say. Come back stronger! Long story short — it felt so good to complete Beast and have friends cheer for you when you reach the finish line! Hand rips and poor toenails aside, this was FUN!

That’s it for the 2024 recap – we got the Multi-Trifecta!

So far, I have no plans of doing Spartan Race for next year. I wonder where my fitness journey will take me haha.