Staircase expedition

3rd April. Sunday. This is the first day of the training to condition ourselves for the trek up Kota Kinabalu (KK). The team comprises of 12 Young Adults, of which the 2 females are Elaine & Joyce. Only 7 other guys came today – Jacob, Joel, Jonathan, Ps Edwin, William, Yiliang & me. There were two semi-professional guides Dahli & Jason who will be conducting our training, then subsequently guiding & ensuring our safety during the trip to & back from KK.

It was raining. A team of 9 adventurers trotted from church to Farrer Park MRT station. All of us were sheltering ourselves with umbrellas, all except Jonathan. I don’t know why… maybe commandos are not really worried about rain. Yet I didn’t want to fall sick, since I will be going back to office the next day.

When we reached the MRT station, a little drenched from the rain blowing at us (apparently the umbrellas only sheltered our heads). Jonathan called the two guides & soon they appeared carrying two backpacks. One Malay & the other Chinese… both looking very fit. It was only later that I realized that one of them had experience in trekking for about 20 years! 20 years?! Wow… that’s a really long time! Not that they looked very senior in age… Hmm…

Suddenly Jean & Evelyn Seow appeared! I was quite shocked! Why was Evelyn here? Don’t tell me that she wanted to join in the training? I thought only Joseph joined in purely for the exercise. In my mind, I was thinking – oh dear… she really doesn’t know what’s putting herself into.

After a short introduction, we began our individual stretching, which lasted for a minute or so. Quite a short stretching time… Then we were told that we were going to climb up & down this 30 storey HDB flat… 4 times. Wait… let me count… 4 times means 120 storeys. Wow… that’s quite a challenge! I really didn’t have much confidence that I was going to make it. I glanced a few times at Evelyn & realized that her face had changed.

Nevermind, 120 storeys… Just ‘tahan’ can already. Then we were told – 1 time means one time up & down the block! Huh?! I began frantically counting in my head. Up & down means 60 storeys. 4 times means 240 storeys! Ahh! How am I going to do that? 240 storeys?! Only a loony would be that crazy! Even Ps Edwin’s face had begun showing some sense of worry. Needless to say, my face didn’t appear that assured either…

I was one of the last few people to begin climbing the stairs. We began by climbing two steps at the time because initially it wasn’t really difficult… yet. By the 8th or 9th storey, I had begun panting & my legs began to feel tired. I was thinking to myself – I’m not even at the top (i.e. the 30th storey) yet. I really didn’t know how I was going to do this. Joseph & Joel were near me, but soon Joel overtook us, leaving only Joseph & I to persevere till the top.

Halfway through the upward climb, Joseph & I overtook Jean & Evelyn. I didn’t even have the strength to talk to her, as I was really in a state of gasping for breath. I was really unfit. Not just my muscles, but even my heart was also unfit. Not a good sign. How am I going to do this? I kept telling myself… It was going to be a long climb.

I thought back to something that one of the guides said earlier. He said that we should be planning to finish the whole training session in about 1.5 hrs. At that point, I was thinking to myself – 1.5 hrs? That itself is really very tiring. And by the looks of it, I didn’t feel at all confident to finish it within that timing. Maybe I would take 4 hrs. Oh dear… 4 hrs is going to be a long time… And it didn’t help that Ps Edwin was standing there calculating how many minutes we had to climb each storey. The answer came to about 2 – 2.5 minutes per storey. But not as if I really cared. All I had in mind was to just finish this staircase expedition.

On some floors, there were no signs that state which floor it is. I remembered that after I had cleared the 10th floor, the next floor didn’t have a sign, which means that it’s the 11th floor. Good, at least I know that when I saw a floor without a sign, I would know that it’s the 11th floor.

More gasping. Finally, I saw the sign on the wall that showed 26th floor. Wow! I was going to reach the top! 27… 28… oh man, my legs are burning! 29… argh… come on, Matt… It’s going to be 30 soon! Arrgghhh… that was the sound that I made when I reached the 30th storey. Finally! I have reached! But wait… I only came up. I still had to go down. And I still had another 3 more laps to go. Surely it wasn’t good news to me.

I wobbled along the hallway to the other staircase leading downwards. Most of the people in front of me were somewhere below already… & I can’t see nor hear anyone a few storeys below me. Wow… these people are fit. Joseph began to slow down (not that I wasn’t), but I tried to keep up my pace as I thought that going down should be easier. Well, in a way, it is… until I felt that difference in my legs. Then I realized – climbing upwards is not the same as climbing downwards. I don’t know what’s the logic, but my legs are telling me that it isn’t the same.

My legs began to wobble more as I kept wobbling down the flights of stairs. Where are these people? Are they really so far downstairs already? I can’t even hear them! I kept going, despite all the continuous wobbling of my thighs. I really felt like I could just collapse then & there.

Soon, I heard some foot steps. Aha! Someone is near! It was a yellow T-shirt. Confirmed its Ps Edwin. And true enough, there he was struggling down the stairs, with a gritted smile on his face as Elaine passed him… the Joyce. Soon, it would be my turn. And yes, it came to pass… I overtook the pastor & he really looked like he couldn’t carry on anymore. Not that he looked very ‘jia lat’… but he didn’t seem like he could move any faster than he was already hobbling. I seldom see Ps Edwin with a ‘shagged’ face. *Laugh*… (Of course, I was too tired to laugh then).

Wah, I tell you… Elaine is good. No kidding. Powerful. Well, ya… I heard that she runs, but climbing stairs is not exactly the same as running leh. How come she’s so fast? Oh dear, Matthew Sum… how ah you? How…?

It didn’t help to also notice that Joyce was fitter & always ahead of me too. One of the guys uttered – How come the girls are fitter than the guys ah? In my mind, I was thinking – How I know? Maybe the guys are more fat? But it sure wasn’t much of a consolation that the girls were drifting further & further away from me. ‘Jia lat’… & there were still 3 more laps to go.

When I reached the ground floor, there was Evelyn, sitting & leaning onto a pillar. Right… she obviously took the lift down. Even Jean was still making her way down the stairs. But oh well, its not surprising. Evelyn wasn’t going for the KK trip, but it didn’t seem to me that there was much motivation to spur her on anyway. With my previous knowledge & observation about her, she was more like accompanying Jean, rather than really being interested in training herself.

So I walked past her & began my second climb up the stairs. Oh boy, it’s going to be another long journey. My slight recovery from climbing down did help me climb rather properly for about 4 or 5 storeys. Soon, my legs began to wobble again. Its stagger time again. This time up the stairs. It couldn’t be any better than this…

Aha! I saw a wall sign that didn’t state which floor it is! Surely it’s the 11th floor! Yes! When I climbed to the next floor, I turned round the stairway & saw… 9th floor. My legs nearly gave way. 9th floor?! Wait… wasn’t it supposed to be the 12th floor? I thought the previous floor was the 11th storey without the sign? It didn’t lift my spirit one bit. While staggering up more flights of stairs, I began noticing more floors without a sign stating which floor it is. Great… floor after floor without signs… How encouraging…

14… 15… Still struggling… but this time, it was a constant one step at a time. Cannot occasionally take two steps at the time already. Stagger… stagger… Joseph wasn’t near me anymore… I was alone.

I reached the top. Phew… now I just had to get to the ground floor & I would have just two more laps to go. It felt good to have almost completed half of the training… before my legs really began to wobble & shake on the way downstairs. It was really wobbling quite a bit this time. Many times, I had to cling onto the hand rails, so as not to topple over & fall down the stairs. Just great… & there were residents on some floors looking at me too.

Joseph was behind… Ps Edwin was really far behind… & there I was struggling all on my own. Floor after floor… then I looked at the sign. It stated 20th floor. Great… it’s only been 10 floors down? Argh… continue… continue… my sleeveless shirt was really wet with sweat. And it was rather breezy after the rain. It would surely be worse if it was sunny & humid. Not that I cared about that now. I just wanted to get to the ground floor.

Finally! I couldn’t even find the strength to say “Yes!” in my heart anymore. I staggered past Evelyn, who was still sitting there, fiddling with her mobile phone.

The 3rd lap was very lonely, with many instances of (1) just leaning onto the wall… (2) leaning onto the hand rails with my head on my arm… (3) praying aloud to God to give me strength… & (4) looking up into the blue sky & wondering if He is looking at me.

Lonely… lonely… till I reached the ground floor. One last lap to go. Here I go again, up the stairs. Somehow, my quadriceps (thigh muscles) were getting used to the strain & probably functioning on the adrenalin of the moment when I reached the ground floor for the last time. As usual, the usual groans, prayers, leaning, clinging & staring… till I reached the top floor. Finally… Matthew… just get downstairs & get this all over & done with…

On the way down, I began thinking about just lying down & leaning against the wall, totally exhausted. My mind was tired & my legs were tired. The sole of my feet were hurting & aching. But somehow, as I dragged myself, step by step downstairs, I began to feel that my mind was getting stronger… slowly. It seemed to grow tougher & stronger in perseverance. Not that I wasn’t tired, but my mind didn’t feel as tired as my breathing & legs were.

The end of the training! Wobbling, wobbling… & sat down with those who had reached. I realized that William had joined in in-between & was doing his lonely ‘pilgrimage’, just like me. After awhile, William reached the ground floor & sat down with us. He told us that he had only down 3 laps & couldn’t do the 4th. Joel offered to go with him for his last round, meaning that Joel would be climbing 5 times. Despite my tiredness, I tried to encourage William to finish it... & I was willing to join in too. He refused. Nevermind.

Soon, Ps Edwin & Joseph stumbled in… obviously worn out. Ps Edwin still had that “Why did I put myself through this” kind of look on his face. Joseph had this numbed look, as if he was just staggering till the end, trying to ignore his strain.

Once again, we urged William to finish his 4th round, since everyone had finished theirs (of course, except Evelyn & Jean). Finally, he agreed & 3 of us (Joseph, Joel & I) began our climb with William. I told William that it’s important that we encourage each other, especially during the actual climb itself. I can’t remember if he responded, but nevermind.

It was easier with 4 of us climbing the stairs together. I was tired, but the 5th climb somehow didn’t feel as bad as the first few climbs. Maybe my legs have already gotten numb to the aches. And I think it did. It still aches even now as I’m typing this blog. It was a good experience. Really toughened my mind.

Next Saturday would be the climb at Macritchie Reservoir. 10 km trek through undulating terrain, with a 3 kg load in our backpacks (inclusive of 2 litres of drinking water). Let’s see how we’ll get through this one… followed by the subsequent 5 kg backpack at Bukit Timah, then 8 kg load for our subsequent trainings. Hmm… It’s going to be quite an experience…