Syafrudin still felt like running when he arrived at the first checkpoint of the Lintas Sumbawa 2017 cross-country run on Wednesday (5/4/2017) at 7:19 p.m. Members of the event’s organizing committee and his chaperone had to remind the runner from Dompu, West Nusa Tenggara, several times to take a rest.
The reminder was understandable as Syafrudin had run for 40 kilometers in just four hours and 19 minutes. This means that he needed an average of just six minutes and 28 seconds to complete one kilometer. The man, whose daily job is as a cleaning service officer at the Dompu Police office, was still far from the finish line. There were still 280 kilometers more to go.
“I have told him not to run too fast,” said Syafrudin’s chaperone Wiwid Tumiyawan, 23, in an interview at the first checkpoint of the Lintas Sumbawa 2017 event in Stowe Brang village, Utan district, Sumbawa regency, West Nusa Tenggara.
Syafrudin is one of the 27 runners participating in the 320-kilometer running event. Known as the running competition with the longest route in Southeast Asia, the event was first held in 2015 and is part of this year’s Tambora Charms Festival. The festival is held collaboratively by the Tourism Ministry, the West Nusa Tenggara provincial government, local administrations of cities and regencies and Kompas daily.
The event’s 27 participants comprise 15 individual runners and 12 relay runners. In the relay category, first held this year, each team is comprised of two runners, each of whom run for 160 kilometers. This year, six teams participate in the relay category.
On Wednesday at around 3 p.m. local time, the 15 individual runners and 12 relay runners started running from Pototano in West Sumbawa regency. They will reach the finish line at the foothill of Mt. Tambora in Doro Ncanga, Dompu, on Saturday (8/4/2017).
In the individual category, Syafrudin had been leading since Kilometer 5. He was the first to reach the first checkpoint at Kilometer 40. After he was “forced” to take a rest, Syafrudin finally relented. He then ate rice and stretched his legs for a while. He asked the checkpoint therapist to massage his legs. However, it was not long before he wanted to continue running. “Will the runners behind me take a rest here as well?” he asked, worriedly.
Syafrudin finally continued running at 7:55 p.m. Behind him, two other runners reached the first checkpoint at 7:52 p.m. They were Lintas Sumbawa 2016 champion Matheos Berhitu, 44, and soldier Yohanis Hiariej, 34. The two runners are cousins. “We now run using our brains. Before, we only used this,” said Matheos, pointing at his knees.
Meanwhile, in the relay category, Ari Iskandar, 27, was the first to reach the first checkpoint at 7:35 p.m. Ari only drank a few gulps of water before continuing. “I am relaxed,” he said when the organizers reminded him not to use too much energy early on in the run.
Tough test
With a length of 320 kilometers, the equivalent of the distance between Yogyakarta and Surabaya, the Lintas Sumbawa run will be a herculean test to go through, both for the body and the mind. Fortunately, it was cloudy on the first day and the runners’ stamina was not drained too much. This was different than the conditions in previous years, when the continuous extreme heat drained the runners’ energy too soon.
However, the Lintas Sumbawa this year will still test the runners’ mettle. Not only are they required to cover an extremely long distance, but they need to get to the finish line within the cut-off time of 72 hours to complete the race. The event’s organizing committee established seven checkpoints every 40 kilometers throughout the route. In order to complete the run, runners must set their strategies wisely, including their running speed.
Lintas Sumbawa 2017 race director Lexi Rohi said that Syafrudin ran too fast in the first 40 kilometers of the race. Running at pace 6 (finishing one kilometer in six minutes), like what Syafrudin did, is effective for a shorter run, like a 42.195-kilometer marathon. “With the distance in this run [320 km], our guess is that Syafrudin ran too fast. He still had a long way to go. Our concern is that he will drain his energy,” he said.
Up to 10:30 p.m. local time, Ari Iskandar was leading. He had reached Kilometer 65 while Syafrudin was at Kilometer 61. At the rearmost position was Lydia Sabarudin, 39, who is in the relay category and was at Kilometer 35. At Kilometer 24, Lydia suffered from a stomach ulcer.
Route
West Nusa Tenggara culture and tourism agency head Lalu Mohammad Faozal said that the agency was grateful that the number of Lintas Sumbawa participants continued to rise each year. There were only eight participants in the first year and 11 participants in the second year. “We congratulate all the runners for having enjoyed the extraordinary natural hurdles in Sumbawa,” he said.
Kompas chief editor Budiman Tanuredjo said that he was proud to see last year’s Lintas Sumbawa participants rejoining the race this year to try to conquer Sumbawa. Budiman said that all the runners should still prioritize their own safety and health while running. “I hope this year all the runners will reach the finish line,” he said.
West Sumbawa regent W. Musyafirin said that he hoped the Lintas Sumbawa route would be changed next year, by having the starting line in Doro Ncanga and the finish line in West Sumbawa to develop tourism in West Sumbawa. “There are many tourism spots in West Sumbawa regency with massive potential if developed,” he said.
(HARIS FIRDAUS/ISMAIL ZAKARIA/KHAERUL ANWAR)
