Unfinished Business - Accomplished

A Summary of Rainforest Challenge 2009

After the Great Escape of 2007 and the Unfinished Business of 2008, the challenge was the finish the “unfinished business” of this year’s Rainforest Challenge (RFC), even though Mother Nature always has the upper hand.

“After having being defeated by the monsoon twice in a row, the completion of the route is of paramount importance to us. Even if the event has moved southwards to the state of Johor, our mission is the same,” commented Luis J.A.Wee, Founder of RFC.

The Battle Plan       

The lowland forests of Johor pose a different set of problems than in the hilly grounds of Terengganu. Under wet conditions, they could become awesome struggles to get through, as had happened before in 2003. With so many tributaries and streams, the log bridges are central to all transport and logistical plans of the entire route and they must be secured at all costs.

The battle plan included the utilization of machinery (excavators and diggers) and experienced manpower in the construction of log bridges during the recee, and having them on standby on event days too. The campsites must be secured and reachable under any condition, which was the order of the day.

Early Anxiety

However, weeks before the event, heavy rains again poured over much of the east coast of peninsula Malaysia, which caused flooding in Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, Perak and even Pahang – which borders the state of Johor.

The swelling of the Pahang river holds the key to flooding in Johor. If that happens, would the 40 plus pre-constructed log bridges of all shapes and sizes hold? And how would the revamped supporting crew from scouts to officials in all categories perform on D-Day? With the high spirits shown by everyone, confidence was high that they would perform well in the front, middle and rear of the convoy. The big test was to come.

The Big Bang Opening & Prologue SS

On 5 Dec, it was D-Day at last at the historic and majestic Sultan Ibrahim Building in Johor Bahru (JB) with pomp and razzmatazz of the RFC. This time, the Guest of Honour was HRH the Raja Muda (Prince) of the state of Johor.

Over 150 4x4s accompanied by big bikes with over 400 participants from all categories representing 21 countries from Europe to Asia were present to launch RFC 2009.

From there, the escorted convoy was elaborately staged by the Johor Traffic Police to Sutera Mall for the Prologue SS. Central JB was at a standstill. It was a sight to behold. Included in the convoy were two Army (7^th Brigade) communications Land Rovers and one Army ambulance. The seriousness of the state in their preparation for the RFC was plain to see.

This time, the Prologue SS venue was a hive of activities with the shopping mall on the right hand side and the off-road tracks on the left. With the weekend shopping crowd and spectators (30,000) it was a really “big bang” happening of activities which included the display of big bikes, the Royal 4x4s (Kembara Mahkota Johor), mini owners, 4x4 clubs and drift cars.

Biggest 4x4 Gathering Record

In conjunction with the Prologue SS, an attempt was made to gather the biggest number of 4x4s in one venue. The target was 500 4x4s, but by noon, the number had swollen to 600. The countdown had to be postponed due to heavy afternoon downpour. When the rains stopped, a new Malaysia record was achieved, with 721 4x4s.

Battle Stations

Meanwhile the 4x4 action continued non-stop at the Prologue SS area. Divided into 6 SS, a total of 38 competing teams from Russia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Denmark, USA, Germany and Malaysia pitted their driving and recovery skills in front of the multitude of fans and supporters. This year was a record turnout by national teams from 10 states of Malaysia. Everyone was coming for a piece of RFC action. Thus, the heavy afternoon downpour did not affect their spirit at all, it was show time!

The other non-competing nations not only included regular countries but also new ones like Vietnam and India. This augurs well for the growing reach of the RFC.

The Prologue SS was only the warming up but some suffered breakdowns and were out of contention. From 38 teams at the Prologue, it was down to 33 at the start of the jungle stage.

The Predator

By the afternoon of the second day, the entire convoy was again efficiently escorted out of Sutera Mall by the Johor Traffic Police to Hulu Sedili. This elaborately staged ground escort also came with helicopter air cover as the convoy zoomed from tarmac to the off-road sector to Campsite I @ the Predator section, for the start of leg two of the event.

Full action started on 7 Dec in the 6 SS, which were much harder than the Prologue. This is hard-core battle of wits, strategy and machine power. Some of the SS were technical in nature. Engine power alone would not be enough to score the maximum points of the day. However, with 6 SS, there was time for the teams to catch up if they did not do well in the Prologue.

Rendezvous @ Kahang.

Leg 3 on 8 Dec was on schedule to regroup, re-supplies and refuel at Kahang. Again, the Traffic Police was at full control on the ground and in the air. After two hours in town, the convoy proceeded towards Sg (river) Mas and to Sg Merantai located along the forest reserve of Labis which borders the National Park of Endau Rompin (the second largest national park in Malaysia).

The Terminator

Under normal circumstances, the route towards Sg Mas would not be easy, this is Terminator country, full of challenges for man and machine with numerous gullies, soggy grounds, streams and broken log bridges. But now, with the construction of very solid log bridges by the scouts, the going in was smooth albeit slow for the convoy. The sunny sky and dry conditions also helped. By nightfall, most have reached campsite 2 but not without some vehicle casualties, thrills and spills. Some eventually reached campsite by midnight or early morning.

By the Rivers of Babylon

At daybreak, behold the pristine and crystal clear waters of Sg Merantai. Together with its sister, Sg Mas, this is the region named by RFC as the Rivers of Babylon.

Leg 4 started off with 6 SS of splashing fun along the stony riverbanks and trails which was followed by another 6 SS the following day (10 Dec). Some of SS included manual winching, the use of hilift jacks and other non-motorized exercises like tyre changing and axle lifting which took place on probably the hottest day of the event.

Just before sundown, the SS were completed and all were compensated by the cool river campsite after a hard day’s work.

Twilight Zone (TZ)

The original plan to send in the competitors to the Twilight Zone (TZ) was redrawn to allow more camaraderie and intermingling between the non-competing convoy with the competitor teams. Thus, each of the competitor teams were assigned to take care of at least one official or media truck in the convoy, and all of them must reach campsite 3 together. The reward? Each competing teams earned 200 bonus points for the journey.

Under a hot sunny sky, the first half of the route was uneventful as the most difficult areas were already secured by log bridges.  The convoy rumbled through, the feeling of an easy passage was on everybody’s mind.

Sting of the Scorpion

However, there were surprises in store; this is after all, part of the TZ. After moving through the section of majestic trees, suddenly, there were no more log bridges over gullies and streams anymore. A total of 4 such gullies with river water meant that that everyone had to work overtime. Out came the winches, the shouts in various languages and the teamwork of various nationalities. It was just starting to turn dark by this time, a timely reminder that twilight was just around the corner.

When they have finally made it through, or so they thought, they came straight to Sg Selai and its uphill challenge of its river bank to campsite 3. The night was cool but the action was hot – winching and recovery exercises right into the wee hours (3 am) for the last vehicles to make it through. This “sting from the scorpion” added a touch of thrills and spills on the 7^th day of the event. The last vehicle to ascend the river bank of Sg Selai was 3 am. The “sting” was intentional, and it worked well to the overall plan of this year’s RFC.

Rest Day

12 Dec at Camp III was located in Taman Negara Selai, within the jurisdiction of the National Park of Johor. The rest day was included to allow the competitor teams to make repairs and get ready for the final 6 SS of the event. For the media representatives and others, it was also a chance to explore this beautiful jungle region with its picturesque river and waterfalls. Re-supplies and fuel was half an hour away at Bekok. For everyone, it was a welcome break.

Final Assault

The final day of competition was also the fiercest fight of them all for the teams. The 6 SS were a combination of uphill, downhill, undulating terrain, gullies and water obstacles. For those in the leading contention, it was the final assault for top placings. With 6 SS there was plenty of opportunity to catch up, and everyone put up the best strategy and skills of the event. It was a good final assault for the competing teams.

Finishing Touch

The magnificent escort back to JB and the closing ceremony night added to the finishing touches of RFC 2009. The well staged ground and air support by the Police from Bekok right to JB city was a scene to remember, it was 5 km long! As for the closing ceremony, it was a fitting finale with a blast of pomp, razzmatazz and glory, the best awards night ever presented in the RFC.

“Its mission accomplished. Mother Nature has been kind. But even without the rain, there was a touch of everything this year. The route, the adventure, the challenge, the drama, the enjoyment of the Rivers of Babylon campsites, the efficient use of manpower and machinery, the razzmatazz of the opening and closing and the camaraderie. All in, a great beginning and ending to RFC 2009. I would like to express a Big Bang thank you to everyone involved, especially the organizing committee and my officials,” summed up Luis J.A.Wee.

Special thanks:  State Govt of Johor, Tourism Malaysia, YBM Tunku Jalil, MPTN Johor, Royal Malaysian Police (Johor Traffic Police) & Police Air Wing, Malaysian Armed Forces 7^th Brigade (Johor), Johor National Parks Corp, Forestry Dept, Royal Malaysian Customs, Road Transport Dept, Johor Health Dept and all Johor state agencies/depts., Rentas 4x4, Warn Ind Inc, ARB, Tecnica, Sutera Mall, Magam, Scoreboard (TV3), 4WD Equipment, Aloha Bistro & Club, Red Bull, 4x4 Magazine, Hotel Istana, Zon-Regency by the Sea, Motorsports Assoc of Malaysia (MAM) & Edaran Tan Chong Motor (ETCM)

for the use of Nissan Frontiers/X-Trails as supply, media and logistics vehicles.

RFC Secretariat