National University of Singapore - The Killer Slopes of NUS

Two days before the normal Saturday Run....

Me, "So where are we running this week?"

Others, " Kent Ridge? Labrador? Marina Bay?"

Me, "We have been going to these places almost every week! Why not try someplace new! NUS?"

The West Ladies, "Okie!"

Me, "What about Bedok Reservoir Park?"

(Silence on Whatsapp group.....)

*Note, most of the ladies stay in the West....

The Sports Complex at NUS using my new iPhone 5 Paranorma function

Woke up to rain and thunder at 6am at my place on the East Side. However, the Western Ladies claims that there is absolutely no drop of rain in their corner of Singapore. Strange Strange weather. My mum looked at me strangely, when I told her I going off for a run, in the middle of a thunderstorm. Shortly after driving pass VIVOcity, the rain stopped... Real Weird...

We met at the Lobby of Prince George Park (PGP) residence, a student residential area that looks like a condominium. We got slightly lost, navigating the compound of the residence, a great shame to me since I stayed there for a year during my varsity years. It's pretty nostalgic also.

There is 2 routes to choose, upslope towards National University Hospital (NUH) or downslope to Business School. We chose run downslope in the initial stage, which is a big mistake, as we made our way round back to the starting point, panting while running against the gravity on at the end of the leg.

Starting point. PGP residence. Car Parked there

NUS Business School. My Alumni!

This route takes us around the main streets of NUS and almost all the faculties of the varsity. The killer part of the whole run are the 3 slopes of NUS. The first and probably the steepest slope is between the Business School and Arts School, that will probably drain most of your stamina once you conquered it.

A short downhill later, you will be faced with another winding slope, between the NUS main library and the NUS Sports center. 

The last slope starts from the canteen at Science faulty all the way round NUH, to the hills of PGP residence, with a pretty brutal distance of around 1km. I pretty much managed to scale the first 2 slopes, but the last slope back to the start point literally killed me. Throw in the fact that I went for a rollerskating half marathon the day before at East Coast Park, after a one year hiatus from Blading, my calves are literally killing me! I am embarrassed to say that I walked the entire journey for the last killer slope. Looks like I need to do more slope running training!!

The first killer slope at Business School

Second killer slope at the NUS library

Last killer slope at NUH

Kent Ridge MRT along the last hills of the last slope

The Kent Ridge Heritage Trail Marks the end of the last killer slope

Back to PGP! Downslope all the way! Yeah!

Overall, the running route is pleasant with minimal traffic and road crossings. Thanks to the numerous road humps around the road of the universities, the cars tend to travel at a slow predictable speed, and they tend to give way to pedestrians. On top of that, the school semester had ended and there were not a lot of students around. The school is practically a ghost town on a Saturday morning. So if you love to run up a slope, enjoy the sights of the oldest University of Singapore, NUS is a pretty good place to work out.

The Campus Map of NUS

The roundabout where most of the traffic is concentrated in the school.
Be careful when crossing the road here.

We rushed back to the car before the clock strikes 830am, because the carparks around NUS begin charging at 830am. When I got to the gantry, my vehicle clock is at 829am. However, the automatic barrier did not lift up. I looked at the system and saw a 2cents charge... Seems like I am one minute late and has to pay a 2c charge! 2c!!!!! Well, at least they have the decency to do a per minute charging, unlike the carparks at the Central Business District. They charge the 30mins charge of $2.15 even you are one min late to the gantry....