Anggriawan Sugianto

There is a specific kind of silence that only exists at 3:00 AM on a muddy trail in the middle of a race. Your headlamp is failing, your quads feel like they've been tenderized by a mallet, and your brain is screaming—rationally, logically—that you should stop.

Over the years, I've realized that the "algorithms" I learned in ITB and the "frameworks" I mastered in KAIST MBA are exactly what keep me moving on the trail. And conversely, the "grit" of the trail is what allows me to lead Suitmedia through the volatility of the Indonesian tech landscape.

Success is isomorphic. The same principles that scale a company win a mountain race. These are the mental models I live by, grouped into the pillars that define my world.

BTS Ultra 2025

I. The Personal Operating System: How I Think

These are the foundational models for clarity. If my internal "Map" is wrong, no amount of speed will get me to the right destination.

1. The Logic of Truth

Before you can solve a problem, you have to see it clearly.

• First Principles Thinking: Strip a problem to the core truths. Don't reason by analogy; build your own logic from the ground up.
• Occam's Razor: When faced with two competing theories, the simplest one is usually the truth. Avoid over-engineering your life.
• Map vs. Territory: Your mental models, plans, and spreadsheets are just "maps." Never confuse the abstraction with the messy reality of the "territory."
• Circle of Competence: Be brutally honest about what you know and where your expertise ends. Play only in games where you have an edge.

2. Strategic Decision Making

Choosing the path when the fog of war (or mountain mist) is thick.

• Inversion: Instead of asking how to succeed, ask "How could I spectacularly fail?" Then, build systems to avoid those specific pitfalls.
• Probabilistic Thinking: Life is a game of odds, not certainties. Focus on making high-probability bets rather than chasing sure things.
• Regret Minimization: When at a crossroads, choose the path that your 80-year-old self would be most proud of.
• Sunk Cost Fallacy: Having the courage to walk away from a bad project or relationship, regardless of how much time or money you've already invested.

3. The Physics of Growth

How to ensure effort results in exponential progress.

• The Pareto Principle: Identify the 20% of inputs—habits, clients, or training—that produce 80% of your results. Ruthlessly cut the rest.
• Compounding: The most powerful force in the universe. Tiny, 1% gains repeated over a decade create exponential wealth, wisdom, and fitness.
• Velocity vs. Speed: Speed is how fast you move; Velocity is speed plus direction. It's better to crawl toward the right goal than sprint toward the wrong one.
• Theory of Constraints: Every system has one primary bottleneck. Improving anything else is an exercise in futility. Find the bottleneck; widen it.

4. Human & Social Dynamics

Navigating the "Human API" in leadership and life.

• Incentives: Show me the incentive, and I will show you the outcome. If you want to change behavior, change the reward structure.
• Hanlon's Razor: Never attribute to malice what can be adequately explained by neglect or a simple mistake. It saves a lot of unnecessary anger.
• Social Proof: We are biologically wired to mimic others. Use this awareness to choose mentors wisely and avoid groupthink traps.
• Pygmalion Effect: People generally live up to or down to the expectations we set for them. Lead with high belief in your team.

5. Systemic Resilience

Building a person in me that gets stronger under pressure.

• Antifragility: Designing your life so that you don't just survive the storm—you actually get stronger because of them.
• Feedback Loops: The shorter the gap between an action and its feedback, the faster you can iterate and improve.
• Margin of Safety: Always leave a buffer—in your schedule, your bank account, and your heart rate—for the unknown unknowns.
• The Power of Narrative: The stories we tell ourselves about our failures determine whether they become traumas or fuel for growth.

It was supposed to be the grand finale. The last battle in my 2025 ultra trail saga—a year packed with challenge and grit. Three 100K ultras in eight weeks. One race each month. I was tired, yes, but more than that, I was determined. This was the moment to seal the deal. Siksorogo Lawu Ultra 80K. The last dance of the year.

Campground Sekipan, Tawangmangu

I’m no stranger to this race. Not at all. My story with SLU began in 2023, a modest 30K that introduced me gently to the wild trails. It didn’t end there. I came back stronger, wilder, wetter in 2024. The rain never let up; it poured like the sky was determined to wash away every ounce of my hope. I slipped, I tripped, I fought. Yet I finished. Barely.

The 2024 race stats tell a brutal story. From 44 starters in the 120K only 6 finished, a gut-wrenching 14%. The 80K field saw just 51 of 145 make it through, about 35%. And the 50K? Even that, with nearly half dropping out. The median finish times crept close to cut-off, inching like shadows waiting to claim the weak.

Flag-off times laid out a rhythm, a precarious dance with darkness and daylight. Midnight for the longest, early mornings for the rest. These are not casual starts. They are invitations to suffer under the indifferent stars.

Then came 2025.

This year, something had shifted. The numbers were better. 23 finishers of 57 in the 120K, that’s 40%. The 80K grew to 65% finishers, and the 50K even higher. More runners standing tall, more stories of grit written into mountain dust.

Even the median finish times edged slower than 2024, but still comfortably under the cut-offs. That small difference means everything. Because every second counts when the body screams for mercy.

And, yes, the flag-off times in 2025 changed too. The 120K started on Friday night, earlier than before, the 80K at midnight, chasing night’s last breath, and the 50K at 5 a.m. No more leisurely dawn departures. This was battle mode.

Okay, let's be honest. After running two 100-kilometer ultra-trail races in just five weeks, my body should have been officially on strike. Most people would be horizontal, maybe with a nice warm compress and a long, philosophical stare at their ceiling.

BTS Ultra: The most beautiful ultra-race I ever run

Yet, here I was, standing at the BTS Ultra start line. This was the third, and final, monster in my slightly mad, self-imposed trilogy. The mountain air was sharp and cold, but also buzzing with a strange, electric energy. I expected a full choir of aches and doubts to greet me, a symphony of 'what ifs' and 'why did I dos' louder than a rock concert.

But instead? Silence. A surprising calm hummed beneath my skin. There was no overwhelming tiredness from BDG Ultra or Trans Jeju, those two beasts I'd already wrestled. Three full weeks I’d poured into recovery, focused entirely on healing, on preparing for Bromo’s unique challenge. My Amazfit T-Rex 3 Pro had quietly tracked every training session, every recovery nap (almost!), giving me solid, data-backed confidence. It paid off. My internal optimists, usually a quiet bunch, were actually winning the argument for once.

Even with a third 100K looming, a crazy big task for most, and frankly, a bit bonkers for anyone, stress felt like a distant rumor. This wasn't just another race dot on my calendar. It was the legend. This famous 100K race, winding through ancient volcanic areas and tough peaks, felt less like a course and more like a sacred landscape where volcanoes stand guard. Where the earth breathes old fire and wisdom.

Third ultra trail 100K in 8 weeks

This race, I truly believe, is the most beautiful ultra-trail race I have ever run. Its natural beauty just pulls you in. Huge peaks touching the sky, the fresh, cold mountain air that wakes you up, the deep quiet before dawn that feels like the world is holding its breath. 

The race started at midnight. It was like a silent river of lights flowing from Artotel Cabin Bromo into the huge, dark night. My usual easy pace settled into a steady, calm rhythm. A quiet chat with the trail itself. We reached B29, a part that's known for being narrow. It’s a slow, careful shuffle up a steep hill, a forced lesson in working together. After that, the path went towards Ranu Pane. This part was sometimes "annoying" with its sunken tracks from motorbikes. Each careful step was a dance to avoid twisting an ankle, but my ASICS Gel-Trabuco 13 shoes, bless their grippy soles, held firm.

B29 Climb at Night

Then, the reward: Ranu Kumbolo (km 25). Even if its famous beauty was hidden in morning fog, its full glory veiled, just being near that calm lake was amazing. It felt like walking into a painting, a quick, dreamy moment of peace before the trail turned, going back to Ranu Pane. It was a short, beautiful break, a quiet promise of what was beyond the clouds.