Toe Sucker conspired with Square Rooter to set tonight’s run from along the Sameong Road. I missed one sign and nearly ended up at the football field, but fortunately backtracked in time and found the A – I wouldn’t want to miss this one! The run was excellent, using some familiar trails, but from a different direction, making the connects very interesting – and some of the checks were genius!
We set off, and the first check took no time, with Turkey running just ahead of me. At the 2nd, I set off to the left, but it looked a bit overgrown so I was slow checking. Meanwhile Turkey went to the right and went a couple of hundred metres before calling us on because he saw some paper – sadly the paper wasn’t showing the trademarked square root symbol! Checks are intended to confuse, and this one did just that! With people scattered, I went back to the previous check, and with most following we sure enough found the right trail. Sadly Turkey led some boys astray and they managed to short cut ahead of us.
We caught up at another check, where there was again much confusion. Able Semen called us On, only to find Turkey stood sweating halfway up a hill denying all knowledge. We were 15 minutes into the run and had barely started. Pamela and Swallow were right with the FRBs debating going back and getting the beer! Finally Cumalot and I set off up another “hidden” trail and found paper. Brownie was right with us, but Cumalot struck gold at the next check as the trail headed up the hill. A big climb – one where I just put my head down and waited for it to be over. Trudge, trudge, trudge…
Eventually we hit the ridgeline, and for some reason most were wanting to check to the right… No way! I thought, I recognise this place – we run here from Ob Kham – great connect SR! Off to the left shuffling away was Cuckold – it had to be left… (The Wimp trail had broken left, so ours had to sooner or later, and to go right meant dropping down into Ob Kham valley – not even SR could come up with a way out of that??? I started chasing Cuckold, and grinned to myself when he called us on. Graven behind me, and took off as though our chains had finally be cut. Cuckold’s shuffle shifted into a determined gait, and then a definitive jog, before he broke out the full on run – he was free! Finally running, sprinting with all the calibre of an FRB! Determined to get to the next check first, which he did…. and then the next, which he did… but he got that one wrong, and I didn’t see him again – still great running with you!
Brownie got it right, but was an eternity before he called it. The lead rotated as now Graven got involved – we were descending, and we were descending fast. Another check, and Able Semen was reluctantly checking slowly, so I overtook and found trail. Still downhill, so while I going as quick as I could, Graven, Able Semen and Poo past me – then Poo realised he might be going just a bit too quick and took action to avoid falling. There was the hare, sweeping backwards, so he said… – I think he was just hanging out on trail to try and decoy us. With a tiny hint from the hare, I found trail and another circle. If you’re reading this SR – you know the circle I mean… just after we met you, where you had a FT straight off the circle… That was a bit confusing, but it would have been even more genius if you hadn’t had the circle….! The trail into the gully, and to the FT. Everyone would have gone back to the main trail. Whatever, it was still genius and brought the pack closely together as everyone was sure we were into the end game.
The last couple of circles had me foxed. I knew we were close, but didn’t recognise enough to know where the A site was. Seriously, excellent, excellent job! The trail had everything – a hill, lots of good running, some excellent checks to get the brain going. Pure hashing joy.