(Courtesy Alice)
Sheep Shagger was flying solo in the hills behind the Samoeng Rd footy pitch and he not only took off without assistance and flew scenically around but landed safely although not on the right runway!
The A site was a very decent shelter away from our usual haunt so that added something to the run. Luckily the weather was fab so we didn’t need the cover at all. Good to see Softballs back and the average age was much reduced by Spitz Spunk and Just Jeff.
We were running on playing card sized white squares and Sheep Shagger said he’d taken any other paper down he’d seen. Oh how we regretted that blatant fib! Back checks were 3 pieces stapled together and Falsies were No Sheep signs. All well and good. On on.
Off we went heading up a familiar hill. An early check had me in a field to the right with paper hanging under a tree. Long yellow paper and long white strips. No probs, old shit. Chacky and the Turk were blazing trails, Spitz was in the van and the checks had us bunched. The Kwaz was motoring and Frozen was striding out at back of pack.
A bit higher up the hill, we dropped a few stitches. A check had us struggling and we were heading steeply up as On On was called. Paper was sparse but looked fresh. The issue was that it was KnockOut paper, the same length but half a cm narrower.
Paper disappeared but we spread out to solve the mystery….in vain.. and bashed on up the steep winding path where KO had the beer stop. The pack weren’t happy at this point and a tad confused. What was the hare up too?
CW and TD scouted further and found current paper leading up from another route from the right to join our path. Result! We were on again. Running round below the curved summit of a hill we came to a V which threw us all. Right went on then totally stopped. Left went on…then a bar was spotted. We piled back down the right track, there was a very long gap without paper, and a spur down and right was suddenly clearly marked….then again nothing. It just stopped. I went down and further. Others retraced and found a circle I think in the forested summit. It was all a bit hit and miss at this point. The pack were doing good impressions of heads up their arses chickens.
Alice carried on around under the summit to join up with the guys shouting Circle Check from above. On on was called going right and here we had the best part of the run. High trails, trees, views, and good checks. At one Turkish arrived first and ordered Chacky down the less attractive left option. TD went right and Alice saw him about 100m away, silently checking and refusing to respond the “Turkey, Are you?” Chacky was on and we flew down the path to catch him at the next circle. Turkish arrived after Alice and Jeff and the Son of Anatolia neglected happily to break the circle. The guy does play a different game to the rest of us.
A Falsie slowed the loping Aussie as he hadn’t listened at harebrief. Three small squares does not a very clear check back bar make. Down we cantered around the hill on lovely trails to a huge R and arrow pointing left up a trail. Sheep Shagger here was definitely trying to be clever, or too clever. It worked! Again 3 or 4 clear papers then nothing. Or nothing we could see. Frustration. Tiredness. The R was so clearly marked. Push on.
The FRBs explored further and a few hundred metres on around found a False Trail sign and out trail paper, which we followed back in, harrumphing and discussing WTF.
Only Spitz and Father Abraham himself ABB, actually found a check back bar 20m past the R sign and returned to the 4 way and went right on the true R trail. We spied them coming back on an impressive looking path half way up the huge quarry wall. Does Nothing, Kwaz and Softballs came in on true walkers’ trail and it was time for a well earned circle of fun. Federbrau proved too tempting for Alice as well as Kwazi’s Decathlon throne when the NY native was on ice.
Fine trails and good scouting from the Shagger of Sheep. Sod’s law we found very similar but recent paper. Suggest check main routes off circles for 120m and rip down anything. Or mark your paper. Checkback bars needed to be longer and clearer, the shitty ink on Falsies was no problem apart from having to stop to make out the funny image. A fun run, excellent use of terrain and trails and a friendly OnOnOn in Fajitas Tex Mex.