Category Archives: CH4 – Write Ups

Alice comes into town for a week and steps up to set a run – what a man! This works assuming it is a good run….. and todays run was excellent – one of the best runs I’ve been on for quite a while. There was some excellent trail running, a few dodgy bits of shiggy early on, but apart from that some gentle inclines and declines… A healthy 6+km work out.

We set off and CW and I led the early section with me getting lucky with a few early checks. Out front I emerged up a bank to bump into Burrito Butt! Wtf! It appeared some walkers had inside information as I soon ran into Does Nothing and then Foxy. Finally I got one wrong as Foxy pipped me to choose the fork up the hill a the V-check. Back in front the hill was a grind, and CW stepped in behind me, while Gorf skipped past and took over FRB honours.

Gorf screwed up the next check – he got it right, but didn’t check far enough – man that guy walks faster than most of us run. He was still ahead when we found trail, so we followed him for a while until local knowledge gave CW and I the upper hand at the mud road. No idea why so many checked right, but it had to be left. A few more checks and I was going strong until a spot where I knew there would be a circle check, and it is a complete 50/50… Today I was wrong. The feeling of dread as you get to 110m and still no paper, ugh… I had to go back around.

Running out of steam and still a few clicks to go, I paralleled the pack for a brief period before joining CW for the OnIn. Excellent trails and a great set.

On a Wing and a Prayer

Touchdown CNX. Rent motorbike. Hit KSK for padthai. Scoot down Canal Rd to the Happy Hash, endorphins already coursing thru the veins. 10.1 seemed a long way but signage was good, altho white crosses on dark red background were a test for this w@nker’s eyesight.

Is That All You Bring Away?
What! I know it’s low season but not that low. We hardly had a quorum/minian (ask Frozen). Quality makes up for quantity and ABB had recruited Sunspot to assist in the haring dept., although they had more issues with Sunny’s antique BMW breaking down than the job in hand.

The Long and Winding Road
Trail was clearly marked with white strips and went thru some lovely orchards and country lanes. The checks were pretty cunning and foxed Piggy(easily done) and even ChuckWao (not to easily done). The sandgroping FRB was constrained behind barbed wire fences on two occasions having checked wrong paths then tried to cut back across towards the on on shouts.
Alice’ endorphins were given a jolt by an early ankle sprain and near tumble, but adrenalin and ChuckWao’s concern got me through.
Knock Out was running like a machine, light on her feet, erect and glistening. So the circle heard her described. Poo and CW went like gazelles too and it was hard to keep up, given the lack of soft sand and goats I’m used to.

Keep On Runnin’
Piggy and Cuckold didn’t seem like they wanted to run to start with but once warmed up both got a shift on and the small pack worked fairly well hunting down paper.
ABB set checks in obvious places but didn’t follow the obvious routes much! One check was tricky, we all went wrong routes until KO found trail through a hedge and across a field of concrete footings that apparently shouldn’t be there.
The on in was well received and Piggy was shaking a leg ahead of me and disappeared round a bend when a large heard of cattle rushed him from the right. I feared what I might find, Pamplona on a bad day type visions flashed thru my startled brain. Thankfully he was pressed against the treeline and let the bovine stampede pass safely. Poo bounded up at this point and slowed to our sauntering meander. Which was lucky as he didn’t see the wildebeest migration ahead. Funnily enough the cattle went right back to the A site ahead of us. Perhaps they smelled the beer or fancied a bit of ABB gentle wit in the circle.
A respectful, geriatric circle was enjoyed before braving the tempest on the ride back to town. ONON in Anusan market was cold beer and tasty pizza til tummies were bursting. Great job hares!
Alice

After several weeks away from Happy Hash, something motivated me to go back and join the run… Can’t quite put my finger on it, but today hashing was FUN again!

The runsite was at the end of the earth – past where the canal road no longer has a canal… finally turning right at the furthest runsite known to mankind, except TMB, who carried us on around the corner and eventually to the A bucket. From there the run largely took us back towards the trails closer to the canal road!

We set off and had a bit of a scramble through shiggy meandering through some farm or other. Finally a circle check and arriving with Chuckie we both agreed that left was most likely. It was left, and I gleefully called on moments before realising I was scaring a herd of buffalo. Sadly the shouts of “On On Called” from behind was the final straw leaving a poor farmer holding the end of a stick while his cattle bolted. HRA was full of early run vigour and the farmer’s day was about to get a lot longer as he joined the hashers in chasing after the cows – not sure if he was following trail or cows…

We hit a road, and another circle check. I think Knockout and I unintentionally short cut here, but we found trail quickly enough, and managed to get some alone time in the bushes before the pack caught up. From here we hit familiar trails for a bit – nice running with Poo, KO and CW joining me at the front. There was lots of plastic rope tied to trees – some scouting preparation for a run CW is setting soon. We got to a pivotal circle check, CW and I together. He picked left, correctly and that was the last I saw of him. KO and I tried to chase him down, but as the rest of the checks were easy picks. Looking at the map now, I think his scouting helped him know for sure he was right!

Good fun run!

Behind the night safari, Piggy set a friendly Happy Hash run. He pointed us off towards the hills, and I chugged along the road parallel to the trail for a while before heading up to the first V check. I went right, and in no time Square Rooter was calling OnOn from behind me. Huh? If he didn’t confuse anyone else, he got me wondering, but of course I quickly hit an elaborately marked “FT”.

Back along the trail it was time to overtake. CW stepped out the way to let me through, but then I had to cross country to divert past lots of visiting walkers, and eventually avoided Shagless’s stabbing stick as I rejoined the FRBs. It was HRA, Cumalot and Toe Sucker putting in the work up front. I managed to get a check right and found trail heading up one of the serious hills. No choice, it is up, up, up! HRA not far behind and the trail went all the way up before descending towards the trail at the back of the Night Safari. Several V checks, and finally I got one wrong, but at the check back I couldn’t find an easy way to cross over to the real trail. I climbed down to the main trail behind the Night Safari, and jogged down the hill, turning right to rejoin the pack as they chased HRA up yet another hill. Toe Sucker short cut her way up from the right not long after I rejoined trail.

Ahead Cumalot was running behind HRA. The trail turned sharply right away from the A bucket and towards the out trail, but before we could get far HRA appeared calling “Checking”. I snaked left and found trail about the same time HRA did. We traversed the hill together to the final V check. “You are only as good as your last check” is a favourite HRA quote, and I could only chuckle to myself when he got it wrong. Short trail, but a couple of hills that kept us mixing it up.

Crappy at HTT had people nervous… He’d set part of it in powder, and with a late afternoon storm had to live hare the first section. Sadly he took off towards the waterfall…. Aaaargh! I remember setting a terrible run up there, and going on others that were also terrible – I don’t recall a successful run heading that direction before…

We discussed sitting around drinking instead… It was hot and humid… Finally we thought we ought to give it a go, and we all strolled off casually towards the inevitable. First circle check predictably at the bottom of the waterfall. Choices here are to go into the base of the waterfall, which gives you a treacherous climb up – made more deadly by the rain on the slick rocks. I picked the steeper trail up the right of the waterfall… Steeper to begin with, but in the end its a better route… NOYB spotted the hare going up the waterfall, but I was the first to find him sat waiting for us. Now that check was a gimme – I know there is nothing good to the right – to the left isn’t much good, but it certainly wasn’t going to be further up.

We hacked our way off to the left and at the next check we all went straight up to where the nicer trail was. Sure enough we started heading down. Graven was right behind me for a while, but nipped past – it wasn’t easy going with the rocks hidden under damp leaves. The down was interrupted by a check taking us back up and across before finally cutting down the the main trail. To the right and NOYB was off like a racehorse. A visitor also breezed past. I’d have to go for local knowledge. A check out onto the rice fields. Most hashers wanted to go to the village, but that made no sense – how would the hare get us back? If we went into the village we’d have to come back the way we drove in, and the hare had no time to lay that trail and the out trail, so we had to get back to the ‘main trail’. I was alone checking through the ricefields, but with such a large space, it was a long time before I found trail. Up on the main trail, I jogged in, knowing the rest of the pack would be trying to chase me down.

Not a bad trail at all… – it’s just a shame the connect off the waterfall isn’t there… I wish I could find it…. Maybe I need to go searching again? muahaha…

Virgin hare, but not a virgin area… Mr. Poo and Knock Out had set runs here so recently that their signs were still there yesterday! I had some children logistics, but by chance managed to make it there, and with time to spare! Hare brief told us about some checks, but didn’t help much with what was coming up! Bring in the virgins to explain how we normally do things, and then do it a bit differently!

I set off and Jacksoffalot put in a bit of a jog. I heard a visitor behind asking if it was ok to run or not, so upped the tempo to a brisk trot. It wasn’t long before he breezed past me. A circle check slowed him down and I got first choice at the 2nd circle. Dumbass mistake – I picked right, down the hill and ended up a long way back. The trail headed up a bit and I finally got back with the FRBs when we got to a confusing “V” check. Normally the arms of the V point the directions to check, this V check was just bizarre. Most of the hashers were milling around listening to Chuckie give one of his classic lectures on international standards. I headed after Poo and Graven in the obvious direction – towards the mountain. Graven veered off, and I followed Poo (well over 100m) to find powder coming in from the left. Were we right? Not sure… WTF, lets call it!

Next check we all got right, but then I got caught up the wrong side of a waterfall… I seemed to keep getting into places that were hard to get back from. Following Knockout uphill was fine until she stepped out the way. I caught up again when a circle confused everyone as there was a false trail coming off it… We spread out into the trees, and when it was called, I was screwed. A big shiggy scramble back to the trail and I was way behind.

From there it was a solid run, slowly picking off hashers, starting with Human Ex who is skilled at blocking narrow trails. The trails were good, I really enjoyed the run and the route. Generally I worry about the runsite because of the inevitable climbing, but this set was largely runnable, and a lot of fun. Excellent creds to the hare.