You mean this GPS track?

Saturday's run will live in the memory forever; somebody's memory; but not mine. I lost track of it somewhere around the naga's head as we hit the second beer stop (were there really only two? It seemed like more!) The next thing I recall was Sunday morning wondering how I was going to set a run for HH3. But magically it got done, and recorded by  GPS (if anyone was using a GPS on Saturday they haven't said so and probably wouldn't have admitted to it anyway!) But Dung Beetle proved once again in case we needed reminding, that we don't always have to do the same thing to have a great afternoon's entertainment, and come to think of it, it's always Dung Beetle who snaps us out of our jungle mindset and sends us off grumbling to do something completely different, which we then all thoroughly enjoy and wonder why we don't do it more often. Thanks Big Boy, and thanks to his team of un-'usual suspects' for organizing the run, T-shirt and party: Wet Spot, Rotten Johnny and Conebrain.

But Sunday it was business as usual with a 7k circumnavigation of Kao Lam, a max. elev. of 181m and a total ascent of about 350m. Good jungle-bashing stuff with a complete traverse of the hostile South face and the more popular North-side being completely eschewed in favor of a gentle flirt with the lower reaches of Kao Wong. The fit bastards took about an hour twenty; Off T brought up the rear in the thick end of two hours. In between the hare gallantly rescued Bid Bleow and Kii Loei in the gathering dusk somewhat to the chagrin of Gas Hole/Gaseous Clay who seems to have taken on the role of errant knight on Sundays, and Danny helped Julie to complete her first day-time Hash in Songkhla, as the sun slipped behind the hill... ahh I feel a song coming on: 

But I don't feel afraid

As long as I gaze on 

Borogam Sunset

I am in paradise.

Wound-lickin' good!

Just what was needed after Saturday's pussy monster. 9k'ish for the long run and 5k for the short run laid live by the exhausted hare who was caught on several occasions by the pack, and who at one point had to have first aid rendered to him by front runners, Sagai and 4-wheel after he slipped down a bank and gashed his elbow.

The long run looked likely to claim two victims as well, as two almost-virgins wandered beyond the confines of the short run and 2 hours later had not been seen or heard of since. Happily they had done the sensible thing and when the paper ran out at the unbroken 3rd check, turned round and followed it homewards, being located and 'rescued' by Nicheow as the search parties were just being organised.

Sex Ao Ao alias Mongolian Fuckrat was home first in about 1h 13m but it was almost 2 hours before all the runners drifted in. Knackerwurst (a.k.a. I want my wife) meritoriously completed the short run in about one and a half hours accompanied by a team of nurses who mopped his brow as he sprang lightly across... etc. Only a Yolk, disguised as Moo Sahb, evaded being iced for a completely gratuitous short cut with Sexy Girl which had them scrambling down rocky cliffs instead of enjoying the verdant orchards on the descent. Praise for the run was muted, possibly because none of the beer stops materialised.

But next week it will all be different, as Beavershot and Nicheow respectively explore the verdant pastures of Poonakan from opposite ends on Saturday and Sunday. More details later in the week when the pain has become a distant throb.

The perfect hash?

Just as we were all beginning to doubt that our twice weekly romp in the hills was such a good idea after Saturday's trip to hell, Hatyai Hash yesterday delivered up the complete antidote to doubt: the perfect hash.

It wasn't just the run; but that was a good start. Sited in the shady grove between Wat Khao Lam and the adjacent football pitch, like Saturday's run it was largely generated from the geekosphere and brought into reality by Only a Yolk/Moo Sahb's man-management skills as she guided Off T and son, Green Tea around Khao Lam, producing a run of such quality that not one negative comment was heard. With the first runners back in almost exactly an hour and at 6.5k, the proportions were perfect and the trails used were a great balance of flat running and hill with the checks working so well that the two fastest runners, Nichaow and Porn Star were effectively sidelined half way through the run by a false trail that left them 5 minutes behind the rest of the FRB's, but still allowed all the runners to come in within a 10 minute bracket.

But like I said, it wasn't just the run. If we are suffering from falling attendances at SH3, HH3 seem suddenly to have hit a purple patch and yesterday it was like Union H3 never happened with so many old friends back together and a few new ones as well. And HH3 is back to being a Thai hash again, with avengance, as out of the 50 or so people who turned out yesterday there were only 4 farangs who could comfortably stay in the background and drink beer as GM Sex Sprinter ran a great circle to end a perfect afternoon's entertainment as the sun set behind the football pitch... etc. etc.

Happy days!