Run No. 140 - 13th August 2005 - Report
How one can actually run and still have fun is a secret that only Mombasa Hash House Harriers know; more so when there is everything that spells disaster personified or a madcap adventure in the offing.
Last Saturday’s Hash was one such “FUN-RUN”. The grandmaster lost his car with cash to the chauffeur; got the car back but nothing else. The Hash lost the grandmaster- for the evening.
Hare Eric ”Mouth” (soon to be renamed with a longer Welsh sounding prefix), took it upon himself to lay the trail. In a forest--- MWACHE Forest to be exact. The pack congregated at the Kaloleni water pumping station on Nairobi Road, after doing a treacherous 5 km of back, bone and body breaking trek in the poor Japanese contraptions. The spirits were still up. Herded in two sturdier vehicles, everyone was led up to the foothills that fringe the forest on a road look-alike which did more damage to the undersides of all moving things, humans included. From a vantage point on the hills, the trail set out seemingly to nowhere but the lush jungle far beyond. The front runners had a field day with Vibrator lending a hand at setting off some minor land slides on the way to the distant estuary that was the meeting point of Bonje River with her master, the Indian Ocean. An excellent proof to the visiting Hasher JOGOO Mwavura from Eldoret that we too have our rivers; what if they are dry!!!!!
The pack descended into the dried up sea bed at low tide and held the first wet Hold, well fed with coconuts, water and all. The real WETHOLD also was tempted to be a crab for a while, slithering on the sea bed but gave up the holy idea fearing her safety, when the crowd said everyone liked sea-food. And off they went, circling the natural bends of the water, which was still at Bay, admiring the ghostly stumps of the thousands of mangroves, denuded at the heads for firewood; not a sight for midnight lovers on a full moon night.. After about a kilometre, the path wound up the steep escarpment facing the Bonje Bridge laying bare the dried up expanse of the river and the new water pipelines. On reaching the summit, it was a trek back to home base where more murky news awaited.
Apparently, a trailer or some such monstrosity that is allowed on our roads without any regard for the roadworthiness, decided to go turtle and an infernal traffic jam on the Mombasa-Nairobi highway stretched for miles on both directions. Not to be outdone, everyone that could move something decided he had the right of way and there it was; a veritable circus in the dark and no respite close by.
Some of the Hashers, never to chicken out, took the back roads of the forest to emerge out at Miritini railway station and yours truly took the chance of walking another half kilometre with the matatu refugees back to the parked car at the pumping station. After a praying request, we were allowed to join the line towards Mombasa arriving at a late hour, but still in one piece.
A superb experience to test perseverance and proving once again - Hashers can do anything if it is a Saturday afternoon.