Trails anyone?

The gods must be crazy when they invented the word, ‘trail’. And they must have been crazier when they invented the words, ‘trail run’. Heck, I must have been the craziest of them all, when I decided to try what they meant, not knowing that I will be coming back for more!


Sta Rosa, Laguna

With only three trail runs under my belt (and counting…), but a number of treks up my spine, I may not be your best authority when it comes to this passion. But I will tell you my encounters nonetheless - with no other than the stones, dirt roads, pits, hanging bridges, enormous roots, river crossings, boulders, slippery uphill, hungry cattle, ridges, leaping frogs, enchanted pathways, streams, fornicating crickets, tall grasses, wild horses, cliffs, mammoth millipedes, and clouds as my witnesses.


Camiguin

Notwithstanding the heat that summer brings or the flood, wind, and storms during the rainy season, my two feet still finds “stubborn me” hiking up a mountain or running through a trail. What is it about the trails that keep me coming back unrelentingly? If not for the list above, then it must be the absolute thrill that one gets from sheer exhaustion. Now where did I get that?


Mariveles, Bataan


Sta. Rosa, Laguna

What is the first thing you must know before you go crazy? Have yourself checked by the doctor – I mean it! And yes, include a visit to the psychiatrist as well because your decision to join a trail run or a trek might be due to the need to forget a painful memory. And diverting it towards something more painful which could eventually become a lasting memory was all you could think of. Oh well, that’s one of the definitions of madness!

After the doctor's appointment, get the proper gear. The thing about trails is you don’t have to care about how good you must look because by the end of the day y’all look alike!


Mariveles, Bataan

Before you run on trails, learn everything about the terrain. Will your running shoes hold enough pebbles from the river crossing? Will your CWX bear the cuts? Will your dri-fit singlet protect your arms from the thorns? Are you wearing enough sun block to protect yourself? Can your hydration pack provide enough liquids to last every 10 kms? Remember, trail running is a test of survival. Not just endurance. Not just speed. Not just strategy. You must know the real meaning of “self-contained.”

After the shopping galore, the registration fee, the blog declaration of your craziness, and the physical and lingo training, the next best thing to do is set your goal on the finish line and you’re all set!


Mariveles, Bataan

Be it a trail run or a trek, when it comes to the word ‘summit’, I may have different definitions from the next but this word is the only motivation that keeps me going. And just when I thought that I have had enough trail vocabulary to last a dayhike, a friend had just asked me to pronounce “acclimatization.”


Camiguin