I've barely been able to sleep.
It's dawn now in Kanchanaburi, the morning of the big adventure race. I'm staying in a hut on the River Kwai and all night images have been turning over in my mind of scaling rock faces, downhill mountain biking and jungle running.
2hrs until start time...off to get up, shower and drink some more water...
I’m currently in training for a 5-6 hour adventure triathlon, just 2.5 weeks away from its painful reality.
The adventure race is happening on the 28th of February in the hills of Kanchanaburi Province about 2.5hrs NW of Bangkok and 1hr east of the Burmese border. I’ve visited the place a few times before – twice to commemorate the Aussie soldiers who worked there as POWs under the Japanese during WW2, and the other time to have a bit more of a look around at the national parks and nightlife with a mate from footy.
The race is basically a two-person team adventure with jungle running, cross-country cycling, kayaking, swimming events, as well as perhaps the odd muscle cramp.
My mate Brian and I are forming what could quite possibly be the slowest team on the circuit, and will race alongside a few other mates from my rugby club.
I can’t wait to get amongst it – see the website for it all here.
A conversation with one of my heavily accented Thai colleagues as we walked back from lunch today:
Me: *Pointing to a street-side stall holder* "Wow...is that guy selling ice cream already? It's not even that hot yet."
Thai colleague (TC): "No, he is selling a type of Thai drink."
Me: Oh, right, what kind of drink?
TC: "Iced brain drinks"
Me: "Sorry??"
TC: "Iced brain drinks, like in plastic bags with straws"
Me: "Oh, right"
It wasn’t until I got back in the office that I realized she meant ‘Iced blend drinks’.
God bress Thai accents.
