{...story from here continues here}
Starting challenge: a total 200 push ups from each team, apportioned to every members by the team's preferences, followed by answering three UofT King Campus' History trivia questions, where the answers could be found around the whole campus, i.e plaques and asking around.
We were seven, so we equally did a round of ten push ups per person for starters. 70 done, 130 more. We did another ten each. 140 done. The last allocation was the confusing part, but I remembered being told to do five. I did five so was Rachelle, Kriselle, Indai and Luis. The rest Andriy and George took over. We were second to the last to finish. Taking it unmindfully, we tackled the trivia question before long. {I wish I remember all the question so this blog could go even longer. I kid. It gives validity though}. Sprinting, running and eventually walking around the campus, even teasing with the other group, we found the answer and got it right in one shot. {Man! the foreign sensation left by the push ups lingered unwelcomely. In my head, I vowed to just try doing push ever so often to avoid giving my body a shock. Heh}
Second Pitstop Clue:
Calorie Burner: jumbled letters that spells Queens Park
or
Calorie Gainer*: jumbled letters that spells Chinatown
We answered calorie burner right as soon as we saw it. Ignoring the "or" part, we head to where we thought Queens Park was—the station. South we went. Halfway our walk to the station, George brought up the actual park ten minutes walk, north of the race's inception. Ten minutes became twenty. Unsure of our ranking**, we quickly headed to the park and were greeted by the sight of two teams doing the first and second challenge of the three challenges.
Relay Challenge:
First Challenge: All members must sprint a distant of, I would say about, ten metres or so and back. Yes, I meant running twenty or so metres. We had to wait for one team to finish to do ours. It was rather quick.
Second Challenge: Leap frog. Distant wise, I have no clue how far we had to cover by leapfrogging, but I know I and most of us leaped over everyone thrice.
Third Challenge: I forgot the actual name¹. Basically, a member must carry another member, five to seven metres distance; then the carried member must go back and fetch the next member, and so on. The relay ends when no member is left to be carried.
Our strategy was those who would not and could carry must do so, and leave the one who could not to the end. We did it as follow:
Andriy rucksack-ed, for the lack of verb, Luis. Luis went back to fetch George, who back carried me after. I had trouble climbing his back because he is so tall. I picked Rachelle who lugged Kriselle consecutively. Lastly, Kriselle shouldered (backed?) Indai.
No one else was there when we left.
Given a complete address and having no clue where it is, we consulted our handed TTC map right away. Much to our dismay, TTC map shows only major and big streets and not little ones. Fortunately, we had Andriy's 'torn-from-Yellowpages' map with indexes. We walked-cum-ran to Queens Park; Dupont Station off we went.
Having propensity to going opposite, we walked south once we got off Dupont Northbound platform, realizing our error only after seeing the name of the next street in front of us was different the map. Good thing we didn't get very far. However, things went awry for me. My left arm went numb, and I was feeling odd. It gotten worst when I saw the five to six flights of stairs (Baldwin Steps) we must climb. It was not really bad if my body wasn't going weird on me. I survived the initial three flights, no resting, but with expanding lungs. Andriy, whose role became apparent, our travel guide, tended to stroll slowly to stay with, cheer and hurry the people behind, Luis and me this time. At the top, I didn't care anymore; I rest for a bit albeit uncomfortably because Andriy was waiting:
"It's okay. I saw where they headed. I'll just follow." I reasoned out.
"But..." He said more words which I didn't care to grasp. I was in the state of feeling queasy and wanting to pee. Not a good sign because twice I felt the same thing before and I faint.
"I want..." I gasped, "to pee." Oh, the words coming out my mouth when I'm delirious!
Give me a break! I thought I was having stroke as sign of my left arm numbing. I had to confirm by doing what I read on tumblr. I asked myself to smile. I, like a loser, did. Subsequently, in my mind, I asked myself to say one coherent sentence: talk. "Today is sunny," I whispered to myself (should have been, "I'm nuts"). I forgot the third one, but recognizing that I had time to process these stuffs through, I knew I was okay. The sensations then mellowed. Hence, I started running and striding because I was already far from my friends and I heard screaming. Jumping fences and startling visitors, we collectively approached our next challenge. We were in the beautiful Casa Loma.
"Congratulations, you're the first team to arrive!"
Riddle Challenge:
- The maker doesn't want it; the buyer never uses it, and the user never sees it.
- I'm the beginning of the end, and the end of time and space. I am essential to eternity.
- 62-63=1. How do you make it true without moving signs and only one digit?
- I drive men mad for the love of me, easily beaten, never free.
Luis said coffin right away upon hearing the first riddle. One answer down, three to go. I got the second one, E, after going back and forth with God and other assumed answers. The last two took most of our time*** insofar that five minutes through our cogitation another team arrived and followed by many other teams in span of ten. Tired: my lovelies and I sat in one corner trying to solve the math equation, ultimately giving up after few trials and only pretending to ponder but actually just resting. We gave our first guess: coffin, E, wadyaputhere and money/power/poverty/hunger. Then we went back to our corner to 'think', only to be alarm by Andriy:
"I got it!" he said.
Second go: coffin, E, 2⁶-63=1, wadwesaidhere. We reflected by the challenger's expression to come up with the answer. She contemplated when we answered between money and power. George who was saying gold from the start said gold again. Third go we did, and lucky enough we got it despite the long queue from all the teams trying to give their shot. The earliest team to arrive, the earliest to leave. I just wished I had time to appreciate the beauty of Casa Loma, the Baldwin Steps and that side of Spadina—err, Casa Loma neighbourhood.
"We had half an hour break let's try to walk a little faster," Andriy, our dynamo, suggested.
"NO!" my brain opposed.
Fourth Pitstop Clue: Make your way to a place known for a mayor of Toronto who served 7 years. Go to his office nearby.
George and Luis thought of Mel Lastman initially. {Who? I wasn't in Toronto yet when he was in position and was just accustomed to politics when Stephen Harper succeeded Paul Martin} George was thinking of either Mel Lastman or Nathan Phillips. If Mel Lastman, it I could be in North York Civic Centre because of Mel Lastman Square. If Nathan Phillips, then to Nathan Phillips Square. Trying to conserve our lead, we decided to head to the nearest station, deliberate and look for answer there: 127 Davenport to Spadina Station.
At Spadina Station, we decided to just check Nathan Phillips Square since it is closer than North York. However, we still solicited for answer. First try, we got ignored. The next one were a nice couple though. They said Mel Lastman and North York. Despite of what we heard, we resolutely tried our luck in Phillips Square.
Arriving at the square, no ones there. We asked the security guard we saw about the clue. She had no idea. Closely, we checked the Old City Hall. There, standing in front, was the guy who we owe the lovely pictures in the previous post.
Old City Hall and Santa Claus Parade History Challenge: There were four questions I believe. Yes, thank my failing memory because this segment was cut short. We finished all the questions in about ten minutes, struggling with the Santa Claus founding date and person. Truthfully, we just wanted to rest, so we let our princesses looked for answers while George went to check across the street.
¹ DUH! Idiota: it's called piggy back - 27th of September 2012. Thanks, Joan, for correcting me.
{to be continued here...}
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