Bridge

Usually only 1 team per hostel competed in the obstacle race at my school, but for some reason that year we were supposed to field 2 teams.

Our original team was like some all stars team, the strength of which was no secret. Apart from the stars there seemed to be no one remotely competent, who ever remained was unfit, either too fat or too thin or too tall or introverts or the types that find -lifting hands to swat mosquitoes- hard work.

Anyways I was in the no stars team, and before anything the word map of the obstacle course as it was called.

• The first step was a rope climb, probably about 20-25 feet which usually was easy, more so because it was the first step.
• The second obstacle was a walk on a flat plank which was as difficult as a walk in the park.
• The third was a six feel concrete wall, which too was easy with practice.
• The fourth was a three step jump again needing little effort.
• The fifth was the Tarzan rope; it involved a jump to hold on to a rope and to land on the other side of an 8-10 feet pit a la Tarzan.
• Then sixth step was a zigzag plank walk and the next one was a jump in to a 3 feet pit and climb.
• The 12 feet wall was the first real difficult step; it was a brick wall that had a few grips unlike the six feet wall. Usually help was allowed, that is people could climb on others shoulders to climb the wall.
• The ninth step was a 15-20 foot crawl through a barb wired fence.
• The 10th and usually the most difficult, was called the Burma Bridge, it involved a rope climb to a walk on the ropes holding ropes and finally to a climb down by another rope.

Though easy when tried alone, the Burma Bridge usually was the death knell for most competitors for one simple reason; by the time we reached this step we would be totally exhausted.

On a lot of instances we had competitors dangling from the metal frame unable to ascend and unwilling to come down as it would invite negative points.

Making the team was difficult and when we finally had a plausible eight we had little more than a week to go. We had one heavy weight, three feather weights, one -I can’t swat the mosquito- type and three average builds in the team.

We had vigorous practice sessions every evening though we practiced when there were not many people around, mostly to avoid the embarrassment, after all were seniors.

Apart from two feather weights and the dullard the team was not actually bad and in a few days even the three were seemingly better. It was decided two of us the average builds would trail or lead the others to support them.

The day finally arrived and as expected our first team almost rewrote the record books and it did little to my team's confidence.
For some reason I seemed to think the crowd or my whole school was smirking, heck even the staff at the start line was making fun of us.

We started off well, there were no qualms till the Tarzan rope, when I almost fell in to the pit but nevertheless managed to stay clear.

As planned I along with my other friend reached the 12 feet wall to help the team climb over us. Curiously after two attempts I needed a hand from my friend to climb the wall. When we finally climbed the wall after helping the other six I was happy to see one of my team mates complete the race, he was one of the feather weights!

Two of my team was over the bridge and not surprisingly more two were dangling from the bars of the bridge. Looking at them dangling and gasping for breath only hurt my neck. After a while we tried helping the dangling two climb the rope with our shoulders while we hung on the ropes.
Though seemingly heroic it did little and a part of my friend's palm skin was off, it was the ropes.

The one other person remaining apart from us two also had trouble in climbing the bridge, his weight or the lack of it helped me push him above the bridge with my shoulders.

Unmindful of his now bleeding hands my friend that mad man completed the race before me.
In all we had 3 disqualifications and our timing was the second last.

Surprisingly when our not so impressive second last position was announced we had more than a warm round of applause from the crowd.

Thankfully that was the last time we ever had to make a second team.