PENANG 22 JULY 2012: It all started with an innocuous posting on the blog. The participants were duly instructed to wear yellow during 22nd July gathering at a famous chicken fast-food restaurant in Queensbay Mall.
Somehow, things couldn’t turn out more surprisingly traumatic at the rendezvous!
At first glance, this would seem like a harmless reunion of old buddies, or a meet-up of Brazilian football fans. Funnily this could even pass as a convention for Digi’s Yellow Men.
And yet for the eatery manager, as more attendees in amber attire gradually trickled in, one could almost swear that beads of cold sweat began to stream down his forehead. You couldn’t blame him for his instinctive concern; he doubtlessly pondered whether his outlet was the unwitting venue sponsor of an illicit congregation.
And his worst suspicions promptly turned into a misery during the briefing and group photo session of THS Walk Hunt Series 2012 – Penang Leg 2.
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| Group photo before the hunt! |
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| We are having fun!!! |
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| Cheers!!! |
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| Team Dual Core |
The Anxiety of Yellow Hunt
Amidst the briefing slides on display was the picture of Dato’ Ambiga Sreenivasan, and the event organizer also guaranteed a mention about Bersih in the questions later.
During the group photo-taking, instead of the traditional cheese, the participants cheekily shouted Bersih, with several fists vigorously punching the air.
With such an expressive demonstration, the manager probably prayed in secret that the edgy situation would not further deteriorate.
One minute he was an ideal image of composure; next he was on course for a damage exposure! Briefly he was a bundle of nerves; his anxiety understandable; his plight unenviable.
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| Team Beauty & the Beast |
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| Team Pus Jager |
Likewise no loudhailers or water cannons were needed to disperse the yellow crowd; just hand out the hunt papers, and see them scurry away within seconds as swiftly as Malaysian pirated DVD sellers upon sighting the enforcement officers.
The Teams of Yellow Hunt
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| Getting ready for the hunt! |
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| Maybe Winter Warmers is the answer! |
The recent memories were not too encouraging. Judging from the fate of similar yellow assemblies in the past, perhaps he was half-expecting FRU task force, armed with batons and shields to storm into his restaurant anytime, amidst a screen of smoke gas! Or maybe his outlet would make the front-page headlines for the wrong reason.
However much to his relief, the ordeal was fortuitously short-lived, as the participants prepared themselves for the serious business of treasure hunting!
This time there were neither protestors’ placards nor banners on display; only clipboards, dictionaries and I-Pads were in view. No slogan shouting and no public marching.
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| Let's check the answers! |
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| Hunter Azhar discussing with Chee Weng |
The Teams of Yellow Hunt
Among those scurrying away was Mall Ratz team, which must be rightly ranked as the overwhelming favourite to win this time. After all, they won Leg 1 with a comfortable lead of 19 points.
In fact, such a margin was more than just a mere gap! It represented a yawning chasm separating the champion and the also-rans, or even a gulf of standard between those who hunt regularly and others who do so occasionally.
In between these 2 THS Penang legs, hunter Sin Yoong Leong of Mall Ratz has evidently kept himself busy. Besides winning Penang Lawyer Hunt 2012, he also notched a perfect-score victory in Hospis Malaysia Hunt 2012.
While Jolly Rogers team, the runner-up for Leg 1 was certainly in with a shout, the Cincai Tembak team may have quietly rated themselves as underdog. Bereft of his usual teammate this time, hunter Edward Yeap covertly formed an alliance with Leep Sean, who was incidentally without his hunt partner too. A marriage of convenience, you may say!
Team Pus Jager also made a comeback with a confident swagger. After a sterling 4th-place performance in Leg 1, they should be shooting for the stars; perhaps an aim for podium finish reasonably within their target range.
In fact, almost all the THS members in Leg 1 returned for the sequel during this Ramadan month, minus a few fasting Muslim hunters.
The Theme of Yellow Hunt
With the question sheets distributed, the “Malaysian At Heart” THS hunt was declared on!
The posers embraced almost anything Malaysian; with clues ranging from the national goalkeeper to our Olympic diver; languages touching on Malay proverb and Hokkien dialect; as well as geography spanning from Bukit Mertajam in the north, to Kuala Lumpur in the centre, and across South China Sea to Kuching in the east.
Participants were tested on Malaysian music personality, our natural product and local press; and of course, as promised, a pun on political reform just to complete the picture.
Surprisingly, a handful of them struggled with a langsat puzzle, while a Malaysian monkey stumper made several hunters literally go bananas!
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| Q3 Drugs found inside a nightclub at Kuching? |
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| Q5 This restaurant has the first national and local comedian. |
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| Q8 Main fashion between Peninsular and East Malaysia? |
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| Q9 With rest disturbed, Malaysian rock queen gets suit. |
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| Q11 This langsat is so tasty; please get some on hand! |
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| Q13 Malaysian monkey may get restless when they smell this food. |
What appeared to be the simplest treasure question also turned out to be a red herring awaiting its unsuspecting victims! The puzzle intentionally revealed a picture, with a slight variation to the one displayed on the treasure popularly obtained. As usual, this inevitably resulted in a lot of “Aiya” and “Alamak” amidst the sound of forehead slapping.
For another pictorial treasure question, a few teams couldn’t recognize our national darling, Pandelela; though one suspects if this hunt was held right after Olympics London 2012, her name would have readily registered.
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| Rewarding the Youth Team |
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| 5th Winner - Beauty & The Beast |
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| 4th Winner - BFF |
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| 2nd Runner-Up - Mall Ratz |
The Champion of Yellow Hunt
All in all, it was a fun, challenging hunt with decent turnout and new champion.
Despite their fresh combination, the team Cincai Tembak undoubtedly clinched an encouraging victory with 6 points ahead of their nearest rival, Jolly Rogers.
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| 1st Runner-Up - Jolly Rogers |
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| Champion - Cincai Tembak |
Yet for all their well-deserved triumph, it was not smooth-flowing from the beginning. True to his usual personality quirk, hunter Edward Yeap reverted to his stereotype grumbling about the difficulty, within half an hour into the event.
“Wah... why so hard?” was probably his trademark remark since his first hunt years ago. Perhaps it was merely his self-depreciating stance, typical of a greenhorn who perceivably found every question baffling.
But one thing is for sure! He can no longer call himself a beginner! He has definitely come a long way; and displayed flashes of brilliance in solving some toughies, reserved for the realm of master.
Lest we forget, he was also the champion of the Sofa challenge in THS Tulip newsletter!!
The hunt resume of his partner, Goh Leep Sean was equally impressive. He had a string of coups in the past hunts, including the unforgettable flawless win in Apex Golden Jubilee Treasure Hunt 2007, before he mysteriously disappeared from the hunting scene for several years.
After a spell of semi-retirement, he lately returned for a couple of THS hunts; surely this latest victory was a testimony that he hadn’t lost much of his touch!
But one must also hand it to the newcomer, Galaxy, a team of two 14-year-old kids! Kudos to them for bravely taking a leap into the deep end of hunt pool!
For this yellow hunt, these kids may be clad in yellow outside, but were certainly not yellow inside in facing the baptism of cryptic challenge!
Malaysian hunters Boleh!
For THS ranking of Penang hunters (after the result of Penang Leg 2), pls refer:-
https://sites.google.com/site/thsmalaysia/2012-league-rankingp
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