In the 60-kilometer race of “The Magnificent Merapoh Trail” by the Asia Trail Master series held recently in Merapoh, Malaysia, 24-year-old Gretchen Felipe from Itogon, Benguet in the Philippines emerged victorious despite experiencing a lot of difficulties throughout the race.
The diminutive runner was at a disadvantage compared with her taller competitors – for not only do these taller runners have longer legs to cover more distance per stride, they also easily passed through areas with water that the runners had to cover. While Gretchen struggled in water that was already waist-deep for her, the other runners weren’t hindered by much because the water only came up to their legs!
At some point near the end of the race, Gretchen was so exhausted and dehydrated that she was almost ready to give up. As she rested under a tree in area where there were plenty of rambutan, a monkey ran to her and began to attack even without provocation.
Afraid for her life, Gretchen ran away as fast as she could – as the monkey continued to give chase! The adrenaline boost from the monkey attack was all that she needed to recover from her exhaustion and dehydration – and led her to cover more distance than she could ever hope for, leading her to the finish line and besting her competitors!
She finished the 60-km race in 7 hours and 29 minutes, defeating all her 30 competitors from 25 countries. Thanks to the monkey attack, this diminutive runner from Benguet won the race over the taller, stronger contenders!
Congratulations, Gretchen Felipe! We wish you continued success…
Next competition, station a monkey in a strategic place, let loose when Gretchen is tired and ready to quit. Congratulations!
Fright-boosted adrenaline power from a male monkey ?
Well ! There were lots of monkeys in Itogon where Gretchen was born but they were
eaten to near extinction so that monkey was ‘angry’ at her.