In The Spotlight

In The Spotlight

Short articles on various aspects of the history of the Hash House Harriers.
By Ed "Hazukashii" Howell

In the Spotlight - A Long Overdue Revision to The First 10 known Hash House Harriers Clubs
1 Sep 2014 (Revised 20 Sep 2021)

The process of updating and editing Bill Panton's amazing HHH Genealogy Project, by validating existing information, and adding logos, dates, and various other details that are missing, continues. Occasionally I come upon corrections that are needed, and this month several very significant corrections have been made. It started with a question from my old friend Drainoil, who questioned the order of the Penang H3 and Ipoh H3. He claimed that when he started hashing in 1966, it was common knowledge that Ipoh H3 was #6, and Penang was #7. So an in-depth review ensued, with the following results. Some appear to just be input errors, fat fingers, or whatever reason, but this month the shakeup directly focuses on the first 10 hash clubs that are known to have existed. While I am always happy to receive and review new information . . . as of this moment, after corrections made, these are now the 10 oldest hash clubs (and be prepared for some additional revelations):

10. Penang H3 - Founded on 10 May 1965, by Robin Rawlings. No change, but moves from #8 to #10.
9. Ipoh H3 - Founded 31 Jan 1965, by David “Mad Dog” Denning (a.k.a. Kinta H3). Previous date in the genealogy was 9 Oct 1965, but has been updated. Moves from #10 to #9.
8. Jesselton H3 - Founded on 22 Jun 1964, by George Will (name changed to the Kota Kinabalu H3). No change, moves from #7 to #8.
7. Sibu H3 - Founded on 1 Jun 1964, founder unknown. (Original club folded ~1966, but was restarted 8 Oct 1995 by Ambrose Chung). No change, but moves from #6 to #7.
6. Miri H3 - Founded sometime in 1963, by Ian Nash. (Original club folded, but was restarted 27 May 1973). Since the specific date in 1963 is unknown, the date is set to 31 December. No change, moves from #5 to #6. If a more specific date can be identified, this club could move up in the future.
5. Sandakan H3 - Founded on 18 Oct 1963, by Jonathan Gray. Upon review, it was discovered the date was wrong, posted as 18 Oct 1965, with correction to 1963, moves from #10 to #5.

The only shakeup in the top 4 was made back in 2013, when the 20 year mystery of the Bordighera H3, was discovered to be a hoax. https://www.gotothehash.net/history/rmbh3/rmbh3.html

4. Kuching H3 - Founded on 21 May 1963, by Harry “God Knows” Howell - http://gotothehash.net/history/hhhk.html
3. Brunei H3 - Founded on 18 Feb 1963, by Colin Berwick - http://gotothehash.net/history/hhhb.html
2. Hash House Harriers Singapore - Founded on 19 Feb 1962, by Ian Cumming (a.k.a. Singapore H3, Father Hash) - http://gotothehash.net/history/hhhs.html

1. Hash House Harriers - It is common knowledge within the world of hashing, that the first HHH club (a.k.a. Hash House Harriers Kuala Lumpur . . . Mother Hash) was founded by Albert Stephen Ignatius “G” Gispert, with the assistance of a small group of mates. Due to the advent of WWII, this original club was suspended on 12 Dec 1941, after run #117, but was reactivated in Aug 1946. No one know for sure exactly when the first hash run was set, but by current lore it is believed to have been ~ Sep-Dec 1938. BUT . . . there has been on ongoing debate if this is actually true or not. What we can confirm is that the 100th Hash (see attached) was held on 15 Aug 1941 (and 17 weeks later, run #117 was the last). Counting backwards 100 weeks from 15 Aug 1941, would potentially make the first run on 22 Sept 1939, if there were no weeks missed. The big questions are, did the old gang have a memory lapse? Was there a major fat finger to the year? It is obvious that the HHH ran weekly from #100-#117, but did the club run bi-weekly, or sporadically prior to the 100th run? No one knows for sure. Guess I have a major research project ahead of me . . . more to follow, and let the debate begin.

See the map and all the details.

1938

In the Spotlight - 1938
14 Mar 2022

Still to this day, no one has found any documentation that specifically defines when the Hash House Harriers ran their first trail in Kuala Lumpur. Conventional wisdom had placed the date as sometime between September and December 1938. About six months ago, my friend Colin “Hema” Snow sent me some interesting news from his personal interactions and a letter from Torch Bennett, that outlined his estimation of the founding date to be mid-summer 1939. Unfortunately, Torch was not on the first run, having taken leave in late November of 1938 and not returning to Kuala Lumpur until late July 1939. Torch also made it clear that “G” had not yet arrived in Kuala Lumpur as of the date of his departure. Although verbal recollections by other early hashers had generally pointed towards a start date of late 1938, Torch was adamant that he was right.

While reviewing more documents on the matter, another letter has shed more light on the situation. First, a little background. When Tim “Magic” Hughes was researching the history of the HHH back in the 1980s, he contacted many old hashers to get their story, and in 1987 came in contact with Frank Woodward. Frank was one of the few early hashers before the war, and is identified on the “List of Office Bearers” of Mother Hash, as a Joint Master in both 1948 and 1949. He would continue on, working and hashing in KL until his departure in 1953. Magic had recently published his “Harrier International World Hash Handbook 86/87” and started mailing out periodical HHH News on a subscription basis under the title “Harrier International.” As an introduction, Magic sent Frank copies of his work and asked for some of his recollections on his time with the HHH in KL.

Frank Woodward replied in a letter, stating . . . “I left Guernsey . . . in January 1939 and arrived in Kuala Lumpur about mid-February, 1939. I had been booked into the Selangor Club Chambers by my boss. At my first breakfast, I was invited to join the Hash House Harriers and as I had been a cross-country runner at school, I was delighted to accept.” Frank makes the most specific statement on record, for the actual founding date with “I took part in the sixth or seventh run of the club since it was founded.” Having run his first trail in February 1939, that would narrow down the date of the first run to sometime in December 1938, or possibly the first week of January 1939. Since there were a couple significant holidays in that timeframe, mid to early December 1938 is the most likely date of the first hash trail. It could not be sooner, as Torch had departed KL in late November 1938, and “G” was not there yet and the HHH had not started.

There was at least one account of the earlier Kuala Lumpur Harriers (that ran in the city from the early 1920s to the mid-1930s) in the Malay Mail (newspaper) in 1932. The oldest actual Hash House Harriers document we currently have, to the best of my knowledge, that specifies an actual event date is the notice for the upcoming 100th run, which occurred on Friday 15 Aug 1941, just 17 weeks before hashing was suspended due to the onset of WWII.

Frank’s letter also includes other insights into the early days of the HHH. He goes on to say . . .

“In those good old days, most of us Hash House members had Malay car drivers . . . and the procedure on the weekly run days was for the two ‘hares’ to go in a car with their haversacks full of torn-up paper and the boot of their car loaded up with a large galvanized tin bath packed with ice, bottled beer and ginger beer, to a pre-arranged starting point and then set off to lay the paper trails. The beer and ginger beer were provided by the ‘hares’ each week at their own expense. The club never had any funds as such and administration was minimal.”

Frank continued to explain that prior to the war, that trails were generally A to B, and that once the pack had assembled and set off running, the hare’s driver would lead all the other cars to the finish point. He also states “After numerous false trails had been investigated the ‘hounds’ eventually arrived at the finish point where the ‘hares’ would have already started on the beer and ginger beer. Shandies were found to be much more refreshing than beer by itself.” Which, to me, is another indictment on the false narrative some hashers believe, that hashing has always been about excessive alcohol.

Another revelation was that after the rebirth starting in 1946, trails were much more commonly A to A. Frank stated “After the war not many members of the H.H.H. had car drivers, especially the newcomers who had come to Malaya for the first time . . . starting and finishing points of the runs [were] at the same place; otherwise the routine was exactly as before.”

In closing, Frank finished with “I am so glad to hear that the Hash House Harriers clubs are spreading round the world, a fact of which I was quite unaware until very recently.” Both Frank’s and Torch’s letters are recollections of events that took place more than 40 years prior, so we have to take them at face value. Just like Frank states, new information continues to be presented to us on the history of the HHH, and more research will continue to expand our knowledge of the origins of this fascinating sport. More research will need to be done on Frank, but as of the time of his letter (circa 1987), he listed himself as a non-running member of the Tamar Valley H3, in Devonshire, UK.

Antarctica
Argentina

In the Spotlight – Argentina
22 February 2023

Argentina is one of twelve countries (and 3 dependencies) that make up South America. As the second largest country on the continent, Argentina has a population of over 46 million, with most of them located in cities in the northern half of the country, according to the World Atlas. The largest tour attraction is the most beautiful Iguazu Falls, on the border with Brazil. Listed as one of the ten most spectacular waterfalls in the world by the World Atlas, Iguazu Falls consists of at least 275 cascades, and is three times the width of Niagara Falls, spanning over 2.5 kms.

Another popular feature of Argentina is the Patagonia region, that spans approximately one quarter of the country, almost the entire southern sector. Patagonia is described as a steppe like terrain, that is basically devoid of trees, but has many natural wonders that include lakes, mountains, and glaciers. Certainly not to be missed if you venture to this amazing country.

The first hash club recorded in Argentina, was the Buenos Aires H3 (BAH3) and believed to have been founded sometime in 1982, but there are no details on who got it going. What we do know, is that this club was resurrected during a planning meeting on 25 April 1993 by John 'Hopeless' Hopgood (ably assisted by Emelia 'Bad Penny' Hopgood and Karl 'Narrow Gauge' Knechtel), who had arrived from Spain, where he had been running with the Madrid H3 according to the HHH Genealogy.

Found on an old website for the Buenos Aires H3, the following account was recorded:

On April 23rd 1993, the first run took place by the Golf Club in Belgrano, attended by some 20 would be Hashers, drawn from the St George's teachers, parents at the Lincoln school and others who had no idea what was going on. To add an international flavour, one of the hares was a visitor from the Guatemalan Hash, who immediately after the run and a down down, caught a taxi for the airport, and was never seen again. The first run was about 13 Km, so long that the committee was worried no-one would return. However the South Africans and St George's teachers offered to set runs, so the BAH3 was up and stumbling.

This hash club is still active, and can be usually found running trails on Sunday once a month. They have completed more than 750 runs over the past 30 years.

Between the original (1982) and resurrected (1993) BAH3, the Tartagal H3 was founded in March of 1990 by Erwin 'Kontol-Merah' Benegas. There are no further details of this club, but a quick internet translation of 'Kontol-Merah’ as translated from Indonesian (which could be a clue), equates to “Red-Dick” in English. Tartagal is a small city of 60,000, and is located about 1500 kms north of Buenos Aires, near the Bolivian border. This hash club is no longer active. If anyone knows of additional details about these hash clubs, please feel free to send them to me for future updates of hashing in Argentina.

In December of 2022, a group of 84 hashers from all over the world gathered in Argentina to participate in a 13-day cruise to Antarctica that sailed from the southern port city of Ushuaia. As one of the lucky participants of this grand voyage, our group set and ran an eleven km hash in Buenos Aires. There were over 50 participants that included a handful of the local BAH3 hashers. We also ran a couple trails in Ushuaia both before and after the cruise. Those that were able to join in, very much enjoyed the time we spent in Argentina, and speaking for myself, I highly recommend it as a destination for traveling hashers.

Armenia

In the Spotlight - Armenia
29 Sep 2022

Armenia (a.k.a. Hayastan) is one of four countries that make up the Caucuses (with Azerbaijan, Georgia, and a southern region of Russia), although some references include parts of northeastern Turkey, northern Iran, and the little known self-declared republic of Artsakh. Officially part of Azerbaijan, Artsakh (a.k.a. Nagorno-Karabakh) according to the World Atlas, is located in the southeastern region of the lesser Caucuses.

The capital city of Armenia has been Yerevan since 1920, where one third of the total 3 million population of the country reside. The city is highlighted by an extensive array of water fountains and parks. Like Azerbaijan and Georgia, the current region that makes up Armenia has at least once been a part of the Roman, Arab, Mongol, Ottoman, Turkish, Persian, Georgian, and Russian empire/kingdoms. Most recently a member state of the Soviet Union, Armenia declared its independence on 23 September 1991.

According to Wikipedia, the "Kingdom of Armenia reached its height under Tigranes the Great in the 1st century BC and in the year 301 became the first state in the world to adopt Christianity as its official religion." Among many other items of note, although actually in Turkey, the picturesque Mount Ararat is clearly visible from the capital.

On 28 April 1996, Klaus 'Cuming Bull' Gehlhaar, along with the assistance of Dave 'Wrong Hole' Franz, Thomas 'Hang Loose' Wimber, and Keith 'Chicken Shit' McMahon, founded the Yerevan H3, as recorded in the HHH Genealogy. The Yerevan H3 has seen several periods of hibernation over the ensuing decades due to pack size participation, but the current iteration kicked off in 2021, still claims the original founding date in 1996, but recently hosted restart trail #11.

There has been a constant recurring level of tension between Armenia and Azerbaijan, with border skirmishes taking place on a recurring basis. After one such clash in 2020, things were so tense in the region, that any sort of conspicuous conduct by foreigner was scrutinized. This brought hashing to the attention of the local authorities, and they had to once again go into hibernation, due to the gathering pack, and flour and chalk marks on streets and sidewalks. The reborn hash in 2021 has utilized a more stealth pattern of posting the hash trail beforehand, and the hare guiding the pack through the run. Although lacking the thrill of actual paperchase, where the pack gets to search for trail, at least the Yerevan H3 gets to enjoy the overall essence of hashing.

I was lucky enough to join the Yerevan H3 for their most recent hash run that started on the hilltop overlooking the city, with the trail twisting its way through the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex. We followed up trail and circle, with a delicious Armenia BBQ at a local taverna. Armenia has also hosted the regional INTERCOCK hash weekend, rotating hosting duties with Azerbaijan and Georgia. The recent pandemic and dwindling numbers of hashers in the region has put a hold on current INTERCOCK events, but there is hope that this event will resume in the coming years. So if you ever get the opportunity to go to Armenia, check out the website for future trails and enjoy the fun with a great pack of hashers.

Azerbaijan

In the Spotlight - Azerbaijan
11 Aug 2021

Part of joy of traveling to new countries, is not only to meet new friends and run the hash, but also the amazing things to see and do. History has always fascinated me, and I have learned so much from my traveling experiences. Just reading about things has no comparison to actually being there. This trip was no exception, and there are many interesting aspects of Azerbaijan. Located with the Caspian Sea to the east, Azerbaijan is bordered by Iran to the south, Armenia to the west, and Georgia and Russia to the north (There is also a small detached enclave to the west, that touches Turkey, and has been a flash point between Armenia and Azerbaijan). The capital city is Baku, and one unique fact is that it’s the lowest capital city in the world, residing an incredible 28 meters below sea level. Azerbaijan is an oil rich country, and was the leading producer of petroleum in the early 20th century. According to the encyclopedia Britannica, “Fine horses and caviar continue as some of the more distinctive traditional exports of the republic.” Annexed by the former Soviet Union in the early 20th century, Azerbaijan gained its independence on 30 August 1991.

As part of the Caucasus region, along with Armenia, Georgia, and southern Russia, Azerbaijan has been host to many regional hash events, primarily INTERCAUC (or INTERCOCK depending on who you talk to), rotating hosting duties every three years with Georgia and Armenia. The first INTERCAUC was held in 2002, and continued steady for nearly 2 decades, with the last one being held in May 2019, with over 80 hashers from Qatar, Georgia, Norway, UAE, Singapore, Belgium, Italy and the UK, and was also the 1000th Running of the Baku H3.

The history of the Baku H3 is fuzzy at best, and after much research and talking to many local hashers, the best I could come up with is, that the Baku H3 was born out of a random group of people holding informal hash runs on a random basis in the summer of 1996, according to Robert ‘Sir Snickers’ Radley. From that amalgamation, Sir Snickers (who came to Baku from the Accra H3 in Ghana) teamed up with Richard Price to officially form the first iteration of the Baku H3 around October 1996. After 2 years of steady hashing, the hash eventually faded for about a year, until another group of nameless and faceless hashers started up the second iteration of the Baku H3. Sir Snickers goes on to say, “I had very little to do with hash No. 2 as I was often working, though I did very occasionally run. Several of us left when the hash became a bit silly. and drew too much attention to itself at a time when running was 'NOT DONE’ other than on The Boulevard. I was hauled into a police station when running on Nobel Prospect and given a long lecture which I pretended not to understand.” This second iteration lasted less than a year. Finally, sometime in the summer of 2002, the third and current iteration of the Baku H3 was formed by Ben ‘Sir Moonboots’ Hodgson, assisted by his wife Phyllis ‘Stoned Banshee’ Lyon, and Suzie ‘Teletubby’ Cornell. Teletubby was the central figure of the Baku H3 for nearly a decade, but has recently retired and returned to the US, while Sir Snickers still pops in from time to time for visits and to attend hashing events. There were no records kept from the original Baku H3, so Moonboots randomly started this third Baku H3 on run number 100, and commenced from there.

On my recent visit to Baku, I enjoyed a blazing, and when I say blazing, I mean HOT, trail. At the time of the start, it was 106 degrees Fahrenheit (42C), and by the end the temps had dropped nary a degree. We had 10 hashers on trail, and the start was a bit of a mess. The hares planned to set trail from one park in the city, but posted the location of another park. As we stood waiting for the hares to arrive, highlighted by texting back and forth with the GM, saying “we’re here, where are you?” and getting a response of “we’re here, where are you?” . . . the hares finally realized their error, but it was the pack that paid the price. The only solution was for the hares to extend trail start from their park, to the park we were in, thus adding an additional kilometer to the day’s excursion (Did I mention it was 42C/106F degrees out? Reportedly the hottest day of the year so far.) All in all, the trail ended up being 11 Kms long, and while there was one actual drink stop at 9 Kms, the pack had to make an impromptu water stop well before that.

Finally making our way to the end of this A to B trail, the pack wasted little time breaking open the beer cooler, and drowning our weary bones in several pints of the local piss. A short but energetic circle commenced, the hares were appropriately punished for their efforts, and fun was had by all. We then shuffled our way back into town to HOPS, the hash pub, and continued to rehydrate our dried-out livers. It was a great day, in an equally amazing city, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. I highly recommend Baku as a travel destination. The food is good, the beer is cold, and the Baku H3 as a great trail running hash club. If you do go, you can also join various hashers who gather for an informal ‘Thirsty Thursday’ run, and if you are really lucky, current Baku H3 GM ‘Whisky Hole a-hhh’ or former GM ‘Peanut Bladder’ may also join you for a drink on the town.

Bahrain

In the Spotlight - Bahrain
21 Mar 2020

The Kingdom of Bahrain is an archipelago of over 30 small islands located in the Persian Gulf, and has its capital in Manama, on the main island of Bahrain. Bahrain was the first place oil was discovered in the region, but due to its size, it appears it will also be the first to deplete its resources. Forward thinking, the government has diversified into tourism, and becoming a hub of the financial sector. Bahrain is also the home of several hash clubs, with the Bahrain H3 first invading on 7 Dec 1972. Founded by Geoff Whitehead, formerly with the Singapore H3, the Bahrain H3 has spawned over a dozen other hash clubs in the region, as well as in Asia and Europe. A common theme in several locations, the first spawn comes with a bit of drama.

The next hash to form was the Bahrain Black H3 (a.k.a. the Black Hash), and has its roots sprouting from the early days of the Bahrain Hash, and a hasher named Norman Moore. Norman, being a purest in the traditions of the original hash back in Kuala Lumpur, was frustrated with the path the Bahrain hash was taking, basically getting too soft. Thus, he created the legend of the Black Hash, as it was whispered about in jest during the weekly hash runs. Intrigued by this sentiment, Ted “Tumbling Ted” Lutley added to the lore, with more outlandish rumors of the Black Hash. He eventually teamed up with a former GM, Bob Tait, to set more difficult trails.

On the occasion of Bahrain H3 Trail #613 that was to be run on 23 Jul 1984, while drafting the instructions for the start location, the hares (Lutley & Tate) agreed to call it the Black Hash. Commemorative T-shirts were produced to mark the event, and soon after became coveted hash attire. Based on the success of that first event, the pair teamed up to conduct Black Hash runs every few months, with the fifth and final one being set on 10 Mar 1986. Intermixed with these events over the years, there was much grumbling about Bahrain needing a second hash club, but nothing really became of it, until . . .

The Bahrain Black H3 (or simply, “the Black Hash,” was officially founded by Gordon “Black Head” Clarke on 5 May 1986, assisted by Ted “Tumbling Ted” Lutley, Dorelle “Cloth-Head” Clarke, Arshed “Cowshed” Mubarak, and probably a few others. As Tumbling Ted explained it, the founding of a second hash initially created quite a stir, so much so that at first, the Bahrain hashers stated the term Black Hash belonged to them. In a conciliatory fashion, and to try to keep support from other hashers, they temporarily called it “the alternate hash.” Unfortunately, the unfriendly rift persisted for several years, with many hashers taking sides and only running with their chosen club. The rift has faded over the ensuing decades, with time, and the departure of some of the original protagonists, and today the rift is only jokingly referred to.

More recently, the Bahrain Independent Trail Chasers Hash House Harriers (BITCH3) was established on 6 Apr 2018. As indicated on their website, a consortium of hashers (One Rung Pussy Driver, Dick On The Table, Rapid Cherokee Choker, Scouts Anal, and Head With My Mom) created this bi-weekly hash on Friday, to allow for maximum participation. The website details the 32 rules, or rather guiding principles, that the hash club adheres to. Lordy lordy, yes . . . rules.

I recently arrived in Bahrain for the 20th running of the regional INTERGULF event. Originally established in Qatar, the first four occurrences were held there between 1979 and 1995. Bahrain hosted the first INTERGULF outside Qatar in 1996, and then again in 1998, 2002, 2015, and now again in 2020. This current event has been planned for over the past year, and the website boasted of nearly 60 hashers on the “Who’s Cumming” list with less than two weeks to go before the event. Then, on 11 Mar, the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 virus a pandemic. The world began folding up their lawn furniture, rolling up the sidewalks, and continued on with lock downs, cancelled flights, and an ever-increasing list of restrictions.

In the end, all but one international visitor decided, or were forced, to drop out. As you may deduce, I was the only hasher to successfully arrive in Bahrain, only due to my scheduled trip to Jordan being cancelled. Heading directly from Cairo, I arrived a few days earlier than planned, and was on the first plane to arrive since Bahrain elevated simple temperature screening to full blown nasal swabs virus testing and quarantining (which actually occurred while we were flying), until results were accessed. After a 10 hour wait in a makeshift medical facility on a back lot of the airport, the entire plane of 50 passengers all test negative for the virus, and were subsequently released into the kingdom.

There was concern that INTERGULF would need to be cancelled due to ever increasing restrictions, and the Thursday evening pub crawl was in fact cancelled (since all the bars were ordered to be closed). Undaunted, the hash must go on and 11 hearty hashers turned up for the main event trail out in the desert. The runners’ trail consisted of one hare and two hounds, and we took off into the hills for what turned out to be an excellent 11+ Km trail of rolling hills, oil pipe lines, and sand. The walkers had one hare and seven walkers, that set out to beat the runners back into the finish. The walkers achieved their goal finishing in under an hour, as the runners popped up over the final dune about 20 minutes later, just as dark was settling over the site. Keeping our social distance, we conducted a circle and even managed to name one hasher . . . SLITHER.

An even smaller group of 4 hashers gathered up to enjoy the Black Hash Recovery Run on Saturday. A 9 Km trot around embassy row in Manama. It was a bright sunny (and warm) day, just right to help sweat out the indulgences of the weekend. Overall, this may be the smallest regional international hash event in history. Great weekend of minimum 2 meters distance between hashers in the era of COVID-19.

Ball Breaker Trail

In the Spotlight - The Ball Breaker Trail
2 Aug 2014

Also known by names such as Ball Buster, Nut Cruncher, Crippler, etc . . . I would be interested to know when the first BB Trail occurred, but my guess would be it was the simple description used to identify the longest trail at one of the early Interhash events. The first one I experienced was in Kuala Lumpur in 1998. Yes, that was the one where about a dozen hashers spent the night in the jungle due to a number of reasons (the primary one was the late departure of the buses as more and more hashers turned up wanting to participate - we started nearly two hours later than planned).

All the major events now feature a BB Trail as the ultimate challenge for trail lovers with strong legs and energetic lungs. Since there are usually many trails to choose from, there are always options to avoid this one. Over the years I have heard many takes on the BB Trail, some hashers say it is over the top or too extreme, some say it is great fun, but I have never heard anyone say ayyyyy, that was too easy. There are also specific events that have spawned from this ultimate test to the hasher's will, and one of the most difficult is the International Hash Challenge, an annual event that usually covers between 40-50 Kms through the jungle and rubber plantations in Malaysia, and hosted by the Petaling H3.

An example of a BB Trail goes back to Brussels in the summer of 2014, were I teamed up with Loping Scrotum, Biggles, EZ Over, and Automatic Balls to hare the BB trail. It was 27 Kms of hashing bliss out in the Belgian countryside in and around the city of Dinant, which is towered over by an amazing 11th Century Citadel. Now for the music lovers, Dinant is best known for being the birthplace of Adolphe Sax who invented the Saxophone. The BB Trail ran down through the town and over the main bridge that was adorned with over a dozen 10 foot tall saxophones. Much of the trail was single file dirt tracks through grassy fields and forest, but there were also sections of dusty country roads lined with fields of straw, oats, and other grains. There was also varying types of animals such as the usual cows and sheep, but this trail also included trotting by an Ostrich farm where hundreds of birds could be seen staring inquisitively. Nearly 130 hashers completed the 3.5 hour trail. See the actual track and a bit of the circle.

Bangkok
Bangladesh

In the Spotlight – Bangladesh
29 Apr 2020

Bangladesh is located in the region of South Asia, surrounded mostly by India, except for a small section of the eastern border with Myanmar, and the Bay of Bengal to the south. Although a fairly small country in size, it has the 8th largest population of about 160 million. Geographically, Bangladesh is probably best known as the confluence of several major river systems that flow down from India, Nepal, and Bhutan, south of the Himalayan Mountain Range. These rivers bring in a constant flow of water and rich soil, which form the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta, the largest river delta on earth. The capital city is Dhaka, formerly spelled Dacca, which was changed in 1983 to better match the pronunciation in Bengali.

Like most of the major cities of the world, the Hash House Harriers are no stranger to Dhaka. The first hash club formed is still active today as the Dhaka H3 (Men Only) – (a.k.a. “The Night Runners of Bengal”) which began on 17 Oct 1977. Moving from Jakarta to Dhaka, Steve “Laggard” Jaggard is credited as the founder, when gathered up some mates to enrich the Bangladesh cultural scene forever. Originally enjoying the countryside on the outskirts of the city, due to the exponential increase in traffic in recent years, and running on Monday evenings, the Dhaka H3 is limited to runs in the city.

The details of who founded the next hash club to form are a bit fuzzy, but the Dhaka Mixed H3 set its first trail on 2 Jan 1983, in order to provide women an opportunity to freely join in and enjoy the wonders of the world of hashing. Not satisfied with hash clubs only in Dhaka, Trevor White founded the Chittagong H3 on 21 Jun 1984. Chittagong (a.k.a. Chattogram) is about 250 Kms southeast of Dhaka, along the Bay of Bengal. The Chittagong H3 only lasted for a few hundred runs, but is revived every couple of years by the older hashers of Dhaka, for special events. Also in the Chittagong region, another club (Kulshi Hills H3) formed for a short period, but did not last too long.

The Dhaka Full Moon H3 began its very spotty existence in October 1997, when David “Fantum” Lewis wanted to expand the hashing activity even more around Dhaka. The Full Moon hash fizzled after about a year when he departed, but was revived by Asif “WebF@rt” Ahmad in 2002, and had a steady following until 2008 when he also departed. This hash club has seen a few short-lived revivals, but is currently in hibernation with about 100 trails to its credit.

After the turn of the century, the original Dhaka H3, through a series of events, began slowly allowing the presence of women on the hash. So, in a show of protest, the Dhaka Men's H3 was formed on 26 Mar 2007 by Murshed “Coco Loko” Salam, which goes by the standard of Men Only, all the time, no exceptions. Not to be outdone, in 2013, the women, led by Nippy Knickers and Joystick started the Dhaka Pussy Hash for women-only. Meeting once a month on Wednesday evenings, this club is more of a social wine drinking event rather than a traditional hash.

On my recent visit to Dhaka in February, I met up with a couple old friends, Sir Rail Jerker who I have known for over 20 years, he has hashed in Dhaka since the early days. I also met up with WebF@rt, who provided wonderful hashpatality helping with arrangements for transport, entertainment, and lodging during my stay. He also provided essential input on the history detailed above. During this visit, I was able to run with the Dhaka H3 on a Monday night. Due to the heavy traffic, and the advancing age of the pack, this club often just meets for an evening run led by a hare, with no actual trail laid. But for this special occasion, the Gispert Memorial Run, women were allowed to join and there was a full 6+ Km trail marked with paper. A large pack of over 45 hashers enjoyed a fun filled evening dodging cars and carts, while looking for paper. Trail was followed by a fun circle, and an On After party that lasted until after midnight.

If you ever get the chance to visit Dhaka, make sure to get out and experience the rich history of the region, but for the real fun, make sure you arrive in time for the weekend hashing where you can get out to the countryside.

Barbados

In the Spotlight - Barbados
6 May 2022

Looking at the map, Barbados is the most easterly island in the Caribbean. According to Wikipedia, the “original name for Barbados . . . was Ichirouganaim . . . with possible translations including ‘Red land with white teeth’." Archeology studies have found evidence of various human presence on the island as early as 1600 BC, and others around 400 AD, 800 AD, and 1200 AD. Spanish explorers first arrived in the late 15th Century and claimed it as a possession. Portugal then claimed the island around 1532, but later abandoned it in 1620. England eventually claimed the island in 1625, bringing in the first permanent settlers in 1627. It remained part of the British Empire until 30 Nov 1966 when it became an independent state within the British Realm. Barbados completely severed ties, when on 30 November 2021, recently elected President Sandra Mason became Head of State replacing Queen Elizabeth II.

The exotic sport of hashing has a similarly eclectic history on Barbados. There are three active Hash House Harrier clubs, with the first being the Barbados H3 founded by David Craig. David came to the islands from the Mainland H3 in United Arab Emirates, and was assisted by Chris Harvey from Lagos, Nigeria and Nigel Minette. They set their first trail on 16 Nov 1985, and although they were dormant for a period of time due to COVID, they are fully active again on Saturday afternoons, and have run nearly 2100 trails.

After nearly two decades, it was determined that one hash club was not enough. Enter Trinidad born Francie “China Brush” Ammon, who on 1 May 2001 founded the Moons Over Barbados H3. She was assisted by Carlos 'Bandana' Freitas, and this club can be found running monthly nearest the Full Moon.

It would be nearly two more decades before China Brush founded yet another hash club on Barbados. The Barbados Bike H3 was founded on 27 Mar 2016 and rides monthly on the last Sunday of the month. China Brush, as a travel agent, also organizes various hash cruises primarily in the Caribbean, but also adjacent to various other large regional hash events and INTERHASH.

I have been fortunate to join China Brush on several of her Caribbean hash cruises, with the most recent being the pre-lube to OUTERHASH 2022. Sailing out of Barbados in April, our first trail was with the Barbados H3 where we had a lively pack of about 75 hashers including the 30+ members of the cruise. Trail was an amazing 13 Kms of varying terrain including goat pastures, back alleyways, sidewalks and city streets, parks, and other dirt tracks, with the final 2 kms through a maze of sugarcane fields. We paid 2 Barbados dollars ($1 US) for the joy of the trail, and then at the end beer and other soft drinks were available for purchase from the Beer Meister. In circle, there was no singing, and they recently replaced beer down downs with a shot (1/2 ounce) of a blue liquor . . . that has had a Scotch Bonnet pepper soaked in, making it VERY spicy. You do your shot on your knees, and all first-time visitors are simply . . . virgins. Hashing on Barbados was a most excellent experience, and we followed up trail with a night on the town for more fun. If you ever get the chance to visit Barbados, make sure to take in a hash trail or two, you won’t regret it. See the links to all the hash clubs on Barbados. On On

Belgium

In the Spotlight - Belgium
4 Jun 2014

Brussels is about to be the host city for the largest beer party in the history of the Hash House Harriers (25-27 July). Nestled in the near center of the country of Belgium, the capital city of Brussels is the home of the European Union, as well as, and maybe more importantly, has been the home of many hash clubs over the past 35 years. The first recorded hash in Belgium was the GRAND BRU H3 founded by Jan "Once-a-Year" Slaats on 21 June 1980. It was a yearly hash in the Belgian Ardennes set up by Dutch ex-pats. Soon after, the Brussels H3 was formed by Stephen Lunn in December of 1980.

Other hash clubs followed in Mons (SHAPE H3) in 1982 and Antwerp in 1999. The Shape H3 faded out in 2006, but has recently been revived by some Norwegian hashers, Mata Hari and Dog Handler and is now called the Shape-Mons H3. Undeniably, the two most renowned (or scorned) hash clubs currently running in and around Brussels are the Brussels Manneke Piss H3 which has been on trail since 16 April 1990 and the Going Nowhere Always Drunk (GoNAD) H3. The BMPH3 was founded by Dick "One Way" Bryant who started hashing with the Dhaka H3, and runs trails regularly on Sunday afternoon at 1500 and Monday evening in the summer months at 1930. Their big annual event is the Belgian Nash Hash, hosted in a different Belgian City or village every year.

The GoNAD H3, an equally notorious hash club, was Founded on the 25th of September 1993 by Phil “P.EnNIS” Ennis as the Oostende Hash House Harriers. GoNAD H3 initially ran in Oostende on the Belgian coast, but has since migrated to Brussels. This hash sponsors some very interesting events throughout Europe, such as the Trust Us hash, where you sign up by putting your money on the table, and you are told later where the event will take place. The GoNADs also conduct events such as the Beer University, where you work towards a degree by sampling numerous types of beer. They also host trails in conjunction with other major hash events throughout Europe and partner with crazy hash clubs like the DIVA H3.

For the running enthusiasts, there is the Brussels Blue Moon, who normally run weekly, at least when they feel like it. This club is founded by Barry “Hash Hole” Rasberry and Eric “Nut Bitch” Borremans. The big annual event is the Blue Medoc. One year, the Medoc Marathon became very commercial and tried to make the Belgian hashers buy an expensive package deal, so instead they decided to hold the Medoc Marathon in Brussels. They run 30-42 km between hasher’s homes where there is a wine stop. Only wine form the region of Medic is allowed. It has caught on and is now an annual event. One must not forget the BELLY Hash held on every 29 February (Brussels European Legless Leap Year) founded by Michael ”Mick Mac” McAlinden on Thursday 29 February 1996. If you have never hashed in Brussels, you are missing out!

Brazil

In the Spotlight - Brazil
6 Dec 2021

As the largest country in South America, and the southern hemisphere, Brazil borders with the Atlantic Ocean, and all other countries on the continent with the exception of Ecuador and Chile. According to the World Factbook, Brazil is the fifth largest country, behind Russia, Canada, China, and the US, at 8.5 million square kilometers, and is seventh in total population at just over 213 million. According to “Hey Explorer,” Brazil is famous for carnival festivals, soccer players like Pelé and Neymar, the fighting technique of Capoeira, and the Bossa Nova. Popular tourist attractions include the tropical beaches, waterfalls, the statue of Christ the Redeemer, and probably the most commonly associated land features of Brazil . . . the Amazon River and Rainforest. For those with a taste for adult beverages, Brazil is home to the Caipirinha, a bitter sweet lime cocktail.

Most of South America speaks Spanish (with local dialects), but the predominant language of Brazil is Portuguese. This is due to the Treaty of Tordesillas, which was agreed upon on 7 Jun 1494 between Portugal and Spain, and split Brazil in half. Portugal claimed all land and resources to the east, and Spain claiming all to the west. According to National Geographic, “Spain and Portugal adhered to the treaty without major conflict between the two, although the line of demarcation was moved an additional 270 leagues (about 1500 kilometers or 932 miles) farther west in 1506.”

Rio de Janeiro was the capital of Brazil for about 200 years, until 1960, when it was moved to Brasilia. The whole story behind Brasilia is fascinating, and includes an Italian Roman Catholic priest named Dom Bosco, who in 1883 had a dream that one day a vast open area by a lake would become the land of milk and honey. Some people believe this was a premonition that one day the capital of Brazil would be in Brasilia. When Juscelino Kubitschek ran for election as President in 1955, his platform was focused on a promise to build a new city in the center of Brazil, call it Brasilia, and move the capital there. True to his word, upon election, he began an aggressive plan. Designed in the shape of a bird, or airplane, the city took only 41 months to build, and was inaugurated on 21 April 1960. Dom Bosco is memorialized throughout the city, including a vast park in his honor. Based on its futuristic design, Brasilia was named a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1987.

Brazil is also famous for amazing hashing. The HHH Genealogy lists the Sao Paulo H3 as the first hash club in Brazil, founded by Dave 'Mauler' Lawler on 5 Dec 1987. The last known contact with this club was 2010 for the Interhash Directory. Sao Paulo also has another club, the Brazil Nuts H3, founded by Jan 'Konkorde' Roberts in Jul 2000, after arriving from Jakarta, Indonesia. It appears both clubs held runs from 2000-2010, before the Sao Paulo H3 began to fade away (I have been told that the Sao Paulo H3 was a bit exclusive). Other hash clubs of Brazil are the Brasilia H3 originally founded in 1989, and has had a couple rebirths with the latest one in 2012. Other clubs include the Curitiba H3 founded in 1992, the Rio H3 in 2000, the Rio Full Moon H3 in 2002, and the Fortaleza H3 in 2005. Although COVID had shut down hashing all together for over a year, the Brazil Nuts H3 and Brasilia H3 are currently active, and the Rio H3 is showing signs of new life.

I recently spent a couple weeks in Brazil to visit a couple old friends from Europe, Weeny Schnitzel and MaBouche, experience the Brazilian culture, check out the beaches, and run some hash trails. The first one was on a Saturday afternoon with the Brazil Nuts H3. Trail was about an hour bus ride outside the city beyond the airport. We had a pack of about 14, and enjoyed a trail that took us to a near hilltop for some fantastic views of the region. After trail and a short circle, the BBQ was fired up for some tasty Brazilian BBQ. Saying goodbye to many new friends of the BNH3, it was then off to the coast for a few days and some beach time.

My second week in Brazil was in the capital city of Brasilia. I was fortunate to get an extensive tour of the city by the local hash kingpin and GM of the Brasilia H3, Opulence. Born in Germany, Opulence took off at an early age to see the world, eventually finding his way to Australia, where he would settle down for 28 years. Growing restless he took off again, discovering new places to explore and hash, and eventually wound up in Brazil, where he met and married a local girl. Finding the local hash in a state of disrepair, he soon took the club under his wing and has rebuilt it to a steady biweekly hash club that engages with the local community through “Hashers not Trashers” clean ups, and hosting the “Brasilia 4 Dummies” website supporting the local Expat community. The region is generally flat, with a few rolling hills, warm temps year-round and palm trees waving in the breeze. It has an expansive night life, open areas with a minimal spread of tall buildings and mostly single-family dwellings dotting the countryside.

After a few days getting to know the city, Sunday finally rolled around and it was time for a trail with the Brasilia H3. We had an excellent 8 Km trail, and the circle was fun, and the whole pack was so friendly . . . I will DEFINITELY be back to hash in Brasilia again. Why you ask, because after chatting with Opulence for a few days, we agreed that South America needs its own intracontinental hash event. So in June of 2023, Brasilia H3 will host the 1st running of the Pan SoAm Hash in Brazil. We will be taking bids for 2025 as this event moves around South America every two years.

Brunei
Cambodia

In the Spotlight – Cambodia
14 May 2020

Cambodia (a.k.a. Kampuchea) is officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia. This wonderful country is full of many beautiful historic sites, with the most famous being the lost temple of Ankor Wat near Siem Reap. Cambodia has vacillated between communism, authoritarianism, unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy, and various other forms of governing. Unified under the Khmer Empire in 802 AD, the country flourished for over 600 years, followed by over 300 years of decline due to the rise of Thailand to the west, and Vietnam to the east. In 1863, France claimed the lands as a protectorate, and it eventually became part of the greater French Indochina. Gaining its independence from France in 1953, the country soon became a central part of the Vietnam War, with the Khmer Rouge taking power in 1970. This eventually led to the mass genocide of the late 1970s under Pol Pot. After the Cambodian – Vietnamese War, the country was under Vietnamese control for 10 years, until the United Nations interceded until 1993, when elections were held. Cambodia is currently considered an elective constitutional monarchy under the Cambodian People’s Party.

Due to the civil unrest in the area, Cambodia was late in relative terms, to be graced with the arrival of the Hash House Harriers. Primarily located in 3 locations, that being the capital city of Phnom Penh, the coastal city of Preah Sihanouk (Sihanoukville), and the northern city of Siem Reap, the hash has seen many incarnations. First arriving in the capital, the Phnom Penh H3 was founded on 23 August 1992 by Lorna “Job” Jacques, according to the hash genealogy. A common warning was given in those early days, that hashers should not shortcut trail as you could end up running over mines!

The hash genealogy lists the UNCTAD H3 as the next iteration forming in February 1993. After a bit of research, UNCTAD stands for United Nations Conference on Trade And Development, which really does not make sense. Tapping into my own military background (and a bit more research), my best guess would be that it is actually the UNTAC (United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia), which sounds much more likely, as hashing has followed the military in numerous combat and peace keeping environments over its long and sordid history. As an example, in 1993 I was able to run a hash in Somalia during UNOSOM (United Nations Operation in Somalia). Much like this one-off hash, the UNTAC was probably a short-lived hashing experience while UN forces were deployed to Cambodia.

The Sihanoukville H3 was founded by Colin “Mister Memory” Jerom in 1995, but was short lived. Another iteration of a club in Sihanoukville was formed by John “Flasher” Critchley in late 2002, assisted by Peter "Miscarriage" Burke and Tim "Missing link" Salter. This hash club was based at the Seabreeze Hotel, which was part owned by Missing Link's brother John “Colonel Klunt” Salter. According to Flasher, the club ran a few times, and had even attracted a few locals to join, but abruptly ended when Colonel Klunt got called away for other career pursuits in Thailand. Shortly afterwards the hotel closed.

In 1997, Don “Big Boy” Boring created the myth of the Phnom Penh Full Moon All-Lesbian Nude Bike H3 (P2FMALNBH3). This is simply listed as the Phnom Penh Full Moon H3 in the hash genealogy, so I was unaware when I first started looking into its origin. In recent discussion with Big Boy, he reminded me this was only the gag shirt he created for Interhash 1998 in Kuala Lumpur. A second shirt was printed as a tribute to his fellow members of the Seoul H3 on the occasion of our 1500th hash. In an interesting twist of irony, I actually hared the Seoul H3 1500th hash up above Seoul (near the DMZ) on 12 February 2000. This club (only commemorated by the two shirts), never ran a trail, never existed (same as the Bordighera H3), but you can see the second shirt on page 43 in the Hash T-Shirt Museum at the bottom right corner.

The next hash club to form was the Angkor H3 in Siem Reap, founded by Franklin “Darjeeling” Pate in 2003. Darjeeling had previously hashed in Sri Lanka, where he had founded the Colombo H3 back in 1980. The original Ankor H3 was short lived, but in 2009, Hanno “Short Stump” Stamm restarted the club which had been dormant for a few years. According to Short Stump, the Ankor H3 “was very successful with many runs having more than 100 runners. We also organized the [Mekong Indochina Hash] in 2016.” Unfortunately, Short Stump departed Siem Reap in 2016, and the hash quickly faltered.

The next noted club was the Gentlefolk Abroad Saturday H3, as a splinter group off the Phnom Penh H3. Founded by Richard “Chicken Shit” Pullen in 2005, as the name alludes to, this was likely a more social aspect of hashing that was also short lived.

Outside of the three major locations previously listed, exists a hash club that is still clinging to life, but runs very sporadically. The Stung Treng Evergreen H3 was founded by Barbara "Hand Job" Rochester, with the first run being held on 4 October 2011. They usually conduct 2 or 3 trails a year, but if you contact Hand Job, she stated she could set you up with some locals in the area and potentially organize a hash for you. Stung Treng is located in Northern Cambodia, just south of the Laotian border.

I have had the pleasure to do 4 or 5 hash trails in Cambodia on a couple of their event weekends. The first was their 20th anniversary hash back in 2012, and the most recent being back in December of last year for their 1500th Hash. On both occasions, we boarded a river boat along the Tonle Sap River, and steamed our way up to one of the islands in the middle of the Mekong River. The 1500th trail (main event) was an excellent 12 Km trail on dirt tracks, through cow pastures, and along dusty backroads, that ended back along the river. An excellent circle, with food and adult beverage that accompanied an amazing sunset, followed by a return boat trip down the Mekong that lasted until well after dark. Current GM, Flaccido Domingo, let me know that the first annual Cambodia Nash Hash took place in Kampong Cham in 2012. This went on for four years until 2016, when they decided to host them every two years.

Hashing in Cambodia is amazing, and tie that in with a couple days sightseeing in Siem Reap, and a couple days on the beach in Sihanoukville, you can easily fill up a week or two vacation. So, when you get the chance to travel again, keep Cambodia in mind. Just hit Cambodia on the links at http://gotothehash.net

Colombia

In the Spotlight - Colombia
30 Mar 2021

Colombian history can be traced back nearly 15 thousand years, and is naturally and culturally diverse due to being the migration point between North and South America. Annexed by Spain in the early 16th century, it was declared the “New Kingdom of Granada.” Over the ensuing centuries Colombia has had many other names, including the United States of Colombia. However, since 1886 it draws its current name, “The Republic of Colombia,” from early Italian explorer Christopher Columbus. Geographically, Colombia has coastlines on both the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, and is bordered by the 5 countries of Ecuador and Peru to the south, Brazil and Venezuela to the east, and Costa Rica to the north up until 1906, when Panama gained its independence.

Now, you may wonder when hashing first found its way to Colombia, well that is a good question. The hash genealogy had scant information on this, listing only that there was a Bogota H3, founded on 31 Jan 1993. No founder, no origin, and no descendants. After a bit (quite a bit, but always looking for more details) of research, I was able to track down some old-time hashers and confirmed that the first Bogota H3 lasted only a couple years in the early 1990s, and that the Britannia Inn was a common hangout. The second iteration of the Bogota H3 was founded in January 1998 by Simon ‘Delhi Boy’ Batty, who had hashed his way around Egypt and the United Kingdom, before arriving in Colombia. This hash also only lasted a couple years, holding about 20 hash runs, before fading away around the time that Delhi Boy moved on to Greece in 2000. The third iteration of the Bogota H3 actually links me to hashing in Colombia. Founded on 14 January 2012, by George 'Nut 'n Bone' Samuel assisted by Jorge 'Corey Feldman' Miramontes, who both came to Bogota from Korea where they hashed with the Seoul Southside H3, a club I founded back in 1999 (small world). This third iteration had a steady following of 12-15 hashers, and lasted for almost three years until Corey moved on to Saudi Arabia.

The fourth, and current iteration of the Bogota H3 was founded by Crystle-Day ‘CD’ Villanueva on 6 July 2019, having arrived in Colombia from the Xian H3 in China. The pack is very young, but enthusiastic, led by CD who makes everyone feel at home. On my recent visit to Bogota, I was fortunate to be able to join them on an out-station weekend event at Cerro de Quininí (which is a national park, with a massive outcropping of plate tectonic rock, pushed upwards to form an amazing ledge overlooking Porto Bello). We had two excellent trails, and enjoyed Colombian BBQ and played a couple hours of Tejo, the traditional throwing sport of Colombia. Tejo is similar to Cornhole, but you throw shaped stones at a board of clay. There is a metal circle in the middle, lined with small explosive charges. Closest to the center scores the points, hitting the charges can also score points.

To the north, I also discovered that the first iteration of Medellin H3 was founded on 8 August 2005, by Andres 'Dazed and Confused' Vargas, who had returned home after a stint with the Ankara H3 in Turkey. This first Medellin H3 club had a short tenure of less than a year, when DnC moved on to China. Hashing would not return to Medellin again until 19 January 2019, when current founder ‘Pablo Pisscobar’ moved in from Bogota. Pablo was introduced to hashing in San Diego, California, and hashed his way around the United States before returning to his home in Colombia to rejuvenate the club in Medellin, after a short stay in Bogota. He was assisted by ABBAA (Another Blonde Bearded Arain Asshole), and currently run trails monthly on Saturday afternoons. Additionally, history is also about to be made in Colombia, as the Medellin H3 will host the InterAmericas’ Hash in September 2022. This will be first time this (or any major regional hash event) will be held in South America.

I recently had the pleasure to hash in Medellin as well. The Medellin H3 trail was on the Saturday after St Patrick’s day, so was themed as a Green Dress Run. It was a warm sunny day in the city, and we had an excellent pack of 12 hashers (5 of them were virgins). The scheduled hare had to drop out at the last minute, but Pablo Pisscobar stepped up to set an excellent 8 Km trail through the city. Trail made its way through several parks and neighborhoods, with plenty of elevation, which is common in Colombia. Trail was followed a lively circle, including welcoming 5 virgins, and one interesting naming. This hash is working hard to grow its numbers and spread the hashing culture here in Colombia.

If you are looking for a fun and interesting city to visit and hash in, put both Bogota and Medellin on your list . . . and don’t forget about InterAmericas’ Hash next year. Pablo is bringing lots of new life into the hashing effort in Medellin, with several young and virgin hashers. They should be old salts by the time IAH rolls around next year. By the way, I am collecting names for volunteers who want to assist with packing and handing out goodie bags, haring, and various other requirements to put on IAH next year, all are welcome to help, Spanish speakers preferred.

Cook Islands **New**

In the Spotlight - Cook Islands
12 Mar 2024

Spread out over 2 million square kilometers in the South Pacific, the Cook Islands is a small independent state with a population of aprox. 18,000, and consists of 15 small islands. The capital city of Avarua is located on Rarotonga, the largest of the islands. They have long had close ties to New Zealand, and use the New Zealand dollar as their own currency. Tourism is the main industry of the Cook Islands, but they do have a small export of various fish products, tropical citrus fruits, and local handcrafts.

As you might guess, the islands were named after Capt Cook, who first visited there in 1773. Although it was not until the 1820s, when Russian mapmakers bestowed the name on the islands. Fearing invasion by French settlers, the islands requested the United Kingdom to designate them as a protectorate. After several requests originating as far back as the 1840s, the UK finally granted protectorate status in 1901, which lasted until 1965 when the Cook Islands were granted self-governance status, according to the World Factbook.

It only took 15 years of self-governance before the Hash House Harriers invaded in September 1980, when David 'Tosser' Lobb (who had hashed with the North Shore H3 in New Zealand), assisted by Andy 'Slacker' Olah, founded the Rarotonga Hash House Harriers Hussies & Hoffspring (RH5) as a family friendly hash club. It was during the Round Raro Road Race (a.k.a. RRRR, an annual 31 km road race on the perimeter road around the island) in Sep 1980, when Tosser and Slacker agreed they start a hash club. So, two days later, the first running of the RH5 occurred. The RRRR eventually became the annual birthday run with an associated hash feast according to Polyononymous, an avid RH5 hasher and the keeper of local hash history.

The RH5 is an exceedingly welcoming and family friendly hash club. They celebrated their 2000th hash in June 2018 (of which Slacker has run over 1400, and Tosser is almost to 1200 runs). They have run/walked nearly every Monday evening since 1980, and I had the pleasure to attend their 2300th hash trail last week. It was one of their semi-annual odes to civic duty hash, where a portion of the marks go along the beach, and they clean up any trash they may find while navigating the trail. The pack of about 25 (aged 7 to 70) came back with 6 bags of miscellaneous trash. After a bit of socializing while we waited for all to return, we then had a short circle of 5 down downs; one for the hare and 4 for the pack, including visitors. It may be a small island, but if you ever want to spend some time enjoying the beach on a remote island in the South Pacific, consider Rarotonga (and a hash trail with the RH5).

Costa Rica

In the Spotlight - Costa Rica
10 Mar 2022

Costa Rica is one of seven countries that make up Central America, but they are all really just part of North America, along with Canada, Greenland, the United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Bordered by Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the east, Costa Rica also has coasts on the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. As with most of the countries in this region, Spain was the first to dock their ships along the coast, but Costa Rica eventually claimed its independence in 1821. Aligning with Mexico for a couple years, then the Federal Republic of Central America, Costa Rica achieved its own autonomy in 1838.

Costa Rica is a relatively small country, with a population of around 5 million. The landscape is dominated by over 100 active and extinct volcanos with the most recent eruption in 2010, and is predominately an agriculturally based society. Although Spanish is the official language, English is widely spoken in urban areas. Costa Ricans enjoy a high standard of living, making it a popular place for tourism and expat retirement.

As you might expect, the Hash House Harriers has also become a staple in the capital city of San Jose. I spent an afternoon with Ian Young in San Jose recently, where he told me about how he first found the hash in the newspaper in Hong Kong in 1969, and was on trail #2 of the newly formed Hong Kong H3. Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Ian got a job with Pfizer, and that took him all over the world. He hashed in Hong Kong for a couple years before being transferred to Korea, where he founded the Seoul H3 in 1972. He was then sent back to Hong Kong before eventually making his way to Costa Rica.

Costa Rica is a beautiful country, and Ian got busy with other activities for a couple years, and did not feel he was meeting the right sort of people that would be interested in the hash. That was, until he met Bill Barbee. Explaining the concept in detail, Bill immediately thought it was a great idea to get a club started, so he and Ian started getting the word out. The first hash trail set was on 3 Feb 1979, when Ian Young and Bill Barbee founded the San Jose H3. Although Ian was the founder, he was transferred to Colombia shortly after starting the club, and it was actually Bill Barbee that was the driving force to keep the San Jose H3 going after Ian’s departure. Under Bill’s guiding hand, based on what he learned from Ian, the pack continued to grow. So much so, that with hashers living all over the city, the run start locations were also all over the city. This went on for over 25 years.

Ian continued on with his life and career throughout the 80s and 90s, living in several other countries and eventually starting a family. He weaved in and out of hashing during this time, but did spend some time in England and Indonesia where he was able to connect with other hash groups, but family life limited his desire to start a new club where there was none. After retiring from a long and successful career with Pfizer, Ian and his wife moved back to San Jose.

As with many metropolitan areas, over the years the growth of the city was outpaced by the growth in traffic, and it became harder to get through town for the weekly runs. Both Ian and Bill lived in Escazu out in the western suburbs of San Jose, along with many of the old timers, and this group started to miss too many trails. To ensure everyone was able to get their weekly fix of hashing, a splinter group was formed. On 10 Jan 2005, Millard 'Fancy Pants' Farmer took the lead on forming the aptly named Escazu H3. The two-club system went on happily for a number of years, but eventually numbers started to drop much like in other parts of the world. The breakaway old timers of the Escazu H3 rejoined the others and they all have run together as the San Jose H3 since.

More recently, another new hash club has formed about 3 hours’ drive south of San Jose in Uvita, founded by Dave “SCFAL” Peters and Pam “GILF” Kexel. These two lovers first came to Costa Rica for InterAmericas’ Hash in 2003, where they started their lives together. Going back to their homes in Waukesha, they married and lived happily for many years. Then, they woke up to the realization that it snows in Wisconsin like 10 months out of the year. They devised a plan to return to the land that they loved down in Central America, and hatched a plan to build their dream home, along with a few cabanas to rent out.

Although still under construction, Camino a la Paz is a small eco retreat in Uvita that will have rentals of 3 full apartments, with 4 queen beds and 3 futons, sleeping 11 people, along with a pool on site (and camping space if you desire). The area is full of opportunity for full on adventure hashing, full on beach bum, or somewhere in between. The facility is surrounded by jungle and wildlife including monkeys, scarlet macaws, sloths, and iguanas. Along with that the Uvita H3 was born. If you would like to gather a few hasher friends and try out some hashing in Costa Rica, contact GILF on WhatsApp at 506.8665.6983 and make your reservations (special hash rates apply . . . and you can also help schedule a hash run). They are hashers through and through and miss their hash family. If you come and visit, they will set trail, show you around town, or just be available as needed.

But wait, that is not the end of the story . . . Costa Rica has another unique aspect when it comes to hashing, dreamed up by Giles “Patchwork-Quilt” Paget-Wilkes. Patch first arrived in Costa Rica in 1979, just after the San Jose H3 was formed. He was on run #5 and immediately become a regular. It would only be a few short years before Patch became the Grand Master of the San Jose H3, and looking out over the world of hashing decided that one city, nor even one country, was big enough for his rule. He hatched the idea of creating a bigger event . . . making San Jose the birthplace of the biennial InterAmericas’ Hash in February 1984.

In the 1985 annual program of the San Jose H3, Patch described it this way. “As usual this year some great guys have left us for ‘greener pastures’ . . . However things are changing compared with the early days when people just disappeared, as all of these people are either running with other hashes or have started a new chapter if there was nothing in the town they moved to. As a result Hashing has spread like wildfire through Central America with 3 new clubs in the last year. Communication between all these new and existing clubs was greatly improved by the first Inter-Americas Hash, which was held in San Jose this February. With Hashers from 16 different clubs at the gathering many long lasting relationships were initiated, and this together with greatly increased travel and visiting between the clubs is helping to form a solid hashing network throughout the Hemisphere. This can only result in benefit and enjoyment for all concerned, which is what hashing is all about.”

Patch can also be seen explaining the first INTERAM, as it is now known. Approximately 250 hashers turned up for that first one, so another was held again in 1985. INTERAM has continued on the odd years (with the exception of 2021 due to COVID) opposite INTERHASH ever since. The next one will be the 20th INTERAM, and is scheduled to take place in September 2023 in Guatape, Colombia. The whole history of INTERAM is coming out soon.

I recently had the pleasure of traveling to San Jose for the 43rd anniversary of hashing in Costa Rica, and was able to meet up with both Ian Young and Patch-Work-Quilt. I first met PWQ in 1993 on a hash run with the Mosquito County H3 in Florida, that ended at his house. I’ll have more on that in a future article, but on this event we had a fine hash social on Friday night where we got to meet and greet with about 25 hashers. Saturday, we had a hash trail with the San Jose H3 out in the countryside, along with a BBQ after a short trail (it was 3 miles if you ran it 4 times, like I did). Keep in mind, the majority of the pack here is in their late 60s and up (Ian will be 80 in May), and the trail was all shiggy with a few obstacles.

On Sunday, we boarded a bus for what was usually a 90 minute drive, but it ended up taking 2.5 hours to get to the beach out in Jaco. The newly formed Uvita H3 sponsored this trail, which had us first going up the hill for a beer stop on the top of a steep dirt road (with some 4 & 5 points of contact on the eagle loop). All this leading us up to some great views, then back down for a long stretch on the black sand beach. We watched a local surfing contest for a bit, then circled up for a few down downs and songs, before grabbing some delightful food and watching the sunset. We then boarded the bus back into San Jose, which by this time, the beach goers were all doing the same, and it would take 4 hours to get back. As you might guess, we had to make a couple breaks to download, and upload, more beer. Costa Rica is amazing, come visit . . . you will not be disappointed.

Croatia

In the Spotlight - Croatia
8 Mar 2020

Croatia, or rather Hrvatska as it is pronounced in Croatian, was once part of the former Yugoslavia. Declaring independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, along with Slovenia, resulted in a period of unrest and 4 years of war in the region. Since 1995, Hrvatska has seen many years of economic growth and peace, and today is a thriving and peaceful country. In the midst of this, the city of Zagreb has enjoyed weekly bliss in the form of the Hash House Harriers. Founded on 2 Jan 1975 by Paul Redmond, who had been hashing in Washington, DC, and Peter Armstrong who had most recently been hashing in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, were both in attendance at a Christmas Eve party in 1974 in Zagreb. I recently joined in for a run with the Zagreb H4, and the following story was explained to me by Sir John (the Sir was added when he hit 1000 hash runs), who has been running with the Zagreb H4 since its third hash back in January 1975, and has been a member ever since. If you do the math (45 years times 52 weeks a year, that equals 2340 weeks), and on my recent visit I had the great opportunity to run on Zagreb H4 Trail #2355. So, you can easily see that no level of threat kept the hash from running their weekly trails. Although there is no sign in or records, Sir John figures he has run nearly 1900 trails with Zagreb H4.

Getting back to the founders, as Sir John explained to me, Paul and Peter were chatting at the Christmas party, and Paul mentioned he wanted to start a hash. Peter responded with something like, how do you know about the hash, and the conversation went on to reveal how they both were hashers and had hashed in Kuala Lumpur some years ago. Two weeks later the first trail was set, and included great hash drama. As Sir John continued to explain, the pack of about 10 got arrested when locals heard a bunch of foreigners running through the woods yelling. The police were called, and they come out to investigate, eventually arresting the whole pack. On the way to the police station, Paul says he has to call his wife, as she is sick. He actually calls some local officials, but tells the police that his sick wife wanted to talk to them. Handing the phone over to the police, they are informed that Paul and Peter are diplomats, and the police need to return them to their start location and drop them off. Disgruntled, they do just that, and the Hash is never bothered again. The hash genealogy includes listings for the Zagreb Strollers H3 founded in May 1995 by Derek “Poopers” Cooper, which has faded into the sunset. Also listed is the Dalmatian H3 founded in Jun 2003 by Sami “Antibiotic” Sakoman, that conducts hash cruises every year or two (8 so far) along the islands and coast line of the Adriatic Sea.

On my recent visit, I found Zagreb to be lovely and well-maintained. The hash met on the north side of the city, in a park that bordered on the forest. After some brief introductions and instructions, we set off down the road. Soon enough, we turned right onto an access trail that began a long uphill climb through the forest, on dirt roads and associated mountain bike trails. Dodging many mud puddles and various other obstacles, the pack of about a dozen solved many checks to eventually arrive at the top of the mountain. From there, as they say, it was all downhill, and the pack was soon all gathered up back at the start. Since it was still about 12C degrees out, we all quickly changed into dry clothes, and then gathered for some socializing.

On the Zagreb hash, there is no charge, but the hares are responsible to provide food and beer for the pack. Our lead hare for the day was Quickie, and she had set out a large loaf of bread, with a stack of cheese and meat, and two cases of beer. As we munched away, she explained that her father had cooked a pot of beans and sausages the night before, but something happened overnight, and the whole pot went bad. “It all went into the toilet” she explained. Another hasher chimed in, “It was destined to end up there anyway” to many chuckles. A quick circle covered most of the usual offenses, and after about 45 minutes, with our toes and fingers going numb, we bid farewell and moved on to the warmth of the car. It was a great day with the Zagreb H4, and I will certainly be coming back (when it is warmer out) for another run around the forest. Many thanks to the Zagreb H4.

Cyprus

In the Spotlight - Cyprus
29 Feb 2020

Cyprus is a fairly large island in the Eastern Mediterranean, with Turkey to the north and Egypt to the south. Based on its precarious location, Cyprus has a long history of conquest, being part of the ruling empires of the Persians, the Greeks, the Egyptians, the Romans, and the Ottomans, just to name a few. Cyprus gained its independence in 1960 (capital city being Nicosia), under a three-way agreement of Great Britain, Greece, and Turkey. In order to have a successful three way, you need to hit it and quit it. But this three-way endured, and has resulted in decades of strife. By way of a series of hostile actions, initiated by a coup d’état by the Greek Cypriots and followed by an invasion by Turkey in 1974, Cyprus has been divided into a northern Turkish Cypriot sector, and a southern Greek Cypriot sector. Although in recent years the island has enjoyed a relative amount of calm, the border is still monitored by numerous outposts on both sides. I arrived at the northern airport at Ercan, Nicosia, rented a car, and headed south. Crossing the border (either way) was fairly simple, but required the purchase of an insurance policy for about 25 Euros.

In the heart of the worst of the troubled times, due to an extensive military presence, the first of many hash clubs appeared. On 30 Jan 1967, Ray Thornton assisted by Jim Pell, John Symons, and N. Gris Davis-Scourfield, founded the Dhekelia H3. Not only was the Dhekelia H3 the first hash on Cyprus, it was also the first hash in Europe. Ironically, up until this week, they claimed to be the “longest running” hash in Europe, still mentioning the footnote of the Bordighera H3 in Italy. I provided the details to them that the Bordighera H3 has been decidedly discovered to have been a hoax based on Amnesia’s research, and they are in fact the true and original first hash in Europe. Another interesting point about the Dhekelia H3, since they were founded in the 60s before the advent of the Jakarta Circle in the70s, they do not conduct a circle. Just a great trail, drink some beer, laugh joke and socialize, and occasionally followed by a dinner.

The hash genealogy, so brilliantly collected by “Tumblin’ Bill” Panton, lists numerous other hash clubs that were formed and faltered over the past half century, including bike hashes, full moon hashes, and clubs in various other cities. Thankfully, there are still currently 8 active hash clubs on Cyprus including the Dhekelia H3; they are the Episkopi H3 (Nov 1967), the Polygon H3 (1981), the Larnaka H3 (Apr 1987), the Amathus H3 (Jun 1987), the Nicosia Horrible H3 (1989), the Kition H3 (1999), and the Happy Valley H3 (2006). Cyprus was also the site of INTERHASH 1996, hosted in Limassol.

On my recent visit, I was able to hash with 4 clubs (Larnaka, Nicosia Horrible, Dhekelia, and Polygon) in 4 days, but it took a bit of driving (of note: all the currently existing hash clubs run on the southern Greek side of the border. There are no active hash clubs on the northern side of the border). All the hashers I met were very friendly, and very welcoming. Only looking at the clubs I ran with, most hashers here are expats with the exception of the Nicosia Horrible H3, who proudly claimed they were all born and raised here on Cyprus. All four trails were good fun, and provided the opportunity to see several parts of the island for such a short visit. I will no doubt be coming back for future visits to hash on Cyprus.

Czech Republic

In the Spotlight - Czech Republic (Czechia)
27 Aug 2021

Located in Central Europe, the Czech Republic (a.k.a. Czechia since 2016) is a landlocked country, bordered by Germany to the north-west, Poland to the north-east, and Austria and Slovakia to the south. According to the World Factbook, Czechia merged with Slovakia after World War I to become Czechoslovakia. After several ruling parties failed, including annexation by Germany in World War II, Czechoslovakia fell behind the Iron Curtain of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Communist Party was “swept from power at the end of 1989 and inaugurated a return to democratic rule and a market economy. On 1 January 1993, the country underwent a nonviolent [separation] into its two national components, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.”

The first hash club to form in then Czechoslovakia, was the Prague H3 in 1984. The founder was Dave 'Fantum' Lewis, and he was assisted by his wife Terri 'Shadow' Lewis, and Glen 'Hornblowes' Johnson. Fantum and Shadow were international school teachers, and that afforded them the opportunity to live and work in many different locations around the world. They were introduced to hashing in the late 70s while working in Indonesia, by Brian ‘Clavdivs’ O’Sullivan, the founder of the Rumbai H3 (founded 24 April 1978), in Sumatra, Indonesia.

I was able to track down Fantum, and he told me that . . . “We moved to Prague when hired to work at the International School of Prague [ISP]. We loved Prague but missed Hashing as it had become an important part of our lives. By that time, we had attended Interhashes in Kuala Lumpur [1980] and Jakarta [1982].” They wasted no time in getting a new hash club started in Prague, setting their first trail on 24 Oct 1984. Those early trails were often prelayed, and ended at hashers homes. Fantum also mentioned that “Glenn Johnson and his wife Karen were our neighbors and fellow staff members at ISP. They were new to the concept of Hash but were instant converts.”

I was curious as to how difficult it may have been to start a hash behind the Iron Curtin, so when asked about it, Fantum told me that “Starting the Hash was relatively easy. Due to restrictions of the time, only non-Czechs could join, but we had quite a number of foreigners who were eager for physical and social activity. We did have one Czech, Eva Parun, PE teacher at ISP, who could join us because she had a foreign (New Zealand) passport.” The Prague H3 has been hampered due to COVID, and has been in hibernation for several months, but you can see more on their website.

The next hash club to from was the Prague Once in a Blue Moon H3, on 25 Aug 2002. Founded by Irena 'Bouncing Czech' Brichta, who added this new club while also hashing with the Prague H3, but unfortunately is no longer active. More recently, the Brno H3 was founded by Damien 'Sloppy Stool' Smethurst on 16 February 2019, and is still active. Sloppy was the chairman of the recent EUROHASH held in Prague in August 2021, where over 450 attendees gathered for some great hashing and enjoyment. I found the countryside to be very much like Germany, with numerous trails throughout the forested areas, with rolling hills and amazing views that were open to access for running, hiking, and biking.

As a side note, Slovakia also has had one hash club, the Bratislava H3, that was founded by Matt 'Groin' Erickson on 12 Aug 1994. Their runs in recent years have been sporadic, and often in conjunction with the Vindobona H3 out of Austria. The last recorded trail I could find on their Facebook page was trail #342 on 9 September 2018.

Ecuador

In the Spotlight - Ecuador
1 Mar 2021

Ecuador is one of just 11 countries that are split by the equator, but the only one that gets its name from it, as Ecuador is Spanish for equator. Roughly two thirds of the worlds land mass resides in the Northern Hemisphere, but 90 percent of Ecuador is in the Southern Hemisphere, along with the Capital of Quito, and the two major cites of Guayaquil and Cuenca. Located on the west coast of South America, Ecuador has a population of just over 16 million and is bordered by Colombia to the north, and Peru to the south. Over 500 years ago, Ecuador was at the northern tip of the Inca Empire, and is represented by the Ingapirca Temple site. The mystical Galapagos Islands are also part of Ecuador, located about one thousand kilometers off the coast in the Pacific Ocean.

The joy of hashing was first introduced to Ecuador in the capital city of Quito on 14 December 1986 by Alan Fernie, who had previously hashed in China with the Guangzhou H3. He was assisted by Phil 'Tonto' Townsend from Aberdeen, and Mark Grove-Smith from Karachi. I was lucky enough to meet Tony ‘Upchuck’ Lloyd, who ran with Quito H3 in the mid-1990s. He explained to me that there were two trails every week, years ago. The first on Sunday was more family oriented, and would take the pack out into the countryside. The Monday trail ran more in the city and was predominantly expat men. He also explained that there were monthly outstation hash events that would take the adventurous hashers to other locations throughout Ecuador. Upchuck put me in touch with Mark Thurber who was an avid hasher, who stated “I remember the Quito H3 as an important social event for expats and some Ecuadorians in the 1990s and 2000s.” He also mentioned that “. . . the Quito H3 hash was a friendly environment for all types, families with children, young single people, and very welcoming to new comers from all walks of life and nationalities.” Paula ‘Knotted Crotch’ Newton, who was a regular on the Quito Hash between 2008 and 2011, also added that “One of the best hashes that I did [in Quito] was the ‘Purple Dress Hash’ - we had a lot of fun, and the locals in the city that day were very amused by it. We also ran events at the Pululahua Crater and out at Papallacta Hot Springs.”

The next hash to form was the Galapagos Boobies H3, founded by Jill ‘Front Bun Flasher’ Pether on 1 June 2014. Jill had previously hashed with the Batu Hijau H3 in Sumbawa, Indonesia and the Kiribati H3 before that. She was assisted by Cindy ‘Tuna Helper’ Cook. Jill told me that “GBH3 was set up as a women’s group with men accepted. They had to carry eggs on their first run, symbolic of our eggs. Our red dress run money went to Darwin Animal Doctors.” She has since moved on to Australia, but has fond memories of her time in the Galapagos.

Unfortunately, the Quito H3 and Galapagos Boobies H3 clubs are not active at the present time, but hashing has recently been revived in Ecuador by Rick ‘Circle Jerk’ Murray. Circle Jerk founded the Cuenca Alpaca’s H3 on 14 Sep 2019, assisted by Audrey ‘Missed Lyrics’ Kenyon from Trinidad, in the city of Santa Ana de los Rios of Cuenca. Circle Jerk is a bit of a hash traveler, and hails from Prince Edward Island in Canada, his home hash is the Ottawa H3. Traveling back and forth to Ecuador for the past few years, he eventually met Missed Lyrics, and they decided that Cuenca needed a hash club. The Cuenca Alpaca's H3 runs monthly on a Saturday afternoon, and fortunately for me, I had the good fortune to hash with them on my recent visit to Ecuador. Being February, the theme for this trail was Mardi Gras, so the pack was adorned in beads, masks, and brightly colored clothing. We had a solid 25 hashers on hand, and trail started from a Beer Garden that serves and distributes local craft beers. The Cuenca hash club is still new, and developing their identity, but the hash spirit is alive and well here in Ecuador. If you are looking for a friendly, warm, and inexpensive place to visit, put Ecuador on your list (and don’t forget to include a trip out to the Galapagos Islands, one of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites).

Egypt

In the Spotlight - Egypt
16 Mar 2020

Everyone knows that Egypt has those amazing Pyramids, tombs of many ancient kings including King Tut, the mouth of the Nile river, and the Sphynx. Egypt has such a long history, trying to paraphrase it to a few key items would be a disservice. There have also been a series of revolutions and attempted constitutional changes over recent decades, that also cannot be condensed into anything comprehensive enough to grasp the complexity, so let’s just talk about hashing. Despite the continued upheavals, the hash continues to give people in Cairo a chance to get away from it all and enjoy the good company of their fellow hashers.

Located on the North-Eastern most point of the African Continent, Egypt has seen many hash clubs come and go. According to the current GM, the first attempt to start a hash in Cairo in Feb 1980 lasted just about 2 months and fell over. A few short months later, the same group got it going again when Adrian Hromiak organized the current and longstanding Cairo H3, running its first trail on 19 Oct 1980. On my recent visit, the Cairo H3 enjoyed their 2089th consecutive trail in Egypt. According to the hash genealogy, other hash clubs that have come and gone include the Alexandria H3 (a.k.a. the Delta H3), founded by Angus McComiskey on 27 Aug 1984; the Heliopolis Atomic Breakfast H3, founded by Stan “Organ-iza” Andrzejewski on 06 Feb 1998; and the second coming of the Delta H3, founded by Jimmy Riddel on 01 Mar 2009, who had previously been hashing in Dhaka.

To get some more background on hashing in Egypt, I turned to my old friend Ra (and when I say old, I mean he is old . . . not me). Ra lived in Cairo from 1989 to 1994, and stated he was the RA of the Cairo hash for about three years up until just before his departure. Some of the highlights from Ra included the world's entirely first underwater hash held on 9 November 1990 at Sharm El Sheikh over near the Sinai. He stated that “in addition to a land-based hash that weekend, a fully underwater hash dead-hare trail was laid using fluorescent orange aluminum squares 1-inch on a side. 5 hares served as safety divers and leaders of groups of 4-5 scuba Hashers which set off with a delay so each group could break trail out of sight of the previous and succeeding groups. Fortunately, everyone (barely) survived.” Ra also pointed out that “on 22 March 1996, Cairo Hash held a Hash which left Africa and emerged in Asia, by running through a yet to be flooded irrigation tunnel under the Suez Canal. More than 100 people ran the trail which was around Port Said and finished with a run through the tunnel to arrive in Sinai.”

The Cairo hash currently runs every Friday, often meeting outside the Ace Club in Ma’Adi at 1300, before driving out to some place in the desert to run awesome trails. Most people are probably aware that Egypt has an arid desert type environment. Checking through the climactic history shows that Cairo experiences on average, just one inch of rain per year. On Thursday of my recent visit, Cairo experienced a near biblical downpour of over 3 inches of rain that flooded out many parts of the city. Water service was actually discontinued in parts of the city to reduce the flow into the backed-up sewage systems. This torrential downpour also flooded the intended trail site, leaving some areas impassable. Despite all this, the hash goes on. Changing gears, the hares reorganized a 5 Km city run that weaved its way through and around many flooded streets, leading to beer checks in their homes along the way. The finish was at the GM’s place of residence, where we got to witness the story he explained earlier on trail. There on the street, was his vehicle with a tree tipped over on it, crushing the roof and hood (bonnet). Right next to the vehicle, on the side walk, was a small one-man guard shack also partially crushed. On the bright side, the guard who was sitting in the shack at the time the tree fell over, claims the car saved his life, as he certainly would have been crushed had it not broken the tree’s fall. Talk about having . . . a lucky day.

Anyway, making our way to the roof, we enjoyed a rousing circle alongside the rooftop pool. After 30-40 minutes, and nearly finished anyway, oncoming rain broke up the circle, so we all hiked on back to the Ace Club for some dinner and a few more beers. As you might expect, hash songs spontaneously broke out, and fueled by more beers, lasted for a good hour or more. In the end, a grand time was had, and off we went back into the drizzle to find a hot shower and dry clothes. Here’s to the continued success to the Cairo H3, with many more awesome trails.

Fiji
Full Moon Hashing
Future of the Hash House Harriers

In the Spotlight - The Future of the Hash House Harriers
10 May 2021

The best way to understand the future of this eccentric pastime, is to know and understand some of the background. If you have read the history of harrier clubs, you already know they are the human adaptation of the age-old method of hunting with dogs. If you are not familiar with this, you can get a more detailed description. This human act of mimicking canines started out as a children’s game sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century in the United Kingdom. One or two children acted as the hare, setting a trail with paper, and the other kids playing the part as the dogs on the hunt.

Harrier clubs first became an adult activity in 1867 when the Thames Rowing Club took up running to stay fit in the offseason. Harrier club popularity and growth followed the expansion of the British Empire in the late 19th and early 20th century, most notably into South East Asia. Early clubs include the Kinta Harriers, Malacca Harriers, Kuala Lumpur Harriers, and Springgit Harriers. Then, at some point in 1938, Alberto Esteban Ignacio Gispert, (a.k.a. "G") convinced a few friends to join him on a harrier run. Recalling that there had already been a Kuala Lumpur Harrier club, G decided to call this new club the Hash House Harriers (HHH). Many of the early members lived in the Selangor Club chambers, where they often ate at a small Chinese café (referred to as the Hash House) on the grounds of the Selangor Club.

The original Hash House Harriers club was disrupted for a few years during World War 2, but restarted in 1946. While other harrier clubs continued to spread with the expat community, back in the United Kingdom they transitioned to more of a racing preparation atmosphere. Fortunately, an anomaly occurred in 1962 in Singapore, that would begin the formation of Hash House Harrier clubs into a worldwide phenomenon.

Although Ian Cumming is generally credited with founding the second hash club, Ian recollected things differently. In a letter written 30 years hence, Ian suggested that "Shortly after our arrival in Singapore, in 1961, my wife and I became aware of the eerie dearth of activity following weekends, and although she has denied it vehemently ever since, Jane was the first to suggest that what was lacking was the Hash.” Excited to get back into hashing, Ian set about to organizing a new club. First thing he did was contact John Vincent, who was the current Honorary Secretary (HonSec) of the HHH back in KL (a.k.a. Mother Hash), to enquire if there was some sort of process of coordinating affiliation. According to Ian, the response he received “established the incredibly enlightened tone of International Hashing that has endured.” The response was along the lines of "I donno. Do what the hell you like. Nothing to do with us. Let us know how you get on." With that short exchange, the second club (a.k.a. Hash House Harriers Singapore, or “Father Hash” as it eventually became known as) was born.

HHH Singapore had a slow start, but gained a steady following. Other current and former hashers from KL and Singapore continued to migrate to other locations, and more Hash Clubs would form. By the end of 1963, there were clubs in Brunei, Kuching, Sandakan, and Miri. Sibu and Jeselton (Kota Kinabalu) would see new clubs in 1964, and in 1965, Ipoh and Penang rounded out the first ten hash clubs. Early records indicate that by the end of 1975, there were 68 clubs in 23 countries. Coincidently, at this point in history, the running craze was taking over throughout the world, after Frank Shorter won the marathon in the 1972 Olympics, and Jim Fixx published “A Complete Book of Running.”

Hash House Harrier clubs would continue to flourish throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, when we reached what I believe was the heyday of hashing. At that time, various accounts stated there were over 2000 hash clubs. A detailed review, or even a cursory scanning of the HHH Genealogy clearly shows that the greatest expansion of clubs, was during this period, but began to taper off in the late 90s. This, along with the fading of the running craze, can likely be attributed to the advent of the World Wide Web (WWW) (a.k.a. the Internet).

Surprisingly, up until this point, growth of hashing was mostly by word of mouth, and we relied on printed paper copies of directories, or other rudimentary means of finding hash clubs (e.g. listings in phone books, or calling one of the local embassies). I recall using a printed copy of a directory published by Mr. Spock in San Diego, to find a dozen or so clubs on a cross country US tour in 1993. Even as late as 1999, in South Korea, we were still publishing paper copies of the hash trash to drop off at local hotels and expat hangouts to provide the weekly start locations to members. In more recent times, the Internet has made it significantly easier to find hash clubs all over the world, but has also contributed to our demise, in that it is also much easier to find a multitude of other activities to participate in.

I probably should insert one of those “trigger warnings” here, I am a ‘boomer’ and what I have to say from here on out may be controversial. Now, having said all that . . . the original intent of this article was about the future of hashing, and I will start by saying that the hash world is in decline, and has been for about 20 years. I have had several discussions about this over the decade or so, with my older hash friends (no pun intended). As mentioned, the Internet has contributed to the decline of hashing, as you would expect, so too has the aging of the multitude of hashers. Coming up on 40 years of hashing myself, those of us who were enthusiastic runners back in the 70s and 80s, are now pushing 60, and on up into their 80s (insert a mental image of the self-acclaimed oldest hasher in the USA, Teflon Don, Mr. Jackson himself . . . The Chaplain). He is a stalwart hasher of more than 40 years, and still on trail.

While some are still able to move at a pace resembling jogging, most of the older hounds are relegated to walking or biking, and prefer shorter trails. We are fortunate to have these older hashers around to tell us their stories. On the other hand, people also leave hashing for many different reasons based on health issues, as they would any sporting activity. New and younger hashers continue to join in on this fun, but growth of hashing is in decline and we probably don’t recruit very well. This also has a direct correlation on the decline in number of hash clubs.

Determining the exact number of active hash clubs is tenuous at best, but from my recent inspection and ongoing update of the HHH Genealogy, I estimate that the number of clubs worldwide has dropped from what was once recorded at over 2000, is now below or right about 1000 active clubs (I will have a more accurate number in about a month when finished with the updates). Additionally, the number of hounds that were once 50-100 or more on trail on a weekly basis, now number 20 or less, and that was even before COVID shut a great deal of hashing down worldwide. There is at least one bright spot though, Taiwan has added several new clubs over the past decade, and the packs are large and vibrant.

As for the decline, the area that most concerns me is the significant increase in the amount of drinking before and during the trail. From what I have witnessed, in some places, drinking has become the focus . . . rather than getting out for the pure joy of running/walking trail. The first beer “on trail” I ever recall seeing, was when my friend Bimbo hared a trail in Waikiki back in 1992. Setting the trail into the back door of one of the many strip clubs in Honolulu, he arranged for a couple pitchers of beer to be on hand for the pack as they passed through. Probably so they would have a reason to stand around observing the environment, on their way to the front door. Certainly a novelty for its time. There certainly has been beer provided at some level for many years, but not at the current level I see. It would not be until about the mid to late 2000s that multiple beer checks started to become regular occurrences on weekly trails in the places I hashed (your experience may differ).

Beer checks and other gimmicks have also become crutches for hares to slow down the pack (e.g. fish hooks, hash holds, clothing swaps, back checks, and various other annoyances). When I express my concern to newer hounds, they believe that is the way it has always been, simply because of that unfortunate moniker of ‘A Drinking Club with a Running Problem.’ That is not the case, from my experience reaching back to 1984. I do not even recall seeing walker’s trails (or turkey / eagle splits) until sometime in the late 1990s. There was only a running trail, and everybody (mostly jogged) ran the trail. Walkers of all ages now seem to dominate in many hash clubs. Another area we could certainly do better in, is the naming process. I cannot count the number of perspective hashers that were excited, only to never come back once named.

Overall, our numbers are dwindling, at least in part, due to the overemphasis on drinking and our own form of hazing. Some runners are turned off, or gravitate away from hashing, choosing other type clubs to run with, and that is disappointing. I would like to see, in general, more emphasis on the trail and kinship with fellow hashers, and leave the alcohol for after trail. One area of the world that still focuses on the trail is South East Asia. Recently visiting hash clubs in several different countries in that region, hashing was still all about the trail, with almost everyone participating, and the consumption of alcohol predominantly after the trail. It may be just my opinion, but that is what hashing started out to be (not in a competitive sense), and needs to get back to if hashing hopes to prosper again.

Keep in mind the objectives written back in 1950:

(a) to promote physical fitness amongst its members
(b) to get rid of weekend hangovers
(c) to acquire a good thirst and to satisfy it with beer
(d) to persuade the older members that they are not as old as they feel

Fitness, recovery, first developing a thirst through participating in trail, and comradeship. Food for thought, yes? I would be interested to hear your opinion on this matter. Feel free to disagree, or if you agree let’s work together to shift the focus back to a more trail centric atmosphere.

Georgia

In the Spotlight - Georgia
23 Sep 2022 (Updated: 21 October 2022)

Georgia is one of four countries (along with Armenia, Azerbaijan, and a southern portion of Russia) that make up the region known as the Caucuses. The Black Sea lines the entire west coast of Georgia, as does Russia on the northern border. Turkey and Armenia are to the south, and Azerbaijan to the south-east. The capital city of Tbilisi (a.k.a. Tiflis) is dissected by the Kura River, which is considered the dividing line between Europe and Asia, and was once an important stop on the great Silk Road. The patron saint of Georgia is St. George, the same as England, which is displayed by both countries’ national flags of white background with red crosses.

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, the Georgian Empire reached its pinnacle from the 10^th to 13^th centuries. This period is highlighted by the reign of King Tamar (a.k.a. Queen Tamar, Tamar the Great) from 1184 to 1213 . . . King Tamar was the first woman to rule Georgia in her own right. Throughout the past couple millennia, Georgia has been part of the Persian and Turkish Empires, and the Kingdoms of Iberia and Kartli. Annexed by Russia in the 19^th century, Georgia had a short period of independence from 1918 to 1921 before being consumed by the Soviet Union. Upon the fall of the Soviet Union, “Georgia declared sovereignty on November 19, 1989, and independence on April 9, 1991.”

Georgia has one of the most unique languages and artistically written alphabets. Dating back to the 10^th century, the currently used script is Mkhedruli that is characterized by loops, circles, and hooks. The Georgian cuisine is also quite unique, and has many delicious items to choose from. Some examples include pasta dumplings called Khinkali, and cheese filled bread called Khachapuri. Georgia is also known for their use of ornate goat and ram horns, called khantsi, for drinking chacha, a popular Georgian brandy, and wine. Speaking of wine, enthusiast’s might be delighted to know that the oldest evidence of the popular adult beverage, has been discovered in the ancient ruins of a settlement some 20 miles south of modern Tbilisi. Dating back nearly 8000 years, evidence has been found of chemical traces and the existence of wine according to a study published by the US National Academy of Sciences.

If you have read this far, you will surely know that the Hash House Harriers have also made their stamp on Georgia. Unfortunately, the origins of the only hash club, the Tbilisi H3, are as clouded in mystery as your mind would be after several shots of chacha. The Hash Genealogy has only a date of 1994 as the sole tidbit for the history of this hash club. In discussion with previous GM and current RA Stuart “Crash Test Dummy” Adair who has been hashing since 1986, and an avid hasher with the TH3 over the past decade,, and Pam “Lady Frankenstein” Kemsley, also a previous GM and one of the longest running members of the Tbilisi H3, they were both unsure of the history. They were only able to provide a few names of potential significance starting with Roy “World Wanker” Southworth (RIP). They also mentioned Gerald “Willie Nelson” Render, Carlton Bennett, and Chris Lane who may be the potential founder.

UPDATE: After additional research, more has been discovered on the history of the current Tbilisi H3. As far as we currently know, the original Tbilisi H3 was founded sometime in 1994, but had faded within a couple years. I was able to track down Gerald Render, who gave me a clue as to how I could track down Chris Lane. After tracking down Chris “Rock Rabbit” Lane, who had previously hashed with the Maseru H3 in Lesotho, he told me that by the time he arrived in Tbilisi in July 1999, there was no hash activity. Chris started the second coming of the Tbilisi hash with the assistance of Pam “Lady Frankenstein” Kemsley, Carlton Bennett, Eyvind “Rubberman” Alnaes, Bahman “Batman” Shafei, and Gerry “Willie Nelson” Render.

I am still looking for details on the founder of the original Tbilisi H3. If anyone has knowledge of the whereabouts of any of these hashers, please have them contact me so we can update the genealogy and history of this fine hash club.

On my recent visit to Georgia, I had the pleasure to join the Tbilisi H3 for a weekend of hashing to celebrate their 500^th run. We met on Friday evening at Rose Revolution Square to board a passenger van for our ride out to the countryside. The venue was about an hour north of Tbilisi, at a lovely lakeside hotel. We had the whole place, so were free to wander about and get crazy. Trail started about 15 minutes from the hotel, and was an A to B affair through mostly farmer’s fields and forested paths. The hares (Lady Frankenstein and her husband Zura) asked for some assistance, so I gladly joined in to set an excellent 8 Km trail, which we set in the morning, and then ran along with the pack.

Trail had several checks, some checkbacks, and all was going as planned until about 100 meters from the end, when we encountered some neighborhood dogs protecting their turf (when we set the trail, we had passed by these dogs and did not get them too excited), but as the pack rumbled in, about a half dozen of us got to the dogs and slowed down, but Dan “Dildo” Smith from the Doha H3 ran ahead right into the dogs. The biggest one took offense and grabbed onto his leg, which resulted in a quick trip to the local clinic, 15 stiches, and a couple lifelong scars to brag about.

The Sunday hangover trail was mostly a walk around the hotel area, to a local craft cider bar way out there in the middle of nowhere. With the exception of the dog bite, it was a most excellent weekend with a bunch of fun hashers (7 of which got named during the festivities). The Tbilisi H3 is very active, and runs biweekly on Sunday afternoons.

GoToTheHash.net

In the Spotlight - GoToTheHash.net (20th Anniversary)
26 Dec 2017

This is the story of the Regional Hash Webmasters from back in the mid to late 1990s, and our effort to organize. Harken back to the day when E-Mail was king, E-Mail Lists were the social networks, and flame wars were abundant (not that they cannot be found on F-Book now). Created in January 1998 from primordial internet fudge, GoToTheHash.net (a.k.a. WORLD HASH LINKS), is now 20 years old. Originally, GoToTheHash.net started out as just a listing of a small group of hashers that managed websites containing links and contacts for the H3 clubs within a country or region. Our merry band of hashmen back then included: AFRICA = Slumpy, ARABIAN GULF = Baldrick2Dogs, AUSTRALIA = D2HD, CANADA = Mr. PeeeeNut, CHINA & HONG KONG = Geriatric, EUROPE 1 or EUROPE 2 = Floater or Prof, INDIA = Spiderman, INDOCHINA = Hanoi H3, JAPAN = Beerhead, SOUTH KOREA = Hazukashii, MALAYSIA = Sim Campbell, NEW ZEALAND = Wendy, PAPUA NEW GUINEA = Dimple, PHILIPPINES = Scar Face, SINGAPORE = Dirty Hacker, SOUTH PACIFIC = Web Head, THAILAND = Rottweiller, UNITED KINGDOM = Prof, and the USA, SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICA, and CARIBBEAN = Flying Booger.

Built on the small “homepages” provided with an AOL email account back in the 90s, the address was long and hard to remember. So, in an effort to make it easier to remember, a forwarding service was found and http://go.to/thehash became a simple solution to the concern. In January 2001, GoToTheHash.net got its own domain name and has been there ever since. The site went through several color and design changes in the beginning, but for the past 15 years has settled into what you see today, and now only the information changes. It may look tired, but the information is normally up to date.

Over the ensuing years, various features have been added, including a digital hash T-shirt museum, a hash events calendar, Hash Songs, an extensive Hash History, a mailing list that provides monthly updates, and a Facebook page for announcements. Now that a significant majority of hashes have migrated to Facebook, the need for this old tired website may no longer exist. I’ll keep it up and running as long as there is interest, we’ll see what happens over the next year or so. On-On!

Greatest Hash Hoax of All Time

In the Spotlight - The Greatest Hash House Harriers Hoax of All Time
23 Aug 2020

Several years ago, when I really started to dig into the HHH History, I recalled an article I saw in the INTERHASH 98 INFOMAG titled "The Royal Bordighera Hash House Harriers - The World's Second Hash" . . . and was intrigued to learn more. So I conducted a search, and finally tracked down Robert "Bwana" Walker. Exchanging several emails over the period of a couple weeks, he confirmed and added to the story that I eventually posted on my website. As a side note, earlier this year I had the good fortune to hash on Cyprus with the Dhekelia H3. I was chatting with the GM, who proudly made the statement that Dhekelia H3 was the second oldest hash, but the “longest running” hash in Europe (referring to the now defunct Bordighera H3 in Italy founded back in 1947). Additionally, a couple hashers also made reference to the Bordighera H3 last month when I posted a story about Harriettes, and that included the Top 10 oldest hash clubs. So hence the following . . . and for those Paul Harvey fans, here is . . . "The Rest of the Story"

Soon after I published my article "Hash Club #2: Hash House Harriers Bordighera" I was contacted by Iain "Amnesia" Belton who had some serious misgivings to the validity of this hash club. He undertook a project to validate the story, but after extensive research, he found that no trace of the identified people (hashers and claimants) could be found. While it is nearly impossible to prove something did not happen or exist (in this case, the Bordighera H3), no evidence could be found that it actually did exist. Unfortunately, Bwana has passed away, and with him, so does the myth of the Bordighera H3.

Getting back to my visit to the Dhekelia H3, I informed the GM of all this information, and let him know that Dhekelia was in fact the first Hash Club in Europe, as well as the longest running. For the record, on 30 Jan 1967, Ray Thornton assisted by Jim Pell, John Symons, and N. Gris Davis-Scourfield, founded the Dhekelia H3. Another interesting point about the Dhekelia H3, since they were founded in the 60s before the advent of the Jakarta Circle in the 70s, they do not conduct a circle. Just a great trail, drink some beer, laugh, joke, socialize, and occasionally enjoy a social dinner after trail.

Greece

In the Spotlight - Greece
7 Apr 2020

I may be reaching here, but would guess that Athens might very well be on many a hasher’s bucket list. In my case, it was for viewing the Parthenon and the many other ancient ruins. On an adjacent hilltop you will also find three other interesting sites; the Altar of Zeus Agoraios, Meton's metonic calendar (solar clock), and the Pnyx. You may not have heard of the Pnyx, but this is where ancient Athenians gathered as early as 507 BC to host popular assemblies, thus making it the birthplace for the political system called democracy. I would also be remiss if I did not mention the food, oh the food. On my recent visit to Athens I could not get enough of those traditional Greek salads, with the rich and juicy tomatoes, cucumbers, assorted olives and other ingredients . . . not to mention the Tzatziki, and Gyros. There is so much to love about Athens, and all of Greece (including the islands), that you will just have to go and see it all for yourself.

Fortunately for us, the Hash House Harriers have also established a footprint on the history of Greece. How did hashing arrive in Greece you may ask . . . well let me tell you. Piecing together the trail, leads us back to Croatia, and the Zagreb H3. The Zagreb H3 was founded by Paul Redmond in 1975, and after completing his consular duties in Croatia, Redmond moved on to Greece and established the Athens H3, setting the first trail on 10 Dec 1978. Assisted by Brian Grey and Jason Mathews, the Athens H3 has flourished over the past four plus decades.

Like many cities around the world, the Athens H3 has seen its highs and lows, with huge packs and small packs. Arriving in late February on my recent visit, the COVID-19 news was just beginning to surface. That did not interfere with the hash running an excellent trail along the northern edge of the city. We had a pack of about a dozen including children, with about half runners and half walkers. The theme for the day was festival garb, and the local hashers were dressed up in their best beads and happy hats. After trail, and an entertaining circle, we walked to a nearby restaurant where we feasted, family style, on a wide assortment of tasty Greek dishes. You may have also heard about Greek wine, which we also sampled quite liberally.

Although the Athens H3 is currently the only hash still active, at one time the Athens Honeys H3 also enjoyed running trails in Athens, and they were founded on 17 Oct 1982. Unfortunately, there is no founder listed in the hash genealogy, but there is a third hash club listed, called the Twin Cheeks Moonshine H3. This club was founded on 18 Apr 2000, by Brian “Strawbelly Foreskin” Kirman, although that is probably a fat finger typo for Strawberry Foreskin. While there are many reasons to visit Athens, between all the glorious meals you will enjoy, make sure you take time to catch the Athens H3 on a Sunday, at 11 O’clock in the morning. You will not be disappointed.

Guyana

In the Spotlight - Guyana
16 May 2022

Guyana is located in the North-East region of South America, with Venezuela to the west, Suriname to the East, and Brazil to the south. The Atlantic Ocean provides a coast line of over 400 Kms to the north. Like many other countries in the region, Guyana was occupied by various European powers in the 17th & 18th Centuries. First the Dutch settled in, but then the British took possession around 1815, according to the World Factbook. Gaining independence in 1966, a succession of various leadership has not fostered the best of circumstances for the citizens of Guyana. Despite this, the people of Guyana are very friendly and active. As one of the poorest countries in the region, the discovery of oil in 2015 may lead to better economic times in the future of the country.

Guyana has many natural sites to see, with the Kaieteur Falls being the primary tourist attraction. According to Beautiful World (dot) Com, “Kaieteur Falls is one of the tallest and most powerful waterfalls in the world. Located in Kaieteur National Park, Guyana, the falls’ impressive combination of height and force make it a fearsome sight.” Kaieteur Falls is located approximately 225 Kms inland from the capital city of Georgetown, and near daily flights can be arranged with the local airlines, or charter flights can be booked when available.

Whenever I visit a new country, I try to confirm the data in the genealogy, while also digging up any additional details. This trip would be no exception. In discussion with the current and longtime GM, Colin "Chopsuzuki" Lee, he generally confirmed the primary information in the genealogy, and added much more. Chops stated that the first hash actually happened in 1988 as a random event, and was pretty sure that Richard Clayton was involved.

The HHH Genealogy credits Dave 'Jungle Man' Taylor as the founder of the Georgetown H3 on 10 December 1989, assisted by Mike 'Mighty Dimple' Haigh, Steve Waters, Amanda Rowlatt, Stephen Fell, Richard 'Dickhead' Clayton, David 'Nine Lives' Knevett, John Reynolds, Carol Ennifer, Sher Brock, Peter Giles, and Simon Harding. The genealogy lists Mother Hash as its source, and I was delighted to see Dave Taylor listed on the membership roster from 1987 to 1 Feb 1989, after which he headed to Guyana following a short stopover in the UK. I say delighted in this case, as a number of hash clubs have mistakenly listed themselves as direct legacy back to Mother Hash, when in actuality, the founder came from somewhere else, and never even hashed in Malaysia.

Chops mentioned that “At the time, the Guyana Sugar Corporation was being managed by Tate & Lyle of the UK, and all the upper management posts were staffed by Brits, who usually brought their families with them. They became the backbone of the Georgetown Hash House Harriers. Hashes happened on Friday afternoons after work.”

Chops also described a breakaway hash club, the Demerara H3, that was short lived from July 2012 to early 2014. They took their name, Demerara, as it is the region that Georgetown is located, and extends over 2000 square kms to the south of the city. They actually shared the same GM (Chewbacca) for the final 6 months of their existence. Started by the "Young Turks" . . . Clinton "Swampy" Urling, Latchmi "YapJack" Seecharran, Christine "Applebottom Bitch" Gooding, Merissa "3way Tramp" Hosein. The Young Turks wanted more regimented and regular hash runs, but after a year or so, Chewbacca slowly merged them back into the regular Georgetown H3. The Demerara H3 has now been added to the genealogy. Chops was not sure when it happened, but at some point over the past decade, the Georgetown H3 became the Guyana H3, which made it easier to identify the location, and they did not even have to change the abbreviation of GH3.

On my recent visit to Guyana, there was a hash scheduled for a Thursday morning at 6 am, meeting in front of the British High Commission. The pack showed up on Guyana time, assembling between 7 and 7:45 am, with the pack setting off on 8. The hare was Gypsy Bitch, and It was his birthday, so he had planned for a trail, followed by a breakfast on the waterfront. After that, there was a pool party and lunch. Later that evening, we adjourned to Taco Loco for drinks and more hash craziness, making it a full day. It was my good fortune to be there when this hash occurred, as they have been very irregular over the past few years, especially during COVID. Having run only 4 trails in 2021, this was actually their first trail in 2022 for the GH3.

The hashers of Guyana are very friendly, and happy to have visitors, but if you want to join the hash, you better plan ahead by checking the website.

Harriettes

In the Spotlight - Harriettes
7 Mar 2015 (Updated 21 Sep 2021)

The Hash House Harriers (a.k.a. HHH or H3) were believed to have been founded in late 1938, as a variant of the old English Harrier clubs that date back to the early 19th century, or possibly even before. The history of the HHH has been fairly well documented, with the first 10 clubs being formed between 1938 and 1965 in Malaya (now Malaysia) and the near region to include Singapore and Borneo, as MEN ONLY organizations. What we have not heard is a discussion on the origins of the Harriettes (a.k.a. Harriets or Hens). There are references of women running with harrier clubs in the 1800s (the pre-HHH era), but early clubs are rumored to have allowed women to run, but not allowing them to set the trail. I have no specific details, but during my research on hashing, I recall a reference to a regular harrier club in Kuala Lumpur being active in the 1920s and early 1930s, as a mixed club for both men and women. Some of the founding members of the HHH had run with them as well.

The first recorded women's version of HHH is the Brunei Hens which were founded on 21 Nov 1966, by Robert Tiepel (no mention whether he ran with them or not). The Ipoh Harriettes are next, and were founded on 29 Aug 1968, by Loke Kai Heng. In a recent discussion with the current GM of the Ipoh Harriets, Boon Lee Lim "Jenny001", she explained to me that the Ipoh Harriets claim the title of the first mixed HHH club. Now, over 50 years later, there are numerous variations of mixed and Harriette only HHH clubs all over the world. Examples (from my own experience) include the Mission Harriettes in California, USA where men were required to remain behind two women at all times on trail. Another example is the Tokyo Ladies HHH, where only women were allowed to hold committee positions. The Harriettes of Oahu (HO Hash) and the No Strings Attached H3 in Florida, do not normally allow men, but when they do, they must wear pink. Also, the Kuala Lumpur Harriettes and Bangkok Harriettes, where a woman is always the GM, but they are just a mixed hash club beyond that.

The first 10 recorded Women's Hash clubs are:
Brunei Hens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Nov 1966
Ipoh Harriettes . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Aug 1968
Kota Kinabalu Bunnies . . . . . . 10 May 1970
Ladies of Hong Kong H3 . . . . . 15 Jun 1971
Sandakan Harriettes . . . . . . . . 31 Dec 1971
Kuching Harriettes . . . . . . . . . 20 Jun 1972
Penang Harriettes . . . . . . . . . . 21 Nov 1972
Singapore Harriettes . . . . . . . . 17 Oct 1973
Kuala Lumpur Harriettes . . . . . 18 Jun 1974
Port Moresby Harriettes . . . . . 30 Sep 1974

There were potentially some mixed clubs that formed during the 60s and 70s, but the records are unclear as to when they transitioned from Men Only to Mixed. There are also isolated incidents of some women being allowed to run with Men Only clubs during this period, to include one Judy Prosser (an Aussie consulate member) that was a regular on the Jakarta Men's Hash in the early 70s. Another instance was, according to the club website, the very first run of the Colombo H3 in Sri Lanka had 40 runners on that first trail, including two women (Handwarmer and Iron Lady). At one point in 1984, Handwarmer injured her knee and could not run for a bit. The wife of another hasher was allowed to join the Monday hash, and enjoyed it so much she started bringing more women along. Well, this went on for a couple weeks and before you know it, the old boy’s network started to revolt and declared that the Colombo H3 would become a Male Only club. In a show of uncommon grace, they did allow the original ladies to continue on as honorary gentlemen. The change in membership to male only caused a stir in the hashing community, and the forming of the Colombo Harriettes on 20 Jun 1984. According to the hash genealogy, this club was founded by Mike “Climb Every Mountain” Hill, as a mixed hash club. Originally it ran on Wednesday, but has since shifted to Saturday to allow for travel to more areas around the island.

The title of oldest active Harriette is bestowed upon Rajendar ‘Glamour’ Kaur, born 9 May 1933, has been an avid hasher for well over 50 years. Her first hash was on the Brunei Men’s H3 in 1966, during a short period when women were allowed to participate. Once the number of ladies had grown, they were encouraged to start their own club (and leave the men to their own fun), and the Hen House Harriers, the first ladies hash ever, were founded on 21 Nov 1966. Glamour participated on their first trail and was the first hen to achieve 100 runs, and the second to achieve 200. Unfortunately, at one point in the 70s she moved to another town to operate a branch of the family business. Sadly missing out on the weekly fun, Glamour asked for the Hens to move their hash day to Tuesday when her shop was closed. They agreed, and Glamour was able to rejoin the ladies hash, and it has remained on Tuesday ever since. Glamour states “There are so many things I enjoy about the Hash such as Halloween runs, 7and7 runs, Head dress runs, Pajama runs and so on.” She has also traveled to hash events in Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Bali, Tawau, and Labuan, and has “at least 60-70 hash t-shirts in her collection. Fifty years is a long time to be a member of one hash club. She said, “Many of the ladies that participated were expats, so contact has been lost with most of them.” Although, she does keep in touch with two dear friends in the UK, who hashed with the Hen’s in the 1990s, and both have returned from time to time to visit her. Contributing to the hash, she has held positions as Grand Mistress, Egg Collector, and various other Committee positions. She still attends the Ladies Hash nearly every Tuesday, and has participated in over 1450 trails. Now at 88 years of age (and due to an old knee injury), she cannot run any longer, but is still a regular attendee to walk around and see her friends on the hash.

Hash Firsts

In the Spotlight - Hash Firsts (or simply Trivia if you prefer)
27 Jan 2021

HASH HOUSE HARRIERS (a.k.a. HHH or H3) – No one knows the specific founding date, but it is believed that the HHH was founded in late 1938. But the basis for the HHH goes back well over 100 years earlier to Rugby School and the kid’s game of Hare & Hounds (a.k.a. Paperchase). The first recorded transition of this kid’s game to adults is credited to the Thames Rowing club in 1867, when they organized the Thames Hare & Hounds club in order to stay fit in the off season. The Hare & Hounds (or simply Harrier) clubs followed along as the British Empire expanded throughout Asia, and even becoming popular in the United States in the early 20th century.

MISMANAGEMENT COMMITTEE – The first established organizational document for the HHH was drafted in 1950, when social clubs of all kinds were required to register with the government in Kuala Lumpur. Originally, the club committee consisted of a President, Vice President (a.k.a. Joint Masters), an Honorary Secretary (HONSEC), and a Treasurer. The members of the Committee had the ability to co-opt additional committee members (e.g. Hash Horn or Holder of the Horn) or to elect new committee members should they not be able to fulfill their current term in office. While some older clubs still use these original positions, at the present, Joint Masters are uncommon, as Religious Advisor (RA) has become popular as the leader of the circle. Honorary Secretary has given way Hash Scribe, and Treasurers are now commonly known as the Hash Cash. The first documented use of the term Grand Master (GM) was in 1974 when HHH Singapore appointed Albert Withnall as GM, above the Joint Masters. Other mismanagement positions commonly found now are Hash Haberdasher who acquires and sells all sorts of clothing and trinkets, Webmaster that takes care of the Public Relations via the World Wide Web, and the Beer Meister who is responsible to bring the refreshments.

HASHIT – The Brunei H3 is credited for first bestowing this honorary award. The following excerpt comes from the Brunei H3 Hash Trash dated 28 April 1966: "A Hash Award Committee (of one) was formed and unanimously decided that an award on the lines of a Golden Disc, Grammy, or Oscar should be presented for hashing and this award would be known as a "Hashit." The "Hashit" Committee decided that this award would be made to the hares of the most hashed up run of the year." The hashit (a.ka. Hash Shit) is now often bestowed weekly, for any sort of noteworthy activity that occurred on trail. The Hash Shit can take the form of a plunger, a toilet seat, or some other awkward device, and is often required to be carried or worn on trail.

HASH T-SHIRTS – While it is quite certain there were hash t-shirts before 1972, the Sydney H3 currently has the oldest documented hash T-shirt from their 250th Run on 10 Jul 1972.

HASH NAMES – It is believed that hash names originated in the Jakarta HHH. In order to get the word out in the days before the Internet or WWW, hash clubs would mail out the weekly hash trash to members. Unfortunately, the mail system in Jakarta was not timely enough to deliver them before the next week’s run, so the trash was printed and placed in a handful of local establishments so the members could pick them up. As this allowed anyone who passed by the opportunity to read what was going on within the hash, the use of real names was soon abandoned to avoid any conflict with employers or the general public at large.

THE CIRCLE – The circle is also credited to have originated in Jakarta, but not necessarily for fellowship among hashers and the issuance of down-downs, but merely to create a type of barrier between the hashers and the local people that would become very curious of what was taking place. As time went on, the circle slowly became more entrenched in the weekly activity and could often last up to two hours, with regular down-downs and the singing of songs.

HASH SONGS – It is commonly believed that singing was a carryover from rugby, which many early hashers also played. Over the years, many new and often bawdy songs have been adapted and/or written by hashers for various occasions.

HASH EVENTS - The first invitational gathering of Hash House Harriers clubs was the 1000th running of Mother Hash in March 1966, when there were only about ten clubs total, and all in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei. By 1973 many other hash clubs had been formed, and had spread out beyond Southeast Asia, so Mother Hash repeated the effort for their 1500th trail that drew about 300 hashers to Kuala Lumpur.

INTERHASH – Sometime in 1976, the Kowloon H3 thought they might host a major event (jokingly referred to as "The International Hash Unconvention"). By May of 1977, invitations had been sent for all good hashmen to come to Hong Kong for INTERHASH 78. A reporter for the Washington Post, Jay Mathews, happened to be on hand and made this report. Based on the success of this gathering in Hong Kong, Mother Hash stepped up to host again two years later and the pattern was set. We now have World Interhash every two years (with the exception of 2020 due to COVID). Interhash has become a prime opportunity to catch up with many old friends from hash trails gone by. Normally a 3-4 day event, it generally consists of a Red Dress Run, a welcoming party or opening ceremony on Friday night, followed by 2 days of hash trails of varying length and difficulty from short walkers trails to the Ball Breaker, all spread out around the countryside. More details about Interhash.

This is the most accurate information I have uncovered in my years of hashing, as well as years of research and study. As I, and other hash historians continue to dig into the old documentation, updates may occur.

Hash Founders' Hash
Hash Genealogy

In the Spotlight - Hash Genealogy
27 Oct 2020

Many hashers were first introduced to the Genealogy of the Hash House Harriers at INTERHASH 1998, where a long scroll of paper was laid out on a table. This scroll contained listings of several hundred hash clubs that had been formed over the previous 60 years (at that time), and currently contains over 2000 listings. The Hash Genealogy project provides a historical listing of all known hash clubs, and was created by Bill "Tumbling Bill" Panton. Tumbling Bill (TB) ran his first hash in 1954, but did not take to it initially due to an already active schedule. TB would return to hashing in 1958, and become a prolific hasher for the rest of his life attending hash events well into his 80s. Initially, finding another hash club was all word of mouth. As the sphere of hash clubs expanded, and hashers started traveling to events at other clubs, TB began collecting club contacts and even actively searched them out. These efforts created a simple listing that was mailed to each of the other known hash clubs. Early listings show 41 clubs by March 1974, 54 by December 1974, and by the end of 1975, he had amassed a listing of 68 clubs in 23 countries. The listing continued to grow, and TB looked for a way to connect them, so turned to simple ancestry methods which with the assistance of Mike Lyons in 1994, a computer program was applied which led to that first long paper scroll at INTERHASH 98. Even that became cumbersome over time, and TB looked to Neil Campbell for a more capable web based application that could be shared on the internet. In conjunction with TB's efforts, a small group of hashers were building national and regional websites with contact listings of local hash clubs that expanded on the initial listings that Magic, Mr Spock, and others had been publishing in booklets that were mailed out for a small fee. After that first meeting with TB in 1998, these regional webmasters started coordinating, and hash club contacts are also on line.

Hash Progeny

In the Spotlight - Hash Progeny
26 Nov 2018

Much like your own family, each hash club has its own genealogy. The HHH Genealogy project was founded by William "Tumbling Bill" Panton back in the early 1990s. His goal was to capture the lineage of the hash, and how it has spread out since 1938. As you would expect, every hash club can be traced back to the "Hash House Harriers" (a.k.a. Kuala Lumpur H3, or Mother Hash). Now the question posed to me was which hash club has the most ancestors. But first, let's take a look at which clubs have the most "direct" progeny. Also as you might suspect, Mother Hash has the most direct progeny with 38 clubs that were founded by hashers who left KL and went off in their lives and started hash clubs in new locations. Mother Hash is closely followed by the Singapore H3 with 31 clubs, Okinawa H3 with 28, Jakarta H3 with 27, and the Hong Kong H3 with 23.

Getting back to the original question, after a bit of research I discovered 5 hash clubs that had 10 ancestor clubs, of which 4 are located in the USA (Dallas Fort Worth Family H3, Los Alamos Atomic H3, Nuclear Meltdown Full Moon H3, and the Old Frederick and Rural Territory H3). But the most diverse lineage of all was the Hindu Kush H3 in Afghanistan, which traces its roots through the Every Day is Wednesday H3 in Washington DC, the White House H3 also in DC, the Vindobona H3 in Austria, the Carthage H3 in Tunisia, the Islamabad H3 in Pakistan, the Shanghai H3 in China, the Beijing H3 also in China, the Hong Kong H3, Father Hash in Singapore, and finally to Mother Hash back in Kuala Lumpur.

Now to further expand the genealogy question, which has the most combined ancestors and progeny? Mother Hash leads off with the 38 progeny, Singapore H3 with 1 ancestor and 31 progeny, Okinawa H3 with 3/28, Jakarta H3 with 1/27, Hong Kong H3 with 2/23, the Bangkok Men's H3 with 2/20. Next is the Houston H3 with 3/18, followed by Bicester H3 with 5/15 and San Diego H3 with 4/16, Cheltenham & Cotswold H3 with 6/10, Vindobona H3 with 7/6, and the Whitehouse H4 with 8/4. If you would like to look up your hash club to discover its genealogy, see the listings.

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Hong Kong

In the Spotlight - Hong Kong
30 May 2015

Through various treaties and leases, Hong Kong was a Crown Colony of Great Britain from 1841-1997, with the exception of 1941-1945 when Japan occupied the peninsula. Although not technically correct, many refer to the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997 as the day the sun set on the British Empire. One thing left behind after the turnover is the Hash House Harriers.

Having moved to Hong Kong from Singapore, John Beavon contacted several other former hashers and expats and the records show they set the first trail of the Hong Kong H3 (H4) on 23 February 1970. Continuing with the traditions of Mother Hash in Kuala Lumpur, and Father Hash in Singapore, the H4 is a men's only club and runs on Monday evenings. One of the long standing traditions of the H4 is participating in the annual Sedan Chair Race for charity.

It did not take long for the second club to form, as one member's office moved from the island up to Mongkok. Grouping with a small core of other hashers, it was soon determined that transiting the Kowloon Bay in a timely fashion on Monday afternoons was difficult, so something had to be done. Led by founder Chris Rowe, the group gathered in a bar over beers, and thus agreed that the first running of the Kowloon H3 would be on 26 October 1970.

The fairer sex soon grew tired of the men having all the fun, and thus the fourth oldest recorded Harriettes Hash was founded by Hilary Prior on 15 June 1971. The Ladies of Hong Kong H3 attracted 27 members in that first year as a ladies only club, but a handful of men were additionally allowed as honorary male members (no pun intended).

Over the last 45 years the fun of hashing has spread throughout the territory, and Hong Kong currently boasts of 14 active hash clubs. Not to be forgotten, just a short ferry ride away rests the two island Taipa-Macau H3 that was founded by Rob "The Captain" Kirby on 2 June 1998. Without a doubt, the rich history of the Hash House Harriers lives in Hong Kong. If you have the good luck to visit, make sure to catch up with one of the Hong Kong hash clubs. Details can be found on this website.

Horse Thomson

In the Spotlight - Horse (Frederick "Horse" Thomson)
8 Feb 2022

There are many unattributed references to Horse on the internet, as many hash websites practice the old mantra of plagiarism is the most sincere form of flattery, but most accounts actually go back to work done by John Duncan in the 1970s, and Mike “Father’ Lyons and Tim “Magic” Hughes in the 1980s. Many of the accounts came from those who knew him on the hash, prior to his final departure from Kuala Lumpur in 1951. Horse was a founding member of the “Hash House” Harriers. Hash House is emphasized, as at the time, it was just another Harrier club of the day in SE Asia (it would be another 24 years before the HHH would begin to become the worldwide phenomenon it is today).

If you search the WWW, you will find a multitude of listings for Horse Thompson, but Horse is officially listed in the Mother Hash Black Book as THOMSON (HORSE), no first name, and more specifically, no P in THOMSON. Some old accounts also make reference to the names HORSE, TORCH, and G, as early references to hash names, but that is also incorrect. These nicknames were just names they picked up amongst their mates from daily life (as best I can tell from copious hours of research, hash names originated in Jakarta in the mid-1970s).

Why “Horse” you may ask? That nickname originated in his boyhood school days, stated Ralph Wadsworth, (Honorary Secretary of the HHH in 1963, and Joint Master in 1964), and was due to him having what could best be described as a face with equine (long) features. Like most of the other founding members, Horse was a British expat working in SE Asia. In his professional life, Fredrick Thomson was a manager at Malayan telecommunications, which in the 1920s & 30s was telephone and telegraph.

Before arriving in Kuala Lumpur, Horse lived and worked in Johor Bahru, the capital of the state of Johor, Malaya (the name was changed to Malaysia on 16 Sep 1963). Johor Bahru is located approximately 350 Kms south east of Kuala Lumpur on the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia, just across the Strait of Johor between what was peninsular Malaya and Singapore, both of which were part of Malaya in the 1930s (Singapore did not gain its independence until 9 Aug 1965). Horse is quoted as stating, that he had run paper chases in Johor Bahru as far back as 1932. He had also run similar type events in Malacca (aprox 150 Kms south of KL) as part of the Springgit Harriers (this is where Gispert was said to have first run paperchase events). Horse also claimed to have run pre-HHH type events with another club in Taiping (aprox 250 Kms north of KL). They were all referred to as mixed (allowing women to run), and some even brought their dogs on trail. The runs were often on Sunday morning, and were followed by a curry tiffin lunch.

Horse was recorded as participating on the first run with the newly formed Hash House Harriers, and is listed as one of the first Joint Masters from 1938 (the founding date in 1938 has been disputed by Torch Bennett, as being in the summer of 1939) to 1940, and then again after the war in 1951 before his eventual departure from Kuala Lumpur.

Various accounts state that Horse was first allowed to leave Malaya before the outbreak of hostilities on the peninsula, and subsequently joined the Royal Air Force (RAF), who posted him to Hong Kong. Unfortunately, Japan launched an assault on Hong Kong the same day (8 Dec 1941) that it began occupying Malaya. Horse was taken as a POW, but after a period of time managed to escape. Teaming up with other rogue forces, they were recaptured, and Horse was shot in the neck during the encounter. He was returned back to Hong Kong where he recuperated from his injuries, but it left his head with a slight lean. He was released after the war, and returned to KL to resume his civilian life. He also rejoined the hash in 1946, when Torch got things going again.

In 1951, Horse retired from his career in Telecommunications, and moved to the Philippines where he managed a sugar cane plantation for many years. Interestingly, he was said to have been fluent in Hokkien. Hokkein is the Chinese dialect which is native to Taiwan, and also spoken by the majority of Chinese in the Philippines, according to Wikipedia. Later in life, Horse occasionally turned up on various hash events, most notably at Interhashes in Sydney in 1984, and Pattaya in 1986.

Ian Young

In the Spotlight - Ian Young
7 March 2022

I am always in search of new opportunities to capture HHH History, and this past weekend I flew down to San Jose, Costa Rica to chat with Ian Young.

This journey all started about four or five months ago, while preparing for the upcoming 50th anniversary of hashing in South Korea. I sent a short note out to some of my Seoul Bruddahs asking about some old details of the Seoul H3. I only received a few substantive replies, primarily from Hugh Robinson (who if you have read any of my previous steaming piles of guano) you may recall Hugh started hashing in Korea, and brought it back to the USA, and was the first American to start a (the third hash) club in the USA, the Little Rock H3. Hugh provided some great info, but another email string lead me to the founder . . . Ian Young. Chatting via email, Ian provided some great insight into the early days of the Seoul H3 . . . and it was then I started plotting a trip to Costa Rica.

While having lunch with him today, Ian regaled me with many great stories about his life, and trips to Vietnam (during the war), Japan, Australia, and others. Going way back, Ian was born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he eventually found a job with Pfizer. First assigned to Hong Kong, he was in sales, and had the opportunity to travel all over the Far East. But it was not until 1969 that he first found the HHH. Ian started hashing in Hong Kong on trail number 2 back in 1969, after seeing an announcement in the local newspaper. Being a fit fellow, playing rugby and running, he was keen to give it a go. He took to hashing right from the start, and was a regular. Fast forward to 1971, and Ian was transferred to Seoul, where after a few months of getting settled, decided to get a hash going. The first trail was on 11 Jun 1972, and 4 brave souls turned up for that first run, but once the words started getting out, it was not long before the circle of orange began to grow. Hash circles as we know them today probably stemmed from Jakarta, but due to the extreme temperatures of Korea, a fire was essential while at the end of trail, where the pack would gather round with a cold beer, and keep their buns warm (that is how traditions begin).

Now, the Seoul H3 is one of my favorite hash clubs, and fast forward to 1997 when I joined the SH3, the circle tradition had been honed into a work of shear brilliance. Once the GM calls the circle to order around the fire (by the time I got there and probably well before, the fire was present in circle year round), the assembled pack is no longer allowed to speak, unless granted permission. All down-downs are administered from a bed pan, starting with the hare. The "Wingee" (FRB) was next, and then the GM would call up random hounds until the beer ran dry, or the time was right. When you come up for your down-down, you had to sing a good song or tell a good joke . . . the pack would decide what good was. It made for an orderly circle, there were no side conversations, and you never heard anyone shouting SHUT THE !@#!@ UP!!! But I digress . . . (don't ask about the secret handshake . . . but I might be accommodating if you come up to me after some future trail with a cold beer). The Seoul H3 has its own unique closing song, and has spawned 14 other hash clubs, most of them in Korea, Canada, United Kingdom, Costa Rica, China, Cambodia, and several states in the USA.

After ensuring the Seoul H3 was off to a good start, Ian was sent back to Hong Kong for a year and more good times with his old friends, before getting sent to Costa Rica. A little slower on the draw here, not finding the right sort of people, and having other endeavors to fill his time, he did not get the hash going for almost 2 years. One day, he met Bill Barbee, and that was all he needed. Explaining the concept of hashing to Bill, he and Ian set about contacting some others and the San Jose H3 was formed on 3 Feb 1979 as the first hash club in Costa Rica. It was only a few months later, and Ian was transferred to Colombia for 4 years, where he did not hash at all. Next up was a three year assignment back in the United Kingdom, south of London, where he managed to hash on occasion. Next he was sent to Indonesia, where he spent "8 glorious years" running with the Jakarta H3 on occasion, but mostly with the Jakarta Harriettes.

Ian's last two assignments were in New York City and India, where he never managed to find the hash, mostly because he had a family by now, and was focused on that. Having completed a successful career as country manager in many locations, he returned to Costa Rica with his wife, where Ian can often be found still scooting along on trail with the San Jose H3. Ian never really acquired a hash name that stuck, but he was called Chino in Indonesia, and Speedy somewhere else along the way.

Indonesia

In the Spotlight - Indonesia
14 Oct 2022

Indonesia is an archipelago in South-East Asia, and one of the most geographically diverse nations on earth. According to the World Atlas, Indonesia stretches over 5,000 Kms east to west, and over 1,700 Kms north to south, with coastlines on both the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. Mostly in the southern hemisphere, this nation also has considerable landmass above the equator, and is made up of over 17,500 islands of which roughly 6,000 are inhabited. Sumatra, Java, and Kalimantan are the largest islands, but the country shares borders with Malaysia on the island of Borneo, Papua New Guinea on the island of New Guinea, and Timor-Leste on Timor. If all that was not enough, Indonesia is also on the "Ring of Fire" overlapping three tectonic plates, and has more than 75 active volcanoes, the most for any one country on earth.

As the fourth most populated country (fifteenth in landmass), Indonesia has a population of over 275 million. The capital city of Jakarta is by far the most populated. Located on the north-west end of Java, and with over 10 million inhabitants, Jakarta is more than three times more populace than the second largest city of Bekasi. As described in the World Factbook, "The archipelago was once largely under the control of Buddhist and Hindu rulers. By around the 7th century, a Buddhist kingdom arose on Sumatra and expanded into Java and the Malay Peninsula until it was conquered in the late 13th century by the Hindu Majapahit Empire from Java. Majapahit (1290-1527) united most of modern-day Indonesia and Malaysia." Occupied by Japan from 1942-1945, the current nation of Indonesia declared independence in 1945, and was granted full sovereignty in 1949.

The first recorded hash trail set in Indonesia was on 22 March 1971, when the Jakarta H3 was founded by Jeremy "Burong" Pidgeon and Gordon "Bent One" Benton. The Medan H3 would be next, beginning on 6 August 1973, followed by the Bandung H3 in 1974, and Surabaya H3, Balikpapan H3, and the Medan Harriettes all in 1975. Of note, the Jakarta H3 will be celebrating their 50th anniversary later this month, delayed 19 months due to the recent pandemic. The HHH Genealogy has documented 170 hash clubs throughout the past 50 plus years in Indonesia, and after spending over 10 hours reviewing each one, I can tell you that there are currently 37 active hash clubs with a presence on the internet. There may be more out there, coordinating their run starts via WhatsApp or some other process, but they are hard to track down. While hashing has been in significant decline in Indonesia since the heyday of the 1990s, much like the rest of the world, there is hope, as at least three new hash clubs have formed over the past couple years.

Located so close to Malaysia, hashing easily spread into Indonesia. Hashing is still very popular here, as the very popular Pan-Indo hash in a near yearly event. Indonesia has hosted INTERHASH four times; Jakarta in 1982, Bali in 1988, Borobudur in 2012, and most recently in Bali in 2016. Pan Asia Hash has also been hosted here five times; Bandung in 1991, Jakarta in 1997, Medan in 2007, Bandung in 2011, and just last weekend they hosted nearly 3000 hashers at a brilliant event in Pangandaran (delayed one year from 2021 due to the pandemic).

If you have a sense of adventure, and want to enjoy some excellent shiggy trails, put Indonesia in your travel plans. There are still many hash clubs to choose from, the food is delicious, and the cost of living is very reasonable. So, what are you waiting for?

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Iran

In the Spotlight - Iran
26 Dec 2023

Iran (a.k.a. as Persia until 1935) is one of 18 countries that make up the Middle East, others include Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. These countries span from Southeast Europe, to Northern Africa, and Western Asia, according to the World Atlas. Iran enjoyed a typical western style of parliamentary democracy until the 1979 when the Shah of Iran fled the country after many months of political unrest. On 1 April of that year, Iran was declared an Islamic Republic, and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini became the supreme religious leader, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. Sharia Law was declared throughout Iran on 7 July 1980.

Iran had a solid expat community at the start of the 1970s, and as you might guess, that coupled with the running craze of the period, was suitable ground for the Hash House Harriers. Although Guy 'Sir Guy of Guy' Woodford is credited as the founder in the HHH Genealogy, Karl Henne and Ian Lindeman were also deeply involved. The history is recorded as the first organizational meeting taking place on 4 March 1975 in Karl Henne's office at the Australian Embassy in Tehran. At that time, Ian Lindeman became the Hon Sec, and Guy Woodford became Hash Cash. The first actual trail, set by Henne & Lindeman, was set on 6 April 1975 near the Alborz Mountains, with 18 hashers participating in the chase of the two hares.

The Tehran H3 had enjoyed over 150 hash trails in and around the capital city, by the time they called their 3rd Annual General Piss Up (AGPU) on 1 Mar 1978. That is the last recorded history I could find on the Tehran hash. I conversed with founder Guy Woodford to see if he recalled when the last trail was held, but he stated he was unsure, as he had departed Iran in April 1976. None of the other former members could recall a date, so it may be safe to presume that the last run was sometime in mid to late 1978 when the Iranian Revolution commenced. Up until that point, the Tehran H3 had packs averaging in the mid-40s, and peaked on 27 Feb 1977 for run #100, when 79 hashers participated.

Iran now stands as one of the countries without an active hash club (there are currently 136 UN countries with and active hash club), and an even smaller number of countries that once had a hash club, but no longer does. Based on the current political environment in Iran, I doubt I will ever get the chance to run a hash trail there.

Iraq

In the Spotlight - Iraq
27 Dec 2023

Iraq now stands on the lands of ancient Mesopotamia, which had the capital city of Babylon. The lands also encompass the area of the Assyrian Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Although Iraq gained its independence in 1932, it still “remained subject to British imperial influence” until the monarchy was overthrown in 1958, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. The Ba’ath Party then took over, and was led by Saddam Husayn from 1979 to 2003. Like much of the Middle East, Iraq has substantial petroleum reserves, which has fostered a fair share of cross border incursions with Iran, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. Nearly 40% of Iraq is desert, with the two largest identified as Al-Ḥajarah in the west, and Al-Dibdibah to the east. The current capital of Iraq is Baghdad.

As you might expect, the first hash to be founded in Iraq was the Baghdad H3. John Haiste has been given credit as the founder in the HHH Genealogy, but this is surely in error, as in his own words he stated in a passage from 1982 . . .

     When I made the big mistake of coming to Baghdad I was aware that there was no Hash in existence here but as a dedicated Hashman of a few years standing I was sure there was potential. As luck had it, just as I arrived last July I was told that some noble fellows were holding the first Hash run the following weekend.

He apparently was not too big on punctuation, but he was the first Hash Master of the Baghdad H3. The actual founder is probably either Bob ‘Wrecker’ Shead, Ray ‘Lips’ Dalton, Graham Walsh, Barry Cooper, or Eric Schofield who were mentioned in various passages of documents found. The first trail was set on 25 Jul 1981, by Peter Burns and Duncan Kirby. While on an 8-hour layover in Abu Dhabi, in September of last year (which is quite a story in itself), I was hosted by Duncan ‘Dingbat’ Kirby who skillfully got me from the airport, to the hash . . . and back to the airport just in time to be the last one to board my flight. During our conversation, we talked about our various hash highlights, and he mentioned that he set the very first trail in Iraq. Remembering this, I contacted him to get a more detailed explanation of his involvement.

Dingbat stated he was only 21 at the time of his arrival in Iraq, and he was there to help construct the new Baghdad University. He went on to say . . .

     It may be a surprise but at that time alcohol was freely available in Iraq. There were three breweries and you could generally find whisky and wine in the souq. We had set up a bar in our camp (the 345 Club) which was fairly well stocked and open to other expats in the city. Bearing in mind that the Iran/Iraq war was going on, we were subject to the occasional air-raid and our contingency plan in case of invasion was lock-in in order to ensure that no one got their hands on our stock.

     So sometime in June/July 1981 over a few jars of the local beer (Sherazade), the idea of setting up a hash was born. As a rugby player the concept sounded intriguing and a further meeting was organized to iron out the details. It was decided that although the traditional hashing day was Monday we would hash on Saturday as in Iraq Friday was the day off.

     It was also quickly agreed that the best venue for the inaugural hash would be the 345 Club, at that time it was fairly isolated and surrounded by farms, close to the Tigris River, with plentiful beer and BBQ. Around 25 hashers showed up, mostly from companies involved in the University project and enjoyed the short run, circle (organised by John Haiste, who quickly became the GM), learnt our first hash songs and downed copious beers.

     Of course, groups of mostly men running around in shorts could not fail to attract the attention of the locals and our PRO asked me at some stage whether the Hash was a political organisation. After he picked me up off the floor from laughing so much; he realised we were not a threat to Saddam Hussein.

     At the time Baghdad was incredibly safe for foreigners, no one locked their cars and the police preferred to look the other way. We were also fortunate that we could go anywhere in our orange plate cars, whereas diplomats (who were all considered spies) with CD plates, needed special permission to leave city limits. However, they were able to import luxuries unavailable in Baghdad such as imported beer, baked beans and bacon, as such we formed an unholy alliance where, in exchange with lifts out of the city to the lakes etc. they would help out through the diplomatic pouch. I still remember the arrival of 7000 cases of beer (possibly Fosters) in a container imported by the Australian embassy.

     I left Baghdad in November 1982 via Amman where I ran on the Hashemite Hash. 31 years later, after hashing in Oman, Cyprus, Athens and Beirut, I returned and ran with them for a couple of years. Never made it back to Baghdad.

Building off the success of the Baghdad H3, Brian Clancy founded the Babylon H3 on 8 Jun 1985 and Alfred 'Good and Tight' Zuber founded the Assyrian H3 in Jan 1986. I have known Good and Tight for many years, but my attempts to contact him for comments have not been successful, but I will continue to try and include it in a future publication.

As mentioned above, the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988) did not seem to have a significant effect on hashing in the capital, but when Iraq invaded Kuwait on 2 Aug 1990, the whole region was in turmoil and many fled to safer regions of the world. I can find no record of hashing in the post Gulf War era, until the invasion of Iraq in Mar 2003. The HHH Genealogy reflects several pop-up hashes that were certainly run in the confines of operational bases, and they include:

     - Saddam Bash H3, founded 5 May 2003 by Hugh 'Cummando' Kelly
     - Erbil H3, founded on 23 May 2003 by Boy Toy
     - Al-Kut Chee H3, founded on 23 May 2003, by Phil 'Turd Bird' Kendro
     - Baghdad Post Saddam H3, founded on 30 May 2003 by David 'Foreplay' Hodgkinson
     - New Babylon H3, founded on 21 Jul 2005 by Marty ‘Garfield’ Hanratty
     - Fallujah H3, founded on 11 May 2006 by Chris ‘Ghost Rider’ Calhoun

There were likely more during this period. I was in Iraq for several months in 2007, and ran with what I recall was the Baghdad H3. The club ran in the Green Zone of Baghdad on a weekly basis, made up mostly of contractors, and they had plenty of alcohol. I had just arrived, and got word of the start location. Venturing over to the meet point, I was surprised to see Rachael ‘Neon’ Frame was there, who I had hashed with in Richmond, VA and Seoul, South Korea previously. Trail was about 45-50 mins long, dashing around the Green Zone, and at one point after running through the famous sword arches at Victory Field, the Green Zone Police stopped to question us. It was just dark enough that I was able to sneak behind some bushes and avoid interrogation. That incident, and all the alcohol (which was counter to General Order #1), gave me enough pause that I decided not to become a regular attendee. I also found some trail marks while out at the Marine base at Fallujah, so hashing was one of a limited number of diversions taken up by deployed forces in theater.

Currently, there is only one hash club still active in Iraq, and that is the Heart of Baghdad Full Moon H3, founded by Adam ‘Scrummie Seconds’ Martin from the Heart of Texas H3. I was able to track down Scrummie Seconds back in Texas, and told me he started in Dec 2021, and they run the Friday nearest the Full moon. He also stated . . . “We only have trails on the US embassy, so sadly it isn’t open to anyone that doesn’t have embassy access.” He also stated that the ‘logo was modeled after the Heart of Texas Hump Day H3 . . . with a camel in the middle of an Iraqi flag colored back ground.”

Iraq is probably not high on anyone’s list of family vacation destinations, and your hashing opportunities are nil. So chalk this one up for reconsideration some years in the future.

Israel

In the Spotlight - Israel
24 May 2022

Where to begin? Israel / Palestine is one of the most hotly contested regions on planet earth. Surrounded (clockwise, starting in the north) by Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, a small sliver of the Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt, and finally, Israel has a long coast to the west on the Mediterranean Sea (~185 Kms). According to History . com . . . “the land of modern-day Israel was conquered and ruled by various groups, including the Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Fatimids, Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, Egyptians, Mamelukes, Islamists and others.” Tippy toeing past the geopolitical aspect of Israel (which you can read more of at the link above), Israel has a dry season (May-Sep) with hot and sunny summers. The rainy season can be cold, with occasional snow (Nov-Mar).

While there is no record of an active hash club in Palestine, local hasher “Boston Creamed” insisted that during the British Mandate for Palestine (1918-1948), the British troops certainly enjoyed revelry and beer. As for Israel, there have been several hash clubs, mostly around Tel Aviv. The first recorded hash club, as listed in the HHH Genealogy, began on 4 Oct 1990, when Jack 'Sponge' Richardson, assisted by Mickey 'Roach' Dunham founded the Tel Aviv H3. There is no indication where either of these two hashers came from, so there is no legacy established at this point.

That first attempt does not appear to have lasted long, as the second hash club to form, also in the Tel Aviv area, was the Holyland H3, founded on 29 Sep 1993 by Steve 'African King' Young and Sari 'African Queen' Young, who had previously hashed in Mogadishu, Somalia. (Note: I, your humble hash scribe, ran what is believed to be the last hash trail in Mogadishu and probably all of Somalia, in Feb 1993). The first Holyland H3 also did not complete to many trails, as the third hash club, also named (and currently active) the Holyland H3, is recorded as running their first trail on 11 Jun 1994. Founded by Lars 'Noggin The Nog' Thompsen who had come down from the Paris H3, he was assisted by former founders African King and African Queen (which makes this listing a bit suspect), along with Colin 'Piss on the Hut' Abercrombie.

The fourth hash club to form, also in the Tel Aviv area but also as far north as Haifa, was the Thirsty Knights H3, running on, as you might expect, Thursday nights. Founded on 24 Jan 2002 by Pat ‘Foreplay’ Carmeli, and assisted by Simon ‘Thrush’ Peel and Karin ‘Golden Snatch’ Assarson. This club’s old website records run 105 on 29 Dec 2006, then jumps to the Holyland H3 run #663.5 on 1 Jan 2007, as the two clubs appear to have merged all reporting into the same TKH3 website. According to Boston Creamed, an actual historian working in Jerusalem, “The Thirsty Knights logo with the running knight was designed by a rather famous cartoonist . . . Yaakov Kirschen of the Jerusalem Post, who publishes a popular local cartoon Dry Bones. The last recorded TKH3 run with a number associated, was run #149 on 4 Dec 2008, but there were sporadically recorded trails all the way up to 7 May 2015. The last trail recorded on the old TKH3 website was #1111, a Red Dress Run, on 18 Jul 2015, apparently for the Holyland H3.

The fifth recorded club was the Jerusalem H3, founded on 1 Jun 2002, by Dawn 'Shaggle' Naughton, assisted by Steve 'Fat Freddy's Cat' Horsup and Graham 'Sir Walter' Mackenzie. There is no previous club listed, so no known legacy, potentially the Holyland H3.

One additional hash club, not previously listed in the genealogy, but now added, was the Looney Moon H3. Founded by Dave ‘Puppy Love Machine’ Lorch on 23 Jun 2013, this club ran monthly around the full moon in Jerusalem. After 2 years of having to set all the trails, Puppy Love threw in the towel and let this club slip off into the cold dark night of history.

On my recent visit to Israel, I was lucky enough to catch up with the Holyland H3, the only active hash club remaining in Israel, for run #1396. After a brief chalk talk, we were off on an excellent urban trail, that took in plenty of local parks in the Herzliya area, along with some tunnels, dirt tracks, and even an orchard. Circle was fun and just the right length, mostly because we ran out of beer. The Beer Meister explained that he had only planned for 10 or less hashers . . . with 20 on hand that day, the coolers emptied pretty fast. As always, it was still a great day on the hash.

I really enjoyed hashing with the Holyland H3, they were very friendly and welcoming to visitors. Although I was able to gather a great deal of new info from these current hashers (Captain Caveman was the longest running on trail this week, with the Holyland H3 since Aug 1997), there are still many questions about these hash clubs. I am asking for anyone knowing any of the hashers listed above, please forward this info, and contact me to fill in some of the gaps for posterity. Much appreciated.

Jakarta

In the Spotlight - Jakarta, Indonesia
4 July 2015

Jakarta is the capital city of an island nation made up of over 17,000 separate land masses, with about 6000 being inhabited with the wonderful culture of Indonesia. Jakarta is the largest city and is located on the main island of Java, where, as you would expect, lives a thriving hash house harriers culture. The first hash club in Indonesia was the Jakarta H3 founded by Jeremy “Burong” Pidgeon and Gordon "Bent One" Benton on 22 Mar 1971. I had the opportunity to chat with Gordon a couple years ago, and he was happy to reveal the amazing history of the Jakarta H3.

According to Gordon, in those early days, hashing was very austere with only paper used to mark the trail, and there were no arrows, checks, or falsies; the trail just ended and the pack had to look around to find which new direction it went. The terms Front Running Bastard (FRB) and Dead F*cking Last (DFL) were not used at that point, but the last one to complete the trail did receive special attention. They did in fact use the sometimes derogatory term of Short Cutting Bastard (SCB), an art that can be as rewarding as it can be detrimental to the timely finishing of a trail.

When the Jakarta hash first started running, the hash was not viewed well by the local people, as they initially thought that the Dutch had returned. After that was dispelled, there was concern about the pack running through the crops, damaging mud walls and rice paddies. Fortunately, after a period of time and reparations, and teaching the hashers to tread lightly, the local people became familiar with the calls of on-on and the sight of paper. Gordon said that the local farmers eventually got used to seeing hashers, so much so that sometimes the kids would move the paper to change the trail. There was a hash horn used at the Jakarta H3, and you could hear the terms ‘On-On’ and ‘Are You’ between fellow hashers to help navigate through the jungle.

In the humble fashion that many hash clubs begin, there were only 7 or 8 on that first trail in 1971. It did not take long for the pack to grow to over 100 through word of mouth, and advertising through hash T-shirts sponsored by ICI, Shell, and eventually as part of the special relationship that soon developed with the local distributor of Anchor Beer. The distributor would dispatch a truck to the run site each week that would bring beer and soft drinks, as well as lights for the circle. Speaking of lights and circles, it is believed the circle originated in Jakarta, but not necessarily for fellowship among hashers and the issuance of down-downs, but merely to create a type of barrier between the hashers and the local people that would become very curious of what was taking place.

As time went on, the circle slowly became more entrenched in the weekly activity and could often last up to two hours, with regular down-downs and the singing of songs. It was a requirement for the hare to write his own song each week and to entertain the pack with it. As in many parts of the world where hash trails go, many of the jungle routes were single file foot paths, so various rules came into existence. One such rule created to avoid knocking each other down, was to never pass a hasher who appears to be, or at least 'thinks he is running' the trail.

This next piece of history is open for dispute, but it is quite possible that hash names were also originated in Jakarta. In order to get the word out, some hashes would mail out the weekly hash trash to members, but the mail system in Jakarta was not timely enough to deliver them on time for the next weeks run, so the trash was printed and placed in a handful of local establishments so the members could pick them up (Note: this method was still in use in Seoul when I arrived there in 1997). As this allowed anyone who passed by the opportunity to read what was going on within the hash, the use of real names was soon abandoned to avoid any conflict with employers or the general public at large.

By the time Gordon left Jakarta in 1980, Jakarta was believed to be one of the largest hash clubs in the world. So, having completed his mission to bring the hash to Indonesia, Gordon next headed off to Singapore to begin a decade of running with Father Hash. Having been firmly established, and becoming one of the most popular hash clubs in the world, building on the success of Hong Kong in 1978 and Mother Hash in 1980, the Jakarta H3 with Hash Master Ron "The Penguin" Strachan, stepped up to host the third biennial Interhash in 1982.

Japan

In the Spotlight - Japan
17 Nov 2023

Japan is a wonderfully diverse island nation in the Western Pacific Ocean. It has no physical borders with other nations, but does have maritime borders with Russia, China, Korea (N&S), and Taiwan. It consists of four main islands (Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu), and numerous smaller islands, including the Ryukyu Islands that stretch all the way south to Taiwan, and the capital city is Tokyo.

The islands of Japan have been inhabited for nearly 40 thousand years, but there seems to be little recorded history before the first century AD, and that is from the Chinese “Book of Han.” We know that several dynasties have ruled Japan, and like other parts of the world, life was simple and warriors ruled the day. In the late 1800s and into the early 1900s, Japan’s rule was expanding throughout the Western Pacific (Far East) until the end of WWII, and that history is well recorded. After the war, Japan was occupied by international military powers from 1945-1952. Since then, a new Japan has emerged that gives more power to the people and new freedoms. Some of those new freedoms included the joy or running, and with that came the arrival of the Hash House Harriers.

The first hash club in Japan was the Tokyo H3, founded by Patrick 'Dunafew' Donoghue on 14 Jun 1976, who had previously hashed in Hong Kong. The HHH was in full expansion mode by the mid-70s, and Japan ranks as the 30th country to have a hash club. It would be less than two years before Dunafew moved on to Kobe and founded the Kobe H3 on 9 Jan 1978. Further to the south, the small island of Okinawa would be the next attempt to start a hash club, when William D. 'Jock' Trader came over from Taiwan. His first attempt was the Naha H3 on 10 Apr 1979, but that club could not get a proper foothold. His second attempt 16 Feb 1980 proved successful when he founded the Okinawa H3. This was my mother hash from back in 1984, and I have written extensively about its formation.

Hash clubs would continue to pop up in major cities throughout Japan, including Iwakuni, Misawa, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Osaka, Sasebo, and Ibaraki. Hashing became so popular that multiple clubs starting emerging in some of these cities, especially around military bases and taking on names unique to Japan (e.g. the Samurai H3, Kamikaze H3, and Sumo H3). There was even a mobile hash club based on the USS Blue Ridge that was founded on 21 Mar 1981. In all, there are 47 hash clubs listed in the HHH Genealogy, and as many as 20 are still active. Further information on these clubs can be found on the regional hash page.

I have had the pleasure of running nearly 400 hash trails in Japan while living in Okinawa and Tokyo, and can tell you that the public transportation system in most of the major cities is amazing. Trails often start at a train station, so there is no need to drive. While most of the weekday hash clubs run in the city, the greater Tokyo metropolis has a train system that offers access to over 1500 sq/kms of amazing trails, and they are explored every weekend by the Samurai and Sumo Hash clubs.

Japan has also been a key crossroads for hashers to go forth and start new hash clubs around the world. As many as 70 descendants are recorded from Japan based hash clubs, in far off countries including the US, Italy, South Korea, Iraq, Switzerland, and Portugal. If you get the chance to visit this amazing country, make sure to set aside plenty of time to join one or more of the many available hash clubs.

Jordan

In the Spotlight - Jordan
26 July 2021

I looked over Jordan, and what did I see? Well, let me tell you. Officially named "The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan," it is bordered with Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria, and Israel, and would be a landlocked country if not for a small 16 Km strip at the very southern tip that accesses the Gulf of Aqaba. Rich with history, this area has been inhabited, literally, since the original Stone Age. Subsequently, the country has many ancient ruins including Jerash and Petra. Jerash has artifacts dating back for nearly 10,000 years, but has been ravaged by earthquakes that have caused severe damage. Located about 50 Kms north of the capital city of Amman, there are still many stone structures from the Greco-Roman period to see, and well worth a visit.

Another location in Jordan, for the biblical scholars, is Mount Nebo. Located near the northern end of the Dead Sea, Mount Nebo is where God took Moses to see the Promised Land. Which takes us back to "Looking Over Jordan." Just 35 Kms southwest of Amman, you can see the vast area of the Valley of the River Jordan, and also a stone's throw from where I had the pleasure to run a hash trail not so long ago. Petra dates back to the fourth century BC, and may be much more well known. It has been showcased in many movies, including Indian Jones in the Last Crusade. Dr. Jones ventures out, in Hollywood fashion, in search of the Holy Grail, but is much more visually aesthetic than Monty Python's version.

The first hash club to form in Jordan, was the original Amman H3 that runs in and around Amman. Founded by John Ward in July of 1979, there appears to have been a name change sometime in the early 1980s to the Hashemite H3, and has now completed over 2300 hash trails. John came to Jordan from Iran, where he had previously hashed with the Tehran H3. The following snippet comes from the 1985 Middle East Interhash program, giving an unusual early history of the Amman H3 . . .

THE FIRST AMMAN HASH was held in July, 1979. The exact date has been the subject of some discussion, but appears to be lost in the fog of history along with the Etruscan language. The runners were John Ward, John Abu Said, Randy Old, Chuck Cogan, Tom Sexton and Sam Starrett. The course was moderate and completed by all. Unfortunately two of the runners had just arrived from a mensef, or Arab feast, where, unbeknownst to the guests (and in all fairness probably the host), the menu featured salmonella typhi in large quantities, thus producing acute gastric distress, followed soon by raging attack of typhoid fever. Once this small item was taken care of Hash runs resumed in earnest.

The next hash to form was the Dead Sea H3 in December of 1980, founded by Martin Bennett, Jon Bu Hon, and Alan Brown. At the southern end of the country, the Aqaba H3 was founded on 5 March 1982 by Alan Brown, who had previously hashed in Amman with the Hashemite H3. A snippet of their history was also contained in the 1985 Middle East Interhash program as . . .

The Aqaba Hash 200th run was on June 27-28 [1984] and was enjoyed by all. At Christmas '84 there was a doubt whether we would reach this far as members left for pastures new. The previous [Hash Master] (Brownie) handed over to 'Hash-It' in September as he expected to be away soon. Needless to say, he is still commuting twixt Amman and Aqaba. Our numbers vary between 6 and 20+ depending on the holidays, overland tours, visiting battleships and peripatetic Ammanites.

On 28 August 1996, Reem Farkouh, founded the Amman Full Moon H3. Finally, and more recently, Stefan 'Big Fellow' Branisavljevic has founded the second coming of the Amman H3, on 26 November 2016. This hash has been in hibernation due to COVID, but plans to restart running trails soon along with the Hashemite H3.

Depending on which definition you use of the Promised Land, the broadest being that land between the Nile and the Euphrates Rivers, on my recent visit we did in fact hash in the Promised Land with the Hashemite H3. We had a rousing group of 25 hashers, who had been partying all afternoon, and only 7 of us ended up running trail, but the circle was full on hash gaggle with plenty of laughs. After mentioning my recent visit to Jordan, Michael James "Sister Michael" Fotheringham told me about his experience . . . "Back in 1997 we attended the Hashemite H3 1000th run when we were stationed in Israel, they had arranged with the interior ministry to let us Hash through the souk in Petra. Dozens of excited Hashers ran down the ravine to be confronted with the treasury. About 40 of us crammed into the treasury and sang Swing Low. The acoustics were awesome."

Kenya

In the Spotlight - Kenya
7 May 2023

Kenya is located in East Africa, and has a very long and significant history. Believed to be ground zero for homo sapiens (modern humans), excavations have uncovered artifacts and bones dating back as far as 320,000 years ago. Going even further back, the remains of a homo erectus dubbed 'Turkana Boy' have been found dating back 1.5 million years.

Geographically, Kenya is surrounded by Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Indian Ocean. With a population of ~56 million, it is the seventh most populace in Africa, and 24th in size at 580,000 square kilometers. The capital is Nairobi, which is also the largest city.

Like many modern-day countries, Kenya has a long history of foreign occupation as well. The Portuguese first arrived in the 1490s, according to the World Factbook. They were forced out by invaders from Oman and Pate in the 1600s. Eventually, the United Kingdom and Germany arrive in the 1800s. After a solid decade of clashes with the United Kingdom, Kenya declared its independence in 1963.

It would not be long after independence, that the Hash House Harriers would arrive and doom the country to a legacy of chasing trails and drinking beer, forever. According to the HHH Genealogy, the first hash club to form was the Nairobi H3, founded by Gareth Randell on 9 October 1971, who had come to Kenya from Brunei. There are no other details currently available about this hash, but it appears that it faltered after some time. It would not be long before the second (and current) club in Kenya, also named the Nairobi H3, was founded by Arthur Schrock on 2 October 1978, who arrived from Ethiopia. He was assisted by Chris Swain, Sue Norris, and Larry Hogan. This Nairobi H3 has endured, and has completed over 2350 hash trails. You can find this club currently running weekly, on Saturday afternoons.

The Mombasa H3 was founded by Dave Hamblyn on 11 April 1983. This club must have also faltered for a period of time, but appears to have restarted sometime back in 2015. They currently do not have any activity listed on the website.

Hash clubs to form that are no longer active are the Turi H3 founded by Martin Pickup in 1993, the Swahili North Coast H3 founded by Trevor 'R'Hole' Fellows on 14 July 2001, and the Malindi H3 founded by Sandra '69' Faull on 1 October 2001.

There are currently 4 active hash clubs in Kenya, the first being the current and longest running Nairobi H3. As this club grew too big, it was determined that another club would be required to split up the membership, and thus the Original Nairobi H3 was formed on 21 February 2000, by Aggrey 'Electrocuted' Chabeda, assisted by John 'Missionary' Edwards. This club has completed over 1175 hash trails, and runs weekly on Monday evenings.

The Sunday Nairobi H3 (a.k.a. the Sash) was founded by Sam 'Emoro' Kiteng'e, Wanjira 'Bypass aka' Kamwere, Ken 'Taka Taka' Thairu, Elizabeth 'Cinderella' Atieno, and Joyce 'Kangura Tosha' Njenga as a splinter off the Original Nairobi H3 that ran on Monday, and had their first trail on 1 December 2007 during an event weekend. The reason for the split was the inevitable traffic that had grown over the years at rush hour, which had become an issue for getting out of work and being able to reach the run site. The name 'Sash' is a Swahili slang word for Sunday, and running on Sunday gave hashers a much easier time getting to the run sites. The Sash is known for longer trails and they rarely use checks. They just mark out a splendid twisted route through the countryside, and allow everyone to blaze along at their own pace. The hash anthem below is the traditional start of the circle.

          Deck the Trail with Mugs of Tusker, (Falalalalaaa for the Sunday Hash)
          We will find our way to [the next run], (Falalalalaaa The Sunday Hash)
          We will get there Drunk and Sweaty, (Falala lalala Sunday Hash)
          Then we'll Drink some more and Party, (Falalalalaa The Sunday Hash)

Finally, the Diani H3 was founded by Simon Udie on 18 April 2004, who arrived from the Ikeja H3 in Nigeria. This club is located down on the coastal town of Diani Beach, and runs monthly, having completed over 210 trails.

On my recent visit to Nairobi, I was able to run with the Sunday Nairobi H3 and the Original Nairobi H3 (not to be confused the with actual original Nairobi H3). The Sunday hash was created for the runners, and trails are much more straight forward. I found the trail to be very well marked, as we ran through the city along side streets and alleyways. The circle was very lively, and while you bought your beer at the bar, down down beers and a buffet meal were provided for a mere 200 shillings (~$1.50 US).

The hash on Monday was also a city run, out around the United Nations complex and Embassy Row. The cost was 910 shillings, but all the beer was provided, along with a tasty dinner of chili and salad, with all the fixings. The circle was also very engaging, and fun was had by all. It was just a coincidence that both trails were city runs, as they often can find plenty of shiggy trails right in the city limits, as I discovered on two most excellent hikes in and around Karura Forest. The hashers of Nairobi were so friendly, I will definitely be headed back for another visit on future trips to Africa.

Kenya has hosted the Pan Africa Hash three times, 1998 in Mochakos, 2003 in Mombasa, and 2015 in Malindi. Kenya also hosted an alternate INTERHASH in 2012.

As always, you can find links to the websites of all the hash clubs in Kenya from http://gotothehash.net and if you get the chance, do not pass up a trip to Kenya..

Kuching
Malawi

In the Spotlight - Malawi
10 May 2023

Malawi - The Warm Heart of Africa. This phrase has become synonymous with Malawi due to their friendly people, the amazing landscapes, and the abundant wildlife. Or, it could just be that Malawi means 'flames' in the local language. Actually, they both are true, I found Malawi very warm and welcoming on a recent visit. Unfortunately, Malawi has languished with a sluggish agrarian based economy, and a less than optimal education system, over the past several decades since gaining its independence from the United Kingdom in 1964. The capital city is Lilongwe.

Malawi is a landlocked country, but Lake Malawi makes up a significant portion of its eastern national borders with Tanzania and Mozambique, while it also shares a border on the west with Zambia. Malawi is a long skinny country measuring over 800 kilometers north to south, while only varying between 10 to 160 kms east to west. "Lake Malawi is particularly renowned for its remarkable biodiversity-an enormous range of fish species inhabit the lake, most of them endemic-and its southern region, as part of Lake Malawi National Park, was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984" according to the Encyclopedia Britannica.

As you might expect, the Hash House Harriers has found its way to Malawi, when Robin Foster-Brown founded the Lilongwe H3, assisted by Garry Tullidge, on 14 July 1985. This hash club is still active, and recently hosted the Pan Africa Hash on the shores of Lake Malawi, at Senga Bay.
The Blantyre H3 was founded in June of 1986, by Chick Twyman, along with Noel Windrim and Bill Sutcliffe, but is no longer active. Also no longer active, the Zomba H3 was founded by Bill Drake and Bert Lay Tu in 1990. There is, however, one other active hash club, the Lilongwe Full Moon H3, founded by Ain't Ze Bush on 17 January 2022. He was assisted by Bimboy and Clitoria.

I recently had the pleasure to travel to Malawi for the afore mentioned Pan Africa Hash last month, it was a most excellent event. The gaggle of over 100 hashers arrived in Lilongwe in time to meet and greet old friends for a night on the town. Early Friday morning, we boarded busses for the two-hour ride out to Senga Bay. After checking in, and getting sorted, we gathered for the Red Dress Run that weaved its way through the local village, the first of three trails we would enjoy over the weekend. The main event trail on Saturday was highlighted by a long climb up the tallest mountain in the area, with the walkers meandering back to the venue, while the long runners got a boat ride from trails end up the coast. The hangover trail on Sunday crisscrossed the trails from Friday and Saturday, to give us another opportunity to enjoy this lake side paradise.

On Monday morning, most of us were back on the bus for the long bus ride back to the airport, and to even longer flights back home. Including stops in Kenya, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Zambia, it was a great month of hashing, exploration, and appreciating the amazing wildlife and other natural wonders of southeastern Africa. I highly recommend any one of these countries for your future travel destinations.

Malaysia

In the Spotlight - Malaysia
18 June 2022

Malaysia has many aspects that, while not unique, certainly make it unusual. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, after various treaties and agreements over most of the 19th century, parts of current Malaysia where consolidated under the United Kingdom as the Federated Malay States in 1896. This continued until the end of 1941 when Japan seized the peninsula. After World War II, the region went through several more changes including the Malayan Union, followed by the Federation of Malaya when it eventually achieved independence from the United Kingdom on 31 August 1957.

The territory continued to grow according to Nations Online, and on 16 September 1963, after adding Singapore, and the two regions of Sabah and Sarawak on Northern Borneo, this new consolidation became the country of Malaysia. This consolidation would not last long, and after significant political upheaval, on 9 August 1965, Malaysia ejected Singapore thus granting its complete independence. The current configuration of the country is split between two separate landmasses of East Malaysia and West Malaysia. East Malaysia is part of the island of Borneo, shared by the small enclave country of Brunei on the north-central coast, and Indonesia that makes up about three quarters of the rest of the island. West Malaysia (a.k.a. Peninsular Malaysia) borders with Thailand to the north, and Singapore to the south.

The current capital of Malaysia is Kuala Lumpur (commonly referred to as KL), which was originally founded by Chinese tin miners in 1857. In Malay, Kuala Lumpur translates to “muddy estuary” reflecting its location where the Kelang and Gombak rivers meet. KL was originally selected as the capital of the Federated Malay States in 1896, and continued throughout the years as the region reorganized and changed names, until now in current day Malaysia.

KL also has the distinct honor of being the birth place of the international running club, the Hash House Harriers. In December 1938, Alberto Esteban Ignacio Gispert, known to his friends as "G" founded the Hash House Harriers (a.k.a. HHH, H3, and Mother Hash). G was assisted by Frederick "Horse" Thomson, Eric Galvin, H.M. Doig, Morris Edgar, John Barret, Cecil Lee, and others. Although considered a founding member, Ronald "Torch" Bennett actually was away on personal leave for 8 months from November 1938 until July 1939, and missed the first several months of participation. He would play a significant role in the future of the HHH, which will be explained later. A more detailed history and background of the HHH can be reviewed online.

Although the “Hash House” Harriers were a new club in 1938, the idea of hare & hounds (or paperchase) was not a new concept for the region. There was at least one account of the earlier Kuala Lumpur Harriers (that was believed to have run in the areas around KL from the early 1920s to the mid-1930s) in the Malay Mail (newspaper) in 1932. The oldest actual Hash House Harriers document we currently have, to the best of my knowledge, that specifies an actual event date is the notice for the upcoming 100th run, which occurred on Friday, 15 Aug 1941.

Another account comes from Horse Thomson. Before arriving in Kuala Lumpur, Horse lived and worked in Johor Bahru, the capital of the state of Johor. Johor Bahru is located approximately 350 Kms south east of Kuala Lumpur on the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia. Horse is quoted as stating, that he had run paper chases in Johor Bahru as far back as 1932. He had also run similar type events in Malacca (aprox 150 Kms south of KL) as part of the Springgit Harriers (this is where Gispert was said to have first run paperchase events). Horse also claimed to have run pre-HHH type events with another club in Taiping (aprox 250 Kms north of KL). They were all referred to as mixed clubs (allowing women to run), and some even brought their dogs on trail. The runs were often on Sunday morning, and were followed by a curry tiffin lunch.

Although the HHH was not a new idea, it would spawn a whole new branch of hare & hound type clubs that would spread all over the world. Getting back to the HHH and what it was all about, we go to Frank Woodward, who started running with the HHH in February 1939. In a letter he wrote in the late 1980s, he explains . . .

“In those good old days, most of us Hash House members had Malay car drivers . . . and the procedure on the weekly run days was for the two ‘hares’ to go in a car with their haversacks full of torn-up paper and the boot of their car loaded up with a large galvanized tin bath packed with ice, bottled beer and ginger beer, to a pre-arranged starting point and then set off to lay the paper trails. The beer and ginger beer were provided by the ‘hares’ each week at their own expense. The club never had any funds as such and administration was minimal.”

Frank continued to explain that prior to the war, that trails were generally A to B, and that once the pack had assembled and set off running, the hare’s driver would lead all the other cars to the finish point. He also states “After numerous false trails had been investigated the ‘hounds’ eventually arrived at the finish point where the ‘hares’ would have already started on the beer and ginger beer. Shandies were found to be much more refreshing than beer by itself.”

The original HHH club ran on Friday evenings from Dec 1938 until 12 Dec 1941, at which point it had managed to hold 117 hash runs, but ceased activity during World War II. An expanded understanding of this period can be seen in an article about Hashing and the Military. The HHH was reborn in August 1946, and according to Cecil Lee who wrote in a letter dated 24 October 1958 that stated: “We started up again after the war due to Torch Bennett who discovered a Bank Balance and put in a claim for War Damage on one tin bath, and two dozen mugs, and possibly two old bags (not members).”

Frank Woodward also wrote that, after the rebirth starting in 1946, trails were much more commonly A to A. “After the war not many members of the H.H.H. had car drivers, especially the newcomers who had come to Malaya for the first time . . . starting and finishing points of the runs [were] at the same place; otherwise the routine was exactly as before.”

The new (or reborn) HHH began the current tradition of running on Monday evenings, and celebrated its first invitational gathering to coincide with their 1000th run in March 1966, when there were only about ten clubs total, and all in Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei. By 1973 many other hash clubs had sprouted and spread out beyond Southeast Asia, so Mother Hash repeated the effort for their 1500th trail that drew about 300 hashers to Kuala Lumpur.

If you are doing the math, although Mother Hash conducted weekly runs, they went from 1000 trails to 1500 trails in just 7 years. That happened because on the occurrence of their 1000th run event, they unceremoniously added the original 117 runs from the pre-war era of 1938-1941. That made the run immediately following the 1000th run number 1118, and they have continued on from there. While this extended the birthright to the original date in 1938, it also robbed Torch Bennett’s rightful distinction as the founder of the actual second hash club.

Also of note during this early period, in 1949, the city of Kuala Lumpur began requiring clubs of all kinds to register their activity. While a common theme of hashing is "there are no rules," the club registration (drafted in 1950, and approved in Feb 1951) was the original "Rules" or at least guidelines. Written with the wry jest of a good hasher, the objectives of the Hash House Harriers were listed as:

(a) to promote physical fitness amongst its members
(b) to get rid of weekend hangovers
(c) to acquire a good thirst and to satisfy it with beer
(d) to persuade the older members that they are not as old as they feel

While researching a previous article on Hashing and the Military, I came across what would best be called a splinter group off Mother Hash. In 1957, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand funded the Malaysian Army to construct a base at Terendak, located ~125 Kms south of Kuala Lumper. Bill Panton’s original paper spreadsheet contains a listing for this club. Although the concept of other hash clubs had not really been established, this splinter group is listed as the Terendak H3, with a founding date in 1960. There currently is no additional information available on this splinter group, but it is plausible that some of the military personnel on the hash in KL, could have either been involved in the construction, or more likely been transferred from KL to Terendak, and they took hashing along with them.

If you are really into dates and specifics, as previously recorded, the second country to have a hash club was Singapore, but if you noted above, Singapore was still part of Malaysia until 9 August 1965, that makes the first breakout hash club the Brunei H3 on 18 February 1963. But once again, further research shows that Brunei did not gain independence as a British Protectorate until 1 January 1984. So, technically, Great Britain is the second country to have an HHH club. The already established HHH Singapore founded on 19 February 1962, would not be in a separate country until 9 August 1965, making it the third country to have an HHH club. And pulling that string just a bit further, the Federated Malay States were also a British Protectorate until 1957, so you can draw your own conclusions from all that. Would it be apropos at this point to say . . . but I digress?

The HHH Genealogy currently lists a total of 280 hash clubs to have existed in Malaysia, with 215 listed as active. These clubs are spread widely throughout the country, with KL hosting 23 clubs, where you can run a hash any day of the week, sometimes two. As far as terrain for hashing goes, it’s hard to beat the rolling hills and countryside of Malaysia, or South East Asia as a whole, but Malaysia is special.

Mother Hash hosted the first invitational hash events in KL celebrating their 1000th run in 1966, and their 1500th run in 1973. Hong Kong initiated what would become INTERHASH in 1978 immediately followed by Malaysia, that has hosted INTERHASH three times, first in Kuala Lumpur in 1980, again in 1998, and finally in Kuching in 2010. Malaysia has also been the proud host of the PAN ASIA Hash five times in various locations, in 1989, 1995, 2001, 2003, and 2005. Malaysia is also host to the most extreme International Hash Challenge, a grueling 45 Km team event hash trail through the jungle, hosted by the Petaling H3.

In summary, this article has highlighted many aspects of the history of the Hash House Harriers in Malaysia, but it only scratches the surface in the greater world of the HHH. I have had the pleasure of visiting and hashing in Malaysia several times, including INTERHASHs, Pan Asia, Mother’s 3000th run, and 75th Anniversary, and even the International Hash Challenge. For the future, I have officially begun writing the consolidated history of the growth and worldwide expansion of the HHH, with the book to be released in Oct 2024 to coincide with my 40th anniversary of participation in the wacky world of hashing.

Mexico

In the Spotlight - Mexico
14 Nov 2023

Mexico is a fairly large country of 2 million square kilometers, as is the third largest in North America behind Canada and the USA. Mexico is also the third largest country in Latin America, behind Brazil and Argentina. It has the 10th largest population worldwide, with approx. 130 million, with Spanish as the primary language. When you think of Mexico (officially the ‘United Mexican States’, and has also gone by the ‘Mexican Empire’ on more than one occasion), for many people the first thing that comes to mind may be the exotic vacation destinations of Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, and Acapulco, but the country has a very diverse landscape. Primarily characterized by volcanic activity due to its proximity along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” many features originating from plate tectonics, Mexico also has some very impressive mountain ranges highlighted by the Sierra Madre Oriental and Sierra Madre Occidental, according to the World Atlas.

Dating back to about 1200 BC, the Olmecs were the first known civilization to inhabit the territory of Modern-day Mexico, for over 600 years. By 300 BC, the Zapotec people emerged for a period of time, but were then overshadowed by the amazing Teotihuacán Empire that dominated south-central Mexico from approx. 100 BC to 700 AD. Several structures, including the Pyramid of the Sun, and Pyramid of the Moon, are still standing today less than an hour’s drive outside Mexico City. The Mayans, probably the mostly commonly known, also flourished between 250-900 AD, and are famous for having established a system of writing, and a calendar to track the passage of time. The Toltecs then emerged in the 10th Century, and were known for their festivals with huge numbers of human sacrifices. Next were the Aztecs, that eventually aligned with the Toltecs and Mayans to form the Aztec Empire around 1427 AD. Reaching a peak of nearly 5 million people, it would be less than 150 years later that Spain had taken over Mexico and most of its people, according to ‘History’(dot)com.

It would be over 500 more years before the idiosyncratic sport of ‘Hashing’ would arrive and try to dominate Mexico, when Steve 'Cohare' Case founded the Mexico City H3 on 30 Oct 1983 after arriving from San Jose, Costa Rica (note: claims have recently been made that the first hash club was founded in 1980, or even 1975, in Mexico City, but no solid evidence has yet emerged to confirm. Keeping an eye on this). Cohare was assisted by Jim Gregory and Dave 'Wrong Way' Arnold. The Cabo San Lucas H3 would follow in 1984, Tijuana H3 in 1988, Guadalajara H3 in 1991, Ciudad del Carmel H3 in 1992, Merida H3 in 2008, Los Sultanes del Norte H3 and Mexico H3 in 2010, and the Puerta Vallarta H3 in 2018.

I recently had the opportunity to catch up with the Mexico City H3. Having just celebrated their 700th hash two weeks prior, I was able to join them on trail 702 for a most excellent run in Coyoacan. Hared by fellow Hash Historian Shakesprick, who was ably assisted by JFK, the trail was 10 kms of exploring the tree lined streets and parks on the south side of Mexico City. I counted 19 hashers on trail, with about a 50/50 split between walkers and runners.

I was very impressed by Mexico City, having spent a few days exploring, as well as a day trip out to the pyramids at Teotihuacan (what amazing history) (and the street tacos . . . soooo good). Circle was a lot of fun, led by GM “Dick Chair Tracy” and supported by RA “Shakesprick” . . . they kept the assembled hashers laughing throughout. The whole pack was very friendly, and welcoming. If you ever get the chance to visit Mexico City, make sure to check the hash calendar and attend a hash trail . . . after the pyramids (and don’t forget the street tacos).

More Missives from Torch Bennett

In the Spotlight - More Missives from Torch Bennett
11 Oct 2021

Following up on the revelation of when ‘Torch’ Bennett believes the ‘HASH HOUSE’ Harriers got their start (July 1939), in his letters to Hema (a.k.a. Colin Snow) (letter1 and letter2) from 1981 . . . here are a few more bits on hash history for you to ponder.

1. As one of the founding members of the HHH, and an early On-Sec, Torch wrote the hash trash with a special sort of British humour. Torch stated . . . “I did the weekly circular and used to try to embellish them with a little ode on some incident on the previous weeks run, a variant of the cartoon character “Sporting Sam” . . . “or match-stick-man drawings, but by the 100th run we were all too pre-occupied with other things.” Sporting Sam was a British political comic series that ran from 1908-1995. This cartoon seems poignant for the time.

2. Both G and Torch worked for Evatts & Co as accountants before the war, where they first met in Singapore in 1934. After the war, Torch continued to work for Evatts stating . . . “I actually left Evatts for Neill & Bell (now Couper Bros) on 31/3/47 and retired from N. & B. on 31/3/58.”

3. As far as his hashing career goes, he states . . . “I had actually stopped active participation some time earlier [before his retirement in 1958], partly on account of anno domini and partly as having survived the war and subsequent P.O.W. life, I didn’t want my impending retirement stopped by bandits.” This confirms his status as a POW, which I will need to do a little more research on to better elaborate. The bandits he mentions refers to an incident that occurs post war in 1948, as told by Cecil Lee: “This has been widely misreported, but what actually happened was that below where the Lady Templer Hospital is now, in an area that was then rubber and belukar, the Hares on a darkening and rainy evening came across some men wrapped in ground sheets sleeping on the ground. The following pack found the bandits on their feet but someone, in the general confusion nobody got hurt. One member ran to Cheras Police Station and raised the alarm; the army laid ambushes on tracks leading out of the area and first thing the following morning bagged three bandits trying to break out. One of them was found to have a substantial price on his head and the bounty was shared among the non-government employees on the run (government servants were not allowed to participate in such rewards).”

4. Torch makes reference to the original Hash Anthem being Anthony Rolly. This is actually an old British children's song known as ‘A Frog be would a-wooing go.’ So, for those looking to replace Swing Low, consider this:

Anthony Rolly
(a.k.a. Anthony Roly, Anthony Rowley . . . A Frog be would a-wooing go)
The tune can be heard in this children’s version

"A" is for asshole, all covered in shit
[Chorus, the first (c1)] = "Heigh-ho," says Rolly.
"B" is for the bugger who revels in it,
[Chorus, the second (c2)] = Singing rolly, poley, up'em and stuff'em, "Heigh-ho," says Anthony Rolly.

[Then start the sequence again]

"C" is for cunt all dripping with piss, (c1)
"D" is for the drunkard who gave it a kiss, (c2)

"E" is for the eunuch with only one ball, (c1)
"F" is for the fucker with no balls at all, (c2)

"G" is for goiter, gonorrhea, and gout, (c1)
"H" is the harlot who spreads it about, (c2)

"I" is for insertion, injection and itch, (c1)
"J" is the jerk of a dog on a bitch, (c2)

"K" is for knight who thought fucking a bore, (c1)
"L" is the lesbian who came back for more, (c2)

"M" is for maidenhead all tattered and torn, (c1)
"N" is the noble who died on his horn, (c2)

"O" is for orifice all cunningly concealed, (c1)
"P" is the penis all pranged up and peeled, (c2)

"Q" is the Quaker who shat in his hat. (c1)
"R" is the Rajah who rogered the cat, (c2)

"S" is the shit-pot all filled to the brim, (c1)
"T" is the turds which are floating within, (c2)

"U" is the usher who taught us at school, (c1)
"V" is the virgin who played with his tool, (c2)

"W" is the whore who thought fucking a farce, (c1)
And "X", "Y", and "Z" you can shove up your arse, (c2).

5. And finally, for those who are still doubters . . . Torch makes it clear when he says: “. . . an American friend sent me a cutting from the Wall Street Journal in 1975 with a long article about us, and said ‘surely there can’t be two Torch Bennetts in this world”. In it, both G. and myself were called Australians, horrible thought.” No offense to the chain gang down under, (well . . . then there is Hamersley of course). If any hasher out there has a Nexis Lexis account, I would be grateful if you could look up this article and send it to me. Much appreciated.

Myanmar

In the Spotlight - Myanmar (Burma)
1 Jul 2013
Updated: 14 Apr 2021

Up until a few years ago, Myanmar was exceeded only by North Korea in reclusiveness. A shift in consciousness in 2011 by the ruling junta, has allowed Yangon to become a bevy of activity with businessmen and tourists now being commonly seen (although things are looking a little tense at the moment). Back in 2013, I had the pleasure of journeying over to Myanmar, to visit the Yangon Hash for their 33rd Anniversary Weekend. Originally founded as the Rangoon H3 in the largest city (at that time it was the capitol) of Rangoon, the club adjusted when the ruling junta changed the name of the city and the country to Yangon, Myanmar in 1989. While there were a couple gaps of 6 months and 18 months where there were no runs, the YH3 has run weekly since January 1992 and now totals well over 1700 hash runs in their 41 year history.

Hashing actually first arrived in Burma in 1978, when Philip Gill of the US State Department arrived. I recently had the opportunity to chat with Phil (now 90 years old in 2021), and get some of the details. He explained that after a few months of getting settled, he looked around and thought Rangoon would be a great place to run a few hashes. So, at some point in 1978, no one knows for sure (much like Mother Hash), the Rangoon H3 was born. As Phil explained it . . . “The Rangoon Hash had three runs in 1978. The third run was interrupted by a military force saying that we were in a cantonment area (news to us). Burmese and non-diplomatic runners fled in various directions. The U.S. Defence Attaché was called on the carpet and that was the last run. We made no attempt to restart it.”

Hashing would not take long to resurface in Burma, as Andrew Engel and Geoff Percival teamed up to form the second coming of the Rangoon H3 on 23 Jun 1980. Only a name changes has occurred since, from Rangoon to the Yangon H3, but the hash has continued with only a couple minor disturbances ever since. Andrew Engel is credited as the founder, but it is believed Geoff Percival may actually have been the spark to get the Rangoon H3 off on its way back in 1980. Despite the uncertainty of the founding details, there is one person who has really kept the Yangon H3 on schedule and consistently hashing since the mid-1990s. Bob "BoBo" Thomas is a hash icon in Myanmar and throughout SE Asia. He took the lead on hosting the regional Mekong Indochina Hash events in 2003 and 2009, and often turns up in Bangkok, as well as a wide array of hashing events throughout the region. BoBo has recently returned to Mother England, but I'm sure we'll see him pop up on the Far East as COVID concerns minimize.

Among the many hash supporters in Yangon, Fenton "Don't Call Me Shirley" Holland has also been a regular on the YH3 for nearly two decades. The 33rd Anniversary weekend celebration consisted of a welcome dinner on Friday evening, a 14 Km Saturday main event trail, and a Sunday running of the Yangon Full Moon H3, which was founded by Michel “Ibo Ibo” Desloover in January 1998. Another hash club has since formed in September 2018, in the new capitol city. The Nay Pyi Taw H3 runs every other Sunday starting from Park Royal Hotel.

Aside from the hash, Yangon boasts one of the oldest structures in SE Asia. The Shwedagon Pagoda is believed to be over 2500 years old, and can be easily accessed from anywhere in the city. If you are looking for a weekend getaway in SE Asia, definitely consider Myanmar (although you may want to wait a few more months to allow things to settle down).

Nepal

In the Spotlight - Nepal
20 Feb 2020

Nepal is best known for Mt. Everest and the Himalayan Mountain Range, as well as being the home of Buddhism. Surrounded by China and India, Nepal is a landlocked country of over 25 million people. The capital city of Kathmandu has a population of ~2.5 million, and is home to the Himalayan H3. According to their website, the Himalayan H3 was founded by Roger Binks, assisted by Keith Robinson, with the first trail taking place on 15 October 1979. The first trail consisted of two hares (Binks & Robinson) and 6 runners from Canada, Australia, Sweden and the UK. Starting out as a hard corps Men’s only hash, “these runs continued on Monday evenings with the occasional Saturday special. About 1985 ladies broke in and it became the fast hash. This continued until the early 1990s when it faded out due to ‘dreadful mismanagement’.”

The hash genealogy confirms that a second hash, the Himalayan Mixed H3 was founded on 19 March 1980, by John White. This new club ran on Thursday evenings, and the trails were less extreme. After the demise of the Men’s Hash, the Mixed group started running on Saturday, and still does to this day, as the Himalayan H3. I recently had the extreme pleasure of running with the Himalayan H3, which took place on Monastery Road in the Kathmandu Valley. The directions to the start took us through the southern side of the city, where the roads are a mixture of paved and dirt streets. Heavy traffic combined with stop lights, circles, and policemen directing traffic, caused many a traffic jam. It took just over an hour to make our way the 20 Kms, but the directions were superb, and brought us up a narrow single lane road to a dirt parking lot, that was surrounded by several monasteries.

The start was overlooked by a large Buddha statue of the Dollu Monastery, which we eventually ran around on our way to the top of the mountain. The trail on this day (~6.5 Kms) was shorter than what they usually run (8-12 Kms) according to the pack. The shorter trail was slightly disappointing, because it was an awesome trail. I describe an awesome trail as one you do not want to end, because it is so enjoyable . . . but eventually a hasher needs to stop, put on a dry shirt, and enjoy a nice cold beer. So, after a long climb up the side of a mountain, followed by a long downhill loop back to the start, the gathered pack of about 20 settled in for a fun and entertaining circle.

The national beer of Nepal is Ghorka Beer, and was actually pretty good, but I did not see any at the hash. The cooler had Tiger, Heineken, and a couple other assorted brands, along with a few bottles of cider. We honored the hares after the excellent trail, the usual assortment of mischief was also recognized, and in the end, for some odd reason, I received the honors of the Hashit. The voting was rigged for sure, but I enjoyed my down-down out of the sacred mug. The hashers of the Himalayan H3 are very welcoming and friendly. After the festivities of the circle, about half the pack ventured back towards the city to enjoy a dinner of various local culinary delights including Buffalo, compressed rice, and other vegetable dishes. With the sun setting, and the temperature dipping, I had to say goodbye. No doubt, if you ever get the chance to visit Kathmandu, make sure to look up the Himalayan H3.

New Zealand **New**

In the Spotlight - New Zealand
25 Feb 2024

New Zealand is an island nation in the South Pacific with a population of just over 5 million. It consists of approx. 600 islands, of which only a half dozen or so are inhabited, but more than ninety-nine percent live on the two main islands, North and South, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. One of the major stories currently making the news about New Zealand is the discovery that it is actually a sunken continent, which occurred around 40 million years ago when plate tectonics related to the ring of fire, caused a mass submergence in the region. There is currently a debate as to whether Zealandia should be designated as the 8th geopolitical continent.

Also in the news, New Zealand is about to host the major biennial Hash House Harriers event called INTERHASH for the second time, the first one they held was in Rotorua in 1994, which had over 4000 registered to attend. Queenstown will host their second effort from 8-10 March, and there are approx. 1800 anticipated to attend.

Different than other countries, New Zealand has a national organization for their hash clubs, where they elect a national GM. According to their website:

          New Zealand has a position called the NZ Grand Master/Mistress, which is a 2 year term from one Nash Hash to the next. There is a special meeting on the Sunday morning of Nash Hash where interested parties meet to farewell the outgoing and elect the incoming NZGM. The NZGM’s duties include travelling throughout NZ visiting clubs and generally promoting hashing in NZ. Newsletters to clubs are also part of the duties.

Historically, the first hash to form in New Zealand was the Auckland H3, founded on 24 Aug 1970 by Bill 'Great White Hunter' Holden who had been hashing in Sydney, Australia prior to that. He was assisted by Roy 'Fiveskin' Skinner, who in 1987 was asked about the history of the Auckland H3, he simply stated “It’s still a f*ck up, nothing’s changed.” More descriptive, according to an old Auckland H3 hash trash dated 15 Oct 1990, the first trail started . . .

          . . . from the Exchange Hotel in Parnell Auckland. Bill Holden was the hare and he had somehow conned 9 men to be the pack. After this initial run there were some doubts, and the hash went into recess until Jan 1973, at which stage it was kicked off again and this time with a modicum of success.

After the Auckland H3, according to the HHH Genealogy, other hash clubs to form in New Zealand in the 1970s were:

• Wellington H3                  15 Feb 1976
• Auckland HH Hussies         1 Jan 1978
• Rotorua H3                       20 Feb 1978
• North Shore H3                21 Aug 1978
• Ohakea H3                       13 Nov 1978
• Wellington Ladies H3      28 Nov 1978
• Christchurch H3               12 Nov 1979
• Hamilton H3                     30 Nov 1979

In all, there have 77 hash clubs to form in New Zealand, of which 37 are still active. The most recent hash club to form was the Matarangi H3 in Nov 2021. Even if you cannot attend INTERHASH next month, you will certainly be able to track down and run with one of the many clubs, should you get the opportunity to visit this amazing island nation.

Nicaragua
Okinawa
Oman
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Paris
Perth
Peru
Portland
Qatar
Rumson H3
Saipan
Scotland
Seoul
Seoul - Special 50th Anniversary Edition
Setting the Record Straight
Solomon Islands

In the Spotlight - Solomon Islands
23 Feb 2020

Solomon Islands (located approximately 1000 miles north-east of Australia), like many of the island nations of the South Pacific has a long history of occupation and conquest. In more modern history, European powers first visited the islands in 1568 when Spanish explorer Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira sailed from Peru in search of Australia. He named them Islas Salomón (Solomon Islands), and then sailed on. Centuries later, English explorer Captain Gibson arrived in 1893 and many of the southern islands were taken on as a British protectorate, and would be held until 1978. Currently, the sovereign nation of Solomon Islands is made up of over 900 islands large and small, with the capital city of Honiara located on the island of Guadalcanal.

The hash genealogy states that the hash arrived in Honiara on 11 July 1973, when Brian Leach and Derik Taysum organized the first running of the Honiara H3. Longtime resident “Shorty” has been running with the Honiara H3 off and on for nearly 30 years, and he had many interesting stories to tell of hashing the Solomon Islands, and backpacking around Asia. Another hash club was formed in Honiara in September of 1996, when Jeff “Rabbi” Moore and Tom “Claymore” Schoen formed the Honiara Full Moon H3. Neither hash club has any recorded offspring, but nearly 50 years later, the Honiara H3 is still running strong, and is a family friendly hash.

During my recent visit, I joined a pack of about 25 up on Vavaea Ridge, for a trail that was mostly on dirt roads and tracks, traversing up and down the hillsides behind the city. Cost to the join the hash was about 60 cents US, which covered the down downs. For a separate fee, and you could buy individual beers for about $2.50 per can. Water and softies were about $1.25. Circle was short and to the point, with only one song, but that is common with many of the island hash clubs in the South Pacific. The pack was very friendly, and following the circle some of the hashers enjoyed dinner at one of the Chinese establishments in Honiara. Great times here in the South Pacific, and no doubt, if you get the chance make sure to join the Honiara H3.

Somalia

In the Spotlight - Somalia
16 Nov 2023

There are thirteen countries that span the equator, seven of them are on the African continent, and Somalia is one of them, according to Mappr.co. Occupying the eastern most point on the continent, Somalia is also referred to as the ‘Horn of Africa’ due to its unique shape. The country is divided into 5 states (Galmudug, Hirshabelle, Jubaland, Puntland, and South West), and they are broken down into 18 administrative regions, according to the World Atlas.

It is believed that the area of modern-day Somalia has been occupied since at least the 25th Century BC, and that Egypt had trading partners along the area for over a millennium. Various Arab and Persian traders settled on the Horn of Africa and were prominent until the late 1800s when Italy and Great Britian set up colonies in the area, until 1960 when Great Britian granted independence to the region. The former British and Italian regions then merged to form the Republic of Somalia. The new republic was fairly stable for about 9 years, until a coup brought General Barre to power, which lasted for 22 years until his overthrow in 1991, when the region fell into chaos causing a humanitarian crisis, according to the World Factbook. International relief was brought in, but was met with resistance from guerrilla forces. The United Nations has proctored several transitional governments over the ensuing years, but the country remains basically a failed state.

Despite the recent turbulence in Somalia, the Hash House Harriers did in fact maintain a presence in the capital city of Mogadishu. Originally founded by Andrew McPherson in 1980, there is scant info about this club. While researching, an account was found that just one month ago, Ra recorded a podcast with Condom Man who ran with the Mogadishu H3 for about 18 months in 1987-88. He mentioned that it was a small but solid pack at that time.

Ironically, I may have the most recent information about hashing in Somalia, as it was the third country I ever ran a hash trail in. While deployed there under the humanitarian mission “RESTORE HOPE” of the United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM) from December 1992 to March 1993. The Aussie contingent gained approval from the Combined Task Force / US Joint Task Force Commander to hold a hash run. Somehow, I got word of it, and was one of several dozen runners that took part in what may likely have been the last hash trail ever run in Somalia, on 10 Feb 1993. There is a more detailed account, with pictures, in this Hashing & the Military article. In the late 90s when the internet was emerging as a common thing, I did a search for the Mogadishu H3 and found an old page that had some of the final accounts of a hash held on the beach sometime around mid-1990. That would have been just before everyone evacuated the country when chaos started consuming the city.

In another weird twist, a week or two after I ran the hash trail organized by the Aussies, I was getting off shift for the evening. At night, the bandits would shoot arrent rounds over the Embassy Compound where we were camped, and on this night a round went just over my head. As I looked up, I noticed it was a full moon out. I jokingly wrote up an account about this, stating I did a light jog around the back end of the camp, up over a mortar pit, and took a swig from my canteen as a down down and called it the first running of the Somalia Full Moon H3. I sent the account back to the Aloha H3, where I had been running before being deployed, and it was posted in the hash trash. Somehow, a copy ended up in Bill Panton’s hands, and it was recorded as an entry in the HHH Genealogy (I actually removed it when I made updates last year), but it still exists in Magic’s booklet of hash clubs and on his web listing. That was over 30 years ago, but I still have fond memories.

South Korea

In the Spotlight - South Korea (A Historical Look at Hashing in Korea, as published in the PanAsia 2017 magazine)
29 Oct 2017

The concept of the Hash House Harriers first arrived in Korea in 1972, in the capitol city of Seoul. Seoul is located roughly 30 miles south of the DMZ, and 125 miles south-east of Pyongyang, the capitol of North Korea. As far as anyone knows, there has never been a hash in North Korea, but there certainly has been hashing all over the southern half of the Korean Peninsula. There are currently 3 weekly, 3 monthly, and a couple occasional hash clubs running in the greater Seoul area. The hash first took place in Seoul on 11 June 1972, founded by Ian Young who had arrived from Hong Kong. Hashing had only been around Hong Kong since 1970, so it was just beginning to spread out beyond the immediate boarders of Malaysia, and out into the World at that time. After a deep scan of the HHH Genealogy, it appears that Seoul is the 46th oldest hash, having a family tree going back through Hong Kong H3, Singapore H3, and Mother Hash.

So, on 11 Jun 1972, aided by Robbie Douglas and Tony Parry, a new hash was born that now has a long and steeped history accumulated through over 2400 weekly trails over the past 45 plus years. When I ran with the Seoul Men's Hash (1997-2000), we ran on Wednesday evenings in the summer and Saturday afternoons in the winter. Due to shifting interests over the past couple of years, and many of the long time hashers retiring and moving away, the numbers have dwindled and they run on Saturday afternoons year round now, but hashing is still vibrant and strong in Seoul.

The Seoul Men’s Hash, as it is known today, has given birth to 17 new hash clubs over the years in the UK, US, Canada, Cambodia, and throughout the South Korean Peninsula. It would be 7 years before another hash formed in S. Korea, when Billy “Tootles” Cornett moved from Seoul to Pusan (now Busan) to start the Pusan H3 on 20 Oct 1979. A couple years later, Dave “Sweet Thing” Garrett also moved from Seoul to Koje Island and founded the Koje-Do H3 on 29 Nov 1981. Over the years hashing continued to expand with the Yongsan Kimchi H3 (1987) and the Osan Bulgogi H3 (1988) forming up around military bases, with the ship builders in Ulsan in 1988, the military base at Kunsan in 1994, Daegu in 1999, and then several more in these same locations doubling up on the fun to be had. Included in this mix, was my own contribution having founded the Seoul Southside H3 in Dec 1999, quite possibly the last new hash to form in the 20th century.

In the 21st century, there have been at least 10 additional hash clubs founded in South Korea, with the most recent being the Sokcho City H3, who are the proud hosts of PanAsia Hash 2017.

Sri Lanka

In the Spotlight - Sri Lanka
4 May 2020

Sri Lanka is a small island nation off the south-eastern tip of India, and is made up of the main island of Sri Lanka, and over 60 smaller islets. Formerly called Ceylon when it gained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1948, Sri Lanka changed to its current name in 1972. The country was mired in a 3 decade long civil war from around 1983 to 2009, until the rebel Tamil Tigers were crushed by military forces. Once part of the Spice Route (or Maritime Silk Road), these islands were a major port linking Europe and East Asia for trade. Colombo is the largest city and economic center of the nation, and as you might expect, has a history of chasing paper.

Hashing first arrived in Colombo on 19 April 1980 (note: 19 Apr 1980 is a Saturday, but the club runs on Monday), when Franklin “Darjeling” Pate founded the Colombo H3. Having previously hashed in Bangkok, Darjeling gathered up his mates, Michael “Climb Every Mountain” Hill and Clive Burgess to organize this new hash club. According to the club website, the Colombo H3 had 40 runners on that first trail, including two women (Handwarmer and Iron Lady).

At one point in 1984, Handwarmer injured her knee and could not run for a bit. The wife of another hasher was allowed to join the Monday hash, and enjoyed it so much she started bringing more women along. Well, this went on for a couple weeks and before you know it, the old boy’s network started to revolt and declared that the Colombo H3 would become a Male Only club. In a show of uncommon grace, they did allow the original ladies to continue on as honorary gentlemen. The change in membership to male only caused a stir in the hashing community, and the forming of the Colombo Harriettes on 20 Jun 1984. According to the hash genealogy, this club was founded by Mike “Climb Every Mountain” Hill, as a mixed hash club. Originally it ran on Wednesday, but has since shifted to Saturday to allow for travel to more areas around the island.

In between these two hash clubs forming in Colombo, about 130 kms to the east in the city of Kandy, a third hash club formed. The Victoria H3 (a.k.a. the Kandy H3) was founded on 13 Mar 1982, by Simon “Deep Throat” Bailey. Unfortunately, this club seems to have faded out sometime before 1997, according to Magic’s old records. There is also the random running of the Colombo Full Moon H3, founded by Andries "Clitoria" Ellis, with the assistance of Maneesha "Desperado" Thuduwewatta. The clubs in Colombo are still active (but on a short hiatus due to COVID-19). Current details can be found on one of the two websites.

There is a funny story about my own recent visit to hash in Sri Lanka. After running All Japan Nash Hash in 2019, I had made reservations to stay in Bangkok for a couple months. Although I have hashed in Bangkok for many years, I waited until the last minute to book a “visa run” flight out of the country after my first 30 day visa on arrival would expire. So, at the last minute, on a layover at Incheon Airport, I booked a quick flight out just shy of 30 days. I had always wanted to hash in Sri Lanka, so checking flight schedules and days of the week that hash clubs ran, and booked a flight from Bangkok to Colombo. In my haste, I booked a flight through an online travel service. Not paying much attention until just a day or two before my flight, I realized a bit of a scheduling problem, but was unable to change my return trip without an excessive penalty. Also, to purchase a new return flight would have been more than the cost of the original tickets.

The whole story occurred on 4-5 Nov 2019. I was up early in Bangkok, took a taxi to the airport, and off to Sri Lanka. Made it in as scheduled, and after an hour or so unsuccessfully trying to change my return flight directly with the airline, I realized this was going to be a short stay. Sri Lanka is a lovely country and I arrived on a bright sunny day, although it had been raining quite hard off and on for several days. It was an easy 45-minute transit from the airport, to the hotel recommended by my friend Aruna “Aint Ze Bush” (Bushy) Gunawardena. In short order, I dressed and packed my kit for the run. Bushy (who very kindly provided exceptional hashpitality) had arranged a tuk-tuk to pick me up and deliver me to the hash a half an hour away. As it turns out, it was the final trail of a weekend long event that included a Hash Ball. There was a Saturday trail, and this trail on Monday was the annual joint run where the ladies were invited to run on the men's hash. Excellent pack of over 40 hashers gathered for the 8 Km trail in the Hukandara area.

About 45 minutes into trail, we reached the beer check along the river, but we did not stay long as it started to get dark very quickly. Eventually we all managed to find our way back to the house, where we refreshed with cold Lion beer, and a few assorted snacks. After cleaning up a bit, we had a rousing circle in the back yard, which included a hash bag give-away, and a fully catered dinner. After a quick bite to eat, Bushy again set me up with a taxi back to the hotel for a quick clean up, pack up, and check out of the hotel. Another 45-minute trek back to the airport got me queued up for an early 1:15 am flight back to Bangkok. In the end, from leaving the condo in Bangkok at 6:30 am on Monday, I was back standing in front of the condo at just about 6:30 on Tuesday, 24 hours later. The trip included the whole hash event, 7 hours airtime, waiting in the airport, and other associated ground transport. What an awesome day, I’ll definitely go back to Sri Lanka for a lengthier stay, and hash again.

Stuttgart

In the Spotlight - Stuttgart, Germany
1 Nov 2014

Hashing first found its way to Germany in 1971, when British forces were posted in the central region area of Lübbecke and formed the Lübbecke H3. Although that hash had a short lifespan, it did not take long for the spirit of hashing to consume Germany. The spread of hashing continued during the 70s and 80s through Kaiserlautern (1977); Ulm, Rheindalen (1980); Herford (1981); Holzwickede, West Rhine, Berlin (1982); Bonn, Hanover (1984); Dulmen/Haltern (1986); Frankfurt, Freudenberg, Worms-Mannheim (1987); Heidelberg, Hunsreuck, Krefeld, Mannheim (1988); Bergen-Hohne (1989) and eventually found its way to Stuttgart.

Stuttgart is located about 2 hours south of Frankfurt and 2 hours west of Munich in the Baden-Württemberg, the heart of Swabia. It is known for its vineyards, as well as the home of both Mercedes-Benz and Porsche. Stuttgart hosts the second largest Oktoberfest, second only to Munich, and is only a short drive from the Black Forest. The Stuttgart Wurst H3 was founded on 28 Apr 1993 by Doug 'The Slug' Steward who had moved there from Angeles City H3 in the Philippines. There was a short lived Leinfelden / Echterdingen H3 also in the 1990s, founded by Pink Fritz. The SWH3 eventually became just the Stuttgart H3 and now runs every other Sunday afternoon, and will set its 550th hash trail later this month.

The next hash, originally named the Daylight Savings Time (DST) H3 was founded by Ed "Hazukashii" Howell on 7 April 2009 and was only going to run during the summer months, but after taking off just one winter season, decided to run year round on Tuesday evenings. This prompted a renaming to the Dienstag Schnitzeljagd Trupp H3, which roughly translates to the Tuesday Paperchase Party. The DST H3 will set its 275th hash trail later this month.

The Stuttgart Full Moon H3 was founded on 27 May 2010 by Bryan "Puking Cougar" Rhodes, and has just recently run their 55th hash trail. The Stuttgart Leap Year (SLY) H3 was founded on 29 Feb 2012 by Melissa "Shamcock" Pros, and only runs for special occasions such as fests and party events. For the hard core hashers, put Stuttgart on your bucket list, you will not be disappointed.

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We Know Where, but When Did It All Begin?
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