History

A BRIEF HISTORY OF MARLOW HASH HOUSE HARRIERS

The first Marlow H3 run took place from THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE, a Queens Road public house on Tuesday 1st September 1990 and many gents and ladies completed the run and returning to the Pub where their first Marlow H3 circle was performed. 

And a run has taken place every week since that day, where a warm welcome always awaits  runners, walkers, families and friendly dogs before the ‘ON OFF ‘ and an even warmer one, upon completion. But how and where did Hashing start ?

 

 

DRINKERS WITH A RUNNING PROBLEM

This sentence has become the ‘hash phrase’ used by every hasher in every hash kennel all over the world . At the last count there are 4000+ registered Hash Chapters (Kennels) in over 250 countries. So where did it all begin and why ? Well the following brief details will explain “HASH HOUSE HARRIERS”.

Albert Stephen Ignatius Gispert (aka ‘G’), an Enlish chartered accountant with Evatt & Co. established the Hash in Kuala Lumpur in December 1938, along with other colleagues at Selangor Club Chambers. He also conceived the alliterate name ‘Hash House Harriers’.

The Hash House was the term by which the dining annex of the club was known because of its cuisine ( Corn Beef Hash ). Other inaugural members included Cecil Lee, ‘Horse’ Thompson, and ‘Torch’ Bennett to name but a few.

No-one really remembers whether this was an elaborate excuse to drink beer, or just sheer madness to want to run long distances over impossible terrain in tropical temperatures .But they did it. And now so do thousands of masochists all over the world. Hashers still call themselves ‘ drinkers with a running problem ‘. Some say , they keep fit, though this is hard to fathom, while others just carry on the tradition of insanity. But on close scrutiny , what it boils down to is a religion ; baptism is certainly part of the ritual, and so is worship, albeit of the foamy brown nectar stuff.

Whatever, all who Hash seem to enjoy the pain and the punishment.

ON ON

 

HASHING

The aims of Hashing are simple :-

  • To promote physical fitness among our members
  • To get rid of weekend hangovers
  • To acquire a good thirst and to satisfy it in beer
  • To persuade older members that they are not as old as they feel

 

 

How does it work for Marlow Hash House Harriers ( MH3 ) ?

  • A pre-arranged runner ( HARE ) will lay a trail of flour/sawdust/chalk before the run starts
  • The rest of the group ( HOUNDS/PACK ) will follow the trail all the way back to the starting place
  • The trail is usually  clearly marked with various symbols or markers 
  • They are strategically placed to encourage the faster runners to check out and find the next portion of the trail 
  • The slower runners and walkers now have a chance to catch up and all finishing the run at a similar time
  • The length of the run varies from Kennel to Kennel , but at MH3 it’s usually 8 to 10 km or 1 hour to 1.5 hours
  • We start and finish at the same location ,have some drinks and hash grub ( picnic ), before  forming  the circle

 

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