Hash House Harrier History (HHHH!!!)

The Hash House Harriers is an international social group that is formed into a loose federation that exists in more than 180 countries of the world. The focus of the Hash is purely social and recreational - it is non-profit-making, non-political and open to all who wish to join. The activities consist of a non-competitive cross-country run (actually a paper-chase), followed by an evening of social eating and drinking.

The Hash's origins lie in the old English sport of cross-country running known as Hare and Hounds, in which the "Hounds" follow a trail across country set by the "Hare". In the 1930's this sport was introduced to Malaya by a group of expatriates. It became firmly established in Kuala Lumpur in 1938 and ran from the Royal Selangor Club Chambers - known by its nickname of "the Hash House" (Hash being slang for food). The group became known as the "Hash House Harriers" or "Hash" for short. The Hash was interrupted by the Second World War and was re-created in 1946 by some of its previous members.

Since then the Kuala Lumpur Hash has run every week, including through the "Malayan Emergency" and it now has completed nearly 2,900 runs.

Other Hashes have been formed at an increasing rate in recent years until there are now more than 1,600 active clubs with nearly 250,000 members worldwide.

International Hash meetings, known as InterHash have been held every two years since 1978. The most recent InterHash event held this year, brought about 4,750 Hashers from all over the world to Cardiff , the capital of Wales , U.K. The next InterHash will be in Chiangmai , Thailand , 27 th -29th October 2006 .

The Vientiane Hashes

Vientiane , like many other cities, now has two Hashes (some cities have seven or more, with runs every day of the week). Hashers come from all walks of life: Diplomatic, UN, business people (local and expatriate), NGOs, experts, visiting Hashers, tourists, families and friends of Hashers, etc. Both Vientiane Hashes advertise their activities weekly in The Vientiane Times as well as in public places such as the Nam Phu, Phimphone Supermarkets, Australian Club, Scandinavian Bakery, Taipan Hotel, Novotel, etc.

The Vientiane Hash House Harriers (VH3)

The VH3 held its first run on Monday, 13th April, 1981 . Since then the VH3 has run every Monday without exception and will achieve 1,200 consecutive runs in March 2005. Numbers on regular runs vary between 35 and 60.

The VH3 is a family Hash which meets, usually at the house of the host (who is usually the Hare) but sometimes at a restaurant or another place. Members take it in turns to set and host the run. Runs start at 5.30 pm ( 5.15pm when the days are short).

The run is divided into three parts:

.  The short run is intended for children, others who may not be fit enough for the longer runs and those who simply prefer to walk; this usually takes around 30 minutes;

.  The medium run is for those who feel they can manage a little more but are not ready for the long run; this is usually around 45 minutes;

.  The long run is for those who would like a little more exercise and can take anything thing between 50 and 90 minutes.

The Hare marks the trails with lime or chalk and the Hounds follow the trail until they eventually return to the starting point.

After the run the "Circle" is held. This entails the whole assembly gathering around a central point and having their "sins" pointed out and being punished (by drinking a mug of beer or soft drink down). The Circle is followed by a meal and a social evening. Members usually return home by about 9-9.30 pm .

The Vientiane Bush Hash House Harriers (VBH3)

The VBH3 was formed by some members of the VH3 who decided that they would like to have a weekend run and to run in the countryside, rather than in the suburbs of Vientiane .

The first run was held on 14th June 1997 and was attended by 13 Hashers. Since then numbers have grown to an average of around 30-40 and the proportion of Lao nationals has grown steadily.

The basic format of the VBH3 is similar to that of the VH3 (and nearly all other Hashes worldwide). Members meet at the Fountain (Nam Phu) every Saturday at 3.45 pm and then leave for an out-of-town area for the run.

The main difference with the VH3 is that there is only one run and the Circle is held at the run site. After the Circle the Hash moves to a local restaurant for food and drinks.

Sepon Hash House Harriers (Sepon H3)

Founded in December 2002 by John 'Jism' Nolan (ex Tema H3), Jarrod 'Little John' Taylor (ex Mt Muro H3) & Dominic 'Kepala Kercut' Heaton (ex Mt Muro H3), just to name a few and at the instigation of Johnny 'Condom' Johnson (Vientiane Bush H3).

The Pack is made up solely of employees from the Sepon Gold & Copper Mine and their contractors, however in the past, ex hashers from the old Pakse Hash and members from the Vientiane Hashes have made the journeyed to participate.

Due to the remote area and the mine security aspect, all visitors MUST have prior permission from the mine management to go to the site, however due to the present construction of the copper plant, in addition to an extension of the existing gold plant, no accommodation is currently available, so Hashers wanting to run with the Sepon H3 will not be able to go before the copper plant begins operation in March 2005.

The Indochina - Mekong Hash     

The first Indochina Hash was held in Ho Chi Minh City in 1998 and was acclaimed a success. As a result, it was decided by the attending G.Ms of the participating regional Hashes, that it would be held annually.

As a result, it moved annually to Vientiane, Phnom Penh, Hanoi, Chiangmai (where it was decided to change the name to the Indochina - Mekong Hash to reflect the addition of Thailand and Myanmar to the group), then Yangon, last year in Siem Reap and this year it returns to Vientiane.

Due to the World Interhash being held in Chiangmai in 2006, there will be no event that year, so during the Vientiane meet, a decision will be made for the 2007 venue.

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