There are said to be no rules in hashing, however several traditions have developed with a violation of such severely frowned upon and likely to invoke a punishment by way of a "down-down". A down-down is one of the oldest traditions and is a means of punishing or rewarding pretty much anything. Upon being called to do a down-down the accused must come to the middle of the circle and drink a cup of beer. They must do this without pause until they have consumed the whole quantity of drink (typically beer, but it can be any alcoholic drink they may have with them) or they must pour the remaining contents over their head. The Taichung Hash is a responsible hash and we realise that some members like to limit their alcohol intake (mainly due to driving) and therefore are allowed to nominate a drinker in their place.
Typically there are no new shoes allowed on the hash trail and being caught in a pair of new shoes will require that one drinks from the offending shoe as penance. Other traditions include a prohibition of pointing with fingers (requiring the use of elbows to indicate direction), no sitting, leaning or pocket-pulling (hands in pockets) during the Circle, and the use of Hash names around other hashers.
One aspect of hashing that makes the activity stand out (besides the running and general drinking of beer) is the use of names as assigned by the group. Though traditions may vary greatly among the groups, and some groups do not do this, the Taichung Hash gives members a Hash name. At their first hash, attendees will generally be known as a "Virgin" and will then be called by their normal name until duly named by the group. The occasion of a member's naming by the group may occur after they have attended a number of hashes, after they hare their first trail, or after they do something the pack deems noteworthy (usually the latter). Before a naming, the group may collect information concerning the individual or ask them a series of questions that can include occupation, most embarrassing moment, personal preferences, stories, or experiences. Others will then be allowed to share their own stories or knowledge concerning that individual in hopes of finding some aspect that seems to be memorable or noticeably sticks out regarding that person. Lots of suggestions may be offered, with the final name being chosen by vote or general group consensus with more often than not some humorous or debaucherous connotation being used.
The traditional symbol of the hash is the outline of the foot, with often the words "On-On" written upon it.
Hashing began in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1938, when a casual group of British colonial officials and expatriates, Cecil Lee, Frederick "Horse" Thomson, Ronald "Torch" Bennett, and a British accountant of Catalan descent Albert Stephen Ignatius Gispert (A.S Gispert), would meet after work on Monday evenings to run, following a paper trail, through the environs of Kuala Lumpur to get rid of the excesses of the previous weekend. There was another member of the group, John Woodrow, who is rarely credited as one of the founders as he left Malaysia after the war to return home to his family in Scotland.
After running for some months they were approached by the Registrar of Societies, who advised them that, as they were a "group" they would require a Constitution (the aims of which are reproduced below) and a name. A.S. Gispert (known as "G") suggested the name "Hash House Harriers". As bachelors, they were billeted in the Selangor Club Annex, known locally as the Hash House, because of its monotonous food. Their runs were patterned after the traditional British paper chase. A hare was given a head start to blaze a trail, marking his devious way with shreds of paper, all the while pursued by a shouting pack of "harriers." Only the hare knew where he was going... the harriers followed his clues to stay on trail. Apart from the excitement of chasing the hare and solving the clues, reaching the end was its own reward... for there thirsty harriers would find a tub of iced beer (and, in those earlier, more forgiving days, ginger beer and cigarettes).
Hashing died out during World War II after the Japanese invasion of Malaysia, but started again shortly after the war, when the original protagonists, minus "G" who had been killed in the Japanese invasion of Singapore, re-assembled in Kuala Lumpur. Apart from a "one off" chapter, formed in the Italian Riviera, (now the Royal Milan and Bordighera Hash), hashing didn't take off until 1962, when Ian Cumming founded the 2nd kennel in Singapore. From then on, the phenomenon started to grow, spreading through the Far East, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as Europe and North America. Hashing experienced a large growth in popularity during the mid-1970s.
By the end of the 20th century, there were thousands of Hash House Harrier clubs in all parts of the world, with newsletters, directories, and even regional and world hashing conventions. This boom is owed largely to the power of the Internet to provide timely and accurate information on kennels and their events and points of contact. As of 2003, there are two organized HHH groups in Antarctica!
The older portion of the Royal Selangor Club building (center), as well as its more modern north wing (right) added after the club's 1970 fire, are where the Hashing tradition started.
The goals of hashing, from a 1950 club registration card for the Hash House Harriers in Kuala Lumpur are:
• 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 the older members that they are not as old as they feel
Hashing hasn't strayed far from its Kuala Lumpur roots. A typical hash kennel (local chapter or group) today is a loosely-organized group of men and women, aka Harriers and Harriettes, although not all groups are co-ed, who meet weekly to follow a trail laid by a hare (the person(s) leading the trail who leaves the appropriate marks on the ground, trees etc. for the pack to follow). While strips of paper have previously been used to mark trail, especially in tropical areas, it has generally been replaced with flour or chalk. After the anthrax scares in 2001, lots of groups throughout the Western world had to change the way they marked trails by using colored chalk or other materials. Generally any mark used to identify the trail is called a 'hash mark'.
Trails are "live" - where the hares get the head start (often 10-15 minutes) from the pack, or "dead" - where trail is laid entirely (or in part) in advance of the start. Live trails, are closer to the original Hare and Hounds tradition mentioned in "Tom Brown's Schooldays", and are normal on the Taichung Hash. There may be one or more "beer checks" along the way, with the hare pre-caching a cooler of beer. With a "live" trail, the general intent of the pack is to attempt to catch the hare before they finish the trail and get to the end. A trail may be an 'A to A' where the start and ending location are in the same place or an 'A to B' where the start and end are at different spots.
To make the run interesting, the hare can set the trail through literally any kind of terrain, with only the imagination being the limitation. The trails can go through residential areas, forests, or swamps with anything off-road generally called "shiggy". Such shiggy might be classified in levels with the first being a path through a park or dirt road while the last might have the pack going through a quarter mile of chest deep, shoe-sucking swamp. The pack never knows where a trail will go or where it may lead and are often advised to bring a change of clothes and shoes to be used after the trail is complete.
Often the hare will employ several tricks in attempts to slow the pack and to keep runners and walkers together. The hare may mark an intersection - generally called a "check" - that signifies that the trail continues within a 360 degree area from that point. Several false trails may lead from that check and it is up to the front runners to "solve" the trail by going out and determining what might actually be the correct path, or "true trail". Once the true way has been determined then that runner may mark the check to indicate the proper direction so that anyone to come up it later (such as the walkers, other runners, or anyone arriving late) will not have to figure it out all over again. The pack will generally carry whistles, horns, or other audible means of communicating in order to assist each other on trail and keep from getting lost. A member of the pack calling out "Are you?" means to know if another individual is searching for the true trail, typically near a check (or intersection), or is on the correct path. Someone will typically call out either "Checking!" to indicate that they are looking for the trail or "On-On", or blow their whistle or horn three times, to signify that they are on the true trail and that the pack should follow them. Every Hash has its own set of marks and the names for these marks may vary widely, so Hashers visiting another pack should check the local signs before the run.
At trail's end hashers gather to drink beer and observe so-called religious ceremonies, the "Circle", which consists of drinking more beer. This is not compulsory and as an alternative you may drink something else alcoholic, nominate a drinker in your place or pour the beer on your head! Circles may be led by the hash Grandmaster, the group's Religious Adviser, or by a Committee of Mismanagement. Traditions and the degree of rowdiness vary from hash to hash, but in general the Circle consists of awarding "Down-Downs" for misdemeanors real, imagined, or blatantly made up, and the recipients will most likely have been dobbed in by their fellow hashers. Generally the activities will also include the group singing of bawdy drinking songs of the type that can be heard in an old pub, fraternity party, military get-together, rugby match, or other such social gathering with or without specially added hash house verses. At the conclusion of the Circle, the hashers may head to a "Bash", which may be at a nearby restaurant for grub and libations with which to wash it down. This is the social part of the hash, and the party may last from one hour to several hours, as they tell stories, have fun, and enjoy everyone's company.
Generally no reservations are required to join a group, and typically all that is needed is to find out the time and location of the start by viewing the group website, and just showing up. The Taichung Hares conduct a "chalk talk" at the start where the system of hash marks is explained to new hashers and visiting hashers who may be used to a different system of marking.
The Hash Webmaster being ‘named’ in the traditional Taichung Hash ceremony.
The traditional symbol of the Hash House Harriers is the On-On Foot.
The following are some minor details that you need to know and will make your hashing experience with the Taichung Hash more enjoyable.
• Unfortunately we are unable to support alcoholics for free and therefore require a donation of NT$200 for women and NT$300 for men (this maybe more for special runs when a T-shirt is included). Having paid this, you are free to walk, run, eat and drink as much as you like!
• Clothes and shoes will get wet or muddy on the trail and are no fun for standing around and drinking beer in. So bring extras and a towel as there is normally a hose somewhere for a rinse down. Sun block (especially in the summer) and insect repellant are also useful.
• ALWAYS STICK CLOSE TO THE TRAIL. If you walk for more than 100 meters without seeing a mark then STOP! Go back to the last mark you saw and try again. We aim not to leave anybody out in the jungle, and it makes any search and rescue operations much easier if people who have lost their way are still on the trail somewhere - the Hares will find you!
• Laugh at yourself and fellow hashers in equal quantities! We are all plainly mad for participating in this ‘sport’, and therefore should never take ourselves too seriously!
