Hashing 101
What is Hashing?
Briefly it's where a group of people, "Hashers", follow a cryptic trail that has been marked with flour by the "Hare". This trail leads to beer, water, snacks, and a lot of camaraderie. Some people run, some people walk, but they all follow these cryptic marks along streets, trails, and off the beaten path until they find a beer stop. Now there is water there too, and snacks, but really we are known as a Beer Drinking Club with a Running Problem.
DOWN-DOWN NECESSITIES
Here in are some of the songs that we will be using during the down-down's they are the more standard ones that accompany almost all Hash Runs. Learn them, know them, love them, live them...
and by the way...some are NOT for the faint of heart...
1. BLESSING OF THE HARES
Optional prayer offered by religious adviser before the hash. This is the bare-bones version; in practice it's often embellished.
Bless these hares,
Bless this trail,
Coppus no catch us,
Farmer no shoot us,
Doggus no bite us,
Heatus no stroke us,
Plenty of cold beer to drink,
Coitus non interruptus.
2. DOES A HASHER?
Melody: ”Do Your Ears Hang Low?"
Does a hasher like to walk,
Does a hasher like to run,
Does a hasher like to be where they're having all the fun?
Can he drink a 12-ounce beer,
While his friends all sing and cheer,
Now your time has come.
So drink it down, down, etc . . .
3. HERE'S TO ________
The basic Down Down songs. The first version is more common than the second.
VERSION # 1
Here's to ______,
He's true blue,
He's a hasher (bastard),
Through and through,
He's a pisspot (hasher),
So they say,
Tried to go to heaven (he'll never get to heaven),
But he went the other way (in a long, long way),
So drink it down, down, etc . . .
VERSION # 2
Here's to ______,
She's a damn fine gal,
Here's to ______,
She's a damn fine gal,
So drink, chug-a-lug, chug-a-lug,
chug-a-lug, chug-a-lug, chug-a-lug, chug-a-lug,
Here's to ______,
She's a horse's ass.
Hey, hey, hey, hey, etc . . .
4. HERE'S TO BROTHER (SISTER) HASHER(S)
Melody: ”Ach, Du Lieber Augustin"
Here's to brother hasher,
Bother hasher, brother hasher,
Here's to brother hasher,
May he chug-a-lug.
He's happy, he's jolly,
He's fucked up by golly,
Here's to brother hasher,
May he chug-a-lug.
So drink motherfucker,
Drink motherfucker,
Drink motherfucker,
Drink motherfucker,
Here's to brother hasher,
May he chug-a-lug.
5. INTERNATIONAL HASH HYMN
Melody: ”Swing Low, Sweet Chariot"
This is the universal hash song (also well-known outside the hash; I learned it in the Air Force years ago). The idea is to accompany the words with rude gestures; e.g., masturbating motions at the word "coming," grasping the reins of the "chariot," and so on. There are gestures for virtually every word of the song, and it is sung first with words and motions, then with humming and motions, then with motions only.
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
I looked over Jordan and what did I see,
Coming for to carry me home,
A band of angels coming after me,
Coming for to carry me home.
If you get there before I do,
Coming for to carry me home,
Tell all my friends that I'm coming too,
Coming for to carry me home.
(repeat with variations: humming and motions only, silence and motions only, double-time)
6. WHY WAS HE BORN SO BEAUTIFUL?
Why was he born so beautiful?
Why was he born at all?
He's no fuckin' use to anyone,
He's no bloody use at all.
(optional verses)
They say he's a joy to his mother,
But he's a pain in the asshole to me,
He's fresh as a daisy,
He drives me crazy,
So drink it down, down, etc . . .
7. ZICKY-ZACKY
Purpose of the zicky-zacky chant is to point out and punish offenders of circle etiquette, members of the circle point elbows at the offender and chant loudly:
Zicky-zacky, zicky-zacky,
Hoy! Hoy! Hoy!
Zicky-zacky, zicky-zacky,
Hoy! Hoy! Hoy!
Zicky-zacky, zicky-zacky,
Hoy! Hoy! Hoy!
and so on until offender completes a down-down . . .
General Hashing Knowledge
Everything You Wanted to Know About Hashing
(from wikipedia.com)
The Hash House Harriers (abbreviated to HHH, H3, or referred to simply as Hashing) is an international group of non-competitive running, social and drinking clubs. An event organized by a club is known as a Hash, or Hash Run with participants calling themselves Hashers.
Organization
The Hash House Harriers is a decentralized organization with each chapter (sometimes called a Kennel) individually managed with no uniting organizational hierarchy (although the locations of national and international gatherings are decided by a meeting involving representatives from a number of hashes). A kennel's management is typically known as the MisManagement and consists of individuals with various duties and titles. There are more than 1,700 kennels spanning all seven continents. Most major cities are home to at least one chapter. Kennels typically contain 20-100 members, usually mixed-sex and some metropolitan area Hashes can draw more than 1,000 hashers to an event.
History
Hashing originated in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1938, when a group of British colonial officers and expatriates began meeting on Monday evenings to run, in a fashion patterned after the traditional British Paper Chase or "Hare and Hounds", to rid themselves of the excesses of the previous weekend. The original members included Cecil Lee, Frederick "Horse" Thomson, Ronald "Torch" Bennett, Albert Stephen (A.S.) Ignatius "G" Gispert and John Woodrow.
After meeting for some months, they were informed by the Registrar of Societies that as a "group," they would require a Constitution and an official name. A. S. Gispert suggested the name "Hash House Harriers" after the Selangor Club Annex, where the men were billeted, known as the "Hash House" for its notoriously monotonous food. Apart from the excitement of chasing the hare and finding the trail, harriers reaching the end of the trail would be rewarded with beer, ginger beer and cigarettes.
The Constitution of the Hash House Harriers is recorded on a club registration card dated 1950:
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 died out during World War II after the invasion of Malaysia, but was re-started after the war by most of the original group, minus A. S. Gispert, who was killed in the Japanese invasion of Singapore.
Apart from a "one-off" chapter formed on the Italian Riviera, growth of Hashing remained small until 1962, when Ian Cumming founded the second kennel, in Singapore. The idea then spread through the Far East, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, and North America, booming in popularity during the mid-1970s.
At present, there are almost two thousand kennels in all parts of the world, with members distributing newsletters, directories, and magazines and organizing regional and world Hashing events. As of 2003, there are even two organized kennels operating in Antarctica.
Events
Most kennels gather on a weekly or monthly basis, though some events occur sporadically, e.g. February 29th, Friday the 13th, or a full moon.
At a Hash, one or more members (Hares) lay a trail, which is then followed by the remainder of the group (the Pack or Hounds). The trail often includes false trails, short cuts, dead ends, and splits. These features are designed to keep the pack together regardless of fitness level or running speed, as front-runners are forced to slow down to find the "true" trail, allowing stragglers to catch up.
Members often describe their group as "a drinking club with a running problem," indicating that the social element of an event is as important, if not more so, than any athleticism involved. Beer remains an integral part of a Hash, though the balance between running and drinking differs between kennels, with some groups placing more focus on socializing and others on running.
Generally, Hash events are open to the public and require no reservation or membership, but some may require a small fee, referred to as hashcash, to cover the costs incurred, such as food or drink.
The end of a trail is an opportunity to socialize, have a drink and observe any traditions of the individual kennel (see Traditions). When the Hash officially ends, many members may continue socializing at an On-After or On-On-On, an event held at a nearby house, pub, or restaurant.
Special Events
In addition to regularly-scheduled Hashes, a kennel may also organize other events or themed runs.
A common special event is the Red Dress Run, and is held annually by individual kennels. According to hasher lore, a newcomer in San Diego was invited to a hash; unbeknownst to her it was a running group, and she attended the run in a red dress instead of running clothes. After being mocked for wearing such an outfit she ran the trail anyway. Other hashers began wearing red dresses as a joke and the tradition soon became an annual event that spread across the world. The point of the run is that all participants (both sexes) don red dresses of various sorts. The Red Dress Run is typically the largest event organized by a kennel in a given year, with attendance topping 2,000 in San Diego, and 600 in Washington, D.C.. The largest Red Dress Run event is currently in New Orleans, with approximately 5000 participants.
Red Dress Runs are traditionally used as charity fundraisers, although the hash itself is not per se a charitable body.
Variations
Bicycle hashes (bashes) follow normal hashing traditions with the hare and pack riding bicycles.
Family hashes welcome children (sometimes called Hash House Horrors) with soft drinks replacing alcoholic beverages and drinking songs toned down appropriately.
Trails
Hashing hasn't strayed far from its roots in Kuala Lumpur. The hare(s) mark their trail with paper, chalk, sawdust, or colored flour, depending on the environment and weather.
Special marks may be used to indicate a false trail, a backtrack, a shortcut, or a turn. The most commonly-used mark is a Check, indicating that hashers will have to search in any direction to find the continuation of the trail. Trails may contain a Beer Check, where the pack stops to consume beer, water, or snacks, allowing any stragglers to catch up to the group.
Trails may pass through any sort of terrain and hashers may run through back alleyways, residential areas, city streets, forests, swamps, or shopping malls and may climb fences, ford streams, explore storm drains or scale cliffs in their pursuit of the hare.
Signals & Terms
Hashers often carry horns or whistles to communicate with each other, in addition to verbal communication. Every Hash House employs its own set of marks and the names for these marks may vary widely, so newcomers or visitors will have the local markings explained to them before the run at a Chalk Talk. Additionally, the hares for that particular run may give some trail-specific advice, such as rare markings or particular obstacles.
Trail Types
There are two types of trails. Live Trails are laid by hares who are given a head start, while Dead Trails are pre-laid hours or days before the Hash begins. Live trails and dead trails are also known as Live Hare and Dead Hare trails, respectively. Live trails are closer to the original "Hare and Hound" tradition, with the intent of the pack being to catch the hare rather than making it to the end, and are more common in the United States, while the rest of the world tends toward dead trails.
A trail may be "A to A," where the trail returns to the start, or "A to B," where the beginning and end of the trail are widely separated. Some trails are referred to as "A to A1 (prime)", denoting an ending point that is close to (usually short walking distance), but not the same as the start.
Traditions
Circles
Most hash events end with a group gathering known as the Circle, or less commonly as Religion. Led by kennel leadership, the Circle provides a time to socialize, sing drinking songs, recognize individuals, formally name members, or inform the group of pertinent news or upcoming events.
Circles may be led by the Kennel Grandmaster, the group's Religious Adviser, or by a committee.
Down-Downs
A Down-Down is a means of punishing, rewarding, or merely recognizing an individual for any action or behavior according to the customs or whims of the group. Generally, the individual in question is asked to consume without pause the contents of his or her drinking vessel or risk pouring the remaining contents on his or her head. Individuals may be recognized for outstanding service, or for their status as a visitor or newcomer. Down-Downs also serve as punishment for misdemeanors real, imagined, or blatantly made up. Such transgressions may include: failing to stop at the beer check, pointing with a finger, or the use of real names.
A special type of down-down is often reserved for hashers who wear new shoes to an event. The hasher is required to remove one shoe, which then serves as the vessel for the down-down. In some kennels the beer is further filtered through the accused's sock.
Many kennels include an ice seat or throne as part of the down-down ceremony. Those who are to consume a down-down sit on a large block of ice while they await the completion of the down-down song. If the offense that resulted in the down-down is particularly egregious, the hasher may be subjected to a long song with many verses. In some kennels the hasher must remove any attire that comes between his/her seat and the ice; others allow the hashers to keep their underwear on but require that the outer legwear be removed.
Hash Names
In most kennels, the use of real names during an event is discouraged. Members are typically given a "hash name," usually in deference to a particularly notorious escapade, a personality trait, or their physical appearance. In some kennels the name must be earned - that is, hashers are not named until they've done something outstanding, unusual, or stupid enough to warrant a name. In other kennels the process is more mechanical and hashers are named after completing a certain number of events (5-10 being the most common).
Some kennels focus on "family-friendly" names (for example: Lost My Way); others focus on names filled with innuendo (for example: Salt Lick); and some go out of their way to make the name as bawdy, scatological, or offensive as possible (no example given because these names are limited to the imagination of the kennel). Many kennels go out of their way to give politically incorrect names.
For those hashers who have not been named, they are generally referred to as "Just (Name)", e.g. "Just Dave", or "No Fucking Hash Name (Name), e.g. "No Fucking Hash Name Jessica".
Hashers are not permitted to give themselves nicknames due to the obvious conflict of interest. Hashers who do so are often renamed by the kennel at the earliest opportunity and with a more offensive name. Similarly, hashers who do get named and don't like their name may end up being renamed by their kennel, the members of whom will strive to give the complaining hasher an even more offensive or inappropriate name.
Symbols
The traditional symbol of hashing is the outline of a human foot, often including the phrase "On-On."
Terms
| "Are You?" (RU?) | Question shouted by the pack to FRBs, meaning "Are you on the trail?" |
| Back check | Trail mark indicating that back tracking is necessary in order to find the true trail because the true trail branches off prior to the check mark |
| Back hare/Sweep hare/Sweeper/checking chicken | Hare who remains with the last runners |
| Bash | Bicycle Hash |
| Beer Check | Beverage stop or trail mark indicating a beverage stop |
| Beermeister/master | The person that supplies the beer, soda, water, and chips for the hash |
| Check | Trail mark indicating the true trail must be sought out from the false trails. |
| Circle | Assembly of hashers at trail's end, normally for the purpose of conducting down-downs |
| "Checking" | Answer shouted by FRB to pack when asked "Are You?", indicating that FRB has not determined whether the trail he's following is true or false |
| Down-Down | The ceremony of quaffing a beverage (an honor) |
| False trail | A short trail ended with the Tee sign, three lines, or other mark indicating termination |
| FRB | Front-Running Bastard: faster members of the pack, or the first to arrive at the on-in. |
| Grand Master/Mistress (GM) | Mismanagement member, ceremonial leader of the hash. This term is, in many hashes, given to the Hash Master/Mistress after his tenure. |
| Grand Mattress (GM) | Synonym for Grand Mistress. |
| Haberdasher | Mismanagement member in charge of T-shirts, hats, mementos, etc. |
| Hare | Hasher who lays the trail. |
| Hare Raiser | Mismanagement member in charge of lining up hares for future trails |
| Harriette | Female hasher |
| Hash Cash | Mismanagement member; the treasurer |
| Hash Flash | Designated photographer for hash events |
| Hash Horn | Mismanagement member; carries a horn or bugle on trail, blows it to encourage and guide the pack |
| Hash House | The Selangor Club in Kuala Lumpur, meeting place of the Mother Hash |
| Hash House Harrier/Harriette | Any hasher |
| Hash Name | Nickname, usually bestowed after a set number of runs or in honour of a notable incident; not used by all hashes. |
| Hash Trash | Newsletter, usually with reports of previous hashes and a list of upcoming events. |
| Hash Shit | Offensive or embarrassing object awarded to a hasher for notable on-trail accomplishments, normally carried by the awardee on subsequent trails until it is awarded to someone else. |
| Hashing | The act of running a hash trail |
| Held/hold Check | Trail mark indicating an intersection where true trail may take another direction, but requires hashers to wait until ordered by the hare to 'check it out' |
| Horrors | Children of hashers |
| Hounds | The body of hashers in pursuit of the hare, see also Pack |
| Interhash | World hash gathering |
| Kennel or Chapter | Local Hash Group |
| Live Hare | Hare who gets a nominal head start and is pursued by the pack as he or she lays trail |
| Mismanagement | Hash officials; sometimes elected, sometimes appointed |
| Nash hash | A national gathering of Hashers |
| "On Call" | Shouted in response to "Are you" by a hashers to indicate that while they do not see any trail markings, they are following someone else's "On On" calls. |
| On In / On Inn | Trail's end, also On-Inn; trail mark indicating proximity to end |
| "On On" | Shouted by FRBs or hounds (or hashers) to indicate they are on true trail. Only shouted by a hasher to indicate they see true trail markings. See also "On Call" |
| On Sec | Mismanagement member normally in charge of hash rosters, run records, etc |
| Puppies | Children of hashers, see "Horrors" |
| Receding Hareline | List of up-and-coming hash events, normally printed in the Hash Trash |
| Religious Advisor (RA) | Mismanagement member, often in charge of Circle, also in charge of blessing the hash and settling disputes over tradition. Also considered to be responsible for the weather. |
| Scribe | Mismanagement member normally in charge of writing The Words |
| SCB | Short-Cutting Bastard: habitual short-cutter |
| Shiggy | Thick vegetation, streams, etc; especially mud. See also Vertical Shiggy. |
| Sweeper | see Back hare |
| Virgin | Hash newbie; first-time hasher. |