If you are an expat or love to socialize with professionals, try out Madras Hash House.

A running club with drinking problem, or maybe, a drinking club with running problem, that’s what may be described about Madras Hash. Hashers meet for an hour of running/walking followed by a circle, plenty of beer, dinner and fellowship. Keep reading on to know about Madras Hashers.

Hashing since 1990 (21st year of non stop chugaluging) in Madras (also called Chennai)

Great way for expats to socialise with professionals on Sunday afternoons

Madras Hash House Harriers is a family hash which meets every alternate Sunday afternoon. It is the Mother Hash in Madras/Chennai, and all hashers and Hashes participate in it.

Hashers meet for an hour of running/walking followed by a circle, plenty of beer, dinner and fellowship.

Hashers are typically visitors to Madras, expats living in Madras, and Indian professionals and executives.

Madras or Chennai has other hashes too. The Madras Bike Hash is one. On the Sundays MH3 does not hash, the Chennai Hash has it’s Run.

What is Hashing ?

Hashing is a semi-athletic / drinking / social club based on the old English schoolboy’s game of “Hare and Hounds”. It is centered around running and is a non-competitive ( sort of like your sex life ) form of exercise with the unique aspect of allowing the opportunity to vent frustration (running), provide entertainment (drinking beer), release energy (running) and socialize with others (drinking beer). Running is loosely used to mean running, jogging, walking or any other means of conveyance, short of mechanical methods and is usually secondary to the social aspect of hashing. Every Hash and every Hasher is unique in their own way, a good attitude, personality, thirst, humor and a sharp wit are important attributes. We are a Drinking Club with a Running Problem and so if you have half a mind to join us that’s all you need.

History

The Hash House Harriers received its humble beginnings in 1938 from a Britisher named Albert Stephen Ignatius Gispert, in Malaysia. Having a fondness for the game, “Hare and Hounds”, he gathered together a group of friends to form a running club in Kuala Lumpur that would later become a world-wide legacy. The fraternity received its name from the Selangor Club Chambers, which due to the lackluster food served there was commonly referred to as the “Hash House”.

This peaceful endeavor was eventually cut short with the advent of the Japanese invasion of Malaysia, of which several hashers distinguished themselves. Captain Gispert died in the Battle of Singapore, but a fellow Hasher, Torch Bennett, re-established the hash after the war. He also successfully sought war reparations for 24 enamel mugs, a galvanized tin bath and two old bags.

In 1947 a few surviving members of the original Hash House Harriers started operations across the border in Bordighera, Italy, but ceased for several years. It wasn’t until 1962 that the next group was formed in Singapore. The Singapore H3 was slowly followed by others until by the Mother Hash’s 1500th postwar run in 1973, there were thirty-five known hashes around the world. This figure climbed into the hundreds by the eighties and there are now probably well over five thousand active Hashes.

Hashing Only Rule

There are no rules !

What Happens at a Hash ?

The Madras/Chennai area H3’s get together on Sunday late afternoons for a run ( check the Website for details on dates and times or email the Hash to be put on the mailing list), always in a different place to avoid monotony. The Hare will set a trail for the pack (the rest of the Hashers) to follow. Several different methods may be used to lay the trail, the most common being with flour and chalk. Some Hashes use other methods for laying the trail. If it is a Live Hare Run, the Hare is traditionally given a 12-15 minute head-start before the pack starts after. The Hare uses various marks to indicate direction and deviously tries to outwit the pack. The packs purpose is to; catch the Live Hare, if possible, avoid getting lost and continue onward to the next check. Eventually everyone makes it to the On-In where running takes a backseat to socialising. The Hare gets cursed, Hashers with Hash-crimes from the trail get pulled up, beer (soft drinks and water) gets consumed and songs are sung. The On-On-On is another chance to get together after the run, until we’ve eaten and drunk enough.

http://www.madrashash.com/

C o n t a c t :    h a s h@m a d r a s h a s h.c o m