Hash History
Hashing started in 1938 in Kuala Lumpur in what was then Malaya. It was conceived by three expatriate Brits who belonged to the prestigious Selangor Club (still standing to this day as a historic social club, fronting on to the cricket ground in the centre of Kuala Lumpur.)
The Club’s dining annex was derogatorily referred to as The Hash House (presumably because it served horrific British fare). The Hash founders wanted a sport which involved some energetic physical activity without getting in the way of their beer drinking routines.
So hashing was born, a fun run based on the Hounds and Hares concept – following a prepared trail through the stunning Malayan countryside.
Trails were set with flour and led back to a drinking establishment where merriment and irreverent camaraderie ensued. Today, there are Hash kennels in some 110 countries and territories around the world.
Some countries, like Britain, Australia and the US have over a hundred kennels each. Hashing has it’s rules, customs and traditions. Hashers have hash names, mostly ego-bruising or revealing personal shortcomings or peccadillo’s. An international hash (InterHash) is held in a different part of the world every two years often with over 4,000 hashers in attendance.
Grenada’s Kennel Founder & Specialty Hashes:
Grenada’s kennel was founded by Paul “Rigor Mortis” Slinger in 1985 and a yearly Founder’s Hash is held at his house, “The Tower” in St Paul’s – surely the most prestigious rum shop on the island.
Other specialty hashes have been held.
A “Designer Hash” was run from La Sagesse Nature Centre by its owner, Mike “Miami Vice” Meranski. Hashers were encouraged to come dressed in creations of their own design. It was not a pretty sight.
A subsequent “Lingerie Hash” was organised by Mike; again, not something you would invite your maiden aunt to.
A “Red Dress Run” is held near Valentines Day every year and all hashers men and women come dressed in red dresses. It is quite a sight to see all our beautiful guys and gals in their sexy red dress finery. The red dress run in Grenada is a charity fund raiser that is growing in popularity every year.
Hash Master/Mistress & Hash Names
Hash kennels have their own personality and this largely mirrors the character, or lack thereof, of the Hash Master or Hash Mistress. The Grenada Hash House Harriers have just appointed a new hash master Brian “Grab De Pussy” Steele who promises great things this upcoming year! His predecessor “Commando” served two years as leader of our unruly bunch and her sweet smile and laugh while plotting wicked punishments for rule breaking hashers during the after hash ceremony has caught more than one hasher unawares.
Their predecessors are no role models either.
BoPeep One of them, Arthur “Bo-Peep” Bain (also a pilot) got his hash name for consistently losing hashers in the bush. Another, Paul “Mother Trucker” Greaves drives a dodgy truck piled high with hashers and was so bad that he was retained as Hash Master for three years, instead of one. Ken “Mistletoe” Sylvester got his hash name for lamenting the loss of a toe to a lawn mower. He is only tolerated in the Hash because he is the importer of Piton beer, an excellent brew from St Lucia. The last Hash Mistress on record in Grenada set such flaky and sadistic hashes that she fully earned her name (“Cereal Killer”)
Being given a hash name is the ultimate accolade in hashing and it is only done when enough is known about you and your failings. Hash names are not meant to be honorific; indeed they are invariably derogatory or humiliating. Hence “Distillery Dame”; “Yours for a Carib”; “Fish-Head”; “Rancid”; “Frog’s Legs”; Garlic Pot”; “Wet Job”; “Mud Rat”; “Early To Bed”; “Flash Flood Queen”; “Stubby”; “Potty”; “Fungus Amungus”; “Quick Drawers”; “Wino” (and his wife “Why Not?”); “Putrid”; “Pecker Checker”; “Tight Fit” etc etc.