2025 -Time Marches On On . . .

Another in the old hash clubs of the United Kingdom series.

It was an awesome night time 7+ km trail in the dark. We had about 20 on trail, and it was full of great little passageways, pastures, and dirt tracks. Didn't get many pictures, and none of them very good. As for the history . . .

The Weybridge H3 has an interesting twist to the founding and naming of this hash club. Their first run occurred on 25 Jul 1976 and was organized by the founder, Chris Fletcher. Chris had been running with the Seoul H3 and copied the logo from them. Plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery after all.

How the Weybridge H3 got its name . . . The following explanation comes from the Weybridge H3 website. They had completed their first trail, and since many were new to the sport, the known history of that time was explained to the pack. There was enough interest that another hash was scheduled a week or two later, and they decided to call themselves the Surrey H3.

For the first few months, they ran trails on Sunday afternoons at 1400, but due to conflicts with other family activities, and the shear fact that most pubs in the area were closing at 1400, the decision was made to move their start time to 1100. Their first trail starting at 1100 was in Oct of the same year. They met up at Plough Coldharbour, but they thought no hare had been designated, until . . .

. . . suddenly the Hare, Keith Strainge, broke out of some bushes and panted up to us; "It's mayhem out there! I started laying some paper (we used computer punchings in those days, very non pc!) then came across another load of trail markings, my trail is mixed up with it, it crosses it all over the place, total disaster!"

Just then we hear a shout; "OnOn" and "Toot Toot" (a hunting horn!) and lo and behold a bunch of tough, athletic looking runners appear running and calling down OUR trail. One, maybe it was Ron (the On) Walters, had a tee shirt with "Surrey Hash" hand painted on, Oh dear what's going on? Are they going to "bash us up"?

Well, they ground to a halt because they were doing the reverse of our "out trail" which went to the landslip car park where they had started! After a short "discussion" ("we are the Surrey Hash!" "NO WE are!" etc.etc.), we decided try and follow our respective trails, their marks and paper were slightly different from ours, and we meet up afterwards at the Plough to "sort things out".

Following our trail was just about possible, and they seemed to get around theirs and so we met up at the pub around 1 o'clock. I remember Ron Walters who seemed to be sort of in charge and Lionel Tye and Neil Thompson, who muttered conspiratorially in a corner. It transpired that they were on run 82, we on 11. They had an "On Sec" (Jim Raper who was rich to boot!), we operated by word of mouth. They had "Joint Masters" and a bucket for shandy, we had bugger all! OK, we agreed; you are the Surrey Hash we will call ourselves something else . . . We got together and debated our name... Addlestone Hash House Harriers? NO too common, says Tony Shore; let's be WEYBRIDGE HHH! That's more acceptable (and POSH!)! And so it was to be.

The Weybridge H3 is still very active, now running weekly on Tuesday evenings.Lue lisää