Let’s GO! 2026

The Annual Happi Coat Run

It was a beautiful day in Pattaya, as we gathered round in anticipation of a great trail. Although this was the Happi Coat run, it is too hot to wear a happi coat before the sun goes down, but we made an effort. The haberdashery for the day was an excellent and colorful pair of shorts.

Once the pack of nearly 100 hashers had assembled, the GM sent us off on an excellent 7+ km shiggy trail, complete with sand dunes, water crossings, and tall grass. A welcome endeavor after some monotonous (and several rained out) pavement pounders we have been running in Bangkok the past couple weeks. Most of the pack completed the awesome trail in a bit over an hour, and we hit the beer truck for some much needed rehydration.

After the trail, the hares provided some tasty pasta with mushroom sauce, so we not only had plenty to drink . . . our bellies were full as well. We then circled up for a bit of entertainment. Many charges ensued, and discussion of the happi coat theme. I made some small comments that I did not invent the happi coat, it comes from Japan (and probably the Okinawa H3 were the first to adopt them as hash attire), but I did make them a worldwide phenomenon.

So here is how it happened . . . I started my hashing life with the Okinawa H3 back in 1984, and the hash elders at that time would wear the infamous Orange & Blue happi coats in the circle or at hash parties. As a young enlisted Marine, I could not afford the US $60 (as I recall) at that time. Fast forward 7 years and I am now in Hawaii having just founded the Aloha H3, and an old friend from Oki, Chikara, visited Hawaii and joined us on the hash. She was wearing her happi coat, and we got to talking of how much I really wanted one. So after she went back to Oki, she sent me one. OK, now fast forward another 8 years and I am in Korea. I had just founded the Seoul Southside H3, and wanted to do something different for this new hash club . . . so I took my Oki H3 happi coat to Mr. Yu in Songtan to see if he could make happi coats with a new design for my new hash club. He thought about it for a bit, and said he could not do the cloth, but could make them out a lighter nylon like material. Excellent, so I had about 25 made. I then started to wear my new happi coat to various places in the USA on various business trips . . . back in Hawaii, to Washington, DC, and others. Everyone thought they were pretty cool, and asked if I could get some made for local hash clubs. Over the next 6 months I ordered and shipped about 300 happi coats to the Aloha H3 in Hawaii, the Over the Hump H3 in Northern Virginia, the Tidewater H3 in Southern Virginia, and the Tampa Bay H3 in Florida. So at that point in mid 2000, several hundred happi coats are popping up all over the USA . . . and then they went viral. Now you can find Happi Coats all over the world, and even in big event goodie bags . . . and it all goes back to 1999 and the Seoul Southside H3. You’re welcome!! 😜

Anyway, getting back to Pattaya, we had an entertaining circle, and as the sun set and things cooled off, more hashers popped on their happi coats and things got really colorful. A very fun and enjoyable day on the hashLäs mer