Hashing Out Good Times: A Closer Look at the Beijing Hash House Harriers
Few groups have been around in Beijing as long as the Hash House Harriers. The group has called the capital home since way back in 1979.
This international club is far older than that, with the Beijing Hash House Harriers but one of many subgroups making up a group whose groundwork was laid down in Malaysia more than 80 years ago. But try as one might, for the uninitiated it’s difficult to pin down what exactly hash is.
Billed on their website as a “drinking group with a running problem,” it’d be easy to write off the Hash House Harriers (HHH) as a running club with a sense of humor. According to general manager Mia Wu, though, “It’s not really a fitness group.”
I’m with Wu and Boxer Hash (more on that below) manager Erik Truedson on a Sunday night in early November. It’s getting close to the group’s “7-Eleven Hash,” a twice-yearly event whose rules and layout shed a little more light on what hash, or hashing, is.
“It happens every year on Jul 11 and Nov 7,” explains Wu. “And for the Nov 7 one, participants have to drink 11 beers” while stopping off at 11 7-Eleven stores on a set trail. The objective is to finish as many beers as possible and tape the empty cans together to make a “staff.” Whoever has the longest staff essentially “wins” the event. A bit of danger, a bit of fun, and a bit of crazy, all rolled into one.
This, simply put, is the blueprint for all hash events. There are five groups under the Beijing HHH umbrella. There’s the original group, founded over 40 years ago; Boxer Hash, which organizes hikes and trail runs; Fullmoon Hash, which takes place at night; and Bike Hash, which does bicycling and bike polo.
Hash runs, or city hash, as they’re called, happen every weekend on a predetermined route – set by three “hares” – and consist of a 10k run and shorter walking trail with two beer stops in the middle. The routes taken during a hash, be they a city hash or a trail hash – which happens less regularly – are always off the beaten path, providing ways of exploring a side of Beijing that might be less scenic, or “dirty,” as Wu describes it.
The run is followed by the “circle,” during which more beers are shared and the hares are blamed for what went wrong during the hash.
Of course, it’s all in good fun.
“It’s important to not take everything too literally,” says Truedson, who adds that if you take it too seriously you won’t like it, but if you have a good sense of humor you’ll love it. Everything is done with jest in mind, and while being poked fun of might take time getting used to, the more you attend hash, the more endearing it becomes.
The more you get rubbed, the more you get to know everyone around you, whereas in other running groups you can go here and there – maybe make a few friends – but nobody will miss you if you miss a run, says Truedson.
This is what sets HHH apart from other running groups in Beijing, as Truedson discovered when he first joined about two years ago. Truedson says he had been living in Beijing for a few months and, having done running competitively when he was younger, was on the hunt for a running club to join.
After trying one group for a period of time, he was eventually turned on to HHH and went to his first hash. It stuck after that.
The main thing that brought him in? The feeling that hash went beyond just running and fitness as a hobby. “When taking part in hash, you can be silly, like I can dress up as a prince if I want to,” says Truedson. You can wear costumes, joke around, have fun, and you take this with you. In other running groups it’s more focused on the workout. Whether or not you run fast affects you.
This doesn’t mean HHH doesn’t have people who run fast, only that they get made fun of for running too fast.
It’s this lightheartedness that has led to hash being likened to a cult or a fraternity by some. It certainly has those elements, but it's less all-consuming like a cult and doesn’t take itself as seriously as a frat does.
There is a level of initiation to hash, though. Join in enough hashes and you’ll be given a special hash name – Wu goes by Sneaky Sausage and Truedson is called Pukelid’s Taxivomitry – a sign that you’re part of the club. Awards are also given out based on how many hashes you take part in. In particular, there are special patches for 69 done (if you know, you know), as well as 22 and 250 (which in Chinese are used as slang for stupid).
After each city hash, the hashers make their way to Paddy O’Shea’s, which has been the official home for Beijing HHH for many years. It’s here where some interesting memories have been made, with some members even gaining a bit of infamy in Singapore during the Winter Olympics.
The incident I’m referring to happened when a few HHH members were in Paddy’s and one of them, a first-timer, noticed a camera and a reporter taking in the scene during an Olympics screening night. The guy in question grabbed his friend, and gave him a fake kiss.
Clips of the “kiss” spread all through WeChat, and it earned this daring individual his hasher name: Singaporn Star.
International incidents aside, Paddy’s is also a regular stop on the Con events HHH does in part with DJ and events organizer Vincent Von Rock. “Thus far we’ve done LepreCon, Halloween Con, and Santa Con, which is the next one coming up,” says Truedson.
What sets the holiday Cons apart from normal hash runs is that regular folks can take part in the event, which is split into the hash run and a separate run that’s more akin to a pub crawl. While certain elements of normal hashes remain, like the circle, these special events are a little more laid back. This makes the Cons a good way to gain new recruits, which has been harder following Covid.
Like many other internationally minded social clubs in Beijing, HHH has been hit hard by the fact that many people have left but not much fresh blood is coming into the country. But what they lack in new members they make up for with the camaraderie that hash brings.
“For those who leave Beijing and HHH, we tell them, ‘Fuck off, wanker,’” laughs Wu. As with everything at HHH, this is more of a joke than anything, as well as something for those who leave to take with them to remember hashing by.
If you want to take part in a future Beijing HHH event, follow them on WeChat (search ID Beijing Hash or scan the QR above) or find out more about the group and hashing via their website at hash.cn
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Images: courtesy of the Beijing HHH
