GAZZETTED RUNS

Mother Hash holds five gazzetted runs each year which are mini-celebration events in their own right for the benefits of the members. There is usually a freebie,on-site makan, extra beers and the club makes a subsidy to offset some of the costs but the hares have to make up the rest of the funds. Guests are always welcome but as these runs are subsidised by members funds, we have to be fair to the members and charge guests a little more than the normal guest fee

The five events are:-

AGM RUN

An annual event held around February each year. Our new office bearers are elected and the old ones, especially the On-Sec, can take a well deserved rest. The On-Sec sets the run, and provides some freebies from club funds if he has managed them well and the On-Cash tells him there is enough money in the kitty. Makan is usually provided on site by the club
 

CHINESE NEW YEAR RUN / CHAP GOH MEI RUN

Chinese New year occurs in the early part of the year, late January or early February and
our Chinamen want to show they can make their contribution to our annual array of runs and so at the end of the Chinese New Year festivities they celebrate with their fellow runners on Chap Goh Mei. This is the fifteenth day of the new year, a traditional ceremony when young maidens throw oranges into the river and dream of the guy who will pick up the orange and marry them. As the female sex are persona non grata on Mondays from 6.00pm onwards the oranges are given out for eating.

Of recent years the Chinese delegation has surpassed themselves with the organisation of the run. A lion dance has been held to start the run, excellent freebies given out and followed by good food and drink. This is all funded by the Chinamen who dig deep into their pockets to cover all the costs.
 

CAN-AM RUN

Set around early July, conveniently to July 4th ( American Independence Day ) and July 1st( Canada Day ). The American and Canadian members join forces to set the run. Of recent years Ted Quirk has been the backbone of the organisation setting up the event. If there are not enough Canadians or Americans Ted has co-opted Malaysians to be Americans for the day, most notable in 1998 when Peter Cushion was roped in. Usually the team has excelled with their celebration run summoning funds from the Can-Am community in addition to the club subsidy to provide excellent momentos. These days the runs are orgainised by Texan American Jimmy Legget and Canadian Barry Dawe.
 
 

MERDEKA DAY RUN
with contributions from ex-member Pola Singh
 

The initial team was the Merdeka Gang comprising:-

Rosely Ahmad ( Fuckawee ), Peter Cushion ( Chan Yoon Sooi ), Charlie 'Dynamite' Chandran, PolaSingh, Patrick Coyle.

This Gang gave their flavour to the annual event for  5 years until 1997 and in 1998 Muhibbah TeamTwo took over, this comprised:-

Zaki Hamzah, ChrisTan, Big Kana, Rob Stott.

For 1999 Big Kana was changed to Charlie 'Dynamite' Chandran but the run continued with its usual format.

The run site is usually bedecked with bunting and flying of the national flags, and the hares welcome the runners after the run in their respective national gears, or patriotic t-shirts and shorts. The hares dip into their pockets to provide a commemorative souvenir and the club provides on-site food.
 

DEEPAVALI DAYRUN
with contributions from ex-member Pola Singh

Deepavali, the Festival of Lights is celebrated by the Hindu community to acknowledge the triumph of good over evil, wisdom over ignorance, and light over darkness. The Hindu belief is steeped in mythology and one of the two legends relate to the origin of Deepavali tells of the victory of Lord Krishna over the demonking Narakasura. To celebrate Lord Krishna's victory, the people decorate their homes with tiny oil lamps. Members of Mother Hash of Indian origin take this opportunity to acknowledge the goodness of hashing over other unhealthy activities by organising a Deepavali run with goodies and free hot spicy makan (best Indian food in town) thrown in. The Indian connection gets together to celebrate the Indian Festival of Lights for another of Mother Hash runs that should not be missed.
 

NON- GAZZETTED RUNS
 

JOINT MASTERS RUN

On the first day of every year, whatever the day, the two joint masters set a run. New Year's Day is a public holiday and as traffic is light we can venture to places a little further than we normally go to. It is up to the hares to set the level of celebration,but usually no expense is spared to make the occassion a memorable one.
 

SINGAPORE JOINT RUN

The first joint run between these two ancient hashes was held way back in the sixties of the last century, shortly after the foundation of the Singapore H3 in early 1962, when Mother invited the second Hash chapter to join her for a weekend run in Kuala Lumpur. This run should probably rank as the first ever 'Interhash', in the sense that it was almost certainly the first time two hashes had ever run together and from two different countries. After all there were only two hashes in existence in that year!

Thereafter, the two hashes met up only occasionally and at irregular intervals until, at the initiative of Uncle Looi, the idea of an annual fixture was proposed to SH3 Jointmaster Terry Neal at the 5th Pan Asia Hash in Kuching in 1995. Terry agreed and conveyed the idea to the SH3 Committee. The joint run proposal was later suggested at one of Mother Hash's council meetings, where it was also accepted. Terry was called in Singapore, but he had been transferred to Korea. Their On Sec, Peter Kemeny was called who said that the Singapore H3 Committee also accepted. Since Mother Hash is the first hash in the world we should have the privilege to host the first joint run of the series in Kuala Lumpur. So happily, the joint runs were started. Each year, the two chapters take turns to host the runs in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
 

ST. PATRICK'S DAY RUN

St. Patrick is the patron Saint of Ireland, and in our midst we had the late Patrick Coyle a devoted Irishman who wanted to make sure that we join him in his national day celebrations. The actual St. Patrick's Day is on 17th March each year and the nearest convenient Monday is selected for the run. Since the passing of Patrick Coyle in 2004, Danny McBride, as the only other representative of Irishness on the MotherHash took over the runs. Though he has migrated to Australia, he returns periodically and we hope he will coincide his visits with the St. Patrick's Day. The highlight of the after run shenanigans is the serving of green coloured beer and poteen, a potent brew which is made illegally by illicit brewers in the mountains of the west of Ireland.
 

ST. GEORGE'S DAY RUN
with help from the late Nick Mason

St. George is the patron saint of England. Ask an Irishman, Scotsman, or Welshman when their respective national day is and you will get the correct answer. Ask an Englishman when St. George's day is and you will be met with a blank look. Even the Irishman, Scotsman, or Welshman will know the date better than the Englishman. The English do not seem to have this nationalistic attitude within them and they do not feel any loss of nationality nor any want to prove anything.

No nation has been half so successful as England over the past 500 years. Other countries have had good patches; in the 16 ^th century the Spanish were in charge, then the French were, predominant under Louis XIV, currently the US holds sway. But no one has been Top Nation so often, or for as long as the English.

And even today when we've divested our empire we still secretly believe it's best to be English. Most of us think- and with some justification - that no other nation is as tolerant and as civilised as we are.

Naturally, it is desperately un-English to give vent to thoughts like these. The Englishman's superiority is so unstated, but it's there all the same. That's why foreigners hate us so much. In Hollywood movies - just think of the Titanic - the English are cold and ruthless as a matter of course.

We never boast about our achievements for the simple reason we do not have to. Our soil has not been invaded for1,000 years, which is why we don't go in for absurd national posturing like the French. We did not have to invent our national identity, which is why we don't make our children wave the national flag in class like the Americans. There are no English symbols because we don't need them.

However, to show the other nations that there is a subliminal English pride, ex-member Colin King and the late Nick Mason set about showing the others some englishness. ( incidently, St. George's day is on the 23 ^rd April )

The inaugural run was in 1997 and was set in Tuan Mee estate and the On-On english style fare was provided, fish and chips, pickled eggs and onions, all wrapped up lovingly in newspapers. A stylish T-shirt was also given out which has proven to be a collector's item. 1998 saw the run in Ulu Yam with another successful event concluded. This tradition has since been continued by other englishmen in varying ways.
 
 

MOONCAKE FESTIVAL RUN
Research courtesy of Guiness Khoo

The Moon Cake Festival or the Mid-Autumn Festival occurs on the 15^th Day of the 8^th Moon of the Lunar Calendar, which occurs in September. There are several versions on how the festival came about.

One says, it originated in the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 AD) but it may be as far back as the reign of Emperor Yao in 2346 BC. It mentioned a famous archer, Hao Yue, who shot down nine of the ten suns in the sky to stop the earth from burning. Later, the hero was given the pill of immortality by the Queen Mother of the Western Paradise to make sure the he would still be around to save the world should history repeat itself. But Chang O, believing she is the most beautiful woman in the world deserves the honour. She swallowed it and floated to the moon. The Queen Mother punished her by turning her into a toad, sitting in the Palace of the Moon, forever pounding the medicine for another pill of immortality. (Some of our members have obviously been looking for this elusive pill, which is why they get lost on the runs!! Ask Guiness Khoo himself!)

In another Chinese mythology the Chinese believe a noble rabbit inhabits the moon. This special rabbit sacrificed himself by throwing himself into a blazing fire for a hungry old man. It turned out he was Lord Buddha himself. He was so touched that he resurrected the rabbit to the moon so that he could be remembered.

During the Yuan Dynasty (1206 to 1341 AD) China was suppressed by the Mongols. Leaders were placed under house arrest, and large groups were not allowed to gather. Even at that time moon cakes were exchanged during the mid-autumn festival. Opportunity was taken to smuggle messages to communicate to stage a revolt. The oppressors were overthrown. Up to this day moon cakes were used for the Mid-Autumn Festival to commemorate the event.

Red bean and lotus seed moon cakes stuffed with a combination of egg yolks, melon, sesame and olive seeds, and almonds are musts in celebrating the festival. Sometimes they are pandan or durian flavoured. Children will be playing with multi-coloured lanterns in various forms, and the fairer sex will be praying to the moon.

Our members, King Kong and Charlie took it upon themselves to set a run to celebrate this event in 198 ?