In the Spotlight - Costa Rica

In the Spotlight – Costa Rica

By Ed "Hazukashii" Howell
10 Mar 2022

 

Costa Rica is one of seven countries that make up Central America, but they are all really just part of North America, along with Canada, Greenland, the United States, Mexico, and the Caribbean.  Bordered by Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the east, Costa Rica also has coasts on the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.  As with most of the countries in this region, Spain was the first to dock their ships along the coast, but Costa Rica eventually claimed its independence in 1821.  Aligning with Mexico for a couple years, then the Federal Republic of Central America, Costa Rica achieved its own autonomy in 1838.

 

Costa Rica is a relatively small country, with a population of around 5 million.  The landscape is dominated by over 100 active and extinct volcanos with the most recent eruption in 2010, and is predominately an agriculturally based society.  Although Spanish is the official language, English is widely spoken in urban areas.  Costa Ricans enjoy a high standard of living, making it a popular place for tourism and expat retirement.

 

As you might expect, the Hash House Harriers has also become a staple in the capital city of San Jose.  I spent an afternoon with Ian Young in San Jose recently, where he told me about how he first found the hash in the newspaper in Hong Kong in 1969, and was on trail #2 of the newly formed Hong Kong H3.  Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Ian got a job with Pfizer, and that took him all over the world.  He hashed in Hong Kong for a couple years before being transferred to Korea, where he founded the Seoul H3 in 1972.  He was then sent back to Hong Kong before eventually making his way to Costa Rica. 

 

Costa Rica is a beautiful country, and Ian got busy with other activities for a couple years, and did not feel he was meeting the right sort of people that would be interested in the hash.  That was, until he met Bill Barbee.  Explaining the concept in detail, Bill immediately thought it was a great idea to get a club started, so he and Ian started getting the word out.  The first hash trail set was on 3 Feb 1979, when Ian Young and Bill Barbee founded the San Jose H3.  Although Ian was the founder, he was transferred to Colombia shortly after starting the club, and it was actually Bill Barbee that was the driving force to keep the San Jose H3 going after Ian's departure.  Under Bill's guiding hand, based on what he learned from Ian, the pack continued to grow.  So much so, that with hashers living all over the city, the run start locations were also all over the city.  This went on for over 25 years.

 

Ian continued on with his life and career throughout the 80s and 90s, living in several other countries and eventually starting a family.  He weaved in and out of hashing during this time, but did spend some time in England and Indonesia where he was able to connect with other hash groups, but family life limited his desire to start a new club where there was none.  After retiring from a long and successful career with Pfizer, Ian and his wife moved back to San Jose.

 

As with many metropolitan areas, over the years the growth of the city was outpaced by the growth in traffic, and it became harder to get through town for the weekly runs.  Both Ian and Bill lived in Escazu out in the western suburbs of San Jose, along with many of the old timers, and this group started to miss too many trails.  To ensure everyone was able to get their weekly fix of hashing, a splinter group was formed.  On 10 Jan 2005, Millard 'Fancy Pants' Farmer took the lead on forming the aptly named Escazu H3.  The two-club system went on happily for a number of years, but eventually numbers started to drop much like in other parts of the world.  The breakaway old timers of the Escazu H3 rejoined the others and they all have run together as the San Jose H3 since.   

 

More recently, another new hash club has formed about 3 hours' drive south of San Jose in Uvita, founded by Dave "SCFAL" Peters and Pam "GILF" Kexel.  These two lovers first came to Costa Rica for InterAmericas' Hash in 2003, where they started their lives together.  Going back to their homes in Waukesha, they married and lived happily for many years.  Then, they woke up to the realization that it snows in Wisconsin like 10 months out of the year.  They devised a plan to return to the land that they loved down in Central America, and hatched a plan to build their dream home, along with a few cabanas to rent out. 

 

Although still under construction, Camino a la Paz is a small eco retreat in Uvita that will have rentals of 3 full apartments, with 4 queen beds and 3 futons, sleeping 11 people, along with a pool on site (and camping space if you desire).  The area is full of opportunity for full on adventure hashing, full on beach bum, or somewhere in between.  The facility is surrounded by jungle and wildlife including monkeys, scarlet macaws, sloths, and iguanas.  Along with that the Uvita H3 was born.  If you would like to gather a few hasher friends and try out some hashing in Costa Rica, contact GILF on WhatsApp at 506.8665.6983 and make your reservations (special hash rates apply . . . and you can also help schedule a hash run).  They are hashers through and through and miss their hash family.  If you come and visit, they will set trail, show you around town, or just be available as needed.

 

But wait, that is not the end of the story . . . Costa Rica has another unique aspect when it comes to hashing, dreamed up by Giles "Patchwork-Quilt" Paget-Wilkes.  Patch first arrived in Costa Rica in 1979, just after the San Jose H3 was formed.  He was on run #5 and immediately become a regular.  It would only be a few short years before Patch became the Grand Master of the San Jose H3, and looking out over the world of hashing decided that one city, nor even one country, was big enough for his rule.  He hatched the idea of creating a bigger event . . . making San Jose the birthplace of the biennial InterAmericas' Hash in February 1984. 

 

In the 1985 annual program of the San Jose H3, Patch described it this way.  "As usual this year some great guys have left us for 'greener pastures' . . . However things are changing compared with the early days when people just disappeared, as all of these people are either running with other hashes or have started a new chapter if there was nothing in the town they moved to.  As a result Hashing has spread like wildfire through Central America with 3 new clubs in the last year.  Communication between all these new and existing clubs was greatly improved by the first Inter-Americas Hash, which was held in San Jose this February.  With Hashers from 16 different clubs at the gathering many long lasting relationships were initiated, and this together with greatly increased travel and visiting between the clubs is helping to form a solid hashing network throughout the Hemisphere.  This can only result in benefit and enjoyment for all concerned, which is what hashing is all about." 

 

Patch can also be seen explaining the first INTERAM, as it is now known.  Approximately 250 hashers turned up for that first one, so another was held again in 1985.  INTERAM has continued on the odd years (with the exception of 2021 due to COVID) opposite INTERHASH ever since.  The next one will be the 20^th INTERAM, and is scheduled to take place in September 2023 in Guatape, Colombia.  The whole history of INTERAM is coming out soon.

 

I recently had the pleasure of traveling to San Jose for the 43rd anniversary of hashing in Costa Rica, and was able to meet up with both Ian Young and Patch-Work-Quilt.  I first met PWQ in 1993 on a hash run with the Mosquito County H3 in Florida, that ended at his house.  I'll have more on that in a future article, but on this event we had a fine hash social on Friday night where we got to meet and greet with about 25 hashers.  Saturday, we had a hash trail with the San Jose H3 out in the countryside, along with a BBQ after a short trail (it was 3 miles if you ran it 4 times, like I did).  Keep in mind, the majority of the pack here is in their late 60s and up (Ian will be 80 in May), and the trail was all shiggy with a few obstacles. 

 

On Sunday, we boarded a bus for what was usually a 90 minute drive, but it ended up taking 2.5 hours to get to the beach out in Jaco.  The newly formed Uvita H3 sponsored this trail, which had us first going up the hill for a beer stop on the top of a steep dirt road (with some 4 & 5 points of contact on the eagle loop).  All this leading us up to some great views, then back down for a long stretch on the black sand beach.  We watched a local surfing contest for a bit, then circled up for a few down downs and songs, before grabbing some delightful food and watching the sunset.  We then boarded the bus back into San Jose, which by this time, the beach goers were all doing the same, and it would take 4 hours to get back.  As you might guess, we had to make a couple breaks to download, and upload, more beer.  Costa Rica is amazing, come visit . . . you will not be disappointed.

 

For many more articles like this on the history of hashing, check out . . . http://gotothehash.net/history/inthespotlight.html

 

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On on!

In the Spotlight - Ian Young

In the Spotlight – Ian Young

By Ed "Hazukashii" Howell
7 March 2022

I am always in search of new opportunities to capture HHH History, and this past weekend I flew down to San Jose, Costa Rica to chat with Ian Young.

This journey all started about four or five months ago, while preparing for the upcoming 50^th anniversary of hashing in South Korea.  I sent a short note out to some of my Seoul Bruddahs asking about some old details of the Seoul H3.  I only received a few substantive replies, primarily from Hugh Robinson (who if you have read any of my previous steaming piles of guano) you may recall Hugh started hashing in Korea, and brought it back to the USA, and was the first American to start a (the third hash) club in the USA, the Little Rock H3.  Hugh provided some great info, but another email string lead me to the founder  . . . Ian Young.  Chatting via email, Ian provided some great insight into the early days of the Seoul H3 . . . and it was then I started plotting a trip to Costa Rica.

While having lunch with him today, Ian regaled me with many great stories about his life, and trips to Vietnam (during the war), Japan, Australia, and others.  Going way back, Ian was born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he eventually found a job with Pfizer.  First assigned to Hong Kong, he was in sales, and had the opportunity to travel all over the Far East.  But it was not until 1969 that he first found the HHH.  Ian started hashing in Hong Kong on trail number 2 back in 1969, after seeing an announcement in the local newspaper.  Being a fit fellow, playing rugby and running, he was keen to give it a go.  He took to hashing right from the start, and was a regular.  Fast forward to 1971, and Ian was transferred to Seoul, where after a few months of getting settled, decided to get a hash going.  The first trail was on 11 Jun 1972, and 4 brave souls turned up for that first run, but once the words started getting out, it was not long before the circle of orange began to grow.  Hash circles as we know them today probably stemmed from Jakarta, but due to the extreme temperatures of Korea, a fire was essential while at the end of trail, where the pack would gather round with a cold beer, and keep their buns warm (that is how traditions begin). 

Now, the Seoul H3 is one of my favorite hash clubs, and fast forward to 1997 when I joined the SH3, the circle tradition had been honed into a work of shear brilliance.  Once the GM calls the circle to order around the fire (by the time I got there and probably well before, the fire was present in circle year round), the assembled pack is no longer allowed to speak, unless granted permission.  All down-downs are administered from a bed pan, starting with the hare.  The "Wingee" (FRB) was next, and then the GM would call up random hounds until the beer ran dry, or the time was right.  When you come up for your down-down, you had to sing a good song or tell a good joke . . . the pack would decide what good was.  It made for an orderly circle, there were no side conversations, and you never heard anyone shouting SHUT THE !@#!@ UP!!!    But I digress . . . (don't ask about the secret handshake . . . but I might be accommodating if you come up to me after some future trail with a cold beer).  The Seoul H3 has its own unique closing song, and has spawned 14 other hash clubs, most of them in Korea, Canada, United Kingdom, Costa Rica, China, Cambodia, and several states in the USA.

After ensuring the Seoul H3 was off to a good start, Ian was sent back to Hong Kong for a year and more good times with his old friends, before getting sent to Costa Rica.  A little slower on the draw here, not finding the right sort of people, and having other endeavors to fill his time, he did not get the hash going for almost 2 years.  One day, he met Bill Barbee, and that was all he needed.  Explaining the concept of hashing to Bill, he and Ian set about contacting some others and the San Jose H3 was formed on 3 Feb 1979 as the first hash club in Costa Rica.  It was only a few months later, and Ian was transferred to Colombia for 4 years, where he did not hash at all.  Next up was a three year assignment back in the United Kingdom, south of London, where he managed to hash on occasion.  Next he was sent to Indonesia, where he spent "8 glorious years" running with the Jakarta H3 on occasion, but mostly with the Jakarta Harriettes. 

Ian's last two assignments were in New York City and India, where he never managed to find the hash, mostly because he had a family by now, and was focused on that.  Having completed a successful career as country manager in many locations, he returned to Costa Rica with his wife, where Ian can often be found still scooting along on trail with the San Jose H3.  Ian never really acquired a hash name that stuck, but he was called Chino in Indonesia, and Speedy somewhere else along the way.

Coming soon, Spotlights on Costa Rica and an updated version for South Korea.

For many more articles like this on the history of hashing, check out . . . http://gotothehash.net/history/inthespotlight.html

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On on!

This Sunday's Hash, 6th of March

Hashers,

No announcement for the Hash this week as it's Boat & BBQ Hash for pre-registered Hashers only. The boat is now fully booked to max capacity.

We will inform the registered of the meet time and location in due course.

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On on!

In the Spotlight - Horse (Frederick "Horse" Thomson)

In the Spotlight - Horse (Frederick "Horse" Thomson)

By Ed "Hazukashii" Howell
8 Feb 2022

There are many unattributed references to Horse on the internet, as many hash websites practice the old mantra of plagiarism is the most sincere form of flattery, but most accounts actually go back to work done by John Duncan in the 1970s, and Mike "Father' Lyons and Tim "Magic" Hughes in the 1980s. Many of the accounts came from those who knew him on the hash, prior to his final departure from Kuala Lumpur in 1951. Horse was a founding member of the "Hash House" Harriers. Hash House is emphasized, as at the time, it was just another Harrier club of the day in SE Asia (it would be another 24 years before the HHH would begin to become the worldwide phenomenon it is today).

If you search the WWW, you will find a multitude of listings for Horse Thompson, but Horse is officially listed in the Mother Hash Black Book as THOMSON (HORSE), no first name, and more specifically, no P in THOMSON. Some old accounts also make reference to the names HORSE, TORCH, and G, as early references to hash names, but that is also incorrect. These nicknames were just names they picked up amongst their mates from daily life (as best I can tell from copious hours of research, hash names originated in Jakarta in the mid-1970s).

Why "Horse" you may ask? That nickname originated in his boyhood school days, stated Ralph Wadsworth, (Honorary Secretary of the HHH in 1963, and Joint Master in 1964), and was due to him having what could best be described as a face with equine (long) features. Like most of the other founding members, Horse was a British expat working in SE Asia. In his professional life, Fredrick Thomson was a manager at Malayan telecommunications, which in the 1920s & 30s was telephone and telegraph.

Before arriving in Kuala Lumpur, Horse lived and worked in Johor Bahru, the capital of the state of Johor, Malaya (the name was changed to Malaysia on 16 Sep 1963). Johor Bahru is located approximately 350 Kms south east of Kuala Lumpur on the southern tip of peninsular Malaysia, just across the Strait of Johor between what was peninsular Malaya and Singapore, both of which were part of Malaya in the 1930s (Singapore did not gain its independence until 9 Aug 1965). Horse is quoted as stating, that he had run paper chases in Johor Bahru as far back as 1932. He had also run similar type events in Malacca (aprox 150 Kms south of KL) as part of the Springgit Harriers (this is where Gispert was said to have first run paperchase events). Horse also claimed to have run pre-HHH type events with another club in Taiping (aprox 250 Kms north of KL). They were all referred to as mixed (allowing women to run), and some even brought their dogs on trail. The runs were often on Sunday morning, and were followed by a curry tiffin lunch.

Horse was recorded as participating on the first run with the newly formed Hash House Harriers, and is listed as one of the first Joint Masters from 1938 (the founding date in 1938 has been disputed by Torch Bennett, as being in the summer of 1939) to 1940, and then again after the war in 1951 before his eventual departure from Kuala Lumpur.

Various accounts state that Horse was first allowed to leave Malaya before the outbreak of hostilities on the peninsula, and subsequently joined the Royal Air Force (RAF), who posted him to Hong Kong. Unfortunately, Japan launched an assault on Hong Kong the same day (8 Dec 1941) that it began occupying Malaya. Horse was taken as a POW, but after a period of time managed to escape. Teaming up with other rogue forces, they were recaptured, and Horse was shot in the neck during the encounter. He was returned back to Hong Kong where he recuperated from his injuries, but it left his head with a slight lean. He was released after the war, and returned to KL to resume his civilian life. He also rejoined the hash in 1946, when Torch got things going again.

In 1951, Horse retired from his career in Telecommunications, and moved to the Philippines where he managed a sugar cane plantation for many years. Interestingly, he was said to have been fluent in Hokkien. Hokkein is the Chinese dialect which is native to Taiwan, and also spoken by the majority of Chinese in the Philippines, according to Wikipedia. Later in life, Horse occasionally turned up on various hash events, most notably at Interhashes in Sydney in 1984, and Pattaya in 1986.

For many more articles like this on the history of hashing, check out . . . http://gotothehash.net/history/inthespotlight.html

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On on!