Guide for Hares

The hash survives from week to week as a result of everybody taking their turn to be a hare and lay a trail. It is a real challenge to research and lay a good trail with the aim of outwitting the pack of walkers / runners - the hounds. It can then be very satisfying to watch them find their way around your trail. 

The objective of the hare is to lay a circular flour trail from the pub to form an interesting run that ends up back at the pub. The trail should take between 1 hour and 1.5 hours to walk / run with checks and shortcuts to allow the slower runners to catch up and walkers to cut parts from the route if preferred, thus keeping the pack together so we all arrive back at the pub within say 15 minutes of each other.  A re-group can also be incorporated to bring the pack back together - further instructions can be issued there as necessary. Trails should be laid by pairs of hares if possible, however once you have some experience it is possible to lay a good trail with a single hare.

We run mainly in the country side so our trails tend to be daylights runs.  While we do run on tarmac, we do endeavour to stay off-road if possible, making use of the vast public footpath network and other public rights of way.

Hares' Responsibilities

• Research and lay a trail starting from the appointed pub to commence at 7pm (Tuesdays in the Summer) or 11am (Sundays in the Winter).

• Check with the pub landlord in advance that it is acceptable to use their pub as a hash venue. This allows the landlord to make any necessary arrangements in advance. Warn them that there will be a dozen or so people wanting to drink their beer and pass any concerns/requests they may have (e.g. about use of the pub car park) to the hashers.

• Brief the runners and walkers of any hazards on the trail such as livestock in the fields, busy roads or any unusual trail markings.

• Keep the pack together.

• Make sure everybody gets back to the pub.

• Carry flour to mark the trail for latecomers as we go round.

Researching the trail

• Our Hare Raiser usually picks our pubs that are known to be close to good trail country and are prepared to put up with noisy hashers. The Pub will often sell good real ale.  

• Obtain a map for the area - an OS 25:1 explorer map is the traditional choice but these days there are many online alternatives that can be used to plan a hash trail.

• Plan a route using the map picking out suitable places for checks, re-groups and short cuts. The trail should be c5 miles (8km) long for runners with a route of c3 miles (5km) for walkers.

• The walkers trail should be the running trail with short cuts if possible but can be a completely different route.

• Walk or run the trail at least once to familiarise yourself and your fellow hare with the trail. Even if you think you know the route there could be a fallen tree or a closed footpath. Remember that without shortcuts a one hour run will take over two hours to walk.

• Plan the trail around footpaths, bridleways and other public rights of way. The use of private land must be by consent only. Where footpaths cross farmers' fields containing livestock or crops it is only courteous to inform them that runners will be using the footpaths over their land if possible.

• Try to avoid long straight runs between checks, as this will just space the pack out. Number can be used to help keep the pack together.

• Include a few loops/or even back-checks for the faster runners - to keep the pack together.

• Checks should occur every 0.5km or so but at varied intervals and, if possible, at natural points where the trail could go in several different directions. The trail should start up again within a few hundred metres.

Laying the trail

• It will usually take two hares at least 3 hours to lay the trail and will use about 4/5 bags of flour. A squash, detergent or milk bottle with a hole in the top can be a very useful dispenser.

• Lay the trail as close to the hash as possible. This will eliminate the possibility of it being washed away, sabotaged or eaten.

• Before laying the trail, consider hiding some flour en-route so that you have less to carry with you.

• Lay the trail with the cheapest flour.

• In damp conditions trails can also be laid in sawdust or chalk.

• Do not use chalk on the city pavements as it will still be there many weeks later - very confusing for subsequent hashes.

• Flour blobs can be on the ground, fence-posts, trees and garden walls etc. and should be every 20 or 30 yds. In open country the spacing needs to be closer - especially when changing direction.

On the day

• Carry a mobile phone for use in emergencies.

• Ideally there should always be two hares - one in the middle to front of the pack and one bringing up the rear looking after the slower runners or walkers.

• Provide maps for the walkers, and for the runners if you have no running hare.

• Explain the hash markings if there is anyone new or if you have used an unusual mark.

• Brief the runners of any hazards on the trail such as livestock in the fields and of any unusual trail markings.

• Mark the trail with arrows from the pub for latecomers. On some terrain the check circles can be cut in the direction of the trail.

• Keep an eye on anyone new or vulnerable to make sure they don’t get left behind.  (You may need to ask another hasher to do this as you have to look after the whole pack.)

• If in doubt - consult the more experienced hashers or join one of them to lay your first trail.

• Collect Hash Cash at £1 per person (first trail is free) unless Hash Cash is present.

• If the Chipmeister is not at the trail either, organise the chips or seek a volunteer to do this for you.  See below

• Remember - the main objective is to keep the pack together

After the trail

• Buy yourself a drink from the hash cash

• Pass the hash cash tin to the next hare or Hash Cash – contact Hash Cash if you have had to subsidise your drinks and he/she will refund you

• Relax and enjoy all the praise for your excellent trail

Chips

Those wanting chips pay £2 each and then we buy the number of portions covered by the money collected.  If this doesn’t work out exactly Hash Cash will pay to round it up to the next portion or, if the money is only fractionally over a number of portions the ‘profit’ goes into Hash Cash.

This guide is modified from one originally authored by Ladybird for Oxford Hash House Harriers for which we extend our thanks.