Return to the Stevens Family Homepage
Return to the AUH3 main page
Calendar of runs in and near Abu Dhabi this running season


Hash House Harriers in Abu Dhabi
Commentary

Hashing Abu Dhabi Style:

All runs start at a carpark with everyone running en masse to the first check-in (indicated by two circles). Runners fan out until someone calls ON-ON and then everyone runs what is certainly a false trail (indicated by three circles) Calling a second trail while a previously-called one is being checked out is not on on. Runners run back along the false trail to return to the check-in, and no fair running off the prescribed route and happening on any other trails in the area. Runs are engineered so that 2 or 3 false trails will be found from each check, the real trail being the most obscure, furthest away from the check. If someone is coming onto a real trail before all false trails are found and run, that person will be distracted by the hare, unless it's getting dark, or late, or runners are complaining, in which case (they may be ignored, or) runners may be directed to real trails instead.

This running style may appear stultifying to hashers accustomed to free-ranging terrain where it's every hasher for himself (and every harriette herself), but this is the style most suited to hashing within the predictable confines of Abu Dhabi Island. I tried setting a live-hare California-style hash for the Wasps once, but vestiges of previous lays confounded the runners, street noises stifled the on-ons, and the traditionalists amonst them dissuaded the more open-minded, if any, from continuing past the midway point. I live-hared the run to the on-in, turned around and followed my trail backwards thinking to meet up with the sloggers and help them along with the rest of it. I found them instead standing around in the carpark after I'd run my own trail twice. The on-on was at my house, and Bobbi's cooking and liberal portions of the traditional amber fluid made the rest of the evening a success, and I got a good long run out of it along with some lessons learned on the limits to experimentation with AUH3. As if I hadn't learned enough from my tenure as GM for the Muscat Hx3 (never again).

Anyway, hashers in Abu Dhabi, like hashers anywhere, will make you feel welcome and don't run you all that ragged. You'll find plenty of walkers and social runners on the Abu Dhabi hashes, along with the odd marathoner out for a break in training.


Visits -:

Use your browser's BACK button to return to a previous page

For comments, suggestions, or further information on this page, contact Vance Stevens, page author and webmaster.

Last updated: February 9, 1999