Run Details

Usual 7pm start

#2481 Royal Oak, Barcombe Cross –
Runners: Bravely stepping up to set the difficult bank holiday hash, a respectable pack of 24 (plus dog Dennis) still made it for On On Don’s ‘new’ pub that, a quick look at the stats revealed, was actually our 9th visit (but considerably more for some as a popular East Grinstead H3 Sunday location). Chalk Talk announced that there were loads of marks… yesterday! Prophetic words as we headed down the side of the pub and promptly lost trail until Nasty Nips and Shirker Ninezing produced maps and competed cartographically to set us right left. We soon had a highly visible trail charging down the wa*kers, hare re-marking as they went, but we’d left them behind by Spithurst Road where decision was made on an anti-clockwise trail out towards South Chailey and back via Springles farm, marks continuing to be a challenge (cue ST: “I think we’ve gone off the edge of the map”) but a couple of fishhooks found anyway. At one check a reversed arrow later revealed that we’d cut a small section but as torches* were prevalent long before we reached the zip wire near the on inn it was probably just as well. *Mudlark invoking the Prof rule of not before September, was given short shrift as it’s already September in some parts of the world!
- Bouncer

Walkers: The walkers set off with fine directions from our hare. We soon saw the runners hot on our heels but Trouble sorted that issue by shutting the gate. I'm pretty sure they got their own back on us by herding a whole flock of sheep in front of our next gate. There a bit of confusion about directions, but once the hare got the map sorted, we were on trail. There was an impromptu naming of our 4-legged hasher to Rude Boy for cutting in to be a FWB. Fun followed on the zip line as we arrived back at the pub just in time to see a beautiful sunset.
- Vicar Licker

From the hare: The rain much promised by the weatherman had not happened, so we set off in lovely sunny conditions.  We avoided the trip around the twittens of Barcombe Cross village, which the Runners were doing to warm them up … and we set off past the school, along the street from the last of the houses and into the countryside. The first thing to notice was the maize crop in the first field – it was so scrawny, the plants only around 6 inches tall, no crop happening – poor farmers, trying to earn something from their work. Crossing the next field, we came to a series of gates, and had already noticed that there were hardly any of the marks made on Sunday remaining. At first we wondered if the heavy rain had done its worst – but that was the story all along, even where the rain had not reached, so it was clear that some local youngsters had had “fun” erasing them. (Apparently the Runners managed to get round, despite getting Off Piste a few times, as luckily two maps of the Trail had been issued). Shortly after this we came into a field of many sheep, plus enormous quantities of sheep shit – very hard to avoid treading in it! Up the road out of that field, and then a left turn down a lane that led towards a lake, with a deer that didn’t move standing still, gazing across the water. Up past some attractive buildings, where there was some kind of a camp site and barn used for guests (we had seen some having brunch in there on the Sunday), and then on to where the trail curved around the field, and then dived in to a very pleasant path, wide, shady, surrounded by delightful woodland. At the end the mystery of the missing marks increased, as even us walkers had trouble discovering the correct route. This was where we hit the old railway track, through thick bushes for a short distance, and then we came to a turn where we left the Runner’s Trail. Skirting more woodland, and then around a couple of fields, we came to the home run, back towards the village, through the recreation ground (where several of the walkers enjoyed the Zipwire experience!),and so back to the pub. This was a trail we had very much enjoyed setting as Hares, as well as walking this short version on the Monday. It is as if this village was isolated from the rest of England, accessed only via illogical twisty roads, surrounded by streams and rivers, and sheep … and the pub and the pizza van were so welcome on the Monday evening!
- On On Don

Circling up, it seems August 31st bodes, this being the date we lost Princess Di in a car crash in 1997; Rocky Garciano in a plane crash in 1979; and Mary Ann Nichols in a Jack slash in 1888, being the Rippers 1st victim. It’s also International Overdose Awareness day, and the day Britain lost Malaysia (1957) and Trinidad & Tobago (1962). On a brighter note, we captured Trincomalee (Sri Lanka) from the Dutch in 1795 as they couldn’t be trusted not to lose it to the French (cue the salute from Hash Gomi!), and Geronimo the alpaca prompted an ongoing rethink after being destroyed for high bovine tuberculosis levels after receiving inoculations on his arrival to the UK in 2021. To save OOD’s embarrassment at signing off as Din on his last missive, co-hares Pimpette and Bar the Boatman found themselves renamed before the usual ‘Here’s to..’. Regrettably ST didn’t get the credit he so deserved as our visitor, Vicar Licker who kindly agreed to write the walkers report had also offered to be songstress, so was introduced with an old Limerick:
There was a young lady of Kew,
Who said as the Curate withdrew,
"The Vicar is slicker,
And quicker and thicker,
And two inches longer than you."
Moving on Radio Soap was welcomed back and thanked for bringing PG Tits along, who also downed to ‘Flat Chested’ having got away with it on her last few visits. Then NN was shamed for reporting that he’d run to the A27 last week despite being no Olympian, joined by Wilds Thing for FH mix-ups, the latter then admitting to breaking a gate so original Numpty JAWS was substituted for failing to pick up on the pizza van despite rampant publicity. JAWS, who was in witty form on the hash (responding to ST on how Muggy it was, that we don’t run on Tueggy or Weggy; then to Mudlark who spotted civilisation – “that's not civilisation that's Barcombe Cross”) clarified that WT (again) had got it wrong. VL offered ‘Meet the hashers’ but corpsed for WT who was just ‘Stupid’!
Hash thoughts were with Local Knowledge after a TIA incident at the end of last week's hash, but we were very grateful to his son Adam for joining us and bringing us up to speed – still in hospital so in the best hands, but apparently quite perturbed that he was going to miss the hash! Please check before visiting.
Wrapping up with other admin, centred on hare recruitment, another great hash was brought to a close with the toast, despite 2nd generation hasher VL’s assertion that we should be doing Swing Low. Still, love her mum’s handle – Love Shag Baby!
- On On, Bouncer