The return of Songkhla Swap 'em!

This Saturday's SH3 run is the last of 2018 and will feature another chance to show off your card-playing skills on the run, as it were, with another attempt at Songkhla Swap 'em. Full instructions on the day and there will be prizes for the best men's and ladies' hands with some spot prizes as well. The aim is to have a bit of fun and although the runs will be up to the usual high standard you have all come to expect at SH3 they will not be excessively demanding and those of you who are still suffering nightmares after last weekend's HH3 outing can rest assured that there will be positively no hills! So with a beer stop sponsored by the returning Short Screw to boot, please try to come along and help us to end the year on a high note if not at high altitude!
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1955, Saturday December 29, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Eightball and Egghead
Misdirections: From Songkhla take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left for 4.2k and then left for 1.7k, then turn right and follow the track for 350m to the runsite by the lake at 7.053766° N100.583731°E. From Hatyai get to Tha Kham and go north for 2k then turn right for 1.7k etc.
For those whose vehicles have sensitive undersides, there is a short section of the 1.7k bit of the road which is quite badly potholed and while it is traversable with care, there are a couple of alternative routes available either from the Songkhla or Hatyai directions, which can be worked out from the map below. They will not be signed but are quite easy to follow.

Click on it to make it bigger!

Hatyai H3's party takes place on Sunday December 30 at Superpig's auxiliary residence in Poonakan Soi 10. It seems probably that there will be some kind of optional run before the party but there are no details available at present. The cost will be 200 Baht which will include beer and food. For those who don't want to drive home afterwards, there will be floor space available if you want to bring a sleeping bag and your pj's. More details later as they emerge or are dragged unwillingly from the horse's mouth!

Finally, don't forget that this Friday (28 December) will see the rebirth of the Songkhla quiz night at Oscars Bar on Soi Srisuda starting at 8 p.m. with Big Alex wearing the quizmaster's hat. Plans are afoot to break the cliquey team syndrome so it would be really nice to get a decent turnout so that we are not faced with another SH3 versus the evil teachers showdown. Khun Pui will be providing the snacks and there will be plenty of reasonably priced beer available so why not come along and help to keep this little bit of Songkhla's Farang tradition alive.

Hard core

With a number of people away and pledges of support from others failing to materialize, yesterday's SH3 pack consisted of the hard core who all set off on one or other of the runs and all successfully made it  to the serve-yourself beer stop and thence on home. The weather was kind, so although some careful negotiation was required to avoid getting wet feet early on, the run stuck pretty much to well-trodden trails and was dry underfoot if you stuck to the paper.

The hare swept the long run and was successful in preventing egregious short cutting, managing to be optimally positioned at F7 to stop Sex Sprinter from cutting off back via the road, sending him up the hill with the rest of the pack, but he later made an attempt to come down the hill early, only to have to back track in order not to miss the beer stop.

The long run was 8.3k with, and 7k without the Fs and Xs while the short run was 4.7k with the 2 Fs it included. The long run managed to get above 100m for a short section of the hill and with a total ascent of only 135m was anything but hard core, while the short run stayed pretty much on the flat only briefly dropping below 40m and hitting a maximum of 70m just after rejoining the long run. Palm Job forgot his offer to sponsor the beer stop but then made up for it by buying a case of beer from the beer truck and despite the low attendance the beer truck looked conspicuously short of beer when the last runners departed from the run site at about 8 p.m. Only a Yolk provided the Kao soy which was more or less polished off as well, with lots of people going back for seconds.

Pretty much everybody was iced for something, including the goody-goodies who did nothing punishable, who shall remain nameless in their shame. Paul McKinerny returned after a couple of years and didn't require rescuing this time round, but avoided the ice by not being named yet. The GM graciously owned up to not sticking to paper, thereby ending up with wet feet, and tempting Superpig to the same fate. Buk Toy, Mr. Bean and Squealer were punished for mysteriously arriving at the sixth F from completely the wrong direction suggesting that they must have been guilty of long-cutting. Sex Sprinter avoided being iced for short cutting but was done for not calling and not relaying paper at an F as well as some premature calling before the first X had been allowed to do it's job.

Hares, Egghead, and Rot Rakaa who couldn't make the run itself, were thanked for a couple of adequate runs, while Harram and Two Thousand Baht a Kilo, neither of whom were allowed by their master to be present, were also recognized in absentia. So it's On! On! to the final SH3 run of the year next week which should include the return of Short Screw and it is to be hoped a few of the others who were unable to make it yesterday so that we can end 2018 on a high note. Who's the hare? No need to ask....

Solstice Hash In Thailand

Map courtesy of Sex Sprinter

Saturday is the winter solstice and the full moon to boot and Songkhla Hash will be marking the two occasions with a little run entitled Solstice Hash In Thailand which appropriately will be set by Egghead and Rot Rakaa with beer sponsorship  on the run by Palm Job.
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run # 1954, Saturday, December 22, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares Egghead, Rot Rakaa and doggies
Misdirections: From the Kao Seng intersection take the old Yala road for 11.2k and turn right then follow the road past Wat Kao Lam for 2.2k to a crossroads and go straight ahead for another 1.7k, then turn right on the road heading towards Phu Kao Long for 1k to the run site on the right at 7.050189° 100.613623°.  Alternatively from the Ko Yo  intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.6k and turn left for 6k then at the Tha Kham crossroads head east for 5k and turn left under the new temple arch for 500m then bear left on the road to Phu Kao Long etc. From Hatyai get to Tha Kham and go east etc.

Sunday's HH3 run has been moved from the runsite announced last Sunday and is now on the southern side of Route 43 in the big scenic quarry at 6°58'07.6"N 100°29'58.5"E: From the Klong Wa intersection beyond Makro, take Route 43 east for 2.8k and do a U turn then come back 400m to the run site on the left. If you want to approach the run site from Pijit/Na Mom direction, take the 4.6k turnoff from the Old Hatyai road and follow it for about 13k to its junction with Route 43 then turn right and go 10.5k to the run site on the left. The hares include but are not necessarily limited to Sex Kapook and Sex Star.

Map courtesy of Sex Printer

Also,  a little bird tells us that the HH3 party on December 30th will now happen in Poonakan Soi 10 and not at the abandoned restaurant in Songkhla opposite Tesco. Details will no doubt be debated and democratically decided upon this Sunday at the HH3 run including whether or not there will be a run preceding and what form the entertainment will take.

Anything that can go wrong...

Sunday's HH3 run narrowly avoided disaster on a number of counts, not the least of which was that the beginning of the run had to be substantially replanned on the hoof owing to some of the small river crossings planned having turned into raging torrents, as a result of which, the hare ran out of paper towards the end of the run. Then in the afternoon there seemed to be the possibility that no one would be able to get  to the runsite anyway because of the wedding of the year strategically located at the center of the village. But Sex Printer and Nong Gop saved the day on that count by working out an alternative route, moving the sign and laying paper, so that everyone who wanted to made it, albeit a bit late.

That meant that the run did not start until 4:30 which for an 8.5k all-up run with a 5.8k short run was rather late. But most of the short run arrived at the beer stop in good time to resume the proper run making the hare's efforts in actually finishing laying it after the packs had departed, worthwhile. Meanwhile the absence of three short runners was noted but they dutifully arrived at the beer stop while the late-arriving long runners were enjoying their well-earned refreshments by which time, aided and abetted by the stolidly falling rain, it beginning to get dark, forcing the hare to sanction everyone walking back to the run site on the road rather than via the last kilometer of the trail.

At that point Toy Boy's absence was noted, but the hare decided to re-lay paper along the road and return to the run site anyway in case Toy Boy had decided to go that way. However, back at the runsite, the toll was 7 runners missing all apparently having embarked on the long run. But just as search parties were being organised with night now rapidly falling and the rain not easing off, all happily turned up together avoiding the need to deploy them.

With 7 generous F's and a check back to boot, the long run reduced to something over 7k, getting up to a high point of about 190m with a total ascent of about 260m. The short run meanwhile which only had to face 3 of the F's reduced to about 5.3k and had nothing more than a climb out of the final valley to face. The circle was held in the unrelenting rain, following which there were some problems getting all the vehicles off the run site as mud had now set in. Meanwhile the wedding had called it a day so those who decided to risk the direct way out were rewarded with an easy drive home.

Wedding warning!

If you are coming to HH3 this afternoon, there's a wedding in Ban Sai Kao (or there was this morning) at the point where the road splits about 150m up from the main turn off by the big tree. I have put a sign out to indicate the road but there may be cars parked in front of it, so don't forget, go straight ahead at that point, don't turn right. And be careful of the hole on the right hand side of the road about 500m further on where the concrete runs out.

Psycho?

Two runs in the Sai Khao area this weekend which makes route finding easy! Saturday's hare advises:<<In response to Robocop’s “sabai” run last Sunday, this weeks SH3 run is promised to be equally “sabai”, or maybe just boring. Anyway due to the shortness of the days' sunlight currently, and mindful of the inclement weather we have been experiencing lately, Saturday’s run is promised to be on the shorter side, and not too challenging. >>
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1953, Saturday December 15, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Yardstick and Not the Full Shilling
Misdirections:  From Songkhla, either take the 16k turning right off the old Yala road and go 5.1k (1.6k past the big tree) to the run site on the left in the rubber opposite Sai Kao Resort at 7.039405°N 100.608389°E or get to Tha Kham (old Hatyai road 4.7k left and go 6k) and turn left (east) for about 4.5k when the runsite will be on the right. From Hatyai: get to Tha Kham and head east towards the big tree etc. 

Sunday's (December 16) HH3 run is from the football field behind Ban Sai Khao at 7.033834°N 100.624647°E and is being set by Kai Jeow, The turning into Sai Khao village is close to the big tree so if you are coming from Tha Kham, it is about 6k on the right, or from the old Yala road it is 3.6k on the left. Follow the road for 150m then go straight ahead as the road bends sharply to the right. Follow the concrete road across the paddy and through the village for about 500m to the run site. But beware! just before you reach the run site at the point at which the concrete road turns into a dirt track, there is a hole on the right hand side of the road where the water has washed a culvert bank away. There is enough room to get past on the left so try not to drive into it! Park on the northern end of the grass football field if dry or only a bit wet but if it is raining substantially then head for the concrete football pitch beyond the southern end of the grass pitch.

HH3 Tomorrow-today!

Tomorrow's HH3 run is from the Football field at Kuanjong, which for the uninitiated is at  6.975149°N 100.520453°E or thereabouts. If you prefer good old-fashioned hash directions, from Wat Keow Kloy at the top of Poonakan go 7.5k down Poonakan and turn left onto the Ban Nai Lai road. Go 3.5k and turn left for about 200m to the run site on the right. If you are coming from Hatyai, the Ban Nai Lai turning is 3.5k up from the other end of Poonakan at the corner of PSU and Kanjanawanit road. The hare is Robocop - the nice Robocop, not the formerly tyrranical unmerciful Robocop who used to destroy Monday mornings with his runs, but the gentle considerate lovey-dovey Robocop who only sets "wing sabai"s. Map above for the disproportionality tolerant.

Banana anyone?

In the vain hope of fooling our resident short-cutter, who shall remain nameless, the hare attempted a stunning reversal of direction midway through the run apparently to no avail, only for the nameless short-cutter to get tripped up by the last-but-one check thus arriving at the beer stop from the wrong direction.

Meanwhile the short run en-masse succumbed to the hare's subtle hints and opted for the long run leaving Chao Ngor as the only actual short runner, with Only a Yolk, Meals on Wheels and Eightball opting for the medium run by getting onto the truck at the beer stop.
The long run all in was just over 8k reducing to just under 7k without all that checky stuff. The short run was about 4k with the effy stuff and the medium run was around 5k whichever way you looked at it. Total ascent for those who did either the long or medium runs was around 240m with the maximum height about 150m. More to the point, everyone was back ate the run site by 5:40 p.m. with no one having to be redirected, rescued or resuscitated.
Great circle followed. It doesn't get much better than this!

No sign!

For anyone coming to this afternoon's SH3 run from Songkhla, be aware that there is no sign at the 4.7k turn off the old Hatyai road by the m/c taxi stand. But there will be one at the turn off at Pijit (8k'ish up that road, 2.3k beyond Wat Keow Kloy) from about 3:00 p.m. If you are earlier than that, look for shreddy at the mouth of the road and shortly afterwards at the right turn towards the run site which is also marked with piles of shreddy.

Pitch it!

(So, guys... I had this idea for a run, out at Pijit, you know, where I go out and lay a trail and everyone else tries to follow it. And I thought we might drink some beer afterwards.
Ok, Egghead. Sounds like a good idea to us! why don't you run with it and see how the jelly wobbles!)
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harrier's run #1952, December 8, 2018: 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Egghead and Harram
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left. Go through the traffic lights at Tha Kham (6k) and at Wat Keow Kloy (8k) go ahead for a further 2.3k then turn left and after 200m turn right (it used to be straight ahead but it's now definitely a right turn!) Follow the road and track for 1.2k to the run site on the left at N7 00.641 E100 35.691. From Hatyai get to the top of Poonakan and go south for 2.3k then turn left etc.
The whereabouts or who-abouts of HH3's run on Sunday has not yet been revealed so will be added later when it is.

Old haunts

This weekend we will be frequenting old haunts with two of the hash's most popular runsites being used by the two hashes. Saturday's SH3 run site is up the hill behind Prem's place with Sunday's HH3 run being from the football field in Poonakan:
Full details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harrier's run #1951, Saturday, December 1, 2018: 4:00 p.m.
Hare: Gaseous Clay
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the new Yala road for 800m and turn left. Follow the road for about 800m, up the hill to Prem's place then continue up beyond it for about 1k to the run site on the right at the top of the hill. From Hatyai, to get into the new Yala road, since there is no direct access from the intersection heading East, you will need to do a U turn beyond the intersection on Kanjanawanit Road heading towards Songkhla and come back 200m and turn left to get into the new Yala road (unless in the meantime the main overpass has been opened - anyone know?)

Sunday's HH3 run is being set by the Beany family and friends and the run site is 4.5k down Poonakan from Wat Keow Kloy, on the left, or 6.5k up Poonakan on the right if you are coming from the other end.

HH3 Tomorrow

Tomorrow's HH3 run site is at Nern Pijit and the coordinates given are 7°00'00.1"N 100°36'11.5"E. From Wat Keow Kloy at the top of Poonakan head towards Nern Pijit for 2.9k and turn left about 300 meters before Wat Nern Pijit and follow the road for 2.4k to the end of and just beyond the concrete and turn right for about 200 m to the run site. The hare is Sex Printer.

Get lost if you dare!

Where you want to go: The run site marked with a red blob;
not the pink blob which is a short-time resort... on the other hand... 

Following suggestions that last week's misdirections lacked the degree of accuracy to which Songkhla hashers have become accustomed in recent years, we have this week engaged the services of a world renowned company to provide us not just with accurately sited coordinates for this week's runsite but also with a map, centimeter-perfect distances and even photographs at critical points to ensure that you will arrive there in good time and without the slightest possibility of getting lost.

The run site, digitally enhanced for your viewing pleasure.

Details are: 

Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1950, Saturday, November 24th 2018. 4:00 p.m. 

Hares: Not the Full Shilling, Worm and All Black.

Misdirections. From The Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left for 8k then turn right into Poonakan at Wat Keow Kloy for 4.2k and turn right (about 200 meters past the football field) for 210 meters to the runsite on the right at 7.0113798° 100.5457270°. From the bottom end of Poonakan, the turning is 6.8k on the left. Since the turning is not one we normally take, the two pictures below show it (upper) from the Keow Kloy direction and (lower) from the GM's direction. 

Sunday's HH3 run will be set by Sex Printer but details and we hope equally detailed clues as to its whereabouts will follow and be posted here and elsewhere later.

The turning to the run site off Poonakan coming from Wat Keow Kloy

Ditto from the other end of Poonakan

The Haberdasher delivers

This week's SH3 run will prove that contrary to ugly rumors about its inactivity, the haberdashery department is performing its function efficiently if slowly. So if you are among the 15 or so people who have been named over the last couple of months you will want to join this week's run in order to take delivery of your brand-spanking-new name T-shirt. The run itself is being set by the haberdasher's operative wing, Sex Sprinter and the details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run # 1949, Saturday November 17, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Sex Printer and friends
Misdirections: From  Songkhla, either take the 16k turning right off the old Yala road and go 4.8k (1.3k past the big tree) then turn left and follow the road for about 1k to the run site at or close to  7.031905° 100.608985°, or get to Tha Kham (old Hatyai road 4.7k left and  go 6k) and turn left for 4.8k then turn right and go 1k etc. From Hatyai: get to Tha Kham and head east towards the big tree for 4.8k and turn right etc, Map below for the visually imaginative.

Sunday's HH3 run is being set by Sex Kapook and Sex Star and sees a welcome (be charitable!) return to the south side of Route 43 where we haven't run for some time. From either Songkhla  or Hatyai get to the Klong Wa intersection beyond Central Festival/Macro and turn left onto Route 43 for around 2k then do a U turn just past the Chotiwat Factory and come back to the run site on the left. Route 43 can also be accessed via the old Hatyai road 4.7k left turning - follow the road past Wat Keow Kloy and beyond Nern Pichit for 13k then turn right onto Route 43 for about 11k and look for the run site on the left. Another helpful map below. 

Second time lucky

Four hares at SH3 this week, all of whom will be setting their second runs, although the span between when the first of the first runs was laid and the final one is no less than 19 years:
Details are:

Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run # 1948, Saturday, November 10, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Totally Inadequate, Cookie Monster, Worm and Not The Full Shilling
Misdirections: From The Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7 k and turn left for 8k then turn right at Wat Khao Kloy onto Poonakan Rd. for 1.2k and turn right. Go 300m then turn left for another 300m to the runsite on the right at 7.02684427°N, 100.5679035°E. 

Sunday's HH3 run has moved to Kuanjong at 6.975305°N 100.520625°E on the road leading to the forbidden temple. From Poonakan, take the Ban Nai Lai turning and go about 4k then turn left at the hash sign. The hare is Robocop. Map below.

HH3, Sunday November 4th

The hares are the Beanie family and friends and the run site is: From the Tha Kham intersection head south for 1.2k and turn left for 600m to the run site on the right at 7.031053° 100.583835°. From Wat Keow Kloy the turning is 700m north and is on the right.

Courtesy of the birthday boys...

This week R2D2 and Egghead celebrate their birthdays which seems to happen with remarkable regularity about the beginning of November every year, so no surprise there. They will be joined by C3P0, who joins R2D2 pretty regularly, so also no big surprise, and just to cap this series of non-surprises, the run site will be at the big sala at Napong which Egghead has used on a couple of occasions previously to celebrate his birthday.  And all the usual stuff probably applies in that there will be a beer stop and the hares are making all the usual noises about new trails and undiscovered country (in Napong... yeah!).

But there will be at least one feature of this run that no one has experienced before for which the hares claim no responsibility. It might also be worth saying that this particular feature may herald a change in one of our most popular areas that might not be to everyone's taste, so this is definitely a run not to be missed if you want to experience hashing as it has been rather than how it might end up in the future!

Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1957, Saturday, November 3, 2018 4:00 p.m. (and we mean it this week!)
Hares: R2D2, Egghead and C3P0
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4k and turn left at the traffic lights 300m after the PTT station, for 5.2k (at 4k, follow the road round to the right rather than going straight ahead) then turn left for 500m opposite the temple arch at Borogam to the run site opposite the big sala at 7.074533° 100.606564°. Note for motorcycle-borne hashers: the turning at 5.2k is covered in sand washed down the road by the recent rain so please be extremely careful when turning left as at least one distinguished  hasher has previously come to grief at this point!
From Hatyai the traffic lights are 13k from the Kor Hong traffic lights and the turning is on the right; or the run site can be approached via Tha Kham by going east for 5k and then turning left on the Kao Long road, then after 600m taking the right fork for about 2k through the village and turning left at the 2nd crossroads. The turn opposite Borogam is 3.2k on the right.

Sunday's HH3 run is being set by Sex Sprinter and Toy Boy. No indication yet of a run site but expect details to magically appear and be posted here later. (See comment below!)

Sticky little tool!

Geddit? Geddit? 

Ok, so this week's sortie into the editor's deep subconscious is inspired by two of this week's SH3 hares; but not sure how the third one fits in with the theme.

Anyway, this week's run details are:

Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1846, Saturday October 27, 2018, 4:00 p.m.
Hares: Stick Insect, Little Tool and Outlaw
Misdirections: From the Khao Saeng traffic lights take the old Yala road for 5.7k and turn right at the Hash sign at 7.130749° 100.629499°. Go 400m and turn into Wat Chaamuthit on the right at the second hash sign to the run site at 7.130161°, 100.626011°. From Hatyai. Make your way to the old/new Yala road junction at Ang Thong and head North on the old Yala road for 5.3k then turn left at the hash sign.

Be aware that as we have now passed the SH3 birthday, runs will start at 4:00 p.m. for the rest of the rainy season. If you think you are going to be late this week  please give someone a call and we will hold the start, but not beyond 4:15 as the nights are fast drawing in and we don't want a repeat of last week's nocturnal search and rescue operation!

Sunday's (October 28) HH3 run is being set from the Tung Ngai-Prutoh road at 7.029293° 100.545499° which is 2.8 from the Poonakan end, opposite Wat Tung Ngai or 1.4k from the other end at Wat Prutoh. The hare is Sex Au Au.

Arrruuuuugh!

The next full moon run will take place tomorrow, Tuesday 23 October  and there will be two virgin hares to celebrate the event. The run is intended to start at 6:30 p.m. so please try to be a bit early or give someone a call if you are on your way.
Details are:
Hatyai Full Moon Hash House Harriers run #143,  October 23, 2018, 6:30 p.m.
Hares: Inchdick, Pla Men and Jing Reed
Misdirections: From Hatyai: get to Tha Kham and head east towards the big tree for 4.5k to the run site in the rubber opposite Sai Kao Resort at: 7.039405° 100.608389°. From Songkhla, either take the 16k turning right off the old Yala road and go 5.1k (1.6k past the big tree) when the run site will be on the left, or get to Tha Kham (old Hatyai road 4.7k left and  go 6k) and turn left for 4.5k etc.

Usual stuff applies: Bring a head/hand light if you intend to run and some food if you think you will be hungry. Beer will be on sale at 40 Baht per can but feel free to bring your own to share if you prefer.

Gerry Herron

Sad news this morning, that our dear friend and fellow hasher, Gerry Herron, aka Tutti Fruitti, died this morning at 04.30 at his home in Nakhon Si Thammarat. The funeral will be held at 1pm today at Bang Pakpaying Mosque, Nakhon Si Thammarat. I am sure that everybody at Songkhla H3 will join me in expressing our sincere condolences to Saowalak who has cared unstintingly for Gerry during his latter years.

Happy birthday to us!

SH3's slightly early birthday run will take place this coming Saturday and everybody is invited and welcome to attend. The registration will be 100 Baht (50 Baht for kids) which will cover the run, the food prepared by our team of international chefs (well, one of them is an Aussie!) and free beer and other drinks all evening. The event is being held at Worm and Not the Full Shilling's palatial residence in Poonakan Rd., or at least, at the workshop there.
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1945, Saturday October 20, 2018. 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Egghead and Little Tool
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left for 8k then at the Wat Keow Kloy traffic lights turn right for 1.3k to the run site inside the big gates at 7.023149° 100.568478°, on the right. Follow signs to the car parking area.
Details of the HH3 run on Sunday and the Full Moon H3 run the following week will be posted later and.or announced on Saturday.

The rise and rise of SH3

Yesterday's reprise of the rumble long run saw our biggest Saturday attendance so far this year, with 47 registered runners including the 2 hares, a figure bettered only once this year on our Sunday outing in June after HH3's 900th run. That figure is itself likely to be blown away at next week's birthday run, but generally there is no doubt that after a long period where SH3's existence seemed to be in doubt, we are now definitely on the up!
To mark the occasion pretty much everybody squeezed into three pick ups, and was taken round to the other side of the hill then followed a somewhat different route round, rather than through the quarry, joining the rumble run around the back of the Korakot restaurant with a slight diversion about 6k into the run for the beer stop and the end of the short run. Then the long run headed back out onto the trail to complete the 8.6k as dusk fell with the short runners arriving back at the run site about 30 minutes later via pick up.
The only casualty was Gan Yao who decided to attempt the hill crossing rejected for the rumble run on the basis that it was too tough for our visitors. Gan Yao reached a similar conclusion as he too noticed the descending darkness, returning to the base of the hill and following the general route of the rumble run in the reverse direction and thus eventually arriving at Nam Noi where he sought and was given directions back to the CP factory by a guy in a pick-up who immediately sped off in that direction without offering him a lift!
Thanks to the hares for a great run - it was worth waiting for! And thanks to everyone who turned out, particularly the 6 new runners and a big contingent from HH3, who ran or walked for upwards of an hour and then drank the beer truck dry! Hashing in Songkhla has never been better than this!

Rumbling on!

This week's SH3 run is for all those who for some reason did not do the Rumble-Back-to-Mother long run a month back, which includes just about everybody from SH3 bar a hare or two! So we'll all be able to relive the full grandeur of half the run, or about a quarter of it if you do the short run! Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers" run #1944 Saturday October 13, 2018, 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Innuendo and Little Tool
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo Intersection take the old Hatyai road for 6.5k and do a U-turn. Come back 100m and turn left immediately before the CP factory then go 1k to the runsite on the right in the car park behind the community center at 7.086344° 100.545237°. The runs will both be A-B and transport to the A sites will leave the B site sharp at 4:30 so please try not to be late.

Sunday's HH3 run is from Budokan's auxiliary residence in Poonakan Soi 10 at 6.998002° 100.515254°, which coming from Wat Keow Kloy is 8k on the left or 3k on the right if you are coming from the Kanjanawanit Rd. junction. The hare is Rrrrrrrrrobocop!

Finally, for various very good reasons, SH3's birthday run this year will be held a week early on 20th October and will be hosted in the garden of Worm and Not the Full Shilling's house at the top end of Poonakan. Inspired by last weekend's excellent HH3 event, the cost will be 100 Baht, the food will be provided by SH3's resident chefs and there should be loads of free beer as long as we get some beer sponsors this weekend!

Where the beaver used to roam

After all the excitement of electing a new GM at Hatyai hash on Saturday, Sunday's HH3 run was back to business as usual, as Kai Jeow set two longish but flattish runs in territory that in days gone by were regularly patrolled by Sex Weasel, aka Beavershot. The long run was around 8.9k all up but more than a kilometer of that was accounted for by the F's and the single X.

Meanwhile, the normally reliable measurer of the short run, Sex Teacher had apparently short cut so was unable to provide an accurate length, but the hare recorded it as in the region of 5.5k. That short cut enabled her and the equally short cutting Not the Full Shilling (HH3 name unknown) to arrive at the beer stop first in about an hour, followed by the FRB's on the long run, with the remainder of both runs drifting in over the course of the next 15 minutes, with Sex Printer thoughtfully sweeping up some long run stragglers and arriving last.

A slightly lower turnout than of late at HH3 witnessed new GM, Sexy Cop's first circle which was carried off with some aplomb. The occasion was marked by the three current local GMs, all of whom are female, gracing the ice together, belying the impression you might get further south that hashers are just a bunch of misogynistic old men. As if!

At last!

Just in case anyone has a last minute urge to join the HH3 run this afternoon The runsite is at Nam Tok Tone Lua at 6.896383° 100.236171° or thereabouts. It's about an hour's drive from the Ko Yo intersection, via the new Hatyai road, then left at the end for 1.5k, then right at the Khuan Lang intersection onto the road signposted to Rattaphum and Tone Na Chang. The turn off left onto the 4026 is about 9k along, then follow the map above and hash signs. The ante is 100 Baht for named HH3 runners, 500 Baht for guests.

The details for tomorrow (Sunday)'s HH3 run are unchanged from below.

A double Hatyai weekend

This weekend, HH3 will be hosting two runs as they will be electing a new GM on Saturday, which would generally happen at an outstation run. However, this year although they will be taking over SH3's normal Saturday slot, the run will not be a million miles away from Hatyai as can be seen from the map above. Ok, so things are still a bit vague but more precise details will be given as soon as they are made available.
What do we know?
There will be a car rally to the run site starting from Hatyai Park at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday with lunch to follow. The run itself is intended to start at 3:30 p.m. but that may slip a little to accommodate latecomers including anyone who can't join the car rally. Following the run, all the beer and food will be included in the price which is 100 Baht for named Hatyai H3 runners, 500 Baht for guests and non-HH3-named runners.  Those who want to stay should take camping gear and there will be ample space for tents etc. The location of the run site, which is currently a closely guarded secret, is not the same as the 900th run but is in the same general area. More information will be passed on as soon as it is released.

Sunday's run, which will be a regular HH3 run (i.e., 60 Baht for adults, 30 Baht for kids), will be set by Kai Jeow (alias Egghead) and will be from the football field behind Wat Khokpayomsukaram at Nern Pijit. SH3 runners who can't make the HH3 run on Saturday or who don't qualify for the members' rate are recommended to come to the Sunday run, where they will be made very welcome.
Misdirections are:
From the Ko Yo intersection take the Old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left. follow the road ahead through Tha Kham and past Wat Keow Kloy, then at 11k follow the road as it bends right at Wat Nern Pijit for a further 1k then turn right for 1k to the run site at  6.988001°100.571269°

Today's HH3 run and next weekend's runs.

Today's HH3 runsite directions as best as can be managed are: 

From the Klong Wa intersection (Phetkasem road/Route 43) go south on the road towards Sadao for 4k and turn left at a set of traffic lights into Klongyatai Rd. Follow that road for 5k (6.929553° 100.513064°) and turn left at the hash sign until you see indications of a run site. The coordinates may not be completely accurate as they just refer to a point 5k along Klongyatai road, so start looking for the hash sign from about 4k onwards as the most likely left turn appears to be at about 4.5k based on a Google Earth survey! 

One more thing, based on discussions between committee members in residence, the intention today is to cede next Sunday's run back to HH3 rather than attempt to hold an SH3 run on Sunday, which means that there would be no actual SH3 run next weekend, even though the location and hare for the run on Sunday would still be the same (i.e. the football pitch past Wat Nern Pijit and Egghead). The decision is partly diplomatic but also takes into consideration the fact that last time SH3 took over HH3's slot we were forced to ask them to help us to run the beer truck and to provide enough food, and it was not exactly easy for our beloved GM to run the circle in English when 90% of the people there only spoke Thai! If anyone has any objections to this plan please register them below or on the SH3 thread on fb messenger.

1943: the renaissance continues

The 2018 pussy birthday run presented a strange combination of statistics with the long run only exceeding 70m if you were unlucky enough to find some of the more extravagant Fs and Xs and the short run doing the hill thing and getting up to about 145m, while not breaking the 3k barrier horizontally. The long run was about 6.8k without the checks and for most of the run the whole pack were within hailing distance of each other although that all seemed to change after the fifth check and the first check-back. Good turnout again though despite a few notable absences with everyone bar the beer truck driver either setting or running one or other of the runs and some great food from our celebrity chefs including the newly named "Jim not Jim" or however we are going to spell that one!

Probably pussies!

Like the picture above, Saturday's hares are probably pussies, although at time of writing their identity is not clear. Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run# 1943, Saturday, September 29, 2018, 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Various pussies to be declared
Misdirections: From the Kao Seng intersection take the old Yala road for 8.1k and do a U turn. Come back 100m and turn left immediately after Ban Dan school. Go 2k to the run site on the right at  7.105447° 100.616206°. Park in the rubber or on the road if necessary. From Hatyai, coming from Nam Noi, the best way is to take the old road to the Kuan Hin traffic lights then turn right and head for the new Yala road (straight ahead at 4k then follow the road for about 2k). Do a U turn then head south and turn left towards Ko Tau at  7.087201° 100.616400° and follow the road through the village to arrive at Ban Dan, 300m south of the school at  7.104409° 100.633113°. Then follow the directions above. Alternatively coming via Poonakan/Tha Kham, head East towards the big tree and make it across to the old Yala road that way then go North until you reach Ban Dan school and turn left.

Sunday's HH3 run is down beyond the Klong Wa intersection on the road heading south towards Sadao in the general area of Ban Pru. More details, a map and hopefully some coordinates to follow later. The hare is believed to be Sax Sanan.

1942: Not the pussy run!

Generally around this time of year we are treated to a pussy run by our ladies section who mostly seem to celebrate their birthdays in September. But this year due to unforeseen circumstances that's been postponed, possibly for a week maybe for longer.

So into the breach steps In-U-Endo who though no pussy will be attempting to set a run with just a hint of femine touch (i.e. he should have had a female co-hare but that fell through as well!)
Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run # 1942, Saturday September 22, 2018, 4:30 p.m.
Hare: In-U-Endo
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left for 8k to Wat Keow Kloy then turn right into Poonakan. Go 1.2k and turn left for 300m opposite the sacred ju-ju tree (aka the spirit house scrap-yard) to the run site on the left. From Hatyai the turning is 9.8k up from the junction with Kanjanawanit road on the right.

Sunday's HH3 run is being set from near the elephant camp on the old Hatyai road, about 1k beyond Nam Noi, on the left if you are coming from Songkhla. If you are coming from Hatyai you will need to go about 500m beyond the run site and do a U turn. The hare is... Vaseline!

HH3 today: On the road again, again!

From Songkhla: From the Ko Yo intersection take the new Yala road for 6.5k and cross the carriageway onto the unused section of road then follow it for 500m to the run site at the top of the hill (7.086898° N 100.610967°E). From Hatyai the suggested route is to take the old Hatyai road to the Kuan Hin traffic lights then turn right and go 4k, then follow the road straight ahead (i.e. left, as the road bends right). Go 1k then follow the hard top road left at the 4-way intersection for 500m and at the junction with the NYR, turn right along the hard shoulder onto the unused section. The hares are IT UT and Sex Sprinter

Recce in haste lay at leisure

Run 1941 was the product of a postponed recce which should have taken place on Wednesday as the antidote to the post-rumble hangover, but got put off to Thursday afternoon when the hares could only spare an hour or two with the result this Saturday morning's lay required rather more time to complete than usual. Was the result worth it? Possibly as the only real complaint was from the FRB's who found that they got confused by some of the checks...Er, yes! That's the whole point!
For the record, stripped of its Fs and Xs, the long run was about 6k, a mere 2k longer than the short run, and the total ascents were about 200m and a bit more than 100m respectively. The long run got up to 140m while the short run made it to 112. The first long runner was home in around 1 hr 9 mins, by which time the short run were already organizing the food and tucking into the beer. Another good turnout, partly because Phayok (formerly known as Nay, Conebrain's personal trainer) keeps bringing along all those lovely people who seem to be really enjoying the hash experience, so much so that some of them seem unwilling to get back to the runsite! But no search parties were necessary this week and the hare was not required to add searching to recceing, laying and sweeping!

The return of the yellow shirts!

No, they're not on their way to stop Bangkok this time, but were just a part of the HH3 team who turned out at Hatyai Station on Tuesday morning to welcome our guests from around the world who joined us for a remarkably well-organised and much enjoyed "rumble". Not sure how SH3 can follow that but we will try!

So Saturday's run is Egghead's attempt to make up for the short-comings of his last run and is being set in country where it is highly unlikely that any one else would dare to go to move the paper!
Details are;
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1941, Saturday, September 15, 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Egghead and Harram
Misdirections. From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4.7k and turn left. Go through the traffic lights at Tha Kham (6k) and at Wat Keow Kloy (8k) go ahead for a further 2.3k then turn left and after 200m turn right (it used to be straight ahead but it's now definitely a right turn!) Follow the road and track for 1.2k to the run site on the left at N7 00.641 E100 35.691.  If you are coming from Hatyai, either get to the Nam Noi traffic lights and head for Tha Kham then turn right for 4.3k, or get to the top of Poonakan (Wat Keow Kloy) and turn right for 2.3k, then turn left etc.

Sunday's HH3 run is unannounced as of yet so details will be added in appropriate places later.

Separated at birth

These warm wonderful human beings have planned, sweated, recce’d and rehearsed to bring you the following:

Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1940, Saturday September 8th 2018. 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Eightball & Gan Yao

Misdirections: From the Koh Yoh intersection take the new Yala Road for 900 meters. Turn left at the sign as if going to Pa Prem’s Place. Go for 300 meters and turn left for 50 meters to the carefully sited car park. For those with access to technology (and children to show us how to use it!) co-ordinates are: 7°07’39.83”N 100°35’15.17”E

This Sunday there is no HH3 run as everyone involved will be working at the big sala behind the CP factory to get ready for the Train rumble run on Tuesday 11th September. Any extra hands welcome!

250 Lays? Back to the drawing board!

You would think that after 249 previous lays,  Egghead (ably assisted by Little Tool) would have been able to lay a decent run yesterday, particularly since this one was in his own backyard and didn't exactly break new ground either territory- or track-wise. But no! ignoring one of the Yardstick golden rules (Don't set checks where the long and short runs depart/join) the run managed to lose half the short run (including OaY who also should have known better!) seriously delay Lot Rakaa and family, and confuse the hell out of the long run. Ok, so the situation was not helped by the apparent intervention of some knowledgeable locals (we know who you are!) who not only relaid a section of the run at the beginning and picked up a whole section after the first 360, but also laid a completely new 360 between Fs 5 and 6, thus totally screwing up the long and short run junction which also suffered from some rain damage rendering the short-run paper invisible.

The upshot was that All Black, Eightball and R2D2 came back via the road and the first person to arrive beyond the final check, which by then Egghead had by-passed, was Super Pig followed by most of the short runners who had been herded through the confusion by Little Tool. OaY's group arrived from the wrong direction having used local knowledge to no good effect, and the long run were eventually found at the back of the village and called onto the paper.

But eventually everyone arrived at the run site where there was some great food courtesy of SH3's expanded culinary section to combat the inclement weather, which sadly had one final go at damping down the proceedings before the circle ensued. Winner of the poker game was (ahem!) All Black who by dint of swapping her two jokers, (each of which qualified for a beer) for two queens, ended up with five ladies, beating Sex Sprinter's 5 Jacks which had been more honestly collected on the run.

For the record, the long run all in was 6.8k and the short run, 5.1k with negligible ascent and a high point of about 55m at the first road crossing. The good news? Well that was the turn-out, which despite the weather and the absence of a number of regulars, was in excess of 40 with no less than 6 new runners and barely a hound left at the run site, so 40 people actually out on the runs. The moral to be drawn from the confusion? Recce, recce recce! With the run being set at short notice and the checks being laid on the fly, there was always the potential for disaster although circumstances combined to cause the problem and at the end of the day most people had fun and we will certainly be repeating the poker tournament idea ... as long as we can find somewhere to buy the cards!

You gotta know when to hold....

This Saturday sees the running of the annual SH3 Mother Hen memorial 5-card draw poker run. Don't remember that one? Well that's because it's the first time this soon to be regular feature of hashing in Songkhla has actually been held. More information at the run-site tomorrow when hare, Little Tool has worked out the kinks.

Details are:
Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1939, Saturday September 1st 2018. 4:30 p.m.
Hares: Little Tool and Egghead.
Misdirections: From the Ko Yo intersection take the old Hatyai road for 4k and turn left at the Kuan Hin Traffic lights. Follow the road for 6k (don't turn left at 4k, but follow the road round to the right) and turn right at the hash sign, then at the Y junction in 150m turn right to the run site on the left at 7.066813N 100.605000E. From Hatyai, the turn at the Kuan Hin traffic lights is to the right, or you can go via the Tha Kham crossroads and head east towards the big tree. After 5k, turn left under the new temple arch on the road heading for Kao Long then after 600m take the right fork on the Y junction and head through 2 villages for about 1.8k, crossing one crossroad in the process. At the second crossroad turn left and go 2.5k then turn left at the hash sign, etc.

Sunday's HH3 run is being set from the football field at Tung Ngai (Poonakan Rd., 4.5k down from Wat Keow Kloy or 6,5k up from the Kanjanawanit road traffic lights). The hares include Nong Gop and the real Sex of the Man.

Run 1938

A good turnout again with one new runner, Seb, and a brief return visit from Raccoon Ass ensuring our continuing existence, but also our ongoing search for hares. As usual Egghead has been filling the breach, but come on all we can't let him do it ALL the time, so please, if at all possible let him have a break from time to time. Offer to set a run now!

Back to yesterday's runs. The short run was a flattish run with no big hills, while the long run was a flattish run with just the one hill. The long run length, including the 8 "F"s and one checkback, which nobody found, totalled 7.4km and the maximum elevation was less than 200m, so all in all seemed to be enjoyed by even some of the short runners joining the long runners ranks. The short run was quite long at 4.6km and reached an elevation of almost 100m.

 

The yardo now leaving.... and a pre-training run.

Saturday's SH3 run will be Yardo's last for a month or so as he is off to PNG to fill the Talen coffers again. Details are:

Songkhla Hash House Harriers' run #1938, Saturday August 25, 2018, 4:30 p.m.
Hare: Yardstick
Misdirections: From the Kao Seng intersection take the Old Yala Road for 16km (5.3km from the NYR / OYR intersection at Ang Thong) and turn right just before Wat Kuhn Thong. After 2.0km turn left and proceed approximately 1.2km along the new concrete & dirt road to the runsite at 7° 01.922' N  100° 38.514' E. 

Hatyai visitors take the Nam Noi - Thung Wang road through Ban Tha Kam to Ban Sai Khao then go straight ahead past the big tree for 1.4km and turn right for 1.2km.

Sunday's HH3 run is being set by the up-coming train event long-run team  whose anguished cries about the state of the hill they are supposed to be going over have been audible and of unusual vehemence! So on Sunday they will be trying out some of the friendly bits of their run as an A-B with the run site adjacent to the big quarry on the New Hatyai road at N7° 06.150' E 100° 31.042'. 

The runsite can be approached from the New Hatyai road. If coming from Songkhla, from the Ko Yo intersection take the new Hatyai road for about 8.5k and turn left just after the True Moves tower on the road heading for Nam Noi. After about 350m turn left and go 500m to the runsite. From Hatyai approaching the runsite from the NHR will involve going past the run site for almost 2k and doing a U turn then coming back and turning left. Alternatively from the OHR at the Nam Noi traffic lights turn left (from Hatyai) or right (from Songkhla) and go about 5.5k then turn right for 500m.to the runsite. Map now added below.

Finally, for those who don't know, Raccoon Ass (Mel Herring) is in town for a few days and will be having a few beers in Songkhla tomorrow evening probably starting at Oscars Bar around 7:30 p.m. so if you can please come along and make it a night to remember for Raccoon Ass.