New runners

Bored of the same old training runs?
Fed up of running on your own?
Looking for a social running club?
Worried that a "serious" running club might be too fast?

If any of these is you, you should run with Enfield Hash House Harriers!

What are the Hash House Harriers?

The Hash House Harriers is an international network of social running clubs, whose essential aim is to work up a decent thirst by going for a run, and then work it down again in a pub. Not for nothing do hashers proclaim themselves to be "Drinkers with a Running Problem". We like to remind ourselves that after running it is important to restore the body's supply of liquid and carbohydrate, and that some muscle relaxant wouldn't go amiss, and that beer is a natural product containing all of these key ingredients!

The Hash House Harriers was founded in 1938 in Kuala Lumpur by a group of British ex-pats, and since then has spread around the world. Hashers who travel abroad, whether on business or on holiday, can usually find that there is a hash somewhere near where they are staying, which contains a group of friends that they haven't yet met.

Enfield Hash was founded in May 1999 by Tim "Lunchbox" Hall and Adam "Mouse" Shepherd, because no existing hash club was making use of the excellent hash territory that is the woods and parks of north London. Each Enfield Hash run typically has a group of 12-15 runners.

OK, so tell me about the runs

A hash run comprises a marked trail that includes loops, dead ends, and other similar features to ensure that the fast runners cover significantly more distance than the slower people, because they have to run all of these false trails in order to find the true trail. A typical run lasts about an hour, covering about 3-4 miles for the slowest runners, who will only finish a few minutes behind the fastest, who will cover a rather greater distance. The Enfield Hash includes members who range from 2hr40 marathon runners through to people who enjoy a gentle jog (with a bit of walking thrown in for variety). If you can walk reasonably briskly for an hour, you're more than fast enough to hash.

And the social side?

The whole point of the hash is to be a social event. After the run, the pack gathers in the pub and each stays until (s)he has had enough, or the pub is closing, or (just occasionally, but it has happened) the pub runs out of beer. Just to ensure no-one gets too serious, misdemeanours on trail are rewarded with a forfeit, normally involving a pint to be downed, and particularly memorable events result in the hasher being awarded a nickname.

Once in a while, a hash will organise a more significant event, often to commemorate a particular anniversary (50 or 100 runs, for example). Further up the scale, there are UK national events ("Nash Hash") every two years, which get up towards 1000 people attending, with the worldwide Interhash in intervening years which reached some 7000+ attendees in 1998. The 2004 Interhash will be based in Cardiff, the first one to be held in the UK.

Where do you do this?

We run off-road whenever possible, making the most of the parks and woods of the outer parts of north London whenever the conditions permit; we take to the roads in the winter when the parks start to close early. Typical Enfield Hash areas include Trent Park (Oakwood), Hillyfields and Whitewebbs Wood (Enfield), Monken Hadley Common (Barnet), though we have run further afield, covering an area from Cuffley and Potters Bar in the North to Harringey in the South, and from Barnet and Oakleigh Park in the West to Chingford in the East.

Runs normally start from (and end at) a pub fairly close to a rail or tube station. The pub is marked from the station by a trail marked either in blobs of flour or in chalk letter 'P's. We always ensure that there is somewhere secure to leave bags (e.g. with a change of clothes in).

When and where are the next runs?

Enfield Hash runs on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. Runs start at 7:30pm prompt (so you need to be at the pub just before).

All regular runs cost one pound, but your FIRST RUN IS FREE.