Hashing Basics: The Ice Blocks

in #sports3 years ago

One thing you will notice at most hashes around the world is that at the conclusion of a Hash run there will be some amount of ice located either in a makeshift chair with cubes or such as it is at our events, giant ice blocks that we place on the ground.

This is something you will almost certainly encounter if you are in Asia and if it is your first time and you are a "virgin" with the Hash you can go ahead and plan on getting put on the ice on your first day and probably for several weeks after that.

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The ice blocks or ice in general for Hash chapters around the world is a central focus of the social aspects of what Hashing is all about. At the end of each run it is customary for the General Manager to put the Hares (the people who made the trail that you just finished doing) on the ice so that the general group can berate them for having done a terrible job making the trail. Almost all of the time the criticism will be done in jest because a lot of work goes into making a trail and it would be kind of awful of us if this was genuine sentiment.

When I first joined the Chiang Mai Hash I was unaware of the fact that if you asked how the trail was and you answer in a positive way you will be put on the ice with the people who made the trail and freeze your butt cheeks off while you wait to hear all the funny things that people say about how awful the trail was.

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This is also an opportunity for members to call out other members that made silly mistakes on trail such as not understanding visual cues that are all over the place or by shouting out the wrong commands to others. It is also a great time to make fun of anyone for things that happened that day or in weeks past. While it isn't a rule (there are no rules in the Hash, just traditions) it is frowned upon to bring up topics that didn't happen on the Hash event or even worse, things that happened in your private life that has nothing to do with the group.

It isn't even that important that your story that you tell about the person you put on the ice even be true.

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On one instance I was put on the ice by another member that I was running near on a trail and he called me out for something that he actually did, not me. I think this was a dirty (but funny) trick on his part because he knew that I was going to call him out for it but since I am known as a bit of a showman at the events I always save my picks for near the end of the event.

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It is extremely rare that anyone is put on the ice for anything real or serious and getting upset at a Hash event is highly frowned upon. We are a bunch of jokers and very little of what is said at our events is meant to be take seriously.

One thing to remember when you get put on the ice is that you will be given a small cup of beer once you sit down - unless you do not drink, we do not try to turn people into alcoholics at these things - mostly because almost everyone already is one. When you receive this cup of beer you are NOT supposed to drink it until instructed to do so, normally after a small but belittling song that is sung in your honor. Then you down down down the beer and throw the tiny remnants of the cup over your shoulder, hopefully hitting someone behind you.

Hashing is great fun, and the "ice circle" that takes place at the end of it is a very big reason why this is the case. When you are in very hot countries like all the ones in South East Asia it can actually seem like it would be a nice experience since it is so hot and humid, but after about 10 seconds with your butt cheeks freezing, that notion of "niceness" quickly fades.

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