Run No 818

The White Horse, Welwyn

Monday, 14th May 2007

Hares: Count Roadkill & Gorjoyce

HASHERS: 42 (inc loads  H4)  NEWEES: 0  APRES: 2  MUTTS: 2

This was a joint hash with H4 laid H5 style but deep in H4 territory and it was good to see more or less equal representation at an excellent ale drinkers' pub with location and parking perhaps not ideal. It was not good to see the weather the absent RAs left for trail laying and for the second successive week poor Gorjoyce had a wet lay. Also for the second successive week the weather turned round somewhat for the hash itself so the RAs keep their jobs for a while longer.

Having encouraged the pack - Donut apart - into some enormous falsies before even leaving town, the route took the road south before at last finding footpaths west to Whitehill Farm where a numbered check (11 in honour of the Stevenage Borough team which was the first to win a trophy at the new Wemberlee) greeted the FRBs. Now it's a fairly well known and time-honoured tradition the numbered check; serves the very useful purpose of keeping the pack together and it's what we call a little bit of fun. Well that's what I thought, but apparently in Heartbeat country only if pre-announced at the circle. Otherwise the numbered check however well explained is greeted with stoney, unamused inactivity. There are no Rules and this was underlined when the hash also consistently refused to follow the On (end of Hare Rant).

Past The Frythe we went and on to the unique and pretty church at Ayot St Peter where a held check was happily observed and the knitting circle bade farewell to take a short cut. On to the disused railway track where Harriets checked both ways - well played Lady Pee and Screamer - before finding the trail back towards, and then into, Ayot Montfitchet. Out through the double-doored turret onto road again and up to Ayot Bury and fields once more.

By the time the hash found another numbered check to ignore they had the scent of the beer, but Shaggy and Private Parts showed the decency to splash through a shiggified falsie to restore a smile to this hare's face before it was reunited with its old pal, a pint of Deuchars.

Down-downs to birthday boy Deadmeat and many others too dark to see for misdemeaners too numerous to mention and too trivial to recall. Culminating in Sludge ... for having a name beginning with S.

We will meet again.

On On to The Raven at Hexton

Count Roadkill for Gorjoyce