On 7th, 8th, & 9th August 2008
Scribe and Photos by Drug Buster
THE 24TH PAN INDO HASH 2008, PALEMBANG, SUMATRA, INDONESIA.
Hashing is a well-known healthy pastime borne in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1938. It has since spread wildly worldwide. And Indonesia is one of the countries most affected with the birth of a huge number of hashing chapters. For the purpose of interacting, it has since mid 1980s organized Pan Indo Hash yearly on rotation which enables the hashers from all its hashing chapters to travel, meet, mingle, run, drink, socialize and foster friendship.
Come last 7th, 8th and 9th August, 2008, it was its 24th Pan Indo Hash which was organized by 616 Bumi Sriwijaya Hash House Harriers and held in Palembang, Sumatra. As arranged by Murugan of Malaysian Hash Council from Maharani Hash House Harriers, Muar, Rasputin from Orang Utan Hash House Harriers of Malacca, Kachang Panjang from Malacca Sunday Hash House Harriers And Harriets and I from Malacca Hash House Harriers left Malacca by taxi for the Low Cost Carrier Terminal (LCCT), Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), Sepang on the morning of 7th August, 2008. Whilst there, we met a number of familiar faces. Among them were Lim Pang Wu, Bombastic, Mok and Ikan from the Malacca Hashes, and Brigadier General (Retired) Dato’ Soon Lian Cheng from Damansara Hash House Harriers, Kuala Lumpur. They were also heading for Palembang to attend the said Pan Indo Hash. As usual, greetings were exchanged and cock and bull stories were told.
It was at 11.00 am that our Air Asia flight took off for Palembang. The journey took 1 hour and 15 minutes to arrive at its modern Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Airport. We were received by a local organizing hasher who transported us by car to downtown Palembang city where we checked into the 2-star Sandjaya Hotel and reconfirmed our hashing registrations. Each of us were given a freebies bag which contained 2 beautiful T-shirts, a cap, a tower, a magazine, a key holder, 2 plastic stickers of 26th Pan Indo Hash 2010, Lombok and a security pass. Later we proceeded to the nearby Horison Hotel which was the main registration centre of the said event which attracted some 1,800 participants mostly from Indonesia and some 20 from Malaysia. Cold Bintang beer and soft drinks were served with light food. A number of stalls were set up to sell hashing souvenirs such as T-shirts and trousers. On the same day at 7.00 pm, we were being treated with a delicious Chinese dinner with Bintang beer held on 2 pontoons in front of a Chinese temple near the gorgeous Jambatan Ampera (Ampera Bridge) in Sungai Musi (Musi River) with live music and singers. Many hashers took to the floor to dance wildly. It ended some 3 hours later.
The first run was held on 8th August, 2008 which coincided with the Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Its run-site was at Desa Rambutan which is some 1 hour’s drive away from our hotel where Rasputin and I were being fetched by a car. It is an open field with a stage, a tent and a few drinking kiosks which served beer and light food. In attendance was a big crowd of enthusiastic hashers who were enjoying their drinks and chitchatting while waiting for the run to start. In all there were 3 runs which were made up of long, medium and short with the varied distances of 12 to 14 km, 10 to 12 km and 7 to 9 km respectively which started off at different time.
It was a fine Friday afternoon. As an oldies, I opted for the medium run which was flagged-off at 2.15 pm and participated by a big pack of hashers. The paper led north on a wide laterite road for a short distance before turning right on a narrow path into a bushy shrub which made overtaking by the energetic runners difficult. It continued to meander into the mixed fruits farm and paddy field for some 30 minutes before arriving at a T-junction where 2 local organizing hashers were guiding the runners to the short run trail on the left and medium run trail on the right. A big pack of runners followed the short run trail whereas I followed the medium run trail with a smaller pack of runners. While walking cum jogging, we took the opportunity to chitchat and enjoy the surrounding serene atmosphere.
The paper continued to trudge and meander on the narrow path through the mixed fruits farm and rubber plantation for another some 30 minutes before hitting the second run separation junction where another 2 local organizing hashers were guiding the runners to the medium run trail on the left southward instead of turning right which was the out-trail of the long run.
The third and last run separation junction appeared after another some 30 minutes trudge through the narrow path of fruit farm and shrub. Like previously, as guided by 2 local organizing hashers, I followed the medium run trail which headed straight southward, instead of turning left to the out-trail of the short run. From then on, it was another some 45 minutes trudge on the narrow path through the shrub and mixed fruits farm which meandered eastward and northward before hitting a village on the home trail where the residents looked amazed to see us crazy hashers chasing after the paper for no apparent reason. I arrived back at the run-site at 4.30 pm where the front -runners were enjoying their packet of light food and drinks with live music and songs. The last runners were back some 30 minutes later.
It was a leisure run of some 12 km through the flat terrain of shrub and trees with fresh air. After a short break, we proceeded to OPI Convention Centre some 40 minutes drive away to attend the welcome party. Varieties of delicious local food were served with free-flowing Bintang beer in buffet style outdoor under the tents. Among them were fried rice, chicken curry, grilled mutton and meat, fish curry, fried mixed vegetables, satay, fried mee, fried koay teow, cakes, fruits, ice kachang and pempek (not tempek in Javanese). Later we adjourned to its nearby hall to attend its scheduled programmes which included presentation of souvenirs to the Grand Masters of all participating hashing chapters and show presentations by Surabaya Hash House Harriers and Lombok Hash House Harriers of their coming 25th Pan Indo Hash 2009 and 26th Pan Indo Hash 2010 respectively. To add more fun, live music were played and live songs were sang with big pack of avid hashers dancing wildly on the floor. It was at around 11.00 pm when the programme ended.
On the following day at 9.00 am, a Grand Master meeting was held at Harison Hotel. It was chaired by Soeyono, Letjend TNI (Purn) and attended by some 90 Grand Masters from Indonesian and Malaysian Hashes. Among them were Efendi Djahri and Teguh “Kudo” of 616 Bumi Sriwijaya Hash House Harriers, Pilemon and Doraemon of Padang Hash House Harriers, Poedi Widya Karsa Halim of Malang Hash House Harriers, Penari India of Mataramyogya Hash House Harriers, Murugan of Malaysian Hash Council, Brigadier General (Retired) Dato’ Soon Lian Cheng of Damansara Hash House Harriers, Gorilla of Ipoh Gorilla Hash House Harriers, Lucy of Sabah Hash House Harriers, Bombastic of Malacca Full Moon Hash House Harriers, Kachang Panjang of Malacca Sunday Hash House Harriers And Harriets, Rasputin and Lim Pang Wu of Malacca Orang Utan Hash House Hariers, Mok of Malacca Orang Gila Hash House Harriers and I who represented Malacca Hash House Harriers in the absence of GM Cocker. Each of us was given a cap and a T-shirt. Among the matters discussed, decided and announced were:
(i) The 25th Pan Indo 2009 would be held in Surabaya on 7th, 8th and 9th August, 2009. For more details, visit its website www.panindohash2009.com - email_palm_family_hhh@yahoo.com.
The meeting ended at around 12.30 pm after a talk on health-care by a hashing medical doctor. It was followed by a sumptuous buffet lunch.
It was another fine sunny Saturday afternoon. I left for the second and last run in a bus together with some 10 hashers soon after lunch and arrived at its run-site at Komplek Penas, Sembawa which is some one hour’s drive away on the outskirts of Palembang. It was packed with a large number of hashers, buses and cars. In all there were 4 runs at this run-site, namely, super long run of 28 to 30 km, long run of 16 to 18 km, medium run of 10 to 12 km and short run of 8 to 10 km. Like the previous day, I opted for the medium run. It was flagged-off soon after I stepped out of the bus at 2.00 pm with my backpack together with a small pack of runners. I joined them by following the paper on the tarred road which led to the south. A short distance away, it turned to the left into a rubber plantation on a laterite road. It then meandered for some 40 minutes before arriving at a T-junction where 2 local organizing hashers were guiding us to the short run on the left and medium run straight forward. I followed the medium run paper which continued to meander to the south, east and north-west through the rubber plantation and oil palm plantation for the next some 1 hour before hitting the second and last T-junction with another few local organizing hashers guiding us to the short run trail on the left and medium run trail straight forward beside serving us with water to replenish our lost sweat. I continued to follow the medium run paper with some 10 runners. From then on, it was another some 40 minutes walk through the rubber plantation, a small stretch of oil palm plantation, a lake and a few worker quarters before arriving back at the run-site at 4.20 pm where some front-runners were enjoying their drinks while taking their rest.
It was a comfortable medium run of some 12 km on flat terrain which took me 2 hours and 20 minutes to walk with my backpack. The last runners were back some 20 minutes later after which we adjourned to the same OPI Convention Centre which was some 45 minutes drive away for dinner. Later I was told that some super long runners who started the run from Komplek Kantor Banyuasin at 11.00 am, took nearly 6 hours to complete causing their balls to shrink. What a good challenge!
The farewell party was held at the same OPI Convention Centre which was some 40 minutes drive away. On my arrival there at 7.00 pm, it was already packed with the same big crowd who were enjoying the same food and drinks like the previous night except with an additional dish of monkey soup cooked with herbs. In the Convention hall, a large number of happy hashers were enjoying their time joking, singing and dancing to the tune of live music. It was a memorable night. I did not stay long until it ended at around midnight.
It was quite a well-organized Pan Indo Hash with good run, good food, good drinks, good entertainment, good fun and good fellowship which made us left Palembang with fond memory. As usual, credits should be given to its untiring and devoted organizing committee for the job well done. And to show our confidence in them, let us give our full support to the organizers of the said impending celebration runs by attending them and the bidders of the impending Pan Sumatra Hash 2019, Pan Asia Hash 2011 and Interhash 2012 by voting them. See you at the coming 25th Pan Indo Hash in Surabaya in August, 2009, fellow hashers!
On! On!
Scribe: Drug Buster
Date: 25-08-2008
(ii) The 26th Pan Indo 2010 would be held in Lombok on 14th, 15th and 16th May, 2010. For more details, visit its website www.lombokhash.com
(iii) Padang Hash House Harriers would be bidding for Pan Sumatra Hash 2009. For more details, visit its website www.padanghash.com.
(iv) POP Hash House Harriers Bandung would be bidding for Pan Asia Hash 2011 and Pan Indo Hash 2012. For more details, visit website www.hashbandung2011.com.org.
(v) Jogjakarta Hash House Harriers would be bidding for Interhash 2012.
Date: 25th August, 2008.
