Date =                            2^nd November 2015

Run Number =             1646                                                                                                                                     

Venue =                        Three Magnets

Location=                     Letchworth

Beer =                           B&T S.O.B, Lighthouse

Hares =                         No Eye Deer

Runners =                    15

Virgins =                       0

Visitors =                      0                                        

Après Hashers =         0

Newies =                       0

Hounds =                      0

Total =                          15

Membership =             Buenos Dia de Muertos!

                Considering it was Monday night & that there was some light fog still hanging in the air, the turnout this night was pretty good, so too was the effort that most of the Pack had gone to celebrate the last day of Mexican Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead) & just as the clock ticked around to 7 of the Clock Mr X made his first appearance in several weeks, not that many would recognise him with the outfit he was wearing – a morph-suit outfit of a skeleton decorated with traditional Mexican Day of the Dead designs & complete with a Sombrero.    Mr X came out with “I told you that I’ve always been ‘Big-boned’!”

                The GM kept things brief with the intro’s, but had the Pack stunned in to silence as he announced that the Run number was ‘Fifteen thousand & forty six’  As Sludge queried this statement & Tent Packer corrected himself, Mr X thought that he had missed a couple of Runs but not that many!

                No Eye Deer, the evening’s Hare, was also brief on her Chalk Talk before letting the Pack head off down by the Three Magnets, the site of the Pack must have left an impression on the few locals out & about, for there were two other Skeletons, Max Factor & Alfa Male leading the way, followed by various Ghouls, apparitions & Paxo loping along in a very distinctive way as if he was Igor out of the Frankenstein movies.  Kylie, who resembled a werewolf, was on hand to take a number of suitable pics of the Run.

                The Trail took the Hash down to the edge of Norton Way South, here a CHK was found.  On over Norton Way South road & the Pack were led up Hillshot, with Sludge & Mr X leading the way on to a Bar CHK a little way beyond the crossroads with Rushby Mead, the Pack made their way back to take to the northern part of Rushby Meads as it runs along the east side of Howard Park, now a water feature long changed from the outdoor paddling pools the Hash once ran through in groups of threes who were tethered to each other’s wrists, on a Trail set by Food & Drink with Miss Piggy.

No time to reminisce as the Trail then broke off to lead through an area of newer homes off of Rushby Mead, cutting through this small labyrinth of an estate to emerge on the older Ridge Road.   The Trail turned Northward & on to the next CHK at the T-junction with Birds Hill road.  When it was picked up once again the Pack were taken down to Norton Way South once again!  So, far the Pack hadn't gone that far from the On Inn!

Manjeeta was one of the first under the railway bridge to the north of the roundabout, the Trail was found on the opposite side of the railway line, tough there was some confusion as to what side the Hash should be on at one point.  Eventually My Lil' spotted the Dust on the west side of the street, this would lead of in a westward direction along Nevel's Road, which is one of the older roads in the World's first Garden City.

Paxo was still lolloping along as the Pack made their way up the leaf littered street to find the Trail going off to the north again on the darker side road that joins Nevel’s Road with the Icknield Way.  Here My Lil’ wondered whether the Hare would have those carrying torches weaving their way through the trees on Norton Common, that sits on the northern side of the Icknield Way – fortunately the answer was “No!”

Sticking with the Icknield Way, Mr X made Ewok Laugh as he came out with a squeaky voice calling out “Mind my Sombrero!” as his wide brimmed hat was knocked by a low branch of one of the trees lining the road.

All around the Trail Mr X was also alarming the natives of Letchworth by just trying to be authentic & saying a warm “Buenas noches!” [Spanish for Good Evening!] as he passed them it must have been a little startling as his face was covered with the Skull like mask that any Luchador from a Lucha libre [Mexican Wrestling! – Ed] bout would have been proud of!

Mr X & Alfa Male led the way as the Dust & one-sided arrows led south-westward along the Icknield Way, the markings were barely illuminated by the orange sulphur glow of the sparsely lit street.  A CHK was found where the Icknield way has a roundabout breaking its progress near to the railway bridge, on the taxingly named ‘Bridge Street’!

Mr X & Ewok started searching over the bridge, but were called back.  On their return to the CHK, they slowed up as the ‘retiring’ TBT OBE hobbled away back to the On Inn.  They then had a conversation about “stitching down the seam” which, gentle reader, had nothing to do with haberdashery!

By the time they had turned the slight kink in Bridge Road the rest of the Pack were out of sight, luckily the Hare had arrived & marked the Trail over to the opposite road from Bridge Road.  So, the Trail headed northward up Cowslip Hill road until it reached a point where Redhoods Way leaves this, the Trail turned Down Redhoods Way, crossing the intersecting Bedford Road to end up at its termination with the Icknield Way once more.

A CHK was found opposite the local Petrol Station, from here Mr X & Tent Packer both went wrong as they turned back toward Bridge road.  They were called back as the Trail was discovered a little further south-westward on the Icknield Way, here some ‘Local Knowledge’ kicked in as Sludge went off to search the dead-end Spring Road.  Mr X was soon up with him as they found the Dust leading to the end of the street & then under the Arch of the Railway bridge to a CHK on the opposite side of Station Approach.

Mr X utilized the acoustics of the Arch by calling “On! On!” to the rest of the Pack, the Pack didn’t seem to fragment at this point but that would change a little later.  Alfa Male & Mr X headed off down Station Road but this would be too early to head back & a Bar CHK stopped them in their tracks, they had to back track to find the rest where now starting off down the Dale Road.

The Pace for most had now dropped, as by this point in the Trail many where feeling how warm it was this evening, with Alfa Male & Max Factor both removing their Skull Masks, Fliptop too had taken off his ‘Jason Hockey mask’ from Friday 13^th Films.  Paxo & Ewok with their painted faces fared better, as for Mr X, well it as a job for him to unzip his mask & he endured this until the end of the Trail! 

Ewok’s painted face, obviously she had done some research in to Dai de Murtoes as not only was the tradition make-up resembling a skull, with black eyes & nose to resemble the sockets & cavities, she also had a flower behind her ear.  As for Paxo, he had decided to have a traditional white base for his face decoration, it was so pale a shade of white that it matched his legs!

Now it looked as if the Pack would be on their way Inn, as having made their way down another back street the Trail came out through to the back of the Council Offices.  It may have seemed as if it would be a straight trot back over the Broadway & back Inn, but it wasn’t for most of the Hash as the Hare had set a tricky end for the Pack, of course there was the exception & that exception was Sludge, who vanished on his own Trail & was not seen again until the Pack entered the On Inn.

The Hare seemed happy to see the Pack were now heading away from the Town Centre, it was another loop which had the Pack making their way back via Gorst Close & on to Broadwater Road to the small roundabout, after an almost hair-pin turn the lights of fountains on the green space on the Broadway lured the Hash on.

By now it was noticeable that Mumblehead, Lobby Lobster & Ketchup were missing, the FRBs did think about hanging around & waiting for them, but the On Inn was now not far away.  The lure of the Dust crossing the green space to the opposite end was too much & off the Pack headed to where the Trail made its way over to pass near to the historic Letchworth Cinema.  Much to the amusement of a few of the Cinema goers!

The Pack would now leave the well-kept green space to head through an access road to back of the shops in the local arcade.  Two guys returning to their car, after getting a Pizza, were impressed at the passing pack that they took a short video clip of the Hash going by!

 The On Inn was found on the way out of the Garden Centre Shopping Centre to Ley Street, again a few more civilians were amused by seeing the sight of the returning Hash.  It was good Trail on which the Pack never left the original part of Letchworth!

The Hash retired to the Pub, where Mr X was offered £20 for his Sombrero!  [Ay Caramba! – Ed]  The talk then came around to ‘The Day of the Dead’, its appearance in the new Bond Film Spectre, then on to Mr X & My Lil’s time out in Mexico with the Hash.

The food was good, but with the number of similar dishes No Eye Deer started on Kylie's burrito which led to a sudden swap of plates.  With so long taken for eating, it took a while before the Down-Downs took place out the back of the Pub, Mercifully the RA was handing out halves this night.

The Hare was rewarded for a good Trail that caught a few out.  Other Hits included the best dressed outfits, two of the Skeletons had gone (Alfa Male & Max Factor) which left Mr X, Ewok & Paxo in the Circle, though Mr X said that she could have been mistaken for one of the 101 Dalmatians, her nose was missing the little pointy bit!Sludge was out for his mid Trail vanishing act.  There was no Hashsit to be awarded.