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 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR MAJOR SPONSOR, SAN MIGUEL! For all San Miguel products in Vung Tau: Ms Dao Email: dao.na@sanmiguel.com.vn Office phone: 08.39976377 (Mondays thru Fridays, 8am - 5pm) Mobile: 0903 886 899 Home, office, party etc deliveries a specialty! 31 July 2016 BIG MOUNTAIN - Tran Phu to Tran Phu: over the top! Hare: Uncle Hash Flash: Cousin. Additional photos: Radio Wave Ringmaster: Basil Report: Uncle The cloudy sky looked good for Hashing as we gathered at Hon Ru Ri and awaited the taxi fleet to drop off the eskies and blue bin at Haven/Lucy's bar on the way to our start point at 360 Tran Phu steps. A chalk talk at the bottom of the steps and then it was "On On" up 184 steps to Hem 444 and the former French artillery battery. Back on Hem 444 after "inspecting" the guns, we passed the "underground torpedo" sign and continued on up the mountain past two small villages (including one false trail to a small shrine on the side of the mountain). The second village's resident goose was a bit scary, but his sqwark was fortunately worse than his bite - and ditto for the ubiquitous guard dogs who make lots of noise because that's their job! Lots of scenery on both sides as we traversed the ridge: shipyards on the left, Vung Tau Bay on the right - excellent photo material! We finally spotted the red tape markers leading off the beaten track and uphill to some shrines - which marked the top of the infamous '600 steps' down to a pagoda on Tran Phu. Right turn on the main road, then just a few hundred metres to our unusually upmarket destination: The Haven/Lucy's Bar & Grill - which was already hosting a 'gaggle' of Vietnam Vets (early starters for the 50th anniversary Long Tan Day on 18 August). Plenty of time for snacking (spam baguettes courtesy Anti & Uncle), drinking and socialising as we waited for the backmarkers, then we followed the junior Hashers down to the beach for the team photo and Circle. Ringmaster Basil nominated Lady D to evaluate Uncle's trail and she noted the tourist attractions, excellent scenery and overall distance travelled (>7 km, mostly uphill), before awarding full marks: 10/10! Hash Virgins Ms Nga, Ugo and Ben were welcomed into the fold, as well as visitors "Joystick" (Bullsbrook H3, Perth, WA) and "Bag of Tatties" (aka "Sex and Tatties") - who wasn't really a visitor at all; as a former VTH3 Grand Master, he was a very welcome returnee! Uncle tried to charge Viking with missing the steps to the artillery battery, but he'd already left for a business appointment so Lady D "turned the tables" and charged Uncle with something or other - not important really, because they both ended up drinking from the new Sinners Cups! (courtesy Radio Wave). "Tatties" was then invited into the Circle to be properly introduced as a former VTH3 GM and give us his verdict on today's VTH3, which he delivered in his rich Scottish brogue - proving once again that Hashing is definitely a cultural experience! Basil announced a trail on Long Son Island next week, with himself and SamSon as Hares - but please keep an eye on the NEXT RUN box in case of any unforeseen changes during the week! We'll meet at Hon Ru Ri next Sunday, as usual: 2 pm for 2.30 pm start - in any weather! On On! 
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 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR MAJOR SPONSOR, SAN MIGUEL! For all San Miguel products in Vung Tau: Ms Dao Email: dao.na@sanmiguel.com.vn Office phone: 08.39976377 (Mondays thru Fridays, 8am - 5pm) Mobile: 0903 886 899 Home, office, party etc deliveries a specialty! 24 July 2016 MINH DAM SECRET ZONE - Down (up, down)! Hares: Motor, Diamonds Hash Flash: Ms Ngan. Team and additional photos: Radio Wave Ringmaster: SamSon Report: Uncle It was another bright, sunny day as we gathered at Hon Ru Ri for the trip to Minh Dam Secret Zone. A chalk talk on arrival from hare Motor, who introduced co-hare and medic Diamonds, and On On! we went downhill. A short time later we turned off-road into the jungle and continued to head downhill past some old wartime caves and tunnels. Suddenly, we were at the Down Down spot, with the Hashmobile arriving at the same time. Duration of trail: just 19 minutes – surely a record! Radio Wave saved the day by quickly suggesting a return uphill on the same trail in reverse, then back down the road; so off we went again, to add some “respectability” to the day and justify our free beer! Everyone eventually returned after exploring various parts of the hinterland, and got stuck into the coldies, snacks and socialising. Suitably rested and lubricated, we posed for a team photo with our new banner (courtesy generous sponsor San Miguel), then duty Ringmaster SamSon called the hares into the Circle and invited Viktor to rate the trail(!). He generously awarded full points to the revamped/extended trail for its “interest value”: 10/10! Only one Hash Virgin this week, so we welcomed Ms Bo, who introduced herself in Norwegian! Then returnees Motor and Dancing Lion. Radio Wave had supplied three innovative “Sinners cups” with a row of holes below the rim, so we needed three sinners to test them out. Lady D, Cousin and Shaky were nominated for sins real and imagined, and duly christened the new cups! Three Hashtags were bestowed after much animated discussion by the Circle: Doctor Zhivago changed to Doctor Who ("Doc") for Aussie Alex, Laura became "Blondie" for his Russian partner Iuliia; then "Grozny II" (Ivan the Terrible II) for mild-mannered Viktor, who follows another popular, quiet Russian Hasher also named Viktor who was Ivan Grozny the first, but moved on a few years ago. After the Circle, a game of "bursting the balloon", with junior Hasher Gia Linh and her Mum Ms Linh taking the prize. Motor volunteered himself and Diamonds to set a trail on Long Son Island next week – so it's "redemption" time, and we look forward to the outcome! STOP PRESS (Thursday): The proposed Long Son Island trail has been postponed because of logistical issues. Sunday's run has instead been set on Big Mountain (up and over!), with new Circle and Down Down location on the beach - bring swimming gear and a towel if you fancy a dip! We'll meet at Hon Ru Ri on Sunday as usual: 2 pm for 2.30 pm start – in any weather! On On!   PLEASE SUPPORT OUR MAJOR SPONSOR, SAN MIGUEL! For all San Miguel products in Vung Tau: Ms Dao Email: dao.na@sanmiguel.com.vn Office phone: 08.39976377 (Mondays thru Fridays, 8am - 5pm) Mobile: 0903 886 899 Home, office, party etc deliveries a specialty! 17 July 2016 BIG MOUNTAIN - "M90 trail" Hare: Uncle Hash Flash: Tiger. Additional photos: Radio Wave Ringmaster: Basil Report: Uncle It was a hot, sunny day as we gathered at Hon Ru Ri for the M90 trail - so named because it starts off Vi Ba next to a shop-house with a huge "M90" sign on the wall. A quick photo at the HRR entrance gate and then we crossed Tran Phu for the trek to Hem 89 and onwards down Vi Ba for about 150 metres to the ‘M90’ sign near the former Venus nightclub. The chalk talk explained that we’d be going around the side of the mountain to the “crossroads” that many experienced Hashers are familiar with from the “waterfall” trail, and from there it would be downhill and back via Hem 89 to Hon Ru Ri for the Circle and Down Downs. We left a couple of short-cutters to head for the Hem 89 steps and went straight uphill, but fortunately not for too far before the track levelled out a bit. We continued around the side of the mountain, always going upwards in varying degrees. We finally reached the crossroads and down we went to Vi Ba, before continuing to Hon Ru Ri via Hem 89 to complete the A to A circle and down a few ice-coldies. We took a team photo (substituting San Mig-branded eskies for the missing banner!), then Ringmaster Basil and apprentice Messi called the Circle and Alex rated Uncle’s trail. He said it was ‘good, a bit short, but steep at the beginning’ and gave it 9, + 1 for good weather = 10/10! Hash Virgins Ms Linh (works for Tourism and saw VTH3 on Trip Advisor), Ms Ngan (relocated to Vung Tau for work and saw VTH3 website) and Ms Hoa (friend of Poison Flower) were welcomed; then returnees Ice Water and Poison Flower. Sinners were short-cutters Poison Flower and Ms Hoa, charged by Uncle, plus Hope Solo charged by Radio Wave for “the world’s longest phone call on the Hash”. No volunteers to set next week’s trail(!) so Basil told everyone to watch the NEXT RUN box during the week (STOP PRESS: former Hasher Motors volunteered after the Circle to set a trail with Strainer at Minh Dam Secret Zone). We’ll meet at Hon Ru Ri on Sunday as usual: 2 pm for 2.30 pm start – in any weather! On On!    PLEASE SUPPORT OUR MAJOR SPONSOR, SAN MIGUEL! For all San Miguel products in Vung Tau: Ms Dao Email: dao.na@sanmiguel.com.vn Office phone: 08.39976377 (Mondays thru Fridays, 8am - 5pm) Mobile: 0903 886 899 Home, office, party etc deliveries a specialty! 10 July 2016 LONG PHUOC - Tứ Phương Thất Đảo (eco resort) Hares: SamSon, Basil Hash Flash: Fot tret. Additional photos: Mr Smiley, Radio Wave Ringmaster: SamSon Report: Uncle We loaded a shiny, new Hashmobile at Hon Ru Ri and headed towards Ba Ria for a leisurely day in the fresh countryside at the Tứ Phương Thất Đảo eco-resort near Long Phước, picking up a few additional Hashers along the way. The sky was overcast, so it was a nice, cool day for hiking and taking photos in the open air as we passed farmers labouring in rice and vegetable fields until finally reaching the resort entrance. A quick tour of the thatched eating areas connected by bamboo bridges and streams, and then we visited the fruit orchard with rambutan, durian, mangosteen and other fruits at various stages of ripeness. We savoured complimentary fruit plates along with Mother Teresa’s sandwiches and salted pork, washed down with ice-cold San Migs and softies as junior Hashers were rowed around the area before trying their hand at fishing! “Duty tour guide”, SamSon, then called a Circle outside the resort as the sun sank towards the horizon. Tommy Hilfiger said the trail was short but beautiful, so awarded 9 out of 10 before adding 3 points for the good weather – making 12 points total for an even 10/10! No fewer than 8 Hash Virgins were introduced and welcomed: Tim and Ms Quyen, Tuyet, Luyen, Khanh Linh, Nhung, Trang and Cuc; then 5 returnees, with Mr Smiley’s “busy” excuse earning him the tube of shame! Sinners were charged by Basil for something that sounded very “suspect”, but Down Downs were awarded anyway! Mother Teresa then made an inspired suggestion with the aid of translator Radio Wave, that instead of taking the short-cut to the bus for our ride home, we go back and do the trail in reverse – which was agreed by all! Once eventually back on the bus there was another pleasant surprise in store – a roadside stop to buy cakes that were baked by volunteer youth for charity, so the international songfest became a “munchfest” for the rest of the trip! It had been a relatively easy day by VTH3 standards – not only easy on the legs (no doubt welcomed by Terminator and Shaky, both carrying injuries), but also easy on the eyes in the beautiful, serene countryside far away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Vung Tau City! No word yet on next week’s trail, but the NEXT RUN box will be updated as soon as a trail and hares have been announced. We’ll meet at Hon Ru Ri on Sunday as usual: 2 pm for 2.30 pm start – in any weather! On On! VTH3 #741 PHOTO GALLERY A CONTRIBUTION FROM MR SMILEY > > > HERE'S A LINK TO RADIO WAVE'S PHOTOS: https://yadi.sk/d/jaBt6uvktEF3V AND HERE IS HIS TEAM PHOTO, WITH RUN STATS BELOW:   |
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