Skip to content
  • Epic Quest
  • Contact Me!
  • About Me
Instagram YouTube Facebook
Menu

Writer. Traveler. Tea Drinker.

Writer. Traveler. Tea Drinker. Doing all three in China
Instagram YouTube Facebook
  • Epic Quest
  • Contact Me!
  • About Me
Hit enter to search or esc to close
Home  >  China  >  The Red Dress Hash House Harrier Walk! (Say that 5 times fast.)
Posted inChina

The Red Dress Hash House Harrier Walk! (Say that 5 times fast.)

Posted By Becky Ances Posted on June 8, 2015
Please install Travelera Share Buttons plugin

I’ve written about the Hash House Harriers and I’ve been doing the walk with some regularity (maybe once a month, though they now have walked 2-3 times per month).

But this weekend was a special walk, it was the “Red Dress Hash.” The Red Dress run is a Hash House Harrier unique tradition. It dates back to 1987. (Ancient history. *cough*) A woman was visiting her friend. Her friend decided to bring her to this “wacky running group” in southern California. The woman was wearing a red dress and heels and the Hash organizers told her to just wait in the car for her friend since she obviously couldn’t run. But run she did.

Kinda as a joke, the hashers sent a plane ticket back to the red dress woman one year later. In honor of her return, everyone wore a red dress. Hundreds attended, wearing dresses, and the woman suggested that it become a charity event.

And a tradition was born.

Red Dress Hashes are held in every city all over the world (though not at the same time). And each group chooses their own charity. The Xiamen Hash chose a local private school for poor kids to help.

But really, the charity part is overshadowed by the red dresses. Because everyone should wear them, including the guys. (No, I didn’t wear it. I wore a red shirt and just normal sports pants. I hate dresses and not even peer pressure can change that.)

Actually I wasn’t the only girl not wearing a dress. There were plenty of girls in pants, and yet, almost every guy decided to wear a dress. They barely needed any encouragement. Then someone passed out balloons to “fill out” the dresses. The guys not only wore them, but seemed to specially enjoy it. The Hash is best seen through pictures, rather than my description so here’s a little peek into the Red Dress Run:

You can see the guys really enjoyed wearing dresses.
You can see the guys really enjoyed wearing dresses.
I thought I’d help the guys feel what it is really like to be a woman. So I sexually harassed them.
A curious local popped his head over the fence to watch us. With so many people in red dresses (and so many men) we got a lot of attention wherever we went.
At our first beer stop (the hash has breaks for beer) the other girls did my hair. First into pigtails and then little buns.

After our first break, we headed into the mountains. As Tim (one of the hares said) a Xiamen hash isn’t a hash without a mountain. I was less than happy because while it was a cloudy day, it was crazy humid and I was super sweaty as it was.
We had a “hold” (a short break to let everyone catch up) at the top of the mountain. Had some spectacular views.
Despite the huge group, I managed to break free for awhile in the mountains and had a few blissful minutes by myself in nature. Those buildings in the background are kinda new, iconic buildings in Xiamen. They are still being built, but I have a feeling they will be a symbol if Xiamen soon. For some reason I really like them.
At the end we circled up on the beach. We started an ended at the same place (called an A-A hash). The place was a beach club that holds a lot of cool events (like the crafts fair.) A friend even had a birthday party there and we played beach volleyball and just relaxed. It’s a great place and a good place to end the hash.

I think this is the last hash for me for awhile. It’s just too damn hot. Even though it was cloudy and windy, I still ended the day hot, cranky with a major headache. In fact, the following day I was supposed to go to a cafe to write and I decided to just stay at home writing. I just didn’t have it in me to go outside and sweat through more clothes. I’m officially over the heat of the Xiamen summer. And it’s only the beginning of June. I am screwed…

Anyway, on a lighter note, it was quite fun. It was a good walk and I got to meet a bunch of new people. Hashers have groups in most places so if you have an opportunity to take part in a red dress hash, make sure to do it!

Tags: activities Hash Hash House harriers hiking Red Dress hash Red Dress Run xiamen
Previous Article A Weird Thing About Being a Female Blogger That Dates Asian Men
Next Article Summer Break Can’t Come Soon Enough!

Related Posts

What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020)

We are a month into the fall 2020 semester, so I thought I’d give a little update on what the teaching situation is like. Masks? Alternate day in-class attendance? Social distancing on campus and a mix of classroom and online learning? Well….no. None of that. If you were beamed to

Read More about What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020)
Please install Travelera Share Buttons plugin

I Won “Favorite Teacher!”

College has started and students have come back to school after being gone for 6 months, so I wasn’t surprised when a few students contacted me to ask if I was still on campus. But I was surprised when they said they wanted to see me and give me flowers.

Read More about I Won “Favorite Teacher!”
Please install Travelera Share Buttons plugin

4 Comments

  1. Autumn
    June 30, 2015 at 10:02 am

    I love that the women were mostly over the dresses, but the men were dying to wear them.
    Can’t believe they didn’t do heels, though. Slackers.

    Reply
  2. Becky
    July 2, 2015 at 1:52 am

    There was one girl that kinda didn’t get it and she DID wear heels. Big ones. I had a feeling she really wanted to look “cute” and “sexy” as she also had a lot of makeup on. I didn’t recognize her from previous hash walks and I think she didn’t really get the fact we would be walking on the sand, and climbing a mountain. I didn’t see her at the end, hahaha.

    Reply
  3. Eric
    October 22, 2018 at 1:40 pm

    I’m a guy likes to wear dresses and

    Reply
  4. Eric Dayter
    October 23, 2018 at 9:07 pm

    This is cool and im a guy who likes to be a striper

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Recent Posts

  • What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020)
  • I Won “Favorite Teacher!”
  • I Entered a Puzzle Competition! (You can make fun of me all you want.)
  • What is the Situation in China Like Now?
  • Painting a Chinese Dragon

Archives

Categories

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Recent Posts

  • What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020) Becky Ances October 9, 2020
  • I Won “Favorite Teacher!” Becky Ances September 21, 2020
  • I Entered a Puzzle Competition! (You can make fun of me all you want.) Becky Ances September 10, 2020
  • Popular
  • Recent
  • The Swiss Family Robinson are a Bunch of Jerks December 11, 2009
  • Making it Official: My Chinese Boyfriend December 7, 2012
  • Good Chinese Wife Review and a Chance to Win a Free Book!! July 27, 2014
  • 10 Signs You've Lived in China a Long Time March 29, 2014
  • What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020) October 9, 2020
  • I Won “Favorite Teacher!” September 21, 2020
  • I Entered a Puzzle Competition! (You can make fun of me all you want.) September 10, 2020
  • What is the Situation in China Like Now? July 30, 2020

Subscribe Now to Our Newsletter, It’s Free!

Get the best content delivered straight into your inbox!

Facebook Twitter Google+

About

I’m an American who has been living in China for more than a decade! This is my blog where I muse about all things China. Please also check out my YouTube channel “Badminton Becky” and my other badminton blog at www.badmintonbecky.com

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • What School is Like in China Right Now (Fall 2020) October 9, 2020
  • I Won “Favorite Teacher!” September 21, 2020
  • I Entered a Puzzle Competition! (You can make fun of me all you want.) September 10, 2020
© Copyright 2017. Theme by BloomPixel.