It was wet, cold, grey and muddy, but we still had a mega blast doing a splashy version of the 7th Annual Gridiron Hash - combined this year with the anal ASU/UA tailgate Hash. A highlight
was strolling in our multifaceted football gear through the Tempe Art Festival, and then slicing our way around the festivities and hoopla surrounding the ASU/UA football game at Sun Devil Stadium. One of the pack, sporting a Michigan jersey, was hounded out of The Tavern On Mill by a rowdy group of Ohio State fans. Half and Half co-hares Can't Cum on Saturday and Salt Around the Rim, both sporting Indianapolis Colt's gear, were repeatedly hit with "Go Patriots" chants. It was that kind of day.

By some miracle (and the invention of cell phones), hare Dumbo' actually found the MeetIn tailgate party/Beer Near among the ocean of 72,000 football fans. An even bigger miracle was that the
25-strong pack of runners eventually found it as well, thanks to astute trail marks. Just Susan fired up the Dumbo' provided hotdogs, which the famish pack ate without relish while at the same time
quickly consuming two coolers full of fine pilsner. A few of the "joggers" stayed for the game (few being Nordy), while the majority of the pack continued backdoor through the tailgating mob, over the
hill and around Tempe Town Lake, eventually returning to MeetIn Mountain for the post run party and ceremonies.

Combining a mid-run tailgate event with the Hash's usual pre-run beer party, bar stops during the run, and post run keg ceremonies certainly put everybody in good spirits despite the chilly-for-Arizona weather. The "line up in a circle" ceremony was one of the most unruly in Phoenix/Tucson/ Zonie Hash memory. The extreme drunkenness even taxed Great Pretender Bitch 'N Hoe's legendary ability to loudly control and dominate any situation. The cops eventually came and roused our noisy, spirited,
intoxicated but healthy butts from the marina - but not before we were able to see a splendid fireworks show emanating from Sun Devil Stadium.

Sweet.

After the tussle with the po-lice, a few scattered Hashers descended upon Flicka's where a mob of Arizona fans had dug in like termites. There, we watched ASU beat UA on the big screens, and were
given free chicken wings and hotdogs by Flicka himself. As the night progressed and the weary Hashers fizzled out, the MeetIn crowd began to filter in for the evening festivities highlighted by the crack band Sylence. This second wave closed the place down - `cept for the Tucson "contingent. " They were booted around midnight for being drunk and disorderly - a condition acerbated by the fact that ASU squeaked by the Mildcats in the Territorial Bowl a few hours earlier and left the Mildcats with another losing bowless season.

All in all, it turned out to be the ultimate example of making lemonade out of lemons. Instead of hunkering down and hiding from by far the nastiest day of the year, we stout Hashers embraced
the elements like Klingon warriors, defied the rain and the cold, and then partied into the wee hours inside a warm tropical cantina. It reminded me of the infamous hurricane and typhoon parties we use to have in Florida, Thailand and the Philippines. Except for the drunk Tucsonians. They don't even know where Thailand and the Philippines are located.

Photos at:
http://www.meetin. org/city/ MEETinPHOENIX/ NewsDetails. cfm?NewsID= 15671

And Flicka's On After:
http://www.meetin. org/city/ MEETinPHOENIX/ NewsDetails. cfm?NewsID= 15694