Pub crawl

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A pub crawl (sometimes called a bar tour, bar crawl or bar-hopping) is the act of visiting multiple pubs or bars in a single session. [1]

Contents

Background

Organised pub crawl groups may provide T-shirts for participants. UQ Pub Crawl 2013.jpg
Organised pub crawl groups may provide T-shirts for participants.

Many European cities have public pub crawls that serve as social gatherings for local expatriates and tourists.

In the UK, pub crawls are generally spontaneous nights out in which the participants arrange to meet somewhere and decide over drinks where to drink next. Structured routes with regular stops are rare. Most drinking sessions based around a special occasion such as a birthday or a leaving celebration will involve a pub crawl, often with the group splitting up but agreeing on meeting at the next location. It is a common sight in UK towns to see several groups orbiting the various drinking locations with little apparent coherence or structure.

In the north of Spain, around the Basque Country, the tradition for groups of male friends crawling pubs and drinking a short glass of wine at each pub, and often singing traditional songs, is known as txikiteo or chiquiteo, and can be held at night or day. By the end of the 20th century, it was extended also to women, and when it involves a wider variety of drinks, it is more often called poteo. [2] [3]

By country

United Kingdom

In Glasgow, the Subcrawl is a pub crawl carried out using the circular Glasgow Subway line in the city. It involves having a drink at the nearest pub to each of the 15 stops on the line. [4]

In Leeds, the Otley Run is seen as a rite of passage for students. [5] [6]

In London, the Monopoly board pub crawl is based around having a drink at a pub in each of the places on a British Monopoly board, set in London. [7] Thousands of New Zealanders take part in the annual Waitangi Day pub crawl, which takes place around the Circle Line on the London Underground. Starting at Paddington they work anti-clockwise around the line, ending at Westminster for a haka (traditional New Zealand challenge/dance). While numbers vary depending on the weather, in 2008 there were reported to be around 12,000 people involved. [8] First started by the historian Al Richardson in the 1960s, the Karl Marx pub crawl is based around various pubs the communist philosopher is reputed to have drunk at in and around Soho. [9] [10]

In York, there is an annual charity event known as the Assize of Ale. It is based on the medieval Assize of Bread and Ale and led by the Guild of Scriveners and Sheriff and of the City. [11]

The 2013 film The World's End starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost is plotted around a group of friends embarking on a pub crawl in their home town.

Australia

In Adelaide, a pub crawl is run annually by The Adelaide University Engineering Society (AUES). The event attracts students from all over South Australia to as many as 34 local pubs and clubs. In 2015 the event had 6,000 participants while 2014 and 2013 both had 5,000 participants. [12]

In Brisbane, the Mining and Metallurgy Association (MAMA) at the University of Queensland have been awarded the Brisbane City Council (BCC) and University of Queensland Union (UQU) Award for Social Activities of the Year due to their well-known Pub Crawl.

A pub crawl held annually in Maryborough, Queensland, Australia, attracted 4,718 participants on 14 June 2009. [13] Since the early 1990s disability advocate Des Ryan OAM has organised an annual Accessible Pub Crawl in Rockhampton during which groups of up to 40 people travel by bus from venue to venue. After visiting each pub questionnaires are filled out rating positives and negatives in terms of accessibility and information is later given to hotel management and shared in the media. [14]

Ireland

A pub crawl in December is called the "12 pubs of Christmas" in which participants try to drink one drink in 12 pubs while wearing Christmas clothes. [15]

Japan

In Japan, pub crawls are called hashigozake (はしご酒, literally "Ladder Alcohol") and are a part of the night-life. Events of organized pub crawls are also common in the country. [16]

Belgium

The city of Antwerp has a tradition called "elfkroegentocht" or "eleven bars walk" where a company, often friends or work relatives, will celebrate by walking from one bar to the next and have a "bolleke" of De Koninck beer at each. The figure of "11" may refer to carnival festivities.

Finland

In Finland, pub crawls are a common student event, usually by the name of appro. The best known appro events attract students from all over the country: Hämeenkadun Appro in Tampere has roughly 10,000 participants every year, Kauppakadun Appro in Jyväskylä has c. 8000. [17] [18]

Often the participants of the event receive a jacket patch, which is then sewn onto the student boilersuits worn by many in the appro events. Normally, the colour of the patch depends on how many drinks one has had during the pub crawl; for example, in Kauppakadun Appro, getting the golden patch requires 17 drinks from women and 19 drinks from men. [19]

New Zealand

The annual Talk Like a Pirate Day pubcrawl is run in New Plymouth every year. [20] It started in 2005 with only three pirates and over the years has grown to hundreds.

United States

The Running A Tab Pub Run takes place monthly in San Antonio, Texas, and is hosted by WeRunSanAntonio. [21] The original Running A Tab Pub Run covered 5 miles in downtown San Antonio. The starting point was the historic Sunset Station and finished at the Blue Star Brewery and Art Complex. The event is held in conjunction with San Antonio's First Friday Art Walk. In 2009 the route was modified to accommodate the more than 500 participants every month. Running A Tab now consists of a 3-mile downtown loop and 5 bars/restaurants. A theme is selected every month and participants dress in costume in accordance with the theme. The event is free and open to the public. [22]

In Charlotte, North Carolina, there is a yearly pub crawl on the Saturday nearest to Saint Patrick's Day sponsored by Rich and Bennett. According to the Rich and Bennett website it is billed as the World's Largest Pub Crawl with over 20,000 participants all wearing the event t-shirts. In 2020 it was postponed due to the coronavirus Pandemic. It was rescheduled for 27 June. [23]

2008 Oshkosh Fall Pub Crawl Fallcrawl08-9.jpeg
2008 Oshkosh Fall Pub Crawl

An annual Saint Patrick's Day bar crawl, LepreCon, takes place in Hoboken, New Jersey. The 2016 event, held in the evening 5–6 March, degenerated into a violent brawl. Fifteen people were arrested and 35 hospitalized, including two police officers. The officers were injured when one of the participants was seeking to flee the scene. Hoboken police responded to 432 calls from service during the event and issued 54 tickets, mostly for public drinking. [24] The 2015 event resulted in 93 summonses and 11 arrests. [25] The 2016 LepreCont cost the City of Hoboken $110,000 in police overtime. [26] Two hundred officers were deployed for the event. Hoboken's police chief, Ken Ferrante, said he was "disturbed by the repeated behavior that is occurring on these types of themed events," and said he "will not tolerate having any of our officers injured, for the purposes of a few to make a financial profit at the expense of our residents." [25]

In Louisville, Kentucky, the "Bambi Walk" [27] has been underway since the 1980s.

In Minneapolis, Minnesota, a zombie-themed pub crawl commenced in 2005 and had grown to over 30,000 participants in 2012. [28]

At Epcot in Walt Disney World, guests often do a form of bar crawl known as Drink Around the World, where visitors attempt to drink at all eleven countries of World Showcase.

Santa-themed pub crawls

SantaCon in New York City, 2011, video

The SantaCon pub crawl originated in San Francisco in 1994 and has since spread to 300 cities in 44 countries, including New York City. London, Vancouver, Belfast and Moscow. [29] [30] The New York SantaCon is the largest, with an estimated 30,000 people participating in 2012. [31] [32] Other events were much smaller and more subdued, with 30 participating in Spokane, Washington. [33]

In New York City, where it has taken place since 1997, it has come under widespread criticism for rowdiness by participants, with drunken behavior that has disrupted parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn, and led to calls for the event to be ended and for participant misbehavior to be curbed. Former Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said that despite "some rowdy actions by a small handful of people in the past," SantaCon was "an event that we support. It's what makes New York New York." [34] [35] [36] During the New York City SantaCon in 2012, participants "left a trail of trouble" through Hell's Kitchen, Midtown Manhattan, the East Village and Williamsburg. [37] Residents complained revelers vomited and urinated in the street and fought with each other. [38]

In London, the London Santa Pub Crawl has been held each December since 2004. [39] The event sees participants dress up as Santa Claus, and visit a selection of London pubs along a pre-planned route. From just 25 participants in its first year, the event now sees more than 300 Santas take to the streets to enjoy the festivities. Participants are asked to donate to support the event's nominated charity, and more than £5,000 has been raised over the years for the British Red Cross and St Christopher's Hospice. The 2014 London Santa Pub Crawl took place on Saturday 13 December 2014. [40]

In Brisbane, Australia, the Christmas Pub Crawl runs each year on the first Saturday following the end of the school year in December. This event has been running annually since 1982 and is now "the world's longest running pub crawl".[ citation needed ] Santa-themed pub crawls also take place each December in the towns of Wollongong and Grafton, with proceeds donated to charity. [41] [42] [43] [44] In 2015 local police announced cancellation of the Grafton event, [43] but were opposed by the mayor. [45]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ Meghan Pescio (28 August 2013). "Livin' Local: Vegas Cycle Pub – A Pedal Powered Pub Crawl". Zip Code Magazines (pinpoint publications). Pinpoint Publications Limited Liability Company. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  2. ↑ Basque Government, ed. (26 April 2007). "Poteo in Bilbao" (Comment to tourist route through traditional poteo areas in Bilbao). Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  3. ↑ Servicio Central de Publicaciones del Gobierno Vasco, ed. (December 2009). "The magic of Basque cuisine" (PDF). p. 7. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  4. ↑ Lafferty, Jamie (30 November 2012). "Glasgow sub-crawl: a pub crawl via the city's underground". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  5. ↑ "Headingley's Otley Run is as popular as ever - Headingley Today". 17 May 2008. Archived from the original on 17 May 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2017.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ↑ "Leeds's own Otley Run is ultimate in student initiation - Yorkshire Evening Post". Archived from the original on 2016-09-26.
  7. ↑ "The Ultimate Monopoly Pub Crawl". The Daily Telegraph. 5 November 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
  8. ↑ "Ex-pats celebrate with pub crawl". One News . 10 February 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  9. ↑ Robinson, Bruce (8 December 2003). "Al Richardson: An "unorthodox orthodox" Trotskyist". workersliberty.org. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  10. ↑ Brown, Matt (25 October 2019). "Do The Karl Marx Pub Crawl". londonist.com. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  11. ↑ "Sheriff of York to test York's beers in traditional Assize of Ale". www.yorkpress.co.uk. 13 August 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  12. ↑ "Adelaide University Engineering Society pub crawl stops city". adelaidenow.com.au.
  13. ↑ "Guinness World Records".
  14. ↑ McIntyre, Iain (2023-06-09). "Accessible Pub Crawls and Positive Change: An Interview with Des Ryan". The Commons Social Change Library. Retrieved 2023-07-09.
  15. ↑ "An Irish guide to the 12 Pubs of Christmas". 4 December 2023.
  16. ↑ "「はしご酒」の使い方や意味、例文や類義語を徹底解説！".
  17. ↑ "Tampere on tänään Suomen haalariväen keskipiste – Kolme syytä, miksi Hämeenkadun Appro on kasvanut 10 000 opiskelijan härdelliksi". www.aamulehti.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  18. ↑ Nykänen, Suvi-Tuulia. "Kauppakadun Appro täyttää tänään Jyväskylän – katso kuvista, miltä haalarikansa on vuosien saatossa näyttänyt". KSML.fi – Keskisuomalainen (in Finnish). Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  19. ↑ "Info". Kauppakadun Appro (in Finnish). Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  20. ↑ "Hundreds of pirates invade New Plymouth to celebrate the international day dedicated to them". Stuff. Retrieved 4 March 2019.
  21. ↑ "We Run San Antonio – "Stay to the left and hurry back!"".
  22. ↑ "Run A Tab Pub RUn". Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
  23. ↑ "Pub crawl goes on despite rain | WCNC.com Charlotte". Wcnc.com. 17 March 2012. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2012.
  24. ↑ "15 Arrested, 2 Police Officers Injured During Hoboken's Annual St. Patty's Day Pub Crawl". CBS New York. 6 March 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  25. 1 2 Lam, Katherine (6 March 2016). "Hoboken police chief 'disturbed' by arrests, disturbances from St. Patrick's Day bar crawl". WPIX-11. Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  26. ↑ Strunsky, Steve (4 March 2016). "St. Patrick's Day crawl Saturday to cost Hoboken $111K in police overtime". The Advance (New Jersey). Retrieved 7 March 2016.
  27. ↑ "Stuff Magazine". Archived from the original on 27 February 2008.
  28. ↑ Mannix, Andy (14 November 2012). "Zombie Pub Crawl breaks world record". Blogs.citypages.com. Archived from the original on 1 May 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  29. ↑ Santora, Marc (13 December 2013). "Naughty or Nice? Not Everyone Is Jolly About SantaCon Coming to Town". The New York Times . Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  30. ↑ "Pub-crawl Santas: Vancouver joins in the Christmas spirit with SantaCon 2013". The Province (Canada.com). 14 December 2013. Archived from the original on 26 March 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
  31. ↑ Gilbert, Jason O. (13 December 2013). "Bring Drunken Santas Under Control". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  32. ↑ McCabe, Lyndsay (22 November 2013). "NYPD Ask Bar Owners to Refuse to Serve Rowdy SantaCon Revelers". LongIsland.com. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  33. ↑ Gillespie, Kaitlin (15 December 2013). "SantaCon Spokane a good night indeed". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  34. ↑ Parascandola, Rocco (23 November 2013). "NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly: SantaCon is a 'peaceful event' department supports". The Daily News. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  35. ↑ Chung, Jen (24 November 2013). "Ray Kelly Says NYPD Supports Santacon: 'It Makes New York New York'". Gothamist. Archived from the original on 28 November 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  36. ↑ Del Signore, John (12 December 2011). "It's Time For SantaCon To Stop". Gothamist. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  37. ↑ "Drunk Santas Terrorized City During Seasonal Rampage, Critics Say". DNAInfo New York. 18 December 2012. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  38. ↑ Tracy, Thomas (4 December 2013). "SantaCon organizers working with politicians, police to turn naughty event nice". The Daily News. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  39. ↑ [ dead link ]
  40. ↑ "Santa Pub Crawl". Archived from the original on 30 October 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2014.
  41. ↑ Santas on pub crawl - Local News - News - General - Illawarra Mercury Archived 14 July 2012 at archive.today
  42. ↑ ANGELA THOMPSON (12 December 2009). "Christmas pub crawl sets record". Illawarra Mercury.
  43. 1 2 "Police shut down this year's Grafton Santa Crawl".
  44. ↑ "Grafton Santa Pub Crawl".
  45. ↑ "Mayor jumps on Grafton Santa Pub Crawl support sleigh".
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