>
>Courthouse anthrax scare was really a running route
>
>By Chereen Langrill
>The Idaho Statesman | Edition Date: 09-08-2004
>____________________________________________________
>
>If you see white powder in the shape of arrows in downtown Boise, the
>message may be simple.
>
>Run.
>
>The arrows could mark the four-mile path for a Boise running group called
>the Hash House Harriers. On Tuesday morning, that powder caused an Anthrax
>scare at the steps of the Ada County Courthouse, disrupting traffic for 90
>minutes.
>
>Hashers run on Monday evenings. The route, which changes each week, is
>mapped out using — yep — white flour shortly before the run begins. The
>flour usually disappears on its own in about a day.
>
>Deputies from the Ada County Sheriff's Office were called to the
>courthouse at 200 Front St. at about 6:45 a.m. A hazardous materials team
>then arrived and determined the powder was flour.
>
>Later that morning, Hash Master (the club's president) Jeff Ulmer heard
>from a friend who told him about the scare.
>
>"I went, 'Oh, crap,' " Ulmer said.
>
>Ulmer immediately called police dispatchers, who put him in touch with
>authorities at the scene.
>
>The sheriff's office won't file criminal charges.
>
>After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Ulmer began calling Boise
>police each week to tell them about the Hashers' route. He stopped making
>the calls in January.
>
>But after Tuesday's scare, Ulmer said he'll start making the calls again
>whenever the route includes a government building.
>
>The group of between 50 and 70 people includes lawyers — some of whom work
>at the courthouse. The Hashers have been running on Monday nights in Boise
>since 1986.
>
>"It's typical it would happen to us," Ulmer quipped
>
>
>
>
>

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