Eccentric British folk sports
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The British taste for celebrating eccentricity within safe rule-driven contexts is well illustrated by the list of light-hearted folk games that follows.
Haggis hurling or throwing – A Scottish game involving throwing a haggis.Modern Haggis Hurling is judged on the basis of distance and accuracy of the hurl and a split or burst haggis is immediately disqualified,as the tradition dictates that the haggis must be fit to eat after landing.The sport requires subtle technique rather than brute force,as the hurl must result in a gentle landing to keep the haggis skin intact.Despite it’s eccentricity,the practitioners take the sport seriously,with a World Haggis Hurling Championship.Haggis Hurling was even supposed to be presented as a demonstration sport at the 2004 Summer Olympics.Plans to use a fake haggis in a hurling competition at a Highland festival in Melbourne have split the purists from those who are fearful of the mess a high-speed impacting example of Scotland’s national dish may cause (see Haggis gets a bashing from fakes).It is unclear to the uninitiated if the sport promotes the enjoyment of this often maligned delicacy (to which a famous ode of praise was once composed by Robbie Burns himself).According to a Canadian source that disapproves the practice as insensible,the haggis is the main event at the annual Burns Night celebrations held by Scots and Scottish wannabees the world over.
Welly/Wellie wanging or throwing - A freestyle sport that originated in Britain,most likely in the county of Yorkshire.Competitors are required to hurl a Wellington boot as far as possible within boundary lines,from a standing or running start.Each player has three throws,the longest distance thrown within the zone wins.Note that the word wellie is also often spelt as welly.
Aunt Sally – An Oxfordshire game it is the under arm throwing of the dolly (a truncheon shaped stick) at a suspended target.Each player in the team has 6 throws.The best score out of 24 wins.
Wheelbarrow and Straw Bale Race – Each player in the team races over 50 yards with 4 straw bales on the barrow,then tosses the bales over a 6ft height bar.The quickest team wins.
Barrel Walking – To stand on top of a small barrel and walk it forward.The distance walked before falling off is taken,the largest collective distance of a team is the winner.
People Hurding – A group of three people are blindfolded and each holds onto a central hoop.The fourth member of the team has a whistle,one short blast move to the left,two short blasts move to the right,a long continuing blast move forward.The object is to direct the hooped group through a gate or gatepost.The shortest time taken is the winning team.
Duck Hurding – Very similar to people hurding only its ducks through the gate.
Coconut Shy – Each player has 6 balls to throw at various targets.The team with the highest number of hits wins.
Tip Cat – The cat is a stubby six-inch projectile tapered at each end.It is placed on a flat surface.A baseball bat is then used to tap or hit it airborne,as it rises it is then hit again with the baseball bat,as far as possible.Each player has three attempts; the team with the longest hit within the zone wins.