Tired Of Baseball? How About Wife-Carrying?

The quest for interesting news continues with a set of sports that still confuse me, even though I’ve read about them. Interested? Read on to find out more on these sports.

These 10 sports are found all around the world from our very own United States to Bangkok. Here is a list and description of each.

1) Wife-Carrying—Maine, United States
Competitors literally put their wives on their shoulders and trek the 278 meter course with certain obstacles in this sport which happens every October in Maine. There is even a water hazard included in the course. The winner receives their wife’s weight in beer.

2) Vertical Marathon—Bangkok, Thailand
This sport lasts almost as long as the Kentucky Derby. Every September, competitors get ready for the climb of their life—up 1093 stairs to a hotel. Competitors receive drinks for their efforts. The top time is 6 minutes and 16 seconds.

3) Laughter Yoga—Bombay, India
Nothing special here. Dr. Madan Kataria’s idea to relieve stress—laughter. He has his patients cheer and clap to “Ho, ho, ho. Ha, ha, ha.” It is said to improve health and promote inner peace.

4) Bottle-Kicking—Leicestershire
This one is not quite so self-explanatory. You see people don’t kick bottles and the farthest win. They rather heave, push, kick, or any method possible to move three kegs of beer a mile. There are ditches, hedges, and even barbed wire to cross. Apparently, it started as a tradition in the 1700s and takes place on Easter Day.

5) Goat Polo—Kyrgyzstan
Animal lovers can stop reading at this point… I’m serious. This sport is like regular polo, but instead of a normal ball, a goat head is used in its place. Apparently it’s “macho.”

6) Chess-Boxing—Germany
The name gives it all away. Chess-boxing consists of 11 rounds—6 chess and 5 boxing. The competitors can win by a knockout, a referee ending the fight, a points victory in boxing, or a checkmate from chess. Translation: brain meets body.

7) Bob Like A Buoy—Finland
This sport is described as canoeing without a canoe. Confused? I was too. Apparently, people fit themselves into dry suits that are pumped full of air so they can float on the water. The real adventurous ones go on a 200 meter rapid-run.

8) Dog-Surfing—California, United States
I didn’t quite get this one. I think the owner and the dog surf together. Either way this one is held every June. That’s about all I have to say on this one.

9) Nettle-Eating—Dorset
First off, let me define nettles: any of numerous plants having toothed leaves. So basically the contestants eat toothed plants. Apparently the more famous hotdog contest doesn’t appeal to some people. Every June for 22 years, participants have competed and the winner (and all of the competitors for that matter) gets a nice reward: a swollen tongue.

10) Pole-Sitting—Denmark
The most boring sport ever. Well, it gets my vote. Competitors get together every August to see how long they can sit on wooden poles. If competitors make it to the maximum allotted time of four days, then there is more than one winner.

So, my friends, the next time someone brings up a unique sport, (say Curling) you can wow them with your new knowledge of these wacky sports.

*All of my information can be found at this website. The article was written in July of 2008.