6 Weird “Sports” You’ve Probably Never Heard Of
Some sports are played by countless numbers of people from all over the world. And then there are the other far less mainstream sports and competitions that involve anything from wheels of cheese to ironing boards. Here is just a small handful of them.
Cheese Rolling
Every year at Cooper’s Hill in England, people from all over the world take part in a cheese rolling competition. A wheel of cheese weighing about 10 pounds is rolled down the hill while participants race, often tumbling, to the finish line at the bottom. The winner gets to take home the wheel of cheese.
Underwater Hockey
The sport of hockey has made its way into the swimming pool. In similarity to traditional hockey, the objective in underwater hockey is to push a puck into a goal using sticks. In underwater hockey however, participants use fins, snorkels and a considerable amount of lung capacity.
Quidditch
Based on the fictional game from the Harry Potter series, quidditch is a sport played between two teams of seven players. Each player is mounted to a broom stick and attempts to score more points with the quaffle, a volleyball, than the other team before the snitch, a tennis ball inside a sock hanging from the shorts of an official, is caught.
West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta
Every fall, tens of thousands of people attend the West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta in Oregon. Participants in the tournament paddle their way across a lake in giant carved out pumpkins to the finish line. The pumpkins grown each year specifically for tournament weigh upward of 1,000 pounds.
Lawnmower Racing
Lawnmower racing is a motorsport where competitors race modified lawnmowers on a designated track. Each team includes a pit crew and the lawnmowers must be able to meet a qualifying speed of about 30 mph.
Extreme Ironing
According to the Extreme Ironing Bureau, Extreme Ironing is “the latest danger sport that combines the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well pressed shirt.” Ironing boards are taken to places such as cliffs, waterfalls and out on kayaks for participants to iron their clothes.
