Redneck Games. A red-clay spray showers spectators at the mud-pit belly flop, highlight of the annual Summer Redneck Games in Dublin, Georgia.

The Greedy Photographer

Gorging on fun in photography is good for business and good for the soul

I’m greedy.

I want as much fun in my life — and in my photography — that I can possibly get. Throw in a little WTF, and that pretty much sums up Weird Sports, a catch all term under which I’ve travelled the world, put out two books, ran an occasional column with WIRED and met countless amazing folks in countless beyond-belief-circumstances.

Second to snagging fun, is sharing the fun. Here’s 13 selects I’ve pulled from my decade-deep archive to share with you. Why 13 instead of a Top 10? I was born on a Friday the 13th, so that’s my lucky number, yo.

Frog Jumping. Breanna Ziehlke encourages her frog to get on with it at the Calaveras County Fair & Jumping Frog Jubilee.

I used to worry that I’d tear quickly through the Weird Sports of the world, photograph it all and end up with nowhere to go, but the list I keep continues to grow! So perhaps a greater concern is running out of frequent flyer miles?

I’m a one-trick pony. There a bunch of things I love to photograph, but I doubt I’d have the compulsive energy to tackle anything else like the way I do with Weird Sports.

Enjoy. And stay weird.

Ostrich Racing. Riders racing ostriches is a common sport in Africa. It’s still not exactly clear how — or why — it arrived in Virginia City, Nevada.

Chessboxing. The format of chessboxing is pretty simple: a round of chess followed by a round of boxing. That repeats until an opponent wins either by checkmate or knockout.

Barbie Jeep Racing. Of all the off road events at Rally in the Valley in NW Arkansas, Extreme Barbie Jeep Racing may be the most popular to watch. Any battery-operated kids vehicle will do the trick. The motor and gears are stripped to allow the wheels to roll freely.

Dog Surfing. Dog surfing seems like a fun idea for a dog owner. That’s not always the case for the dog.

Bubble Soccer. Thanks to the creation of bubble soccer, this is how much fun a 10-year-old’s birthday party can be.

Convict Poker. Convict Poker — a popular event at the Angola Prison Rodeo — centers around four inmates sitting at a poker table in the middle of the arena. A bull is then released with the sole purpose of unseating the poker players. The last man remaining seated is the winner.

Flaming Tetherball. The “ball” in flaming tetherball is a roll of toilet paper soaked in 3 ounces of white gas, the stuff that people use in camp stoves and lanterns. It burns nice and bright, but without the obvious drawbacks of gasoline.

Sandboarding. A Chinese tourist in the dunes of the Sahara Desert tries his hand at sandboarding for the first time during an overnight camping trip with classmates.

The Dirty Dash. The Dirty Dash is a mud run obstacle course mixed with military boot camp. One of the first tricky hurdles to overcome is a series of super slick six-foot walls.

Big Wheels Racing. Despite severe congestion and slick road conditions, weaving through San Francisco traffic has never been more fun than at the annual Big Wheel Race.

The Color Run. The Color Run more resembles a Hindu Holi celebration than a 5k fun run. “It’s not about the run,” said Erika Schultz. “I think it’s about being a human canvas. Your body becomes art. You become art, a big impressionistic human painting.”

Sol Neelman is a failed athlete. Photography gets him as close to the field without having to embarrass himself on it. His work has appeared in NatGeo, ESPN, Penthouse and the Oregonian. His clients have included Nike, Adidas, Umpqua Bank, Clif Bar, eBay and others. He has a thing for luchador masks and a book “series” — Weird Sports and Weird Sports II.

Follow Sol on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the blog.