True Brits (http://www.truebrits.tv/flash_home.html)
See some of the strange and bizarre pastimes we brits get up to. Some of which are centuries old. :D
Out of curiosity I went to see the 'Cheese Rolling' in 2002, as Cooper's Hill is just south of Cheltenham.
It is just sheer lunacy. These madmen (and women) willingly hurl themselves down a gradient that is the skiing eqivalent of an Olympic downhill run, chasing a cheese that's going so fast as to be humanly impossible to catch. The first guy to collapse across the line, in whatever state, wins the battered cheese. Second prize is two quid - not even enough for a pint. How they don't all end up with multiple fractures is beyond me.
If that isn't masochistic enough, they have uphill races (not chasing the cheese obviously) in between the downhill events. They even force the kiddies to do their own uphill heat.
There's something in the water supply around these parts, and it ain't normal... :blink:
Shinkicking, lolz.
Blimey Cadaver, you live close to where I work. So when is the next cheese roll, I fancy watching some nutters fall down a hill!!
Spring Bank Holiday Monday (May 31st). It all kicks off at midday. See here (http://www.cheese-rolling.co.uk) for details.
Unless you're as sure-footed as a mountain goat, you will end up on your backside at some point whilst trying to find a good vantage point at the side of the course. It is that steep! Old jeans, and grippy-soled footwear, are the order of the day.