Trifter

Europe hosts some of the finest, and frankly most absurd, sports, games and festivals imaginable. Stepped in tradition many of the alternative events to be found by the tourist looking for something different have mysterious origins with numerous theories regarding their true origins. Starting with the Cheese Rolling in England, which I recently attended here is a list of ten of the best and most bizarre events to see and partake in before you die:

Coopers Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake

The event take place every May in Gloucestershire, England. The tradition is at least two hundred years old and some claim may go back as far as roman times or beyond. The rules are simple – you arrive, someone throws a huge Double Gloucester cheese down the steepest hill you have ever seen and you then attempt to run down the hill after it (I say attempt because mostly people just fall or bounce after it), and the first one to the bottom the hill gets the cheese!

The Running of the Bull

The event takes place in Pamplona in Spain and is world famous and absolutely deadly. 15 people have been killed since 1910, most recently an American tourist in 1995. The event is simple; a herd of bulls are released into the narrow streets of the Pamplona while the competitors (given a head start) run for their lives. There is no winner as such, just those happy to still be alive.

Orange Throwing at the Ivrea Carnival

The event takes place in Ivrea in Turin, Italy. Dating to the middle of the 19th Century (before which people used to throw beans). Anybody can enter by joining one of the participating teams. Then it is simply a case of being pulled around in a large cart and being pummelled with oranges while you feebly attempt to throw some back.

Tar Barrel Carrying

Takes place in the village of Ottery St Mary in Devon, England. Always held on Guy Fawkes night (the 5th of November) and is believed to have first occurred in 1688. The event involves people carrying huge burning barrels of tar on their backs. They run with the burning barrel until the heat and weight become too much and then pass it on to someone else, this continues until the barrels break up.

Man Versus Horse

The event takes place in Llanwrtyd Wells, Wales every year. The event dates from only 1980 when a local pub landlord overheard a boastful conversation about how a man could beat a horse over a long distance. Now every year a race takes place between a man and horse over 22 miles. In 2004 a man called Huw Lobb became the first ever man to beat the horse.

Royal Shrovetide Football

Takes place in Ashbourne, Derbyshire, England. An ancient ball game, which is the ancestor of soccer and its derivatives, where the inhabitants of the town split into two teams, and then by any means get a ball into the opposing teams goal (the goals are three miles apart). The rules are – get the ball into the opponent’s goal and knock the hell out of people on your way.

La Tomatina

Takes place in Bunol in Valencia, Spain and is basically a big tomato fight where more than 100 metric tons of tomatoes are thrown and anyone can join in. Why? Well why not!

Oktoberfest Festival

Ok maybe not that bizarre, but still very quirky in its way and well worth a mention. The well-known German beer festival takes place every year in Munich, Germany in late September. Turn up eat drink and be very very merry. Not much more to say really.

Batalla Del Vino

A good old-fashioned wine fight! Occurs annually on St Pedros Day (29th of June) in the Spanish Town of Haro. The event consists of the town folk walking to the chapel for a religious service carrying all the wine they can, once the mass is over the wine throwing begins. The aim is to cover everybody with as much wine as possible using buckets, water guns and any other implement you can think of to fire liquid around the place.

The Farther Ted Festival

Yes that’s right a festival to celebrate the Irish TV sitcom Father Ted. Held in Inish Mor an island off Galway in the west of Ireland, which is supposed to be the official Craggy Island from the show. The festival goes on for a few days and involves a number of events linked to the show such as – the priests and nuns five a side soccer tournament, the Lovely Girls beauty pageant, a song for Europe and lots more ridiculous events reminiscent of the show.