Highland Games

We spent Saturday at the Highland games here in town. I have a lot of Scottish ancestors on both sides of my family (so do a lot of people from around this area), so it felt kind of special sharing my family heritage with Jeff and Biscuit.

We saw lots of people in kilts, and Jeff thought it was pretty interesting that the athletics competitors wore kilts, too. As a matter of fact, wearing a kilt is required to participate in any of the athletic events.

There were a couple of weight-throwing events (one with a 56-pound weight and one with a 28-pound weight), where the competitors throw for distance. They had the sheaf toss, which is where they use a pitchfork to throw a 16-pound burlap bag stuffed with hay over a high bar. 

But the highlight of the games is always the caber toss. The caber looks like a telephone pole that the competitors have to throw end over end. The pole is about 20 feet tall and about 150 pounds in weight. The object has nothing to do with distance. The goal is to toss the pole so it flips once and lands straight in front of the thrower. A perfect throw ends with the top of the pole pointing toward the thrower and the bottom end of the pole pointing directly away from the thrower. Throws are judged on the clock (i.e. 12 o'clock is a perfect throw, 11 or 1 o'clock earns lower scores).

A trainer brought his border collies and did a herding demonstration with sheep and ducks. The trainer uses a whistle and verbal commands to get the dogs to herd and direct the animals. The trainer let the kids pet the sheep but said a couple of the dogs have been known to "nip" him, so of course he wouldn't let kids around them.

There were food vendors that had shortbread, meat pies and haggis to represent Scotland. But there was also barbecue, hot dogs and the other usual festival-type choices. I didn't make Jeff and Biscuit try haggis, but Jeff did have a meat pie and a brydie (a flaky pastry with meat inside) and an Irn Bru, a citrus-flavored Scottish soft drink that he said he actually liked.

I thought the highlight of the day for Biscuit would be the border collies. But even as he was watching the dogs, a bagpipe band started playing, and Biscuit's head whipped around.

"Dad! Dad! I hear the marching band," Biscuit said. "I hear the marching band! We need to go find it."

Earlier in the day, Biscuit heard the same band playing, and he was fascinated. Jeff put him up on his shoulders so he could see. After the band played a couple of songs, I asked Biscuit if he was ready to go. 

"No, Mom," Biscuit said. "I want to hear the band."

I was proud and embarrassed at the same time. Proud because if Scotland is part of my heritage, it's part of his heritage. Embarrassed because that was the first time Biscuit had heard bagpipes. I have a set of bagpipes in a case in my living room, and Biscuit has never heard them.

For several months before I got pregnant with Biscuit, I took bagpipe lessons. Since I already knew how to read music, my uncle told me it wouldn't be that hard, and that I should do it. He bought me a beautiful chanter, which is how you learn to play. It looks like a recorder, but a lot prettier and fancier. It has reeds inside and is made like the part of the bagpipes where you finger your notes. On a chanter, when you blow air in, the sound comes out immediately, just like a recorder. But on bagpipes, you blow air into the bag, then you squeeze air from the bag with your arm to make sound come out. It's a little hard to get used to that because usually, when you blow into an instrument, the sound comes out immediately. But the way bagpipes work makes you re-train your breath.

This looks just like my chanter. It's made of rosewood and has sterling silver inlay.

Anyway, when I first got pregnant, I had a lot of problems, and we almost lost Biscuit. So I had to quit my lessons because of the exertion of breath it took to play my chanter. I plan to go back and take more lessons when I can.

I know a lot of people think of funerals when they hear bagpipes, but I love the sound of them.

The games we went to Saturday were pretty small compared to some that I've been to. There were only a couple of pipe bands there. But you know how your ears feel when you leave a loud concert? Well when I get a chance to go to bigger games, where there will be 30 or so bagpipe bands, I always have bagpipes in my ears for a day or so afterward. And I love it!

So I'm glad Biscuit was finally introduced to bagpipe music. And I'm even happier that he likes it. Maybe when he gets old enough, we'll get lessons for him.

But probably the most fun part of my day was when I got to throw axes. Yep, axes.

There were 6 or 8 targets set up, and people could buy tokens to throw a few times. Jeff went first. He missed his first throw, as most people did until they got used to the weight and angle of the thing. But then he started hitting the target.

I thought to myself that if Jeff could throw axes, I needed to be able to throw axes, too. You know, in case we ever get in an axe fight.

So I stepped up and the guy running the thing saw me holding the axe in my left hand.

"Oh, you're a lefty," he said. "Here," and he handed me a different axe.

"You mean there are left-handed axes and right-handed axes?" I asked him.

He held up the two axes and said, "You can't see the difference between these two axes?"

I shook my head no. "Well this one is new, and this one is old," he said. I couldn't believe I fell for that!

The man showed me how to stand and how to hold the axe and the throwing motion I should use. I threw the first one, and my axe flew above the target.

"That was just a little bit high," the man said.

Since he had dished it out earlier, I figured I'd give it right back. "Well, my husband is a bit taller than that target!" I said to him. 

Several of the men around me laughed, although they seemed a little nervous. Maybe they were afraid for Jeff to go home with me after I had learned to throw an axe. My first two throws were high, but on my third turn, I hit the target. That axe sinking into the chunk of wood was a wonderful sound. It was a very cool accomplishment to cap off our day.

And believe it or not, I forgot to take my camera. Luckily, we were meeting some friends there, and they didn't forget their cameras. They hooked us up with pictures. Here are a few of them.

Jamestown Pipes and Drums.

Watching the band play.

Jeff at the axe throw.

My turn to throw some axes. I need some axes and a target
for my backyard. It would be a heck of a stress reliever!

During the caber toss. See the pole on the ground on the left?

My viking husband.

Mama Warrior.

Border collies herding sheep.

Biscuit chasing down the sheep.

When my boy is tired, he goes to sleep. No matter where he is or what's going on.
A bagpipe band stopped right in front of him. He didn't even flinch.