Been There, Done That; Experience the World's Greatest--and oddest--Sporting Events from Your Armchair . . . Or for Real

by Ewan Carpenter

• ISBN13: 9780762736713
• ISBN10: 0762736712
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2005-05-01
• Publisher: Globe Pequot

Summary

An illustrated guide to twenty-five of the world's greatest sporting events and festivals, giving readers all they need to convince their friends that THEY have run with the bulls at Pamplona, driven in the Monaco Grand Prix, participated in the Wife-Carrying race in Finland, and so much more.

Author Biography

Following an early career as a script reviewer and treatment writer in the film and television production industry, Ewan Carpenter moved into advertising to work with major brands, creatively marketing their products and services throughout the globe. Now based in the South of France, he spends time traveling the world and reporting from exotic locations. Some say he's talented--most say, he's just lucky.

Table of Contents

Great World Traditions
La Tomatina and the Revenge of the Tomato	p. 2
Finnish Wife Carrying	p. 6
Coopers Hill Cheese Rolling	p. 10
Songkran Festival in Thailand	p. 14
The Highland Games	p. 18
Bog Snorkeling World Championships-Getting Down and Dirty in Wales	p. 22
Animal Attractions
The Running of the Bulls-Booze, Bulls and Blood in Pamplona	p. 26
The Siena Palio	p. 36
Polo-The King of Sports	p. 42
National Finals Rodeo-Las Vegas	p. 50
Ball Skills
World Ice Golf Championships	p. 56
Soccer at Barcelona's Camp Nou	p. 62
Wimbledon Open Tennis Championships	p. 66
Sea Power
Acapulco Cliff Diving	p. 70
The America's Cup	p. 74
Vans Triple Crown of Surfing in Hawaii	p. 80
Speed and Endurance
The Monaco Grand Prix-Jewel of Formula One	p. 90
The Tour de France	p. 100
The Hahnenkamm-A Downhill Legend	p. 106
Bungee Jumping	p. 112
New York Marathon	p. 116
Indianapolis 500-Gentlemen, Start Your Engines	p. 120
Hawaiian Ironman World Championship	p. 126
Free Soloing-Leave the Ropes at Home	p. 132
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

La Tomatina and the Revenge of the Tomato
The tomato is a fine fruit. Most would agree it's a prerequisite for an authentic pizza, a core ingredient for a stupendous Bolognese sauce, the linchpin of a fresh salad, and it even has the courtesy to offer itself up for a good stuffing.

However, some people just aren't content with merely digesting this wonderful gift of nature. Their love of the tomato extends to wearing it, all over themselves, and making sure others get the same treatment.

If your passion for the tomato transcends mere sustenance, or if you just like being pelted with squashed fruit, then La Tomatina is the festival for you.

La Tomatina - The Basic Facts
It's fiesta time in Spain. That means dancing in the streets, boozing, dancing in the streets some more (with a lot less coordination), and eating truckloads of paella. But one festival is particularly messy, hosting the mightiest food fight of them all: La Tomatina. Here are the basic facts:

Where: The festival takes place in the Plaza del Pueblo in Buñol, Valencia, Spain. Buñol is only a short trip inland from the Spanish Mediterranean coast.

Why: The fiesta is held in honor of the local patron saint, San Luis Betràn, and the Virgin Mary.

When: La Tomatina takes place on the last Wednesday of every August, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. It is the pinnacle of the fiesta, which lasts throughout that entire week.

Who: Some 20,000 people from all over the world descend on the small town of Buñol every year to drench the opposition in tomato juice. The locals have had a bit of practice so if you're a wet-behind-the-ear foreigner, avoid the Spanish tomato throwers whose aim is as true as a laser-guided missile.

How: It's free and it's fun. Just turn up to get a soaking.

Ammunition: The variety of tomato is not the issue here. No one cares whether they're throwing beef, plum, or cherry. What matters is that 275,500 pounds of the red peril are made available to the general public. Let the battle commence . . .

How to get there: Buñol is situated about 19 miles from Valencia, the nearest airport. Renting a car or taking a train from either Valencia or Madrid is straightforward. You may decide to go for a day trip as there's not much accommodation in Buñol, but don't forget to pack a change of clothes!

La Tomatina - In More Detail
Fiestas are an integral part of Spanish existence. They're celebrations of life, religious beliefs, and traditions. Although it's something of a mystery just where the tradition of throwing tomatoes comes from, one event in 1945 could hold the answer.

The Birth of Tomato Throwing
In the summer of 1945, as a carnival paraded through the Plaza del Pueblo in Buñol, some young whippersnappers decided to join in. But in their eagerness, they toppled one of the group of giant carnival figures...The giant rose from the ground, enraged and swiping at all those around him. In retaliation, the young ones grabbed vegetables and fruit from a stall and pelted the angered, stilted man. A food fight broke out, and La Tomatina was born.

In memory of the event, the following year, a crowd brought their own tomatoes and, while at first the authorities were opposed to the juicy onslaught, they came to accept it as a new Buñol tradition. In 1959 it was officially recognized as a traditional Spanish festivity.

The Rules
Preparations are completed and houses and shops wrapped in plastic sheeting by 11:00 a.m. when, in the Plaza del Pueblo, chants of "tomatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes" are answered by the sound of a rocket being fired into the air. The rocket contains the plumpest tomatoes, its contents splattering on the hoards below. It signals the start of the food flinging.

Of course, the temptation is to practice your pitching, combining accuracy and speed to hit where it hurts. But the organizers of La Tomatina try hard not to have their event turned into a violent brawl. The rules are as follows:

1. Remember what your teacher always told you at school: "You'll take someone's eye out with that." Always crush your tomato before throwing it.
2. La Tomatina is a non-contact fight. No shirt tearing or trouser pulling.
3. Only tomatoes in their natural form can be launched. Please leave glass ketchup bottles and cans of chopped tomatoes at home.
4. While ambushing the opponents from a high vantage point can be fun, don't climb atop the trucks carrying the tomatoes (ammunition).
5. When the second rocket is fired, you must put down your weapons.

Picture the Scene
Within minutes, locals turn from charming, honest citizens into marauding tomato grenadiers. The first shots are fired, usually at drunken foreigners, the town's inebriated invaders.

The trucks provide a continuous source of ammunition and soon the whole square is awash with tomato juice as Buñol rapidly resembles a scene from Texas Chainsaw Massacre, with red gore covering participants.

A rocket at 1:00 p.m. signals the end of the fight and the clean-up begins with streets and participants alike being hosed and showered down. The protective plastic is folded up, ready for the following year, and within a short space of time the town is restored to its pre-gunked state.

Learn More
If you have an insatiable tomato fetish, contact the Valencia tourist information office for more information (www.comunitatvalenciana.com).

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Excerpted from Been There, Done That!: Experience the World's Greatest--And Oddest--Sporting Events from Your Armchair ... Or for Real by Ewan Carpenter
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.