Competitive Horseless Horse Jumping Is Just What the Name Suggests
It’s run just like a regular horse jumping show, only in horseless horse jumping it’s the humans who have to make it through the obstacle course without knocking down too many hurdles. If you’ve always dreamed of imitating a 1,000-pound horse in front of a live audience, there’s no better way to do it than […]
Teenager Sets New World Record at Mobile-Phone Throwing Contest
Every year, the Finnish town of Savonlinna hosts a fun and relaxing phone-throwing contest where participants are invited to take out all their frustration on their handhelds by throwing them as far as possible. This year, a Finnish teenager managed to set a new world record, with a throw of over 101 meters. Ever since 2000, […]
Germany’s Trendiest People Converge on Berlin for the Hipster Olympics
With the real Olympic Games about to start in London, Berlin’s self-proclaimed hipsters though they’d organize their own competition to find the most athletic hipster in Germany – the 2012 Hipster Olympics. The tongue-in-cheek event took place last Saturday, and drew a crowd of over 6,000 hipsters to a club in east Berlin, for a […]
Man Wins BMW after Keeping His Hand “Glued” to It for 87 Hours
Song Changjiang, a lucky 27-year-old from Chengdu, China, has won the right to drive in a BMW 1 Series after keeping his hand glued to it for 4 days and three nights, in a bizarre contest. What some people wouldn’t do for the chance to win a brand new BMW. Take the participants in the ‘Who […]
The Ancient Sport of Camel Jumping in the Deserts of Yemen
The men of the Zaraniq tribe, on the west coast of Yemen, have a truly unique tradition – they jump over a row of camels just like modern daredevils jump over cars. Famous throughout Yemen for their speed, strength and courage, the members of the Zaraniq tribe are the world’s only professional camel jumpers. Taking running […]
Tough Mudder – Probably the Toughest Event on the Planet
“The Tough Mudder is not a race, it’s a challenge,” say the organizers. And it most certainly is, given the grueling nature of what is perhaps the toughest event in the world. Consisting of 10 to 12 mile ‘hardcore’ obstacle courses, the event designed by British Special Forces is meant to test stamina, strength, grit, […]
Finally, a Watching Paint Dry Championship
Contests and competitions have been used for a very long time now as a marketing tool. Some of these competitions have been quite unusual. But it doesn’t get more unusual than this – a championship for paint-watchers! The paint-watching championship is being organized by Localtraders.com, an online resource for finding reliable local tradespeople in the […]
Yukigassen – Competitive Snowball Fighting from Japan
If you grew up in a place where it snowed, you probably would have mastered the art of throwing snowballs. Bet no one thought much of your talent back then. Too bad you never heard of Yukigassen, a snowball fighting competition that is held in Japan every year, and now in other parts of the […]
Run For Your Lives – A Zombie-Infested Obstacle Race
If you’re a big fan of zombie movies and video games, and always wanted to experience a zombie apocalypse in real life, this is your big chance. Run For Your Lives is a unique 5k obstacle course race where contenders have to get passed man-made and natural obstacles while chased by brain-eating zombies. This sounds […]
Daredevils Compete in Annual Bee-Wearing Competition
Two brave Chinese beekeepers competed in the annual bee-wearing contest, yesterday, trying to attract as many bees on their bodies, in just 60 minutes. 42-year-old Wang Dalin and 20-year-old Lc Kongjiang were the only contestants registered for the event that took place in Shaoyang City, China. Wearing only shorts, goggles and nose plugs, the two […]
German Village Hosts Weird Tobacco Sniffing Championship
Around 220 man and women gathered in the small Bavarian village of Kucha to fill their nostrils with tobacco, last weekend, during the German Tobacco Sniffing Championship. The origins of this offbeat competition are unclear, but one thing is for sure: Bavarians take it very seriously. For competitors outside the region it’s mostly just a […]
90 Teams Take Part in the Annual Bed Race of Knaresborough
The Great Knaresborough Bed Race of 2011 attracted a crowd of about 25,000 people eager to see one of the wackiest races in the world. When the popular bed race was first organized, in 1965, it was considered so difficult that only members of the Army, Navy and American Marines were allowed to take part, […]
Man and Horse Compete in Wacky Marathon
It might seem like horses have a clear physical advantage in a race, but hundreds of people show up to compete against them, every year, in the traditional Man vs. Horse Marathon. The history of this wacky competition dates back to a night in November 1979, when Gordon Green, a pub owner from Llanwrtyd Wells, […]
Zoopolis 500 – Probably the World’s Slowest Race
While the Indianapolis 500 is the undisputed main event in America’s Circle City, it’s probably not as fun as the Zoopolis 500, a turtle race preceding the big motor race. Kids and their families look forward to the Zoopolis 500 race, every year, because even though it lacks the speed of the Indianapolis 500, racers […]
Germany Hosts Big Nose World Championship
Ever since 1961, the German town of Langenbruck has hosted the Big Nose World Championship, a competition where “nosy” people from around the world compete for the title of world’s biggest nose. The history of this wacky contest dates back 40 years, when a group of hops growers and the town minister sat down at the […]