10 Bizarre Sports You Never Knew Were Real!

2.    Shovel Racing is an annual competition held in Angel Fire, New Mexico at the Angel Fire Resort. Men, women, and children compete to win the Shovel Racing Championship title. It is played by the rider sitting on a shovel while facing the handle with their legs extended while they ride down the hill to see who can reach the bottom in the fastest time. Riders wax the bottom of their shovel to increase the speed.

3.    The annual Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake Event (pictured at top of story) is held in Gloucester, England. The race starts by sending a 9-pound Gloucester double cheese wheel is sent rolling down Cooper’s Hill, which is 200 yards long. The hill is incredibly steep, slippery, and, at times, muddy causing the runners to fall and roll their way to the bottom. Injuries are an extremely common outcome for many. The weight of the cheese and the steep slope causes the cheese to travel 70 mph down the hill. The first person to reach the bottom of the hill and cross the finish line wins the cheese! This has been an annual event since the early 1800s.

4.    Chess Boxing is played with two men competing in a game of chess and taking breaks to go a round in boxing. The goal is to confuse your competitor so that you can win by either a knock-out or a checkmate. The sport has started to grow around the world and is now organized under the World Chess Boxing Association.

5.    Worm Charming is played by luring worms from the ground. Worms are sensed by vibrations; which means that predators are nearby. So, in worm charming, competitors tap the ground to get the worms to emerge. There are several ways to do this, usually by tapping the ground with a hard object. There are teams of three that compete in the sport. There is a charmer, a catcher, and a counter. The team who catches the most worms wins the event.

6.    Pumpkin Chunkin’ is played during the fall. Players build a device used to toss their pumpkins across a field. These are typically large wooden slingshots, catapults, and cannons. The one whose pumpkin travels the farthest wins the competition. The farthest a pumpkin was thrown was 5, 545 ½ feet at a Pumpkin Chunkin’ competition in Moab, Utah. This sport also has its own governing league, the World Championship Pumpkin Chunkin Association.

7.    Cardboard Tube Dueling is an actual sport that is growing around the world. It’s true! Remember wrapping gifts at Christmas time, and you unroll the last sheet of wrapping paper from the tube? What was the first thing you were inclined to do? You bopped someone on the head. You can admit it. Many players create their own armour – of course, from cardboard/ The winner is the first to break his opponent’s cardboard tube, without breaking his own.

8.    While we are talking about Indonesia another unusual sport from that country is Sepak Takraw. It is pronounced this way – Sea-pack Tuh-craw. This is played like volleyball, but you can only hit the ball with your feet or your head.

9.    Shin Kicking is popular in England, and it is played by two men kicking each other in the shin until they knock their opponent to the ground. They protect their shins by filling their pant legs with straw. They are also required to wear white lab coats in the competition. Yes, the white jackets that doctors and scientists wear. Even the ref wears a white lab coat.

10. Caber Tossing played in Scotland has been played for quite a while. The players carry a log, also called a caber, that is 16-20 feet long and weighs up to 150 pounds. They run a few steps and toss it into the air. The winner is the one who gets their caber to land closest to the 12:00 position on the field.