Great Scot! January 28, 2010 Comments +	By Dylan

Good beer, bagpipes, and large men in kilts. That’s what was expected, anyway, of the 2010 Central Florida Scottish Highland Games.

Upon admission, the sight that presented itself was that of a common fairground: food, beverage, and novelty vendors strewn about a large field, wrapping around the various event areas.  Scottish goods were abound: kilts (of course), weaponry, pottery, and even energy drinks called out to the curious passerby. At a stage setup in the very rear, a band played what could best be described as Scottish grunge rock, complete with bagpipes and kilts.

Overall, while the Highland Games had its letdowns, large men in kilts tossing heavy objects is worth $15 any day of the week.

The presence of beer was evidenced by numerous drunken fair-goers, and so it was sought. A cornucopia of Scottish beer wasn’t found, however, as Dunedin Brewery had monopolized this year’s event. As such, they’d coerced attendees into purchasing $25 pitchers of a meager selection of brews. Nonplussed, the beer was passed up.

After some rather unsatisfying barbecue  was choked down, the next draw was feats of strength by men in kilts. While being egged on and heckled by packs of gregarious frat guys,  about a dozen men attempted to toss a 56 lb. weight over a bar that was fifteen feet at its highest. Spectators cringed as the car battery-sized weight came down perilously close to the competitors’ heads. As a foot was added each round, everyone grew a bit weary of this event, and all were glad when the last attempt of at fifteen feet succeeded, and was drawn to a close.

On the other end of the field, the caber toss was just beginning. This event entailed attempting to flip a sixteen foot, 150 pd. rod that’s essentially a small tree. Competitors carry the rod perpendicular to the ground, from the bottom, then throw it. They’re scored by the maximum angle the rod reaches once one end hits the ground, hopefully flipping it entirely.  Attesting to the difficulty of this event, none of the mesomorphs in kilts could pull off a flip. A picture is needed to impart just how impressive this was:

Concluding the ceremony for the day, three large marching bagpipe bands came out onto the center field to play and march in unison. This turned out to be the most entertaining part, as the arrangements were well-executed, and the size of the combined bands (200+ members) was enough to awe.

Brasky gives the Highland Games a thumbs-up.

Tags: dunedin highland jocky kilts scottish