| HURLING THE HAGGIS
A traditional Scottish Sport that is currently seeing a renewed interest was first began in the northwest of Scotland where the rivers often run deep and the water is cold. Originally the good Scottish wives and daughters would prepare a lunch for their men who were cutting peat or plowing a wee bit of land. Like all good Scots they never wasted any of the precious food that would have to see them through the winter. They chopped up the parts of the cattle or sheep, that we would consider the least attractive for our palate, and mixed it with the oatmeal that was a staple part of their diet. The mixture was then placed in a sheep's stomach or intestine and tied at both ends. This pudding was then slowly simmered in a pot over a peat fire for several hours. The hungry men would come to the rivers edge and the women would throw or hurl the warm fragrant HAGGIS across the cold stream. Often they would stand on a rock at the edge of the water to give them an advantage while hurling the steaming lunch to their man. It was important that he caught his HAGGIS because if it fell on the rocky shore, it would break. Then he would have to go hungry until he returned home from work in the evening. All Scots love to compete and it was not long until HAGGIS HURLING became one of the sports they enjoyed at their Highland Games. Modern competition is held with the Hurler standing atop a half of a whisky barrel. They throw a frozen Haggis for distance but they must not fall off the barrel. The modern hurling record is 180 feet 10 inches held by Alan Pettigrew.* *Guinness World Records 2005, Page 272. The Association for Scottish Haggis Hurling USA Branch invites any inquiries regarding the sport or about holding a sanctioned competition at your Scottish Highland Games. For more information contact:
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