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| What are the Heavy
Events and where did they originate? The Heavy Events are a series of 7 to
8 practical and non-practical feats of strength events performed over one
or two days. The exact origin of the Heavy Events is unclear; it is in
written and oral history that we find clues to this puzzle. The Irish ‘Book
of Leinster’ describes the Tailteann Games held at Telltown, County
Meath from 1829 B.C. to 554 B.C. A revived edition lasted until 1166 A.D.
Events included were Stone Throwing, Pole Vaulting, High Jumping, the geal-ruith
(Triple-Jump), and the Roth-cleas (the Roth-cleas required
the contestants to throw an axle with an attached wheel or a single wheel
spoke attached to the wheel hub attached while spinning).
Whatever the true origins of the Events, we do
know that the Heavy Events are among the oldest contested sports in the
world. Many of the events are derived from the Scottish military weapons
of war, while others came directly from every day life. The modern day
Olympics are directly descended from the Scottish Games, not from the
ancient Greek tradition.
The weights used in the Heavy Events are
usually based on two things, the Scottish stone weight (14 lbs.) and the
Scottish standard for cannon shot (16 & 22 lbs.).
The Women’s light hammer is 12 lbs, probably
derived from the 12 lbs. sledge hammer.
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Events |
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| Knowing the basic
rules to the events will make watching a competition easier to understand.
The events can be divided into three categories: Distance, Height &
Caber. In the Distance events (Stone, Weights for distance & Hammer)
the athlete has three throws, only the best throw being counted. In the
Height events (Weight for Height/Weight over Bar & Sheaf) the athlete
has three attempts to clear each consecutive the height of the bar. The
Caber is an event of accuracy. The caber must be thrown end-over-end, with
the caber falling away from the athlete. The Caber is scored on a clock
face. Imagine that the thrower is standing on the 6:00 mark on a watch,
the caber must break the vertical plane between 9:00 and 3:00, if the
caber breaks the plane, then the judge will score the caber bases on where
is hits the ground in direct relation to the throwers shoulders, 12:00 is
a perfect toss; However if the caber fails to break the vertical plane
then the caber will be judged based on the degrees it traveled to the
vertical plane.
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| Stone Put |
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| The Stone Put can be
contested in two different ways, Braemar style or Open style. The Olympic
Shot put is the direct descendant of the Scottish Braemar Stone Put. The
thrower must "put" (derived from the Gaelic word
"thrust") the stone from the shoulder area not letting the elbow
lead the wrist.
The Braemar Stone Put is a standing Put that does not allow
any approach on the Trig (Toe Board). The weight of the stone generally
ranges from 22 to 26 lbs. for men and 12 to 15 lbs. for women.
The Open Stone Put was modified from the Braemar style to allow an
approach upon the trig in hopes of achieving greater distances. The
Athlete must keep one foot inside of a 4‘6"x 7’6" box during
the approach and may not go past or step on the trig. The stone is also
lighter making it more comparable to the Olympic Shot Put; the weight of
the stone should range from 15 to 17 lbs. for men and 10 to 12 lbs. for
women.
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| Weight for Distance Throws |
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| The weight for
distance throws consist of a "light" weight and a
"heavy" weight event. The men’s Light weight is 28 lbs. while
the women’s is 14 lbs. There are three different heavy weights, the men’s
56 lbs., men’s masters (45 years old +) is 42 lbs. and the women’s is
28 lbs. The weights have a handle attached with a chain. The weight must
be thrown with one hand and the athlete must keep one foot inside of a
throwing area of 4’6"x9’ at all times. The most common method of
throwing the weight is to use a double spin similar to what is used by
most discus throwers.
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| Scottish Hammer Toss |
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| This event is the
ancestor of the modern day Olympic hammer. The "hammer" is a
weight on the end of a 50" piece of rattan or PVC. The original
version of this was likley a wagon wheel spoke with the wheel hub
attached. The name "hammer" and the weights were added when
clansmen used a blacksmith’s hammer (sledge hammer), to see who could
throw it the farthest. There is a Heavy Hammer and a Light Hammer. Men
throw 22 lbs. heavy hammer and a 16 lbs light hammer. Women throw a 9 lbs.
light hammer and a 12 lbs. heavy hammer. The athlete must throw the hammer
without moving his feet, he cannot touch the top or cross the trig.
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| Weight for Height/Weight Over Bar |
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| This is one of two
height events. The Men throw a 56 lbs. "scale weight" (masters
42 lbs. and Women use 28 lbs.) with one arm over a bar. The weight must go
over the bar in order to be counted.
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| Sheaf Toss |
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| This second height
event has its origins in the farm country during harvest time. The object
is to take a simulated sheaf (bale) of wheat or hay and toss it over a bar
with a pitchfork. The sheaves weigh between 10 and 20 pounds (Men use
either a 16 or 20 lbs. sheaf, the Women use a 10 lbs. sheaf).
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| Caber Toss |
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| This is probably the
best know event, having been described as "men is skirts throwing
power poles". A caber is from 15 to 23 feet long and between 70 and
130 pounds. The caber is stood up for the thrower with the large end up,
the thrower then hoists the caber up and cups the small end in his hands.
After a small run, he will attempt to "turn" the caber by
throwing the caber so the large end hits the ground and the small end
falls away from the thrower. The caber is then scored for accuracy as
though the thrower is facing the 12:00 position on a clock face. 12:00 is
a perfect toss. |
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