By Rick Palsgrove
Eastside Editor
A bit of Scotland could be found in Reynoldsburg’s Huber Park as men and women athletes wearing traditional colorful kilts took part in the Scottish Highland Games on Tartan Day on April 11.
The games pit the muscles and tendons of the human body against the heavy mass of inanimate weighty objects.
According to Brian Huntley, president of the Great Lakes Scottish Athletes Association and athletic director for the Tartan Day Highland Games Athletics, the Scottish Highland Games included open stone, Braemar Stone, light weight for distance, heavy weight for distance, weight over bar, caber, sheaf, and heavy and light hammer. Four classes of athletes competed including Amateur A Class, B Class, Master Class, and Women’s Class.
The atmosphere for the games in Huber Park was relaxed, yet there was an intensity in the concentration and effort of the athletes as they performed in the events. Though it was a chilly morning, the athletes worked up a sweat.
The competition among the athletes was good natured, as evidenced after one fellow delivered a mighty toss of the heavy hammer and one of his competitors joked about his technique stating, “You’ve been studying YouTube videos!”
The Braemer Stone, the heavy hammer and other various weighted objects made various sounds, ranging from “thump” and “thunk” to “whump” and “thud,” as they hit the soft ground after being tossed.
Visit http://glsaa.com/Events.html to learn more about the Scottish Highland Games.
