About the Games and Competition

According to tradition, Scottish Highland Games had their beginnings when originated by the old kings and chiefs of Scotland as a reasonably agreeable method of choosing the best men available for their retinue and as men-at-arms. Crude forms of the athletic events you will see were developed to test the contestants for strength, stamina, accuracy and agility. Of course, they used the elements and materials of their day-to-day life, therefore the caber toss, stone put, hammer throw, weight lift and weight toss were born.

Throwing the Hammer

This event is of distinctly Scottish origin. In rural places in the old days the young men of the district foregathered at the “smiddy” and competed with one another to discover who could throw the smith’s heavy sledge hammer the farthest. Until about 100 years ago at Highland Games, the old forehammer was used, but eventually was discarded, mainly on account of the awkward shape of its head, which caused too many broken handles and a hold-up in the progress of the games. The thrower stands with his back to the trig or stance, and swinging the hammer round his head he gathers sufficient momentum on it to send it a distance from the stance of over 100 feet for the 22 lb hammer and over 130 feet for the 16 lb hammer. Strong hands, perfect timing and speed are all important for this exciting event. Formerly the hammer had to be thrown without moving either foot, but today the athletes step out with the right foot, which gives them more purchase on the hammer and results in greater distances being achieved. The Scottish hammer is an iron sphere fitted with a long wooden shaft.

Tossing the Caber

This is the spectacular feat at Highland Games. A massive tree is raised to the perpendicular. Placing his hands under the narrow end, the athlete, with expanded chest, lifts the timber and steadies it as it rests against his left shoulder. It towers above him with the heavy end at the top. He has only about two feet of it in charge with which to control the leverage of the whole. The balance is achieved by expert judgment. He takes a run, swift and unerring, and from top speed comes to a dead stop. AT that moment the caber leaves his shoulder as he exerts every atom of his strength. He hurls the small end upwards and the heavy end strikes the turf, contrary to general belief, the idea of the athlete is not to toss the caber further than his competitors, but rather to toss it straighter. The ideal toss is the “12 o’clock throw,” and the viewer of this feat can easily visualize this by thinking of the caber as the hour as the hour hand of a clock with the thick end of the caber at the center of the clock face and the athlete tossing from the 6 o’clock position.

Putting the Stone

Most widely practiced of the heavy events on the Highland Games’ programme is Putting the Stone, and this is easily explained because so little equipment is required for the practice of this art. The stone comes from a bed of a river where the action of the water has worn the stone to the required smoothness. There are three good putters for every good hammer thrower, and six putters for every expert caber thrower, but this does not mean that putting the stone is easy—far from it. From the time the athlete takes up his position at the stance and poised the stone till the missile strikes the ground with a thud denoting delivery, only a few seconds pass. In that time he makes a calculation with mathematical precision, stands at the ready, and as he makes his putt, he lifts his left leg and the whole body is balanced on the right leg. For less than a second, the body is balanced thus, and putting every ounce of leverage behind the stone he makes his throw and the missile soars through the air, straight as an arrow from a bow. Putting the stone is a noble feat of manly grace. Distances of over 35 feet can be achieved with the heavy 28 lb. stone, and over 50 feet with the 16 lb. stone.

Throwing the Weight

The is a strong man’s game and a favorite item on Highland Games’ programmes. Before throwing the weight, a complete turn is allowed the competitor, and distances of over 70 feet are achieved at this sport with the 28 lb. weight. In the old days, it was common practice to throw the 56 lb. weight for distance when a common box weight was used, but this was superseded by the 28 lb. weight, which had a ring added to it for ease of handling. A good grip is necessary for throwing the weight for distance, and although most athletes rub resin on their hands to help them, the strong grip is the thing that matters. That is why you must be careful when you shake hands with one of our Scottish heavyweights, because it is like placing your hand in a vice.

Throwing the Weight over the Bar

The 56 lb. weight is used for throwing for height and only a by-ordinary strong man can essay this feat. It is intriguing to watch the athlete as he stands under the cross-bar which is suspended between two posts. He lifts the weight with a quick glance at the bar, swings it a little and over it goes to come down with a thud on the turf. Often it narrowly misses him, but he in unperturbed, and goes on repeating this performance till heights of 14 feet and over are attained.