Remember that one time Fabio was smacked in the face by a goose while riding a roller coaster? Maybe if Fabio had cat-like reflexes – like the guy in the video above – his face would have been spared. While on a roller coaster ride in Spain, a pair of keys flew toward two riders while the coaster sped downhill. One of the riders reached up and grabbed them, and according to an account on Reddit.com, successfully returned the lost keys to their rightful owner. The perfectly timed, one-handed grab is pretty impressive. Watch and be amazed – and remember to always secure any loose items when you’re on a roller coaster, because most people aren’t as lucky as this guy.
Man Attempting To Dribble Soccer Ball To Brazil Killed In Accident
It sounded like one of those crazy ideas that should have led to fun and adventure and ended in triumph. Instead it ended in tragedy.
Richard Swanson, pictured here, of Seattle, decided to raise money for charity by dribbling a soccer ball 10,000 miles to Brazil in time for the 2014 World Cup. Sadly, The Guardian reports that he only made it as far as Oregon. While walking down US Highway 101 near Lincoln City he was hit by a pickup truck on Tuesday and killed. The police have ruled it an accident and the driver has not been charged.
Swanson was only two weeks and about 260 miles into his trip. He had been posting updates about his journey on his Facebook page, including a photo of the last meal he ate, a hearty breakfast in Lincoln City just hours before being killed.
His project, called Breakaway Brazil, was meant to raise money for the One World Futbol Project, which distributes durable soccer balls to needy children in developing areas.
Polo Anyone? A Quick Guide To The World-Class Sport
The Miami Beach Polo World Cup is an annual event that draws players and spectators from around the world. Each year, more than 10,000 fans and competitors come from South America, Russia, Switzerland, Malaysia and other countries to be in and be seen at the world-class event. Done Miami-style, complete with fund-raising events, exclusive parties and fashion shows, tickets run up to $450 for a VIP pass. But unlike many other south Florida events, this one also has free general admission, enabling just about anybody to experience the Miami social scene.
Still, like experiencing other events while traveling, knowing a little of what polo is all about is not a bad idea.
Beach Polo is a team sport, played on horseback where winning means scoring more points (goals) than the other team. Goals are scored by driving the brightly colored, inflatable ball between goalposts. Each game has four, seven-minute periods called chukkers. Each team has three players and they change horses (polo ponies actually) after each chukker. Two umpires watch for fouls granting free hits. Fouls occur mainly when one player crosses another player who is following the ball on its exact line of trajectory.
While polo dates back 2,500 years, Beach Polo is a Dubai-created event that started in 2004, with the Miami Beach event beginning in 2005.
Actually two events, the Women’s Polo Cup takes place on Thursday, April 25, featuring eight women’s teams in a one-day series of round-robin championship matches.
The three-day men’s tournament runs Friday April 27 through Sunday April 29 with six teams that include some of the world’s top-ranked players. Sponsored by Argentinean sports and leisure clothing manufacturer La Martina, this year’s tournament will feature Miami’s DJ Irie, whose Irie Foundation will be an official beneficiary non-profit organization alongside Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Miami.
Beach polo is a lot like arena polo, but other forms include cowboy polo, elephant polo, camel polo, cycle polo, canoe polo and kayak polo as we see in this video:
[Photo credit – The Polo Life]
YouTube Video Of Owl-Kicking Paraglider Prompts Investigation
You’d think someone whose sport of choice is flying through the air would have respect for birds, but one paramotorist is catching heat after a video of him chasing and kicking an owl mid-air was uploaded to YouTube.
The man in the video doggedly pursued a Barn Owl in flight for more than seven minutes, kicking it several times as it flew over the landscape near Utah Lake. He then proceeded to brag about it, yelling, “I kicked an owl butt” in a taunting voice and asking, “Who’s the predator now?”
But federal and state wildlife officials aren’t smiling: since migratory birds are protected under federal law, officials are currently determining if the video warrants prosecution. They have a hunch the man in the video is Dell “Superdell” Schanze, a paramotorist who was arrested in 2011 after posting a video that showed him taking off from a historic monument in Oregon. I guess some people just never learn.
“I’ve gotten to know many pilots in the paragliding and powered paragliding community and I’ve found them to be some of the most considerate and conscientious fliers in aviation,” says our resident commercial and paragliding pilot, as well as “Cockpit Chronicles” columnist, Kent Wien. “But there’s always one, and I suppose every community has their own Dell ‘Superdell’ Shanze.”
The YouTube video has since been removed, but more than 50,000 people caught it during the four days it was online. Segments of it can be found in news reports online and on Facebook.
VIDEO: The Wife Carrying Championships In Finland
Last week we reported on kiiking, an extreme swing set that’s popular in Estonia and surrounding countries. That area of the world seems to breed weird sports. Perhaps the weirdest is the increasingly popular sport of wife carrying.
Guys, it’s pretty simple: hoist your wife into the air and run a race. If you make it first and don’t drop her, you win. Oh, and you have to drink beer along the way. Now I can certainly understand wanting a cold beer after such a grueling contest, but having one in the middle of the race doesn’t sound like a good idea.
You have to be seriously fit. Huge guys with tiny wives still get laid out by this race. Serious contestants need to train hard and figure out the best position for the wife. The woman has a job to do too. As one wife said, “I just hang on and follow his rhythm.” Wink, wink, nudge, nudge … say no more.
In this video by Journeyman Pictures, we get to see the World Wife Carrying Championships in Finland, which draws contestants from as far away as South Korea. Check out Journeyman Pictures’ YouTube Channel for some excellent documentaries.
The next World Wife Carrying Championships is in July, so get training!