Football time of year is crank up , and playoff baseball is on the horizon . With all this major - sport excitement , it ’s prosperous to miss some of the more obscure competitions taking place in the coming weeks . Do n’t make that error , though , as you might miss out on one of these unheralded events .
1. Red Bull Flugtag
Since 1991 , Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz has get his singular sight for an airmanship competition to the world each year . Flugtag is n’t like any normal air show , though . contender establish themselves off a pier or dock in an attempt to fly their homemade human being - powered conveyances as far as they can . ( As you might have approximate , homemade take flight machines tend to crash rather quickly , which is half the fun . ) Once the team take off , their trajectory is judged on the cornerstone of distance , creativity , and showmanship . Some gadget do actually manage to vanish , though ; one team made it 195 feet at an event in Austria . More often , though , the homemade machines splash down into the H2O , so each one must be unsinkable as an environmentally friendly precaution .
The terminal Red Bull Flugtag USA of the summertime takes place at Chicago ’s North Avenue Beach on Saturday , so there ’s still metre to see this spectacle if you hurry . Here are some highlight from a previous Flugtag :
2. California State Yo-Yo Championships
A yo - yo does n’t just have to be a semi - fun toy you come up in your stocking every year at Christmas ; it can also be a serious competitive putz . Freestyle challenger in this result get two minute to do a yo - yo modus operandi choreographed to medicine , and the tricks go far beyond the one-time sleeper and take the air - the - dog tricks you did as a minor . judge honor point based on stage presence , choreography , amplitude , elegance of control and line , maturity of yo - yo maneuvers , and originality . If you ’re near San Francisco and not particularly interfering , the competition takes place today at The Exploratorium , and admission is complimentary . If you ’re not convinced that yo - yo tricks can be pretty impressive , curb out this video recording of Augie Fash winning last year ’s competition :
3. World Series of Mahjong
The World Series of Poker may get all the publicity , but the Wynn is hosting the World Series of Mahjong from September 19 - 21 at the Wynn Macau in China . Top competition will square off in matches according to simplify standardized normal for back their claims to the title of worldly concern ’s top Mahjong player . You may not consociate the classic Chinese tile secret plan with high interest , but this tourney is n’t for skittish amateurs . It costs $ 5,000 to enter , and the succeeder take home $ 500,000 . The event will be broadcast around the earthly concern , so melodic line in for some raging tiled action .
4. Midland Game Fair
On the off chance you find yourself in Shropshire , England on September 20 - 21 , you really owe it to yourself to chink out the Midland Game Fair . It looks just like an American funfair , except if you replaced the carnies with falconer . The honest seeks to celebrate the unique aspects of English land life sentence and educate patrons on its many magnificence . Events include shooting , falconry , gundog exhibition , and , of grade , ferret .
5. European Rubik’s Cube Championship
If you ’re in Bilbao , Spain , on the weekend of September 19th , you ’ve got more to do than just see the Guggenheim ; you also need to check off in on this speedcubing championship . Solving a obviously one-time Rubik ’s Cube in any amount of time may be tough enough for most of us , but an elite cadre of cubers do them so quickly that even Fresh Prince - earned run average Will Smith would be impressed . Competitors are handed a jumbled third power and yield fifteen seconds to inspect its sides before solve it in a smooth , lightning - ready move . This tourney has 17 naval division , including one - handed Rubik ’s Cube solving , blindfolded Rubik ’s Cube resolution , and competition for cubes that are as large as 5x5x5 blocks rather than a traditional Rubik ’s Cube ’s 3x3x3 dimensions . Here ’s a TV example of speedcubing to whet your interest :
6. National Championship Chuck Wagon Cook-Off
Are you sick of blend in to cookery competitions that just finish up being snotty and barely even involve rustic wagons ? Then this is the event for you . Chuck Big Dipper team from around the country converge up in Lubbock , Texas , as part of the National Cowboy Symposium & Celebration to revive " the skill that were used to keep the cowpoke fed and fit . “ The four - mankind teams each use a forest fire to make a meal that consists of chicken - fry steak , pinto bean , Irish potato , a deep-dish pie , and either biscuit or rolls . Better yet , this is n’t just some ivory tower competition where only the judges get to try out the food ; the same Chou is dish up to attendees as dinner . The rules endeavor to make each chuck beach waggon ’s equipment as bona fide as potential , let in regulating on the metallic element used in cooking utensil and the proffer that each police van carry a two - man crosscut saw . This case looks both interesting and delicious , so it ’s deserving checking out if you ’re in the Lubbock area this weekend .
7. Dunrobin Castle Piping Championships
If you ’re run low to have a championship for tobacco pipe playing , there ’s no better situation to hold it than a Scotch castle . This seems to be the underlying logical system of the Dunrobin Castle Piping Championships , which will take shoes on September 13th in Sutherland , Scotland . The annual affair seek to give young pipers a hazard to come through a rival if they have n’t yet won one of Scotland ’s major pipage showcases , and spectators can be treat to an afternoon of sugared pipe music . Photos of last year ’s competition show the pipers apparel in traditional Scotch plaids and kilts , so the mode alone might guarantee a visit .
Ethan Trex conscientious objector - writesStraight Johnny Cash , Homey , the Internet ’s unchallenged top source for pictures of people in Ryan Leaf jerseys . * * * * *
