International Rutabaga Curling Championship

The International Rutabaga Curling Championship takes place annually at the Ithaca Farmers' Market on the last day of the market season. Rutabaga curling originated in the frosty December climes of Ithaca, New York. Contestants are met with cheering crowds dressed in warm but colorful clothing. Contestants and their fans come seeking the elusive gold medal, rooting for their favorite brassica napus, or simply to enjoy playing with their food.

Rules

* The court is drawn within the confines of the market midway, composed of roughly flat, wooden planks. The pitch is generally around 79 feet with a circular target at the far end (see curling for a graphical representation of a similar target). Once a rutabaga has been thrown it shall lie on the field of play until all other contestants in that section have rolled. Thrown rutabagas are subject to being knocked by subsequent rolls.

* Contestants are divided into three sections, each competing within themselves. The top three finishers of each section qualify for the championship round. The top three contestants in that round are awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals, along with eternal glory, honor, and fame.

* Only rutabagas are allowed to be used in the competition. Turnips, any other variety of root vegetable, or member of the Cruciferae family will not be permitted. Contestants are encouraged to supply their own rutabagas, though vendors may be on hand to provide suitable rutabagas for competition. Modification of the rutabaga is acceptable so long as the rutabaga is always able to roll on every axis. Steroids are prohibited and any such use will subject the rutabaga to immediate withdrawal.

History

Little documentation about the early history of rutabaga curling is currently available on the world wide web, but is rumored to have originated as a means for disposing of the excess inventories of Cornell University's Campus Tirade for the Holy Rutabaga (a registered student organization). The International Rutabaga Curling Championship started spontaneously in December 1997. Chilled to the bone and with few customers, vendors at the Ithaca Farmers' Market began rolling their wares down the main aisle. [http://www.rutabagacurl.com Rutabagacurl.com] notes that the original intent was to stay warm and that the vendors did not discriminate about what they threw. Even frozen chickens found themselves lobbed across the frozen wooden midway. Rules have since been developed by High Commissioner of the International Rutabaga Curling Championship, Steve Sierigk.

An exception was made in the 2005 championships to allow the use of turnips. The emergency rule change was necessary because the official rutabagas were frozen and unavailable for use.

International Rutabaga Curling Champions

* James Niederhardt won the 2001 championship.

* In 2002, 8 year-old David Tregaskis took the gold, followed by Jane North, and Mark Tucker. Tregaskis was also noted as the youngest competitor in 2003.

* The 2003 champion was Scottish National Team member Laura Whiting. A close second was Tom "Darth Baga" Torello, followed by Jerry Waid.

* In 2004, Eric Nicholson, age 10, bested the competition for gold.

* In 2005, team Curlicious, composed of students from Cornell University, sported two of the top three finishers. Kevin Waskelis and Rena Grossman, both of Curlicious, took gold and silver respectively, while a member of the Scottish National Team, took bronze.

To date, no champion has ever successfully defended their title.

External links

* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmakar/tags/rutabagacurling/ David Makar's 2005 International Rutabaga Curling Championship Photos]
* [http://www.rutabagacurl.com/ International Rutabaga Curling Championship Official Page]
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/jgunderlach/sets/1600692/ Jon Gunderlach's 2005 International Rutabaga Curling Championship Photos]

References

Bauchner, Elizabeth. (2005). Ithaca Community News: December 2001: #2. World Wide Web. Retrieved December 19, 2005, [http://www.ithacanews.org/archive/archive.011220.html Link]

MacAroon III, Obie. (2005). Advanced Rutabaga Studies Institute. World Wide Web. Retrieved December 18, 2005, [http://members.tripod.com/~rutabagas/ Link]

Sierigk, Steve. (2005). International Rutabaga Curling Championship. World Wide Web. Retrieved December 18, 2005, [http://www.rutabagacurl.com/ Link]

Sommerstein, David. International Rutabaga Curling Championship. World Wide Web. Retrieved December 19, 2005, [http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/rutabaga/captions.txt Link]